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.
A captive named Umit allegedly agreed to serve in the Russian army in exchange for Russian citizenship and a monetary reward of 2 million rubles ($25,000).
Russia's Buryatia Republic declared a state of emergency on May 13 over massive forest fires that have engulfed multiple regions in the Russian Far East.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko's statement came as Strong Shield 5 exercises involving military personnel from other NATO countries began in Lithuania.
"Amendments to the Budget Code are needed to implement the provisions on funding the U.S.-Ukrainian Reconstruction Investment Fund," lawmaker Roksolana Pidlasa said.
During reconnaissance in an unspecified front-line sector, Special Operations Forces' operators detected Buk-M3 and Uragan-1 on combat duty, the unit said.
The suspect quit his job at the Rivne NPP before the full-scale war began. In the spring of 2025, a GRU liaison contacted him and offered cooperation in exchange for money.
President Volodymyr Zelensky would not meet any other Russian official apart from Russian President Vladimir Putin in Istanbul this week, presidential advisor Mykhailo Podolyak said on the Breakfast Show program on May 13.
U.S. and European officials held talks on May 12, during which Washington made it clear that it wanted to allow talks between Russia and Ukraine before increasing pressure on Vladimir Putin, sources told Bloomberg.
Soldiers from 68th brigade of Ukrainian army attend military training in Donbas Region, Ukraine on Jan. 29, 2025. (Piotr Sobik/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Ukraine’s Supreme Court ruled that citizens cannot refuse military service during wartime based on religious beliefs, emphasizing that the obligation to defend the nation applies to all Ukrainians during Russia’s full-scale invasion, the court's press office said on May 1.
The ruling comes from a case involving a member of the Jehovah’s Witnesses, a religious group whose doctrine forbids any form of military service. Lower courts had convicted a man for failing to report to a military recruitment office after receiving a summons. He was sentenced to three years in prison under Article 336 of Ukraine’s Criminal Code for evading conscription during mobilization.
The man’s defense argued that his refusal was grounded in deeply held religious convictions and that criminal prosecution should not apply in such a case. However, the Supreme Court upheld the conviction, citing the state of martial law and the urgent need for national defense.
“Ukraine has introduced alternatives to (mandatory) military service in peacetime, and Ukrainian citizens can freely use them,” the court said in a statement. “However, in wartime, during mobilization and defensive war, the duty to defend Ukraine, which has been aggressively attacked by the Russian Federation, is imposed on all citizens of Ukraine, regardless of their religion.”
The court added that Ukraine's current state of defensive war against a far larger and more heavily resourced Russia constitutes an “exceptional public need,” which justifies limitations on certain freedoms, including religious exemptions from military service.
Citing previous European Court of Human Rights rulings, the Supreme Court acknowledged the importance of balancing freedom of religion with state obligations. It noted that no ECHR decision has addressed a comparable case involving such a large-scale war and national threat.
The ruling comes amid Ukraine’s broader struggle to address personnel shortages on the front lines. On Feb. 11, the government introduced a one-year voluntary service contract for citizens aged 18–24, offering Hr 1 million ($24,000) in one-time aid and monthly payments of up to Hr 120,000 ($3,000). Volunteers also receive housing and travel benefits upon completion of service.
The initiative aims to attract younger recruits without lowering the draft age from 25 to 18, a move urged by the U.S. but resisted by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who argued it could harm Ukraine's long-term future.
Still, the plan has drawn criticism from current service members, who say they receive fewer benefits than new volunteers. “Why are those who enlisted earlier in a worse position?” asked Alina Mykhailova, a Ukrainian paramedic and soldier in a Facebook post in February.
Anna Fratsyvir is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent, with a background in broadcast journalism and international affairs. Previously, she worked as a TV journalist at Ukraine’s public broadcaster Suspilne, covering global politics and international developments. Anna holds a Bachelor's degree in International Communications from Taras Shevchenko National University and is currently an MA candidate in International Relations at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS).
Illia Krotenko
