This week, the world watched in anticipation for Russia’s Victory Day parade after President Volodymyr Zelensky commented that he could not guarantee the safety of those attending. Meanwhile, the European Union moves one step forward to banning Russian gas from the European continent. It is also revealed this week that U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has fallen out of step with the White House.
"(Russian) President (Vladimir) Putin... doesn't want to have a ceasefire agreement with Ukraine, but rather wants to meet on Thursday, in Turkey, to negotiate a possible end to the bloodbath. Ukraine should agree to this, immediately," U.S. President Donald Trump said.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will travel to to Antalya, Turkey, for a NATO foreign ministers’ meeting from May 14–16, where he is expected to address the war in Ukraine and push for stronger Allied defense commitments.
The Kremlin said the leaders held a detailed discussion about the Russian initiative and Erdogan expressed full support, reiterating Turkey’s readiness to provide a venue and assist in organizing the negotiations.
Erdogan told Macron that international cooperation is critical for initiating peace negotiations and the "sensitive implementation" of Ukraine’s recovery and reconstruction processes, the Turkish Presidency reported.
The assault began around 2 a.m. on May 11, with Russian forces deploying 108 Shahed-type attack drones and decoy UAVs from multiple directions, Ukraine’s Air Force said.
"Think of the hundreds of thousands of lives that will be saved as this never ending 'bloodbath' hopefully comes to an end... I will continue to work with both sides to make sure that it happens."
An Iranian-made Shahed 131/136 kamikaze drone, a model often used by Russian forces in airstrikes against Ukraine. (Ukraine's Southern Operational Command/Telegram)
A bomb dropped from a Russian drone has injured a 50-year-old man in Beryslav, the Kherson Oblast Military Administration reported on March 26.
In a post on Telegram, authorities said the man was hospitalized with leg injuries.
While bomb-dropping drones targeting soldiers of both sides are a regular occurrence on the front lines, such attacks against civilians are far rarer though there has been a recent uptick in Russian forces using the tactic.
Two other men were injured in a similar attack on March 23. One of the victims suffered a blast injury and shrapnel wounds to his legs. The other suffered a contusion and multiple injuries to the head, face, and legs, officials said.
Beryslav, a town with a pre-war population of 12,000, lies at the western bank of the Dnipro River, almost 70 kilometers (43.5 miles) east of the regional center, Kherson.
Ukraine's Armed Forces liberated Kherson and other regional settlements on the west bank of the Dnipro River, such as Beryslav, in the fall 2022 counteroffensive.
Russian troops were pushed to the river's east bank, from where they have since been firing at the liberated territories, regularly resulting in civilian deaths as well as large-scale destruction of homes and infrastructure.
Martin Fornusek
