Army chief of Ukraine meets NATO commander

Kyiv Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has thanked his country’s foreign partners for their recent support of arms, money and other aid in the war against Russia. His army chief, Valery Zalushny, met with NATO commander Christopher Cavoli to discuss the current situation at the front. Heavy fighting continues there, with the strategically important city of Bakhmut at the heart of the action.

Selenski thanks Macron

In his nightly video address, Zelenskiy said he spoke to French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday about a new arms-aid package for Ukraine. “It is very important that Russia receives stronger and stronger signals that the world will not forgive Russia’s terror,” Zelensky said. Ukraine and its partners must act with the greatest possible unity and integrity “to protect our common values”.

He thanked “all the people in the world who are helping to reinforce the isolation of terrorists and to stop any supply of weapons and their components to terrorists”. By “terrorists” Zelensky means the Russian military.

The Ukrainian leader thanked Denmark for the recent delivery of howitzers, Slovenia for armored vehicles, Spain for tanks and Germany for the planned delivery of more armored vehicles and shells. Ukraine will also receive $1.25 billion from the US to support its state budget.

The Netherlands, in turn, are willing to train Ukrainian soldiers on modern weapons systems, Croatia will take care of the wounded soldiers, while Italy is ready to help with the reconstruction of Ukraine.

Army chief Saluschnyj meets NATO commander Cavoli

Ukrainian army chief Valeriy Zalushny meanwhile consulted with the supreme commander of NATO forces in Europe, Christopher Cavoli. He informed the US general in detail about the situation along the fronts in Ukraine, Salushnyj said on Telegram on Sunday. “I have described possible scenarios, threats and prerequisites for our future actions.” Zalushnyj did not specify the location of the meeting. Experts assume that Ukraine is currently preparing for a spring offensive to recapture occupied territories.

During the meeting, he informed Cavoli about the need to provide Ukraine with a wide range of weapons and air defense systems that “would help to meet the challenges of countering Russian aggression,” Zalushny said.

Just ten days ago, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg visited the Ukrainian capital of Kiev for the first time since the beginning of the Russian war of aggression.

Fighting continues for Bakhmut – Russian border region reports deaths

Heavy fighting for Bakhmut continues in the east of Ukraine attacked by Russia. Russian troops had taken four more parts of the city, a spokesman for the Ministry of Defense said in Moscow on Sunday. Like other information about the events of the war, this could not initially be independently verified. It was only on Saturday that it was said from Kiev that the Russians had so far failed in attempts to cut off Ukrainian supply routes to Bakhmut.

For months, Bachmut has been attacked jointly by the Russian army and the Wagner mercenary group. According to their own statements, the attackers now control around 85 percent of the city area.

Russian artillery hit the city of Nikopol in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast in southern Ukraine on Sunday evening. According to the authorities, one person died and two others were seriously injured. Several buildings were damaged, it said.

In Russia, on the other hand, the Bryansk border region reported four deaths as a result of Ukrainian shelling. A state of emergency has been declared in the affected village of Susemka, Governor Alexander Bogomas wrote on Telegram.

Russian military reports destruction of ammunition depot

According to their own statements, Russian troops destroyed a depot with around 200 tons of ammunition in an attack on the train station in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk. In addition, a large field workshop of the Ukrainian armed forces was destroyed in the Sumy region, Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov told the Interfax agency in Moscow. There was initially no reaction from the Ukrainian side, but in the evening the Ukrainian army command reported the destruction of a Russian ammunition depot without specifying the location. Again, this information could not be independently verified.

This is how the Handelsblatt reports on the Ukraine war:

Pope Francis hints at peace mission

Pope Francis has vaguely indicated that the Vatican is involved in a peace initiative in view of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine. “Everyone wants a way to peace. I’m willing to do whatever it takes. A mission is currently underway, but it is not yet public,” said the head of the Catholic Church on Sunday on the return flight from his trip to Hungary.

He did not give any further details. “When the time comes, I can comment on it,” he said.

That will be important on Monday

Due to possible attacks, the traditional May Day events have been canceled in many places in Russia.

More: Current news on the development of the Ukraine war can be found in our news blog