Exclusives

Reagan Republican in the Vatican: Why Pope Leo XIV’s conservatism is a boon for Ukraine. Traditional conservative rather than populist firebrand, the new pontiff revives Cold War clarity on Russian aggression.

Ukraine’s HIMARS are blowing up Russia’s best North Korean rocket launchers. Ukraine reportedly destroyed a KN-09 rocket launcher in Kursk Oblast, striking a blow against Moscow’s foreign weapons pipeline.

Military

Frontline report: Ukrainian BTR-4Es lead surprise night assault on Russian positions near Pokrovsk. What began as a Russian infiltration operation ended in retreat as Ukrainian surveillance detected and decimated the Russian forces with domestically-made BTR-4E armored vehicles.

Ukrainian woman combat medic saves unit from encirclement decimating Russians with grenade launcher. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that Svitlana eliminated a Russian assault team that had infiltrated behind Ukrainian positions on the southern Zaporizhzhia front.

ISW: Kremlin portrays Ukraine surrender terms as reasonable peace offer to manipulate Western opinion. Putin’s insistence on Ukraine accepting the 2022 Istanbul protocols, described as surrender terms for Ukraine, serves to distract from Russia’s failures to make a significant progress on the battlefield over the last two years.

Intelligence and technology

Ukraine finds over 20 components from the US and other countries in Russia’s new cruise missile. A new Russian missile called S8000 “Banderol” contains 10 American microchips, revealing complex international technology networks.

Ukrainians alone know how tomorrow’s war will look like, says EU commissioner at opening of defense forum in Brussels. Ukraine has created a drone “valley of death” that even tanks cannot cross — and this is what the warfare of the future looks like.

International

Guardian: Trump thwarts EU plans when he calls for direct talks with Russia. The Guardian reports that Trump’s intervention on Ukraine-Russia talks postponed British sanctions and disrupted European unity on pressuring Moscow.

“The clock is ticking”: Germany threatens Russia with sanctions over failure to comply with ceasefire. US President Donald Trump is considering flying to Istanbul to participate in the Ukraine-Russia meeting scheduled for Thursday.

“This is a tissue” — Elysee Palace denies Russian fake about Macron’s drugs. Russian propaganda outlets falsely identified a tissue used by President Emmanuel Macron as a “packet of cocaine,” prompting a direct response from the Elysee Palace.

Zelenskyy urges full ceasefire before meeting Putin in Türkiye, while Putin demands no “preconditions”. “I will be waiting for Putin in Türkiye on Thursday. Personally,” Zelenskyy wrote on X.This could mark what would be their first in-person meeting since Russia’s full-scale invasion began in 2022.

Canadanian diplomat’s new tattoo honors partisan women from Ukrainian resistance movement. Natalka Cmoc, Canada’s ambassador to Ukraine and of Ukrainian heritage, has unveiled a photo of her new tattoo: the emblem of the women-led partisan movement Zla Mavka.

Vietnam and Russia agree to build nuclear power plants to expand partnership. Vietnam and Russia agreed to strengthen cooperation across multiple energy sectors, including oil, gas, and nuclear power, according to a joint statement released on 11 May.

Humanitarian and social impact

“You run, they knock you down, and beat you with rebar”: Ukrainian POW’s 3-year hell in Russian captivity. Russia tortured him for 1,000 days. Now he is free, but his life is gone.

BAFTA awards documentary filmed by fallen Ukrainian defenders. Director Jamie Roberts accepted the television BAFTA award for “Ukraine: Enemy in the Forest” with a solemn dedication to two soldiers who captured crucial battlefield scenes before losing their lives in a tank ambush.

Political and legal developments

ICAO acknowledges Russia’s responsibility for shooting down flight MH17. Russia faces potential reparation negotiations following 12 May’s ICAO Council ruling that found Moscow responsible for violating international aviation law in the 2014 downing of flight MH17.

Two Ukrainians accused of involvement in arson attack on shopping centre in Warsaw ordered by Russia. Polish prosecutors have charged two Ukrainian citizens with a coordinated arson attack on a Warsaw shopping centre in May 2024.

Poland exposes several violators of sanctions against Russia and Belarus. Three individuals were arrested for systematically importing banned Belarusian plywood through complex international routing.

Poland withdraws consent to Russian consulate in Krakow following mall arson allegations. Polish Foreign Minister shut down the Russian consulate in Krakow after they allegedly torched a Warsaw shopping center in May 2024.

Read our earlier daily review here.