"We have a plan B and a plan C. But our focus is plan A, the essence of which is to get everyone's support" for Ukraine's accession, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said.
"(T)he presence at the Victory Parade of a country that bombs cities, hospitals, and daycares, and which has caused the deaths and injuries of over a million people over three years, is a shame," Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said.
"According to the participants of the performances, their goal is to remind the civilized world of the barbaric actions of Moscow, which for many years and decades has systematically violated international law," a source in Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (HUR) told the Kyiv Independent.
"I have great hope that an agreement for a ceasefire in Ukraine will be reached this weekend," German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on May 9, shortly before traveling to Kyiv alongside the leaders of France, Poland, and the U.K.
U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk will arrive in Kyiv early on May 10.
The United States embassy in Kyiv on May 9 issued a warning that Russia could launch "a potentially significant" attack in the coming days, despite Putin's self-declared Victory Day "truce."
The sanctioned oil tankers have transported over $24 billion in cargo since 2024, according to Downing Street. The U.K. has now sanctioned more shadow fleet vessels than any other country.
Washington and its partners are considering additional sanctions if the parties do not observe a ceasefire, with political and technical negotiations between Europe and the U.S. intensifying since last week, Reuters' source said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting with members of the Russian government via teleconference in Moscow on March 10, 2022. (Mikhail Klimentyev/Sputnik/AFP via Getty Images)
Kyiv condemns Russia’s plan to hold presidential elections in the occupied parts of Ukraine, the Foreign Ministry wrote on Dec. 9.
The day before, Moscow claimed occupied Crimea, and parts of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson oblasts would be included in the upcoming Russian elections on March 15-17, 2024.
“Holding Russian elections on Ukrainian territories grossly violates the constitution and legislation of Ukraine, the norms and principles of international law, in particular the UN Charter,” the Ministry said.
“Such an electoral process, like other similar propaganda activities in the past, will be null and void.”
Kyiv also called on the international community to denounce Russia’s plan and sanction individuals involved in the process.
Moreover, the Ukrainian government requested countries refrain from sending observers to the “pseudo-elections,” claiming those who will attend will face criminal responsibility.
After Russia said it would annex partly occupied Ukrainian Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson oblasts in September last year, eight countries sent representatives to observe the sham elections.
Ukraine slammed the countries for "participating in a collective crime against the sovereign, independent state of Ukraine.”
Putin announced on Dec. 8 that he would participate in the upcoming presidential elections in March, seeking his 5th term in office.
“Any election in Russia has nothing to do with democracy. They serve only as a tool to keep the Russian regime in power,” the Ministry wrote.
Dominic is the business reporter for the Kyiv Independent. He has written for a number of publications including the Financial Times, bne IntelliNews, Radio Free Europe/Liberty, Euronews and New Eastern Europe. Previously, Dominic worked with StopFake as a disinformation expert, debunking Russian fake news in Europe.
Nate Ostiller
