These are important events on the 1,162nd day of the Russian Ukrainian War.
It’s where things stand on Thursday, May 1st.
Fineting
Russian drones attacked Ukraine’s Black Sea port early on Thursday, causing a fire and damaging housing and infrastructure, the regional governor said. In Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second largest city in the northeast, the mayor said another Russian drone had hit a gas station in the city centre. The Ukrainian SBU security agency has argued for responsibility for drone strikes at Russian defense manufacturing facilities. A strike at the Murom Instrumentation Factory, 300 km (186 miles) east of Moscow, caused a fire and damaged two buildings, the area’s governor reported. Russian air defense units destroyed 34 Ukrainian drones overnight, Russian news outlets reported, citing the country’s Ministry of Defence. Ukraine’s commander-in-chief, Oleksandr Silsky, said that despite Moscow declared a three-day ceasefire from May 8 to 10, Russian forces have significantly increased the intensity of combat operations in eastern Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin said several small groups of Ukrainian soldiers are still drilling holes in the basements and hideouts in the western region of Kursk in Russia. Moscow claims it expelled Ukrainian troops from the border area over the weekend. The Kremlin said at least 288 civilians were killed during Ukraine’s months of invasion of Kursk. A South Korean lawmaker said about 600 North Korean troops were killed fighting for Russia with Ukraine from a total deployment of 15,000 people. A US lawmaker asked the State Department to explain the use of Chinese fighters in the Russian war in Ukraine, saying that Moscow could only hire Chinese mercens with “implicit approval” in Beijing.
Diplomacy
The US and Ukraine have signed a long-standing agreement that will allow Washington to access Kiev minerals in exchange for investments in Ukraine’s defense and reconstruction. US President Donald Trump said Putin wanted to stop Russian war in Ukraine despite recent attacks on the nation. “If it’s not for me, he wants to take over the entire country,” Trump told ABC News. “I tell you, I wasn’t happy when I saw Putin shooting missiles in several towns and cities.” Meanwhile, the Kremlin said Putin is open to peace in Ukraine and that its fierce work is being carried out in the US, but said that the rapid progress that Washington hopes for is difficult to achieve because the conflict is so complicated. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov also said Putin had expressed his desire to meet in person with Ukraine, but Kiev had not yet had an answer. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andri Sibikh responded by saying that if Moscow signed up for an unconditional ceasefire, Ukraine was ready for peace negotiations in all forms. Putin previously welcomed the idea in principle, but said many issues need to be actually resolved before such a ceasefire is agreed. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney spoke with Ukrainian leader Voldimee Zelensky, and highlighted Canada’s commitment to supporting Ukraine in achieving lasting peace and security. The European Union is preparing a “Plan B” on how to maintain economic sanctions against Russia if the Trump administration abandons Ukrainian peace talks and seeks a settlement with Moscow, EU diplomat Kaha Karas told the Financial Times. The EU says 16 member states seeking exemption from the bloc’s public debt regulations could increase defence spending as the continent rescues following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and Trump’s stance on European security.
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