U.S. President Donald Trump has acknowledged in private that Russia is difficult to negotiate with because they "want the whole thing," referring to Ukraine, the WSJ reported, citing sources familiar with the comments.
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."
An EU flag and a Swedish flag fly outside the polling station a the Town Hall in Malmo, Sweden, on June 9, 2024 during the European Parliament election. (Photo by Johan Nilsson / TT News Agency / /AFP via Getty Images)
Sweden will provide Ukraine with more than 1.4 billion Swedish kronor ($137.7 million) in humanitarian aid, the country's International Development Minister Benjamin Dousa announced on March 13.
The support package, its largest civilian support package to date, will go toward humanitarian assistance as well as Ukraine's reconstruction and development. According to Dousa, the funds will address urgent needs such as energy supply, housing, medical care, mine clearance, safe schooling, vocational training, and veteran support.
"We must strengthen Ukraine’s resilience in every way possible. The Ukrainians are defending both their own freedom and security ours," Dousa said in a statement.
The support package will be allocated to a number of projects and initiatives, including more than $10 million toward the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) for mine clearance and energy infrastructure support.
In 2025, Sweden's total support to Ukraine will account for 14 percent of its overall development assistance budget.
In recent months, Sweden, a staunch NATO ally, has continued to provide Ukraine with various aid packages.
On March 8 the Swedish Embassy in Ukraine announced the country will provide 22.5 million Swedish kronor ($2.2 million) to support Ukrainian women. And on Jan. 30, the country announced a military aid package to Ukraine worth over $1.2 billion — Sweden's largest tranche of military assistance since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022.
Earlier in the day on March 13, neighboring Finland announced that the country will provide its own military aid package valued at approximately 200 million euros ($217.4 million).
Tim Zadorozhnyy
