The blockade ended at 10:30 p.m. local time. Truck traffic in both directions is now moving as usual, according to Ukraine's State Border Guard's statement.
Russia seems to be preparing a significant offensive in Ukraine as it is moving troops toward key positions on the front, the Financial Times reported on May 13, citing undisclosed Ukrainian intelligence officials.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said he will meet with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara, but said both leaders are ready to fly to Istanbul if Russian President Vladimir Putin chooses to attend the talks there.
Andriy Yermak, Zelensky's chief of staff, said that the new pontiff had a phone call with Zelensky on Monday, during which the pope expressed willingness to facilitate meetings between global leaders and vowed to support efforts for "a just and lasting peace."
In an interview with French broadcaster TF1 on May 13, Macron discussed new Russia sanctions and stationing French nuclear weapons in other European countries as a deterrent against Russia.
Performing their song "Bird of Pray," Ukrainian band Ziferblat passed the Eurovision semi-finals on May 13, qualifying Ukraine for the grand final on May 17.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed that a Russian delegation will be in Istanbul on May 15 for direct peace talks with Ukraine. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Putin’s foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov will likely represent Russia.
The move follows Ukraine's ratification of the minerals agreement, deepening U.S.-Ukraine economic ties and signaling expanded U.S. involvement in Ukraine's long-term recovery.
"Ukraine has initiated a coordinated campaign to vilify Hungary in order to undermine our initiative to hold a poll on (Kyiv's) EU membership," Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said.
Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili gives a joint press conference with her Lithuanian counterpart during a meeting in Vilnius, Lithuania, on March 7, 2019. (Petras Malukas / AFP via Getty Images)
Georgian President Salome Zourabishvili has filed a motion against the law on "foreign agents" to the Constitutional Court of Georgia, the presidential secretary, Georgiy Mskhiladze, said on July 15 at a briefing at the presidential administration.
The Georgian president has appealed to the Constitutional Court for the first time over a law, according to Mskhiladze. The law is unconstitutional and contradicts Article 78 of the Georgian Constitution, he added.
"The lawsuit challenges some provisions of the law that violate several fundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution. With this lawsuit, the president demands suspension of the law and its final repeal," Mskhiladze said.
Zourabichvili initially vetoed the bill, which requires organizations that receive foreign funding to be labeled as "foreign agents" and mirrors repressive Russian legislation used to crack down on Kremlin critics.
The Georgian parliament, dominated by the ruling Georgian Dream party, bypassed the president's veto on May 28 with 84 lawmakers voting in support.
Georgia's public defender, Levan Yoseliani, as well as non-governmental organizations and various media outlets, also plan to file similar lawsuits with the Constitutional Court, according to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL)'s Echo of the Caucasus project.
Starting from August, NGOs and media outlets that receive more than 20% of their funding from abroad, based on 2023 data, must register with the authorities within a month as "foreign agents."
The law allows the authorities to monitor such organizations and obtain required information like personal data.
The legislation was heavily criticized by both domestic opposition and the EU. Its reintroduction into the parliament in April led to massive protests, with the police reportedly firing at the demonstrators with rubber bullets and water cannons.
Washington and Brussels have denounced the bill as incompatible with Western values, and voices within the EU called for freezing Georgia's membership candidate status if the law is implemented.
Peter Leonard
