EU’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas said the EU is also drawing up a “plan B” to maintain economic sanctions on Russia in case the Trump administration pulls out of Ukraine peace negotiations and moves to restore ties with Moscow.
Despite declaring victory, Russian President Vladimir Putin acknowledged on April 30 that Ukrainian soldiers remain in the region, Russian state-controlled media reported.
European nations would struggle to deploy even 25,000 troops to Ukraine as part of a proposed multinational “deterrence” force, far short of the 64,000-strong target suggested by U.K. defense officials, the Times reported on April 30 citing undisclosed European defense sources.
Reuters reported on April 30 that Washington expects Ukraine to sign two additional documents along with the minerals deal, while Kyiv maintains those texts are not yet finalized.
President Volodymyr Zelensky reportedly pressed U.S. President Donald Trump to return to his original proposal of an unconditional ceasefire as the starting point for peace talks.
The Russian state news agency TASS published a video on April 28 that purports to show North Korean troops who fought alongside Russian forces in Kursk Oblast training in Russia.
The man was survived by an underage daughter and a six-year-old adopted grandson. Their home was completely destroyed in the attack, Kyiv City Military Administration head Tymur Tkachenko reported.
Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a so-called "humanitarian" truce from May 8 until midnight on May 11.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov Lavrov listed other conditions for Russia to enter into peace talks, namely a ban on Ukraine's entry into NATO, the country's demilitarization, and changes to Ukraine's legislation that would restore the position of the Russian language, culture, and religious organization.
Germany will continue to support Ukraine with military aid even if the U.S. cuts back its assistance, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said.
Ukraine's former pro-Kremlin President Viktor Yanukovych has been sentenced in absentia to 15 years in prison for inciting desertion and organizing illegal border crossings, the Prosecutor General's Office announced on April 28.
Russian businessman Albert Avdolyan is one of at least seven individuals who bought Maltese passports before later being sanctioned by the United States, the EU, or Ukraine for links to Russia’s invasion.
"Unidentified" drones targeted the Kremniy-El plant, a major facility specializing in microelectronics for Russia’s military-industrial complex, said Andrii Kovalenko, an official at Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council.
The United States considers the demand an "unreasonable and unachievable" condition, a source told the New York Times.
Asked about Russia's conditions to enter peace talks, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also named a ban on Ukraine's entry into NATO, the country's demilitarization, and changes to Ukraine's legislation that would restore the position of the Russian language, culture, and religious organizations.
The diplomatic meetings come after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met privately with U.S. President Donald Trump at St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican earlier on April 26.
De Novo CEO Maksym Ahieiev emphasized that there were "no signs of hacking or external interference," and the outage was due to a "combination of technical factors."
Investigators said the vessel had loaded around 5,000 tons of stolen Ukrainian wheat from the Russian-occupied port city of Sevastopol in late 2024 and attempted to disguise its operations by sailing under the flag of an Asian country.
U.S. President Donald Trump believes the Ukrainian leader “really has no choice” but to agree to the terms, according to a source close to U.S Special Envoy Steve Witkoff.
While U.S. President Donald Trump has refused to commit American troops, U.S. officials have reportedly opened the door to providing intelligence-sharing and logistical aid to the so-called "coalition of the willing."
The Ukrainian delegation raised the issue with the U.S. Treasury officials during negotiations on April 23, according to Reuters. Ukraine intends to continue lobbying for the initiative at an upcoming meeting with the International Monetary Fund, Pyshnyy said.
European Commission President Von der Leyen emphasized that the roadmap, set to be announced in two weeks, will lay out concrete steps to eliminate the bloc’s reliance on energy supplies from Russia.
“It has to be a compromise,” he said. “De facto this peace should come down to the fact that neither side will be able to say it won this war. Ukraine will also have to step down in some sense, because that’s what will probably happen.”
"If the information that this missile was made in North Korea is confirmed, it will be further proof of the criminal nature of the alliance between Russia and Pyongyang," Zelensky said in a statement.
“The position of France is clear and will not change. We stand for sovereignty and territorial integrity in accordance with international law,” Macron said. “We will continue to defend the Ukrainian people’s right to live in peace on their territory and within their internationally recognized borders.”
In an interview with French outlet Le Point, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov laid out Moscow’s demands for a ceasefire in Ukraine, including the full recognition of Russia’s claim over four Ukrainian oblasts it partially occupies, neutral status for Ukraine, and an end to all Western military support.
The strike, carried out by Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces in coordination with other branches of the military, targeted a plant in the Alabuga Special Economic Zone of Russia’s Republic of Tatarstan, the General Staff said.
“I don’t know about by the end of the week. I’m hopeful that we can get to something quickly,” U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in an interview with the Honestly podcast on April 23.
"Nobody is asking (President Volodymyr) Zelensky to recognize Crimea as Russian Territory, but if he wants Crimea, why didn’t they fight for it eleven years ago when it was handed over to Russia without a shot being fired?" U.S. President Donald Trump wrote.
According to the Kremlin, the agreement aims to bolster bilateral relations across key sectors, including investment, transport, logistics, and humanitarian efforts, while also addressing pressing regional and global issues.
Russian forces used artillery, multiple launch rocket systems, and drones to target Ukrainian positions in Sumy and Kharkiv oblasts, said Andrii Demchenko, a spokesperson for Ukraine’s State Border Guard Service.
The unification of technical standards for drones is among the key objectives for 2025, Hlib Kanievskyi, a procurement chief at the Defense Ministry, said.
