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.
The Kyiv Independent’s contributor Ignatius Ivlev-Yorke spent a day with a mobile team from the State Emergency Service in Nikopol in the south of Ukraine as they responded to relentless drone, artillery, and mortar strikes from Russian forces just across the Dnipro River. Nikopol is located across from the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in the city of Enerhodar.
Peter Szijjarto's announcement came after Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) allegedly dismantled a Hungarian military intelligence network operating in Zakarpattia Oblast.
Kaja Kallas, EU's top diplomat, speaks with the media at the special European Council meeting in Brussels, Belgium, on March 6, 2025. (Olena Zashko/The Kyiv Independent)
The initiative to provide Ukraine with 40 billion euros ($43.6 billion) in military aid has "broad political support" among EU member states, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said on March 17 before the Council of Foreign Ministers meeting in Brussels.
EU diplomats reportedly suggested doubling military aid for Ukraine as the Trump administration's steps cast doubt on its commitment to Kyiv's security.
Some member states have reacted cautiously to the initiative, according to Reuters. Kallas refuted these claims, saying there is "a broad political support," but "a lot of details need to be worked out."
"It's important that the Сouncil said that we need to move swiftly, and that is what we are doing," Kallas said.
The EU foreign policy chief also added that the initiative will be discussed during a separate meeting involving EU defense ministers, which is scheduled on April 2-3 in Warsaw, Poland.
Hungary's Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto previously denounced EU plans to provide Ukraine with additional aid.
"We won't be dragged into this; we will not allow Hungarian taxpayers' money to be used to finance arms shipments to Ukraine," Szijjarto said, insisting instead that Budapest supports peace negotiations.
Hungary's leader, Viktor Orban, has consistently obstructed and delayed sanctions against Russia and military support for Kyiv. He has also lauded U.S. President Donald Trump's reelection, expressing expectations of a quick end to the war.
Kateryna Hodunova is a News Editor at the Kyiv Independent. She previously worked as a sports journalist in several Ukrainian outlets and was the deputy chief editor at Suspilne Sport. Kateryna covered the 2022 Olympics in Beijing and was included in the Special Mentions list at the AIPS Sport Media Awards. She holds a bachelor's degree in political journalism from Taras Shevchenko University and a master's degree in political science from the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy.
Olena Goncharova
