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.
A captive named Umit allegedly agreed to serve in the Russian army in exchange for Russian citizenship and a monetary reward of 2 million rubles ($25,000).
Moldova's President Maia Sandu on a visit to France's President Emmanuel Macron in Paris, May 19, 2022. (Photo Credit: NurPhoto/GettyImages)
At a May 29 press conference, Moldova’s President Maia Sandu warned against the dangers of Russian propaganda and disinformation in the country and proposed the creation of a new governmental body to counter this threat.
The envisioned “Patriot Center” would coordinate and implement the state's strategy on combatting disinformation, Sandu said.
“Russia cannot attack our country through military means, so it keeps attacking us through lies, propaganda, and disinformation,” the president commented.
“The Kremlin spends massive sums on spreading lies in the media, on social networks, and uses dirty money to finance criminal groups that seek to hinder our country’s development… With large amounts of money, with troll factories working around the clock, they are trying to weaken Moldova with repeated attacks”
According to Sandu, these hybrid attacks seek to sow distrust between Moldova’s citizens and their government.
Moldova has faced escalating security concerns due to the full-scale invasion of neighboring Ukraine, which poses a significant risk of spillover into the country.
On Feb. 13, Sandu warned that Russia is planning a coup d'état in Moldova, involving attacks on government buildings and hostage-taking.
Moldovan Prime Minister Dorin Rechan confirmed in an interview with Moldova's TV8 on Feb. 21 that authorities were aware of "several" Russian destabilization scenarios, including Russia's plan to take control of the Chisinau airport.
On May 8, Leonid Manakov, who represents Transnistria in Moscow, requested more Russian "peacekeepers" due to what he called the "deteriorating security situation" in an interview with Russian state media.
Transnistria is a breakaway region internationally recognized as part of Moldova, kept afloat with the help of the illegal presence of Russian troops.
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.
Anna Myroniuk
