"We have a plan B and a plan C. But our focus is plan A, the essence of which is to get everyone's support" for Ukraine's accession, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said.
"(T)he presence at the Victory Parade of a country that bombs cities, hospitals, and daycares, and which has caused the deaths and injuries of over a million people over three years, is a shame," Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said.
"According to the participants of the performances, their goal is to remind the civilized world of the barbaric actions of Moscow, which for many years and decades has systematically violated international law," a source in Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (HUR) told the Kyiv Independent.
"I have great hope that an agreement for a ceasefire in Ukraine will be reached this weekend," German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on May 9, shortly before traveling to Kyiv alongside the leaders of France, Poland, and the U.K.
U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk will arrive in Kyiv early on May 10.
The United States embassy in Kyiv on May 9 issued a warning that Russia could launch "a potentially significant" attack in the coming days, despite Putin's self-declared Victory Day "truce."
The sanctioned oil tankers have transported over $24 billion in cargo since 2024, according to Downing Street. The U.K. has now sanctioned more shadow fleet vessels than any other country.
Washington and its partners are considering additional sanctions if the parties do not observe a ceasefire, with political and technical negotiations between Europe and the U.S. intensifying since last week, Reuters' source said.
Transmission towers and power lines near a missile-damaged high-voltage electricity substation, operated by a state-owned company Ukrenergo, in central Ukraine, on March 1, 2023. Photo for illustrative purposes only. (Andrew Kravchenko/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Ukraine's energy infrastructure has been attacked 60 times in recent weeks, Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko reported on Nov. 6 during a visit to Washington, D.C.
Speaking to U.S. Assistant State Secretary for Energy Resources Geoffrey Pyatt, Halushchenko said that "various types of weapons" had been used in the attacks.
After each attack, equipment needs to be repaired and replaced, and "therefore the help of partners to the Ukrainian energy sector is of great importance," the Energy Ministry said in a statement.
Support to the Ukrainian energy sector does not just concern "how to get through this winter," but also reflects a wider context "of how Ukraine should become part of the European energy system," Halushchenko said.
Pyatt said that he admires "Ukraine’s commitment to solving today’s crises while planning for its future role in global energy security and our shared energy transition."
As Ukraine braces for an uptick in Russian strikes against the energy grid in winter, preparations are being made to mitigate the damage and defend critical infrastructure.
Russia began a campaign of mass strikes on Ukraine's energy system last year on Oct. 10 and continued to target the power system until spring, bringing the heating and power networks to a near-total collapse.
President Volodymyr Zelensky approved on Nov. 7 a plan by the National Security and Defense Council proposed the same day for stabilizing Ukraine's energy sector in preparation for the coming winter months.
Elsa Court is the audience development manager at the Kyiv Independence. She previously worked as a news editor at the Kyiv Independent and was previously an intern at the Kyiv Post. She has a Master’s in Conflict Studies and Human Rights from Utrecht University. Elsa is originally from the UK.
Dominic Culverwell
