"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.
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.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, U.S., on Feb. 24, 2025. (Bonnie Cash/UPI/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
U.S. President Donald Trump will attend the NATO summit in The Hague in June, Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said on April 4, Reuters reported.
The announcement follows comments from Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who said Trump is committed to supporting NATO and that the U.S. remains an active member of the alliance.
Sikorski echoed Rubio's statement, adding that Trump remains committed to NATO's Article 5 on mutual defense and will attend the NATO summit in The Hague from June 24 to 26.
Trump has long been a critic of the U.S.'s NATO partners, saying he would not defend those who fail to meet defense spending targets, directly challenging the alliance's principle of collective defense.
Trump has accused European countries of not contributing their fair share to the alliance's defense needs. His administration has also signaled that its strategic focus is shifting from Europe to the Indo-Pacific region.
The Netherlands, which will host the summit, also expects to see President Volodymyr Zelensky in The Hague, Dutch Foreign Minister Caspar Veldkamp told European Pravda on April 4.
Veldkamp said Zelensky will be invited to participate in the summit, but it is too early to discuss the possible outcomes, as negotiations with Russia to establish at least a temporary truce are still ongoing.
"It is too early to say what exactly will happen in The Hague. But I expect President Zelensky to be there," Veldkamp said.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said that as of April 4, Ukraine had not yet received an invitation for Zelensky to attend the NATO summit in The Hague.
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.
Viacheslav Ratynskyi
