"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.
The Kyiv Independent’s contributor Ignatius Ivlev-Yorke spent a day with a mobile team from the State Emergency Service in Nikopol in the south of Ukraine as they responded to relentless drone, artillery, and mortar strikes from Russian forces just across the Dnipro River. Nikopol is located across from the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in the city of Enerhodar.
U.S. President Donald Trump arrives to speak to the media at a press conference on the second day of the 2018 NATO Summit on July 12, 2018 in Brussels, Belgium. (Sean Gallup/Getty Images)
The Trump administration is considering scrapping the longstanding role of the U.S. in leading NATO's military operations in Europe, NBC News reported on March 18, citing unnamed defense officials.
For nearly 75 years, a four-star U.S. general has held the position of Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR), overseeing NATO's military strategy and operations.
According to two defense officials familiar with internal discussions and a Pentagon briefing reviewed by NBC News, the administration is evaluating whether to relinquish this post as part of a broader effort to reduce U.S. commitments in Europe.
Retired Admiral James Stavridis, who served as SACEUR from 2009 to 2013, warned that such a move would dramatically weaken U.S. influence within the alliance.
"We would lose an enormous amount of influence within NATO, and this would be seen, correctly, as probably the first step toward leaving the alliance altogether," Stavridis said.
The potential shift follows repeated calls by U.S. President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth for NATO allies to assume greater responsibility for Europe's defense.
If Washington abandons the SACEUR role, NATO members would have to determine which European country would nominate a new supreme commander.
The Pentagon has not commented on the matter.
Trump has long demanded that NATO allies increase their military spending. He previously called for the alliance to raise its benchmark from 2% to 5% of the GDP.
Italy, Canada, and Spain remain below the current 2% target. Some NATO members are reportedly considering raising the spending target to 3% by 2030.
In 2023, Trump suggested that Russia should be allowed to "do whatever the hell they want" to alliance members failing to meet their defense obligations, a statement widely interpreted as undermining NATO's unity.
Tim Zadorozhnyy is a news editor at The Kyiv Independent. Based in Warsaw, he is pursuing studies in International Relations, focusing on European Studies. Tim began his career at a local television channel in Odesa. After moving to Warsaw, he joined the Belarusian opposition media outlet NEXTA, starting as a news anchor and later advancing to the position of managing editor.
Olena Goncharova
