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.
Erdogan told Macron that international cooperation is critical for initiating peace negotiations and the "sensitive implementation" of Ukraine’s recovery and reconstruction processes, the Turkish Presidency reported.
The assault began around 2 a.m. on May 11, with Russian forces deploying 108 Shahed-type attack drones and decoy UAVs from multiple directions, Ukraine’s Air Force said.
"Think of the hundreds of thousands of lives that will be saved as this never ending 'bloodbath' hopefully comes to an end... I will continue to work with both sides to make sure that it happens."
Trucks stand in a queue to cross the border in Medyka as Polish farmers start a strike and block truck transport in Medyka, a border crossing between Poland and Ukraine, on Nov. 23, 2023. (Photo by Dominika Zarzycka/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Polish farmers renewed their blockade at the Shehyni-Medyka crossing on Jan. 4 after a temporary reprieve during the holiday season, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported. The protests are set to last until Feb. 3.
Since November, Polish truckers have been blocking three crossings with Ukraine in protest of the EU's liberalization of transit rules for Ukrainian truckers. Polish farmers announced they were also launching a protest at the fourth crossing starting Nov. 23 but said they would suspend it one month later on Dec. 24.
Roman Kondrow, the leader of a Polish farmers' organization "Betrayed Countryside," has demanded written assurances about subsidies for growing corn, increased loans, and maintenance of the agricultural tax at the current rate.
In lieu of such demands being explicitly guaranteed by Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, Kondrow vowed that the protest would continue starting Jan. 4. Speaking to the Polish Press Agency on Jan. 3, Kondrow said that farmers had not received such assurances on paper.
The blockade is to be stricter than before the holiday season, with one truck allowed through every hour. Military equipment, humanitarian aid, dangerous goods, and perishable items would still be allowed to pass, Kondrow said.
Kondrow noted that Polish Agriculture Minister Czeslaw Siekierski visited the border blockade in late December and promised that the farmers' grievances would be addressed but that he wanted an answer from Tusk because he "rules the whole country."
The prime minister said during a press conference on Jan. 3 that he would "study the reasons why...some farmers... decided to return to the border blockade."
Martin Fornusek
