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 suspect quit his job at the Rivne NPP before the full-scale war began. In the spring of 2025, a GRU liaison contacted him and offered cooperation in exchange for money.
President Volodymyr Zelensky would not meet any other Russian official apart from Russian President Vladimir Putin in Istanbul this week, presidential advisor Mykhailo Podolyak said on the Breakfast Show program on May 13.
U.S. and European officials held talks on May 12, during which Washington made it clear that it wanted to allow talks between Russia and Ukraine before increasing pressure on Vladimir Putin, sources told Bloomberg.
According to Steve Witkoff, the key topics in the peace discussions are the fate of the five partially or fully occupied Ukrainian regions, the status of the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, and Ukraine's access to the Dnipro River and the Black Sea.
President Volodymyr Zelensky gives a press conference during the forum 'Ukraine. Year 2025' on February 23, 2025 in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Ivan Antypenko/Suspilne Ukraine/JSC "UA:PBC"/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)
President Volodymyr Zelensky lambasted ongoing calls to hold elections in Ukraine during a press conference on Feb. 23 amid an unstable security situation across the country.
"If we held elections right now, it's understandable that for (Ukraine), in terms of security, it's the number one priority that we have a democratic situation, democratic elections, and that they are determined (to be legitimate)," Zelensky said, ahead of listing a number question surrounding concerns over how an democratic election would be conducted amid the ongoing war.
"This is just not right. How can we call an election in which half of the population of the country won't be able to vote in?" Zelensky question. "How will they be able to vote?"
"How will military personnel be able to vote? There's no way. How can we vote normally when today (Ukraine was) attacked with 267 drones?" he added.
Zelensky's remarks follow those of U.S. President Donald Trump who said on Feb. 18 that he believes Ukraine should hold new elections, alleging, without evidence, that Zelensky holds a "4% approval rating." Trump further called Zelensky a "dictator" in a post on his social media platform Truth Social on Feb. 19, accusing him of refusing to have elections.
A poll release the same day by the case of Ukraine (IBIF) project in partnership with the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) foundthat around 63% of Ukrainians approve of Volodymyr Zelensky's actions as a president.
Ukraine has repeatedly said that it won’t hold elections until the war is over, in line with martial law as Russia constantly bombards the country and occupies one-fifth of its territory.
Ukraine was scheduled to hold a presidential election in March or April 2024, concluding Zelensky's first five-year term. The vote was postponed as the country's constitution does not permit elections under martial law, which was declared on Feb. 24, 2022, at the onset of Russia's all-out invasion.
Earlier in the press conference, Zelensky said he was ready to step down as president if it means “peace for Ukraine."
“I am focusing on security today and not in 20 years time. I don’t plan to be in power for 10 years,” Zelensky told the forum.
Russian President Vladimir Putin previously sought to use the delay to portray Zelensky as "illegitimate," saying that the authority should pass to Parliament speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk, a claim rejected by Kyiv as a distortion of the constitution.
Dmytro Basmat is a senior news editor for The Kyiv Independent. He previously worked in Canadian politics as a communications lead and spokesperson for a national political party, and as a communications assistant for a Canadian Member of Parliament. Basmat has a Master's degree in Political Management from Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada, and a Bachelor of Arts in Politics and Governance from Toronto Metropolitan University.
Kateryna Denisova
