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: A Russian Mi-8 military helicopter flies over a joint Russian and Turkish convoy (not pictured) as it patrols oil fields near the town of al-Qahtaniyah, Syria. Feb. 4, 2021. (Delil Souleiman/AFP via Getty Images)
A Russian Mi-8 helicopter with six people on board went missing on Sep. 3 in Russia's Irkutsk Oblast, Russian state news agency Ria Novosti reported.
Communication with the helicopter en route from Irkutsk to Orlyk was lost on the border of the Republic of Buryatia and Irkutsk Oblast.
Later in the day, Alexey Tsydenov, the head of the Republic of Buryatia, claimed on his Telegram channel that the Mi-8 made a hard landing on the border of Buryatia, 85 kilometers (52 miles) from the city of Irkutsk.
There were two medics and the crew on board. Two people suffered minor injuries, according to Tsydenov.
The search and rescue operation was ongoing in the region at 11 a.m. local time.
Another Russian Mi-8 helicopter went missing on Aug. 31 with 22 passengers on board in the Kamchatka Peninsula in the Russian Far East. A day later, the wreckage of a missing Russian helicopter was located, with no survivors found.
Russia's aviation industry has been hit hard by Western sanctions introduced in response to the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and multiple incidents involving equipment malfunction on civilian airplanes have been reported.
Kateryna Hodunova is a News Editor at the Kyiv Independent. She previously worked as a sports journalist in several Ukrainian outlets and was the deputy chief editor at Suspilne Sport. Kateryna covered the 2022 Olympics in Beijing and was included in the Special Mentions list at the AIPS Sport Media Awards. She holds a bachelor's degree in political journalism from Taras Shevchenko University and a master's degree in political science from the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy.
Kateryna Hodunova
