In an interview with French broadcaster TF1 on May 13, Macron discussed new Russia sanctions and stationing French nuclear weapons in other European countries as a deterrent against Russia.
Performing their song "Bird of Pray," Ukrainian band Ziferblat passed the Eurovision semi-finals on May 13, qualifying Ukraine for the grand final on May 17.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed that a Russian delegation will be in Istanbul on May 15 for direct peace talks with Ukraine. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Putin’s foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov will likely represent Russia.
The move follows Ukraine's ratification of the minerals agreement, deepening U.S.-Ukraine economic ties and signaling expanded U.S. involvement in Ukraine's long-term recovery.
"Ukraine has initiated a coordinated campaign to vilify Hungary in order to undermine our initiative to hold a poll on (Kyiv's) EU membership," Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz warned that further concessions from Ukraine during negotiations would be unreasonable if Russia continues to attack civilian targets.
U.S. President Donald Trump's special envoys, Steve Witkoff and Keith Kellogg, will travel to Istanbul for possible peace talks between Ukraine and Russia, Reuters reported on May 13, citing three undisclosed sources.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said he will meet with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara, but said both leaders are ready to fly to Istanbul if Russian President Vladimir Putin chooses to attend the talks there.
Illustrative purposes: A sign ‘Kherson’ stands at the entrance to the regional capital on Oct. 3, 2023. (Yurii Stefanyak/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)
A Russian drone dropped an explosive on a shuttle bus in the southern city of Kherson on March 2, killing one person and injuring at least 10, the city's military administration said.
A 53-year-old woman was killed in the attack, Governor Oleksandr Prokudin reported. The attack took place in the afternoon in the city's western Dniprovskyi district.
At least nine of the victims have been hospitalized, the regional prosecutor's office said. Four of them are in serious condition, according to Roman Mrochko, the head of the Kherson city military administration.
Kherson and other Ukraine-controlled settlements west of the Dnipro River endure daily Russian attacks as Moscow's forces maintain control of the river’s east bank.
Evidence points to Russia systematically targeting civilians in Kherson with drones in a campaign dubbed by journalists as a "human safari." A Russian drone strike in the city on Jan. 6 targeted another bus, killing one person and injuring eight.
Martin Fornusek is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. He has previously worked as a news content editor at the media company Newsmatics and is a contributor to Euromaidan Press. He was also volunteering as an editor and translator at the Czech-language version of Ukraïner. Martin studied at Masaryk University in Brno, Czechia, holding a bachelor's degree in security studies and history and a master's degree in conflict and democracy studies.
Tennyson Dearing
