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."
Ukraine's Military Intelligence (HUR) spokesperson Andrii Yusov, journalist Artem Shevchenko and defected Russian helicopter pilot Maksim Kuzminov (L to R) are pictured during a press conference on Sept. 5, 2023. (Kirill Chubotin / Ukrinform/Future Publishing via Getty Images)
After news broke that a Russian helicopter pilot defected to Ukraine, calls to a hotline set up for Russian soldiers wanting to surrender to Ukraine's military increased by 70% in one day, Ukraine's Military Intelligence (HUR) spokesperson Andrii Yusov said on Sept. 11.
Launched in September 2022 by Ukraine's Main Directorate of Intelligence, the 24-hour hotline, which is called 'I Want to Live' in Russian, helps Russians to surrender themselves or their units to the Ukrainian military.
Ukraine promises Russian military personnel that they will be held in compliance with the Geneva Conventions after surrender.
Maksim Kuzminov, 28-year-old Russian helicopter pilot, landed his Mi-8 helicopter at an airfield in Ukraine to give himself up to the authorities, Ukrainian media reported on Aug. 23.
He spoke at a press conference on the operation on Sept. 5 and explained that he defected because he "did not want to contribute" to the crimes committed by Russian forces in Ukraine, which he believes is a "wonderful country."
He said that he contacted the Ukrainian side on his own initiative, and was told he would receive security for himself and his family, payments, and new documents from Ukraine if he defected.
Kuzminov said that his parents supported his plans to defect and have joined him in Ukraine.
On Sept. 5, the HUR announced he would receive the hryvnia equivalent of $500,000 (approximately Hr 18.48 million) as a reward. Ukraine's parliament passed a law in April 2022 offering up to $1 million to Russian military personnel who manage to transfer equipment to Ukraine, depending on the type of equipment they hand over.
Francis Farrell
