Zelensky on May 12 removed Lieutenant General Ivan Havryliuk from the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, the top command and control body for all branches of Ukraine's defense apparatus.
Ukraine remains the most mined country in the world. Nearly one-third of Ukraine's territory, approximately 174,000 square kilometers, had been mined since Russia began its full-scale invasion of the country in February 2022.
The phone call comes as Moscow once again rejected a 30-day ceasefire, with Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova claiming that a ceasefire would give "Kyiv a break to restore its military potential and continue its confrontation with Russia."
Flight MH17 departed from Amsterdam Schiphol Airport en-route to Kuala Lumpur International Airport on July 17, 2014. Three hours into the flight, the Boeing-777 was shot down by Russian proxy forces using a Buk surface-to-air missile above Ukraine’s Donetsk Oblast.
"I am grateful for the support and the readiness at the highest level to promote diplomacy," President Volodymyr Zelensky said of the phone conservation with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. "We share the same view on the need for a ceasefire."
The convictions mark a significant development in Britain's efforts to counter Russian intelligence operations amid heightened tensions stemming from Moscow's war against Ukraine and repeated Kremlin threats toward Kyiv's allies.
According to the Verkhovna Rada's website, Ukraine completed the ratification of the U.S.-Ukraine minerals agreement on May 12. President Volodymyr Zelensky signed the deal.
"I myself have heard relatives talking: our village is being attacked, let's roll the car out of the garage, maybe they will shell it — at least we will get money. The car is old, we can't sell it," Belgorod Oblast Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said.
Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna at a press conference on Aug. 22, 2023. (Tobias Schwarz / AFP via Getty Images)
Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said that Tallinn is considering joining the Czech-led initiative to buy critically-needed artillery shells for Ukraine, Czech media outlet Ceske Noviny reported.
The statement was reportedly made at a joint press conference of Tsahkna and his Czech counterpart Jan Lipavsky after their meeting on April 2.
Ukraine is coming under increasing pressure as its munitions stocks run low, and a foreign U.S. aid bill has been blocked in Congress due to political fighting. The bill would allocate $60 billion for Ukraine and has remained stalled for months, despite pressure from the White House and other members of Congress.
Tsahkna said that Estonia supports the initiative and is currently working on "concrete proposals," as quoted by Ceske Noviny.
Lipavsky welcomed Estonia's interest in joining the initiative. "I think we clearly agree that the adequate defense of Ukraine is the defense of all of us," Lipavsky said.
Czech President Petr Pavel said in February that Czechia had identified 500,000 155 mm shells and 300,000 122 mm shells outside of Europe that could be bought and sent to Ukraine after the necessary funds were allocated. Since then, a number of countries including Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Sweden, Canada, Poland, France, Denmark, and others, have contributed funds to the initiative.
On March 28, the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera reported that the initiative had concluded contracts for 1 million artillery shells for Ukraine, with shipments expected already in April.
Estonia is one of the leading military donors to Ukraine in terms of gross domestic product (GDP), according to the Kiel Institute for the World Economy. Over the next four years, Tallinn plans to allocate 0.25% of its GDP to military assistance for Kyiv.
Francis Farrell
