"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.
Moscow and Hanoi agreed to negotiate and sign agreements to construct nuclear power plants in Vietnam, the two countries said in a joint statement on May 11.
First Lady Olena Zelenska delivers a speech during the opening of the monument commemorating the Ukrainian children killed by Russia's war in Kharkiv on June 4. (Olena Zelenska/Telegram)
On June 4, the International Day of Innocent Children Victims of Aggression, First Lady Olena Zelenska visited Kharkiv to commemorate Ukrainian children killed by the Russian war.
As of today, at least 485 children have been killed, and 1,005 have been injured, since the beginning of the all-out war in February 2022, according to the General Prosecutor’s Office.
“This pain can not be comprehended. In the 21st century, in the middle of Europe, we are forced to talk about protecting our children from physical destruction,” Zelenska, who has two children with Volodymyr Zelensky, wrote in a statement.
“But the world must realize, if it hasn't realized yet: a threat to our children is a threat to all children. Childhood has no borders,” she wrote.
In Kharkiv, Zelenska delivered a speech during the opening of the monument commemorating the killed children.
“It is difficult to open monuments to those killed. Especially if these killed are children,” Zelenska said, trying to hold back tears.
“I remember a photo of a father holding the hand of his son who was killed at a bus stop here in Kharkiv,” she went on. “Parents hold their children's hand when they learn to walk. Parents hold their children's hand when they take them to kindergarten or school for the first time. And the most terrible thing is when parents hold the hands of the children who have been killed.”
“To the little angels who encountered human cruelty so early and who, unfortunately, will never become adults,” reads the inscription on the monument.
A commemoration ceremony was also held In Kyiv, during which authorities and citizens hung little bells on trees, “symbolizing the voices of the killed children,” according to Kyiv City Military Administration.
People hang bells on a tree, “symbolizing the voices of the killed children,” during a commemoration ceremony in Kyiv on June 4. (Kyiv City Military Administration/Telegram)
Children are among the most vulnerable groups in Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Among the latest casualties is a two-year-old girl who was killed when an apartment building was hit by a Russian missile strike in the town of Pidhorodne in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast on June 3.
Apart from physical threats due to Russian attacks, over 19,500 children have been abducted by the Russian authorities.
The kidnapped children are submitted to re-education to instill “pro-Russia patriotic values" and "assigned" to Russian adoptive and foster families.
The Ukrainian government and non-governmental institutions are working on their safe return. According to the "Children of War" database, so far only 371 of them have been safely returned to their families.
We are the news team of the Kyiv Independent. We are here to make sure our readers get quick, essential updates about the events in Ukraine. Feel free to contact us via email with feedback and news alerts.
Daria Shulzhenko
