"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.
Ukrainian soldiers prepare FPV kamikaze drones for combat flightPilots of the "Peaky Blinders" division of FPV kamikaze drones prepare drones for a combat flight in Kharkiv Oblast, Ukraine, on May 16, 2024. (Kostiantyn Liberov/Libkos/Getty Images)
More than 95% of the drones used by the Ukrainian forces at the front line are made in Ukraine, Interfax Ukraine reported on April 28, citing Deputy Defense Minister Valerii Churkin.
Since the start of the full-scale invasion, Ukraine has been developing and deploying technological innovations and cutting-edge unmanned systems.
Both Ukraine and Russia have increasingly relied on drone warfare, using aerial, naval, and ground-based drones for reconnaissance and combat missions.
"We have made a breakthrough in the unmanned systems sector. More than 95% of UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) currently used at the front are Ukrainian-made," Churkin said.
Churkin added that in 2024, Ukraine's Defense Ministry authorized more than 330 new models of domestically produced unmanned systems, compared to only 75 models a year earlier.
Since the launch of Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022, Ukraine has increasingly turned to innovation and home production. More than 40% of the weapons used on the front line are now produced in Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on April 16.
In the 2025 budget, Ukraine allocated $1.3 billion to defense manufacturing to reduce its reliance on foreign arms deliveries. The government plans to raise over $1 billion this year to support local arms procurement through a so-called Danish model, under which countries can donate arms to Ukraine by purchasing them directly from Ukrainian domestic producers.
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.
Asami Terajima
