"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.
Illustrative purposes only: Coal in freight wagons ahead of shipping at Tomusinskaya railway station near Mezhdurechensk, Russia, on July 19, 2021. (Andrey Rudakov/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Western sanctions and shrinking export opportunities in Asia have triggered a severe crisis in Russia's coal industry, particularly in Kemerovo Oblast, the country's key coal-producing region, the Moscow Times reported on March 3.
Kemerovo Oblast, or Kuzbass, which accounts for 60% of Russia's hard coal production and 80% of its coking coal, has been hit the hardest.
Financial troubles have forced eight coal companies in the region to halt operations, leaving hundreds of miners without pay for months, according to Kemerovo Governor Ilya Seredyuk.
"Falling prices on world markets, problems with logistics, a shortage of personnel, and a high key rate — along with Western sanctions — have created a serious challenge for the coal industry," Seredyuk said.
Russia has attempted to shift coal exports to Asia after losing access to Western markets, but demand has declined.
In 2023, Indian coal imports from Russia fell by 37%, while Chinese imports dropped by 13%. As a result, total coal exports from Kuzbass fell by 10.4%, and regional production declined by 7.3% to 198.4 million tons (396 million pounds).
Despite Moscow's deepening economic ties with Beijing, Western sanctions have become an increasing hurdle to Russian-Chinese trade, further compounding financial losses and bankruptcies in Russia's coal sector.
Tim Zadorozhnyy is a news editor at The Kyiv Independent. Based in Warsaw, he is pursuing studies in International Relations, focusing on European Studies. Tim began his career at a local television channel in Odesa. After moving to Warsaw, he joined the Belarusian opposition media outlet NEXTA, starting as a news anchor and later advancing to the position of managing editor.
Yana Prots
