Russia attacked Ukraine with drones and guided bombs during the night, targeting multiple regions after the May 12 deadline for an unconditional ceasefire expired.
"Only member states can take out loans within the 150 billion euros instrument, but they can use these funds for joint procurement with Ukraine," EU Defense Commissioner Andrius Kubilius said.
"We agreed to pursue ambitious measures to reduce Russia's ability to wage war by limiting Kremlin revenues, disrupting the shadow fleet, tightening the Oil Price Cap, and reducing our remaining imports of Russian energy."
Zelensky on May 12 removed Lieutenant General Ivan Havryliuk from the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, the top command and control body for all branches of Ukraine's defense apparatus.
Ukraine remains the most mined country in the world. Nearly one-third of Ukraine's territory, approximately 174,000 square kilometers, had been mined since Russia began its full-scale invasion of the country in February 2022.
The phone call comes as Moscow once again rejected a 30-day ceasefire, with Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova claiming that a ceasefire would give "Kyiv a break to restore its military potential and continue its confrontation with Russia."
Flight MH17 departed from Amsterdam Schiphol Airport en-route to Kuala Lumpur International Airport on July 17, 2014. Three hours into the flight, the Boeing-777 was shot down by Russian proxy forces using a Buk surface-to-air missile above Ukraine’s Donetsk Oblast.
"I am grateful for the support and the readiness at the highest level to promote diplomacy," President Volodymyr Zelensky said of the phone conservation with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. "We share the same view on the need for a ceasefire."
The convictions mark a significant development in Britain's efforts to counter Russian intelligence operations amid heightened tensions stemming from Moscow's war against Ukraine and repeated Kremlin threats toward Kyiv's allies.
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump watches as Republican senator from Florida Marco Rubio speaks during a campaign rally in Raleigh, North Carolina on Nov. 04, 2024. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Both Ukraine and Russia will have to make concessions to end the war, Marco Rubio, U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's pick for secretary of state, said on Jan. 15 at his confirmation hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
Rubio called on everyone to be realistic, suggesting that Russia's concession would be to not advance any further, while Ukraine's concession would be to give its territories currently under Russian occupation.
"It is important for everyone to be realistic: There will have to be concessions — made by the Russian Federation, but also by the Ukrainians… It is also important that there be some balance on both sides," Rubio said.
Since invading Ukraine in 2014 and escalating its war of aggression in 2022, Russia has occupied about 20% of Ukrainian territory, imposing repressive measures on the local population and prohibiting any expressions of Ukrainian identity. Ukraine has repeatedly said it would not recognize its territory currently under Moscow's control as Russian.
Trump, who takes office on Jan. 20, repeatedly pledged during his election campaign to negotiate a swift end to the war after taking office. However, he has never elaborated on how exactly he plans to achieve that.
"There is no way Russia takes all of Ukraine. The Ukrainians are too brave and fight too hard, and the country is too big. That's not gonna happen," Rubio said.
"It is also unrealistic to believe that somehow a nation the size of Ukraine… gonna push these people (Russian troops) all the way back to where they were on the eve of the invasion," he added.
According to Rubio, the U.S. must not allow Russian President Vladimir Putin to return to his plans to take over Ukraine in four or five years.
Rubio publicly praised the bravery of Ukrainian defenders but was among the 15 Republican lawmakers in the Senate who voted against the $61 billion aid package for Ukraine, which was eventually passed in April 2024.
Rubio did not support President Joe Biden's administration's policy regarding assistance to Ukraine, as, according to him, the White House "has never been clear about how this conflict will end."
The 53-year-old Florida Senator will replace Antony Blinken in the position, and as the top U.S. diplomat, he would be at the forefront of potential peace negotiations between Kyiv and Moscow.
Kateryna Hodunova is a News Editor at the Kyiv Independent. She previously worked as a sports journalist in several Ukrainian outlets and was the deputy chief editor at Suspilne Sport. Kateryna covered the 2022 Olympics in Beijing and was included in the Special Mentions list at the AIPS Sport Media Awards. She holds a bachelor's degree in political journalism from Taras Shevchenko University and a master's degree in political science from the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy.
Chris York
