"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.
Russia's President Vladimir Putin and foreign leaders lay flowers at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier by the Kremlin wall after the Victory Day military parade in central Moscow on May 9, 2024. (Maksim Blinov/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
Russia held its Victory Day celebration in Moscow on May 9, a heavily militarized holiday marking the end of World War II.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu claimed that over 9,000 military personnel and over 70 pieces of equipment were featured in the Victory Day parade.
The leaders of Cuba, Laos, Guinea-Bissau, Kazakhstan, and Belarus were among the foreign leaders who joined Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow for the event.
Russia relies on "the memory of the military brotherhood of our fathers, grandfathers and great-grandfathers," and the "friendship of people of different nationalities" for the ability to work "together for the sake of the future," Putin said in his speech.
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Putin referred to the Soviet Union as a country that not only "defeated Nazism," but also "helped the peoples of the African continent and Asia both during the period of their anti-colonial struggle and after they gained state independence."
The day is celebrated by those who "realize the enduring value of justice, equality, and humanism," Putin claimed.
Against the backdrop of Russia's full-scale war in Ukraine, the historical memory of World War II has been weaponized by Russia as part of its attempt to frame the invasion of Ukraine as a continuation of Russia's struggle against the West.
Media reports emerged earlier in May that the Russian authorities had created a display of Western military hardware allegedly captured in Ukraine as part of a World War II memorial in Moscow.
The display reportedly showcased a variety of German-made equipment, accompanied by a sign that read, "history is repeating itself," as well as a U.S. Abrams tank.
President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a law in 2023 officially changing the date of Ukraine's World War II commemoration to May 8, aligning it with most of Europe and indicating a full break from the Soviet-era holiday.
Around 6 to 7 million Ukrainians were killed during World War II, including about 1.5 million Ukrainian Jews. As a percentage of the population, Ukraine suffered greater losses in the war than Russia.
Irynka Hromotska
