"Russia is ready for negotiations without any preconditions," Putin claimed in an address marking the end of the three-day Victory Day ceasefire. He invited Ukraine to begin talks in Istanbul on May 15.
While serving as a bishop in Peru, Robert Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV, called the full-scale war "a true invasion, imperialist in nature, where Russia seeks to conquer territory for reasons of power.”
Speaking to CNN on May 10, Peskov commented on the latest ceasefire proposal from Ukraine and Europe, responding that Russia needs to "think about" it, but is "resistant" to pressure.
Speaking at a press conference in Kyiv on May 10, President Volodymyr Zelensky rebuked the idea of a demilitarized zone in the war and emphasized the importance of first securing a ceasefire.
"We agreed that a full and unconditional ceasefire must begin on Monday, May 12, for at least 30 days. We jointly demand this from Russia, and we know we are supported in this by the United States," Zelensky said.
Ukrainian media outlet ZN.UA reported on May 10 that their law enforcement sources confirmed an ongoing probe by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau into suspected embezzlement, money laundering and bribery.
Iran is preparing to send Russia Fath-360 short-range ballistic missile launchers, Reuters reported on May 9, citing Western security and regional officials familiar with the matter.
"Ukraine and all allies are ready for a complete unconditional ceasefire on land, in the air, and at sea for at least 30 days, starting as early as Monday," Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha wrote.
U.S. President Donald Trump has acknowledged in private that Russia is difficult to negotiate with because they "want the whole thing," referring to Ukraine, the WSJ reported, citing sources familiar with the comments.
A notice about the airspace closure was published on the U.S. Defense Department's NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) website on May 10, as cited by Ukrainian defense news outlet Militarnyi.
The founders of Ukrainian startup Awesomic, Stacy Pavlyshyna (L) and Roman Sevastyanov (C), developed a mobile app that helps businesses to find the best-fit designers for their projects. (Ukrainian Startup Fund)
Ukrainian startup Awesomic has attracted $2 million of investment to grow its service, which matches web designers with online businesses, according to its co-founder Stacy Pavlyshyna.
Awesomic wants to use the money to expand its team to 50 people and attract more designers to its website.
Among the company's investors are Ukrainian Flyer One Ventures, SID Venture Partners, and U.S.-based Y Combinator, one of the world’s best business accelerators for startups. Apart from them, over 30 angel investors participated in this investment round, including big names like James Park, Ragnar Sass and Bas Godska.
Founded only a year ago, Awesomic attracted $50,000 from the Ukrainian Startup Fund and joined Y Combinator, increasing its revenue 12-fold.
"The startup grew like crazy, and proved once again that founders from Ukraine are damn good!" said Elena Mazhuha, the investment director at Flyer One Ventures.
Next year, Awesomic plans to increase its annual revenue to $10 million and attract 300 more designers to its platform. The company currently works with 60 designers. Over 500 businesses from the U.S. and Europe use Awesomic, including the popular mobile app Reface, co-working space Lift99, tech company Ciklum and artificial intelligence startup People.ai.
Users first create a task in Awesomic’s mobile app. The company’s algorithm then analyzes the task and chooses one of the designers with the best-suited skillset for it. “It’s like an Uber for design,” Pavlyshyna said.
Most of the web designers that use Awesomic come from Ukraine. They usually create logos, websites, presentations and animation for businesses. A monthly subscription to the app costs $995 for graphic design and $1495 for product design. Designers’ salaries depend on the amount of work they’ve done in a month.
Designers must update their progress every day. One designer usually works with one business on several projects to better understand its goals and style. If customers are not satisfied with the final result, they can choose a different specialist.
Pavlishina and the second co-founder Roman Sevastyanov have been working together on different startups for four years. Before founding Awesomic, Pavlishina was the head of marketing at e-commerce platform MyBookmark, while Sevastyanov worked as a software engineer and helped U.S. startups with opening research and development centers in Ukraine. It took the duo just 10 days to launch Awesomic.
Daryna Antoniuk is a tech reporter at the Kyiv Independent. She worked in the same role at the Kyiv Post and has focused on Ukrainian startups, investment and the fintech market. Antoniuk previously was a tech reporter for Forbes Ukraine. Her work has also been published at Sifted and The Record. She graduated from Taras Shevchenko National University in Kyiv with BA in journalism and communications.
