George Simion, leader of Romania's far-right AUR party, who won the first round of the presidential election with nearly 40% of the vote, reiterated that if elected, he would oppose any further assistance to Ukraine and shift Romania’s focus inward.
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Friday, May 9
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping hailed their countries' relationship on May 8, vowing to increase cooperation in all areas, including military ties.
"There is Turkey, which maintains channels of communication. And then, above all, there is the People's Republic of China, which, more than anyone else, has the means to make (Russian President Vladimir) Putin come to the negotiating table and soften his demands," Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said on May 8.
The United States will be ready to "walk away" from the negotiating table if it does not see Russia making progress in negotiation to end the war, U.S. Vice President JD Vance told Fox News on May 8.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico arrived in Moscow on May 9 to celebrate Victory Day, commemorating the 80th anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II.
Friday, May 9
US President Donald Trump on May 8 called for a "30-day unconditional ceasefire" between Ukraine and Russia. Writing on Truth Social, Trump expressed his hope for "an acceptable ceasefire," with both countries "held accountable for respecting the sanctity of... direct negotiations."
President Volodymyr Zelensky had a "constructive" phone call with United States President Donald Trump on May 8, discussing the war, continued pressure on Russia, and a potential ceasefire.
The survey, conducted between April 24 and May 4, shows that 56.9% of respondents would not be willing to compromise on either territorial integrity or Ukraine’s pro-Western direction in any potential talks with Moscow.
(Updated: )
U.S. Cardinal Robert Prevost was elected the new pope and leader of the Roman Catholic Church on Thursday, taking the name Pope Leo XIV, a senior cardinal announced on May 8 to crowds gathered in St. Peter’s Square, according to Vatican News.
Despite the Kremlin’s announcement of a May 8–11 truce, heavy fighting continued in multiple regions throughout the day.
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PACE: Russia's forced relocation of Ukrainian children shows evidence of genocide
• 2 min read
Russia's forced relocation of Ukrainian children and efforts to impose Russian culture on them "matches with the international definition of genocide," the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) wrote on April 27.
Speaking via video link from Kyiv, First Lady Olena Zelenska told the assembly that there are "thousands" of Russians involved in the forced relocation.
"It is a whole policy, and a whole conscious mechanism by Russia – to alienate our children, depriving them of their families, names, language, roots," Zelenska said.
The assembly called on Russia to grant access to the United Nations and International Red Cross and Red Crescent "to gather information on deported children."
The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants on March 17 for Putin and Maria Lvova-Belova, the Russian official overseeing the forced deportations of Ukrainian children to Russia.
The PACE wrote that they "welcomed the International Criminal Court’s decision" to issue the arrest warrants and "urged their enforcement."
According to the ICC, there are “reasonable grounds to believe” that Putin is directly responsible for overseeing the deportations and that he failed to exercise control over the Russian military personnel and civilians who implemented the crime throughout occupied Ukrainian territory since the start of the full-scale invasion.
Tens of thousands of Ukrainian children have been taken by Russia since the start of the full-scale invasion.
The Reintegration Ministry reported on March 29 that over 19,000 Ukrainian children have been forcibly deported to Russia.
The National Resistance Center reported on April 12 that over 100,000 Ukrainian children from Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts have been transported to Russia under the pretext of receiving "medical treatment."
Kidnapped children face punishment for calling themselves Ukrainians or refusing to sing the Russian national anthem. Children that have been safely brought back to Ukraine recounted instances of beatings and other punishments.
The United Nations Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine published a report on March 16 that found Russia's relocation of Ukrainian children likely constitutes a war crime.
The little victims: Russia’s war killed these children
On a warm day in early September, Anastasiia Kolchyna took her nine-year-old sons, twin brothers Ruslan and Denys, for a walk. They went to a small park in their native Zelenodolsk, a town in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, where many locals would gather on the weekends. The family was enjoying the outdoor…
Daria Shulzhenko
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