"If they speak to each other in Russian, he doesn't know what they are saying," one Western official told NBC News. Michael McFaul, former U.S. ambassador to Russia, called Witkoff's approach "a very bad idea."
Tougher sanctions "should be applied to (Russia's) banking and energy sectors, targeting fossil fuels, oil, and the shadow fleet," the leaders of Ukraine, the U.K., France, Germany, and Poland said in a joint statement.
"Russia is ready for negotiations without any preconditions," Putin claimed in an address marking the end of the three-day Victory Day ceasefire. He invited Ukraine to begin talks in Istanbul on May 15.
While serving as a bishop in Peru, Robert Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV, called the full-scale war "a true invasion, imperialist in nature, where Russia seeks to conquer territory for reasons of power."
Speaking to CNN on May 10, Peskov commented on the latest ceasefire proposal from Ukraine and Europe, responding that Russia needs to "think about" it, but is "resistant" to pressure.
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.
First responders evacuate patients of a medical facility in Kharkiv targeted by Russian drones on Feb. 28. (State Emergency Service / Telegram)
Russian drones attacked a medical facility in Kharkiv late on Feb. 28, sparking a fire in Ukraine’s second-largest city, Mayor Ihor Terekhov reported.
Drones also struck an area near a gas station and a building adjacent to a high-rise apartment complex. A shopping mall, car dealership and a fire station were damaged in the attack.
Regional Governor Oleh Syniehubov reported that all the strikes targeted central districts of the city, with emergency crews responding at multiple locations.
First responders work at th site of Russian drone attack in Kharkiv late on Feb. 28. (State Emergency Service)
At least seven people were injured in the strike and 64 have been rescued, including a child, Ukraine's State Emergency Service said.
Kharkiv Oblast in Ukraine's northeast is a regular target of Russian missile, drone, and glide bomb attacks from across the border.
On Feb. 11, Russia carried out an airstrike on the village of Zolochiv in Kharkiv Oblast, injuring at least six people, including a 12-year-old boy. Three victims were hospitalized, while others received treatment on-site.
Zolochiv, with a pre-war population of 7,700, lies around 15 kilometers (10 miles) south of the Ukraine-Russia border and some 35 kilometers (20 miles) from the regional center, Kharkiv.
Olena Goncharova is the Head of North America desk at The Kyiv Independent, where she has previously worked as a development manager and Canadian correspondent. She first joined the Kyiv Post, Ukraine's oldest English-language newspaper, as a staff writer in January 2012 and became the newspaper’s Canadian correspondent in June 2018. She is based in Edmonton, Alberta. Olena has a master’s degree in publishing and editing from the Institute of Journalism in Taras Shevchenko National University in Kyiv. Olena was a 2016 Alfred Friendly Press Partners fellow who worked for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette for six months. The program is administered by the University of Missouri School of Journalism in Columbia.
Francis Farrell
