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."
Oleksandr Dubinsky leaving a press conference in Kyiv on January 18, 2021. (Photo by SERGEI SUPINSKY/AFP via Getty Images)
Lawmaker Oleksandr Dubinsky said via social networks on Aug. 9 that he has been declared a suspect of the falsification of official documents in a case related to his recent travel abroad.
The MP is being investigated for a vacation abroad during wartime, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and State Bureau of Investigation announced on Aug. 3.
The authorities believe he traveled under the pretext of accompanying his father for medical treatment outside of Ukraine. However, Dubinsky's father went abroad without him and returned to Ukraine before the lawmaker.
According to Ukrainska Pravda, his trip became public when a Health Ministry document requesting his permission to travel was leaked. He was supposed to return by July 10, but at the end of July he was featured in an Instagram post by his girlfriend who was on holiday in Barcelona.
Dubinsky allegedly spent several weeks on holiday in Italy, Croatia, and Spain in July.
The forgery charge relates to how the MP "was able to sign and send official documents" during his stay abroad. The evidence of Dubinsky not being in Ukraine on the days the documents were signed "may indicate their forgery," the Bureau said.
On Aug. 5, the Bureau searched the office of Volodymyr Kolodyuk, the lawmaker's assistant, according to media reports.
The MP said the charges were politically motivated and that the authorities were "cynically interfering in the personal life of my family."
Dubinsky is an independent MP. He was removed from President Volodymyr Zelensky Servant of the People party in 2021 for "violating the statute and disobeying the party's governing bodies."
Anna Myroniuk
