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.
The Kherson Oblast sign is seen on Nov. 13, 2022, after Russia's retreat from Kherson. Photo for illustrative purposes. (Metin Aktas/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
At least six people were injured in Ukraine's Kherson Oblast after a series of Russian attacks on May 19, the Kherson Regional Military Administration said.
Eighteen months after Ukrainian forces liberated swathes of territories on the western bank of the Dnipro in November 2022, Russia continues to heavily attack Kherson and its surroundings with artillery, tanks, drones, and air bombs – putting civilians in severe danger.
A strike on the region's coastal area around 11 a.m. local time injured a 74-year-old man who was hospitalized and said to be in a "moderate" condition. Authorities did not specify what weapons were used in the strike.
Shortly after, it was reported that three members of a family – a 42-year-old woman and two men aged 42 and 71 – were injured by a drone-dropped bomb in the city of Beryslav. Their conditions are also said to be "moderate."
Later in the afternoon, the Kherson Regional Military Administration said two men aged 59 and 70, also in Beryslav, were injured by a Russian drone. It did not specify if this was a separate attack.
Earlier on May 15, Russian forces carried out an airstrike against central Kherson, injuring at least 19 people.
Chris York is news operations editor at the Kyiv Independent. Before joining the team, he was head of news at the Kyiv Post. Previously, back in Britain, he spent nearly a decade working for HuffPost UK. He holds an MA in Conflict, Development, and Security from the University of Leeds.
Kateryna Hodunova
