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.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico arrived in Moscow on May 9 to celebrate Victory Day, commemorating the 80th anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II.
US President Donald Trump on May 8 called for a "30-day unconditional ceasefire" between Ukraine and Russia. Writing on Truth Social, Trump expressed his hope for "an acceptable ceasefire," with both countries "held accountable for respecting the sanctity of... direct negotiations."
President Volodymyr Zelensky had a "constructive" phone call with United States President Donald Trump on May 8, discussing the war, continued pressure on Russia, and a potential ceasefire.
The survey, conducted between April 24 and May 4, shows that 56.9% of respondents would not be willing to compromise on either territorial integrity or Ukraine’s pro-Western direction in any potential talks with Moscow.
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.
U.K. Foreign Secretary David Cameron at the NATO foreign ministers' meeting on Nov. 28, 2023, in Brussels, Belgium. (Omar Havana/Getty Images)
U.K. Foreign Secretary David Cameron said on March 5 that London is prepared to loan Kyiv all the assets of the Russian central bank frozen in the U.K. on the basis that Moscow will be forced to pay reparations to Ukraine after the all-out war, the Guardian reported.
Western countries and other partners immobilized around $300 billion of the Russian central bank'sassets at the beginning of the full-scale invasion in 2022.
Debates over the legality of channeling these funds into Ukraine's reconstruction have prevented allies from transferring the money, but ongoing delays in U.S. military aid have prompted heightened urgency.
According to Cameron, the assets will be used as a surety for the payment of the reparations. He said that there is an opportunity to use "something like a syndicated loan or a bond," knowing that Ukraine's allies will recover money once Moscow pays reparations.
"That may be a better way of doing it," the U.K. minister noted.
London wants to maximize the unity of the Group of Seven (G7) and the European Union on this issue, Cameron said, but if this attempt fails, "we will have to move ahead with allies that want to take this action."
The U.K. is estimated to have immobilized about 25 billion pounds ($32 billion) worth of Russian assets, but no official figure has been disclosed.
According to the World Bank, the estimated cost of Ukraine's post-war recovery and reconstruction has risen to $486 billion.
Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said on March 4 that the confiscation of frozen Russian assets to fund Ukraine's reconstruction is a key priority for the government in 2024 and an initiative supported by most of Ukraine's partners.
The EU agreed in February to set aside billions of euros of profits from these assets, paving the way to allow the funds to be transferred to Ukraine.
The planmost directly impacts Euroclear, a Belgium-based financial services company that holds about 191 billion euros ($205 billion) in Russian assets.
Central securities depositories (CSDs) holding more than 1 million euros ($1.07 million) in assets from the Russian central bank must separate any profits generated from the primary accounts, according to the plan.
Elsa Court
