More than 1,000 Russian government entities and 1,200 private companies are involved in the economy of occupied Mariupol, a major southeastern city occupied by Russia after it invaded Ukraine in 2022, according to a research paper published on May 14.
The measures target almost 200 ships of Russia's "shadow fleet," 30 companies involved in sanctions evasion, 75 sanctions on entities and individuals linked to the Russian military-industrial complex, and more.
The government has approved "reform roadmaps in the rule of law, public administration, and democratic institutions, as well as Ukraine’s negotiation position," Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said.
The statement did not name the ex-official by name, but details of the case indicate it relates to Oleh Hladkovsky, a former deputy secretary of Ukraine's top security body who has been wanted since mid-April.
Brazilian President Lula da Silva claimed that Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha had appealed to his Brazilian counterpart, Mauro Vieira, to ask Putin if he was willing to conclude a peace agreement.
"Trump needs to believe that Putin actually lies," Zelensky told journalists in Kyiv. "And we should do our part. Sensibly approach this issue, to show that it’s not us that is slowing down the process."
The EU plans to significantly increase tariffs on Ukrainian goods after the current duty-free deal lapses on June 6, the Financial Times reported on May 14, citing undisclosed diplomatic sources.
The blockade ended at 10:30 p.m. local time. Truck traffic in both directions is now moving as usual, according to Ukraine's State Border Guard's statement.
Russia seems to be preparing a significant offensive in Ukraine as it is moving troops toward key positions on the front, the Financial Times reported on May 13, citing undisclosed Ukrainian intelligence officials.
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."
US State Secretary Marco Rubio greets employees upon arrival at the State Department in Washington, DC, on January 21, 2025. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images)
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio criticized President Volodymyr Zelensky after his Oval Office meeting with President Donald Trump turned into what Rubio described as a "fiasco."
In an interview with CNN, Rubio said Zelensky should apologize for how the meeting unfolded, questioning whether the Ukrainian leader was truly committed to peace. "There was no need for him to go in there and become antagonistic," Rubio said, arguing that Zelensky’s approach made negotiations more difficult.
The meeting, originally intended to discuss U.S. support for Ukraine and potential pathways to peace, quickly fell apart. Trump and Vice President JD Vance accused Zelensky of overestimating his leverage and failing to show enough appreciation for past U.S. aid.
Rubio suggested that Zelensky’s combative stance raised doubts about his willingness to negotiate: "Maybe Zelensky doesn’t want a peace deal. He says he does, but maybe he doesn’t." The fallout from the meeting cast serious uncertainty over the future of U.S. assistance to Ukraine.
The Ukrainian president has taken a firm stance on peace and refused to accept what experts have called "capitulatory deal" that could give Russia an advantage.
Zelensky asserted during his interview with Fox News that Ukraine is "ready for peace but we need to be in a good position."
"We want peace... that's why I visited President Trump," Zelensky said, adding that he hopes that Trump would show stronger support for Ukraine rather than positioning himself as a mediator in the war. He emphasized that Russia was the aggressor, having launched the invasion. "I want really him to be more at our side," Zelensky said.
Following his meeting with Trump, world leaders have expressed support for Zelensky and Ukraine, emphasizing the need to continue assistance and resist Russian aggression.
The tension escalated further when Trump abruptly ended the discussion, ordered Zelensky to leave the White House, and canceled a scheduled joint press conference. The incident came at a time when European leaders, including those from the U.K. and France, were pressing Washington to take a more active role in negotiations.
Rubio, however, defended Trump’s approach, saying the president had made it clear that Zelensky would be welcome back when he was "ready to make peace and he’s serious about peace."
Rubio insisted that Trump is the only world leader capable of ending the war: "Tonight, people will die in Ukraine… This is an unsustainable, bloody war that has to come to an end. And right now, the only leader in the world that can even have a chance of bringing about an end to this is named President Donald Trump."
He added that achieving a peace agreement would be complex but argued that Zelensky needed to engage more constructively rather than resist diplomatic efforts.
Olena Goncharova is the Head of North America desk at The Kyiv Independent, where she has previously worked as a development manager and Canadian correspondent. She first joined the Kyiv Post, Ukraine's oldest English-language newspaper, as a staff writer in January 2012 and became the newspaper’s Canadian correspondent in June 2018. She is based in Edmonton, Alberta. Olena has a master’s degree in publishing and editing from the Institute of Journalism in Taras Shevchenko National University in Kyiv. Olena was a 2016 Alfred Friendly Press Partners fellow who worked for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette for six months. The program is administered by the University of Missouri School of Journalism in Columbia.
Tim Zadorozhnyy
