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.
A woman shops in a supermarket in Kyiv on March 18, 2022. Photo for illustrative purposes. (Alex Chan Tsz Yuk/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
On average, Ukrainians spend 66% of their budget on food and mandatory expenses, according to a survey conducted by Deloitte Ukraine released on March 13.
The figure is more than double the world average and is significantly higher than the other countries included in the survey.
At the same time, the survey found that Ukrainians spend a fraction of what other residents of other countries spend on non-essential expenses.
Ukrainians spend only 2% of their income on leisure, including going to restaurants or bars, compared to 15% in neighboring Poland.
The full-scale war has impacted Ukrainians' spending habits related to food in other ways as well. In 2023, 55% of respondents said they visit restaurants and bars "much less often," a 24% increase from the previous year. Another 47% of Ukrainians said they stockpile food.
"Ukrainian consumers are sustainable, responsive, and concerned," said Oleksandr Yampolskyi, the Director of Retail and Wholesale Distribution Group at Deloitte Ukraine.
"They economize, spend carefully, and donate regularly."
A significant majority of respondents (70%) said they boycott manufacturers of goods that still operate in Russia, and 92% said they donate to support the army or those wounded in Russia's full-scale war.
At the same, there are other indications that there is "a gradual recovery of consumer activities in Ukraine," said Yampolskyi.
"Some indicators, for example, the food purchase frequency, have already returned to their pre-war levels....(which) indicates the restoration of consumer confidence, as well as the ability of retail to adapt to new conditions."
Nate Ostiller is a former News Editor at the Kyiv Independent. He works on special projects as a researcher and writer for The Red Line Podcast, covering Eastern Europe and Eurasia, and focused primarily on digital misinformation, memory politics, and ethnic conflict. Nate has a Master’s degree in Russian and Eurasian Studies from the University of Glasgow, and spent two years studying abroad at Kyiv-Mohyla Academy in Ukraine. Originally from the USA, he is currently based in Tbilisi, Georgia.
Martin Fornusek
