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.
Tech illustration. (Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Ukraine's military intelligence agency (HUR) carried out a cyberattack on several of Russia's largest Internet providers operating in Russian-occupied Crimea on June 26, a source in the agency confirmed to the Kyiv Independent.
Earlier in the day, Russian state-controlled news agency TASS, citing Russia's proxies, claimed DDoS attacks on a number of providers in the peninsula. Crimean residents have been warned about possible interruptions in Internet access.
The source has not revealed further details on the cyberattack.
HUR has reportedly carried out several cyberattacks in recent months. In early June, it claimed to target the websites of Russian ministries, including the country's Defense Ministry.
Meanwhile, Moscow stands accused of carrying out cyberattacks not just on Ukraine but on countries across Europe.
Berlin temporarily recalled its ambassador from Moscow on May 6 after German authorities said that the hacker group APT 28, linked to Russia's military intelligence agency (GRU), had carried out cyberattacks against Germany's defense and industry sectors and officials of the ruling Social Democratic Party since 2022.
Elsa Court
