The assault began around 2 a.m. on May 11, with Russian forces deploying 108 Shahed-type attack drones and decoy UAVs from multiple directions, Ukraine’s Air Force said.
"Think of the hundreds of thousands of lives that will be saved as this never ending 'bloodbath' hopefully comes to an end... I will continue to work with both sides to make sure that it happens."
U.S. State Department Spokesperson Tammy Bruce called for "concrete proposals from both sides" in order for Washington to "move forward" in peace negotiations.
"If they speak to each other in Russian, he doesn't know what they are saying," one Western official told NBC News. Michael McFaul, former U.S. ambassador to Russia, called Witkoff's approach "a very bad idea."
Tougher sanctions "should be applied to (Russia's) banking and energy sectors, targeting fossil fuels, oil, and the shadow fleet," the leaders of Ukraine, the U.K., France, Germany, and Poland said in a joint statement.
"Russia is ready for negotiations without any preconditions," Putin claimed in an address marking the end of the three-day Victory Day ceasefire. He invited Ukraine to begin talks in Istanbul on May 15.
While serving as a bishop in Peru, Robert Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV, called the full-scale war "a true invasion, imperialist in nature, where Russia seeks to conquer territory for reasons of power."
Speaking to CNN on May 10, Peskov commented on the latest ceasefire proposal from Ukraine and Europe, responding that Russia needs to "think about" it, but is "resistant" to pressure.
A building destroyed by Russian Jan. 31 attack on Bakhmut in Donetsk Oblast. Photo: Prosecutor General's Office.
Russian troops shelled a residential area in the city of Bakhmut in Donetsk Oblast on Jan. 31, killing two, including a 12-year-old boy, and injuring at least five more people, Prosecutor General’s Office reported. The exact number of victims is being clarified.
The artillery attack damaged shops, pharmacies, and other buildings, according to the Prosecutor General’s Office.
Earlier on the day, Donetsk Oblast Governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said that Russian forces had injured three civilians in Kostiantynivka, Kurakhove, and Bakhmut.
Russia has attacked Bakhmut continuously for over five months in its effort to occupy the entirety of Donetsk Oblast in eastern Ukraine.
Capturing Bakhmut would allow Russia to disrupt Ukraine’s supply lines in the area and open up a main road leading to the two key Ukrainian cities of Kramatorsk and Sloviansk.
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