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.
"We agreed that a full and unconditional ceasefire must begin on Monday, May 12, for at least 30 days. We jointly demand this from Russia, and we know we are supported in this by the United States," Zelensky said.
Ukrainian media outlet ZN.UA reported on May 10 that their law enforcement sources confirmed an ongoing probe by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau into suspected embezzlement, money laundering and bribery.
Iran is preparing to send Russia Fath-360 short-range ballistic missile launchers, Reuters reported on May 9, citing Western security and regional officials familiar with the matter.
"Ukraine and all allies are ready for a complete unconditional ceasefire on land, in the air, and at sea for at least 30 days, starting as early as Monday," Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha wrote.
U.S. President Donald Trump has acknowledged in private that Russia is difficult to negotiate with because they "want the whole thing," referring to Ukraine, the WSJ reported, citing sources familiar with the comments.
A notice about the airspace closure was published on the U.S. Defense Department's NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) website on May 10, as cited by Ukrainian defense news outlet Militarnyi.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov rejected the idea of a 30-day ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine, claiming in an interview with ABC News on May 10 that it would be "an advantage" for Ukraine.
"Our involvement in the war was justifiable, and this belongs to our sovereign rights," North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un said. "I regard this as part of the sacred mission we must execute for our brothers and comrades-in-arms."
President Volodymyr Zelensky and his Polish counterpart Andrzej Duda commemorate the victims of the Volyn Massacre in the Ukrainian city of Lutsk on July 9, 2023. (President Volodymyr Zelensky/Telegram)
On July 9, President Volodymyr Zelensky and his Polish counterpart Andrzej Duda commemorated the victims of the 1943 Volyn (Volhynia) Massacre during their surprise visit to Lutsk, a regional capital in northwestern Ukraine.
"Together, we honor all the innocent victims of Volyn (Massacre). Memory unites us! Together we are stronger!" Zelensky wrote on Telegram.
The members of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA), the military wing of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists, or OUN, massacred thousands of Poles throughout Volhynia in Nazi-occupied Poland — an area that is now part of western Ukraine — in the spring and summer of 1943.
While most of the victims were Poles, some Ukrainians were also killed by Poles in retaliation. Ukrainian historian Serhii Plokhy, director of the Ukrainian Research Institute at Harvard University, estimates that the number of Ukrainians killed may vary between 15,000 and 30,000, while the estimates for the Polish victims vary between 60,000 and 90,000.
In 2016, Poland's Parliament recognized the killings as genocide, a term that Ukraine denies.
President Volodymyr Zelensky and his Polish counterpart Andrzej Duda during their visit to the Ukrainian city of Lutsk on July 9, 2023. (President Volodymyr Zelensky/Telegram)
Earlier on June 28, Duda also made an unannounced visit to Kyiv to meet with Zelensky.
Daria Shulzhenko is a reporter at the Kyiv Independent. She has been a lifestyle reporter at the Kyiv Post until November 2021. She graduated from Kyiv International University with a bachelor’s in linguistics, specializing in translation from English and German languages. She has previously worked as a freelance writer and researcher.
Alexander Query
