Ukraine remains the most mined country in the world. Nearly one-third of Ukraine's territory, approximately 174,000 square kilometers, had been mined since Russia began its full-scale invasion of the country in February 2022.
The phone call comes as Moscow once again rejected a 30-day ceasefire, with Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova claiming that a ceasefire would give "Kyiv a break to restore its military potential and continue its confrontation with Russia."
Flight MH17 departed from Amsterdam Schiphol Airport en-route to Kuala Lumpur International Airport on July 17, 2014. Three hours into the flight, the Boeing-777 was shot down by Russian proxy forces using a Buk surface-to-air missile above Ukraine’s Donetsk Oblast.
"I am grateful for the support and the readiness at the highest level to promote diplomacy," President Volodymyr Zelensky said of the phone conservation with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. "We share the same view on the need for a ceasefire."
The convictions mark a significant development in Britain's efforts to counter Russian intelligence operations amid heightened tensions stemming from Moscow's war against Ukraine and repeated Kremlin threats toward Kyiv's allies.
According to the Verkhovna Rada's website, Ukraine completed the ratification of the U.S.-Ukraine minerals agreement on May 12. President Volodymyr Zelensky signed the deal.
"I myself have heard relatives talking: our village is being attacked, let's roll the car out of the garage, maybe they will shell it — at least we will get money. The car is old, we can't sell it," Belgorod Oblast Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said.
The new tranche brings total recent EU defense support for Ukraine to 3.3 billion euros ($3.6 billion), marking a significant expansion of European efforts to boost Kyiv's defense industry.
US President Joe Biden during the State of the Union address in Washington, DC, US, on March 7, 2024. (Shawn Thew/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
U.S. President Joe Biden will likely miss the upcoming peace summit to be held on June 15-16 in Switzerland, Bloomberg reported on May 23, citing its undisclosed sources.
According to the news outlet, the event clashes with a campaign fundraiser he is set to attend alongside, among others, George Clooney, Julia Roberts, and Jimmy Kimmel.
U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said on May 22 that he cannot yet confirm Biden's participation in the peace summit.
The summit will be centered around Ukraine's 10-point peace formula, a plan first outlined by President Volodymyr Zelensky in fall 2022 that calls for a complete withdrawal of Russian troops from occupied Ukrainian lands.
Over 60 countries have confirmed their participation in the global peace summit, including India.
People familiar with the matter who asked not to be named told Bloomberg that Biden will attend a G7 summit to be held from June 13-15 in Italy but will fly from there to Los Angeles for the June 15 fundraiser.
Zelensky said on May 19 that he anticipates the peace summit will yield an action plan addressing three key areas: free navigation to protect port infrastructure, global food security, and Ukraine's economic development.
Additional discussions will focus on nuclear and energy security to prevent attacks on critical infrastructure, and another key point will be about the exchange of captives and return of deported children.
Zelensky emphasized the importance of involving countries from various regions, noting their influence on Russia.
"Even if they see the world differently, it is important to work to engage them because they have influence. Any kind of influence: defense – at the level of arms trade, economy – somewhere," Zelensky said.
"They have an influence on Russia. And the more such countries we have on our side – on the side of ending the war, – the more Russia will have to take it into account," he added.
Kateryna Hodunova
