Key developments on May 1:
- Ukraine destroys 83,000 Russian targets using drones in April, Syrskyi says, up 8% on March
- Trump reportedly shifts tone on Putin after UK, France apply diplomatic pressure
- US to bring Ukraine, Russia together over the next 100 days, Vance says
- Ukrainian army retook 115 positions in April, Syrskyi says
- Zelensky says minerals deal signing first result of talks with Trump in Vatican
Ukrainian drones struck and destroyed more than 83,000 Russian targets in April, an 8% increase from March, Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi reported on May 1.
"In April, units of unmanned systems of the Ukrainian Defense Forces achieved decent results in destroying the enemy," Syrskyi wrote on Facebook. "The damage efficiency increased by another 5%."
Syrskyi said the growing success underscored the need to further expand drone operations.
"Today's high-tech warfare requires constant movement forward, even greater efficiency, and scaling up of efforts in the area of drones," he added.
The Commander-in-Chief also noted that he had held a regular monthly meeting with commanders of drone units to coordinate improvements.
Trump reportedly shifts tone on Putin after UK, France apply diplomatic pressure
U.S. President Donald Trump has toughened his rhetoric toward Russian President Vladimir Putin following months of diplomatic efforts by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron, Politico reported on May 1, citing unnamed European government sources.
The coordinated effort, led by senior British and French officials, sought to persuade Trump to ease pressure on President Volodymyr Zelensky and focus more criticism on Putin, arguing that Moscow's actions were undermining Trump's credibility as a negotiator.
British National Security Advisor Jonathan Powell and Defense Secretary John Healey reportedly played key roles, working closely with U.S. Ambassador to the U.K. Mark Burnett.
British Foreign Secretary David Lammy said he had spoken 13 times this year with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, while Starmer and Trump held "almost" as many direct conversations.
A former British ambassador, speaking anonymously, said London and Paris continually emphasized to Trump that Putin was "disrespecting him by consistently breaking the ceasefire he claimed to be implementing."
US to bring Ukraine, Russia together over the next 100 days, Vance says
The Trump administration is now focused on brokering a “durable solution” to the Russia–Ukraine war within the next 100 days, Vice President JD Vance said in an interview with Fox News Digital published on April 30.
When asked about the current state of negotiations with Russia and Ukraine, Vance told Fox News "the first and necessary step of getting the Russia-Ukraine conflict solved is to get each of them to make a peace proposal.”
“We've got the peace proposal out there and issued, and we're going to work very hard over the next 100 days to try to bring these guys together,” Vance said, referring to Ukraine and Russia.
The push to broker peace comes after months of diplomacy, despite U.S. President Donald Trump's campaign promise to end the war in one day.
During his presidential run in 2024, Trump repeatedly vowed he would resolve the Russia–Ukraine war “within 24 hours.” After taking office, he revised the timeline to 100 days. That deadline passed this week with no deal in place and heavy fighting continuing along the front lines.
Vance said both sides have now submitted formal peace proposals, claiming there is “a very big gulf between what the Russians want and what the Ukrainians want.” He added that while European leaders disagree with Trump’s policy, they reportedly believe American president is the “only person who could have actually forced a peace proposal out of each side,” meaning Moscow and Kyiv.
Andrea Januta
Ukrainian army retook 115 positions in April, Syrskyi says
The Ukrainian army retook 115 positions from Russian forces during April, Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi reported on May 1.
"We use active defense tactics: thanks to these actions, our soldiers regained a total of 115 positions over a month," Syrskyi wrote on Facebook.
The main task of the Ukrainian army now is to deter Russian troops in the "threatened areas," primarily Sumy, Kursk, Pokrovsk, and Novopavlivsk, he added.
Syrskyi highlighted the continued success of artillery, aviation, and UAVs. "In April, DeepStrike (long-range drones) hit 62 targets in Russia, destroying military facilities and undermining the aggressor's (Russian) military-industrial complex," he said.
He also noted that the "18-24" mobilization project is progressing, as is the transfer of soldiers from non-combat units to combat ones, with 30,500 soldiers moving to combat roles using the "Army+" application.
Additionally, criminal offenses within the Ukrainian army have decreased by 43% compared to 2024, he said.
Zelensky says minerals deal signing first result of talks with Trump in Vatican
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on May 1 that the signing of a long-awaited U.S.-Ukraine minerals deal was the first concrete result of his recent meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump in the Vatican, calling it a “historic” outcome of their April 26 conversation.
The 15-minute conversation took place inside St. Peter’s Basilica after the two leaders encountered each other at the late pontiff’s funeral. Zelensky reportedly pressed Trump to return to his original proposal of an unconditional ceasefire as the starting point for peace talks, a move Kyiv has supported but Moscow has rejected.
The discussion marked the first in-person meeting between the two leaders since their tense February encounter in the Oval Office, during which Trump and Vice President JD Vance sharply criticized Zelensky over what they described as “a lack of gratitude for U.S. support.”
Zelensky said the minerals agreement — which sets up a joint investment fund between Kyiv and Washington — had been significantly revised during months of negotiations to ensure equal terms and benefits for both sides.
“It is now a truly equal agreement that opens the door to substantial investment in Ukraine and enables major modernization of production within the country, as well as, just as importantly, an upgrade of our legal practices,” Zelensky said.
Zelensky hailed the agreement as “a partnership on fair terms” and said it could attract further American support. “We expect other results from our (Vatican) talks,” he added.
Note from the author:
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Kate Tsurkan
