"I myself have heard relatives talking: our village is being attacked, let's roll the car out of the garage, maybe they will shell it — at least we will get money. The car is old, we can't sell it," Belgorod Oblast Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said.
The new tranche brings total recent EU defense support for Ukraine to 3.3 billion euros ($3.6 billion), marking a significant expansion of European efforts to boost Kyiv's defense industry.
"Russia is ready for negotiations without any preconditions," Putin claimed in an address marking the end of the three-day Victory Day ceasefire. He invited Ukraine to begin talks in Istanbul on May 15.
Both men face charges related to terrorism and espionage. Daniil B. was detained in Lithuania, where he is in temporary custody, while Oleksandr V. remains at large in Russia.
Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Ukraine and its allies discussed tougher sanctions against Russia's banking sector, central bank, and energy industry.
"We are ready for all options. But of course, we are separately waiting for a response on the ceasefire," a source close to President Volodymyr Zelensky told the Kyiv Independent.
The EU plans to unveil on May 14 its next package of sanctions imposed against Russia over its aggression against Ukraine, an EU official told the Kyiv Independent on condition of anonymity.
Polish truckers plan to restrict freight traffic at the Yahodyn-Dorohusk checkpoint on the Ukrainian border, Ukraine's State Border Guard said on May 12.
"If the Russians are using this level of specialists in urban combat, they are probably facing some difficulties," Ivan Petrychak, spokesperson for the 24th Separate Mechanized Brigade, said.
Previously, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk accused the Russian intelligence services of orchestrating a May 2024 arson attack on the Marywilska shopping centre in Warsaw.
"Perhaps in some areas, the intensity decreased slightly to create an image of compliance with their own announcement. But in reality, (Russia) continued attacks every day, using all available weapons — including aircraft to drop guided bombs on Ukraine," Andrii Demchenko, spokesperson for Ukraine’s State Border Guard Service, said.
Beijing supports all efforts toward achieving peace in Ukraine, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said on May 12 when asked about Kyiv and Europe's proposal for a 30-day truce.
President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks to the media at a press conference in Brussels, Belgium, on Oct. 17, 2024. (Jean Catuffe/Getty Images)
North Korea has already deployed 11,000 troops in Russia's Kursk Oblast, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Nov. 4, citing Ukraine's intelligence report.
"We see an increase in the number of North Koreans, and we do not see an increase in the reaction of our partners," Zelensky said in his evening address.
Ukraine's military intelligence reported on Nov. 2 that Russia deployed more than 7,000 North Korean troops from Russia's Primorsky Krai closer to the Ukrainian border.
These numbers almost coincide with those of Washington earlier this week. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that some 8,000 North Korean troops are amassed in Russia's Kursk Oblast, where Ukraine began a cross-border incursion in August and still holds significant swathes of territory.
Zelensky said that if Ukraine had permission to use Western long-range weapons on Russian territory, it could preemptively target "every camp" in Russia where North Korean troops are gathering.
Recently, Kyiv has been issuing warnings that the deployment of North Korean troops in combat is only a matter of days. Ukraine believes that Russia is preparing to send 12,000 North Korean soldiers to join its war, including special forces.
According to Zelensky, Russia has confirmed to the West the involvement of Pyongyang's forces in the war.
Boldizsar Gyori
