"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.
The sanctions list includes 58 individuals and 74 companies, with 67 Russian enterprises related to military technology.
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.
Despite the Kremlin's announcement of a May 8–11 truce, heavy fighting continued in multiple regions throughout the front line.
Putin has done in Russia everything that Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva had been against in Brazil.
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.
Ukraine, Germany agree to open 'Unity Hub' for Ukrainian refugees in Berlin

Ukraine's National Unity Minister Oleksii Chernyshov and German Federal Minister for Special Tasks Wolfgang Schmidt signed a joint declaration on Feb. 15, agreeing to open Ukraine's "Unity Hubs" in Berlin.
"The signing of the Joint Declaration of Intent to open the Ukrainian 'Unity Hub' in Berlin is an important step to support our citizens abroad. This is a professional space that brings together community, business, and cultural initiatives," Chernyshov said.
The declaration was signed at the Munich Security Conference as the German government continues to debate the legal status and benefits for Ukrainian refugees in the country.
The hub will provide Ukrainians with access to educational and career opportunities both in Ukraine and in the host country, according to Chernyshov.
The initiative also aims to help Ukrainian refugees adapt, learn, and develop their initiatives in the host country. Meanwhile, the hub will also provide assistance to those who want to return to Ukraine.
Germany has taken in more than 1 million Ukrainian refugees since the start of the full-scale invasion, spending over 20 billion euros ($21.4 billion) on their accommodation and integration, according to Bloomberg.
More than 200,000 Ukrainian refugees have already found jobs in Germany through the government's Jobturbo program, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said during a conference with citizens and voters of his Social Democratic Party (SPD) in Teltow.
According to Eurostat, over 4.2 million Ukrainian refugees are currently registered for temporary protection to legally access housing, find work, and receive social benefits in EU states. The EU activated the Temporary Protection Directive in March 2022 after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine began.

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