From January to May 10, 2025, Russian airports suspended operations 217 times — more closures than in 2023 and 2024 combined.

European and U.S. officials, including Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, reportedly convinced Zelensky that attending the peace talks would reflect positively on Kyiv, diplomats told the Washington Post.

"We discussed in detail the logic of further steps and shared our approaches... It is critical that Russia reciprocate Ukraine's constructive steps. So far, it has not. Moscow must understand that rejecting peace comes at a cost," Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said.

U.S. President Donald Trump will not attend Ukraine-Russia peace talks to be held on May 15, an unnamed U.S. official said.

The Kremlin unveiled its delegation for Ukraine-Russia peace talks in a decree signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin on May 14.

"I am waiting to see who will come from Russia, and then I will decide which steps Ukraine should take. So far, the signals from them in the media are unconvincing," President Volodymyr Zelensky said.

The air raid was announced at around 2:30 p.m. local time, while the explosion sounded around 2:50 p.m. The number of victims killed rose to three, Sumy Oblast Governor Oleh Hryhorov reported at 8:42 p.m.

If confirmed, the decision would mark the first time since Russia's full-scale invasion that President Volodymyr Zelensky is absent, either physically or virtually, from a NATO summit.

The disclosure follows a warning from Digital Affairs Minister Krzysztof Gawkowski, who on May 6 said Moscow was carrying out an "unprecedented" interference campaign.

Brazilian President Lula da Silva claimed that Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha had appealed to his Brazilian counterpart, Mauro Vieira, to ask Putin if he was willing to conclude a peace agreement.

Earlier reporting from the Washington Post cited a former Russian official who claimed Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Putin’s foreign policy aide, Yuri Ushakov, would represent Moscow in the talks.