In an interview with French broadcaster TF1 on May 13, Macron discussed new Russia sanctions and stationing French nuclear weapons in other European countries as a deterrent against Russia.
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.
Severely damaged residential building after it was hit by a Russian missile strike on Jan. 14, 2022, in Dnipro. At least 10 people were injured by the attack on the building, according to Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Governor Valentyn Reznichenko. (Valentyn Reznichenko/Telegram)
Russia unleashed its 10th mass missile strike targeting Ukraine's critical infrastructure in the afternoon of Jan. 14.
The nationwide attack damaged critical infrastructure in several oblasts, according to Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal. The hits caused emergency blackouts in multiple regions.
The strike also hit a nine-story apartment building in Dnipro city, killing at least five people and injuring dozens, according to Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Governor Valentyn Reznichenko. Six children were among the wounded, the official said earlier.
Russia has repeatedly attacked Ukraine's critical infrastructure with hundreds of missiles and drones since Oct. 10, killing dozens of civilians and severely damaging the country's energy system.
Russia admitted that Ukraine's energy infrastructure is among its primary targets. According to the Geneva Conventions, targeting vital public infrastructure constitutes a war crime.
The air raid alert went off in all Ukrainian oblasts but occupied Luhansk Oblast and Crimea between 2-3 p.m. on Jan. 14. It is still ongoing.
Explosions were reported in at least 10 Ukrainian regions across the country, such as Kyiv, Kharkiv, Khmelnytskyi, Ternopil, Dnipropetrovsk, Ivano-Frankivsk, Lviv, Vinnytsia, Mykolaiv, and Odesa oblasts.
Local authorities reported that air defense was downing Russian missiles in Mykolaiv, Odesa, Kyiv, Khmelnytskyi, Vinnytsia, and Ivano-Frankivsk oblasts.
Two Russian missiles hit a critical infrastructure site in Kharkiv Oblast, leading to emergency power cut-offs, according to Kharkiv Oblast Governor Oleh Syniehubov.
Explosions were also reported in Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city in the northeast of the country, leading to power outages in most of the city’s districts and the metro’s temporary halt, according to multiple media reports.
The attack also hit a critical infrastructure facility in the western Lviv Oblast, reported Lviv Oblast Governor Maksym Kozytskyi. He did not provide further details but said there might be interruptions in the power and water supply.
Another energy facility was hit in the western Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast, according to the oblast's governor Svitlana Onyschuk. A fire broke out at the site following the attack, Onyschuk said, adding that there were no casualties.
Odesa authorities earlier said the missiles were launched “from air and sea.” Earlier in the day, Southern Operational Command reported that five Russian missile carriers with a total of 36 Kalibr cruise missiles were detected in the Black Sea.
During the attack, President Volodymyr Zelensky's chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, said Russia continues to fight against Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure.
“We will fight back," he said.
Earlier in the day, Russia launched a missile strike on Kyiv, damaging some undisclosed infrastructure in the city and a residential building outside the city.
Ukraine's state grid operator Ukrenergo said it had introduced emergency power cuts in 11 Ukrainian oblasts following the attack. The operator also put consumption limits across all Ukrainian oblasts to manage the strain on the system.
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.
