Vladimir Putin

These are the key events on day 1,184 of Russia’s war on Ukraine.

Here is where things stand on Friday, May 23:

Fighting

• Ukrainian drones disrupted air traffic around Moscow, grounding planes at several major airports on Thursday, as 35 drones targeting the city were downed, according to Russia’s Ministry of Defence.
• According to the ministry and Moscow mayor’s office, a total of 46 Ukrainian drones targeted Russia’s capital, while an additional 70 drones were launched against other targets across the country.
• Russia launched 128 drones at Ukraine overnight, according to Ukraine’s air force, with 112 of those drones either shot down, jammed or were lost en route to their targets.

• Russia said that 12 civilians were injured in a “massive” Ukrainian strike on the town of Lgov in Russia’s Kursk region.
• Valerii Zaluzhnyi, the former top commander of Ukraine’s military who was known for clashing with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said it was unlikely Ukraine would be able to return to the borders with Russia it held from 1991 until the Russian invasion of 2014. Even keeping Ukraine’s borders up until Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022 may also not be possible, he said.
• “I hope that there are not people in this room who still hope for some kind of miracle or lucky sign that will bring peace to Ukraine, the borders of 1991 or 2022 and that there will be great happiness afterward,” Zaluzhnyi told a forum in Kyiv.
• Russia said it has received a list of names from Ukraine for a prisoner of war swap. A swap of 1,000 prisoners from each side was agreed to during a meeting last week between Russian and Ukrainian officials in Istanbul aimed at ending the war.

Regional security

• Finland said it is closely monitoring a Russian military build-up along its 1,340km (832-mile) joint border with Russia. Finland closed the border with its neighbour in December 2023 when 1,000 migrants crossed its frontier without visas.

Economy

• Following a meeting in Canada this week, the G7’s finance ministers said they would explore further sanctions on Russia if it fails to reach a ceasefire with Ukraine. They also said they will work to ensure “no countries or entities” that fuelled “Russia’s war machine” will be able to benefit from Ukraine’s reconstruction.
• Moscow is moving to block foreign companies returning to Russia from accessing “buyback” options for assets left there when they pulled out following the 2022 invasion of Ukraine. The bill before Russia’s legislature allows “Russian citizens and companies to refuse to return assets to foreign investors, subject to a number of conditions”.

Russia and Ukraine are expected to each swap 1,000 prisoners of war as part of deal reached at recent talks in Istanbul.

Russia has received a list of names of prisoners of war (POWs) that Ukraine wants freed as part of an expected exchange between the two countries, a Kremlin spokesperson told the Russian news agency Interfax.

Dmitry Peskov told Interfax on Thursday that the list had been received after Moscow gave Kyiv its own list of prisoners it wants released.

The exchange – which will see each side free 1,000 POWs in what would be the largest swap of the war – was agreed to during talks last week in the Turkish capital, Istanbul.

Those discussions marked the first direct peace negotiations between Russian and Ukrainian delegations since 2022, the year the war began.

In advance of the meeting, Ukraine had called for a 30-day ceasefire, but Moscow rejected the proposal, agreeing only to the prisoner swap.

Ukrainian officials have since accused Russia of deliberately delaying peace talks while consolidating territorial gains on the battlefield.

The major prisoner swap is a “quite laborious process” that “requires some time”, said Peskov, adding that “the work is continuing at a quick pace.”

“Everybody is interested in doing it quickly,” the Kremlin spokesperson said.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Thursday that the deal “to release 1,000 of our people from Russian captivity was perhaps the only tangible result of the meeting in Turkiye”.

“We are working to ensure that this result is achieved,” he said in a post on X.

Zelenskyy added that Defence Minister Rustem Umerov is overseeing the exchange process, supported by several Ukrainian government ministries, intelligence agencies and the president’s own office.

“The return of all our people from Russian captivity is one of Ukraine’s key priorities,” Zelenskyy said. “I am grateful to everyone who is contributing to this effort.”

As Ukraine, the European Union, and the United States press Moscow to return to negotiations, Peskov dismissed reports about future peace talks taking place at the Vatican, saying, “There is no concrete agreement about the next meetings.”

US President Donald Trump spoke with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, on Monday and urged an end to the “bloodbath”.

Putin thanked Trump for supporting the resumption of direct talks between Russia and Ukraine, and said his government “will propose and is ready to work with the Ukrainian side on a memorandum on a possible future peace accord”.

Meanwhile, Russia’s defence ministry said on Thursday that its air defences shot down 105 Ukrainian drones overnight, including 35 over the Moscow region.

The ministry said it downed 485 Ukrainian drones over several regions and the Black Sea between late Tuesday and early Thursday.

In southern Ukraine, Kherson Governor Oleksandr Prokudin also said on Thursday that one person was killed in a Russian artillery attack on the region.

He said 35 areas in the Kherson region, including the city of Kherson, came under artillery shelling and air attacks over the past day, wounding 11 people.

Zelenskyy said the “most intense situation” remains in the Donetsk region, however, while Ukrainian forces continue “active operations in the Kursk and Belgorod regions” inside Russia.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has discussed the war in Ukraine with leaders of the United States, Italy, France and Germany, a 10 Downing Street spokesperson has said, in advance of US President Donald Trump’s planned call with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, on Monday.

The flurry of diplomacy comes shortly after inconclusive direct Russia-Ukraine talks in Istanbul, Turkiye on Friday.

The leaders discussed the need for an unconditional ceasefire and for Putin to take peace talks seriously, the spokesperson said late on Sunday, adding that they also raised the use of sanctions if Russia failed to engage seriously in a ceasefire and concerted peace talks.

In remarks to reporters earlier on Sunday, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said he discussed the issue with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio while the two men were attending the inaugural mass of Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican. Merz said he also spoke at length at the Vatican with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

“I spoke with Marco Rubio, including about the call tomorrow. We agreed that we will speak again with the four state leaders and the US president in preparation of this conversation [with Putin],” Merz said.

Trump said he planned to speak to Putin and Zelenskyy to discuss ways to stop the war’s “bloodbath”.

In Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed to Russian news agencies that preparations were under way for a conversation between Putin and Trump.

The talks in the Turkish city of Istanbul on Friday were the first time the sides had held face-to-face talks since March 2022, weeks after Russia’s full-scale invasion of its neighbour.

The brief talks yielded only an agreement to swap 1,000 prisoners of war, according to the heads of both delegations, in what would be their biggest such exchange since the war began.

A senior Ukrainian official familiar with the talks said Russian negotiators demanded Ukraine pull its troops out of all Ukrainian regions claimed by Moscow before they would agree to a ceasefire. That is a red line for Ukraine, and as it stands, Russia does not have full control in those regions.

Meanwhile, Zelenskyy met US Vice President JD Vance and Rubio on the sidelines of the papal inauguration, according to a source in the Ukrainian delegation. It was the first meeting between Zelenskyy and Vance since they publicly clashed during talks at the White House in February over the future of the war in Ukraine.

Ukraine fears ballistic missile attack

In the meantime, Ukraine has claimed Russia is planning to launch an intercontinental ballistic missile late on Sunday to intimidate it and its Western allies.

Ukraine’s military intelligence agency, GUR, said Russia was planning to conduct a “training and combat” launch of the missile.

GUR said in a statement on the Telegram app that the launch was ordered to be implemented from Russia’s Sverdlovsk region, adding that the flight range for the missile was more than 10,000km (6,200 miles).

Ukraine on Sunday also said Russia had launched a record number of drones overnight, targeting various regions, including that of the capital, where a woman was killed.

Its air force said Russia launched “273 Shahed attack drones and various types of imitator drones”, of which 88 were destroyed and 128 went astray, “without negative consequences”.

Deputy Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko said it was a “record” number of drones. “Russia has a clear goal – to continue killing civilians,” she said.

