U.S. Cardinal Robert Prevost was elected the new pope and leader of the Roman Catholic Church on Thursday, taking the name Pope Leo XIV, a senior cardinal announced on May 8 to crowds gathered in St. Peter’s Square, according to Vatican News.
According to the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), this marks the first time Ukrainian authorities have exposed a Hungarian military intelligence network conducting activities harmful to Ukraine.
George Simion, leader of Romania's far-right AUR party, who won the first round of the presidential election with nearly 40% of the vote, reiterated that if elected, he would oppose any further assistance to Ukraine and shift Romania’s focus inward.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping hailed their countries' relationship on May 8, vowing to increase cooperation in all areas, including military ties.
"There is Turkey, which maintains channels of communication. And then, above all, there is the People's Republic of China, which, more than anyone else, has the means to make (Russian President Vladimir) Putin come to the negotiating table and soften his demands," Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said on May 8.
The United States will be ready to "walk away" from the negotiating table if it does not see Russia making progress in negotiation to end the war, U.S. Vice President JD Vance told Fox News on May 8.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico arrived in Moscow on May 9 to celebrate Victory Day, commemorating the 80th anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II.
US President Donald Trump on May 8 called for a "30-day unconditional ceasefire" between Ukraine and Russia. Writing on Truth Social, Trump expressed his hope for "an acceptable ceasefire," with both countries "held accountable for respecting the sanctity of... direct negotiations."
President Volodymyr Zelensky had a "constructive" phone call with United States President Donald Trump on May 8, discussing the war, continued pressure on Russia, and a potential ceasefire.
The survey, conducted between April 24 and May 4, shows that 56.9% of respondents would not be willing to compromise on either territorial integrity or Ukraine’s pro-Western direction in any potential talks with Moscow.
Despite the Kremlin’s announcement of a May 8–11 truce, heavy fighting continued in multiple regions throughout the day.
Russian President Vladimir Putin will not be invited to the next G20 summit due to a pending arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC), a spokesperson of the South African president told Russia’s state-owned TASS news agency on Dec. 15.
South Africa, which has chaired the organization since Dec. 1, was also unable to host the Russian leader in August during their BRICS meeting in Johannesburg.
"The legal situation has not changed since the BRICS summit in Johannesburg. We cannot influence the ICC's decisions in any way," spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said, according to TASS. The next G20 summit is scheduled for Nov. 21-22, 2025.
South Africa, the largest economy on the continent, has claimed neutrality in the Russia-Ukraine war but continued to strengthen its economic and political ties with Moscow. The country is a member of the BRICS group alongside Russia, China, and others, and it even carried out joint naval drills with the two countries last year.
In March 2023, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for Putin over allegations of war crimes, specifically the forced deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia following Moscow's invasion in early 2022.
This forces the Russian leader to carefully select his travel destinations, as any country in the ICC must arrest him under the warrant. South Africa is a signatory of the ICC's Rome Statute.
In November, Putin also chose not to travel to Brazil for the last G20 summit but sent his Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in his place. The G20 group includes several countries that have fostered closer economic cooperation with Russia throughout its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, including China and India.
Putin visited Mongolia, a member of the ICC, in September of this year, where the Russian president received a warm welcome in Ulaanbaatar.
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