The measures target almost 200 ships of Russia's "shadow fleet," 30 companies involved in sanctions evasion, 75 sanctions on entities and individuals linked to the Russian military-industrial complex, and more.
The EU plans to significantly increase tariffs on Ukrainian goods after the current duty-free deal lapses on June 6, the Financial Times reported on May 14, citing undisclosed diplomatic sources.
The blockade ended at 10:30 p.m. local time. Truck traffic in both directions is now moving as usual, according to Ukraine's State Border Guard's statement.
Russia seems to be preparing a significant offensive in Ukraine as it is moving troops toward key positions on the front, the Financial Times reported on May 13, citing undisclosed Ukrainian intelligence officials.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said he will meet with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara, but said both leaders are ready to fly to Istanbul if Russian President Vladimir Putin chooses to attend the talks there.
Andriy Yermak, Zelensky's chief of staff, said that the new pontiff had a phone call with Zelensky on Monday, during which the pope expressed willingness to facilitate meetings between global leaders and vowed to support efforts for "a just and lasting peace."
In an interview with French broadcaster TF1 on May 13, Macron discussed new Russia sanctions and stationing French nuclear weapons in other European countries as a deterrent against Russia.
Performing their song "Bird of Pray," Ukrainian band Ziferblat passed the Eurovision semi-finals on May 13, qualifying Ukraine for the grand final on May 17.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed that a Russian delegation will be in Istanbul on May 15 for direct peace talks with Ukraine. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Putin’s foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov will likely represent Russia.
The move follows Ukraine's ratification of the minerals agreement, deepening U.S.-Ukraine economic ties and signaling expanded U.S. involvement in Ukraine's long-term recovery.
Illustrative purposes only: People with flashlights go down the stairs at dusk in front of St Andrew’s Church during power outages on June 7, 2024, in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Vitalii Nosach/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)
Ukraine might face minimal power outages in the next three months if Russia does not carry out new attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure, the advisor to the prime minister on energy issues, Yurii Boiko, said on national television on July 30.
Russia carried out a massive campaign of aerial attacks against Ukraine's energy infrastructure over the spring, similar to the one launched during the fall and winter of 2022-23.
The damage caused a serious energy deficit and necessitated rolling blackouts across the country.
Boiko said that the amount of electricity generated in the system increased due to decreases in weather temperatures and the restoration of some energy-generating facilities.
"We are now more or less in balance in terms of our energy situation," Boiko said. He nevertheless emphasized that to keep the energy supply at the current levels, Ukraine needs to concentrate on protecting the repaired infrastructure from new attacks. For that, Ukraine needs more air defense systems.
Earlier, Volodymyr Kudrytskyi, the head of state grid operator Ukrenergo, commented that after a "very difficult couple of weeks" due to record-breaking heat and power plants being under repair, Ukraine's energy supply situation is improving.
Due to the heatwave in mid-July, the energy consumption in Ukraine hit maximum levels, leading to significant energy shortages in the system and causing necessary scheduled blackouts, sometimes lasting up to 20 hours.
DTEK, Ukraine's largest private energy company, said it had lost nearly 90% of its generating capacity due to the Russian attacks earlier this year. The company said it aims to recover 60-70% of its power generation capacity by October.
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Daria Shulzhenko
