Russia's Defense Ministry confirmed that 185 Russian POWs had returned home, saying that they are currently in Belarus and will be receiving the psychological and medical care there.
"The latest wave of Russian strikes is yet another reminder that Moscow continues to choose escalation over peace, and terror over diplomacy," Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said.
U.S. President Donald Trump on June 5 signaled support for direct talks between Russia and Ukraine to end the full-scale war, saying he believes it is close to being settled.
Editor's note: Got an opinion on anything you've read in the Kyiv Independent so far? Send it to letters@kyivindependent.com, and it may appear in our Letters section. Key developments on June 5: * Ukraine destroys Russia's drone base at occupied Donetsk Airport * 185 Ukrainian POWs return from Russian captivity in latest exchange * 'Enough of the war' — Zelensky throws down gauntlet to Putin in open letter * 5 Russian cargo ships targeted by Ukrainian drones, Azerbaijan reports deaths of
Ukraine's Supreme Court has rejected a libel lawsuit filed by the late Andriy Portnov, a former top official who served pro-Kremlin ex-President Viktor Yanukovych, against the Kyiv Independent, according to a ruling obtained by the Kyiv Independent on June 5.
"We are here both to organize support within the framework of the coalition of the willing and to put that support in place," Macron said.
The Kyiv Independent visited a Ukrainian military hospital where American and Ukrainian surgeons work together as part of the "Face-to-Face" mission to reconstruct faces damaged by explosions from strikes and landmines.
The Kyiv Independent's coverage of Russia’s war in Ukraine. Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, after eight years of aggression against Ukraine that began in 2014 with the annexation of Crimea and fighting in Donbas. The war has resulted in tens of thousands of military and civilian casualties and displaced millions of Ukrainians. NATO and Western allies have provided military aid to Ukraine while the conflict continues across fronts in Ukraine’s south and east.
"Almost half of your 26 years of power in Russia you have spent in the war against Ukraine," Zelensky wrote to Russian President Vladimir Putin. "Whatever you say about NATO, geopolitics and the Russian language, this war is your personal choice — a war without a real reason. This is how history will remember it."
