President Volodymyr Zelensky said he will meet with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara, but said both leaders are ready to fly to Istanbul if Russian President Vladimir Putin chooses to attend the talks there.
Andriy Yermak, Zelensky's chief of staff, said that the new pontiff had a phone call with Zelensky on Monday, during which the pope expressed willingness to facilitate meetings between global leaders and vowed to support efforts for "a just and lasting peace."
In an interview with French broadcaster TF1 on May 13, Macron discussed new Russia sanctions and stationing French nuclear weapons in other European countries as a deterrent against Russia.
Performing their song "Bird of Pray," Ukrainian band Ziferblat passed the Eurovision semi-finals on May 13, qualifying Ukraine for the grand final on May 17.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed that a Russian delegation will be in Istanbul on May 15 for direct peace talks with Ukraine. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Putin’s foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov will likely represent Russia.
The move follows Ukraine's ratification of the minerals agreement, deepening U.S.-Ukraine economic ties and signaling expanded U.S. involvement in Ukraine's long-term recovery.
"Ukraine has initiated a coordinated campaign to vilify Hungary in order to undermine our initiative to hold a poll on (Kyiv's) EU membership," Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz warned that further concessions from Ukraine during negotiations would be unreasonable if Russia continues to attack civilian targets.
Illustrative purposes: The aftermath of Russian attack on Kharkiv on March 27, 2024. (Oleh Syniehubov/Telegram)
Editor's note: This item has been updated to include additional information.
Multiple Russian strikes on the residential area in Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, injured five people on April 7, the regional prosecutor's office reported.
The Russian attack struck an industrial zone and a central park in the city. Kharkiv, roughly 40 kilometers (24 miles) south of the Russian border, faces near-daily attacks, Kharkiv Oblast Governor Oleh Syniehubov said.
The proximity to the border often prevents air defense systems from detecting launches of Russian missiles toward Kharkiv on time, with some missiles hitting Kharkiv at least 40 seconds after the launch.
As a result of the strikes, at least 13 multi-story buildings and private houses, educational institutions, cafes, dormitories, a hotel, and cars were damaged, the prosecutors said.
According to preliminary data, the Russian forces used two guided bombs against the city.
Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov said on April 1 that more than $10 billion is needed to rebuild everything that Russian forces have damaged or destroyed in the city.
The day before, President Volodymyr Zelensky called on international partners to provide Ukraine with modern air defense systems to defend against Russian attacks.
“I can say that, to cover Ukraine completely in the future, it is preferable to have 25 Patriot systems, with six to eight batteries each,” Zelensky said.
Overnight, Kharkiv Oblast was targeted by Russian drones.
On April 6, Russian forces launched a so-called double-tap attack on Kharkiv, luring emergency workers after the initial attack and then launching another one just as the rescue operation began.
More than 20,000 buildings have been destroyed in Kharkiv since Feb. 24, 2022, according to Ukrainian officials.
Alexander Khrebet is a reporter with the Kyiv Independent. He covers Ukraine’s foreign policy, alleged abuse of power in the country’s military leadership, and reports on the Russian-occupied territories. Alexander is the European Press Prize 2023 winner, the #AllForJan Award 2023 winner and Ukraine's 2022 National Investigative Journalism Award finalist. His was published in the Washington Times and Atlantic Council.
Illia Ponomarenko
