"(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.
Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, on May 23, 2023. (Oleksii Filippov/SPUTNIK/AFP via Getty Images)
Russian President Vladimir Putin will not be invited to the next G20 summit due to a pending arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC), a spokesperson of the South African president told Russia’s state-owned TASS news agency on Dec. 15.
South Africa, which has chaired the organization since Dec. 1, was also unable to host the Russian leader in August during their BRICS meeting in Johannesburg.
"The legal situation has not changed since the BRICS summit in Johannesburg. We cannot influence the ICC's decisions in any way," spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said, according to TASS. The next G20 summit is scheduled for Nov. 21-22, 2025.
South Africa, the largest economy on the continent, has claimed neutrality in the Russia-Ukraine war but continued to strengthen its economic and political ties with Moscow. The country is a member of the BRICS group alongside Russia, China, and others, and it even carried out joint naval drills with the two countries last year.
This forces the Russian leader to carefully select his travel destinations, as any country in the ICC must arrest him under the warrant. South Africa is a signatory of the ICC's Rome Statute.
In November, Putin also chose not to travel to Brazil for the last G20 summit but sent his Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in his place. The G20 group includes several countries that have fostered closer economic cooperation with Russia throughout its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, including China and India.
Putin visited Mongolia, a member of the ICC, in September of this year, where the Russian president received a warm welcome in Ulaanbaatar.
Boldizsar is a former Reuters correspondent for Hungary, currently based in Kharkiv, reporting for the Kyiv Independent and various other outlets. He holds degrees in political science, philosophy, and development policy.
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