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.
A captive named Umit allegedly agreed to serve in the Russian army in exchange for Russian citizenship and a monetary reward of 2 million rubles ($25,000).
Russia's Buryatia Republic declared a state of emergency on May 13 over massive forest fires that have engulfed multiple regions in the Russian Far East.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko's statement came as Strong Shield 5 exercises involving military personnel from other NATO countries began in Lithuania.
"Amendments to the Budget Code are needed to implement the provisions on funding the U.S.-Ukrainian Reconstruction Investment Fund," lawmaker Roksolana Pidlasa said.
During reconnaissance in an unspecified front-line sector, Special Operations Forces' operators detected Buk-M3 and Uragan-1 on combat duty, the unit said.
Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine's president, during a news conference with Olaf Scholz, Germany's chancellor at the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Berlin, Germany, on June 11, 2024. (Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Barbados and the Marshall Islands have signed the joint communique of Ukraine's peace summit, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on June 22.
"We see growing global support for (Ukraine's) Peace Formula, meaning the support for the UN Charter, which we want to restore to full force," Zelensky wrote on Twitter.
"We value our island state partners and call on everyone to join us in developing a vision of a just peace for Ukraine and all nations around the world."
Switzerland hosted Ukraine's global peace summit on June 15-16, with over 90 countries and organizations in attendance. Russia and China did not attend.
Some countries that were notably absent from the list of signatories included India, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Colombia, South Africa, Thailand, Mexico, and the United Arab Emirates.
Six more signatures were added to the joint communique after the summit, according to Zelensky.
"We keep working to ensure that their number will continue to grow," he added.
Zelensky previously announced on June 19 that Antigua, Barbuda, and the Organization of American States had joined the communique following the peace summit. Zambia had also signed it the next day.
Ukraine's Ambassador to Singapore, Kateryna Zelenko, said in an interview published on June 20 that Kyiv would also consider participating in a Beijing-led peace conference with Russia's presence if the talks are based on the principles of the "U.N. Charter and international law."
Nate Ostiller
