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.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said he will meet with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara, but said both leaders are ready to fly to Istanbul if Russian President Vladimir Putin chooses to attend the talks there.
People attend a pro-Ukraine rally marking the one-year anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion on Feb. 25, 2023, in Taipei, Taiwan. (Walid Berrazeg/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
Taiwanese voters elected William Lai as their leader in a historic presidential election, cementing a pro-sovereignty direction that increasingly aligns with the West, angering Beijing.
China is Russia's top supporter and has sought to disrupt the existing world order led by the United States and its allies.
"We congratulate Dr. Lai Ching-te on his victory in Taiwan's presidential election. We also congratulate the Taiwan people for participating in free and fair elections and demonstrating the strength of their democratic system," U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said.
However, the Biden Administration says it does not support Taiwan's independence and maintains the One China policy that only recognizes Beijing.
Lai's pro-sovereignty Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has governed Taiwan for eight years and he has signaled backing for Taipei's independence.
Drawing on the lessons from Ukraine, Taiwan has been developing an asymmetric warfare strategy that focuses on an agile defense.
Lance Luo (Li P. Luo) is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. Previously, he worked at Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and Hromadske Television in Kyiv. He also spent three years in finance and strategy consulting. Mr. Luo graduated from the University of Southern California and serves as an arbitrator at FINRA.
Dmytro Basmat
