Polish truckers plan to restrict freight traffic at the Yahodyn-Dorohusk checkpoint on the Ukrainian border, Ukraine's State Border Guard said on May 12.
"If the Russians are using this level of specialists in urban combat, they are probably facing some difficulties," Ivan Petrychak, spokesperson for the 24th Separate Mechanized Brigade, said.
Previously, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk accused the Russian intelligence services of orchestrating a May 2024 arson attack on the Marywilska shopping centre in Warsaw.
"Perhaps in some areas, the intensity decreased slightly to create an image of compliance with their own announcement. But in reality, (Russia) continued attacks every day, using all available weapons — including aircraft to drop guided bombs on Ukraine," Andrii Demchenko, spokesperson for Ukraine’s State Border Guard Service, said.
Beijing supports all efforts toward achieving peace in Ukraine, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said on May 12 when asked about Kyiv and Europe's proposal for a 30-day truce.
"I invited His Holiness to make an apostolic visit to Ukraine. Such a visit would bring real hope to all believers and to all our people," Zelensky said.
Presidential Office chief Andriy Yermak voiced doubt about leading negotiations with anyone from Russia except President Vladimir Putin, implying only the Russian leader can make real decisions.
This includes at least seven people injured in drone attacks overnight on May 12, a date from which Kyiv and its allies put forward a demand for a 30-day unconditional truce, a step that Moscow continues to reject.
"When European unity becomes inconvenient, disinformation goes so far as to make a simple tissue look like drugs," the Elysee Palace reacted to a fake story pushed by Russia.
The comments came after Trump urged Ukraine to agree to direct negotiations with Russia, which has invited Kyiv to peace talks in Istanbul on May 15, without first agreeing to halt military operations.
A Russian drone hit a civilian freight train in Donetsk Oblast on May 12 and injured its driver, Ukrainian Railways said amid Kyiv's calls for a ceasefire.
EU flags in front of the European Commission building in Brussels, Belgium, on Dec. 28, 2023. Photo for illustrative purposes. (Dursun Aydemir/Anadolu via Getty Images)
The EU imposed fully fledged sanctions on Dec. 16, including asset freezes and visa bans, on Chinese firms for supplying Russia's military for the war against Ukraine. The bloc has also added North Korea's defense minister to its sanctions blacklist after the secretive state sent troops to Russia to reinforce its military.
The move — part of the EU's 15th round of sanctions during the full-scale invasion of Ukraine — represented an effort to tackle the crucial role allegedly being played by China in keeping Russia's war machine going.
The EU said it was blacklisting four Chinese companies for "supplying sensitive drone components and microelectronic components" to the Russian military, according to AFP.
Two other firms and one Chinese businesswoman were hit for circumventing EU sanctions aimed at stopping equipment flowing to Moscow.
Among the companies was Xiamen Limbach, alleged to have supplied engines for long-range attack drones used by Russia against Ukraine.
The EU has previously targeted Chinese firms for supporting Russia's military. But until now, the bloc has imposed bans on European firms doing business with Chinese companies rather than the tougher sanctions now being applied.
The EU also took aim at North Korea in the latest package after Pyongyang dispatched troops for Russia to fight Ukraine.
The 27-nation bloc added defense minister No Kwang Chol and deputy chief of the general staff Kim Yong Bok to a number of North Korean officials already blacklisted.
Ukraine's military intelligence (HUR) reported that at least 30 North Korean soldiers were killed or wounded during assault operations near the villages of Plekhovo, Vorozhba, and Martynovka on Dec. 14-15.
North Korean soldiers have been stationed in Kursk Oblast since October, initially taking on support roles. Their recent involvement in ground assault operations highlights the growing military cooperation between Pyongyang and Moscow amid the ongoing war in Ukraine.
Olena Goncharova is the Head of North America desk at The Kyiv Independent, where she has previously worked as a development manager and Canadian correspondent. She first joined the Kyiv Post, Ukraine's oldest English-language newspaper, as a staff writer in January 2012 and became the newspaper’s Canadian correspondent in June 2018. She is based in Edmonton, Alberta. Olena has a master’s degree in publishing and editing from the Institute of Journalism in Taras Shevchenko National University in Kyiv. Olena was a 2016 Alfred Friendly Press Partners fellow who worked for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette for six months. The program is administered by the University of Missouri School of Journalism in Columbia.
Tim Zadorozhnyy
