A notice about the airspace closure was published on the U.S. Defense Department's NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) website on May 10, as cited by Ukrainian defense news outlet Militarnyi.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov rejected the idea of a 30-day ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine, claiming in an interview with ABC News on May 10 that it would be "an advantage" for Ukraine.
"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.
A Russian flag flies next to the US embassy building in Moscow on November 30, 2023, on a snowy day. Russian President Vladimir Putin on November 30, 2023 paid tribute to the late US diplomat Henry Kissinger, praising his contribution to US-Soviet relations and describing him as a "wise and visionary statesman". (Photo by Alexander NEMENOV / AFP) (Photo by ALEXANDER NEMENOV/AFP via Getty Images)
A Russian court on Nov. 1 sentenced Robert Shonov, a former employee of the U.S. consulate in Vladivostok, to four years and 10 months in prison for "secret collaboration with a foreign state."
Shonov, a Russian national who worked at the consulate for over 25 years until 2021, became a private contractor after Moscow restricted local staff from working at foreign missions, gathering public Russian media reports for the U.S., according to the U.S. State Department.
Shonov was detained in 2023, accused of passing information on Russia’s war in Ukraine to the U.S. in exchange for payment. Primorye’s regional court disclosed that 400,000 roubles ($4,100) and an electronic device were confiscated as part of the investigation.
In September, Russia expelled two U.S. diplomats, alleging they served as intermediaries for Shonov.
The U.S. State Department defended Shonov’s activities as lawful, saying he "worked as a private contractor compiling press accounts from publicly accessible Russian media, in strict compliance with Russia’s laws and regulations." Spokesperson Matthew Miller said the allegations against Mr. Shonov "are wholly without merit."
This incident adds to a series of U.S. nationals arrested in Russia, with several now serving lengthy sentences or awaiting trial. Washington, a key backer of Ukraine against Russian forces, accuses Moscow of seeking prisoner swaps for Russians held in the U.S.
Though the U.S. and Russia executed a notable prisoner swap in August that included Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, several American and dual-national detainees remain in Russian custody.
Olena Goncharova is the Head of North America desk at The Kyiv Independent, where she has previously worked as a development manager and Canadian correspondent. She first joined the Kyiv Post, Ukraine's oldest English-language newspaper, as a staff writer in January 2012 and became the newspaper’s Canadian correspondent in June 2018. She is based in Edmonton, Alberta. Olena has a master’s degree in publishing and editing from the Institute of Journalism in Taras Shevchenko National University in Kyiv. Olena was a 2016 Alfred Friendly Press Partners fellow who worked for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette for six months. The program is administered by the University of Missouri School of Journalism in Columbia.
Kateryna Hodunova