Al Jazeera’s Zein Basravi, reporting from Kyiv, said overnight, “air raid sirens began, and they went on for nearly nine hours”.

“We see these massive drone strikes and we see crowds of people seeking shelter, seeking safety, in those deep underground subway stations in the capital and in other areas of the country, once again,” Basravi said.

‘Deliberate killing of civilians’

The Russian military said it intercepted 25 Ukrainian drones overnight and on Sunday morning. It also claimed it had captured Bahatyr, another village in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk region, as it intensifies the war effort despite the talks.

Russia’s overnight drone attacks were roundly condemned by Ukrainian officials.

Zelenskyy reiterated his call for stronger sanctions on Moscow after a Russian drone killed nine bus passengers in the Sumy region of northeastern Ukraine on Saturday. “This was a deliberate killing of civilians,” he said.

“Pressure must be exerted on Russia to stop the killings. Without tougher sanctions, without stronger pressure, Russia will not seek real diplomacy.”

Russia, which denies targeting civilians, said it struck a military target in Sumy. Its Ministry of Defence claimed another settlement was captured in eastern Ukraine.

Zelenskyy’s top aide, Andriy Yermak, also decried the attacks.

“For Russia, the negotiations in Istanbul are just a pretence. Putin wants war,” Yermak said.

Russia aims to ‘create conditions for lasting peace’

In an interview with Russian state TV, Putin said Moscow’s aim was to “eliminate the causes that triggered this crisis, create the conditions for a lasting peace and guarantee Russia’s security”, without elaborating further.

Russia’s references to the “root causes” of the conflict typically refer to alleged grievances with Kyiv and the West that Moscow has put forward as justification for launching the invasion in February 2022.

They include pledges to “de-Nazify” and demilitarise Ukraine, protect Russian speakers in the country’s east, push back against NATO expansion and stop Ukraine’s westward geopolitical drift.

Ukraine and the West have rejected all of these reasons, saying Russia’s offensive is nothing more than an imperial-style land grab.

Tens of thousands have been killed since Russia started the war, with millions forced to flee their homes.

Putin said the Russian army, which occupies about 20 percent of Ukraine, had the “troops and means required” to achieve its goals.

The US Department of State said in a statement that Rubio and his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, spoke with each other on Saturday. During the call, Rubio welcomed the prisoner exchange agreement reached in Istanbul, the department’s spokesperson said.

Ukraine’s top negotiator, Defence Minister Rustem Umerov, said the “next step” would be a meeting between the two warring presidents.

Russia said it had taken note of the request, but added that the swap of prisoners of war had to be completed first, and both sides then needed to present their visions for a ceasefire before the next round of negotiations could be arranged.

POPE Leo XIV meets Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky yesterday after the pontiff’s inauguration mass.

The bells of St Peter’s Basilica earlier rang out as Chicago-born Leo waved from the popemobile that slowly went round the square

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Guests at the mass also included Prince Edward and US Vice President JD Vance.

Vance paid his respects at the late Pope Francis‘s tomb upon arriving in Rome late on Saturday before heading to the US delegation honouring Chicago-born Leo.

The pope, 69, has publicly criticised Vance, previously sharing an article condemning the Republican’s comments about a hierarchy of who you love in Christianity on a social media account under his name.

Both the United States and Peru get front-row seats at the historic event due to Leo’s dual citizenship as well as strict diplomatic protocol.

Catholic convert Vance – who tangled with Pope Francis over Donald Trump’s mass migrant deportation plans – was joined by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Rubio arrived in Rome ahead of time to try to advance tense Russia-Ukraine peace talks.

Images showed Vance smiling as he shook the hand of President Zelensky – despite the two engaging in the brutal three-way Oval Office shouting match earlier this year.

Moscow last night fired a total of 273 exploding drones and decoys targeting Ukraine’s capital Kyiv, as well as Dnipropetrovsk and Donetsk regions – the biggest Russian drone attack since the start of the war.

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Ukraine and Russia agreed to a 1,000-for-1,000 prisoner swap — the war’s largest — during their first direct peace talks in three years, in Istanbul. Kyiv is now pushing for a Zelensky-Putin summit and a clear ceasefire plan.

There was hope that it would be Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy meeting in Turkiye this week, for the first time since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

That wasn’t to be, after Russia confirmed that Putin would not be travelling to Turkiye. But both countries still sent delegations – agreeing to a prisoner swap – and the meeting in Istanbul on Friday was the first direct talks since shortly after the war began in February 2022.

Some of those talks in 2022 were also hosted by Turkiye, highlighting the central role the country has played in the search for a resolution to one of the world’s most significant geopolitical conflicts.

Turkiye is also poised to expand its influence in Syria, where the US has lifted sanctions on the Turkish-allied government, and has a significant win on the domestic front, after the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) announced this week that it was disbanding, ending a 40-year war against the Turkish state.

A direct meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy on Turkish soil would have capped off a strong week for Turkiye, but analysts say that its central role to the process is a victory nonetheless.

“Turkiye stands to win diplomatically whichever way the talks go,” Ziya Meral of the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) said, even if the analyst ultimately was sceptical of any peace framework emerging from the talks. “It fulfils Ankara’s desire to be a negotiator and key player in regional developments. The fact that Ankara is in a position to engage both with the United States and Russia, as well as Ukraine is indeed a diplomatic success.”

Over the last 15 years or so, Turkiye has established itself as a significant diplomatic player, extending its influence across Africa and playing a pivotal role in the overthrow of long-term Syrian leader, Bashar al-Assad, all while maintaining an intensely delicate balancing act between belligerents in the Russia-Ukraine war.

“There are many reasons why Turkiye is hosting the talks,” Omer Ozkizilcik, a non-resident fellow at The Atlantic Council, told Al Jazeera.

“Turkiye started a peace process independent of the US shortly after the invasion, leading to the Istanbul protocols of 2022. This is also a new model of negotiation, pioneered by Turkiye,” he said, referring to the draft peace agreement brokered between the two states that Russia has since accused Ukraine and the West of walking away from.

“Before, neutral states such as Switzerland with no stake in the conflict would mediate. Now, under a new model, Turkiye is successfully negotiating in conflicts where it does have diplomatic, economic and geopolitical stakes,” Ozkizilcik added, listing a number of disputes where Turkiye had played a mediating role, such as that between Ethiopia and Somalia, where Turkiye was able to negotiate in December a “historic reconciliation” in President Recep Tayyip Erodgan’s words.

Turkiye has its own interests across these countries, including its supply of drones to Ukraine and a significant military presence in Somalia. However, it is still able to present itself as a reliable arbitrator in peace talks involving these countries.

“It’s a new Turkish model that is seeing the country emerge as a regional diplomatic power,” Ozkizilcik said.

Hot and cold relations with Russia

The balancing act Turkiye has followed in negotiating between Russia and Ukraine hasn’t been easy – particularly when Ankara has had to take into account its opposition to Russian expansionism in the Black Sea region and Moscow’s support for parties opposed to Ankara in the Middle East and North Africa.

Turkiye labelled Russia’s invasion of Ukraine a “war” early in the conflict, allowing it to implement the 1936 Montreux Convention – effectively confining Russia’s military vessels to the Black Sea.

Ankara and Moscow have also found themselves on opposing sides in Libya and Syria. In Libya, Turkiye backs the United Nations-recognised government, in contrast to Russia’s support for armed forces in the insurgent east, while in Syria, Turkiye supported the ultimately victorious opposition forces against the Russian-backed al-Assad regime.

Syria was the source of the biggest tension between the two when, in 2015, Turkiye shot down a Russian fighter jet near the Turkiye-Syria border. The incident triggered a severe deterioration in diplomatic and economic ties, but a Turkish statement of regret led to a rapprochement the next year, and relations have remained strong.

Those strong ties have also survived Turkiye’s supply of drones and other military equipment to Ukraine throughout the course of the war.

