"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.
The Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty logo displayed at its headquarters in Prague. (Michal Cizek/AFP via Getty Images)
The U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM) has reversed its decision to terminate grant funding for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) for the fiscal year 2025, RFE/RL reported on March 27.
The move follows a U.S. District Court ruling that granted RFE/RL a temporary restraining order, blocking what the court deemed an unlawful attempt by USAGM to cut congressionally appropriated funds.
The funding for RFE/RL was terminated earlier this month after U.S. President Donald Trumpordered USAGM, the government agency overseeing RFE/RL, Radio Free Asia, and Voice of America, to be dismantled.
RFE/RL’s lawsuit argues that USAGM’s actions violate federal law and seeks access to the full $77 million in funding approved by Congress.
RFE/RL President Stephen Capus called the reversal an encouraging step but stressed the need for formal confirmation and dialogue with USAGM leadership to secure long-term stability.
He also emphasized the importance of keeping RFE/RL operational, especially during rising threats and censorship implementation around the world.
“This is not the time for RFE/RL to go silent,” Capus said.
RFE/RL was founded early in the Cold War to counter Soviet propaganda in Eastern Bloc countries. It has since continued providing coverage of Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, and countries in Central Asia, the Balkans, the Caucasus, and elsewhere.
Sonya Bandouil is a North American news editor for The Kyiv Independent. She previously worked in the fields of cybersecurity and translating, and she also edited for various journals in NYC.
Sonya has a Master’s degree in Global Affairs from New York University, and a Bachelor’s degree in Music from the University of Houston, in Texas.
Kateryna Hodunova
