"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.
Jelena Ostapenko (L) of Latvia and Lyudmyla Kichenok (R) of Ukraine pose with their trophy after defeating Kristina Mladenovic of France and Shuai Zhang of China in their Women's Doubles Final match on Day Twelve of the 2024 US Open at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on Sept. 6, 2024. (Luke Hales/Getty Images)
Ukrainian tennis star Lyudmyla Kichenok won her first major title with Latvian partner Jelena Ostapenko on Sept. 6, winning in two sets in the women's doubles final at the U.S. Open.
Kichenok and Ostapenko defeated China's Zhang Shuai and Kristina Mladenovic in straight sets, 6-4, 6-3, leading the pair to their first Grand Slam title and fifth team title. The pair did not lose a single set throughout the tournament.
The win marks Kichenok's second major title having previously won the 2023 Wimbledon Championships in mixed double with Croatia's Mate Pavic. Before today's victory Kichenok ranked 17th overall in the Women Tennis Association's (WTA) doubles ranking.
Following her victory, Kichenok dedicated her victory to "the people in Ukraine."
"I want to dedicate my wins to the people in Ukraine," Kichenok said. "They are fighting very hard for our freedom right now and I just hope I can give them some encouragement. My heart is with them."
Earlier this year, Kichenok and Ostapenko reached their first Grand Slam finals together during the Australian Open women's doubles event but lost to Taiwan's Hsieh Su-Wei and Belgium's Elise Mertens. At the time the 31-year-old Dnipro-born Ostapenko became just the third Ukrainian female tennis player to reach the Grand Slam doubles final.
Along with her sister Nadiia, Lyudmyla reached the quarterfinals of women's doubles at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Following the match Kichenok announced that she was scheduled to marry her fiancé Stas Kumarsky - who also serve as Ostapenko's coach - on Sept. 4, but her advancement to the semi-finals temporarily postponed the planned marriage.
"We had an appointment to get married this Wednesday but I had the semifinals," Kichenok told ESPN during the trophy ceremony.
Dmytro Basmat is a senior news editor for The Kyiv Independent. He previously worked in Canadian politics as a communications lead and spokesperson for a national political party, and as a communications assistant for a Canadian Member of Parliament. Basmat has a Master's degree in Political Management from Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada, and a Bachelor of Arts in Politics and Governance from Toronto Metropolitan University.
Abbey Fenbert
