Preliminary findings suggest that one of the men killed the other before taking his own life.
Western leaders dismissed the Kremlin's proposal for talks in Istanbul on May 15 as insufficient.
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.
Pope said he was praying to God to grant the world the "miracle of peace."
Ushakov’s comments follow Russian President Vladimir Putin's May 11 invitation for direct talks with Ukraine in Istanbul starting May 15.
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.
Zelensky called a ceasefire the essential first step toward ending the war.
The number includes 1,310 casualties that Russian forces suffered over the past day.
"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 unconditional ceasefire is not preceded by negotiations," French President Emmanuel Macron told reporters on May 11.
U.S. State Department Spokesperson Tammy Bruce called for "concrete proposals from both sides" in order for Washington to "move forward" in peace negotiations.
"If they speak to each other in Russian, he doesn't know what they are saying," one Western official told NBC News. Michael McFaul, former U.S. ambassador to Russia, called Witkoff's approach "a very bad idea."
The European Union cut down Russian oil imports by 90% before the end of 2022, “radically reducing” energy dependence on Russia, the EU Ambassador to Ukraine Matti Maasikas told Ukrinform. He added that this move had deprived Moscow of “corresponding revenues.”
According to Maasikas, Russia can sell its oil to other markets, but the revenue from such sales is limited as Russia is forced to make a significant discount on each barrel. “Russian oil sells for about $30 less than the world average,” said Maasikas in an interview with the Ukrainian publication.
On Dec. 5, G7 and the EU started implementing the $60 per barrel price cap on Russian seaborne oil in order to limit the Kremlin’s ability to fund its war against Ukraine.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said, though, that such a price cap was comfortable for Russia’s budget, asking for a $30 per barrel cap instead.
Russian dictator Vladimir Putin on Dec. 27 signed a decree to ban oil and oil product exports to countries complying with the West’s price cap on Russian crude.
Since the EU, the UK, and the US have already banned the imports of Russian seaborne crude, the price cap mostly applies to other countries that still buy Russian oil.
Insurers for the oil market, which are mostly based in the West, are banned from dealing with Russian oil priced above the cap. The EU will also start implementing an embargo on Russian oil products starting from Feb. 5.
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