These are important events on the 1,174th day of the Russian Ukrainian War.
It’s where things stand on Tuesday, May 13th.
Ceasefire
Moscow has yet to say whether Russian leader Vladimir Putin will meet in person with Ukrainian President Voldimi Zelensky, scheduled for Thursday in Istanbul and proposed by Kiev over the weekend. The leaders have not met since December 2019. US President Donald Trump said he is “considering taking flight” to Istanbul to participate in a potential Putin Zelensky meeting. “I don’t know where I’m going on Thursday – I have a lot of meetings – but I was actually thinking about flying there. If there’s a chance that things could happen, I think that’s possible,” Trump said. “Don’t underestimate Thursday in Turkey,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he made a joint call with Ukrainians and European officials on Monday to discuss the “road for a ceasefire.” If Putin fails to attend the Istanbul meeting or agrees to a “immediate and unconditional ceasefire,” Europe will push the White House for new sanctions in Moscow, Bloomberg reported, citing those familiar with the issue. Germany said it is preparing sanctions against Moscow if talks stall.
Fineting
Ukraine says Russia is “completely ignoring” the 30-day ceasefire held by the US and Europe over the weekend. It was scheduled to start on Monday. “Russian artillery and attacks continue,” Zelensky said in his evening speech. “Moscow has been silent all day long over the proposal for an in-person meeting. A very strange silence.” The Ukrainian forces said there had been 133 clashes with the Russian troops along the frontline until Monday night. The heaviest battles continue in the Eastern Front of Ukraine and in the Donetsk region of the West Kursk region of Russia. The Ukrainian forces said the strength would remain the same as the ceasefire was supposed to begin. Moscow called the 30-day ceasefire an excuse for Europe, “providing a breather for Kiev to restore military potential and continue its conflict with Russia.”