More than 1,000 Russian government entities and 1,200 private companies are involved in the economy of occupied Mariupol, a major southeastern city occupied by Russia after it invaded Ukraine in 2022, according to a research paper published on May 14.
The measures target almost 200 ships of Russia's "shadow fleet," 30 companies involved in sanctions evasion, 75 sanctions on entities and individuals linked to the Russian military-industrial complex, and more.
The government has approved "reform roadmaps in the rule of law, public administration, and democratic institutions, as well as Ukraine’s negotiation position," Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said.
The statement did not name the ex-official by name, but details of the case indicate it relates to Oleh Hladkovsky, a former deputy secretary of Ukraine's top security body who has been wanted since mid-April.
Brazilian President Lula da Silva claimed that Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha had appealed to his Brazilian counterpart, Mauro Vieira, to ask Putin if he was willing to conclude a peace agreement.
"Trump needs to believe that Putin actually lies," Zelensky told journalists in Kyiv. "And we should do our part. Sensibly approach this issue, to show that it’s not us that is slowing down the process."
The EU plans to significantly increase tariffs on Ukrainian goods after the current duty-free deal lapses on June 6, the Financial Times reported on May 14, citing undisclosed diplomatic sources.
The blockade ended at 10:30 p.m. local time. Truck traffic in both directions is now moving as usual, according to Ukraine's State Border Guard's statement.
Russia seems to be preparing a significant offensive in Ukraine as it is moving troops toward key positions on the front, the Financial Times reported on May 13, citing undisclosed Ukrainian intelligence officials.
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.
Photo for illustrative purposes. Russian soldiers patrol a street in Russian-occupied Melitopol, Zaporizhzhia Oblast, southern Ukraine, on May 1, 2022. (Getty Images)
Russian occupation authorities in southern Ukraine plan to force all local teenagers aged 17 to register at Russian-controlled military enlistment offices starting from March this year, the National Resistance Center reported on Jan. 4.
The move is part of Russia’s preparations for a mass mobilization campaign in the occupied territories of Ukraine, according to the center run by the Ukrainian military. The Kyiv Independent could not immediately verify this information.
Russia has reportedly conscripted tens of thousands of Ukrainian citizens in the occupied parts of Ukraine to fight against their own country since the start of the full-scale invasion on Feb. 24, 2022.
Many of them are believed to have been killed in action, as Moscow reportedly uses these people as cannon fodder to expose Ukrainian artillery positions and to cover units recruited inside Russia.
“The enemy benefits from the death of Ukrainians, regardless of which side they are fighting on,” the center wrote.
The center called on residents of the Russian-occupied territories “to ignore the initiatives of the occupiers, and thereby not only make life difficult for the traitors (collaborators in the occupied territories) but also preserve your own lives.”
The center reported on Sept. 24 that Russian-installed occupation officials were forming a system of military registration of conscripts among the residents of the occupied territories of Ukraine.
Russian dictator Vladimir Putin announced mobilization for his full-scale war against Ukraine in September 2022, and as Moscow claims, a total of 318,000 conscripts were mobilized. However, Russian independent online media outlet Mediazona estimated the figure to be around 527,000.
The mobilization campaign proved to be highly unpopular among the Russian population, which appears to be why Putin may be postponing the second wave of mobilization until after Russia’s next presidential election in March, experts told the Kyiv Independent.
Alexander Khrebet
