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.
While serving as a bishop in Peru, Robert Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV, called the full-scale war "a true invasion, imperialist in nature, where Russia seeks to conquer territory for reasons of power."
Speaking to CNN on May 10, Peskov commented on the latest ceasefire proposal from Ukraine and Europe, responding that Russia needs to "think about" it, but is "resistant" to pressure.
Mariana Bezuhla, MP and member of the Ukrainian Committee on National Security seen during the Warsaw Security Forum, in Warsaw, Poland, on Oct. 4, 2022. (Attila Husejnow/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Some lawmakers from the Servant of the People party demanded to expel MP Mariana Bezuhla from the parliamentary faction after she called for the dismissal of Ukraine's chief commander Valerii Zaluzhnyi, Suspilne reported on Nov. 27, citing its sources.
"Most lawmakers are outraged by Bezuhla's behavior and propose excluding her. However, it is not guaranteed to be put to a vote," an MP from President Volodymyr Zelensky's party told Suspilne.
A day before, Bezuhla, a deputy head of the parliament's national security committee, claimed that Zaluzhnyi had not provided a plan for Ukraine's armed forces for next year.
"If the military leadership can't provide any plan for 2024, and if all their proposals for mobilization boil down to needing more people without any proposal for changes in the military system, then this leadership should step down," Bezuhla said.
The committee's secretary, Roman Kostenko, told Suspilne that there had been no demand for Zaluzhnyi to submit such a plan.
Asked whether Bezuhla’s stance was in line with the Servant of the People party's position, its spokeswoman Yulia Paliychuk told Ukrainska Pravda that Bezuhla "is responsible for her own words."
Bezuhla's statement comes amid speculation in Western and Ukrainian media about alleged disagreements between Zelensky and Zaluzhnyi.
Kyiv-born Bezuhla, 35, has a controversial reputation among the Ukrainian public and is known for her scandalous statements.
Last year, she reportedly co-authored a draft law that would have allowed the Ukrainian military to kill soldiers deserting their service or failing to comply with command orders.
The bill sparked outrage among Ukrainians and was withdrawn from consideration shortly after being registered in the parliament.
Dinara Khalilova
