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.
Speaking at a press conference in Kyiv on May 10, President Volodymyr Zelensky rebuked the idea of a demilitarized zone in the war and emphasized the importance of first securing a ceasefire.
Banners with the demands of the protesting truckers are seen hung on trucks during the blockade of the border crossing to Ukraine near Dorohusk. Nov. 6, 2023. (Attila Husejnow/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
A group of around 100 farmers plan to join the Polish truckers protest at a border crossing with Ukraine on Nov. 23, Bloomberg reported on Nov. 20.
Polish truckers have been protesting the EU's liberalization of transport rules for Ukrainian trucks at three checkpoints since Nov. 6, causing huge lines on both sides of the border.
Farmers from the Betrayed Countryside association plan to stage a three-day protest at a fourth crossing at Medyka, one of the organizers told Bloomberg.
Drivers stuck in line are facing tough conditions as temperatures plummet and snow falls in eastern Poland.
Kyiv has created a support group to provide Ukrainian drivers with food, drinking water, medicine, and fuel.
According to EU rules, Ukrainian trucks do not require permits until June 30, 2024, after the EU and Ukraine signed an agreement in June 2022 to liberalize transport rules.
Polish truckers claim that the lack of entry permits for Ukrainian trucks is hurting business for Polish drivers. They are also calling for a ban on transportation companies from outside the EU.
Deputy Infrastructure Minister Serhiy Derkach wrote on Facebook on Nov. 19 that 1,200 trucks were blocked at the Korczowa crossing, and 500 trucks were blocked at the Hrebenne crossing.
"There were a total of no more than 15 protesters at these two checkpoints," Derkach said, highlighting that "a dozen people are holding the border hostage."
Nate Ostiller
