George Simion, leader of Romania's far-right AUR party, who won the first round of the presidential election with nearly 40% of the vote, reiterated that if elected, he would oppose any further assistance to Ukraine and shift Romania’s focus inward.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping hailed their countries' relationship on May 8, vowing to increase cooperation in all areas, including military ties.
"There is Turkey, which maintains channels of communication. And then, above all, there is the People's Republic of China, which, more than anyone else, has the means to make (Russian President Vladimir) Putin come to the negotiating table and soften his demands," Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said on May 8.
The United States will be ready to "walk away" from the negotiating table if it does not see Russia making progress in negotiation to end the war, U.S. Vice President JD Vance told Fox News on May 8.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico arrived in Moscow on May 9 to celebrate Victory Day, commemorating the 80th anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II.
US President Donald Trump on May 8 called for a "30-day unconditional ceasefire" between Ukraine and Russia. Writing on Truth Social, Trump expressed his hope for "an acceptable ceasefire," with both countries "held accountable for respecting the sanctity of... direct negotiations."
President Volodymyr Zelensky had a "constructive" phone call with United States President Donald Trump on May 8, discussing the war, continued pressure on Russia, and a potential ceasefire.
The survey, conducted between April 24 and May 4, shows that 56.9% of respondents would not be willing to compromise on either territorial integrity or Ukraine’s pro-Western direction in any potential talks with Moscow.
U.S. Cardinal Robert Prevost was elected the new pope and leader of the Roman Catholic Church on Thursday, taking the name Pope Leo XIV, a senior cardinal announced on May 8 to crowds gathered in St. Peter’s Square, according to Vatican News.
Russian Orthodox Metropolitan Tikhon Shevkunov (L) and Patriarch Kirill (R) attend the opening ceremony of the monument to Prince Alexander Nevsky on Sep. 11, 2021. (Photo credit: Mikhail Svetlov/Getty Images)
The Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) plans to facilitate another transfer of Ukrainian prisoners of war (POW) to Hungary, RBC Ukraine reported on July 13, citing sources in Ukrainian security services.
As was the case with the previous POW hand-over, this will be conducted without cooperation with Kyiv and the captives are of Hungarian ethnic origin, the unnamed sources told the news agency.
According to the report, members of ROC talk about a visit by Hungarian officials, expected to occur on Aug. 8-11, during which the parties will discuss the issue of the next POW transfer.
Head of the ROC's external relations Anthony, Metropolitan of Volokolamsk, will represent the Russian side at the talks, RBC Ukraine wrote.
The Hungarian side reportedly does not have a specific list of prisoners, therefore, Russian security services are currently selecting 10-15 Ukrainian soldiers of "Zakarpattia origin" for the hand-over.
"The demand of the Hungarians is Hungarian ethnicity and knowledge of the Hungarian language. This demand is non-debatable - the Hungarians will not accept anyone except representatives of the Hungarian national minority in Ukraine," one of the sources told the news agency.
On June 8, the Russian Orthodox Church announced that it had handed over to Hungary a group of 11 Ukrainian captives of "Zakarpattia origin" at Budapest's request. Hungarian Deputy Prime Minister Zsolt Semjén later confirmed the transfer.
Ukraine's westernmost Zakarpattia Oblast is home to around 150,000 ethnic Hungarians, including 400 serving in the Ukrainian army.
On June 19, Ukraine's Foreign Ministry demanded immediate consular access to the POWs. According to the ministry, they were kept in isolation without access to open sources of information and were unable to communicate with relatives without "third parties" presence. However, Hungary's Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said the Ukrainian POWs "can move freely in Hungary and do whatever they want."
Szijjártó also denied the involvement of the Hungarian government in organizing the transfer but Ukrainian military intelligence said they have evidence of Budapest's complicity.
On June 20, Ukraine's Foreign Ministry informed that three out of 11 POWs have been returned home, and the government continues to work to retrieve the rest of the group.
Martin Fornusek
