Ukraine's underground storage facilities are currently using 19.4% of their capacity. Almost 32%, or 2.79 bcm, less gas is available in the storages than in the previous year, according to the estimates.
The majority of Ukrainians, 71%, do not support holding elections before a full peace deal, even in the case of a ceasefire and security guarantees, according to a poll published by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) on May 14.
"He'd like me to be there, and that's a possibility. ... I don't know that he would be there if I'm not there. We're going to find out," U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One while traveling to Qatar, Reuters reported.
Trump has long demanded that NATO allies increase their military spending, previously calling for the alliance to raise its benchmark from 2% to 5% of GDP.
More than 1,000 Russian government entities and 1,200 private companies are involved in the economy of occupied Mariupol, a major southeastern city occupied by Russia after it invaded Ukraine in 2022, according to a research paper published on May 14.
The measures target almost 200 ships of Russia's "shadow fleet," 30 companies involved in sanctions evasion, 75 sanctions on entities and individuals linked to the Russian military-industrial complex, and more.
The government has approved "reform roadmaps in the rule of law, public administration, and democratic institutions, as well as Ukraine’s negotiation position," Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said.
The statement did not name the ex-official by name, but details of the case indicate it relates to Oleh Hladkovsky, a former deputy secretary of Ukraine's top security body who has been wanted since mid-April.
Brazilian President Lula da Silva claimed that Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha had appealed to his Brazilian counterpart, Mauro Vieira, to ask Putin if he was willing to conclude a peace agreement.
"Trump needs to believe that Putin actually lies," Zelensky told journalists in Kyiv. "And we should do our part. Sensibly approach this issue, to show that it’s not us that is slowing down the process."
U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and U.S. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Charles Q. Brown (not seen) hold a joint press conference after attending the NATO Defense Ministers Meeting in Brussels, Belgium on Oct. 11, 2023. (Dursun Aydemir/Anadolu via Getty Images)
BRUSSELS – Ukraine could receive F-16 fighter jets as early as spring of next year, U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said on Oct. 11 at a press conference at the NATO headquarters in Brussels.
“As we look at what it will take to provide initial capability, this will take months, as we've said before. The earliest is next spring when we can begin to see additional capability,” Austin said in response to a question from the Kyiv Independent.
The projection comes nearly two months after Washington first approved the third-party transfer of U.S.-made F-16s to Ukraine after Ukrainian pilots completed training.
Austin said the training, taking place in Europe and the U.S., was ongoing. He did not specify when it was expected to end.
Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on Oct. 11 that Belgium and Denmark confirmed the planned delivery of F-16s to Ukraine, without citing how many they were sending.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said in August that Ukraine would receive 42 F-16s after reaching an agreement with the Netherlands, adding that “this is just the beginning.”
But it remained unclear when they would be delivered to Ukraine. Former Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said then that Ukrainian pilots, engineers, and technicians had already begun a six-month training on the F-16s.
Regarding 300-kilometer-range Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS), which the U.S. has reportedly already decided to deliver to Ukraine, Austin said there was no news yet.
Instead, the U.S. is focused on equipment that it believes Ukraine needs and those addressed by Zelensky, which include additional air defense and artillery ammunition, according to Austin.
“And that focus, I think, has been very, very instrumental in making sure that President Zelensky can protect his cities and also protect his troops,” Austin said.
Asked about Ukraine’s four-month-old counteroffensive, Austin said that Ukrainian forces were making “steady progress.”
“We've been very impressed by the determination, by the valour of the Ukrainian forces,” Austin said.
“And we will continue to focus on providing the forces and the leadership those things that they need to be successful in this fight on the battlefield.”
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.
