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.
U.S. President Donald Trump's special envoys, Steve Witkoff and Keith Kellogg, will travel to Istanbul for possible peace talks between Ukraine and Russia, Reuters reported on May 13, citing three undisclosed sources.
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.
A captive named Umit allegedly agreed to serve in the Russian army in exchange for Russian citizenship and a monetary reward of 2 million rubles ($25,000).
The aftermath of Russian attacks on Donetsk Oblast April 14-15, 2023. (Photo: Governor Pavlo Kyrylenko / Facebook)
At least 31 people have been injured and nine killed in Russian attacks across nine oblasts over the past 24 hours.
Some 135 settlements across Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, Mykolaiv, Dnipropetrovsk, and Kherson oblasts were targeted, Ukraine's Defense Ministry media center reported on April 15.
Russia attacked the settlements with various weapons, including small arms, mortars, tanks, artillery, anti-aircraft missiles, repurposed S-300 air defense systems, drones, and tactical aircraft.
According to the media center, at least 50 infrastructure sites were confirmed to have been damaged.
Casualty numbers are still being verified across the oblasts, the media center wrote. However, preliminary information is available from Kherson, Donetsk, and Kharkiv oblasts.
The Kherson Oblast Military Administration reported on April 15 that eight people were injured with varying degrees of severity due to Russian shelling.
At least nine people were confirmed killed – including a two-year-old child – and 21 injured following the April 14 Russian missile strike on Sloviansk in Donetsk Oblast. The casualty numbers are subject to rise given that rescue workers are still on the scene.
Donetsk Oblast Governor Pavlo Kyrylenko also reported on April 15 that one person was injured by Russian shelling in Marinka.
Governor Oleh Syniehubov reported on April 15 that one person was injured in Vovchansk with moderate injuries after Russia shelled the border towns and villages of Kharkiv Oblast in the past 24 hours.
We are the news team of the Kyiv Independent. We are here to make sure our readers get quick, essential updates about the events in Ukraine. Feel free to contact us via email with feedback and news alerts.
Asami Terajima
