"Only member states can take out loans within the 150 billion euros instrument, but they can use these funds for joint procurement with Ukraine," EU Defense Commissioner Andrius Kubilius said.
"We agreed to pursue ambitious measures to reduce Russia's ability to wage war by limiting Kremlin revenues, disrupting the shadow fleet, tightening the Oil Price Cap, and reducing our remaining imports of Russian energy."
Zelensky on May 12 removed Lieutenant General Ivan Havryliuk from the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, the top command and control body for all branches of Ukraine's defense apparatus.
Ukraine remains the most mined country in the world. Nearly one-third of Ukraine's territory, approximately 174,000 square kilometers, had been mined since Russia began its full-scale invasion of the country in February 2022.
The phone call comes as Moscow once again rejected a 30-day ceasefire, with Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova claiming that a ceasefire would give "Kyiv a break to restore its military potential and continue its confrontation with Russia."
Flight MH17 departed from Amsterdam Schiphol Airport en-route to Kuala Lumpur International Airport on July 17, 2014. Three hours into the flight, the Boeing-777 was shot down by Russian proxy forces using a Buk surface-to-air missile above Ukraine’s Donetsk Oblast.
"I am grateful for the support and the readiness at the highest level to promote diplomacy," President Volodymyr Zelensky said of the phone conservation with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. "We share the same view on the need for a ceasefire."
The convictions mark a significant development in Britain's efforts to counter Russian intelligence operations amid heightened tensions stemming from Moscow's war against Ukraine and repeated Kremlin threats toward Kyiv's allies.
According to the Verkhovna Rada's website, Ukraine completed the ratification of the U.S.-Ukraine minerals agreement on May 12. President Volodymyr Zelensky signed the deal.
The U.S. Agency of International Development (USAID) flag flies in front of the agency's headquarters in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 15, 2014. (J. David Ake/Getty Images)
The Trump administration said on Feb. 26 that it is terminating over 90% of the U.S. Agency for International Development's (USAID) foreign aid contracts, cutting $60 billion in foreign assistance, the U.S. media reported.
The step comes after U.S. President Donald Trump's administration halted almost all foreign aid for 90 days for a review amid efforts to shutter the aid agency and merge it under the State Department.
The cuts will include 5,800 of 6,200 USAID contracts, purportedly saving $54 billion, and 4,100 of 9,100 State Department grants, for a cut of $4.4 billion, Politico reported.
Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, USAID has provided $2.6 billion in humanitarian aid, $5 billion in development assistance, and more than $30 billion in direct budget support to Kyiv.
The agency has funded school reconstruction, bomb shelters, critical energy repairs, and civil society initiatives.
The fate of the remaining USAID projects is to be determined in ongoing court battles with the administration.
The White House has accused the agency of pushing a "liberal agenda" and widespread waste, despite foreign aid making up just 1% of the federal budget.
Elon Musk, Trump's ally who oversees the new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), has led the charge against USAID, laying off staff and attacking the agency in public, often making baseless or false claims about its work.
USAID cuts not only marked a significant realignment of U.S. foreign policy but also threatened various Ukrainian organizations and projects across multiple sectors reliant on U.S. funding.
Ukraine is in talks with private and EU partners to replace funding sources for key projects in energy infrastructure, veterans' affairs, and more.
The Kyiv Independent news desk
