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.
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.
Evan Gershkovich during his trial in the city of Yekaterinburg, the Sverdlovsk Region, Russia on June 26, 2024. (Sverdlovsk Regional Court/Anadolu via Getty Images)
A Russian court on July 19 sentenced Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reporter Evan Gershkovich to 16 years in jail on what are widely viewed as trumped-up charges of espionage.
The sentence – slightly under the 18 years prosecutors had asked for – will be served in a maximum security penal colony.
Gershkovich was arrested in Yekaterinburg in late March 2023 while working on a story about the Wagner mercenary group's recruiting methods, as well as Russian citizens' views on the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
The Wall Street Journal and the U.S. government have denied all the charges against Gershkovich and have called them politically motivated. During the trial, the 32-year-old pleaded not guilty.
The journalist has been in pre-trial detention in Russia for more than a year on espionage charges. His trial began in Yekaterinburg on June 26.
U.N. human rights advocates have said Russia violated international law by imprisoning Gershkovich and should release him "immediately."
In June, the Russian Prosecutor General's office accused Gershkovich of "gathering secret information" on orders from the CIA regarding a military equipment plant located 150 kilometers (90 miles) north of Yekaterinburg. Gershkovich, the Wall Street Journal, and the U.S. government deny that he was a spy.
Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov claimed on July 17 that there is "irrefutable evidence" that Gershkovich is guilty and claimed that the U.S. and U.K. have a long history of recruiting journalists as spies.
At a U.N. news conference, Lavrov said that Gershkovich's case is unrelated to any "attacks on journalism," according to the Associated Press.
"I would like to assure you that, just as much as you do, we are in favor of journalism and freedom of speech," Lavrov said.
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The Kyiv Independent news desk
