German Chancellor Friedrich Merz warned that further concessions from Ukraine during negotiations would be unreasonable if Russia continues to attack civilian targets.
U.S. President Donald Trump's special envoys, Steve Witkoff and Keith Kellogg, will travel to Istanbul for possible peace talks between Ukraine and Russia, Reuters reported on May 13, citing three undisclosed sources.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said he will meet with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara, but said both leaders are ready to fly to Istanbul if Russian President Vladimir Putin chooses to attend the talks there.
A captive named Umit allegedly agreed to serve in the Russian army in exchange for Russian citizenship and a monetary reward of 2 million rubles ($25,000).
Russia's Buryatia Republic declared a state of emergency on May 13 over massive forest fires that have engulfed multiple regions in the Russian Far East.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko's statement came as Strong Shield 5 exercises involving military personnel from other NATO countries began in Lithuania.
"Amendments to the Budget Code are needed to implement the provisions on funding the U.S.-Ukrainian Reconstruction Investment Fund," lawmaker Roksolana Pidlasa said.
During reconnaissance in an unspecified front-line sector, Special Operations Forces' operators detected Buk-M3 and Uragan-1 on combat duty, the unit said.
The ruins of a house in Odesa destroyed by the Russian missile attacks on July 23, 2022, posted on Telegram on July 27, 2023 (Photo: Odesa City Council / Telegram)
Odesa City Council said on July 27 that the body of a woman was found under the rubble of a building on Parkova street, bringing the death toll of the Russian attack to two.
Russian forces bombarded Odesa's historic center with 19 missiles during the night of July 23 in one of the most damaging attacks on the city since the start of the full-scale invasion.
As well as injuring at least 22 people, Deputy Head of the President's Office Oleksiy Kuleba reported that more 44 buildings were damaged, including 25 historic buildings, among them the historic Transfiguration Cathedral.
The Russian Defense Ministry claimed that it targeted "facilities where terrorist acts against Russia were being prepared," Russian media reported on July 23.
In a statement released on July 23, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) highlighted that the intentional destruction of cultural sites may amount to a war crime, "as acknowledged also by the United Nations Security Council - of which the Russian Federation is a permanent member."
The attacks came after Moscow announced that it would not extend the Black Sea grain deal on July 17. Since July 18, Odesa and other ports along the coast of the Black Sea have been repeatedly attacked by Russia.
The U.K. Defense Ministry has said that its intelligence points to the Kremlin considering itself "less politically constrained" to strike Odesa and the surrounding region after the collapse of the deal.
Asami Terajima
