"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.
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.
British Foreign Secretary David Lammy (L) welcomed by Valerii Zaluzhnyi (R), Ukraine's ambassador to the U.K., as he arrives in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Feb. 5, 2025. (Valerii Zaluzhnyi/Telegram)
Editor's note: This is a developing story and is being updated.
British Foreign Secretary David Lammy arrived in Kyiv on Feb. 5 to discuss bilateral cooperation and Ukraine's security, said Valerii Zaluzhnyi, Ukraine's ambassador to the U.K.
"I am grateful that the United Kingdom is always with us in these difficult times," Zaluzhnyi said on Telegram.
The U.K.'s top diplomat is visiting Ukraine shortly after British Prime Minister Keir Starmer pledged to ramp up military support, promising more assistance in 2025 than ever before.
London previously announced plans to deliver unprecedented military assistance to Ukraine this year, with 3 billion pounds ($3.6 billion) already committed for lethal aid.
The British-Ukrainian cooperation was further cemented in January by the 100-year strategic partnership agreement, a wide-ranging deal that encompasses cooperation in military, energy, scientific, cultural, economic, and other sectors.
Chris York
