"Ukraine and all allies are ready for a complete unconditional ceasefire on land, in the air, and at sea for at least 30 days, starting as early as Monday," Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha wrote.
U.S. President Donald Trump has acknowledged in private that Russia is difficult to negotiate with because they "want the whole thing," referring to Ukraine, the WSJ reported, citing sources familiar with the comments.
A notice about the airspace closure was published on the U.S. Defense Department's NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) website on May 10, as cited by Ukrainian defense news outlet Militarnyi.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov rejected the idea of a 30-day ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine, claiming in an interview with ABC News on May 10 that it would be "an advantage" for Ukraine.
"Our involvement in the war was justifiable, and this belongs to our sovereign rights," North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un said. "I regard this as part of the sacred mission we must execute for our brothers and comrades-in-arms."
"We have a plan B and a plan C. But our focus is plan A, the essence of which is to get everyone's support" for Ukraine's accession, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said.
"(T)he presence at the Victory Parade of a country that bombs cities, hospitals, and daycares, and which has caused the deaths and injuries of over a million people over three years, is a shame," Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said.
"According to the participants of the performances, their goal is to remind the civilized world of the barbaric actions of Moscow, which for many years and decades has systematically violated international law," a source in Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (HUR) told the Kyiv Independent.
"I have great hope that an agreement for a ceasefire in Ukraine will be reached this weekend," German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on May 9, shortly before traveling to Kyiv alongside the leaders of France, Poland, and the U.K.
U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk will arrive in Kyiv early on May 10.
Russia's President Vladimir Putin, flanked by Russia's Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, during the naval parade on Russian Navy Day in St. Petersburg on July 31, 2022. (Photo credit: AFP via Getty Images)
Russian President Vladimir Putin paid a rare visit to the military headquarters in Rostov on Aug. 19, which was briefly seized during the Wagner rebellion, the U.K. Defense Ministry said in its latest intelligence report on Aug. 24.
The Kremlin's leader met with Chief of the General Staff General Valery Gerasimov and other officers in charge of the Russian war against Ukraine, the report added.
According to the analysis, Putin likely visited Rostov, lying 160 kilometers from the front line, to "project his authority," as the regional center was shortly held by Yevgeny Prigozhin's Wagner Group during their uprising in late June.
Following the capture of the southern city, the warlord's contractors marched toward Moscow only to abruptly end their rebellion less than 24 hours before it began. "Putin's chef" was allowed to walk free after an undisclosed deal allegedly brokered by Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko.
Prigozhin is presumed dead in a deadly crash of his business jet in Russia's Tver Oblast on Aug. 23. Based on a list published by the Federal Agency for Air Transport (Rosaviatsiya), the oligarch was among the 10 passengers who lost their lives in the incident.
According to the Institute for the Study of War, Putin "almost certainly ordered the Russian military command to shoot down Prigozhin's plane." The warlord's death is yet to be confirmed by official sources.
Martin Fornusek is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. He has previously worked as a news content editor at the media company Newsmatics and is a contributor to Euromaidan Press. He was also volunteering as an editor and translator at the Czech-language version of Ukraïner. Martin studied at Masaryk University in Brno, Czechia, holding a bachelor's degree in security studies and history and a master's degree in conflict and democracy studies.
Martin Fornusek