Russia has seemingly turned a blind eye to that, and maintains “economic, diplomatic and energy relations” with Turkiye, Ozkizilcik said.

The benefits of good relations with Turkiye seem to outweigh Russia’s unhappiness with some aspects of Turkish policy, and Turkiye’s position as a member of NATO that Russia can still deal with is in itself useful.

In 2022, Turkiye was prominent in opposing Western sanctions on Russia; describing them as a “provocation“. And Turkiye has rarely been content to toe the NATO line, for a time opposing Sweden and Finland’s entry into the alliance, and also agreeing on a deal to buy Russia’s S-400 missile system in 2017.

Turkiye’s purchase of the missile system led to US sanctions, exclusion from the F-35 defence programme and accusations in some quarters that Ankara was “turning its back” on the West as part of a pivot towards Russia.

“Both sides have learned to compartmentalise differences,” Ozkizilcik said. He referred to an attack in 2020 that killed more than 33 Turkish soldiers in Syria by regime forces acting in coordination with Russia. “There were talks, both sides met and addressed the issue and they moved on. More recently, when Turkish-backed forces overthrew the Assad regime, Erdogan still called Putin on his birthday and congratulated him.”

Friendship with Ukraine

But Turkiye has been able to strengthen its relationship with the West in the years since, demonstrating its usefulness, particularly when it came to Ukraine.

Turkiye was instrumental in brokering a deal in 2022 to allow Ukraine to export its grain by sea, and has also been firm in its stance that Russian-occupied Crimea – the homeland of the Turkic Muslim Crimean Tatars – be returned to Ukraine.

Steven Horrell, a senior fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis, believes that Ukraine “appreciates Turkiye’s past support to them”, even if it has some qualms about its ties with Russia.

Zelenskyy has repeatedly thanked Erdogan for his role in facilitating talks and in supporting Ukraine. On Thursday, the Ukrainian leader highlighted Turkiye’s support for Ukraine, and even said that his country’s participation in direct talks – despite Putin’s absence – was “out of respect” for Erdogan and US President Donald Trump.

Earlier in the week, Zelenskyy had thanked Erdogan for his support “and readiness to facilitate diplomacy at the highest level”.

I spoke with the President of Türkiye @RTErdogan to discuss key details of the meeting in Türkiye, which could help bring an end to the war. I am grateful for his support and readiness to facilitate diplomacy at the highest level. We share a common view on the need for a… pic.twitter.com/BX1pw28f3x

— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) May 12, 2025

The emphasis on mutual respect and friendship highlights that for Ukraine, Turkiye is not an ally it can afford to lose.

And that gives Turkiye some leeway in its ability to maintain close ties to Russia without any negative backlash from the West, and a chance to fulfil some of its own goals.

“Turkiye would certainly gain some prestige from hosting the talks, even more so if they are successful,” said Horrell. “Turkiye views itself not just as a regional leader, but truly a leader on the global stage. They gain in both of the bilateral relationships with Russia and Ukraine if they help achieve the goals of peace.”

Russia and Ukraine are poised for talks in Turkiye on Thursday, even though the prospects of President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy meeting directly for the first time in three years were dashed by the Kremlin late on Wednesday.

United States President Donald Trump, who had earlier indicated that he might join the negotiations, will also not attend, according to American officials.

Here’s what we know about the talks, what prompted them, who’s expected to attend, and why the negotiations matter:

Why are the talks being held?

On Sunday, Putin proposed the idea of direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine in Turkiye, instead of the rounds of indirect talks that the US and others have tried to mediate between the neighbours at war. Putin referenced direct talks that took place in 2022 while pitching for their resumption.

“It was not Russia that broke off negotiations in 2022. It was Kyiv. Nevertheless, we are proposing that Kyiv resume direct negotiations without any preconditions,” Putin said on Sunday.

In February 2022, Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Shortly after, Russia and Ukraine held talks in the Turkish capital, Istanbul.

According to Zelenskyy, the talks fell apart because Russia demanded that Ukraine concede the Donbas region, which spans Ukraine’s Donetsk and Luhansk regions – parts of which Russia occupied during its invasion. Zelenskyy added that Russia wanted Ukraine to surrender long-range weaponry, make constitutional amendments to declare neutrality and significantly reduce its armed forces. “There were never any negotiations; it was an ultimatum from a murderer,” Zelenskyy said at the time.

While Zelenskyy had earlier held that any peace agreement would require Russia to give up Ukrainian territory it had occupied, in December last year, Zelenskyy said the “hot phase” of the war could end if NATO offered security guarantees for the part of Ukraine currently under Kyiv’s control.

He added that the return of land that Russia has occupied could be diplomatically negotiated later.

“The pressure that the US has exerted to attempt to bring an end to the fighting in Ukraine has evolved over time,” Keir Giles, a senior consulting fellow at the London-based Chatham House think tank, told Al Jazeera. “It appears that the most recent elements in that evolution, particularly in terms of European solidarity with Ukraine, have led Russia to engage in direct talks.”

Putin’s recent push for talks came a day after Ukraine’s four major European allies gave Putin an ultimatum to accept an unconditional 30-day ceasefire or face renewed sanctions. This ultimatum came after leaders of the European countries, France, the United Kingdom, Germany and Poland, visited Kyiv.

They gave Putin a deadline until May 12. On Sunday, May 11, Putin – without committing to a ceasefire – said: “We are committed to serious negotiations with Ukraine. Their purpose is to eliminate the root causes of the conflict, to establish a long-term, lasting peace for the historical perspective.”

Where are they being held?

The talks are being held in the Turkish city of Istanbul, which straddles the boundary between Asia and Europe.

What role did Trump play in this?

The four European leaders – Britain’s Keir Starmer, France’s Emmanuel Macron, Germany’s Friedrich Merz and Poland’s Donald Tusk – said that they had briefed Trump about their ultimatum to Russia over a phone call and suggested that he was on board.

But after Putin called for direct talks between Kyiv and Moscow, Trump issued a statement on his Truth Social platform asking Ukraine to meet with Russia “immediately”.

Trump ran his campaign for the 2024 election on the promise to bring a swift end to the Ukraine war. The Trump administration held multiple meetings, starting February, with Russian and Ukrainian representatives separately in Saudi Arabia in attempts to broker a deal.

Also in April, the Trump administration indicated that it was taking a step back from providing security guarantees to Ukraine. The Trump administration said it wanted Europe to take the lead in supporting Ukraine’s defence instead, noting that the US had other priorities, including border security.

In recent weeks, however, Trump and his team, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, have expressed growing frustration at the lack of meaningful progress in negotiations and have threatened to walk out of efforts to mediate peace.

Explaining his insistence that Ukraine join the May 15 Istanbul talks, Trump argued: “At least they will be able to determine whether or not a deal is possible, and if it is not, European leaders, and the US, will know where everything stands, and can proceed accordingly!”

Who will be there?

“I supported President Trump with the idea of direct talks with Putin. I have openly expressed my readiness to meet. I will be in Turkiye. I hope that the Russians will not evade the meeting,” Zelenskyy wrote in an X post on Monday.

On Tuesday, Zelenskyy announced he will be in Ankara on Thursday, where he will meet Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The talks with Russia, however, are supposed to be held in Istanbul subsequently.

Trump has said he will send Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and Special Envoy for Ukraine and Russia Keith Kellogg to attend the talks in Istanbul.

Russia on Wednesday night announced its team for the meeting. Vladimir Medinsky, a close Putin aide and former culture minister who also led previous rounds of unsuccessful talks with Ukraine in 2022, will lead Moscow’s team. With him will be Deputy Defence Minister Alexander Fomin and the director of the Main Intelligence Directorate, Igor Kostyukov.

Trump’s earlier offer to attend the talks himself had been welcomed by Kyiv. “All of us in Ukraine would appreciate it if President Trump could be there with us at this meeting in Turkiye. This is the right idea. We can change a lot,” Zelenskyy had said.

