Previously, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk accused the Russian intelligence services of orchestrating a May 2024 arson attack on the Marywilska shopping centre in Warsaw.
Presidential Office chief Andriy Yermak voiced doubt about leading negotiations with anyone from Russia except President Vladimir Putin, implying only the Russian leader can make real decisions.
This includes at least seven people injured in drone attacks overnight on May 12, a date from which Kyiv and its allies put forward a demand for a 30-day unconditional truce, a step that Moscow continues to reject.
"When European unity becomes inconvenient, disinformation goes so far as to make a simple tissue look like drugs," the Elysee Palace reacted to a fake story pushed by Russia.
The comments came after Trump urged Ukraine to agree to direct negotiations with Russia, which has invited Kyiv to peace talks in Istanbul on May 15, without first agreeing to halt military operations.
A Russian drone hit a civilian freight train in Donetsk Oblast on May 12 and injured its driver, Ukrainian Railways said amid Kyiv's calls for a ceasefire.
Moscow and Hanoi agreed to negotiate and sign agreements to construct nuclear power plants in Vietnam, the two countries said in a joint statement on May 11.
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.
U.S. Air Force F-16 fighter jets fly in formation during U.S.-Philippines joint air force exercises dubbed Cope Thunder at Clark Air Base on May 9, 2023, in Mabalacat, Philippines. (Photo credit: Ezra Acayan/Getty Images)
The first set of Ukrainian pilots could complete their initial training on F-16 fighter jets at the end of the year, although it will take longer before they are engaged in combat, the Associated Press reported on Sept. 12, citing General Michael Loh, the director of the U.S. Air National Guard.
The Ukrainian aviators are expected to arrive at Morris Air National Guard Base in Tucson, Arizona, by October to learn to operate the fourth-generation jets that Kyiv plans to deploy on the battlefield against Russia.
The pilots are being evaluated for their language skills, and depending on their proficiency and previous fighter jet experience, could complete their training within three months, Loh said at the Air Force Association convention in National Harbor, Maryland.
"As soon as they're given a go-ahead, they'll be coming over and they'll start their training immediately," Loh commented.
Ukrainian pilots are to begin language courses within a few weeks in San Antonio, Texas, while others should undergo similar training in the U.K.
These courses are intended not only to provide basic language skills but also to familiarize pilots proficient in English with the terminology necessary to fly F-16s.
Following their initial training sessions in the U.S., the pilots will have to take additional NATO training in Europe, Loh said, without specifying how long would this segment take.
Ukraine's former Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov pointed out that it is necessary to train not only pilots but also engineers and technicians to maintain the aircraft.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Sept. 10 that Ukraine's top military brass hopes to use U.S.-made F-16 fighter jets in combat as early as this winter.
However, the outlet noted that its U.S. official sources were more pessimistic regarding the timeline, suggesting the pilots would not be prepared until at least mid-2024.
During the NATO summit in Vilnius in mid-July, Reznikov announced the official formation of the "fighter jet coalition," a group of 11 countries that will assist Kyiv with training its pilots on F-16s and acquiring the aircraft.
On Aug. 22, the first Ukrainian pilots began training on F-16 fighter jets in Denmark. Reznikov said it would take at least six to seven months before Ukrainian pilots and technicians are ready to operate the aircraft.
So far, Denmark, the Netherlands, and Norway have promised to provide dozens of their own F-16s to bolster the Ukrainian Air Force.
The Kyiv Independent news desk
