Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping hailed their countries' relationship on May 8, vowing to increase cooperation in all areas, including military ties.
"There is Turkey, which maintains channels of communication. And then, above all, there is the People's Republic of China, which, more than anyone else, has the means to make (Russian President Vladimir) Putin come to the negotiating table and soften his demands," Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said on May 8.
The United States will be ready to "walk away" from the negotiating table if it does not see Russia making progress in negotiation to end the war, U.S. Vice President JD Vance told Fox News on May 8.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico arrived in Moscow on May 9 to celebrate Victory Day, commemorating the 80th anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II.
US President Donald Trump on May 8 called for a "30-day unconditional ceasefire" between Ukraine and Russia. Writing on Truth Social, Trump expressed his hope for "an acceptable ceasefire," with both countries "held accountable for respecting the sanctity of... direct negotiations."
President Volodymyr Zelensky had a "constructive" phone call with United States President Donald Trump on May 8, discussing the war, continued pressure on Russia, and a potential ceasefire.
The survey, conducted between April 24 and May 4, shows that 56.9% of respondents would not be willing to compromise on either territorial integrity or Ukraine’s pro-Western direction in any potential talks with Moscow.
U.S. Cardinal Robert Prevost was elected the new pope and leader of the Roman Catholic Church on Thursday, taking the name Pope Leo XIV, a senior cardinal announced on May 8 to crowds gathered in St. Peter’s Square, according to Vatican News.
The shooting occurred around 3:22 p.m. local time in Sofiivska Borshchahivka, a residential area in Bucha district, according to the Kyiv regional police.
Finnish and Nato flags flutter at the courtyard of the Foreign Ministry in Helsinki, Finland on April 4, 2023. (Antti Hämäläinen / Lehtikuva / AFP via Getty Images)
Finland approved its 22nd defense aid package to Ukraine worth around 190 million euros ($205 million), the Finnish Defense Ministry announced on Feb. 9.
The Finnish president greenlighted the package on Feb. 9 based on the government's proposal. This brings the total military aid provided to Ukraine by the Nordic country to 1.8 billion euros ($1.94 billion).
As with its previous aid packages, Helsinki kept most of the details about the content and delivery secret due to security reasons.
The Finnish Defense Ministry revealed, however, that the tranche includes products that have been purchased from domestic industry with separate funding of 30 million euros ($32.3 million) set aside to support Ukraine.
"Nationally and more broadly, we need new ways to support Ukraine in the long term. We are currently preparing a long-term plan for support to Ukraine," said Finnish Defense Minister Antti Hakkanen.
"There is a lot of know-how in the domestic industry, and we are working in the defense administration to ensure that this know-how and capacity can be used more effectively in supporting Ukraine as well. One example of this is our domestic ammunition production."
Finland also decided to participate in the artillery and demining collations, one of many allied initiatives launched under the Ukraine Defense Contact Group to support individual sectors of Ukraine's Armed Forces.
Previously, Finland approved its 21st military aid package for Ukraine worth 106 million euros ($114 million) in December 2023.
Martin Fornusek is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. He has previously worked as a news content editor at the media company Newsmatics and is a contributor to Euromaidan Press. He was also volunteering as an editor and translator at the Czech-language version of Ukraïner. Martin studied at Masaryk University in Brno, Czechia, holding a bachelor's degree in security studies and history and a master's degree in conflict and democracy studies.
Tania Myronyshena
