The assault began around 2 a.m. on May 11, with Russian forces deploying 108 Shahed-type attack drones and decoy UAVs from multiple directions, Ukraine’s Air Force said.
"Think of the hundreds of thousands of lives that will be saved as this never ending 'bloodbath' hopefully comes to an end... I will continue to work with both sides to make sure that it happens."
U.S. State Department Spokesperson Tammy Bruce called for "concrete proposals from both sides" in order for Washington to "move forward" in peace negotiations.
"If they speak to each other in Russian, he doesn't know what they are saying," one Western official told NBC News. Michael McFaul, former U.S. ambassador to Russia, called Witkoff's approach "a very bad idea."
Tougher sanctions "should be applied to (Russia's) banking and energy sectors, targeting fossil fuels, oil, and the shadow fleet," the leaders of Ukraine, the U.K., France, Germany, and Poland said in a joint statement.
"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.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and China's leader Xi Jinping at the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in Beijing on Oct. 18, 2023. (Photo by Grigory Sysoyev/Pool/AFP)
The U.S. is considering imposing sanctions on Chinese firms suspected of fueling Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine, CNBC reported on Feb. 19, citing U.S. Congress members.
This comes shortly after the EU proposed to include similar measures in its 13th sanctions package, making it the first time the European bloc considered directly targeting entities in mainland China.
While there is no evidence of Beijing's direct military support to Russia, local companies are suspected of helping Moscow avoid sanctions imposed by Kyiv's partners, supplying Moscow with sanctioned goods.
"China has to understand that the same kinds of sanctions which are beginning to really take hold in Russia and are affecting Russian productivity, economic performance and quality of life, can also be applied to China," Senator Gerald Connolly, member of the U.S. House Committee on Foreign Relations, told CNBC on Feb. 19 at the Munich Security Conference.
"And frankly, China has a lot more to lose than Russia."
The Chinese Foreign Ministry responded to the plans, saying Chinese companies have the right to conduct business with whomever they wish.
According to Connolly, imposing sanctions against China would "really hit home" as the country's "economic performance right now is already weak."
China currently faces economic challenges aggravated by post-COVID-19 recovery and real estate crisis. The International Monetary Fund projected China's economic growth would drop to 4.6% this year, down from its 5.2% growth in 2023 and fall further to 3.4% by 2028.
A U.S. intelligence report declassified in July 2023 said that China has exported dual-use technologies, semiconductors, and other supplies and materials that Russia uses in its war efforts in Ukraine. Beijing said its trade with Russia constitutes usual economic relations.
Martin Fornusek is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. He has previously worked as a news content editor at the media company Newsmatics and is a contributor to Euromaidan Press. He was also volunteering as an editor and translator at the Czech-language version of Ukraïner. Martin studied at Masaryk University in Brno, Czechia, holding a bachelor's degree in security studies and history and a master's degree in conflict and democracy studies.
Thaisa Semenova
