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.
A captive named Umit allegedly agreed to serve in the Russian army in exchange for Russian citizenship and a monetary reward of 2 million rubles ($25,000).
Russia's Buryatia Republic declared a state of emergency on May 13 over massive forest fires that have engulfed multiple regions in the Russian Far East.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko's statement came as Strong Shield 5 exercises involving military personnel from other NATO countries began in Lithuania.
"Amendments to the Budget Code are needed to implement the provisions on funding the U.S.-Ukrainian Reconstruction Investment Fund," lawmaker Roksolana Pidlasa said.
During reconnaissance in an unspecified front-line sector, Special Operations Forces' operators detected Buk-M3 and Uragan-1 on combat duty, the unit said.
An aerial picture taken on April 18, 2022, shows coffins being buried during a funeral ceremony at a cemetery in Bucha, Kyiv Oblast, amid the Russian invasion. (AFP/Getty Images)
Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said on April 1 that the Kyiv suburb of Bucha, which endured a brutal weeks-long Russian occupation in spring last year, should be considered a trial site for "Russian war criminals."
Shortly after Bucha was liberated by Ukrainian forces on March 31, 2022, evidence of Russian atrocities during the occupation shook the world. Bodies of civilians, with their hands tied to their backs, were found on the streets, many with traces of torture.
According to Prosecutor General Andrii Kostin, Russian forces committed more than 9,000 war crimes in the city of Bucha and its district.
More than 1,400 civilians, including 37 children, were killed by Russian troops in the area, Kostin said on March 31, Fifty-two more children were reportedly injured.
"The aggressor must pay for the evil done. Pay with freedom, pay with money, pay with the status of an exiled country," Shmyhal said in a Telegram post, referring to what was discussed during a summit in Bucha on the occasion of the one-year anniversary of its liberation.
On March 31, President Volodymyr Zelensky, along with the prime ministers of Slovakia, Slovenia, and Croatia, and the president of Moldova, attended a ceremony commemorating the first anniversary of Bucha's liberation.
"A year has passed since the day Russian occupiers were driven from our city of Bucha. A city then unknown to the world. A city the world will never forget. We won't let you forget. Human decency demands we remember," Zelensky said in his address on March 31.
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Thaisa Semenova