However, late on Wednesday, US officials clarified that Trump would not be attending.

The US president is currently in the Middle East, where he spent Wednesday in Qatar, after visiting Saudi Arabia a day earlier. On Thursday, Trump will be in the United Arab Emirates before returning to Washington.

What does Putin’s absence mean?

Zelenskyy had earlier said he would be present at the talks only if Putin also attended. “Putin is the one who determines everything in Russia, so he is the one who has to resolve the war. This is his war. Therefore, the negotiations should be with him,” Zelenskyy said in a post on X on Tuesday.

With Putin now no longer poised to attend, it is unclear if Zelenskyy will personally participate in the talks or whether he will leave it to his team to join the negotiations.

Yet, in many ways, Zelenskyy scored over Putin by throwing down the gauntlet and asking him to attend.

“Zelenskyy has presented a challenge to Russia to show that it has genuine interest; it is up to Russia whether it meets this challenge or not,” said Giles.

Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva had also pledged to urge Putin to attend the talks.

What’s on the table?

It is difficult to predict what might specifically be discussed in the Turkiye talks.

“It would be rash to predict whether there will be any meaningful discussion at all, since the acceptable outcomes for both are still far apart,” Giles said. “Russia wants to neutralise Ukraine as an independent sovereign state, while Ukraine wants to survive.”

At the moment, Ukraine has proposed an unconditional 30-day ceasefire, while Russia has insisted that a series of its demands be accepted before it joins such a truce. Moscow said that it wants assurances over the monitoring mechanism for a ceasefire, and that a truce won’t be used by Ukraine to rearm and mobilise more soldiers. Instead, Putin has announced brief, unilateral ceasefires in recent days that Ukraine says Moscow never actually adhered to.

“We do not rule out that, during these negotiations, it will be possible to agree on some new truces, a new ceasefire and a real truce, which would be observed not only by Russia, but also by the Ukrainian side. [It] would be the first step, I repeat, to a long-term sustainable peace, and not a prologue to the continuation of the armed conflict,” Putin said on Sunday.

How significant are these talks?

Giles said that if the talks happen, “they will be a significant step forward”.

He added: “Anything that has been referred to as peace talks [ so far] has not been anything of the sort,” describing the two parallel discussions that the US has had with Russia and Ukraine.

On March 19, the US, Ukraine and Russia announced a 30-day ceasefire on attacks on Russian and Ukrainian energy infrastructure, and on March 25, they agreed on a Black Sea deal, halting the military use of commercial vessels and the use of force in the Black Sea. Both sides, however, traded blame for violating the terms of those agreements, which have now expired.

These are the key events on day 1,172 of Russia’s war on Ukraine.

Here is where things stand on Sunday, May 11:

Fighting:

Politics and diplomacy:

• Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed direct talks with Ukraine in Istanbul, Turkiye, on Thursday “without preconditions” to achieve “lasting peace” and “eliminate the root causes” of the three-year conflict.
• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on Russia to confirm an unconditional 30-day ceasefire beginning on Monday, saying Ukraine would then be ready to meet for direct talks with Russia.
• United States President Donald Trump described the talks offer as a “potentially great day for Russia and Ukraine”.
• On Saturday, Zelenskyy received the backing of Europe’s major powers and Trump for the unconditional 30-day ceasefire beginning on Monday.
• Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told his Russian and French counterparts that a “historic turning point” has been reached in efforts to end the Russia-Ukraine war and Ankara was ready to host talks between the two warring parties, his office said.
• Macron said Putin’s offer to start direct talks with Ukraine is “a first step but not enough”, arguing that an unconditional ceasefire that Kyiv and its allies have called for should happen first. Macron accused Putin of “looking for a way out, but he still wants to buy time”.
• Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov called Putin’s proposal for direct talks with Kyiv a “serious proposal” that is a step towards “lasting peace”.
• Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal said the US and Europe are collectively ramping up pressure on Russia to push through a ceasefire. “I think the American administration is also getting a little bit impatient with these Russian games,” Michal said, accusing Russia of dragging its feet in implementing a truce.

European leaders have given Russia’s president an ultimatum on agreeing to a 30-day Ukraine ceasefire or else face ‘massive’ new sanctions. Vladimir Putin instead proposed direct peace talks in Istanbul, which Zelenskyy has called ‘positive’.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has proposed direct talks with Ukraine in Istanbul on May 15, “without preconditions” to achieve “lasting peace” and “eliminate the root causes” of the three-year conflict.

The offer, delivered early on Sunday, came hours after the leaders of Ukraine, France, Germany, Poland and the United Kingdom called for an unconditional 30-day ceasefire to start on Monday.

The leaders, who were meeting in Kyiv, said their call is backed by United States President Donald Trump and threatened “massive” new sanctions on Moscow if it did not agree with their plan.

Putin did not explicitly address that call in his comments, but slammed European “ultimatums” and “anti-Russian rhetoric” before outlining the counter-proposal for renewed Russia-Ukraine negotiations.

“We are proposing that Kyiv resume direct negotiations without any preconditions,” the Russian president told reporters. “We offer the Kyiv authorities to resume negotiations already on Thursday, in Istanbul.”

Putin said that he would speak to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan later on Sunday about facilitating the talks.

There was no immediate response from Ukraine to the proposal.

But Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has previously said he was ready for peace talks, but only after a ceasefire is in place.

Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which began in February 2022, has left hundreds of thousands of soldiers dead and triggered the gravest confrontation between Russia and the West since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis.

Russian and Ukrainian negotiators held direct talks in Istanbul in the first weeks of the conflict, but failed to agree to halt the fighting.

Putin said Russia was proposing restarting the talks in an attempt to “eliminate the root causes of the conflict” and “to achieve the restoration of a long-term, lasting peace” rather than simply a pause for rearmament.

“We do not exclude that during these talks we will be able to agree on some new ceasefire,” he added.

Putin, whose forces have advanced over the past year, has faced increased public and private pressure from Trump as well as warnings from European powers to end the war.

But he has offered few concessions and has stood firm in his conditions for ending the war.

In June 2024, Putin said Ukraine must officially drop its NATO ambitions and withdraw its troops from the entirety of the territory of four Ukrainian regions claimed by Russia.

Russian officials have also proposed that the US recognise Russia’s control over about one-fifth of Ukraine and demanded that Ukraine remain neutral, though Moscow has said it is not opposed to Kyiv’s ambitions to join the European Union.

Putin specifically mentioned the 2022 draft deal from the talks in Istanbul.

Under that draft, Ukraine should agree to permanent neutrality in return for international security guarantees from the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council: China, France, Russia, the UK and the US.

“It was not Russia that broke off negotiations in 2022. It was Kyiv,” Putin said. “Russia is ready to negotiate without any preconditions.”

He thanked China, Brazil, African and Middle Eastern countries and the US for their efforts to mediate.

Russia, Putin added, had proposed several ceasefires, including a moratorium on striking energy facilities, an Easter ceasefire, and most recently, the 72-hour truce during the celebrations marking 80 years since victory in World War II, but accused Ukraine of repeatedly violating the ceasefires.

He said that during the May ceasefire, Ukraine had attacked Russia with 524 aerial drones, 45 sea drones, a number of Western missiles and that Russia had repelled five attacks on Russian regions.

Ukraine, too, has accused Russia of repeatedly violating its own ceasefire.

Earlier on Saturday, for the first time, the leaders of France, Germany, Poland and the UK travelled together to Ukraine in a visit that Zelenskyy said sent “a very important signal”.

The five leaders, following their meeting in Kyiv, issued a statement calling for a ceasefire “lasting at least 30 days” from Monday, to make room for a diplomatic push to end the war.

