U.S. President Donald Trump's special envoys, Steve Witkoff and Keith Kellogg, will travel to Istanbul for possible peace talks between Ukraine and Russia, Reuters reported on May 13, citing three undisclosed sources.
A captive named Umit allegedly agreed to serve in the Russian army in exchange for Russian citizenship and a monetary reward of 2 million rubles ($25,000).
Russia's Buryatia Republic declared a state of emergency on May 13 over massive forest fires that have engulfed multiple regions in the Russian Far East.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko's statement came as Strong Shield 5 exercises involving military personnel from other NATO countries began in Lithuania.
"Amendments to the Budget Code are needed to implement the provisions on funding the U.S.-Ukrainian Reconstruction Investment Fund," lawmaker Roksolana Pidlasa said.
During reconnaissance in an unspecified front-line sector, Special Operations Forces' operators detected Buk-M3 and Uragan-1 on combat duty, the unit said.
The suspect quit his job at the Rivne NPP before the full-scale war began. In the spring of 2025, a GRU liaison contacted him and offered cooperation in exchange for money.
President Volodymyr Zelensky would not meet any other Russian official apart from Russian President Vladimir Putin in Istanbul this week, presidential advisor Mykhailo Podolyak said on the Breakfast Show program on May 13.
Then-Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance speaks at a campaign rally at VFW Post 92 in New Kensington, Pennsylvania, U.S. on Aug. 15, 2024. (Photo: Jeff Swensen / Getty Images)
The Trump administration is now focused on brokering a “durable solution” to the Russia–Ukraine war within the next 100 days, Vice President JD Vance said in an interview with Fox News Digital published on April 30.
When asked about the current state of negotiations with Russia and Ukraine, Vance told Fox News "the first and necessary step of getting the Russia-Ukraine conflict solved is to get each of them to make a peace proposal.”
“We've got the peace proposal out there and issued, and we're going to work very hard over the next 100 days to try to bring these guys together,” Vance said, referring to Ukraine and Russia.
The push to broker peace comes after months of diplomacy, despite U.S. President Donald Trump's campaign promise to end the war in one day.
During his presidential run in 2024, Trump repeatedly vowed he would resolve the Russia–Ukraine war “within 24 hours.” After taking office, he revised the timeline to 100 days. That deadline passed this week with no deal in place and heavy fighting continuing along the front lines.
Kyiv accepted a 30-day U.S.-backed ceasefire proposal in March, but Moscow rejected it, demanding a complete end to Western military support for Ukraine. Despite statements supporting de-escalation, Russia has intensified attacks in recent weeks.
A partial ceasefire covering Ukrainian energy infrastructure, arranged during a March call between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, has also seen repeated violations from Russian side. On April 16, Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Russia had violated a partial ceasefire more than 30 times.
Vance said both sides have now submitted formal peace proposals, claiming there is “a very big gulf between what the Russians want and what the Ukrainians want.”
In an interview with Brizilian O Globo, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said it would only join peace talks after recognition of its control over Crimea and four partially occupied Ukrainian regions – Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson. He also named a ban on Ukraine's entry into NATO, the country's demilitarization, and changes to Ukraine's legislation that would restore the position of the Russian language, culture, and religious organizations.
The demands, repeated by the Kremlin last week, shows Moscow is sticking to its maximalist demands — terms unacceptable for the Ukrainian side.
Vance added that while European leaders disagree with Trump’s policy, they reportedly believe American president is the “only person who could have actually forced a peace proposal out of each side,” meaning Moscow and Kyiv.
EU’s Top Diplomat Kaja Kallas previously admitted some governments are quietly considering following the U.S. if it pulls back from supporting Ukraine, but said that the bloc would not recognize Crimea, illegally annexed by Russia in 2014.
"On the European side, we have said this over and over again… Crimea is Ukraine," Kallas said in an interview with the Financial Times. "But we can't speak for America, of course, and what they will do."
On April 23, Axios reported that the peace plan suggested by U.S. President Donald Trump included de jure recognition of Russia's control over Crimea, along with de facto recognition of its occupation of other Ukrainian territories. It also provided for lifting sanctions imposed on Russia since 2014.
In contrast, the European-Ukrainian proposal reportedly insists that territorial questions should only be addressed after a full ceasefire and start from the basis of the line of control.
Anna Fratsyvir is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent, with a background in broadcast journalism and international affairs. Previously, she worked as a TV journalist at Ukraine’s public broadcaster Suspilne, covering global politics and international developments. Anna holds a Bachelor's degree in International Communications from Taras Shevchenko National University and is currently an MA candidate in International Relations at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS).
Chris York
