"Our involvement in the war was justifiable, and this belongs to our sovereign rights," North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un said. "I regard this as part of the sacred mission we must execute for our brothers and comrades-in-arms."
"We have a plan B and a plan C. But our focus is plan A, the essence of which is to get everyone's support" for Ukraine's accession, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said.
"(T)he presence at the Victory Parade of a country that bombs cities, hospitals, and daycares, and which has caused the deaths and injuries of over a million people over three years, is a shame," Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said.
"According to the participants of the performances, their goal is to remind the civilized world of the barbaric actions of Moscow, which for many years and decades has systematically violated international law," a source in Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (HUR) told the Kyiv Independent.
"I have great hope that an agreement for a ceasefire in Ukraine will be reached this weekend," German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on May 9, shortly before traveling to Kyiv alongside the leaders of France, Poland, and the U.K.
U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk will arrive in Kyiv early on May 10.
The United States embassy in Kyiv on May 9 issued a warning that Russia could launch "a potentially significant" attack in the coming days, despite Putin's self-declared Victory Day "truce."
The sanctioned oil tankers have transported over $24 billion in cargo since 2024, according to Downing Street. The U.K. has now sanctioned more shadow fleet vessels than any other country.
Washington and its partners are considering additional sanctions if the parties do not observe a ceasefire, with political and technical negotiations between Europe and the U.S. intensifying since last week, Reuters' source said.
Calin Georgescu, Romania's presidential candidate, speaks to members of the media after voting at a polling station during parliamentary elections, near Bucharest, Romania, on Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024. (Andrei Pungovschi/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Far-right Romanian politician Calin Georgescu called Ukraine a "fictional state" and claimed that the eventual partition of its territories is "inevitable" in an interview published on Jan. 29.
"On 100% it will happen," Calin Georgescu said in the interview with journalist Ion Cristoiu about redrawing Ukraine's borders as a consequence of the Russia-Ukraine war, suggesting Romania could claim some of Ukraine's territories.
"The path to something like this is inevitable. Ukraine is a fictional state... the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic."
The obscure, pro-Russian ultranationalist achieved a shock success during the first round of a presidential vote in November 2024, making him a front-runner for the second round. The results were annulled by the constitutional court over alleged Russian interference and a hybrid campaign on TikTok meant to prop up Georgescu.
The far-right politician, who has opposed military support for Ukraine and the transit of Ukrainian grain through Romania, remains the leading candidate for the rescheduled vote in May with 38% of projected support.
"The world is changing. Borders will change... If borders change, where are we? We have an interest in Northern Bukovina. We have Budjak, we have Northern Maramures, the former Transcarpathia... there are still Hungarians," Georgescu said, referring to Ukrainian regions bordering Romania.
The politician further suggested that Poland would annex Lviv, echoing tropes commonly employed by Russian propaganda about a post-war division of Ukraine.
Georgescu is not the first far-right Romanian politician to suggest annexing parts of Ukraine's territory in the wake of Russia's war. Claudiu Tarziu, a member of the far-right Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR) party, and Diana Sosoaca, the leader of the pro-Russian SOS Romania party, made similar comments.
There are an estimated 150,000-500,000 ethnic Romanians living in Ukraine, concentrated in the border regions.
The current Romanian leadership has been staunchly pro-Ukrainian throughout the full-scale war, providing military aid that included a Patriot air defense system, housing a training facility for Ukrainian F-16 pilots, and facilitating the transit of Ukrainian agricultural products.
During the interview, Georgescu also said that U.S. President Donald Trump will seek to cut a quick deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the war in Ukraine, meaning Bucharest will no longer have to provide assistance to Kyiv.
Martin Fornusek is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. He has previously worked as a news content editor at the media company Newsmatics and is a contributor to Euromaidan Press. He was also volunteering as an editor and translator at the Czech-language version of Ukraïner. Martin studied at Masaryk University in Brno, Czechia, holding a bachelor's degree in security studies and history and a master's degree in conflict and democracy studies.
Natalia Yermak
