In an interview with French broadcaster TF1 on May 13, Macron discussed new Russia sanctions and stationing French nuclear weapons in other European countries as a deterrent against Russia.
Performing their song "Bird of Pray," Ukrainian band Ziferblat passed the Eurovision semi-finals on May 13, qualifying Ukraine for the grand final on May 17.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed that a Russian delegation will be in Istanbul on May 15 for direct peace talks with Ukraine. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Putin’s foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov will likely represent Russia.
The move follows Ukraine's ratification of the minerals agreement, deepening U.S.-Ukraine economic ties and signaling expanded U.S. involvement in Ukraine's long-term recovery.
"Ukraine has initiated a coordinated campaign to vilify Hungary in order to undermine our initiative to hold a poll on (Kyiv's) EU membership," Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz warned that further concessions from Ukraine during negotiations would be unreasonable if Russia continues to attack civilian targets.
U.S. President Donald Trump's special envoys, Steve Witkoff and Keith Kellogg, will travel to Istanbul for possible peace talks between Ukraine and Russia, Reuters reported on May 13, citing three undisclosed sources.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said he will meet with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara, but said both leaders are ready to fly to Istanbul if Russian President Vladimir Putin chooses to attend the talks there.
Illustrative purposes only: German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and President Volodymyr Zelensky during their bilateral meeting in Granada, Spain, on Oct. 5, 2023. (Ukraine's Presidential Office)
President Volodymyr Zelensky was invited to participate in the Munich Security Conference at the end of next week, the German outlet Tagesspiegel reported on Feb. 7.
It would be the third Zelensky's trip to Germany since the Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine. During his visit in May 2023, the president met with Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin and accepted the Charlemagne Prize in Aachen.
Zelensky was also in Germany in December 2023, paying a visit to the headquarters of the U.S. Army Command in Europe and Africa, located in the German city of Wiesbaden.
The annual Munich Security Conference is set to take place between Feb. 16 and 18.
"An invitation to Zelensky was extended," Munich Security Conference Chairman Christoph Heusgen said.
Heusgen did not confirm the Ukrainian president's attendance but said that "the organizers are making an effort towards a presence of the head of state from Kyiv."
Zelensky opened the Munich Security Conference in 2023 with a video address from Kyiv, saying "there is no alternative" to Ukrainian victory and the country's membership in the EU and NATO.
The Munich Security Conference is an annual conference on international security policy that has been held in Munich, Germany, since 1963. Last year, the conference was focused on Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Kate Tsurkan
