"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.
President Volodymyr Zelensky addresses the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, on Jan. 21, 2025. (Stefan Wermuth/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Ukraine’s ascension to NATO ultimately rests on U.S. President Donald Trump’s will, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Jan. 22.
"Everything depends on the United States. If Trump is ready to see Ukraine in NATO, we will be in NATO, everyone will be in favor. If President Trump is not ready to see us in NATO, we will not be in NATO," Zelensky told journalists.
Zelensky also named four countries — Germany, Hungary, Slovakia, and the United States— that currently do not want Ukraine to join the military alliance. Politico reported last year that other countries, such as Belgium, Slovenia, or Spain, are also in opposition, even though they are less vocal about their stance.
There is little evidence that the new Trump administration would be more open to accepting Ukraine into NATO than former U.S. President Joe Biden. Trump even attacked Biden over alleged support for Kyiv's aspirations, claiming it provoked Russia's full-scale invasion.
Ukraine did not obtain any definitive commitments from Western partners on its NATO membership ahead of the full-scale invasion and, as of 2025, has yet to receive a membership invitation.
A report by The Wall Street Journal has previously suggested that Trump’s team was exploring a plan to delay Ukraine’s NATO membership by at least 20 years in exchange for Western arms supplies and European peacekeepers to monitor a potential ceasefire with Russia.
Moscow has already rejected the proposal, with Russian President Vladimir Putin reportedly seeking a permanent ban on Ukraine's entry into the alliance in expected talks with Trump.
Kyiv submitted its application to join in September 2022, and in July 2024, the alliance affirmed Ukraine's "irreversible path to full Euro-Atlantic integration, including NATO membership."
Boldizsar is a former Reuters correspondent for Hungary, currently based in Kharkiv, reporting for the Kyiv Independent and various other outlets. He holds degrees in political science, philosophy, and development policy.
Martin Fornusek
