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."
The publications' latest report covers the period of February 24, 2022 to May 8, 2025. Since it was last updated at the end of April, 2,857 additional Russian military personnel have been confirmed killed.
Hungary cancelled a meeting planned for May 12 with a Ukrainian delegation on the rights of national minorities, Hungary's Deputy Foreign Minister said on May 11, amid a deepening spying scandal between the two countries.
Three were injured in Russia's Kursk Oblast when the town of Rylsk was allegedly struck by a missile attack on May 11, local governor Alexander Khinshtein claimed.
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.
Igor Mazepa is the director general of the Concorde Capital investment company in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Igor Mazepa/flickr.com)
Ihor Mazepa, a Ukrainian businessman and the founder of the Concorde Capital investment firm, has been released from pre-trial detention on a Hr 21 million ($550,450) bail, according to a statement by his company's press service.
The bail set by the Kyiv Pechersk District Court was reduced from the initial Hr 350 million ($9.3 million).
Mazepa, a vocal critic of state pressure on business, was detained on Jan. 18 for allegedly illegally seizing land in Kyiv Oblast in 2020-2021 as he tried to cross the border into Poland.
According to Concorde Capital, he was on his way to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, when law enforcement officers detained him and raided the company's office.
The investment banker and his press service called his detention an unfounded attack against his business. Mazepa founded Concorde Capital in 2004 and is now considered one of Ukraine's leading investment banks.
On Jan. 19, the State Bureau of Investigation said the businessman is suspected of illegally seizing land near Kyiv, calling him "the organizer of a criminal scheme."
Three more people were detained, including Mazepa's brother Yurii.
Mazepa's detention is related to the acquisition of land rights for the construction of the luxurious cottage resort Goodlife Park in the Vyshhorod district, Kyiv Oblast. The resort is located on the shore of the Kyiv Reservoir.
According to law enforcement, Mazepa allegedly organized a scheme to illegally seize the land on which the state-owned Kyiv Hydroelectric Power Plant facilities are located.
Mazepa denied the accusations. He added that his detention is linked to his "Manifesto 42" group, which emphasized the need to defend Article 42 of Ukraine's Constitution.
The article stipulates that "everyone has the right to engage in legal entrepreneurial activity" and that the state "shall ensure the protection of competition and entrepreneurial activity."
In November, the "Manifesto 42" group said that things have only worsened in the five months since President Volodymyr Zelensky ordered addressing pressure on businesses by creating a single body for inspections.
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.
Elsa Court
