U.S. and European officials held talks on May 12, during which Washington made it clear that it wanted to allow talks between Russia and Ukraine before increasing pressure on Vladimir Putin, sources told Bloomberg.
According to Steve Witkoff, the key topics in the peace discussions are the fate of the five partially or fully occupied Ukrainian regions, the status of the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, and Ukraine's access to the Dnipro River and the Black Sea.
Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa is reportedly offering a deal that would give U.S. companies access to Syria's natural wealth, reminiscent of the minerals agreement Washington recently signed with Kyiv.
Russia attacked Ukraine with drones and guided bombs during the night, targeting multiple regions after the May 12 deadline for an unconditional ceasefire expired.
"Only member states can take out loans within the 150 billion euros instrument, but they can use these funds for joint procurement with Ukraine," EU Defense Commissioner Andrius Kubilius said.
"We agreed to pursue ambitious measures to reduce Russia's ability to wage war by limiting Kremlin revenues, disrupting the shadow fleet, tightening the Oil Price Cap, and reducing our remaining imports of Russian energy."
Zelensky on May 12 removed Lieutenant General Ivan Havryliuk from the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, the top command and control body for all branches of Ukraine's defense apparatus.
Ukraine remains the most mined country in the world. Nearly one-third of Ukraine's territory, approximately 174,000 square kilometers, had been mined since Russia began its full-scale invasion of the country in February 2022.
The phone call comes as Moscow once again rejected a 30-day ceasefire, with Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova claiming that a ceasefire would give "Kyiv a break to restore its military potential and continue its confrontation with Russia."
Flight MH17 departed from Amsterdam Schiphol Airport en-route to Kuala Lumpur International Airport on July 17, 2014. Three hours into the flight, the Boeing-777 was shot down by Russian proxy forces using a Buk surface-to-air missile above Ukraine’s Donetsk Oblast.
"I am grateful for the support and the readiness at the highest level to promote diplomacy," President Volodymyr Zelensky said of the phone conservation with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. "We share the same view on the need for a ceasefire."
The convictions mark a significant development in Britain's efforts to counter Russian intelligence operations amid heightened tensions stemming from Moscow's war against Ukraine and repeated Kremlin threats toward Kyiv's allies.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the press after signing an executive order in the Oval Office of the White House on March 26, 2025, in Washington, DC. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
Some 59% of Americans think that U.S. President Donald Trump is costing their country its credibility on the global stage, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll published on April 21.
Concerns about the U.S. global credibility under Trump are shared by roughly one-third of Republicans.
The survey revealed growing dissatisfaction with Trump's policies on multiple issues. His overall approval rating stands at 42%, the lowest since he returned to the White House in January.
Unlike his more restrained first term, the second Trump presidency sent shockwaves through international politics as the president lashed out against the U.S.'s friends and partners and moved to restore ties with Russia.
This was perhaps most visible in Ukraine, a country that relied on crucial U.S. military and economic support under Trump's predecessor, former U.S. President Joe Biden.
Trump departed from the West's unequivocally pro-Ukraine policy, presenting the U.S. as a mediator seeking to broker a ceasefire between Kyiv and Moscow. These efforts have included pressuring Ukraine by temporarily halting military support, while applying far less tangible pressure on Moscow, except for verbal threats of sanctions and tariffs.
Russia was even one of the few countries—unlike Ukraine, EU states, and others—that were excluded from Trump's sweeping "reciprocal" tariffs, which sent stock markets tumbling around the world. Trump's special envoy, Steve Witkoff, has met Russian President Vladimir Putin three times, often echoing Moscow's narratives on the war and pushing for economic cooperation.
Trump has further shocked the international community by repeatedly voting against motions in support of Ukraine in the U.N., joining the ranks of countries like Russia and Belarus. He has also publicly discussed annexing territory from U.S. partners like Denmark and Canada and directly challenged NATO's principle of collective defense.
The Reuters/Ipsos poll was conducted between April 16 and 21 and involved 4,306 U.S. adults.
Ukraine has enjoyed a strong, bipartisan support at the start of Russia's full-scale invasion, but later years saw the Republican Party grow increasingly skeptical about aiding Kyiv.
A March poll showed that most Americans disapprove of Trump's handling of the war and his embrace of Moscow. A more recent survey from April however confirmed a widening gap between Republicans and Democrats, with the former seeing Russia increasingly less as an adversary and being less concerned about the outcome of the war.
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.
Asami Terajima
