Key developments on May 24-25: * Ukraine brings home 303 POWs in final phase of biggest prisoner swap with Russia * Russian missile, drone attack kills 12, injures 79 * US silence 'encourages Putin', Zelensky says after massive Russian attack * Russia losing battlefield edge in war against Ukraine, WP reports * Russia will reveal
"We were simultaneously engaged in an air defense battle and ensuring airspace security for the president’s helicopter flight," Yury Dashkin, commander of an air defense division, said, as cited by the Russian news agency on May 25.
In the latest episode of Ukraine This Week, the Kyiv Independent’s Anna Belokur shares key takeaways from Monday’s phone call between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, as well as Wednesday’s assassination of a controversial Ukrainian ex-official. Also, Russia is advancing in Sumy Oblast.
According to a recent report from the US Defense Intelligence Agency, Russian President Vladimir Putin remains "committed to victory in Ukraine, and his objectives remain mostly unchanged since the beginning of the war: Ukrainian neutrality and a further partition of the Ukrainian state."
A spokesperson for Ukraine's Foreign Ministry said Putin's words are further proof that Russia "is an obstacle to peace efforts."
U.S. Donald Trump's reported statement marked the first time he acknowledged to European leaders the thing they and Kyiv have long maintained — the Kremlin has no intention of ending its full-scale war against Ukraine.
"War crimes have been committed, no doubt, and who is responsible for that, there will be a time and place for that accountability, but right now the job is to end the war," U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said.
* Russian semiconductor plant making missile, jet parts hit in Ukrainian attack, military says * Putin visits Kursk Oblast for first time since Moscow claimed its recapture * Ukraine dismisses Russian claims of full control over Kursk Oblast, says fighting ongoing * Russia massing troops near Kharkiv Oblast ahead of possible attack, military warns
While the pact does not include a mutual defense clause, it outlines commitments for both countries to cooperate against common military threats, enhance military-technical collaboration, and participate in joint military exercises, according to Reuters.
"The statements by representatives of (Russia) about the alleged end of combat operations in Kursk Oblast do not reflect the actual situation," Ukraine's General Staff said in a statement.
During the visit, Putin met with Acting Governor Alexander Khinshtein, heads of local municipalities, and members of volunteer organizations, the Kremlin's press service said.
Key developments on May 20: * 'Russia is trying to buy time to continue the war' — Zelensky says after Putin-Trump call * EU approves 17th package of Russia sanctions, targets shadow fleet * Rubio says US, NATO seek more Patriot air defense systems for Ukraine * Kyiv to receive 400,000 more shells from
After a two-hour call between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, Russia reiterated its refusal for a full ceasefire in the war in Ukraine while the U.S. once again failed to respond with any significant pressure. For observers across Europe, watching the way the negotiations
In what is now a semi-regular occurrence, the workings of U.S.-led global diplomacy has cast a dark shadow over Ukraine. U.S. President Donald Trump spoke with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, on May 19 in the latest attempt to broker a ceasefire in Ukraine. The call came
My daughter is just over a year old. She’s learning to walk, says a few words in both Ukrainian and English, and because of Russia’s war, she already has an acute understanding of what it means to be afraid. The first time she reacted to the air raid
"Clear and realistic proposals must be on the table. Ukraine is ready for any effective negotiation format. And if Russia continues to put forward unrealistic conditions and undermine possible results, there must be harsh consequences," President Volodymyr Zelensky said.
Putin and Trump held a phone call on May 19, during which the Russian leader refused to agree to a ceasefire and instead declared readiness to negotiate a "memorandum regarding a potential future peace treaty."
Over 60% of Americans believe Russian President Vladimir Putin is "stalling" peace talks involving the United States, and back weaponry shipments to Ukraine and additional sanctions if Russia refuses to negotiate a peace deal, according to a Harvard CAPS Harris poll released on May 19.
U.S. President Donald Trump, in separate statements, told reporters on May 19 that he trusts Russian President Vladimir Putin, will not sanction Russia, but will abandon Ukraine peace efforts if progress is not made.
Key developments on May 19: * After call with Trump, Putin still refuses full ceasefire, again cites Russia's 'root causes' of war in Ukraine * Zelensky dismisses Putin's demand to withdraw troops from 4 Ukrainian regions * Commander of Ukraine's 59th Brigade replaced, media reports * Ukrainian drones destroy Russian radar, supply depots on
"It means that they (Russia) don't want peace," President Volodymyr Zelensky said. "If they demand what they know we won't agree to," he added.
A source in the President's Office told the Kyiv Independent that Trump and Zelensky spoke twice on May 19 — once before the scheduled call with Putin and again after it.
The Russian president made no mention of an immediate and unconditional ceasefire — the key demand pushed by U.S. President Donald Trump and accepted by Ukraine back in March.
The call comes days after largely inconclusive negotiations in Istanbul, where Russia sent a delegation of low-level officials and reiterated sweeping territorial demands, including that Ukraine accept the loss of Crimea and four eastern regions.
The agency accused the London-based headquarters of Amnesty International of being a hub for what it called "global Russophobic projects funded by supporters of the Kyiv regime."
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the conversation between the two leaders is scheduled for 5 p.m. local time and will "reflect the outcomes of last week’s negotiations in Istanbul" between Russian and Ukrainian delegations.
French President Emmanuel Macron, U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz will speak to Trump before he calls Putin on the morning of May 19.
Key developments on May 17-18: * Russia launches record 273-drone attack on Ukraine ahead of planned Trump-Putin call * Trump to talk to Putin on May 19 in push to end Ukraine war 'bloodbath' * Russia plans 'training' launch of Yars intercontinental ballistic missile overnight on May 19, Ukraine's HUR claims * New clips
The comments — publicly withheld until now — come nearly four months into U.S. President Donald Trump's push for a ceasefire.
"Hopefully it will be a productive day, a ceasefire will take place, and this very violent war — a war that should have never happened — will end. God bless us all!!!" U.S. President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social.
European officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said they remain unsure of U.S. President Donald Trump's next move and fear that his unpredictable stance could undercut momentum toward a unified Western response.
Key developments on May 16: * Ukraine-Russia talks in Istanbul end, Moscow demands Kyiv withdraw from 4 regions, no ceasefire agreement * Up to 640,000 Russian troops fighting against Ukraine, Syrskyi says * Ukraine 'lost contact' with F-16 during combat, pilot ejected, Air Force says * Putin appoints general who led Mariupol assault
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