Despite the Kremlin's announcement of a May 8–11 truce, heavy fighting continued in multiple regions throughout the front line.
The Kyiv Independent’s contributor Ignatius Ivlev-Yorke spent a day with a mobile team from the State Emergency Service in Nikopol in the south of Ukraine as they responded to relentless drone, artillery, and mortar strikes from Russian forces just across the Dnipro River. Nikopol is located across from the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in the city of Enerhodar.
Peter Szijjarto's announcement came after Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) allegedly dismantled a Hungarian military intelligence network operating in Zakarpattia Oblast.
Moscow and Washington discuss the potential resumption of Russian gas supplies to Europe, among other issues related to the peaceful settlement of Russia's war in Ukraine, Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov confirmed to the Russian state-run Interfax news agency.
"This is a historic decision, as weapons for Ukraine will be purchased at the expense of the proceeds from frozen Russian assets through the European Peace Fund," Denys Shmyhal said.
Kurt Volker said that now "there is more alignment" between Ukraine and the U.S. under the Trump Administration than at the beginning of 2025.
The approval marks a key step in international efforts to hold Moscow accountable for what is considered the gravest violation of international law committed against Ukraine.
Although Moscow declared on April 28 that it would halt all military actions from May 8 to midnight on May 11 to mark Victory Day, strikes on civilian areas have continued.
US Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman: Difficult to eject Russian forces from Ukraine this year
U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Mark A. Milley said on Jan. 20 at the Ramstein-8 summit that Russia’s full-scale war will likely “end in a negotiation” and not on the battlefield.
“From a military standpoint, I still maintain that for this year it would be very, very difficult to militarily eject the Russian forces from every inch of Russian-occupied Ukraine,” he said, as quoted by CNN.
“What can happen is a continued defense, stabilizing the front. I think it’s possible to do that,” he said. “I do think the Ukrainians will be able to run a significant offensive operation.”
Earlier in the day, U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration announced $2.5 billion in military aid for Ukraine in one of its largest packages yet. The latest package includes 59 Bradley infantry fighting vehicles, 90 Strykers armored vehicles, 53 mine-resistant ambush-protected vehicles (MRAPS), eight Avenger air defense systems, high-speed anti-radiation missiles, and artillery rounds, among other equipment, the Pentagon said.
Also, the U.S. will send to Ukraine additional ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) and National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS).
On Jan. 20, defense ministers from some 50 countries met at the U.S. Ramstein Air Base in Germany to discuss further support for Ukraine. This is the eighth Ramstein summit since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24.
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