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.
Erdogan told Macron that international cooperation is critical for initiating peace negotiations and the "sensitive implementation" of Ukraine’s recovery and reconstruction processes, the Turkish Presidency reported.
The assault began around 2 a.m. on May 11, with Russian forces deploying 108 Shahed-type attack drones and decoy UAVs from multiple directions, Ukraine’s Air Force said.
"Think of the hundreds of thousands of lives that will be saved as this never ending 'bloodbath' hopefully comes to an end... I will continue to work with both sides to make sure that it happens."
U.S. State Department Spokesperson Tammy Bruce called for "concrete proposals from both sides" in order for Washington to "move forward" in peace negotiations.
"If they speak to each other in Russian, he doesn't know what they are saying," one Western official told NBC News. Michael McFaul, former U.S. ambassador to Russia, called Witkoff's approach "a very bad idea."
Tougher sanctions "should be applied to (Russia's) banking and energy sectors, targeting fossil fuels, oil, and the shadow fleet," the leaders of Ukraine, the U.K., France, Germany, and Poland said in a joint statement.
"Russia is ready for negotiations without any preconditions," Putin claimed in an address marking the end of the three-day Victory Day ceasefire. He invited Ukraine to begin talks in Istanbul on May 15.
The EU and Ukrainian flags in front of the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium, July 2023. (Thierry Monasse / Getty Images)
The European Parliament has agreed to open an office in Ukraine following requests by senior Ukrainian officials, Euractiv reported on Nov. 21, citing a document from the European Parliament bureau.
The decision, approved on Nov. 20, reportedly aims to facilitate relations with the Ukrainian parliament, namely to connect it with the European Parliament's committees.
The European Parliament has a liaison office in each member state to strengthen outreach to individual countries. It also has several offices outside the EU, for example, in the U.S. or the U.K.
According to the document seen by Euractiv, President Volodymyr Zelensky asked European Parliament President Roberta Metsola to establish representation in Ukraine during their March meeting in Lviv.
Ruslan Stefanchuk, the Ukrainian parliament chairman, also allegedly raised the issue in late April.
The European Parliament's presence in Ukraine aims to ensure that the EU parliamentary committees are "regularly informed about ongoing issues and processes" in the country, as well as in other Eastern Partnership states, the document said.
Ukraine submitted its EU membership bid in February 2022. The European Commission recently recommended launching formal accession talks, acknowledging Kyiv's reform efforts on its path toward European integration.
EU leaders are expected to make the decision on the accession negotiations in December. While some members voiced support for opening the talks, Hungary said it would oppose such a step.
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.
Kate Tsurkan
