"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.
Ukraine's Iryna Koliadenko is announced as the winner over Kyrgyzstan's Aisuluu Tynybekova in their women's freestyle 62kg wrestling semi-final match at the Champ-de-Mars Arena during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, in Paris on August 9, 2024. (Photo by Punit PARANJPE / AFP) (Photo by PUNIT PARANJPE/AFP via Getty Images)
Ukrainian wrestler Iryna Koliadenko reached the 62 kg weight division finals at the Olympic Games in Paris on Aug. 9.
Koliadenko faced the current world-ranking leader, Aisuluu Tynybekova of Kyrgyzstan, in the semifinals, winning 9-2.
At the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, Koliadenko lost her only match against Tynybekova in the semifinals, after which she won a bronze medal in the repechage.
Koliadenko will compete for the gold medal with Japan's Sakura Motoki, the world vice-champion and world number two. The women's 62 kg freestyle wrestling final will take place on Aug. 10.
Another Ukrainian wrestler, Oleksandr Khotsianivskyi, will compete for a bronze medal in the 125 kg freestyle wrestling category.
Khotsianivskyi lost 0-11 to the second-seeded Geno Petriashvili of Georgia in the semifinals, but he reached the repechage thanks to Petriashvili advancing to the finals later in the day.
The Ukrainian wrestler's first opponent will be Robert Baran from Poland in the repechage. The winner of this bout will face Giorgi Meshvildishvili from Azerbaijan, a two-time bronze medalist at the European Championships, in the bronze medal match.
The repechage of the 125 kg class, as well as the medal matches, will occur on Aug. 10.
Ukraine's national team won two medals in Greco-Roman wrestling at the Olympic Games in Paris. Parviz Nasibov became a silver medalist in the 67 kg weight category, and Zhan Beleniuk won bronze in the 87 kg weight division.
Following the results of the competitions on Aug. 9, Ukraine took 16th place in the medal standings of the Olympic Games in Paris. Ukrainian athletes won 11 medals, including three gold, four silver, and four bronze.
Gold medals were secured by Ukrainian fencers Olga Kharlan, Alina Komashchuk, Yuliia Bakastova, and Olena Kravatska in the saber team competition, as well as by high jumper Yaroslava Mahuchikh and boxer Oleksandr Khyzhniak, who competed in the 80 kg weight category.
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
