This week, the world watched in anticipation for Russia’s Victory Day parade after President Volodymyr Zelensky commented that he could not guarantee the safety of those attending. Meanwhile, the European Union moves one step forward to banning Russian gas from the European continent. It is also revealed this week that U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has fallen out of step with the White House.
"(Russian) President (Vladimir) Putin... doesn't want to have a ceasefire agreement with Ukraine, but rather wants to meet on Thursday, in Turkey, to negotiate a possible end to the bloodbath. Ukraine should agree to this, immediately," U.S. President Donald Trump said.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will travel to to Antalya, Turkey, for a NATO foreign ministers’ meeting from May 14–16, where he is expected to address the war in Ukraine and push for stronger Allied defense commitments.
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.
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.
"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."
Vinnytsia Oblast Governor Serhii Borzov. (Serhii Borzov/Facebook)
The Cabinet of Ministers has approved the dismissal of Vinnytsia Oblast Governor Serhii Borzov, Taras Melnychuk, the Cabinet's representative in parliament, announced on June 25.
Melnychuk did not provide a reason for the dismissal. According to Borzov, he had to resign due to health reasons.
"I ask you not to waste time on any manipulations. A lot has been done during my tenure and there is a result," Borzov wrote on Facebook.
Borzov's dismissal has yet to be approved by President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Borzov became the governor of Vinnytsia Oblast, which is located in central Ukraine, in June 2020. Prior to that, since 2019 he had been head of the State Affairs Directorate, an agency that provides material and technical support to the president, Cabinet and parliament.
The Nashi Hroshi investigative media project reported in 2016 that the State Affairs Directorate provided Borzov with a free apartment in the Pechersk district of Kyiv worth Hr 10 million ($246,000).
Kateryna Denisova works as a News Editor at the Kyiv Independent. She previously worked as a news editor at the NV media outlet for four years, covering mainly Ukrainian and international politics. Kateryna holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Taras Shevchenko University of Kyiv. She also was a fellow at journalism schools in the Czech Republic and Germany.
Kateryna Hodunova
