"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.
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.
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.
The sanctions appear to be in response to Russia's rejection of a 30-day ceasefire that the U.K., alongside Ukraine, France, Germany, and Poland, demanded during a visit to Kyiv on May 10.
"We now know for sure that the great fire of the Marywilska shopping centre in Warsaw was caused by arson ordered by the Russian special services," Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on X. "Some of the perpetrators have already been detained, all the others are identified and searched for."
French Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu in Kyiv on Sept. 28, 2023. (Sergei Chuzavkov /AFP via Getty Images)
French Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu said the notion of sending combat troops to Ukraine is "not on the table" in an interview with the French broadcaster BFMTV on March 8.
The comments came after French President Emmanuel Macron recently said that sending Western troops to Ukraine cannot be "ruled out" in the future. The U.S. and many European allies have distanced themselves from Macron’s statement.
French arms manufacturers are planning to set up partnerships with Ukrainian companies and produce military equipment, potentially including ammunition, on Ukrainian soil, Lecornu added.
“We are no longer in the same situation as two years ago," he said, emphasizing that "We don't want to show weakness to Moscow."
Czech President Petr Pavel also said recently that he is in favor of looking for new ways to support Ukraine, including potentially sending troops for "non-combat engagement."
The Czech leader reportedly emphasized that he was not talking about sending combat units. According to Pavel, Kyiv’s allies could send a training mission to Ukraine.
"Ukraine, despite being attacked, is still a sovereign country," he said, adding that such a training mission would not violate any international norms.
"It's up to us what form of assistance we choose," Pavel said.
During a two-hour State of the Nation address on Feb. 29, Russian President Vladimir Putin threatened "tragic consequences" if NATO troops were sent to Ukraine, claiming the West's support for Kyiv "risks a conflict using nuclear weapons."
Alexander Khrebet
