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.
"Ukraine has initiated a coordinated campaign to vilify Hungary in order to undermine our initiative to hold a poll on (Kyiv's) EU membership," Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz warned that further concessions from Ukraine during negotiations would be unreasonable if Russia continues to attack civilian targets.
U.S. President Donald Trump's special envoys, Steve Witkoff and Keith Kellogg, will travel to Istanbul for possible peace talks between Ukraine and Russia, Reuters reported on May 13, citing three undisclosed sources.
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.
Serhii Mul, ex-deputy director at the Work Organization and Control department of Ukraine's State Border Guard Service. (Ukraine's State Border Guard Service)
Ukraine's High Anti-Corruption Court on April 15 acquitted a top official of Ukraine's State Border Guard Service charged with lying in his asset declaration.
The official, Serhiy Mul, was accused of failing to declare a land plot and a house worth Hr 1.5 million ($38,000) in the town of Boryspil in Kyiv Oblast in 2021. Mul is a deputy head of the State Border Guard Service's organization, planning and control department.
No crime was allegedly found in Mul's actions, according to the court'sstatement. The verdict can be appealed within 30 days.
According to the Anti-Corruption Action Center, the hearing on Mul's case was conducted behind closed doors, despite prosecutors' request to consider it publicly.
The defense insisted on a closed hearing as Mul was a serviceman, and information on his current location could allegedly threaten his life.
The system of compulsory asset declarations was originally instituted as part of the country's fight against corruption following the 2013-2014 EuroMaidan Revolution. At the start of the full-scale Russian invasion, the requirement for submitting e-declarations was suspended.
President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a law in October 2023 to resume asset declarations for officials and immediately make them publicly accessible.
Ukraine's National Agency on Corruption Prevention (NACP) re-opened access to the asset declaration system in December 2023.
Dinara Khalilova
