In a G7 speech, Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Kyiv’s plan to end Russia’s war in Ukraine was “an obvious expression of rationality”, and sought support for his “peace formula”. He thanked western leaders for achieving “a level of cooperation which ensures that democracy, international law, and freedom are respected”, but questioned: “Is this enough?”
Zelenskiy later laid flowers at a cenotaph in Hiroshima honouring those who died after the US dropped an atomic bomb on the city in August 1945. At a later press conference, Zelenskiy said he dreams of rebuilding “all our cities that are in ruins” similar to Hiroshima’s regeneration. “Russia has trampled on everything that is civilised.”
During the press conference, Zelenskiy said Bakhmut was not occupied by Russia ‘as of today’. Earlier there was confusion when Zelenskiy appeared to confirm the loss of the city to Russia, saying “I think no” when asked if it remained in Kyiv’s control. His spokesperson later said that response referred to the question of whether Russia had control. Later, Ukraine’s deputy defence minister claimed Ukrainian forces had partly encircled the besieged eastern city. A senior general added that Ukraine’s forces controlled an “insignificant” part of the Bakhmut, but not enough to enter the devastated city.
The Russian president Vladimir Putin congratulated the Wagner mercenary force and the Russian army for what he called the “liberation” of Bakhmut, which Russia calls by its Soviet-era name of Artyomovsk.
Zelenskiy said he is confident Kyiv will receive F-16 fighter jets from the west but that he was unsure how many. He added that he had secured high-quality weapons from everyone at the G7 summit but dodged questions as to when Ukraine’s counteroffensive would begin.
Joe Biden said he had received a “flat assurance” from Zelenskiy that he would not use western-provided F-16 fighter jets to go into Russian territory.
Biden also announced a new package of military aid of up to $375m for Ukraine, telling Zelenskiy that the US was doing all it could to strengthen Ukraine’s defence. Biden, meeting with the Ukrainian leader on the sidelines of the G7 summit of world leaders in Japan, said the military aid package included ammunition, artillery, armoured vehicles and training.
In a G7 press conference, the US president pledged “our shared and unwavering commitment to stand with the brave people of Ukraine”. He said: “Putin will not break our resolve”.
Russia’s foreign ministry has dismissed the G7 summit in Japan’s Hiroshima as a “politicised” event that it said pumped out anti-Russian and anti-Chinese statements. In a statement posted on Telegram, the Russian foreign ministry said that the G7 had “irreversibly deteriorated”
A Russian-installed official in Ukraine’s southern Zaporizhzhia region said Kyiv had struck the Russian-held port city of Berdyansk with British-supplied Storm Shadow cruise missiles. This claim has not been verified.
German police said they were investigating the possible poisoning of two Russian exiles who attended a conference in Berlin at the end of April, organised by Russian Kremlin critic Mikhail Khodorkovsky.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy said he had invited India to join Ukraine’s peace formula during his talks with the country’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, on the sidelines of the summit. Zelenskiy said on Telegram that they also discussed Ukraine’s needs in de-mining and mobile hospitals during their first face-to-face meeting since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Reuters reported.
Western countries will be running “colossal risks” if they supply Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets, the Tass news agency quoted the Russian deputy foreign minister, Alexander Grushko, as saying on Saturday. Biden has told G7 leaders that Washington supports joint allied training programmes for Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighters, senior US officials said.
Pope Francis has tasked a leading Italian cardinal with a mission in hopes it can “ease tensions” in the Ukraine war and lead to a path of peace, the Vatican said Saturday. In a brief written statement, Vatican spokesperson Matteo Bruni said Francis had entrusted the mission to Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, who is close to the pontiff. The Associated Press reports that Bruni said the timetable and the mechanics of the mission “are currently under study”.
