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.
A captive named Umit allegedly agreed to serve in the Russian army in exchange for Russian citizenship and a monetary reward of 2 million rubles ($25,000).
Russia's Buryatia Republic declared a state of emergency on May 13 over massive forest fires that have engulfed multiple regions in the Russian Far East.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko's statement came as Strong Shield 5 exercises involving military personnel from other NATO countries began in Lithuania.
"Amendments to the Budget Code are needed to implement the provisions on funding the U.S.-Ukrainian Reconstruction Investment Fund," lawmaker Roksolana Pidlasa said.
During reconnaissance in an unspecified front-line sector, Special Operations Forces' operators detected Buk-M3 and Uragan-1 on combat duty, the unit said.
The suspect quit his job at the Rivne NPP before the full-scale war began. In the spring of 2025, a GRU liaison contacted him and offered cooperation in exchange for money.
Players of Zalgiris Vilnius celebrate after scoring a goal during the UEFA Champions League Second Qualifying Round match between Zalgiris Vilnius and Galatasaray at LFF Stadium in Vilnius, Lithuania on July 25, 2023. (Jakub Porzycki/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
The Lithuanian Football Federation has appealed a 10,000 euro ($10,600) fine issued by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), after fans chanted derogatory slogans about Russian dictator Vladimir Putin during a match, Lithuanian media outlet LRT.lt reported on Oct. 20.
The match on Sept. 10 was played between the Lithuanian and Serbian national teams in Kaunas, Lithuania's second-largest city.
Despite the fact that Lithuanian fans have previous chanted such slogans without facing penalties, a UEFA delegate from Kazakhstan was present at the match and imposed the fine, according to LRT.lt.
"This is the first time we have received a fine for this chant," Lithuanian Football Federation President Edgaras Stankevicius told LRT, referring to a popular obscenity that uses Putin’s name.
The Lithuanian Football Federation has applied to receive an explanation from UEFA on the matter, but the chance is low "that they will change or mitigate that fine," Stankevicius said.
"All fans and Lithuania unitedly support this chant," according to Stankevicius. "We will certainly not ask the fans to refrain from this chant."
One of the footballers from the Lithuanian national team, Justas Lasickas, encouraged fans via Instagram to "keep chanting, we will give up our bonuses if necessary."
"We will definitely not ask the players to pay," Stankevicius added.
Lithuania was one of several European countries that said they would join Ukraine in its boycott of UEFA youth matches with Russia, after the union announced on Sept. 26 that it would ease its restrictions to enable Russian U17 teams – comprised of players younger than 18 – to play international matches.
Following the announcement,Ukrainian Association of Football (UAF) commented that UEFA's decision "tolerates Russia's aggressive policy."
UEFA reversed its decision on Oct. 10, claiming that it had become too technically difficult to schedule the matches after a dozen of the 55 teams set to play had announced they would boycott the matches.
Anastasiya Gordiychuk