“An unconditional ceasefire by definition cannot be subject to any conditions. If Russia calls for such conditions, this can only be considered as an effort to prolong the war and undermine diplomacy,” the statement read.

French President Emmanuel Macron said the US would take the lead in monitoring the proposed ceasefire, with support from European countries, and threatened “massive sanctions … prepared and coordinated between Europeans and Americans” should Russia violate the truce.

Meanwhile, retired Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg, Trump’s special envoy to Ukraine, said Saturday that a “comprehensive” 30-day ceasefire, covering attacks from the air, land, sea and on infrastructure, “will start the process for ending the largest and longest war in Europe since World War II”.

Trump, who says he wants to be remembered as a peacemaker, has repeatedly said he wants to end the “bloodbath” of the Ukraine war, which his administration casts as a proxy war between the US and Russia.

Former US President Joe Biden, Western European leaders and Ukraine cast the invasion as an imperial-style land grab and repeatedly pledged to defeat Russian forces.

Putin casts the war as a watershed moment in Moscow’s relations with the West, which he says humiliated Russia after the Soviet Union fell in 1991 by enlarging NATO and encroaching on what he considers Moscow’s sphere of influence, including Ukraine.

Russia and Ukraine have accused one another of violating a three-day ceasefire as Moscow marked Victory Day by welcoming allies to a grand military parade.

Russia’s President Vladimir Putin marked the 80th anniversary of victory over Nazi Germany on Friday alongside China’s Xi Jinping, in an event clearly intended to bolster support for his three-year offensive against Ukraine, which he had unilaterally paused for 72 hours to mark the occasion.

“Russia has been and will remain an indestructible barrier against Nazism, Russophobia and anti-Semitism,” said Putin, seeking to draw parallels between World War II – or the Great Patriotic War as it is named in Russia and other parts of the former Soviet Union – and the Ukraine war.

Russia maintains that its February 2022 invasion of its neighbour is a battle against a “Nazi” regime in Kyiv. Ukraine has dismissed that claim as “incomprehensible”.

More than 20 foreign dignitaries, including Xi and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, watched the 11,000-strong parade on Red Square.

The show of force was billed by Moscow as proof that the country has not been isolated by the war.

Throughout his quarter-century in power, Putin has tapped into the nation’s trauma over Soviet losses during the Great Patriotic War, which Russia dates as running from 1941-45.

With the two-year period of 1939-41, during which the Soviets maintained a non-aggression pact, with the Nazis sidelined, Victory Day has been elevated to become the country’s most important public holiday and a prime lever used to whip up patriotism.

Putin appeared to seek to transfer that mood to his war in Ukraine.

“The whole country, society and people support the participants of the special military operation,” he said in his address to the parade, which reportedly included 1,500 soldiers who had fought in Ukraine.

Kyiv argued the parade has “nothing to do with the victory over Nazism” and that those marching on Red Square in a “parade of cynicism” were “quite likely” implicit in crimes against Ukrainians.

Political theatrics

Amid the pomp and circumstance, security in Moscow has been tight, with authorities jamming mobile internet connections, citing the threat of Ukrainian attacks.

However, Putin’s unilaterally declared May 8-10 ceasefire teetered on the brink of collapse even as the parade opened on Friday morning, with both Kyiv and Moscow accusing one another of attacks.

Ukraine had dismissed Putin’s three-day pause as political theatrics, designed to avert the impatience of the United States – which has been trying to broker a ceasefire – and refused to commit to it, and had spent Tuesday and Wednesday using drones to target Moscow, shutting down its airports for significant periods.

Authorities in Russia’s western Belgorod border region said a Ukrainian drone attack hit the city council building on Friday, adding that no one was injured.

The Russian Ministry of Defence said Ukrainian troops had made attempts to breach the border in the Kursk and Belgorod regions, and claimed Ukraine had violated the ceasefire 5,026 times.

Ukraine claimed that just hours after the truce entered into effect, Russia had already broken it, with Moscow’s forces launching guided bombs against the northern Sumy region.

Kyiv reported further attacks on Friday in the southern city of Kherson and the central Dnipropetrovsk region, with two people wounded.

‘Concerted approach’

In a symbolic show of support for Kyiv to coincide with Friday’s parade, Ukraine’s Western allies backed a special tribunal to prosecute Putin and other senior Russian officials for the crime of aggression against Ukraine.

Foreign ministers from almost 20 European nations met in Ukraine’s western city of Lviv to sign the “Lviv statement”, a document paving the way for the establishment of the Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine, which could start operating next year.

“We stand for a just and lasting peace, for a secure Europe, and for accountability and justice,” said United Kingdom Foreign Minister David Lammy in a statement.

The same day, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store said a group of 10 northern European nations and the UK had agreed to support a US proposal for an unconditional 30-day ceasefire.

That tallies with Ukraine’s response to Putin’s Victory Day ceasefire, which was to question why it would only run for three days and to call for a full 30-day truce.

The Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) coalition – which comprises Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the UK – met in Oslo on Friday.

Store said the group had contact the night before with US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to discuss the proposal and that a “concerted approach” was now being taken.

Diplomatic reset

Trump, who has presented himself as the main mediator in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, had initially appeared to tilt towards Moscow after entering office in January, offering support to Russia’s demands.

However, as Moscow has dragged its feet on agreeing to a ceasefire, the US president has demonstrated growing impatience with Putin, telling him last month to “stop shooting” and sign a peace deal.

On Thursday, Trump reiterated his call for a “30-day unconditional ceasefire,” saying on his Truth Social network that if the truce was not respected, “the US and its partners will impose further sanctions.”

A minerals deal between Kyiv and Washington, ratified by Ukraine’s parliament unanimously on Wednesday, appears to have helped improve relations.

Trump has approved military shipments to the country once more, while the rhetoric from US officials towards Moscow has shown signs of growing frustration.

Still, in the background, Washington has continued to work on a diplomatic reset with Moscow.

On Friday, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov was quoted by Interfax as saying Russia and the US planned another round of talks aimed at getting their respective diplomatic missions fully operational.

FROM a budding maths genius in the US to an adventurous missionary in Peru – horseriding Pope Leo XIV has now reached the highest summit in the Catholic Church.

History-maker Robert Prevost is the first American Pope, and his incredible life has seen him climb from an altar boy to head of the Vatican.

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Known as Father Bob, Prevost was announced as Pope Leo XIV on Thursday after less than 24 hours of voting in the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican.

The dark horse beat steep odds of 66/1 to become God’s messenger on Earth before being unveiled to crowds of the faithful in Rome.

But his humble beginnings started all the way over in Chicago, Illinois, where he was born on September 14, 1955.

He was born to immigrant parents of French, Italian and Spanish descent.

Prevost’s first religious gig saw him work as an altar boy at St. Mary of the Assumption Church, just outside the far South Side of Chicago.

He completed his secondary studies at St. Augustine Seminary High School in 1973 – where he was consistently on the honor roll and was even given a Letter of Commendation for impressive academic results.

The whizz-kid then earned a degree in mathematics at Villanova University in 1977.

The Pope-to-be then joined the Order of St. Augustine, taking his vows in 1978.

He became a priest in 1982, with pictures showing the newly-ordained Rev. Robert Prevost greeting Pope John Paul II shortly after.

The multi-talented Catholic Church head can speak English, Spanish, Italian, French and Portuguese – and can even read Latin and German.

After being ordained a priest, he joined a mission in Peru in 1985 where he spent many years heading up a seminary.

He returned to the US in 1999, but before that had returned regularly to serve as a pastor and a prior in his home city.

Despite being an American the new pontiff holds Peruvian nationality, and is a beloved figure in the country due to his work with marginalised communities.

Prevost spent 10 years as a local parish pastor and as a teacher at a seminary in Trujillo in northwestern Peru.

During his momentous first speech, Leo spoke fondly of his predecessor Francis.

He said: “We still hear in our ears the weak but always courageous voice of Pope Francis who blessed us.”

