Peter Szijjarto's announcement came after Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) allegedly dismantled a Hungarian military intelligence network operating in Zakarpattia Oblast.
The approval marks a key step in international efforts to hold Moscow accountable for what is considered the gravest violation of international law committed against Ukraine.
Although Moscow declared on April 28 that it would halt all military actions from May 8 to midnight on May 11 to mark Victory Day, strikes on civilian areas have continued.
Under Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin's rule, millions of Ukrainians died during the Holodomor, a man-made famine in 1932–1933. The dictator also oversaw mass deportations, purges of Ukrainian intellectuals and leaders, and the suppression of the Ukrainian language and culture.
According to the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), this marks the first time Ukrainian authorities have exposed a Hungarian military intelligence network conducting activities harmful to Ukraine.
Delegations from 35 countries and the Council of Europe gathered in Lviv as EU officials prepare to approve both new defense aid and steps toward establishing a tribunal for Russian leadership.
The ruling marks a significant victory for RFE/RL amid growing concerns about U.S. funding cuts to independent media countering Russian disinformation.
U.S. Cardinal Robert Prevost was elected the new pope and leader of the Roman Catholic Church on Thursday, taking the name Pope Leo XIV, a senior cardinal announced on May 8 to crowds gathered in St. Peter’s Square, according to Vatican News.
George Simion, leader of Romania's far-right AUR party, who won the first round of the presidential election with nearly 40% of the vote, reiterated that if elected, he would oppose any further assistance to Ukraine and shift Romania’s focus inward.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping hailed their countries' relationship on May 8, vowing to increase cooperation in all areas, including military ties.
"There is Turkey, which maintains channels of communication. And then, above all, there is the People's Republic of China, which, more than anyone else, has the means to make (Russian President Vladimir) Putin come to the negotiating table and soften his demands," Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said on May 8.
The United States will be ready to "walk away" from the negotiating table if it does not see Russia making progress in negotiation to end the war, U.S. Vice President JD Vance told Fox News on May 8.
Ukrainian border guards patrol on the closed checkpoint of Slavutych on the Ukrainian-Belarusian border in Chernihiv Oblast on July 14, 2023. (Sergei Supinsky/AFP via Getty Images)
Russia appears to have withdrawn "all its units from the territory of Belarus," Andriy Demchenko, the spokesperson of Ukraine's State Border Guard Service, said on air on Oct. 31.
The units were withdrawn "as part of a rotation," but new units were not brought in.
However, some members of the Russian Armed Forces remain in Belarus, but these are predominantly military personnel who service Russian equipment in the country, Demchenko said.
While the border guard is "actively monitoring" the area, the situation on the border is "fully under control" with no evidence that personnel or equipment are being moved toward Ukraine.
There are also currently "less than a thousand" Russian mercenaries in Belarus, Demchenko said, referring to Wagner Group fighters who came to the country to provide training to the Belarusian military in the summer of 2023.
Their presence in Belarus was part of a negotiated deal that ended the brief rebellion of the group's founder, Yevgeny Prigozhin, against Moscow in June.
The group's founder was killed in a plane crash in Russia's Tver Oblast on Aug. 23 under mysterious circumstances.
Wagner Group mercenaries, who were reportedly already leaving Belarus due to low pay, began to leave the country in convoys following news of Prigozhin's death, according to Ukraine's National Resistance Center.
Roughly 8,000 Wagner fighters were stationed in Belarus, and around 500 of these men have now returned to fight in Ukraine, the Ukrainian military believes.
Oleg Sukhov
