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.
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.
A truck driver looks out the window of his truck at the Rava-Ruska border checkpoint on the Ukrainian-Polish border, April 18, 2023. (Yuriy Dyachyshyn / AFP via Getty Images)
Polish truckers on strike have blocked about 1,700 trucks from passing through the Polish-Ukrainian border at three different checkpoints, said Andrii Demchenko, a spokesperson of Ukraine's State Border Guard Service, at a Ukrinform press conference on Nov. 9.
Movement for cargo trucks was blocked at the Yavhodyn– Dorohusk, Rava-Ruska– Hrebenne crossings, and Krakivets-Korczowa border crossings, but cars, buses, and humanitarian aid were allowed to pass.
Nonetheless, Demchenko said during a press conference on Nov. 8 that it could affect the delivery of humanitarian goods, as the blocking of the crossings has slowed all traffic.
Half of the trucks were stuck at the Yavhodyn – Dorohusk crossing, Demchenko said.
According to data posted by Poland's National Revenue Administration, the waiting time at the Yavhodyn-Dorohusk was 41 hours, and 150 hours at Rava-Ruska – Hrebenne.
It was previously reported on Nov. 7 that the strikes had completely blocked the Yahodyn – Dorohusk and Rava-Ruska – Hrebenne crossings.
Poland has been one of Ukraine's biggest backers and a key transit partner since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Protesters are demanding renewed restrictions on the number of Ukrainian trucks permitted in Poland, claiming that the lack of such restrictions was hurting business for Polish drivers. They are also calling for a ban on transportation companies from outside the European Union.
According to Serhii Derkach, a deputy minister at Ukraine's Infrastructure Ministry, Ukrainian officials were working with their Polish colleagues to resolve the situation.
"Polish colleagues confirm that the return of permits (for Ukrainian trucks) is one of the key requirements of truckers. For us, it is unacceptable in the conditions of war, with broken logistics chains and a (Black) Sea blockade," Derkach wrote on Facebook.
The deputy minister also pointed out that the Polish truckers' demands are in violation of the agreement on the liberalization of transport signed between Ukraine and the European Union in June 2022 and set to remain in force until July 2024.
"It is impossible for Poland to cancel it (the agreement). And we will work on its continuation," Derkach said.
Michael Richter
