"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.
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.
The seal of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is seen outside of a headquarters building in Washington, DC on April 7, 2021. (Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)
The Ukrainian government and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have started talks on the fourth revision of the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) program, the Finance Ministry reported on May 27.
After the review, nearly $2.2 billion in funds may be allocated in June under the EFF, a four-year funding agreement that will allow Ukraine to access $15.6 billion in financial aid in regular installments.
The EFF is set to provide $5.4 billion in budgetary assistance in 2024, with $880 million already disbursed following a successful review in March.
"We have already successfully passed three reviews of the program and expect to receive the next tranche of about $2.2 billion due to the successful fourth review in June," said Finance Minister Serhii Marchenko.
The parties will discuss Ukraine's performance under the joint financial and economic policies memorandum.
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The meetings will be in both online and offline formats. The offline meetings will be held in Warsaw.
The representatives of the Finance Ministry, including Marchenko, the National Bank of Ukraine, as well as from other government agencies will participate in the talks.
Marchenko added that the Finance Ministry, the National Bank, and the IMF continue to work on implementing the jointly defined reforms, ensuring macroeconomic stability, strengthening public administration, economic recovery, and gradual European integration of Ukraine.
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.
Martin Fornusek
