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.
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.
Commander-in-Chief of Ukraine's Armed Forces Oleksandr Syrskyi. (Syrskyi/Telegram)
Ukraine is working to improve the training quality for its military, Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi announced on Sept. 15, and will roll out new plans over October and November.
In a recent working meeting with military leaders and authorities responsible for military training, the group discussed problems related to military training and discussed strategies to solve them, Syrskyi said in a post on Facebook.
"Instructors play a key role in the quality of training. Therefore, we pay maximum attention to attracting motivated instructors with combat experience. We are also working on the possibility of creating an instructor school, which will be the main and only source of well-trained instructors," Syrskyi wrote.
"We are working on increasing the term of basic combined military training. The corresponding project will be started in October-November of this year," he added.
"Considering training facilities, there are not enough of them. They are already being expanded," Zelensky said.
Ukraine's parliament adopted an updated mobilization law in mid-April to ramp up mobilization amid Russia's ongoing war. The new law simplifies the process for identifying eligible conscripts and includes additional penalties for those dodging the draft and came into force on May 18.
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Daria Shulzhenko
