Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping hailed their countries' relationship on May 8, vowing to increase cooperation in all areas, including military ties.
"There is Turkey, which maintains channels of communication. And then, above all, there is the People's Republic of China, which, more than anyone else, has the means to make (Russian President Vladimir) Putin come to the negotiating table and soften his demands," Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said on May 8.
The United States will be ready to "walk away" from the negotiating table if it does not see Russia making progress in negotiation to end the war, U.S. Vice President JD Vance told Fox News on May 8.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico arrived in Moscow on May 9 to celebrate Victory Day, commemorating the 80th anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II.
US President Donald Trump on May 8 called for a "30-day unconditional ceasefire" between Ukraine and Russia. Writing on Truth Social, Trump expressed his hope for "an acceptable ceasefire," with both countries "held accountable for respecting the sanctity of... direct negotiations."
President Volodymyr Zelensky had a "constructive" phone call with United States President Donald Trump on May 8, discussing the war, continued pressure on Russia, and a potential ceasefire.
The survey, conducted between April 24 and May 4, shows that 56.9% of respondents would not be willing to compromise on either territorial integrity or Ukraine’s pro-Western direction in any potential talks with Moscow.
U.S. Cardinal Robert Prevost was elected the new pope and leader of the Roman Catholic Church on Thursday, taking the name Pope Leo XIV, a senior cardinal announced on May 8 to crowds gathered in St. Peter’s Square, according to Vatican News.
The shooting occurred around 3:22 p.m. local time in Sofiivska Borshchahivka, a residential area in Bucha district, according to the Kyiv regional police.
A man rides a bicycle under a Russian sham election campaign billboard showing Kremlin-installed proxies in eastern Ukraine running with Russia's ruling party, United Russia, in occupied Donetsk on Aug. 12, 2023. (Photo: AFP via Getty Images)
The U.K. has announced new sanctions against Russian officials for their involvement in organizing so-called elections in occupied territories of Ukraine, the British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly announced on Sept. 29.
Sham elections were held in Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine, which include Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, Luhansk, and Crimea, from Sept. 8 to Sept. 10.
The U.K. has sanctioned Russia's Central Election Commission (CEC) for its role in organizing the sham elections, as well as individuals including Natalya Budarina, the CEC Secretary, and Marina Zakharova, who heads the so-called election commission in Kherson.
"Russia’s sham elections are a transparent, futile attempt to legitimize its illegal control of sovereign Ukrainian territory," Cleverly said.
"You can’t hold ‘elections’ in someone else’s country," he added.
The announcement of these sanctions "comes one year on from Russia’s illegal attempt to annex the Ukrainian oblasts of Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk and Luhansk after falsified and illegitimate sham referendums," the U.K. Foreign Office said.
The population of these regions "voted overwhelmingly for Ukraine’s independence in 1991, and their continued resistance against Russian aggression shows their determination to remain part of an independent and sovereign Ukraine," the U.K. Foreign Office added.
In October 2022, 143 states voted to condemn Russia’s attempted and illegal annexation of Ukrainian territory at the UN General Assembly, emphasizing that no territory gained by the use of force will be recognized as legal internationally.
According to the British government, 1,600 individuals and entities have been sanctioned by the U.K. since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Alexander Khrebet
