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.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz warned that further concessions from Ukraine during negotiations would be unreasonable if Russia continues to attack civilian targets.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa attends the Business Forum at Lancaster House on Nov. 23, 2022 in London. (Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images)
In a letter obtained by the New York Times on June 13, a group of U.S. lawmakers called to move a U.S.-Africa summit from South Africa to a different host over Russia ties.
Johanessburg is set to host the meeting of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), a U.S. investment and trade program in sub-Saharan Africa.
"We are seriously concerned that hosting the 2023 AGOA Forum in South Africa would serve as an implicit endorsement of South Africa's damaging support for Russia's invasion of Ukraine," reads the letter written on June 9 and addressed to U.S. Foreign Secretary Antony Blinken and other senior officials.
The group of Congress members calls into question South Africa's benefits under the (AGOA).
According to Reuters, South Africa's exports to the U.S. under AGOA reached nearly $1 billion in the first three months of this year, making it the second biggest beneficiary of the program after Nigeria.
While South Africa has avowed neutrality in the Ukraine-Russia War, it has been building a close relationship with Moscow. Both parties are members of the BRICS economic group and have cooperated on the military level, conducting joint naval drills on the one-year anniversary of the invasion of Ukraine.
The U.S. government even accused South Africa of supplying weapons to Russia in May. The country denied this and later said that the U.S. ambassador in Pretoria has apologized on behalf of his country.
South Africa is scheduled to host leadership of the BRICS members during this year's summit, which should include Russian dictator Vladimir Putin.
The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for Putin in March. Since South Africa is a signatory to the Rome Statute, it is obliged by international law to arrest the Russian leader.
According to the government's May 30 announcement, all participants will receive diplomatic immunity during the duration of the summit.
Martin Fornusek is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. He has previously worked as a news content editor at the media company Newsmatics and is a contributor to Euromaidan Press. He was also volunteering as an editor and translator at the Czech-language version of Ukraïner. Martin studied at Masaryk University in Brno, Czechia, holding a bachelor's degree in security studies and history and a master's degree in conflict and democracy studies.
Martin Fornusek
