A notice about the airspace closure was published on the U.S. Defense Department's NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) website on May 10, as cited by Ukrainian defense news outlet Militarnyi.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov rejected the idea of a 30-day ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine, claiming in an interview with ABC News on May 10 that it would be "an advantage" for Ukraine.
"Our involvement in the war was justifiable, and this belongs to our sovereign rights," North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un said. "I regard this as part of the sacred mission we must execute for our brothers and comrades-in-arms."
"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.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (C) visiting a military training base in North Korea's western region shown on a TV at Seoul's Yongsan Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea on March 7, 2024. (Kim Jae-Hwan/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un called the soldiers who fought alongside the Russian military in Russia's Kursk Oblast "heroes" and "representatives of the nation's honor," North Korean state media reported on May 10.
"Our involvement in the war was justifiable, and this belongs to our sovereign rights," Kim said. "I regard this as part of the sacred mission we must execute for our brothers and comrades-in-arms."
Kim also declared that if the "henchmen of the United States and the West, with their tacky, defective munitions, attempt another assault on the Russian Federation," then North Korea "will unhesitatingly issue an order on using the armed forces of the DPRK in repelling the enemy’s invasion."
The North Korean dictator also went on to claim that Russia "serves as a spiritual model" for North Korea and that it is a country of "the last people to tolerate injustice."
North Korea only publicly admitted its involvement in Russia's war against Ukraine in late April, although they first dispatched around 11,000 troops to aid Russia in the fall of 2024. An additional 3,000 troops were reportedly sent earlier this year after Kyiv reported that more than a third of North Korean soldiers have been killed or injured in combat.
Kim has been one of the key allies of Russia during its full-scale war against Ukraine, providing not only soldiers but also artillery shells, ballistic missiles, and other supplies.
Russian President Vladimir Putin personally greeted North Korean soldiers after the so-called Victory Day Parade in Moscow on May 9, although Kim was not among the foreign leaders in attendance.
We are the news team of the Kyiv Independent. We are here to make sure our readers get quick, essential updates about the events in Ukraine. Feel free to contact us via email with feedback and news alerts.
Asami Terajima