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Pope Francis made Prevost the Bishop of Chiclayo in Peru one year after he became Pope.

Prevost was known for his high-profile role as prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops in Latin America – tasked with selecting and supervising bishops.

He was made archbishop in 2023 and within a few months he was promoted to the cardinal by Francis.

The horseriding Pope is seen as more traditional than Francis – but not the conservative hardliner some in the church were hoping for after his predecessor’s efforts to make the faith more progressive.

The new pontiff urged people to “build bridges through dialogue, through encounter, to come together as one people, always in peace”.

He also spoke in Spanish, saying to his South American friends: “I would particularly like to say hello to my compatriots from Peru.

“It was a great pleasure for me to work in Peru.”

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US President Trump was quick to congratulate the Pope Leo XIV and said it’s “a great honour” for the US.

Sir Keir Starmer branded the election of the first American Pope as a “momentous moment” and said that he looks “forward to meeting the Holy Father and continuing to work closely with the Catholic Church”.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy congratulated the new Pope.

He said: “Ukraine deeply values the Holy See’s consistent position in upholding international law, condemning the Russian Federation’s military aggression against Ukraine, and protecting the rights of innocent civilians.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said he hoped the American pontiff would engage in “constructive dialogue” with the Kremlin.

The new Pope, who is active on social media, has repeatedly voiced his concerns over Donald Trump‘s immigration policies and shared his progressive views.

Both Leo and Francis were said to be close and Prevost was considered by Vatican insiders to be a potential kingmaker for the current election.

But few considered the new Leo XIV the likely winner of the secret vote.

The last pope to take the name Leo was Leo XIII, an Italian who led the church from 1878 to 1903.

White smoke erupted from the Vatican at around 5pm on May 8 as a signal that the new pontiff had been chosen.

The Pope greeted the world for the first time on the balcony in the iconic St Peter’s Basilica overlooking St Peter’s Square.

The newly elected pontiff appeared in papal robes – complete with a white silk sash and skullcap and red leather shoes.

The announcement of the new pope was made after clouds of white smoke or fumata bianca emerged from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel as a bell rang.

Crowds of faithful Catholics erupted with joy and were seen cheering in the iconic St. Peter’s Square.

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Ukraine’s Zelenskyy has not committed to abide by the measure, standing by his offer of a 30-day ceasefire.

Ukraine has accused Russia of bombing the Sumy region after the latter’s unilaterally declared three-day ceasefire started.

Ukraine’s air force said on Thursday that Russian aircraft launched guided bombs on the Sumy region of northern Ukraine three times after midnight local time (21:00 GMT), when Vladimir Putin’s May 8-10 ceasefire entered into force.

The Kremlin has claimed the brief ceasefire – coinciding with the 80th anniversary of the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany in World War II – will “test” Kyiv’s readiness for peace but Ukraine has slammed it as a farce.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who has not committed to abide by the truce, insisted on Wednesday that his country stood by its offer to observe a 30-day ceasefire in the war with Russia.

“We are not withdrawing this proposal, which could give diplomacy a chance,” Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address. Russia, he said, had made no response to the 30-day offer except for new strikes.

The United States, which has placed both countries under pressure to make peace, proposed the 30-day ceasefire in March, but Moscow said the measure could only be introduced after mechanisms to enforce and uphold it are put in place, later proposing the three-day truce as a “humanitarian” gesture.

Military parade

Apart from the two launches of guided bombs, there were no reports in Ukraine of any Russian long-range drones or missiles being launched on Ukrainian cities, Ukraine’s air force said early on Thursday.

The Kremlin has said Russian forces will honour Putin’s order for the duration of the holiday, but will respond “immediately” if Ukraine launches any fire.

As part of the anniversary events, Russian President Vladimir Putin is hosting Chinese President Xi Jinping and other leaders in Moscow and will review a military parade on Moscow’s Red Square on May 9.

Hours before Putin’s order was scheduled to enter force, Moscow and Kyiv staged aerial attacks, prompting airport closures in Russia and killing at least two people in Ukraine.

In Wednesday’s video address, Zelenskyy also appeared to acknowledge Ukraine’s targeting of Russian sites as the World War II commemorations approached.

“It is absolutely fair that Russian skies, the skies of the aggressor, are also not calm today, in a mirror-like way,” he said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin celebrates 25 years in power this week, along with a Victory Day parade to celebrate the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany in 1945, which will be attended by leaders from around the world. We chart Putin’s rise to power, how his worldview has changed and what we can expect from him next.

Waves of Ukrainian drones have hit Moscow in recent days as the Russian capital prepares for the country’s most important national holiday, Victory Day, this week.

Russia celebrates May 9 as Victory Day to mark the defeat of Nazi forces in World War II. The day involves a major military parade, with leaders of Russia’s allies often in attendance.

But this year, the run-up to the day has been clouded by a warning from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who has said Kyiv cannot guarantee the safety of the foreign leaders attending the parade in Moscow.

Here is more about Ukraine’s attacks, Victory Day and why it is significant.

What happened in Russia?

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said on Tuesday that Russia’s air defence systems shot down 19 drones flying towards Moscow from different directions. Drones were shot down for the second night in a row and Sobyanin wrote in a post on the Telegram messaging app that there were no reports of injuries or damage, but the city’s airports were closed out of safety concerns.

Russian officials also reported that 17 drones were intercepted over the Bryansk region and five more were intercepted over Kaluga.

Russian President Vladimir Putin last week called for a 72-hour ceasefire to mark the occasion from May 8 to May 10.

Meanwhile, local leaders of multiple Ukrainian cities also reported on Tuesday that Russia carried out drone attacks on civilian targets.

Zelenskyy has rebuffed the proposal. “This is more of a theatrical performance on his part. Because in two or three days, it is impossible to develop a plan for the next steps to end the war,” the Ukrainian president told a small group of journalists on May 2.

Ukraine, instead, wants a 30-day truce, eventually leading to a permanent ceasefire and ending the war that Russia imposed on its smaller neighbour with a full-scale invasion in February 2022.

“The Russians are asking for a ceasefire on May 9 and are themselves firing at Ukraine every day. This is cynicism of the highest order,” Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram on Sunday.

Why is Ukraine striking Russia?

Marina Miron, a postdoctoral researcher at the defence studies department at King’s College London, told Al Jazeera that Ukraine’s drone attacks are not surprising.

“Ukraine doesn’t really have any other plan of action because the situation on the battlefield is not favouring Ukraine,” Miron said, explaining that it is uncertain whether Ukraine will continue to receive support from the United States.

While the US has been Ukraine’s largest ally through this war, President Donald Trump and his allies in Washington have repeatedly called for a rethink on the military aid Washington sends Kyiv. In March, Trump announced a pause on military aid to Ukraine.

Miron added that Europe is unable to support Kyiv “at least to the extent that Ukraine would need to be supported”. Ukraine is also experiencing manpower shortages on the battlefield as its soldiers desert the army.

The drone attacks allow Ukraine to show that it still has the will to fight, Miron said. “In the grand scheme, it’s not going to make any major strategic changes.”

What is Victory Day?

Victory Day is commemorated in Russia and many other former Soviet countries on May 9. The day marks the victory of the Soviet Union over Nazi Germany in World War II, also called the Great Patriotic War in Russia. On the day, a large military parade passes Moscow’s Red Square.

The war formally began in 1939 when Germany, led by Adolf Hitler, invaded Poland, having cut a secret deal with the Soviet Union that the two countries would divide the Soviet Union’s western neighbour. Britain, in a bilateral defence treaty with Poland, declared war against Germany.

However, in 1941, the German army began Operation Barbarossa, its invasion of the Soviet Union.

The Soviet Union faced millions of casualties, losing the highest number of lives in World War II globally. During the war, the number of civilian and military deaths in the Soviet Union reached 24 million, including an estimated 8.7 million military personnel.

