"Russia is ready for negotiations without any preconditions," Putin claimed in an address marking the end of the three-day Victory Day ceasefire. He invited Ukraine to begin talks in Istanbul on May 15.
While serving as a bishop in Peru, Robert Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV, called the full-scale war "a true invasion, imperialist in nature, where Russia seeks to conquer territory for reasons of power.”
Speaking to CNN on May 10, Peskov commented on the latest ceasefire proposal from Ukraine and Europe, responding that Russia needs to "think about" it, but is "resistant" to pressure.
Speaking at a press conference in Kyiv on May 10, President Volodymyr Zelensky rebuked the idea of a demilitarized zone in the war and emphasized the importance of first securing a ceasefire.
"We agreed that a full and unconditional ceasefire must begin on Monday, May 12, for at least 30 days. We jointly demand this from Russia, and we know we are supported in this by the United States," Zelensky said.
Ukrainian media outlet ZN.UA reported on May 10 that their law enforcement sources confirmed an ongoing probe by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau into suspected embezzlement, money laundering and bribery.
Iran is preparing to send Russia Fath-360 short-range ballistic missile launchers, Reuters reported on May 9, citing Western security and regional officials familiar with the matter.
"Ukraine and all allies are ready for a complete unconditional ceasefire on land, in the air, and at sea for at least 30 days, starting as early as Monday," Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha wrote.
U.S. President Donald Trump has acknowledged in private that Russia is difficult to negotiate with because they "want the whole thing," referring to Ukraine, the WSJ reported, citing sources familiar with the comments.
A notice about the airspace closure was published on the U.S. Defense Department's NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) website on May 10, as cited by Ukrainian defense news outlet Militarnyi.
Demonstrators bring children's toys to the United Nations office in Brussels to protest Russia's abduction of Ukrainian children, June 2, 2023. (Dursun Aydemir/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
Following negotiations mediated by Qatar, Russia has allowed six Ukrainian children to return to their families in Ukraine, Qatar's Foreign Ministry announced on Dec. 5.
The return of the children comes as part of Qatar's "ongoing mediation and coordination efforts in reunifying families separated by the conflict," the Foreign Ministry said.
The children are scheduled to leave Moscow on Dec. 5. and travel to Ukraine via Belarus, the Washington Post reported.
The children were reportedly living with relatives in Russia and Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine.
According to the Washington Post, one of the children, an 11-year-old boy, had been living with relatives in Russian-occupied Donetsk Oblast.
His mother is still held as a prisoner of war in Russia after being captured while serving with the Ukrainian army, an unnamed official told the newspaper.
The boy's father died "around a decade ago, and he will now stay with a maternal aunt."
Qatar's International Cooperation Minister Lolwah Al-Khater said that the exchange was "building on the momentum of recent weeks."
"Today's announcement marks another small yet significant step forward in this collaborative process," she said.
Qatar cooperated with Ukraine to help bring back Bohdan Yermokhin on Nov. 19, a Ukrainian teenager who was illegally deported by Russia from occupied Mariupol.
Yermokhin had been placed with a foster family in Moscow Oblast and served with a conscription notice.
In October, Qatar brokered a deal with Moscow and Kyiv to bring back four children to Ukraine. The deal was orchestrated after months of high-level talks involving Moscow and Kyiv.
The Ukrainian government has identified over 19,500 children who have been deported or forcibly displaced by Russia, less than 400 of whom have been returned to Ukraine.
The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Maria Lvova-Belova and Russian President Vladimir Putin in March 2023 over their role in the forced deportation of Ukrainian children.
Anastasiia Malenko
