Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed support for a brief ceasefire in Ukraine during a call, Kremlin advisor Yuri Ushakov said; the temporary halt in fighting could occur around the time of a May 9 Russian holiday commemorating the end of World War II (NYT)
Trump confirmed his support for the idea to reporters (NPR)
Russia normally stages large military parades, but is paring back this year because Ukraine has demonstrated increased cross-border strike capability (WSJ)
Hungary Greenlights Ukraine Aid
The EU gave preliminary approval for a $106 billion loan to Ukraine after Hungary lifted its veto; Hungary’s shift followed outgoing Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s recent election loss and the restoration of fuel deliveries to Hungary through the Druzhba pipeline, which crosses Ukraine and had been damaged in the war (Bloomberg)
Ukraine Pipeline Repair
Repairs are being tested today on the Druzhba pipeline after damage to it sparked a dispute between Ukraine and Hungary; the pipeline was damaged by Russian airstrikes in January, and Hungary subsequently claimed Ukraine was delaying repairs (Bloomberg)
Budapest has signaled it will lift its veto on European Union (EU) aid to Kyiv once the pipeline is repaired (Politico)
Mass Shooting in Kyiv
A mass shooting and hostage incident in Kyiv is being investigated as terrorism, Ukraine’s attorney general said; the shooter opened fire on the street before entering a supermarket and taking hostages (CNN)
At least seven people were killed and more than a dozen others wounded; the shooter e was killed at the scene (Reuters)
Russian Missile and Drone Attacks Across Ukraine Kill at Least Seventeen People
It was one of the largest such attacks this year (Reuters)
The strikes hit sites including an office building and an apartment (NYT)
Russia and Ukraine Trade Ceasefire Violation Accusations
Russia and Ukraine traded accusations of violating their thirty-two-hour Orthodox Easter ceasefire, with each side reporting hundreds of drone and shelling attacks within hours of the truce taking effect on Saturday; Ukraine’s military tallied nearly 7,700 Russian violations over the course of the ceasefire—including over 6,000 drone strikes and more than 1,300 artillery attacks—while Russia reported nearly 2,000 Ukrainian violations overnight (Reuters)
Ukraine Acknowledges Role in Countering Iranian Drones in Middle East
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukrainian military experts helped shoot down Iranian drones over several Middle Eastern countries, marking Kyiv’s first public acknowledgment of such involvement; Ukraine also deployed drone warfare advisors to Persian Gulf states to strengthen regional air defenses during the war (NYT)
Russia Hits Ukrainian Port, Ukraine Strikes Crimea Oil Terminal
A Russian drone attack damaged infrastructure and a civilian vessel at Ukraine’s largest Danube port of Izmail overnight (Reuters)
Meanwhile, Ukrainian forces struck back by hitting the major oil terminal at Feodosia in Russian-occupied Crimea (Reuters)
Russian Attacks Kill Eight and Injure Dozens
A small first-person-view drone targeted a bus in Nikopol’s city center, and another bus was also attacked in a nearby town; the attacks killed eight people and injured more than two dozen more (Reuters)
Separately, according to a Ukrainian intelligence assessment reviewed by Reuters, Russian satellites conducted at least twenty-four surveys of military sites across eleven Middle Eastern countries in late March, with Iranian missile and drone strikes following within days of locations being surveyed; the assessment also found Russian and Iranian hackers collaborating on cyberattacks targeting Gulf infrastructure, while two Western and regional sources said their own intelligence corroborated the satellite activity findings (Reuters)
Army chief Oleksandr Syrskyi announced that Ukrainian forces recaptured 12 settlements and 480 square kilometers of territory across the eastern and southeastern fronts since late January; despite these gains, Syrskyi warned that Russian troops are regrouping and continuing their spring offensive to seize more land and establish a “buffer zone” (Reuters)
Separately, Kyiv’s drone forces commander said that the Ukrainian military struck a drilling rig near Crimea and a Russian warship in the port of Novorossiysk (Reuters)
Zelenskyy in Syria
Ukraine and Syria agreed to cooperate on security and economic issues during Zelenskyy’s trip to Damascus (President of Ukraine)
Turkey’s foreign minister also attended a portion of the talks (Reuters)
It was Zelenskyy’s first visit to Syria since the two countries restored diplomatic ties; Syria’s former Assad regime was a close ally of Russia (Al Jazeera)
Russia’s Battlefield Stagnation
Russia did not make any territorial gains in Ukraine in March, according to the Institute for the Study of War; its researchers said Ukrainian counteroffensives, Russia’s loss of access to Starlink’s satellite internet data, and Russia’s own ban on the use of Telegram in favor of a government-run alternative all limited Russian advances in recent months (Semafor)
Kremlin Presses Zelenskyy for Immediate Donbas Withdrawal
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday that Zelenskyy should have already ordered Ukrainian forces out of the Donbas region, calling the withdrawal necessary to end the “hot phase” of the war; Peskov sidestepped questions about a reported two-month Russian deadline, insisting the timing was secondary to Ukraine making the decision to withdraw (Reuters)
Zelenskyy proposed an Easter ceasefire, which Russia rejected (Guardian)
Separately, Kyiv and Washington agreed to fortify an outline for U.S. postwar security guarantees for Ukraine at virtual talks, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said; NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte also joined the call (Ukraine President)
Ukrainian Drones Strike Russian Port
