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 delegation from Thailand attends the BRICS Plus (BRICS+) meeting taking place from June 16-19, 2024, in Vladivostok, Russia. (Matt Hunt/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Thailand has accepted Russia's invitation to become a BRICS partner state, Thai Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Nikondet Phalangkun said at a press briefing on Dec. 26.
BRICS, composed of Russia, China, India, Brazil, and other nations, is a bloc of emerging economies often portrayed as a counterweight to the Western-led world.
"On October 31, Thailand received an invitation to become a BRICS partner state from Russia, the group's chair in 2024," Phalangkun said.
"On December 24, the Cabinet of Ministers held a meeting and decided that Thailand would respond positively to the invitation."
The government believes that joining the economic alliance will carry benefits for Thailand across a number of sectors.
"(M)embership in BRICS will benefit Thailand by promoting trade, investment, food and energy security," Phalangkun said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin hosted a BRICS forum in Kazan in October 2024. According to Moscow, 36 world leaders participated in the summit. Following the event, Putin said that invitations would be sent to a number of proposed new partner countries.
Four new members – Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates – joined BRICS at the start of 2024. This marked the group's first expansion since December 2010, when South Africa became a member.
Thailand opted to remain neutral after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Bangkok did not impose sanctions on Moscow or send weapons to Kyiv, but did later vote in favor of multiple United Nations resolutions calling for Russia's withdrawal from Ukraine.
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.
Kateryna Denisova
