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.
Empty boulevard in Kyiv on Nov. 24, 2022, during a power outage following Russian attacks on the electric grid. (Andre Luis Alves/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
Power outages have been recorded in 455 settlements across nine Ukrainian oblasts as of Dec. 10, according to the Energy Ministry.
The most difficult situation situation was reported in front-line Donetsk Oblast, where 121 settlements remain without power, the ministry said. Repairs are underway there.
Bad weather and Russian attacks have left over 80 settlements without power in Zaporizhzhia Oblast. In Kherson Oblast, power outages have been reported in 45 settlements due to Russian attacks, the ministry said.
Power outages have also been recorded in Dnipropetrovsk, Mykolaiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, Khmelnytskyi, and Chernihiv oblasts.
As the cold weather sets in, Russia has ramped up its attacks against energy infrastructure in areas close to the front lines.
Last fall and winter, Russian troops launched widespread attacks on the country's energy system, nearly causing its collapse in some areas.
Earlier on Dec. 7, the Energy Ministry reported that Russian troops struck a thermal power plant in one of Ukraine's front-line regions, causing a shutdown of two power units.
The shutdown, combined with decreased temperatures, led to a power deficit in Ukraine's energy system, according to the ministry.
Ukraine's energy companies do not generally disclose the exact locations of facilities targeted by Russian attacks, presumably to avoid giving up sensitive information about the country's critical infrastructure.
Daria Shulzhenko is a reporter at the Kyiv Independent. She has been a lifestyle reporter at the Kyiv Post until November 2021. She graduated from Kyiv International University with a bachelor’s in linguistics, specializing in translation from English and German languages. She has previously worked as a freelance writer and researcher.
Asami Terajima
