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.
The spokesperson of Ukraine's Main Intelligence Directorate (GUR), Andrii Yusov, at the Military Media Center in Kyiv, Ukraine, May 4, 2023. (Kaniuka Ruslan / Ukrinform/Future Publishing via Getty Images)
The recent incursion into Russia by Russian anti-Kremlin militias made Moscow "change plans" on a possible new attack in Ukraine's northern sector, Andrii Yusov, a spokesperson of Ukraine's military Intelligence told the Kyiv Independent on March 22.
Yusov confirmed the statements of three Ukraine-based units comprised of Russian citizens, which crossed the border into Russia from Ukraine on March 12 to conduct combat operations in Russia's Belgorod and Kursk oblasts.
Russian nationalist Denis Kapustin, the commander of the Russian Volunteer Corps, said at a press conference on March 21 that the militias "stabilized the front" and "eased the pressure of Russian troops in certain areas."
Alexei Baranovsky, the Freedom of Russia Legion volunteer, claimed that anti-Kremlin forces had received intelligence about Russia's alleged plans to advance further into Kharkiv Oblast.
"The clashes (on Russia's territory) forced Russia to deploy additional reserves and withdraw its troops from their positions (in Ukraine) to relocate them to Belgorod Oblast," Yusov said.
Recently, Kyiv has recorded an increase in the threat in this area, including from Russian sabotage and reconnaissance groups, according to HUR’s spokesperson.
The Russian Defense Ministry published footage depicting several disabled pieces of hardware, including a tank and a U.S.-made Bradley Fighting Vehicle.
“Western samples are the weapons that the enemy captured once, and they were later taken back from the Russian forces,” Yusov told the Kyiv Independent, when asked about the weapons used by the units.
Russian fighters stay "legally" in Ukraine and use on the battlefield the weapons they have been issued, while on Russia's territory they use trophy weapons and recaptured ones — which Russian troops once captured from Ukrainian fighters and anti-Kremlin forces took them back, according to Yusov. They also have Ukraine-made weapons "of various nomenclature," HUR's spokesperson said.
Russian troops intensified their attacks in the Kupiansk sector in January and captured the village of Krokhmalne, Kharkiv Oblast. As of mid-February, Ukrainian intelligence said that Moscow did not have enough resources for a new large-scale offensive in the region.
Kateryna Denisova works as a News Editor at the Kyiv Independent. She previously worked as a news editor at the NV media outlet for four years, covering mainly Ukrainian and international politics. Kateryna holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Taras Shevchenko University of Kyiv. She also was a fellow at journalism schools in the Czech Republic and Germany.
Emmanuelle Chaze
