Melkonyants was arrested in August 2023 in connection with the activities of the European Network of Election Monitoring Organizations (ENEMO), which was co-founded by Golos's legal predecessor, the Golos association.
Ukraine's underground storage facilities are currently using 19.4% of their capacity. Almost 32%, or 2.79 bcm, less gas is available in the storages than in the previous year, according to the estimates.
The majority of Ukrainians, 71%, do not support holding elections before a full peace deal, even in the case of a ceasefire and security guarantees, according to a poll published by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) on May 14.
"He'd like me to be there, and that's a possibility. ... I don't know that he would be there if I'm not there. We're going to find out," U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One while traveling to Qatar, Reuters reported.
Trump has long demanded that NATO allies increase their military spending, previously calling for the alliance to raise its benchmark from 2% to 5% of GDP.
More than 1,000 Russian government entities and 1,200 private companies are involved in the economy of occupied Mariupol, a major southeastern city occupied by Russia after it invaded Ukraine in 2022, according to a research paper published on May 14.
The measures target almost 200 ships of Russia's "shadow fleet," 30 companies involved in sanctions evasion, 75 sanctions on entities and individuals linked to the Russian military-industrial complex, and more.
The government has approved "reform roadmaps in the rule of law, public administration, and democratic institutions, as well as Ukraine’s negotiation position," Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said.
The statement did not name the ex-official by name, but details of the case indicate it relates to Oleh Hladkovsky, a former deputy secretary of Ukraine's top security body who has been wanted since mid-April.
Brazilian President Lula da Silva claimed that Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha had appealed to his Brazilian counterpart, Mauro Vieira, to ask Putin if he was willing to conclude a peace agreement.
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA) speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., United States, on April 30, 2024. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
The pause in U.S. military aid to Ukraine is temporary and tied to the fallout from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's heated Oval Office exchange with U.S. President Donald Trump, House Speaker Mike Johnson said on March 4.
"It's a temporary pause," Johnson said during a press briefing when asked about the reported freeze on over $1 billion in weapons and ammunition deliveries.
The move follows a heated Feb. 28 Oval Office meeting between Trump, Zelensky, and U.S. Vice President JD Vance, during which the two American leaders berated Zelensky.
The meeting ended without a planned U.S.-Ukraine mineral agreement being signed.
Since then, senior U.S. officials have repeatedly suggested that Zelensky should express regret for the confrontation.
Johnson said Zelensky should "make right what happened last week, the shocking developments in the Oval Office."
"If he does that (signs the minerals deal), I think this is the win-win-win scenario for everybody involved," he added.
Zelensky, in a statement earlier on March 4, called the outcome of the Oval Office meeting "regrettable" and emphasized Ukraine's readiness to sign the minerals deal "at any time and in any convenient format."
Trump's senior adviser, Jason Miller, told CNN that the aid freeze is part of a broader pressure campaign to push Zelensky toward peace talks with Russia.
U.S. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz previously said Washington expects Zelensky to show "regret" for the Oval Office clash and commit to finalizing the deal.
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.
Tim Zadorozhnyy
