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.
Offensive Guard's "Spartan" assault brigade of Ukraine's National Guard practice driving and evacuating lessons on a BTR-4E armored personnel carrier in Kharkiv Oblast on April 21. (AFP via Getty Images)
Ukrainian forces advanced over 1,700 meters in the Melitopol direction in a week, said Colonel Mykola Urshalovych, the deputy director of the Department of Application Planning of the National Guard, as cited by ArmyInform on July 14.
Units of the National Guard's 15th "Kara-Dag" Brigade have pushed south and southeast in cooperation with the Armed Forces and with tank support, Urshalovych specified.
"Our units are advancing through dense enemy minefields at the approaches to their positions and under heavy fire, including 213 strikes from multiple-launch rocket systems, tanks, and artillery, and six airstrikes during the past week," Urshalovych said.
The colonel also said that Russian troops are attempting to counterattack to regain lost ground but are being repelled.
Other National Guard formations are deployed in the Siversk and Avdiivka directions, where they are on the defensive against Russian attacks, Urshalovych said.
On July 13, Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar reported successful advances on the southern front line, particularly in the sectors of Novodanylivka-Balka Shyroka and Mala Tokmachka-Novopokrovka.
Ukrainian troops are also conducting offensive actions in the south to degrade Russian military capabilities, Maliar added.
Martin Fornusek is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. He has previously worked as a news content editor at the media company Newsmatics and is a contributor to Euromaidan Press. He was also volunteering as an editor and translator at the Czech-language version of Ukraïner. Martin studied at Masaryk University in Brno, Czechia, holding a bachelor's degree in security studies and history and a master's degree in conflict and democracy studies.
Alexander Khrebet