Ukrainian drones struck the Russian Port of Ust-Luga, likely further complicating Russia’s efforts to export crude oil; it was the fifth strike on the port in the past ten days (Reuters)
Zelenskyy Says Middle East Visits Successful
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that his visits to Middle Eastern countries were successful, noting that “historic” security agreements were reached with Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates; he also said Ukraine was working with Jordan and Kuwait, and that Bahrain and Oman had expressed interest (Reuters)
Zelenskyy Visits United Arab Emirates and Qatar
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made unannounced visits to the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, meeting with top leaders to discuss regional security amid the ongoing war with Iran; Ukraine has signed ten-year security agreements with both Saudi Arabia and Qatar, with a similar deal with the UAE expected to be finalized shortly (AP)
Notably, Ukraine has proposed exchanging its interceptors for air-defense missiles that Gulf countries are utilizing to shoot down Iranian drones (Times of Israel)
Ukraine Using Strikes on Energy Infrastructure to Pressure Russia
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine was using long-range strikes on Russian energy infrastructure to maintain pressure after international oil sanctions on Russia were eased in light of the Iran war; according to calculations conducted by Reuters, nearly forty percent of Russia’s oil export capacity has been halted by Ukrainian drone attacks (Reuters)
Russia Downs 389 Ukrainian Drones
Russia’s Defense Ministry said that its air defenses intercepted 389 Ukrainian drones across 13 regions and Crimea in the largest reported overnight attack since the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine; the scale of the strike highlights Ukraine’s expanding capacity to deploy domestically produced long-range drones against Russian territory (WaPo)
Reuters reported that the Ukrainian strikes, a pipeline attack, and international seizures of tankers have reduced Russia’s oil export capacity by at least 40 percent as of today; Ukraine has targeted Russia’s three main western oil export ports in recent weeks (Reuters)
Russia Fires One of Largest Drone Barrages of Entire Ukraine War
Russia launched a historic daytime assault involving over 550 drones and dozens of missiles, striking hospitals, homes, and a UNESCO site while civilians were at work; President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported multiple fatalities and at least forty injuries as the heavy barrage forced entire cities into emergency shelters (NYT)
Ukrainian Commander-in-Chief General Oleksandr Syrskyi reported that Russian forces have launched over six hundred attacks in the past four days to break defensive lines, signaling the start of a major springtime offensive (AP)
February was the first month since 2023 that Ukraine gained more ground than it lost, according to military analysts(Guardian)
Ukraine, U.S. Conclude Talks
U.S. and Ukrainian delegations concluded talks in Florida; Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reportedly urged allies to maintain sanctions pressure, and in a later evening address, said that there is an indication that future prisoner of war exchanges may take place (Reuters)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also told the BBC that the Iran war could slow the momentum for Ukrainian peace negotiations (BBC)
No Russian delegation participated, and the Kremlin said Thursday there was a “situational pause” in negotiations (NYT)
Hungary, Slovakia Block Ukraine Aid
At a European Council summit, Hungary and Slovakia blocked a more than $100 billion loan for Ukraine (Reuters)
They cited a dispute over a damaged Ukrainian pipeline that normally transports Russian oil to Central Europe—even though Ukraine said this week it would fix the pipeline (FT)
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz called Hungary’s opposition “a gross act of disloyalty” (BBC)
Ukraine Agrees to Reopen Damaged Pipeline
In response to the global energy crunch caused by the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran, Ukraine agreed to reopen the damaged pipeline that brings Russian fuel to Hungary and Slovakia (RFI)
Kenya’s Ukraine War Stance
Russia has agreed to stop recruiting Kenyans to fight in the war in Ukraine, Kenyan Foreign Minister Musalia Mudavadi told reporters today after meeting in Moscow with his Russian counterpart (Vanguard)
Kenya’s intelligence service announced last month that more than one thousand Kenyans were believed to be fighting in the war, and lawmakers suggested the Kenyan recruits were sent to the frontlines with limited training (NPR)
Romania-Ukraine Defense Deal
The countries will jointly produce drones as part of an agreement signed during Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s visit to Bucharest, he announced (Ukraine President)
They also signed another deal on energy cooperation: the governments are working to build two new cross-border power transmission lines, and the leaders discussed the possibility of transporting U.S. liquefied natural gas through Romania to Ukraine, according to Zelenskyy (Ukraine President)
Russian Strikes Kill Four in Sloviansk as Both Sides Claim Battlefield Gains
Russian glide bombs killed four people and wounded sixteen in Sloviansk, while overnight drone strikes on three other Ukrainian cities wounded at least seventeen more (Reuters)
Separately, Ukrainian forces recaptured more than four hundred square kilometers in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast (Kyiv Independent)
Meanwhile, President Vladimir Putin claimed Russia had reduced Ukraine’s share of the Donbas from 25 percent to between 15 and 17 percent, though the claim could not be verified; Putin told U.S. President Donald Trump that his forces were advancing toward a negotiated settlement (AP)