The sanctions appear to be in response to Russia's rejection of a 30-day ceasefire that the U.K., alongside Ukraine, France, Germany, and Poland, demanded during a visit to Kyiv on May 10.
"We now know for sure that the great fire of the Marywilska shopping centre in Warsaw was caused by arson ordered by the Russian special services," Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on X. "Some of the perpetrators have already been detained, all the others are identified and searched for."
The publications' latest report covers the period of February 24, 2022 to May 8, 2025. Since it was last updated at the end of April, 2,857 additional Russian military personnel have been confirmed killed.
Hungary cancelled a meeting planned for May 12 with a Ukrainian delegation on the rights of national minorities, Hungary's Deputy Foreign Minister said on May 11, amid a deepening spying scandal between the two countries.
Three were injured in Russia's Kursk Oblast when the town of Rylsk was allegedly struck by a missile attack on May 11, local governor Alexander Khinshtein claimed.
This week, the world watched in anticipation for Russia’s Victory Day parade after President Volodymyr Zelensky commented that he could not guarantee the safety of those attending. Meanwhile, the European Union moves one step forward to banning Russian gas from the European continent. It is also revealed this week that U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has fallen out of step with the White House.
"(Russian) President (Vladimir) Putin... doesn't want to have a ceasefire agreement with Ukraine, but rather wants to meet on Thursday, in Turkey, to negotiate a possible end to the bloodbath. Ukraine should agree to this, immediately," U.S. President Donald Trump said.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will travel to to Antalya, Turkey, for a NATO foreign ministers’ meeting from May 14–16, where he is expected to address the war in Ukraine and push for stronger Allied defense commitments.
The Kremlin said the leaders held a detailed discussion about the Russian initiative and Erdogan expressed full support, reiterating Turkey’s readiness to provide a venue and assist in organizing the negotiations.
A Ukrainian soldier in the largely destroyed city of Avdiivka, Donetsk Oblast, on Oct. 26, 2023. (Vlada Liberova / Libkos via Getty Images)
Ukraine has evacuated over 100 civilians over the past week from the Russian-held outskirts of embattled Avdiivka in Donetsk Oblast, an official within the regional police told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) on Feb. 2.
Avdiivka, lying only kilometers away from Russian-occupied Donetsk, has suffered intensified Russian attacks since October 2023 as Moscow's troops aim to encircle and capture the city. Russian onslaught left Avdiivka largely destroyed, with many of its residents evacuating to escape regular attacks.
In an unusual operation, civilians who remained in parts of Avdiivka already held by Russian forces walked to the Ukraine-controlled city center waving white rags, according to Pavlo Diachenko, an officer from the Donetsk Oblast Police's communication department who took part in organizing the evacuation.
The operation, conducted by the Ukrainian police and military, was risky due to constant Russian shelling in the area, said Diachenko.
"The people were local, they knew where to go. Everything was more or less planned. We understand that it is impossible to provide 100% security. Moreover, in the conditions of such intense hostilities and fierce shelling by the Russian military. Fortunately, everything worked out, and people are now relatively safe."
Speaking with RFE/RL, he didn't specify how the police communicated with residents in Russian-occupied parts of the city, saying that there was no direct connection with them as Russian soldiers took away their phones.
The rescued civilians said they had been badly treated by the Russian personnel, and the police are already investigating those cases, according to Diachenko.
"When the Russians entered their street, they simply pushed them (residents) into one basement, a small one. There were 13 people there, including an elderly woman, who needed special care," the police officer added.
"And they (Russian soldiers) kept the people in the basement for quite a long time. They didn't even let them go outside or to the toilet, that didn't happen. And the people just sat there, not having a clue what was happening."
As of Jan. 15, a bit over 1,100 civilians remained in Avdiivka, according to Vadim Filashkin, the regional governor. An estimated 31,000 people lived in the city before the outbreak of the full-scale invasion in 2022.
Vitalii Poberezhnyi
