Melkonyants was arrested in August 2023 in connection with the activities of the European Network of Election Monitoring Organizations (ENEMO), which was co-founded by Golos's legal predecessor, the Golos association.
Ukraine's underground storage facilities are currently using 19.4% of their capacity. Almost 32%, or 2.79 bcm, less gas is available in the storages than in the previous year, according to the estimates.
The majority of Ukrainians, 71%, do not support holding elections before a full peace deal, even in the case of a ceasefire and security guarantees, according to a poll published by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) on May 14.
"He'd like me to be there, and that's a possibility. ... I don't know that he would be there if I'm not there. We're going to find out," U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One while traveling to Qatar, Reuters reported.
Trump has long demanded that NATO allies increase their military spending, previously calling for the alliance to raise its benchmark from 2% to 5% of GDP.
More than 1,000 Russian government entities and 1,200 private companies are involved in the economy of occupied Mariupol, a major southeastern city occupied by Russia after it invaded Ukraine in 2022, according to a research paper published on May 14.
The measures target almost 200 ships of Russia's "shadow fleet," 30 companies involved in sanctions evasion, 75 sanctions on entities and individuals linked to the Russian military-industrial complex, and more.
The government has approved "reform roadmaps in the rule of law, public administration, and democratic institutions, as well as Ukraine’s negotiation position," Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said.
The statement did not name the ex-official by name, but details of the case indicate it relates to Oleh Hladkovsky, a former deputy secretary of Ukraine's top security body who has been wanted since mid-April.
Brazilian President Lula da Silva claimed that Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha had appealed to his Brazilian counterpart, Mauro Vieira, to ask Putin if he was willing to conclude a peace agreement.
President Volodymyr Zelensky meets U.S. President Donald Trump shortly before the funeral of Pope Francis in the Vatican on April 26, 2025. (Andriy Yermak/Telegram)
U.S. President Donald Trump must realize that Russian President Vladimir Putin is an obstacle to peace efforts, President Volodymyr Zelensky said in comments reported by the Guardian on May 13.
"Trump needs to believe that Putin actually lies," Zelensky told journalists in Kyiv.
"And we should do our part. Sensibly approach this issue, to show that it’s not us that is slowing down the process."
The comments come ahead of Zelensky's planned trip to Turkey, where he invited Putin to discuss a potential ceasefire and a prisoner exchange in what would be the first direct peace negotiations between Kyiv and Moscow since 2022.
Russia has confirmed that it would dispatch a delegation to the talks, which will also be attended by top U.S. officials, but declined to confirm Putin's participation.
"If Putin does not arrive and plays games, it is the final point that he does not want to end the war," Zelensky said.
Ukraine and its allies have called for an unconditional 30-day ceasefire starting on May 12 as the first step toward peace – a proposal ignored by Russia.
Trump has voiced optimism about the potential meeting of the two leaders and suggested he might attend as well.
The White House has grown increasingly frustrated with the stalled peace efforts as the self-imposed 100-day deadline to broker a deal has passed. The U.S. president has been critical of both Ukraine and Russia, blaming them for the deadlock in the negotiations.
After meeting Zelensky in the Vatican on April 26, Trump admitted that Putin may not be interested in peace and floated the possibility of imposing additional sanctions on Russia.
Martin Fornusek is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. He has previously worked as a news content editor at the media company Newsmatics and is a contributor to Euromaidan Press. He was also volunteering as an editor and translator at the Czech-language version of Ukraïner. Martin studied at Masaryk University in Brno, Czechia, holding a bachelor's degree in security studies and history and a master's degree in conflict and democracy studies.
Chris York
