"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.
Apartments damaged by a Russian drone strike against Odesa on April 21, 2025. (Hennadii Trukhanov / Telegram)
Editor's Note: This is a developing story and is being updated.
Russia launched a mass drone strike against the Ukrainian port city of Odesa late at night on April 21, injuring at least three people, local authorities said.
The attack targeted a residential building in a densely populated neighborhood, Odesa Mayor Hennadii Trukhanov reported. Fires broke out upon impact and several apartments were damaged.
Three people were injured and are receiving medical treatment, regional Governor Oleh Kiper said.
The attack on Odesa comes as Ukraine awaits a response to its proposed ban on long-range strikes against civilian infrastructure. President Volodymyr Zelensky said on April 21 that the ban was still on the table and Kyiv expects a "clear answer" from Moscow.
Zelensky first proposed the partial ceasefire on April 20, in the final hours of Russia's brief "Easter truce." While Ukraine documented over 3,000 Russian violations of the temporary ceasefire, Zelensky said that air raid alarms were quiet throughout the country on Easter.
The president then proposed a ceasefire on "any strikes with long-range drones and missiles on civilian infrastructure for a period of at least 30 days with the possibility of extension."
Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed on April 21 that he was open to discussing the proposal and had "a positive attitude towards any peace initiatives," but stopped short of implementing the ban.
The mass drone attack against civilians in Odesamarks the only "clear answer" from Russia thus far.
Abbey Fenbert is a senior news editor at the Kyiv Independent. She is a freelance writer, editor, and playwright with an MFA from Boston University. Abbey served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Ukraine from 2008-2011.
Daria Shulzhenko
