George Simion, leader of Romania's far-right AUR party, who won the first round of the presidential election with nearly 40% of the vote, reiterated that if elected, he would oppose any further assistance to Ukraine and shift Romania’s focus inward.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping hailed their countries' relationship on May 8, vowing to increase cooperation in all areas, including military ties.
"There is Turkey, which maintains channels of communication. And then, above all, there is the People's Republic of China, which, more than anyone else, has the means to make (Russian President Vladimir) Putin come to the negotiating table and soften his demands," Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said on May 8.
The United States will be ready to "walk away" from the negotiating table if it does not see Russia making progress in negotiation to end the war, U.S. Vice President JD Vance told Fox News on May 8.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico arrived in Moscow on May 9 to celebrate Victory Day, commemorating the 80th anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II.
US President Donald Trump on May 8 called for a "30-day unconditional ceasefire" between Ukraine and Russia. Writing on Truth Social, Trump expressed his hope for "an acceptable ceasefire," with both countries "held accountable for respecting the sanctity of... direct negotiations."
President Volodymyr Zelensky had a "constructive" phone call with United States President Donald Trump on May 8, discussing the war, continued pressure on Russia, and a potential ceasefire.
The survey, conducted between April 24 and May 4, shows that 56.9% of respondents would not be willing to compromise on either territorial integrity or Ukraine’s pro-Western direction in any potential talks with Moscow.
U.S. Cardinal Robert Prevost was elected the new pope and leader of the Roman Catholic Church on Thursday, taking the name Pope Leo XIV, a senior cardinal announced on May 8 to crowds gathered in St. Peter’s Square, according to Vatican News.
The remains of a Shahed 136 at an exhibition showing remains of missiles and drones that Russia used in the attack on Ukraine in Kyiv, Ukraine on May 12, 2023. (Oleksii Samsonov / Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)
Russia's Defense Ministry claimed on March 19 that its forces downed seven Russian drones sent to attack Ukrainian energy facilities after Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a temporary pause on such strikes.
In turn, Ukraine said that Moscow had launched as many as 145 attack and decoy drones, as well as six missiles, against Ukraine, of which 72 were shot down and 56 disappeared from radars.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said that the drones targeted energy facilities, hospitals, and civilian infrastructure. Outages were reported in the Donetsk Oblast city of Sloviansk.
Putin publicly agreed to a 30-day halt on attacks against energy facilities following his phone call with U.S. President Donald Trump on March 18. The Kremlin nevertheless refused Washington's proposal for a full temporary ceasefire as it insisted on a complete halt of military support flowing to Ukraine.
"Putin’s words are very different from reality," Zelensky said during a press conference with Finnish President Alexander Stubb, urging continued military support for Ukraine.
According to the Russian Defense Ministry, seven drones were in the air and sent to attack Ukrainian energy facilities in Mykolaiv Oblast. Six were allegedly downed by a Pantsir air defense system and one by a Russian fighter jet.
The ministry also accused Ukraine of launching three drones against a Russian energy facility in Krasnodar Krai, resulting in a fire. Moscow called the attack a "provocation" aimed at disrupting Trump's peace efforts.
The Ukrainian military has not commented on the reported attack in Krasnodar Krai.
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.
Tim Zadorozhnyy