But the Soviet Union also led the pushback against Nazi Germany, marching on Berlin in May 1945 to mark the end of the war in Europe. Japan surrendered only in August after the US dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

The US and its European allies celebrate Victory in Europe Day on May 8. In 2023, Zelenskyy signed a law, moving Ukraine’s remembrance of the World War II victory to May 8.

Victory Day is significant for Putin because, ever since the war with Ukraine started, Putin has drawn parallels between the ongoing war and World War II. During his 2022 Victory Day speech, months after the war begun, Putin said Russian troops fighting in Ukraine were “fighting for the motherland, so that no one will forget the lessons of World War II and there will be no place in the world for hangmen, executioners and the Nazis”.

Who is expected to attend the Victory Day parade?

Chinese President Xi Jinping, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, Vietnamese President To Lam, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico are expected to attend the Victory Day parade.

The attendance of these world leaders is also important for Putin as a demonstration of the West’s failure to isolate him despite a barrage of sanctions the US and its allies have imposed on Russia during the war with Ukraine.

What has Ukraine threatened about the day?

“Our position is very simple for all countries travelling to Russia on May 9: We cannot be held responsible for what happens on the territory of the Russian Federation,” Zelenskyy told reporters, Ukrainian news agency Interfax reported on May 3.

“They provide you with security; therefore, we won’t give you any guarantees. Because we don’t know what Russia will do these days,” said Zelenskyy, claiming that Russia could also order provocations such as “arson, bombings and so on, only to blame us”.

On the same day, Russia hit back by warning Ukraine against violence on May 9. Former president and deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev, called on Zelenskyy to stop “verbal provocations” and said, “In the case of a real provocation on Victory Day, no one guarantees that May 10 will come in Kyiv.”

Could Ukraine attack Moscow on May 9?

Despite the presence of leaders like Xi and Lula, that could not be ruled out, experts said.

“As far as May 9th, the V-Day in Russia, is concerned, it’s very possible that Ukrainian military intelligence is going to do something,” researcher Miron said, adding that it is unclear what the scale or location of this action by Ukraine could be. “There is a pattern that things have usually happened around the May celebrations.”

In early May 2023, Russia said its defence system had thwarted a drone attack on the Kremlin citadel near Putin’s residence. “We regard these actions as a planned terrorist act and an attempt on the president’s life, carried out on the eve of Victory Day, the May 9 Parade, at which the presence of foreign guests is also planned,” the Kremlin had said in a statement, declaring it would retaliate.

On May 8, 2023, Kyiv said Russia launched drones at Ukrainian targets, killing four people. It said its air defences downed Iranian-made kamikaze Shahed drones.

What is the state of the war right now?

Trump had declared he would negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine while on the presidential campaign trail. About a month after his inauguration, starting in February, the Trump administration held multiple meetings with Russian and Ukrainian representatives separately to try to broker a deal.

Several meetings and exchanges later, all sides were able to get on the same page, announcing a 30-day ceasefire on attacks on Russian and Ukrainian energy infrastructure on March 19, and a Black Sea deal on March 25, halting the military use of commercial vessels and the use of force in the Black Sea.

However, both sides have since then traded blame for violating the terms of those agreements.

BRITAIN is “secretly” preparing for outright war with Russia, it is claimed.

Government officials are reportedly being ordered to update decades old contingency plans amid fears the nation is not ready for a potential attack from the Kremlin.

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The classified “home defence plan” would lay out how Downing Street will respond if Vladimir Putin declares war on the UK, including putting the Royal Family into bunkers.

Ministers worry Britain could be outfought by Russia on the battlefield, but also poorly defended at home as things stand.

Experts have warned the country’s national infrastructure is vulnerable ahead of the release of Labour’s Strategic Defence Review – an examination of the Armed Forces.

It comes as the former Soviet nation continues to threaten the UK over its support for Ukraine – and ministers last month officially designated it a national security threat for the first time.

The ongoing conflict, which began with a Russian invasion in February 2022, could soon see British troops deployed on the frontlines.

The classified plan by the Cabinet Office’s Resilience Directorate – which was last updated in 2005 – would set out a strategy for the days immediately after a strike on British shores, including from nuclear warheads.

For the first time, it’s understood the document – unlikely to ever be released to the public – will address cyber warfare.

It will also direct PM Sir Keir Starmer on how to run a wartime government, as well as strategies for travel networks, courts and the postal system, reports the Daily Telegraph.

The Cabinet Office ran a risk assessment in January in which it modelled a scenario in which a hostile foreign state launched various types of attack on the UK’s infrastructure.

It found any such successful strike could be devastating.

Meanwhile, defence officials have warned Britain must develop its own version of Israel‘s Iron Dome to protect against missiles.

A senior RAF official said last month if Russia had attacked the UK in the same way as it had Ukraine more than three years ago – within hours missiles would have broken through defences and destroyed key targets.

There is particular concern for the country’s five active nuclear power stations, which if damaged by strikes could release radioactive material across the country, resulting in long-term impact, according to the assessment.

The plan is based on the War Book, a Cold War dossier of instructions for government response to nuclear attacks.

Under such plans, Britain could be divided into 12 zones, each governed by Cabinet ministers, and food rationed.

A Government spokesman said: “The UK has robust plans in place for a range of potential emergencies that have been developed and tested over many years.”

The Sun has approached the Ministry of Defence for comment.

DICTATOR Vladimir Putin has showed off his private chapel and his favourite drink in a bizarre tour of his Kremlin apartment.

The Russian tyrant gave the public a glimpse into his home in an interview marking the 25th anniversary of his first inauguration as president.

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The bizarre footage shows Putin giving his favourite interviewer, Pavel Zarubin, a tour of the apartment while answering his questions.

When asked about his grandchildren from daughters Maria, 39, and Katerina, 37, Putin says they occasionally visit him unexpectedly in his austere apartment. 

He said: “They can, they can.

“But still everyone understands that I have such an around-the-clock schedule, and they try to give advance notice, [and] ask when I’ll have a little window to see them.”

Zarubin follows up and asks if he is a strict grandfather to which the 72-year-old responds: “No, no!”

Putin did not name his grandchildren but it is known his eldest grandson Roman, 12 – born to his daughter Maria – is half-Dutch, by her first husband Jorrit Faassen, the son of a NATO colonel.

The pair then make a stop in the kitchen where Putin is seen getting a bottle of kefir from his German Liebherr fridge, before offering some to Zarubin.

The dictator claimed he copes in the kitchen alone before admitting: “Well, the guys [adjutants] come, they help.

“But now, what for? We’ll pour the kefir ourselves.”

Kefir is a traditional Russian sour milk associated with gut health, immunity, and longevity – suggesting he is trying to show he’s patriotic and staying fit. 

Putin is later asked about unleashing nuclear war against Ukraine or the West – a question often raised by Russian propagandists. 

Zarubin asks: “When [Ukraine and the West] provoke us, provoke us, provoke us – they even started hitting us with NATO missiles.

“And many people had this desire…to strike back.

“Why such cold-bloodedness these three years? Because everything would have ended in nuclear war in that case?”

Mad Vlad replied: “You said it right – they wanted to provoke us.

“They wanted to make us make mistakes.

“Well, and there was no need to use the weapons you’re talking about – and, I hope, there won’t be.

“We have enough strength and means to bring what was started in 2022 [the war against Ukraine] to a logical conclusion with a result that suits Russia.”

The Russian leader also gave a glimpse into his gold-gilded chapel where he claims he fell to his knees to pray after the Nord-Ost siege in 2002.

He said: “Here is [my] little home chapel.”

He continued: “Back then, during the Nord-Ost crisis, I, for the first time in my life, knelt.”

Hundreds of hostages died in the Nord-Ost siege, mainly from gas used by Putin’s pawns, and up to 50 militants were also killed.

