Friday’s Coverage: UN — How Russia “Terrorized” Cities with North Korean Weapons
Map: Institute for the Study of War
Websites linked to the Kremlin are stepping up a disinformation campaign targeting Ukrainian refugees in Poland, stoking resentment ahead of Sunday’s Presidential election, warn experts of the London-based Institute for Strategic Dialogue.
Poland hosts around a million Ukrainian refugees, mostly women and children.
The runoff is a close contest between the pro-Europe mayor of Warsaw, Rafał Trzaskowski and the right-wing historian Karol Nawrocki, who opposes further assistance to Ukraine.
On Friday, Zelensky spoke by phone with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and met Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan in Kyiv, as Ukraine said it would meet the Russians in Istanbul on June 2.
Turkey brokered the Istanbul talks in March-April 2022, in the first weeks of the invasion. Ukraine and Russia returned to the city on May 16, albeit with the Kremlin rejecting the Kyiv-European proposal for a 30-day unconditional ceasefire.
Since then, Russia has carried out record-setting drone and missile strikes on civilian sites across Ukraine . Moscow continues to pursue maximalist demands for the seizure of around 25% of Ukraine; the rest of the country kept weak, demilitarized, and “neutral”; the lifting of international sanctions on Russia; and the fall of the Zelensky Government.
In his nightly video address to the nation, Zelensky summarized:
It was Russia that started this war. It is Russia that must stop the killings and the destruction of lives….
If Russia continues to speak in the language of ultimatums, if it tries to blackmail the world with the continuation of war, it must receive a strong response — a response from the United States, from Europe, and from everyone around the world who wants peace and who has declared their support for a ceasefire and for diplomacy.
Today, during the visit of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Türkiye to Ukraine we discussed diplomacy, all the real opportunities that exist and those that must be created.
I also had a good meeting with U.S. Senators Graham and Blumenthal. I thank them for their support of… pic.twitter.com/iTjrqVeyYE
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) May 30, 2025
Erdoğan called for a meeting of Zelensky and Putin after negotiations between their delegations: ““A possible cease-fire discussed during the upcoming talks would lay the foundation for a lasting solution….This should happen without much delay.”
Zelensky commented, “We spoke about the first meeting in Istanbul. The POWs exchange was an important achievement of that meeting, but unfortunately, the only one. A ceasefire is necessary in order to move forward toward peace. The killings must stop.”
US Legislators Press Russia Sanctions After Meeting Zelensky
Zelensky also hosted US Senators Lindsey Graham and Richard Blumenthal, the co-sponsors of a bill toughening sanctions on Russia.
Graham said he expects the Senate to proceed with the bill next week after 81 of 100 senators expressed support. Noting that Putin was trying to drag out the peace process, he doubted the Istanbul meeting be more than a “Russian charade”.
Donald Trump has not committed to supporting the sanctions, saying he will “see in a couple of weeks”. Graham said he spoke Trump before the trip to Ukraine, and the reality TV star expects concrete actions now from Moscow.
I had a good meeting with U.S. Senators @LindseyGrahamSC and @SenBlumenthal. I am grateful that you are in Ukraine precisely when coordination of efforts is most needed to bring an honorable and lasting peace closer.
We have the same understanding: Russia is trying to turn… pic.twitter.com/UqiCute2g7
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) May 30, 2025