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.
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).
Russia's Buryatia Republic declared a state of emergency on May 13 over massive forest fires that have engulfed multiple regions in the Russian Far East.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko's statement came as Strong Shield 5 exercises involving military personnel from other NATO countries began in Lithuania.
"Amendments to the Budget Code are needed to implement the provisions on funding the U.S.-Ukrainian Reconstruction Investment Fund," lawmaker Roksolana Pidlasa said.
During reconnaissance in an unspecified front-line sector, Special Operations Forces' operators detected Buk-M3 and Uragan-1 on combat duty, the unit said.
The suspect quit his job at the Rivne NPP before the full-scale war began. In the spring of 2025, a GRU liaison contacted him and offered cooperation in exchange for money.
President Volodymyr Zelensky would not meet any other Russian official apart from Russian President Vladimir Putin in Istanbul this week, presidential advisor Mykhailo Podolyak said on the Breakfast Show program on May 13.
Russian dictator Vladimir Putin meets with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation leaders' summit in Samarkand on September 16, 2022. (Photo: Getty Images
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan spoke about the Black Sea Grain Initiative with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin during a call on April 27, Turkish newspaper Daily Sabah reported.
According to Daily Sabah, the main purpose of the call was to discuss the inauguration of the the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant, a joint Turkish-Russian project.
Regarding the grain deal, Erdoğan told Putin that "new initiatives can be implemented through the proposed working group."
The UN and Turkey-brokered deal, first signed in July 2022, has been paramount in subduing soaring food prices worldwide. Ukraine is one of the world's top grain suppliers and Russia's all-out war prevented it from exporting agricultural products from its ports.
The deal was extended for another 120 days on March 18, after weeks of Russia threatening to back out of it if certain terms were not met.
Agriculture Minister Mykola Solskyi told the Kyiv Independent on Feb. 27 that it was vital not only to extend the grain deal but to increase the number of daily exports and ensure the addition of other ports in the deal.
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Alexander Query
