During reconnaissance in an unspecified front-line sector, Special Operations Forces' operators detected Buk-M3 and Uragan-1 on combat duty, the unit said.
The suspect quit his job at the Rivne NPP before the full-scale war began. In the spring of 2025, a GRU liaison contacted him and offered cooperation in exchange for money.
President Volodymyr Zelensky would not meet any other Russian official apart from Russian President Vladimir Putin in Istanbul this week, presidential advisor Mykhailo Podolyak said on the Breakfast Show program on May 13.
U.S. and European officials held talks on May 12, during which Washington made it clear that it wanted to allow talks between Russia and Ukraine before increasing pressure on Vladimir Putin, sources told Bloomberg.
According to Steve Witkoff, the key topics in the peace discussions are the fate of the five partially or fully occupied Ukrainian regions, the status of the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, and Ukraine's access to the Dnipro River and the Black Sea.
Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa is reportedly offering a deal that would give U.S. companies access to Syria's natural wealth, reminiscent of the minerals agreement Washington recently signed with Kyiv.
Russia attacked Ukraine with drones and guided bombs during the night, targeting multiple regions after the May 12 deadline for an unconditional ceasefire expired.
"Only member states can take out loans within the 150 billion euros instrument, but they can use these funds for joint procurement with Ukraine," EU Defense Commissioner Andrius Kubilius said.
"We agreed to pursue ambitious measures to reduce Russia's ability to wage war by limiting Kremlin revenues, disrupting the shadow fleet, tightening the Oil Price Cap, and reducing our remaining imports of Russian energy."
Zelensky on May 12 removed Lieutenant General Ivan Havryliuk from the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, the top command and control body for all branches of Ukraine's defense apparatus.
Ukrainian servicemen with a military mobile air defense group shoot down Russian drones using anti-aircraft guns in an undisclosed location in Ukraine on April 16, 2024. (Kostiantyn Liberov/Libkos/Getty Images)
All 37 Shahed-131/136 drones launched by Russia overnight were shot down by the air defense, Ukraine’s Air Force reported on May 19.
Russian forces targeted eight regions across Ukraine overnight, Kyiv, Odesa, and Vinnytsia oblasts, according to the Air Force’s report.
While the drone attacks were reportedly repelled, regional governors said other deadly weapons – ranging from KAB aerial guided bombs to artillery – threatened and killed civilians over the past day.
Throughout the full-scale war, Russia has regularly attacked both front-line areas and Ukrainian cities far from the battlefield. The Ukrainian authorities are urging evacuation to the civilians remaining in regions under heavy attacks, trying to reduce the casualties.
In southern Kherson Oblast, two people were killed and two wounded over the past day, regional governor Oleksandr Prokudin reported on May 19. He added that Russian troops had struck an unidentified port infrastructure, and damaged a multi-story building, eight houses, and a warehouse in the region.
In eastern Donetsk Oblast, one person was killed in Kurakhove, roughly 50 kilometers southwest of the Russian-occupied city of Avdiivka, according to regional governor Vadym Filashkin.
In Ukraine’s second-largest city of Kharkiv, six were wounded on May 18 by a Russian KAB attack, Kharkiv Oblast Governor Oleh Syniehubov said. The victims included two children aged 13 and 16, he added.
In northeastern Kharkiv Oblast, a 60-year-old woman was killed in the fiercely contested city of Vovchansk, and five people were wounded across the region.
Asami Terajima is a reporter at the Kyiv Independent covering Ukrainian military issues, front-line developments, and politics. She is the co-author of the weekly War Notes newsletter. She previously worked as a business reporter for the Kyiv Post focusing on international trade, infrastructure, investment, and energy. Originally from Japan, Terajima moved to Ukraine during childhood and completed her bachelor’s degree in Business Administration in the U.S. She is the winner of the Thomson Reuters Foundation's Kurt Schork Award in International Journalism 2023 (Local Reporter category) and the George Weidenfeld Prize, awarded as part of Germany's Axel Springer Prize 2023. She was also featured in the Media Development Foundation’s “25 under 25: Young and Bold” 2023 list of emerging media makers in Ukraine.
