U.S. and European officials held talks on May 12, during which Washington made it clear that it wanted to allow talks between Russia and Ukraine before increasing pressure on Vladimir Putin, sources told Bloomberg.
According to Steve Witkoff, the key topics in the peace discussions are the fate of the five partially or fully occupied Ukrainian regions, the status of the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, and Ukraine's access to the Dnipro River and the Black Sea.
Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa is reportedly offering a deal that would give U.S. companies access to Syria's natural wealth, reminiscent of the minerals agreement Washington recently signed with Kyiv.
Russia attacked Ukraine with drones and guided bombs during the night, targeting multiple regions after the May 12 deadline for an unconditional ceasefire expired.
"Only member states can take out loans within the 150 billion euros instrument, but they can use these funds for joint procurement with Ukraine," EU Defense Commissioner Andrius Kubilius said.
"We agreed to pursue ambitious measures to reduce Russia's ability to wage war by limiting Kremlin revenues, disrupting the shadow fleet, tightening the Oil Price Cap, and reducing our remaining imports of Russian energy."
Zelensky on May 12 removed Lieutenant General Ivan Havryliuk from the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, the top command and control body for all branches of Ukraine's defense apparatus.
Ukraine remains the most mined country in the world. Nearly one-third of Ukraine's territory, approximately 174,000 square kilometers, had been mined since Russia began its full-scale invasion of the country in February 2022.
The phone call comes as Moscow once again rejected a 30-day ceasefire, with Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova claiming that a ceasefire would give "Kyiv a break to restore its military potential and continue its confrontation with Russia."
Flight MH17 departed from Amsterdam Schiphol Airport en-route to Kuala Lumpur International Airport on July 17, 2014. Three hours into the flight, the Boeing-777 was shot down by Russian proxy forces using a Buk surface-to-air missile above Ukraine’s Donetsk Oblast.
"I am grateful for the support and the readiness at the highest level to promote diplomacy," President Volodymyr Zelensky said of the phone conservation with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. "We share the same view on the need for a ceasefire."
The convictions mark a significant development in Britain's efforts to counter Russian intelligence operations amid heightened tensions stemming from Moscow's war against Ukraine and repeated Kremlin threats toward Kyiv's allies.
National security advisors from the U.S., South Korea and Japan — (from L) Jake Sullivan, Cho Tae Yong, and Takeo Akiba — pose for a photo as they hold a joint press conference in Seoul on Dec. 9, 2023. (Kyodo News via Getty Images)
The national security advisors of Japan, the U.S., and South Korea met in Seoul on Dec. 9 and pledged to mutually combat North Korea's cyber threats, as well as weapons and spy satellite testing, which have been bolstered by the country's increasing cooperation with Russia.
The U.S. confirmed increased weapons and ammunition transfers from North Korea to Russia following a meeting between Russian leader Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in September. Washington said it's "deeply concerned" that North Korea may receive nuclear- or ballistic missile-related technology in exchange.
U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said that South Korea, Japan, and the U.S. planned to increase their trilateral cooperation to create a united front against the spectrum of North Korean hostile actions towards its neighbors in the region and the larger world. In particular, the officials said that North Korea was using cyber activities to fund its nuclear program.
All three national security advisors agreed that North Korea was supplying weapons and ammunition to Russia.
Previously, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Nov. 14 that he feared Russia's military cooperation with North Korea had increasingly become a two-way street in which North Korea provides Russia with military hardware, such as artillery shells, in exchange for military technology to improve North Korea's long-range capabilities.
South Korean intelligence reports claim that North Korea has delivered more than a million shells to Russia. This has prompted some of Ukraine's allies, such as Czech President Petr Pavel, to argue that the cooperation with North Korea is helping Russia gain a battlefield advantage over Ukraine.
The Ukrainian military news site Defense Express wrote on Dec. 9 that Russian troops have been complaining about the condition of North Korean shells, saying that some show evidence of crucial parts being cannibalized, as well as a general emphasis on quantity over quality. As a result, the shells can be less effective or even dangerous due to defects.
There have been other indications of the increasing partnership between the two countries.
A Reuters investigation into North Korea's Rason Special Economic Zone (SEZ) found that increasing economic and military ties between Russia and North Korea are likely behind a revitalization of the economically stagnant SEZ.
Nate Ostiller is a former News Editor at the Kyiv Independent. He works on special projects as a researcher and writer for The Red Line Podcast, covering Eastern Europe and Eurasia, and focused primarily on digital misinformation, memory politics, and ethnic conflict. Nate has a Master’s degree in Russian and Eurasian Studies from the University of Glasgow, and spent two years studying abroad at Kyiv-Mohyla Academy in Ukraine. Originally from the USA, he is currently based in Tbilisi, Georgia.
Katie Marie Davies
