Speaking at a press conference in Kyiv on May 10, President Volodymyr Zelensky rebuked the idea of a demilitarized zone in the war and emphasized the importance of first securing a ceasefire.
"We agreed that a full and unconditional ceasefire must begin on Monday, May 12, for at least 30 days. We jointly demand this from Russia, and we know we are supported in this by the United States," Zelensky said.
Ukrainian media outlet ZN.UA reported on May 10 that their law enforcement sources confirmed an ongoing probe by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau into suspected embezzlement, money laundering and bribery.
Iran is preparing to send Russia Fath-360 short-range ballistic missile launchers, Reuters reported on May 9, citing Western security and regional officials familiar with the matter.
"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."
Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and Russian President Vladimir Putin meet with the Holy Synod of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP), including metropolitans Agathangel (Savvin), Lazarus (Shvets), Onufriy (Berezovsky), and Hilarion (Shukalo), on July 27, 2013 in Kyiv, Ukraine. (kremlin.ru)
President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a bill on Aug. 24 banning activities of religious organizations connected to Russia.
The legislation could effectively prohibit the activities of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP), which is legally subordinate to the Russian Orthodox Church.
The UOC-MP has been suspected of links and sympathies to Russia throughout the full-scale war. It is not to be confused with the autocephalous (autonomous) Orthodox Church of Ukraine, which is fully separate from Moscow.
Over 100 UOC-MP clergy members have come under criminal investigation since the outbreak of the full-scale war, the Security Service of Ukraine's (SBU) press service told the Kyiv Independent. Almost 50 of them have been charged, and sentences have been issued in 26 cases, the SBU said.
The law enters into force 30 days after its publication, but UOC-MP communities will have nine months to fully break ties with the Russian church, lawmaker Yaroslav Zhelezniak explained.
The bill was initially registered in the parliament in January 2023, shortly after extensive searches by security authorities uncovered pro-Kremlin propaganda, Russian passports, and xenophobic literature at the church's premises.
The parliament supported the bill in the first reading in October 2023.
The legislative process was associated with some controversies. Last month, several opposition lawmakers blocked the parliament's rostrum after the governing party had not brought the issue to the floor.
The UOC-MP said that it had always acted within the framework of Ukrainian legislation and claimed it had severed ties with the Russian Orthodox Church, the leading church in Russia seen as a close ally of Vladimir Putin's regime.
This declaration has been widely disputed in Ukraine as a merely symbolic step and was boycotted by the Russian church.
Russian propaganda has sought to portray the government's steps against the Moscow-linked church as "persecution of Christians," a narrative that has been adopted by Ukraine-skeptic voices in the U.S.
Orthodox Christianity remains the most widely spread and freely practiced religion in Ukraine, while the steps against the church are based on evidence of its collaboration with Russia.
Once a dominant religious group in Ukraine, many Moscow Patriarchate communities have switched allegiance to independent churches, namely the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, in the past few years.
Nate Ostiller
