The Council of Europe on May 14 approved the creation of a special tribunal to prosecute Russia's top leadership for the crime of aggression against Ukraine, Ukrainian lawmaker Maria Mezentseva reported.
Viktoria Roshchyna, 27, disappeared in August 2023 while reporting from Ukraine's Russian-occupied territories. Moscow admitted she was in Russian detention the following year.
European foreign ministers approved the creation of a special tribunal for the crime of aggression against Ukraine during a meeting in Lviv on May 9. The tribunal, which will operate under the auspices of the Council of Europe, aims to prosecute Russia's top political and military leadership, including President Vladimir Putin. Ukraine expects the tribunal to start work in 2026. The Kyiv Independent’s Kateryna Hodunova spoke with Dutch Justice Minister David van Weel about the future tribunal and its role in bringing justice for Ukraine.
Turkish officials told Bloomberg that while they don't expect Trump to visit Istanbul, they are not ruling it out, and preparations for any scenario are underway.
Melkonyants was arrested in August 2023 in connection with the activities of the European Network of Election Monitoring Organizations (ENEMO), which was co-founded by Golos's legal predecessor, the Golos association.
Ukraine's underground storage facilities are currently using 19.4% of their capacity. Almost 32%, or 2.79 bcm, less gas is available in the storages than in the previous year, according to the estimates.
The majority of Ukrainians, 71%, do not support holding elections before a full peace deal, even in the case of a ceasefire and security guarantees, according to a poll published by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) on May 14.
"He'd like me to be there, and that's a possibility. ... I don't know that he would be there if I'm not there. We're going to find out," U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One while traveling to Qatar, Reuters reported.
Trump has long demanded that NATO allies increase their military spending, previously calling for the alliance to raise its benchmark from 2% to 5% of GDP.
More than 1,000 Russian government entities and 1,200 private companies are involved in the economy of occupied Mariupol, a major southeastern city occupied by Russia after it invaded Ukraine in 2022, according to a research paper published on May 14.
Ukrainian servicemen check their Sweden made CV90 armored infantry combat vehicle on a position pointing in the Bakhmut axis in Donetsk Oblast on Nov. 27, 2023. (Genya Savilov/AFP via Getty Images)
The defense ministers of Sweden and Denmark signed a memorandum to jointly donate additional Swedish-made CV90 infantry fighting vehicles to Ukraine, the Swedish Defense Ministry announced on Dec. 18.
Stockholm provided Kyiv with 50 pieces of this modern armored vehicle earlier this year. Sweden and Ukraine also agreed in August to cooperate in the production and servicing of CV90s.
According to the declaration of intent signed by Swedish Defense Minister Pal Jonson and his Danish counterpart Troels Lund Poulsen, Denmark will initially contribute 1.8 billion Danish kroner ($264 million).
These funds will help finance the already initiated delivery of the 50 CV90s and support the production of new vehicles, as well as spare parts, ammunition, and maintenance.
"This is an important step to support Ukraine's defense forces together with Denmark... Combat vehicle 90 (CV90) has been, and is, a significant addition to Ukraine's defense since Sweden donated 50 vehicles earlier this year," Jonson said.
The production and delivery will be carried out under a cooperation framework set up between Sweden and Ukraine in July this year.
"The current bilateral agreement is an important contribution to our joint ambition to continue to support Ukraine's freedom struggle," Poulsen commented.
Last week, the Danish government proposed a new military aid package for Ukraine worth $1.1 billion, containing tanks, ammunition, drones, and more.
Martin Fornusek is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. He has previously worked as a news content editor at the media company Newsmatics and is a contributor to Euromaidan Press. He was also volunteering as an editor and translator at the Czech-language version of Ukraïner. Martin studied at Masaryk University in Brno, Czechia, holding a bachelor's degree in security studies and history and a master's degree in conflict and democracy studies.
