Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa is reportedly offering a deal that would give U.S. companies access to Syria's natural wealth, reminiscent of the minerals agreement Washington recently signed with Kyiv.
Russia attacked Ukraine with drones and guided bombs during the night, targeting multiple regions after the May 12 deadline for an unconditional ceasefire expired.
"Only member states can take out loans within the 150 billion euros instrument, but they can use these funds for joint procurement with Ukraine," EU Defense Commissioner Andrius Kubilius said.
"We agreed to pursue ambitious measures to reduce Russia's ability to wage war by limiting Kremlin revenues, disrupting the shadow fleet, tightening the Oil Price Cap, and reducing our remaining imports of Russian energy."
Zelensky on May 12 removed Lieutenant General Ivan Havryliuk from the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, the top command and control body for all branches of Ukraine's defense apparatus.
Ukraine remains the most mined country in the world. Nearly one-third of Ukraine's territory, approximately 174,000 square kilometers, had been mined since Russia began its full-scale invasion of the country in February 2022.
The phone call comes as Moscow once again rejected a 30-day ceasefire, with Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova claiming that a ceasefire would give "Kyiv a break to restore its military potential and continue its confrontation with Russia."
Flight MH17 departed from Amsterdam Schiphol Airport en-route to Kuala Lumpur International Airport on July 17, 2014. Three hours into the flight, the Boeing-777 was shot down by Russian proxy forces using a Buk surface-to-air missile above Ukraine’s Donetsk Oblast.
"I am grateful for the support and the readiness at the highest level to promote diplomacy," President Volodymyr Zelensky said of the phone conservation with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. "We share the same view on the need for a ceasefire."
The convictions mark a significant development in Britain's efforts to counter Russian intelligence operations amid heightened tensions stemming from Moscow's war against Ukraine and repeated Kremlin threats toward Kyiv's allies.
Oleg Orlov, Jan. 1, 2012. (Anna Artemeva/Novaya Gazeta via Wikimedia Commons)
The Russian Justice Ministry designated Oleg Orlov, one of the leaders of the Memorial human rights group, a "foreign agent," the ministry announced on Feb. 2.
The designation requires people and entities who allegedly receive "support" from abroad to place a disclaimer in all of their publishing and mandates strict financial reporting. It is broadly seen as a means to repress domestic opposition.
According to the Russian Justice Ministry, Orlov "opposed the special military operation in Ukraine (the Kremlin's official name for its full-scale invasion), disseminated false information about decisions by official bodies of the Russian Federation, and participated in the creation of materials for foreign agents."
Orlov, a 70-year-old civil activist and historian, has been a co-chair of Memorial for more than two decades. He was fined in October 2023 for "discrediting the Russian military," a criminal article introduced to silence anti-war opposition in Russia.
The Memorial group's activities focused on researching crimes committed by the Soviet Union during the Stalinist era and on advocating for human rights in and around modern-day Russia.
The group's human rights wing was declared a "foreign agent" in 2014, and the label was extended to the organization as a whole by 2016.
A Russian court ordered the group's dissolution in December 2021, a process finalized in April 2022 amid a sweeping crackdown against civil society and domestic opposition. The group continues to operate abroad.
Memorial was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in October 2022, alongside the Ukrainian human rights organization Center for Civil Liberties and Belarusian human rights advocate Ales Bialiatski.
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.
Andreas Umland
