The sanctions appear to be in response to Russia's rejection of a 30-day ceasefire that the U.K., alongside Ukraine, France, Germany, and Poland, demanded during a visit to Kyiv on May 10.
"We now know for sure that the great fire of the Marywilska shopping centre in Warsaw was caused by arson ordered by the Russian special services," Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on X. "Some of the perpetrators have already been detained, all the others are identified and searched for."
The publications' latest report covers the period of February 24, 2022 to May 8, 2025. Since it was last updated at the end of April, 2,857 additional Russian military personnel have been confirmed killed.
Hungary cancelled a meeting planned for May 12 with a Ukrainian delegation on the rights of national minorities, Hungary's Deputy Foreign Minister said on May 11, amid a deepening spying scandal between the two countries.
Three were injured in Russia's Kursk Oblast when the town of Rylsk was allegedly struck by a missile attack on May 11, local governor Alexander Khinshtein claimed.
This week, the world watched in anticipation for Russia’s Victory Day parade after President Volodymyr Zelensky commented that he could not guarantee the safety of those attending. Meanwhile, the European Union moves one step forward to banning Russian gas from the European continent. It is also revealed this week that U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has fallen out of step with the White House.
"(Russian) President (Vladimir) Putin... doesn't want to have a ceasefire agreement with Ukraine, but rather wants to meet on Thursday, in Turkey, to negotiate a possible end to the bloodbath. Ukraine should agree to this, immediately," U.S. President Donald Trump said.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will travel to to Antalya, Turkey, for a NATO foreign ministers’ meeting from May 14–16, where he is expected to address the war in Ukraine and push for stronger Allied defense commitments.
The Kremlin said the leaders held a detailed discussion about the Russian initiative and Erdogan expressed full support, reiterating Turkey’s readiness to provide a venue and assist in organizing the negotiations.
Barbed wire is seen on top of the wall of Moscow's Lefortovo prison on Apr. 4, 2023. The prison is known for being the place where political prisoners await their trial. Serhii Karmazin, a Ukrainian civilian arrested on sabotage charges, and Evan Gershkovich, a Wall Street Journal reporter arrested on espionage charges, are among the detainees of Lefortovo. (Vlad Karkov/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Viktor Demchenko, a 71-year-old Ukrainian whom Russia accused of espionage and participation in a terrorist organization, has allegedly died in pretrial detention in Russia’s Rostov region, the Memorial human rights group reported on Feb. 11.
Russia accused several Ukrainians of espionage following the start of the Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Memorial didn't specify the date when Demchenko died.
Meanwhile, Russian state news agency TASS, citing law enforcement agencies, reported that Demchenko died in a Rostov prison hospital from a stroke on Dec. 31.
Several hundreds of Ukrainian civilians were arrested in Russia on espionage or sabotage charges. Many of them are sent to detention centers and are deprived of access to lawyers.
The fate of many Ukrainian “civilian hostages” remains unknown.
Ukraine’s Reintegration Ministry said there are 763 civilian hostages in Russia and Russian-occupied areas, while the country’s Ombudsman’s Office put the number at 20,000.
Alexander Khrebet is a reporter with the Kyiv Independent. He covers Ukraine’s foreign policy, alleged abuse of power in the country’s military leadership, and reports on the Russian-occupied territories. Alexander is the European Press Prize 2023 winner, the #AllForJan Award 2023 winner and Ukraine's 2022 National Investigative Journalism Award finalist. His was published in the Washington Times and Atlantic Council.
Alexander Khrebet
