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.
Erdogan told Macron that international cooperation is critical for initiating peace negotiations and the "sensitive implementation" of Ukraine’s recovery and reconstruction processes, the Turkish Presidency reported.
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."
Gunner "Molfar," 39, a Bradley IFV crew member of the 47th Magura Mechanized Brigade who took part in the fighting to liberate Robotyne village from Russian invaders, carries a belt of munitions, Zaporizhzhia direction, southeastern Ukraine, on Sept. 6, 2023. (Photo by Ukrinform/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Ukrainian forces liberated 1.5 square kilometers of territory near Robotyne in Zaporizhzhia Oblast in the past 24 hours, Tavria grouping spokesman Oleksandr Shtupun said on Sept. 10.
He said that the Russians are clinging tenaciously to every square meter of captured soil, but Ukraine's defenders are making that very difficult for the enemy.
In a separate comment, the commander of Ukraine's southern forces, also known as the Tavria grouping, Oleksandr Tarnavskyi, said they have advanced by another kilometer over the past day.
According to Tarnavskyi, the Ukrainian artillery conducted 1,391 engagements in the past 24 hours.
He said that 72 Russian personnel were taken out, 149 were wounded and five were taken prisoner, while 27 units of equipment were destroyed, including three tanks. Ukrainians also took out six Russian supply depots, he said.
After months of grueling combat, Ukrainians liberated Robotyne and pierced the first Russian defensive line in the past several weeks. Western OSINT observers have reported that Ukrainian forces are now engaging Russia's second line near Verbove.
The main prong of the southern counteroffensive is pushing onto the occupied city of Melitopol.
Western experts and Ukrainian commanders have noted that the Russians concentrated so much strength on the first line, their second line should be easier to penetrate.
Igor is a reporter at the Kyiv Independent. He has previously covered conflict in the Middle East, investigated corruption in Ukraine and man-made environmental damage in Southeast Asia. He has a Master’s in Journalism from the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism and was published in the Kyiv Post, USA Today, The Atlantic, Daily Beast and Foreign Policy.
Alexander Query
