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.
According to the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), this marks the first time Ukrainian authorities have exposed a Hungarian military intelligence network conducting activities harmful to Ukraine.
George Simion, leader of Romania's far-right AUR party, who won the first round of the presidential election with nearly 40% of the vote, reiterated that if elected, he would oppose any further assistance to Ukraine and shift Romania’s focus inward.
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.
Despite the Kremlin’s announcement of a May 8–11 truce, heavy fighting continued in multiple regions throughout the day.
On the morning of Oct. 10, Russian missiles and kamikaze drones struck central Kyiv and other major cities in Ukraine in the largest-scale coordinated missile attack against Ukraine since the full-scale invasion began on Feb. 24.
Dozens of other explosions were reported across Ukraine, including in Kharkiv, Kryvyi Rih, Lviv, Dnipro, Ternopil, Kremenchuk, Khmelnytskyi, and Zhytomyr.
According to Valerii Zaluzhnyi, Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, as of 11 a.m. on Oct. 10, 75 missiles were fired by Russia at Ukraine, of which only 41 were shot down by air defense.
The attacks came as Russian dictator Vladimir Putin accused Ukraine and its security services on Oct. 9 of a "terrorist attack aimed at destroying Russia's critically important infrastructure" following an explosion on the Crimean Bridge on Oct. 8, which connects occupied Crimea with Russia via the Kerch Strait.
Starting around rush hour, over a dozen explosions were heard in Kyiv, many of which struck the very center of the nation’s capital. These attacks are the first missile strikes in Kyiv since June 26, which killed one person. Until now, central Kyiv had remained untouched by the war.
Early reports suggest that many of the attacks around Ukraine were aimed at critical infrastructure, in particular electricity grid facilities.
Zhytomyr Oblast Governor Vitaliy Bunechko reported that the region’s energy infrastructure had been targeted, and that the work of emergency repair services had already begun. Lviv Oblast Governor Maksym Kozytsky also reported that energy infrastructure was damaged in the oblast, with air defense only shooting down a portion of the 15 missiles fired at the region.
In a brief video address to Ukrainians, President Volodymyr Zelensky reported attacks on electricity infrastructure in Kyiv, Khmelnytskyi, Lviv, Dnipropetrovsk, Vinnytsia, Ivano-Frankivsk, Zaporizhzhia, Sumy, Kharkiv, Zhytormyr, Kirovohrad, and other oblasts.
In Odesa Oblast, three Russian missiles and five Iranian-made kamikaze drones were shot down by air defense, according to Odesa Governor Maksym Marchenko.
In Kyiv however, many of the areas hit were central streets and park areas, including just outside the main building of the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, and just underneath the recently-built glass pedestrian bridge near Independence Square (Maidan Nezalezhnosti).
As per the most recent information, eight people have been killed, and 24 wounded in the attacks on central Kyiv, Ukraine’s Interior Minister’s adviser Rostyslav Smirnov reported. Six cars caught fire, and more than 15 cars were damaged, Smirnov said. These figures are expected to rise as more information comes in from other areas hit.
Of all Ukrainian cities, Kyiv is understood to be the best protected by air defense systems. Local Telegram channels reported several missiles having been intercepted by air defense, however, more and more successful strikes were being recorded.
For many months since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began to seriously falter, threats were consistently made by Putin, as well as Russian officials and propagandists, about hitting Kyiv with increasing intensity.
In particular, threats were made to conduct strikes against the “centers of decision-making” meaning key government buildings such as the Presidential Administration of Ukraine, Verkhovna Rada, and Security Service of Ukraine. However, the areas hit in central Kyiv were neither military nor administrative targets.
