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.
Protesters call on the U.S. government to send military aid to Ukraine at a demonstration in New York City in July, 2023. (Photo by Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images)
The U.S. is sending personnel to Kyiv to evaluate the use of American military aid, the U.S. Defense Department Inspector General's Office said in a reportreleased on Sept. 13.
According to the report, a senior official from the Inspector General's Office is already working with U.S. and Ukrainian team members at the U.S. embassy in Kyiv on evaluation and oversight.
"Additional personnel will be posted shortly to facilitate our programmatic reviews and investigative work," the report said.
The Defense Department Inspector General's Office is an independent agency responsible for providing oversight on Pentagon programs and operations.
An October 2022 inspector general's report obtained by CNN described challenges to the Defense Department's efforts to monitor security assistance and weapons transfers, including the "inability of [Defense Department] personnel to visit areas where equipment provided to Ukraine was being used or stored."
The announcement of the new monitoring team comes as the Biden administration is petitioning the U.S. legislature for $24 billion in additional security and humanitarian assistance for Ukraine.
Some representatives from the conservative U.S. Republican party have called for more oversight on Ukraine spending. Former U.S. President Donald Trump has likewise criticized the administration's support for Ukraine amid Russia's full-scale war.
Trump plans to seek re-election in the 2024 U.S. presidential race.
Abbey Fenbert is a senior news editor at the Kyiv Independent. She is a freelance writer, editor, and playwright with an MFA from Boston University. Abbey served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Ukraine from 2008-2011.
