The Council of Europe on May 14 approved the creation of a special tribunal to prosecute Russia's top leadership for the crime of aggression against Ukraine, Ukrainian lawmaker Maria Mezentseva reported.
Viktoria Roshchyna, 27, disappeared in August 2023 while reporting from Ukraine's Russian-occupied territories. Moscow admitted she was in Russian detention the following year.
European foreign ministers approved the creation of a special tribunal for the crime of aggression against Ukraine during a meeting in Lviv on May 9. The tribunal, which will operate under the auspices of the Council of Europe, aims to prosecute Russia's top political and military leadership, including President Vladimir Putin. Ukraine expects the tribunal to start work in 2026. The Kyiv Independent’s Kateryna Hodunova spoke with Dutch Justice Minister David van Weel about the future tribunal and its role in bringing justice for Ukraine.
Turkish officials told Bloomberg that while they don't expect Trump to visit Istanbul, they are not ruling it out, and preparations for any scenario are underway.
Melkonyants was arrested in August 2023 in connection with the activities of the European Network of Election Monitoring Organizations (ENEMO), which was co-founded by Golos's legal predecessor, the Golos association.
Ukraine's underground storage facilities are currently using 19.4% of their capacity. Almost 32%, or 2.79 bcm, less gas is available in the storages than in the previous year, according to the estimates.
The majority of Ukrainians, 71%, do not support holding elections before a full peace deal, even in the case of a ceasefire and security guarantees, according to a poll published by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) on May 14.
"He'd like me to be there, and that's a possibility. ... I don't know that he would be there if I'm not there. We're going to find out," U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One while traveling to Qatar, Reuters reported.
Trump has long demanded that NATO allies increase their military spending, previously calling for the alliance to raise its benchmark from 2% to 5% of GDP.
More than 1,000 Russian government entities and 1,200 private companies are involved in the economy of occupied Mariupol, a major southeastern city occupied by Russia after it invaded Ukraine in 2022, according to a research paper published on May 14.
Members of the U.K. armed forces training at Bemowo Piskie Training Area, Poland, May 15, 2018. Photo for illustrative purposes. (Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images)
U.K. General Rob Magowan admitted in a committee meeting on March 26 that the U.K.'s military "couldn't fight (Russia) for more than a couple of months because we don't have the ammunition and reserves of equipment to do it."
The striking admission was the latest warning from U.K. defense and military officials cautioning that the country is unprepared for armed conflict. Officials from other NATO countries have repeated similar concerns.
The U.K.'s parliament released a bipartisan report in February 2024 that said the armed forces have yet to break the "vicious cycle" of equipment and manpower shortages that continue to hinder its preparation for a high-intensity war.
Magowan's acknowledgment on March 26 went even further as he responded to a direct question from lawmaker Mark Francois about the ability of the U.K. to fight Russia.
"We are not ready for an enduring war, do you accept that?" Francois asked, to which Magowan responded, "Yes, absolutely."
"We could not fight an enduring war against Russia, drop all these euphemisms about peer adversaries," Francois continued.
Magowan conceded that government spending on defense "does not meet, in all areas, the threats that we face."
"For people watching, and hearing that the U.K. isn't ready for war exclusively with Russia, it’s important to understand that because we are in NATO and Article 5 (mutual defense clause) exists, (so) we would never be in that situation."
Nate Ostiller is a former News Editor at the Kyiv Independent. He works on special projects as a researcher and writer for The Red Line Podcast, covering Eastern Europe and Eurasia, and focused primarily on digital misinformation, memory politics, and ethnic conflict. Nate has a Master’s degree in Russian and Eurasian Studies from the University of Glasgow, and spent two years studying abroad at Kyiv-Mohyla Academy in Ukraine. Originally from the USA, he is currently based in Tbilisi, Georgia.
Nate Ostiller
