"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.
The headquarters of the World Bank Group (World Bank) in Washington, D.C., Sept. 17, 2024. (Valerie Plesch/dpa via Getty Images)
The World Bank's Board of Directors on Dec. 18 approved $2.05 billion in Development Policy Operation (DPO) grants to Ukraine, part of which is funded by a portion of the new U.S. $20 billion loan backed by frozen Russian assets.
The funding supports the Ukrainian government in implementing reforms that will strengthen and stabilize the economy, the World Bank said in press release.
The DPO funds are co-financed by two sources: $1 billion from the Facilitation of Resources to Invest in Strengthening Ukraine Financial Intermediary Fund (F.O.R.T.I.S. Ukraine FIF) and $1.05 billion from the Advancing Needed Credit Enhancement (ADVANCE) Ukraine Trust Fund, supported by the U.K. and Japan.
The $1 billion grant via the intermediary fund represents the first payment Ukraine will receive from the Group of Seven (G7) plan to issue $50 billion in financing to Kyiv backed by frozen Russian assets.
The U.S., which is contributing a loan worth $20 billion to the G7 effort, transferred its portion to the World Bank's intermediary fund on Dec. 10.
"Despite significant challenges, the Government of Ukraine has stabilized the economy and remains focused on its development goals, particularly its ambition to join the European Union," Bob Saum, World Bank Regional Country Director for Eastern Europe, said on Dec. 18.
"There have been significant achievements, and Ukraine continues to advance in its efforts to implement reforms to establish a vibrant market economy. The World Bank Group and our international partners will continue to support the Ukrainian people in realizing their EU aspirations."
The DPO funds will focus on Ukraine's growth potential, supporting the railway sector, banking, and renewable energy generation, the World Bank said. Funding will also support efforts to increase domestic revenues.
Abbey Fenbert is a senior news editor at the Kyiv Independent. She is a freelance writer, editor, and playwright with an MFA from Boston University. Abbey served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Ukraine from 2008-2011.
Yaroslav Zhelezniak
