The publications' latest report covers the period of February 24, 2022 to May 8, 2025. Since it was last updated at the end of April, 2,857 additional Russian military personnel have been confirmed killed.
Hungary cancelled a meeting planned for May 12 with a Ukrainian delegation on the rights of national minorities, Hungary's Deputy Foreign Minister said on May 11, amid a deepening spying scandal between the two countries.
Three were injured in Russia's Kursk Oblast when the town of Rylsk was allegedly struck by a missile attack on May 11, local governor Alexander Khinshtein claimed.
This week, the world watched in anticipation for Russia’s Victory Day parade after President Volodymyr Zelensky commented that he could not guarantee the safety of those attending. Meanwhile, the European Union moves one step forward to banning Russian gas from the European continent. It is also revealed this week that U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has fallen out of step with the White House.
"(Russian) President (Vladimir) Putin... doesn't want to have a ceasefire agreement with Ukraine, but rather wants to meet on Thursday, in Turkey, to negotiate a possible end to the bloodbath. Ukraine should agree to this, immediately," U.S. President Donald Trump said.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will travel to to Antalya, Turkey, for a NATO foreign ministers’ meeting from May 14–16, where he is expected to address the war in Ukraine and push for stronger Allied defense commitments.
The Kremlin said the leaders held a detailed discussion about the Russian initiative and Erdogan expressed full support, reiterating Turkey’s readiness to provide a venue and assist in organizing the negotiations.
Erdogan told Macron that international cooperation is critical for initiating peace negotiations and the "sensitive implementation" of Ukraine’s recovery and reconstruction processes, the Turkish Presidency reported.
Ukraine's IT Army targeted Russian airports last week in a major cyberattack. (Photo illustration by Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Ukrainian hackers paralyzed Russia’s largest airports in a recent attack, Digital Transformation Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said on Oct. 5.
Ukraine’s “IT Army” flooded the Russian airline booking system Leonardo with internet traffic in a massive Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attack on Sept. 28.
Passengers were unable to access booking services and online and airport check-ins, Russian state-owned conglomerate Rostec, which operates Leonardo, told Russian media RBC. The company did not specify where the attack originated from.
Fedorov’s announcement confirmed speculations that Ukraine was behind the incident.
“The IT army is actively working, with Russian websites going down almost every day, data leaking out, and government agencies being paralyzed,” the minister wrote on his Telegram channel.
“If Ukrainian airports cannot operate because of the war, why should Russian ones?”
Rostec announced later in the day that systems had been restored following delayed flights.
The organization oversees a significant chunk of Russia’s defense sector. It said that Leonardo had been targeted dozens of times in recent months in an ongoing “cyberwar” that aims to damage Russia’s IT infrastructure and disrupt important industries.
Ukraine’s defense against Russian aggression is taking place in the cybersphere just as much as on the battlefields.
The IT Army of Ukraine was formed two days after Russia’s full-scale invasion and regularly conducts attacks against the Russian government, military, and financial institutions as well as providing intelligence to Kyiv.
“The IT army is constantly upgrading its skills, expanding, and preparing new 'surprises' for the Russians. The victory will be Ukraine's, including in cyberspace,” Fedorov said.
Dominic is the business reporter for the Kyiv Independent. He has written for a number of publications including the Financial Times, bne IntelliNews, Radio Free Europe/Liberty, Euronews and New Eastern Europe. Previously, Dominic worked with StopFake as a disinformation expert, debunking Russian fake news in Europe.
Dominic Culverwell
