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.
The Ukrainian military fires RPGs at enemy positions as the special military unit "Kurt & Company group" holds the first line of the front line on Nov. 3, 2023 in Donetsk Oblast. (Kostya Liberov/Libkos/Getty Images)
NATO intelligence data suggests that Russia is unlikely to launch a large-scale offensive in the near future, European Pravda reported on April 4, citing a NATO official who spoke on condition of anonymity.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said in February that Russia is preparing to launch an offensive in Ukraine in spring or the start of the summer.
The Institute for the Study of War said in its April 1 report that Russia may focus an upcoming offensive on the western part of Donetsk Oblast, near Avdiivka, a key front-line city in Donetsk Oblast captured by Russia in February.
While Russian forces have a "significant quantitative advantage" in terms of weapons and personnel, they "still lack the ammunition and maneuverable units required for a successful major offensive," the NATO official reportedly said.
Russian units on the front line are "understaffed and inexperienced" and receive "politically-motivated" orders to achieve"unrealistic goals," the official said.
NATO intelligence therefore considers it "doubtful that Russian forces could achieve significant success in an offensive this spring."
Russia is "unlikely to be able to conduct any significant offensive without further large-scale mobilization," the official was quoted.
Zelensky warned on April 3 that Russia is preparing to mobilize an additional 300,000 soldiers by June 1.
Ukraine's military intelligence said in March that Russia is likely to ramp up its mobilization efforts now that Russian President Vladimir Putin has secured his fifth term in office in the rigged vote in March.
At the same time, Ukraine is looking into ways to mobilize further troops as well, and an updated mobilization bill is being considered in the parliament.
Carla Norrlöf
