"If they speak to each other in Russian, he doesn't know what they are saying," one Western official told NBC News. Michael McFaul, former U.S. ambassador to Russia, called Witkoff's approach "a very bad idea."
Tougher sanctions "should be applied to (Russia's) banking and energy sectors, targeting fossil fuels, oil, and the shadow fleet," the leaders of Ukraine, the U.K., France, Germany, and Poland said in a joint statement.
"Russia is ready for negotiations without any preconditions," Putin claimed in an address marking the end of the three-day Victory Day ceasefire. He invited Ukraine to begin talks in Istanbul on May 15.
While serving as a bishop in Peru, Robert Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV, called the full-scale war "a true invasion, imperialist in nature, where Russia seeks to conquer territory for reasons of power."
Speaking to CNN on May 10, Peskov commented on the latest ceasefire proposal from Ukraine and Europe, responding that Russia needs to "think about" it, but is "resistant" to pressure.
Speaking at a press conference in Kyiv on May 10, President Volodymyr Zelensky rebuked the idea of a demilitarized zone in the war and emphasized the importance of first securing a ceasefire.
"We agreed that a full and unconditional ceasefire must begin on Monday, May 12, for at least 30 days. We jointly demand this from Russia, and we know we are supported in this by the United States," Zelensky said.
Ukrainian media outlet ZN.UA reported on May 10 that their law enforcement sources confirmed an ongoing probe by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau into suspected embezzlement, money laundering and bribery.
Iran is preparing to send Russia Fath-360 short-range ballistic missile launchers, Reuters reported on May 9, citing Western security and regional officials familiar with the matter.
"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.
Russian airborne early warning and control aircraft Beriev A-50U on March 10, 2017. (Sergey Lutsenko/Wikimedia Commons)
Russia has likely stopped flying its A-50 early warning and control planes in support of operations in Ukraine after the downing of the second aircraft, the U.K. Defense Ministry said in its March 2 report.
The Russian Air Force has recently lost two of its A-50 planes, one in January and another on Feb. 23, reportedly due to Ukrainian attacks. One such aircraft costs around $330 million.
The A-50 plane provides several critical functions for the ongoing war in Ukraine, such as detecting air defense systems, guided missiles, and coordinating targets for Russian fighter jets.
Ukraine's Air Force spokesperson Yurii Ihnat said on Feb. 27 that Ukrainian forces have not detected an A-50 aircraft for days since Feb. 23.
Russia will likely keep the planes grounded during internal investigations into the failure to protect this highly valuable asset, the U.K. Defense Ministry said.
"This is a capability gap Russia can ill afford over the contested airspace of eastern and southern Ukraine," the ministry believes.
The loss of A-50 support will likely degrade the situational awareness of air crews and force Russian warplanes to take greater risks to support ground forces, the analysis read.
Russia recently experienced a string of airpower losses, including 10 Su-34 fighter bombers and two Su-35 fighter jets in the last two weeks of February. One more Su-34 was reportedly shot down on March 1.
According to the U.K. Defense Ministry, Russia may attempt to refit older A-50 airframes to offset the losses, as there are likely only a few aircraft currently in operation. Ukraine's military intelligence chief Kyrylo Budanov said that Russia's A-50 fleet currently includes only six operational planes.
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.
Kateryna Denisova
