This week, the world watched in anticipation for Russia’s Victory Day parade after President Volodymyr Zelensky commented that he could not guarantee the safety of those attending. Meanwhile, the European Union moves one step forward to banning Russian gas from the European continent. It is also revealed this week that U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has fallen out of step with the White House.
"(Russian) President (Vladimir) Putin... doesn't want to have a ceasefire agreement with Ukraine, but rather wants to meet on Thursday, in Turkey, to negotiate a possible end to the bloodbath. Ukraine should agree to this, immediately," U.S. President Donald Trump said.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will travel to to Antalya, Turkey, for a NATO foreign ministers’ meeting from May 14–16, where he is expected to address the war in Ukraine and push for stronger Allied defense commitments.
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."
The Slavyansk-on-Kuban oil refinery in Krasnodar Krai, Russia. (Krasnodar Krai administration)
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) in conjunction with the country's new Unmanned Systems Forces, launched a drone attack on Russia's Kushchevskaya military airbase and Slavyansk oil refinery plant overnight, Ukrainska Pravda reported on May 19.
According to an SBU source cited by Ukrainska Pravda, "dozens" of aircraft used to attack Ukraine and its armed forces including Su-34s, Su-25s, Su-27s, and MiG-29s were stationed at the airfield.
There is currently no information on damage or casualties though the source said the Slavyansk oil refinery has paused operations.
It's the second time this particular airbase and refinery have been targeted by SBU drones in recent weeks – an attack on April 27 reportedly hit "key technological objects" and damaged several aircraft.
"The SBU continues to effectively target military and infrastructure facilities behind enemy lines, reducing Russia's potential for waging war," it said at the time.
The creation of Ukraine's new Unmanned Systems Forces was announced by President Volodymyr Zelensky on Feb. 6.
It is working on improving Ukraine's work with drones, creating special drone-specific units, ramping up training, systemizing their use, increasing production, and pushing innovation.
According to the President's Office, the division will aim to "increase the capabilities of Ukraine's Armed Forces and to use unmanned and robotic air, sea, and ground systems."
"This year should be decisive in many aspects – and, obviously, on the battlefield," Zelensky said at the time. "Drones – unmanned systems – have proven their effectiveness in battles on land, in the sky, and at sea."
"Ukraine has really changed the security situation in the Black Sea thanks to drones. Repelling assaults on the ground is largely the work of drones.
"The large-scale destruction of the (Russian) occupiers and their equipment is (also due to) drones."
Chris York is news operations editor at the Kyiv Independent. Before joining the team, he was head of news at the Kyiv Post. Previously, back in Britain, he spent nearly a decade working for HuffPost UK. He holds an MA in Conflict, Development, and Security from the University of Leeds.
The Kyiv Independent news desk
