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."
Oleg Tsaryov gives a press conference in Russian-occupied Donetsk on Aug. 6, 2014. (Dimitar Dilkoff / AFP via Getty Images)
Oleg Tsaryov, a pro-Russian Ukrainian politician who fled Ukraine in 2014, was shot in the early hours of Oct. 27 in Russian-occupied Crimea, according to Russian reports.
Tsaryov is a Dnipro-born businessman and former lawmaker for the former pro-Russian Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych's Party of the Regions.
Following the EuroMaidan Revolution, he nominated himself as a candidate for the 2014 presidential elections but later withdrew his candidacy, claiming his safety was at risk.
He went on to serve as an official of Russia's illegitimate proxies in Ukraine's Donbas region.
Tsaryov is now reportedly in hospital in serious condition.
"Information about the attempt on Oleg Tsaryov is confirmed by his relatives. Around midnight, he was shot twice in the territory of the sanatorium where he lives," Tsaryov's telegram channel claimed.
Tsaryov has been wanted by the Ukrainian authorities since after Russia's initial invasion of Ukraine in 2014 for supporting the Russian occupation of Ukrainian territories.
In March 2022, a Kyiv court brought new charges against him after he appeared in Russian-occupied Borodianka in Kyiv Oblast, claiming to be delivering humanitarian aid.
U.S. intelligence identified Tsaryov as a potential puppet leader the Kremlin could have installed if they had been successful in occupying Kyiv, according to the New York Times.
Tsaryov openly admitted to the New York Times that he participated in Russia's full-scale invasion.
Elsa Court is the audience development manager at the Kyiv Independence. She previously worked as a news editor at the Kyiv Independent and was previously an intern at the Kyiv Post. She has a Master’s in Conflict Studies and Human Rights from Utrecht University. Elsa is originally from the UK.
Oleg Sukhov
