The sanctions appear to be in response to Russia's rejection of a 30-day ceasefire that the U.K., alongside Ukraine, France, Germany, and Poland, demanded during a visit to Kyiv on May 10.
"We now know for sure that the great fire of the Marywilska shopping centre in Warsaw was caused by arson ordered by the Russian special services," Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on X. "Some of the perpetrators have already been detained, all the others are identified and searched for."
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.
Replicas of a North Korean Scud-B missile (L) and South Korea's Hawk missiles (R) are displayed at the Korean War Memorial in Seoul on March 24, 2021. Photo for illustrative purposes (Jung Yeon-je / AFP via Getty Images)
The State Department has approved an urgent $138 million foreign military sales package for Ukraine, enabling essential repairs and the procurement of spare parts necessary for Hawk missile systems.
"Ukraine has an urgent need to increase its capabilities to defend against Russian missile strikes and the aerial capabilities of Russian forces. Maintaining and sustaining the HAWK missile system will enhance Ukraine’s ability to defend its people and protect critical national infrastructure," the State Department said in a release on April 9 announcing the sale.
The HAWK is a medium range, surface-to-air guided missile that provides air defense coverage against low-to-medium-altitude aircraft.
Both the State and Defense Departments have been exploring avenues to maintain support for Ukraine amidst a delay in Congress concerning a $60 billion aid package for the country.
During a Capitol Hill hearing on April 9, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin emphasized the critical importance of support for Ukraine, warning that without it, the United States faces the risk of Ukraine being overtaken by Russia.
"Ukraine matters, and the outcome of the conflict in Ukraine will have global implications for our national security as well," Austin added, according to Associated Press.
Contractors from the Massachusetts-based RTX Corporation, formerly known as Raytheon, and PROJECTXYZ based in Huntsville, Alabama, will undertake the work on the Hawk systems.
Olena Goncharova is the Head of North America desk at The Kyiv Independent, where she has previously worked as a development manager and Canadian correspondent. She first joined the Kyiv Post, Ukraine's oldest English-language newspaper, as a staff writer in January 2012 and became the newspaper’s Canadian correspondent in June 2018. She is based in Edmonton, Alberta. Olena has a master’s degree in publishing and editing from the Institute of Journalism in Taras Shevchenko National University in Kyiv. Olena was a 2016 Alfred Friendly Press Partners fellow who worked for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette for six months. The program is administered by the University of Missouri School of Journalism in Columbia.
Dmytro Basmat
