"Our involvement in the war was justifiable, and this belongs to our sovereign rights," North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un said. "I regard this as part of the sacred mission we must execute for our brothers and comrades-in-arms."
"We have a plan B and a plan C. But our focus is plan A, the essence of which is to get everyone's support" for Ukraine's accession, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said.
"(T)he presence at the Victory Parade of a country that bombs cities, hospitals, and daycares, and which has caused the deaths and injuries of over a million people over three years, is a shame," Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said.
"According to the participants of the performances, their goal is to remind the civilized world of the barbaric actions of Moscow, which for many years and decades has systematically violated international law," a source in Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (HUR) told the Kyiv Independent.
"I have great hope that an agreement for a ceasefire in Ukraine will be reached this weekend," German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on May 9, shortly before traveling to Kyiv alongside the leaders of France, Poland, and the U.K.
U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk will arrive in Kyiv early on May 10.
The United States embassy in Kyiv on May 9 issued a warning that Russia could launch "a potentially significant" attack in the coming days, despite Putin's self-declared Victory Day "truce."
The sanctioned oil tankers have transported over $24 billion in cargo since 2024, according to Downing Street. The U.K. has now sanctioned more shadow fleet vessels than any other country.
Washington and its partners are considering additional sanctions if the parties do not observe a ceasefire, with political and technical negotiations between Europe and the U.S. intensifying since last week, Reuters' source said.
Ukrainian soldiers released from Russian captivity during a prisoner exchange on March 7. (President's Office Head Andrii Yermak via Telegram)
President's Office Head Andrii Yermak reported that 126 servicemen and four servicewomen were released from Russian captivity during a prisoner exchange on March 7.
Most of the released soldiers were defending the now-occupied port city of Mariupol in southeastern Ukraine, according to Yermak. Seventy-one soldiers were reportedly evacuated from the Azovstal steel plant.
The Coordinating Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War said that among the freed POWs were also personnel captured by Russian troops near Bakhmut and Soledar in Donetsk Oblast as well as those fighting in Luhansk Oblast.
Forty-five of the freed military POWs belong to Ukraine's Armed Forces, 25 to the National Guard, 23 to the State Border Service, 21 to the Naval Forces, eight to the Territorial Defense Forces, and eight to the State Special Transport Service.
Most of the soldiers who returned to Ukraine have serious injuries or illnesses acquired in battles and during captivity, according to the coordinating headquarters. The youngest released POW is not yet 21 years old, while the oldest will soon turn 64.
On the other side of the swap, 90 Russian soldiers were returned from Ukrainian-controlled territory, Russian state news agency TASS reported on March 7, citing the country's defense ministry.
During the previous prisoner exchange on Feb. 16, Ukraine returned 100 military personnel and one civilian.
1,464 service members and 132 civilians were freed from Russian captivity in 2022, according to the Ministry for Reintegration of Temporarily Occupied Territories.
We are the news team of the Kyiv Independent. We are here to make sure our readers get quick, essential updates about the events in Ukraine. Feel free to contact us via email with feedback and news alerts.
