Andriy Yermak, Zelensky's chief of staff, said that the new pontiff had a phone call with Zelensky on Monday, during which the pope expressed willingness to facilitate meetings between global leaders and vowed to support efforts for "a just and lasting peace."
In an interview with French broadcaster TF1 on May 13, Macron discussed new Russia sanctions and stationing French nuclear weapons in other European countries as a deterrent against Russia.
Performing their song "Bird of Pray," Ukrainian band Ziferblat passed the Eurovision semi-finals on May 13, qualifying Ukraine for the grand final on May 17.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed that a Russian delegation will be in Istanbul on May 15 for direct peace talks with Ukraine. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Putin’s foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov will likely represent Russia.
The move follows Ukraine's ratification of the minerals agreement, deepening U.S.-Ukraine economic ties and signaling expanded U.S. involvement in Ukraine's long-term recovery.
"Ukraine has initiated a coordinated campaign to vilify Hungary in order to undermine our initiative to hold a poll on (Kyiv's) EU membership," Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz warned that further concessions from Ukraine during negotiations would be unreasonable if Russia continues to attack civilian targets.
U.S. President Donald Trump's special envoys, Steve Witkoff and Keith Kellogg, will travel to Istanbul for possible peace talks between Ukraine and Russia, Reuters reported on May 13, citing three undisclosed sources.
Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi and General Oleksandr Tarnavskyi. (Oleksandr Syrskyi/Telegram)
Ukraine has begun rotating troops who have been serving at the front “for a long time” despite the increasingly difficult situation faced by the country’s Armed Forces, Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said on March 14.
In a post on Facebook, Syrskyi said Ukrainian troops continued to hold the lines in the Zaporizhia direction but said they were coming under heavy attack from Russian drones, artillery and mortars.
“On the positive side, despite the quite difficult situation across the front line, we have managed to launch the process of rotating and replacing battalions and units that have been performing combat missions on the front line for a long time,” Syrskyi said.
“This will allow us to stabilize the situation and positively affect the moral and psychological state of our soldiers.”
Ukraine is battling with a manpower shortage and the government aims to ramp up mobilization efforts in 2024 and has pledged to change the approach to military recruitment, giving more choices to potential conscripts.
The parliament is now considering a new draft of the mobilization law after its initial, contentious version was withdrawn.
Combined with the lack of manpower, Ukraine faces an increasingly perilous situation as U.S. arms and aid continue to be delayed in Congress.
On March 13, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) said Ukraine’s ammunition shortage caused by the delays could soon lead to a Russian breakthrough on the front lines.
The ISW highlighted that Ukraine is being forced to ration critical ammunition – in particular, artillery shells – and prioritize allocation based on those areas currently facing the most intense Russian attacks.
With Moscow’s forces currently holding the initiative in the war and being able to determine the “time, location, and scale of offensive operations,” this leaves other areas of the front-line highly vulnerable.
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.
Igor Kossov
