"Ukraine and all allies are ready for a complete unconditional ceasefire on land, in the air, and at sea for at least 30 days, starting as early as Monday," Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha wrote.
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.
Donald Trump looks on during a campaign stop to address Pennsylvanians who are concerned about the threat of Communist China to U.S. agriculture at the Smith Family Farm September 23, 2024 in Smithton, Pennsylvania (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
Editor's note: This story was updated with a statement from European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Feb. 10 imposing a 25% tariff on all steel and aluminum imports, with no exceptions, according to the White House.
Steel production is a key sector of Ukraine's economy, the second-largest source of foreign currency after agriculture.
Economy Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko wrote on Facebook that Ukraine’s metallurgical products make up 57.9% of Ukraine's exports to the U.S., or in dollar amounts, $503 million out of $869 million. It’s unclear what time frame those figures represent.
The share of Ukrainian products in U.S. steel products is minimal and won’t have a significant impact on U.S. producers, Svyrydenko noted. But it’s still another blow to the country’s largest exports of metallurgical companies — ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih and Interpipe — already hurting due to the war.
"In recent years, we have made every effort to ensure that Ukrainian steel remains outside the 25% tariff limit in the U.S.," Svyrydenko said, implying that these efforts have been unsuccessful.
The minister added that she and her colleagues are “working actively with partners to find an optimal solution by March 12,” when the tariffs come into effect.
Trump defended the tariffs as a way to simplify duties on metals and hinted at retaliatory measures against countries imposing tariffs on American goods.
The European Commission previously vowed to "react to protect the interests of European businesses, workers, and consumers from unjustified measures."
Commission President Ursula von der Leyen reacted to Trump's executive order by saying that "unjustified tariffs on the EU will not go unanswered."
"Tariffs are taxes — bad for business, worse for consumers," she added.
The dispute over steel and aluminum tariffs dates back to Trump's first term, when his administration imposed duties on nearly $7 billion of European exports in 2018, citing national security concerns. The EU retaliated with tariffs on U.S. goods.
A temporary truce was reached in 2021 under the Biden administration, with the U.S. partially lifting tariffs and replacing them with a quota system while the EU froze its countermeasures. Trump's new tariffs threaten to reignite the trade conflict.
The European Commission argued that such restrictions would disrupt the deeply integrated supply chains between the EU and the U.S., raising costs and harming trade between both regions.
Tim Zadorozhnyy is a news editor at The Kyiv Independent. Based in Warsaw, he is pursuing studies in International Relations, focusing on European Studies. Tim began his career at a local television channel in Odesa. After moving to Warsaw, he joined the Belarusian opposition media outlet NEXTA, starting as a news anchor and later advancing to the position of managing editor.
Martin Fornusek
