"If the Russians are using this level of specialists in urban combat, they are probably facing some difficulties," Ivan Petrychak, spokesperson for the 24th Separate Mechanized Brigade, said.
Previously, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk accused the Russian intelligence services of orchestrating a May 2024 arson attack on the Marywilska shopping centre in Warsaw.
"Perhaps in some areas, the intensity decreased slightly to create an image of compliance with their own announcement. But in reality, (Russia) continued attacks every day, using all available weapons — including aircraft to drop guided bombs on Ukraine," Andrii Demchenko, spokesperson for Ukraine’s State Border Guard Service, said.
Beijing supports all efforts toward achieving peace in Ukraine, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said on May 12 when asked about Kyiv and Europe's proposal for a 30-day truce.
"I invited His Holiness to make an apostolic visit to Ukraine. Such a visit would bring real hope to all believers and to all our people," Zelensky said.
Presidential Office chief Andriy Yermak voiced doubt about leading negotiations with anyone from Russia except President Vladimir Putin, implying only the Russian leader can make real decisions.
This includes at least seven people injured in drone attacks overnight on May 12, a date from which Kyiv and its allies put forward a demand for a 30-day unconditional truce, a step that Moscow continues to reject.
"When European unity becomes inconvenient, disinformation goes so far as to make a simple tissue look like drugs," the Elysee Palace reacted to a fake story pushed by Russia.
The comments came after Trump urged Ukraine to agree to direct negotiations with Russia, which has invited Kyiv to peace talks in Istanbul on May 15, without first agreeing to halt military operations.
A Russian drone hit a civilian freight train in Donetsk Oblast on May 12 and injured its driver, Ukrainian Railways said amid Kyiv's calls for a ceasefire.
Moscow and Hanoi agreed to negotiate and sign agreements to construct nuclear power plants in Vietnam, the two countries said in a joint statement on May 11.
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.
Slovak Prime Minister, Robert Fico, in Prague on Nov. 24, 2023. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
Editor's note: This article was updated at 2:20 p.m. local time on May 16 to include Fico’s latest condition assessment.
Slovakia was rocked on May 15 when the country's prime minister was shot in an assassination attempt as he left a government meeting in the town of Handlova.
Footage from the scene shows the suspected gunman among a small group of people on the street behind a metal barrier waiting to meet Fico, who is flanked by several members of his security detail.
The suspected gunman then reaches over the barrier, holding a gun. Five shots are heard, and Fico is quickly bundled into a waiting car.
What condition is Fico in?
In the hours after the attack, Defense Minister Robert Kalinak told a news conference outside the hospital in which 59-year-old Fico was being treated that he was "fighting for his life."
A statement on Fico's official Facebook page said he had been taken to a major trauma hospital in Banska Bystrica instead of the capital, Bratislava, because "an acute intervention" was necessary.
"The next few hours will decide (his condition)," the statement added.
Slovak Deputy Prime Minister and Environment Minister Tomas Taraba told the BBC's Newshour late on May 15 that Fico was no longer in a life-threatening condition after an operation.
"Fortunately, as far as I know, the operation went well, and I guess in the end, he will survive," he said, adding: "He's not in a life-threatening situation at this moment."
He said that Fico "was heavily injured" during the attack, and one bullet "went through the stomach" while another "hit the joints."
Later on the afternoon of May 16, Miriam Lapunikova, director of the F.D. Roosevelt University Hospital in Banska Bystrica, said Fico was in a "very serious" but stable condition.
"At this point his condition is stabilised but is truly very serious, he will be in the intensive care unit," she told reporters.
While initial reports said Fico had been shot five times, later reports said he was only hit by three bullets.
What do we know about the shooter?
At present, very little. A man was detained at the scene, but he has yet to be officially identified.
According to Slovak media, he is a 71-year-old writer and political activist.
Security personnel apprehending a suspected gunman after Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico was shot in Handlova, Slovakia, on May 15, 2024. (AFP via Getty Images)
What do we know about the motive?
There is no official information about the motive of the shooter at present.
Interior Minister Matus Sutaj Estok described it as a "politically motivated" assassination attempt.
President-elect Peter Pellegrini, an ally of Fico's, said the shooting was a threat to Slovakia's democracy.
"I am appalled at where hatred for a different political opinion can lead," Pellegrini said.
Why is Fico so controversial?
Elected in September 2023 on a populist, Ukraine-skeptic platform, Fico halted arms supplies from Slovakia's military stocks and has repeatedly criticized both defense assistance for Ukraine and sanctions against Russia.
He also blamed "Ukrainian Nazis and fascists" for provoking Russia's war of aggression, repeating false talking points of Russian propaganda.
Domestically, Fico's coalition government is pushing ahead with controversial reforms that would see penalties for corruption reduced.
The prime minister has already abolished Slovakia's special prosecutor's office, the body responsible for investigating politically sensitive corruption cases.
Fico's government is also seeking to shut down and replace the national broadcaster in a move that has been described by the Public Media Alliance as giving "greater political control" over the country's media.
Estok has already accused the media of stoking the atmosphere that led to the assassination attempt, telling reporters: "Many of you were those who were sowing this hatred."
He also warned that the attack was a sign that "we are on the verge of civil war."
How has the international community reacted?
International leaders immediately reacted to the news and offered their support to Fico and Slovakia.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said Fico's shooting was "appalling" and added that "we strongly condemn this act of violence against our neighboring partner state's head of government."
Many also linked hostile political rhetoric to the attack.
Czech President Petr Pavel said the attack on Fico "is unequivocally reprehensible, whatever the motivation."
"It should be a warning to us about how far the deepening of animosity and aggression in society can lead."
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.
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