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.
U.S. President Donald Trump's special envoys, Steve Witkoff and Keith Kellogg, will travel to Istanbul for possible peace talks between Ukraine and Russia, Reuters reported on May 13, citing three undisclosed sources.
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.
A captive named Umit allegedly agreed to serve in the Russian army in exchange for Russian citizenship and a monetary reward of 2 million rubles ($25,000).
A Ukrainian serviceman of the 12th Aviation Brigade jumps out Mu-8 during training on Aug. 9, 2023, in Lviv Oblast. (Photo credit: Alex Babenko/Getty Images)
Six Ukrainian pilots died when two helicopters crashed in Donetsk Oblast on Aug. 29 under unknown circumstances, Ukrainska Pravda (UP) reported on Aug. 30, citing its sources.
The pilots belonged to the 18th Separate Army Aviation Brigade and were carrying out military tasks in the Bakhmut direction at the time of the incident, the brigade's spokesperson Yevhen Rakita told the Ukrainian public broadcaster Suspilne.
Two Mi-8 military helicopters were completely destroyed in the crash in Kramatorsk district. The bodies of all six soldiers were found on the spot.
Rakita clarified that the names of the pilots and circumstances of the incident are not being disclosed for security reasons, but revealed that one of the servicemen was from Poltava Oblast.
The State Bureau of Investigation launched an investigation into the incident, the Ukrainska Pravda article reported.
In another aviation tragedy, three Ukrainian pilots died on Aug. 25 when their two L-39 training jets collided. The victims included a decorated pilot well-known by his callsign Juice.
Martin Fornusek is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. He has previously worked as a news content editor at the media company Newsmatics and is a contributor to Euromaidan Press. He was also volunteering as an editor and translator at the Czech-language version of Ukraïner. Martin studied at Masaryk University in Brno, Czechia, holding a bachelor's degree in security studies and history and a master's degree in conflict and democracy studies.
Martin Fornusek