Putin also admitted that he often has to restrain himself from a craving to punch people. 

Zarubin asked: “On the outside, you always seem very cold-blooded and reserved — don’t you ever get the urge to, as they say, punch someone?”

Putin replied: “Always….I live with it. But I fight it.”

Finally, Putin revealed that he is always thinking about who to crown as his successor and hinted at a potential leadership contest.

He said: “I always think about that.

“In the end, people can have whatever attitude they want toward this, but ultimately, yes, in the final analysis, the choice belongs to the people – the Russian people, the citizens, the voters.”

He suggested that the outcome could be skewed with “election technologies” and “administrative resources”.

But he said: “The chances of truly achieving something are slim for a person who doesn’t have the trust of the people behind them.

“That’s a fundamental issue.

“So when I think about this – and I think about it all the time – of course I think that a person should emerge, or better yet several people, so the people have a choice.

“Someone who could earn that trust from the citizens of the country.”

Zarubin probed: “But you’re constantly observing and assessing the potential of each person, right?”

And Putin simply replied: “Yes. That’s right.”

The bizarre interview – “Russia, Kremlin, Putin, 25 years” – was intended to reveal new personal details about the notoriously secretive Putin.

The dictator claimed the apartment has been his main base during the war against Ukraine, but it looked far from homely.

Ironically, a large portrait of Russian Emperor Alexander III is sat on a desk when the two open the doors on the left side.

Dubbed “The Peacemaker” the Russian Tsar fought no major wars during his reign – a far cry from Putin’s rule.

But the emperor was also known for tight censorship, empowering the Russian secret police, cracking down on political dissenters, revolutionaries, and nationalist movements, including Ukrainians – all of which may appeal to Putin.

Putin became president on the last day of 1999 and served from 1999 to 2008, before serving as prime minister until 2012.

The former KGB lieutenant colonel then became president for a second time in 2012

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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has accused Vladimir Putin of “playing games” after the Russian leader proposed a three-day unilateral ceasefire to coincide with Moscow’s Victory Day commemorations.

“This is more of a theatrical performance on his part. Because in two or three days, it is impossible to develop a plan for the next steps to end the war,” Zelenskyy told a small group of journalists on Friday, in remarks embargoed until Saturday.

Russia announced a 72-hour halt in hostilities beginning May 8, but has so far rejected an unconditional 30-day ceasefire pushed by Ukraine and the United States, which is trying to broker an end to the three-year war.

Zelenskyy said Ukraine would not be “playing games to create a pleasant atmosphere to allow for Putin’s exit from isolation on May 9” when some foreign leaders are due in Moscow for Russia’s World War II commemorations.

Zelenskyy dismissed the 72-hour truce offer as “unserious”, adding that Kyiv was instead open to a longer-lasting, 30-day ceasefire proposal put forward by the US.

He said Ukraine could not guarantee the safety of any foreign dignitaries who came to Moscow for the traditional May 9 victory parade.

“We cannot be responsible for what happens on the territory of the Russian Federation. They are responsible for your security, and therefore we will not give you any guarantees,” he said in comments released by his presidential administration.

In response, Russia accused Zelenskyy of threatening the security of its World War II commemorations and said nobody could guarantee that Kyiv would survive to see May 10 if Ukraine attacked Moscow during the celebrations on May 9.

“He is threatening the physical safety of veterans who will come to parades and celebrations on the holy day,” Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, said on Telegram. “His statement … is, of course, a direct threat.”

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that Putin’s offer had been “a test of Ukraine’s readiness for peace. And we will, of course, await not ambiguous but definitive statements and, most importantly, actions aimed at de-escalating the conflict over the public holidays”.

Zelenskyy also said he discussed air defence systems and sanctions on Russia with US President Donald Trump last week on the sidelines of Pope Francis’s funeral at the Vatican.

Zelenskyy said he raised the topic of sanctions on Russia with Trump at the impromptu meeting, and that Trump’s response on this question was “very strong”. He did not give specifics.

The Ukrainian leader also said a critical minerals deal signed with the US on Wednesday was mutually beneficial, and that it would allow Ukraine to defend future US investments, as well as its own territory and people.

The accord, heavily promoted by Trump, will give the US preferential access to new Ukrainian minerals deals and unleash US investment in Ukraine’s reconstruction. Ukrainian legislator Yaroslav Zheleznyak confirmed parliament would vote on ratifying the agreement on May 8.

The Ukrainian president also confirmed plans are under way to convene a new round of negotiations with the US, potentially hosted in Ukraine. “It’s a positive sign,” he said, “that such a gathering is under discussion, despite recent personnel changes in Washington.”

However, some voices within the Trump administration remain sceptical, with Vice President JD Vance telling Fox News network on Thursday that the war in Ukraine was “not going to end any time soon”.

“It’s going to be up to them to come to an agreement and stop this brutal, brutal conflict. It’s not going anywhere,” he added.

While diplomatic efforts continue behind the scenes, the situation on the ground remains dire.

A Russian drone attack late on Friday hit 12 locations in Kharkiv – Ukraine’s second-largest city – injuring at least 47 people, according to local authorities. Residential buildings and civilian infrastructure were among the targets, said Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov and regional governor Oleh Syniehubov.

Ukraine’s Air Force reported intercepting 77 of 183 Russian-launched drones and said another 73 may have been electronically jammed. Russia also fired two ballistic missiles.

Meanwhile, Moscow’s Ministry of Defence claimed it downed 170 Ukrainian drones and intercepted several cruise and guided missiles.

Four people were injured in a drone attack on Novorossiysk, a Black Sea port in southern Russia, according to Krasnodar regional governor Veniamin Kondratyev.

These are the key events on day 1,163 of Russia’s war on Ukraine.

Here is where things stand on Friday, May 2:

Fighting

• Russia accused Ukraine of deliberately targeting civilians during a recent drone attack that killed at least seven people and wounded more than 20 on Thursday morning in partially occupied Kherson.
• The drone strike hit a market in the town of Oleshky in Russian-controlled Kherson at approximately 9:30am local time, when many people were outdoors due to the May 1 public holiday, the region’s Moscow-appointed governor said.
• Ukraine’s military said the attack targeted Russian troops, and only military personnel were killed, although the claims by either side have not been independently verified.
• A Russian strike on Ukraine’s Odesa killed two people, and a Russian drone attack in the southeastern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia set a building on fire on Thursday night, injuring 14 people, with no fatalities.
• Ukraine’s SBU Security Service said it has thwarted the attempted murder of Sergiy Sternenko, a prominent activist and video blogger, and also detained a suspect. Sternenko has been heavily involved in anti-Russian activism since 2014.

Diplomacy

• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has described his country’s landmark mineral deal with the US as a “truly equal agreement that creates an opportunity for quite significant investment in Ukraine”.
• The European Union is preparing new sanctions on Russia, according to French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot. This would be the 17th round of sanctions from the 27-member bloc.
• United States Senator Lindsey Graham has become one of the loudest Ukraine supporters in Washington, according to a Wall Street Journal exclusive report. Graham, a close Trump ally, is pushing for new sanctions on Russia and steep tariffs on countries that buy Russian energy and uranium.

• US Vice President JD Vance told Fox News that the war in Ukraine is “not going anywhere” and it’s “not going to end any time soon” during an interview. It’s “going to be up to the Russians and Ukrainians now that each side knows what the other’s terms for peace are”, Vance said.
• The Trump administration has put forward a Russian-speaking career diplomat, Julie Davis, as their choice for the top US envoy to Ukraine. Davis, whose career experience includes the former Soviet Union, will take up the post as charge d’affaires in Kyiv. She will need to be approved by the Senate to become the ambassador.
• Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic says he will follow through with his promise to visit Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow next week, even if it angers his EU neighbours.
• Russia is holding celebrations to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II.