"Ukraine and all allies are ready for a complete unconditional ceasefire on land, in the air, and at sea for at least 30 days, starting as early as Monday," Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha wrote.
U.S. President Donald Trump has acknowledged in private that Russia is difficult to negotiate with because they "want the whole thing," referring to Ukraine, the WSJ reported, citing sources familiar with the comments.
A notice about the airspace closure was published on the U.S. Defense Department's NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) website on May 10, as cited by Ukrainian defense news outlet Militarnyi.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov rejected the idea of a 30-day ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine, claiming in an interview with ABC News on May 10 that it would be "an advantage" for Ukraine.
"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 German-Swedish air-to-ground cruise missile Taurus presented in a showroom at the European defense company MBDA (Matra BAe Dynamics Aerospatiale). (Matthias Balk/picture alliance via Getty Images)
Ukrainian diplomat Andrii Melnyk has called on Germany’s incoming chancellor, Friedrich Merz, to fulfill his campaign promise and immediately deliver 150 Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine, alongside a broader set of decisive actions to stop Russia’s full-scale war.
"Germany, of all places, has a decisive role to play in stopping murder and bringing about a just peace," Melnyk wrote in a letter published in German by Die Welt, a national daily newspaper. "Not only does the future of the Federal Republic depend on your success as chancellor, but also the fate of Ukraine — and the whole of Europe."
Andrii Melnyk served as Ukraine’s ambassador to Germany from December 2014 to October 2022, then as Deputy Foreign Minister, and since June 20, 2023, he has been Ukraine’s ambassador to Brazil.
In the letter, published shortly before Easter, Melnyk outlined five steps Merz should take during his first 100 days in office. First, he proposed a coalition decision to allocate 0.5% of Germany’s GDP annually — around 21.5 billion euros ($24.5 billion) per year, or 86 billion euros ($98 billion) by 2029 — for arms supplies to Ukraine. The funding, he said, should go toward the production of advanced weapons in both Germany and Ukraine, calling it "a huge investment in Germany’s security."
Melnyk also called for the same 0.5% commitment to be adopted at the EU and G7 levels, excluding the United States. He said the resulting 550-billion-euro ($622 billion) investment in Ukraine’s defense over the next four years would send a powerful message to Moscow.
"This mega-commitment… would be a huge warning signal to Putin that you, Mr. Merz, and our allies are serious about Ukraine’s aid," he wrote. "This will impress Putin."
One of the most urgent demands in the letter is the immediate announcement and implementation of Taurus missile deliveries. "This election promise must be fulfilled, despite the expected resistance from the (Social Democratic Party) SPD," Melnyk wrote, adding that Germany does not need "coordination with partners" or to issue ultimatums to the Kremlin.
The outgoing German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, has repeatedly blocked the delivery of Taurus missiles over his concerns about escalation. Merz has been critical of this position and advocated for Ukraine's ability to strike strategically.
In an interview on April 13, Merz also suggested that the long-range missiles, if supplied to Ukraine, could be used to target strategic Russian military infrastructure in occupied Crimea. The Telegraph reported on April 16 that the U.K. would support a potential German decision to send Taurus missiles to Ukraine.
"These inferno weapons should simply be delivered, without 'ifs' and 'buts', to stop the creeping advance of the Russians and change the current war dynamics at its core," Melnyk wrote, according to the Welt.
The letter also proposes transferring 30% of Germany’s available fighter jets, helicopters, and armored vehicles to Ukraine and adopting a lend-lease-style law to enable swift deliveries.
Melnyk concluded by urging Merz to push to confiscate 200 billion euros in frozen Russian assets and use the funds for Ukraine’s reconstruction.
Olena Goncharova is the Head of North America desk at The Kyiv Independent, where she has previously worked as a development manager and Canadian correspondent. She first joined the Kyiv Post, Ukraine's oldest English-language newspaper, as a staff writer in January 2012 and became the newspaper’s Canadian correspondent in June 2018. She is based in Edmonton, Alberta. Olena has a master’s degree in publishing and editing from the Institute of Journalism in Taras Shevchenko National University in Kyiv. Olena was a 2016 Alfred Friendly Press Partners fellow who worked for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette for six months. The program is administered by the University of Missouri School of Journalism in Columbia.
Martin Fornusek
