Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa is reportedly offering a deal that would give U.S. companies access to Syria's natural wealth, reminiscent of the minerals agreement Washington recently signed with Kyiv.
Russia attacked Ukraine with drones and guided bombs during the night, targeting multiple regions after the May 12 deadline for an unconditional ceasefire expired.
"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.
Chief Ombudsman of the Republic of Turkey Seref Malkoc speaks at an open meeting of the Council on Internally Displaced Persons at the Kyiv City Military Administration. (Photo credit should read Volodymyr Tarasov / Ukrinform/Future Publishing via Getty Images)
Turkish Ombudsman Seref Malkoc is planning to visit Ukrainian prisoners of war who have been held in Russia, he said in an interview to Ukrinform on April 5.
Around 28,000 Ukrainians, including civilians and military personnel, have been missing or illegally captured since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion, Ukraine's ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said on Feb. 26. Only 147 civilians have been brought back home since the all-out war started.
Several cases of Ukrainian POWs being held in poor conditions, without quality nutrition, medical care, or hygiene, were reported, according to the human rights organization the Center of Civil Liberties.
Malkoc visited camp in Lviv Oblast where Russian POWs are held to inspect living conditions and the compliance with the Geneva Convention by Ukrainian authorities, and hopes that a similar visit to Russia could "pave the way for the prisoners' exchange."
"If we have an opportunity, we plan to go to Russia to conduct analogous research and publish a report after. But I will repeat that more important than the report's publishing is the prisoners' exchange if we could contribute to it at least partially," Malkoc said.
Previously, President Volodymyr Zelensky passed a list of Ukrainian citizens, including Crimean Tatars, captured by Russia to Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan after their meeting on March 8 in Istanbul.
Zelensky expressed hope that Erdogan would help to return home Ukrainian POWs.
In July 2023, Zelensky brought home five commanding officers who defended the Azovstal plant in Mariupol, and had been kept in Turkey under the personal guarantees of Erdogan after a prisoner exchange between Ukraine and Russia.
Chris York
