Ukraine-Russia war latest: Putin and Zelensky declare rival ceasefires ahead of Moscow’s Victory Day paradenewsline24

Britain is in talks to join the European Union’s €90bn (£77.7bn) loan to Ukraine to qualify for Kyiv’s defence orders that the loan finances, but will have to cover some interest payments on the borrowing to be eligible, the European Commission said.

“Today marks the first high-level ⁠discussion on the UK’s potential participation in ​the ⁠90 billion euro Ukraine Support Loan, following technical exchanges between the UK Government and the Commission,” a Commission spokesperson told reporters.

The discussions between European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and prime minister Keir Starmer at a European Political Community summit in Armenia, are a further sign of deepening European defence ties under rising US pressure.

The loan, approved by the EU last month, ‌is set to cover two-thirds of Ukraine’s needs ‌for the next two years, with the bulk of that amount earmarked for military spending as Kyiv defends itself against Russia’s four-year war.

Russian drones and missiles have hit Ukraine’s Naftogaz gas production facility in Poltava region, officials said this morning.

The attacks in Poltava and Kharkiv regions killed three employees and two rescue workers, the company’s CEO said.

The major attack on Ukrainian region also killed four people and injured 31, the local governor said.

Russian authorities in Tuapse have announced an official list of bomb shelters for civilians for the first time, mentioning more than 186 shelters residents can turn to in the event of attacks.

The Black Sea port of Tuapse was attacked by Ukraine on Friday for the fourth time in ‌16 days as authorities struggled to cope with a mounting environmental disaster from toxic black smoke clouds and oil leaking into the sea.

The strikes are a part of what president Volodymyr Zelensky says is a Ukrainian ​strategy to disrupt Russia’s huge energy industry and knock key sites out of operation for as long as possible.

Tuapse municipality on Monday published a spreadsheet list on its website notifying locals of 186 shelters, most of them situated in the basement of apartment buildings.

Officials said the shelters have a total capacity of about 38,600 in a town of 61,000, reported The Kyiv Independent.

It added that only one out of the total 186 of the listed shelters is accessible to people with disabilities, according to the spreadsheet.

Residents of Tuapse have been warned to stay inside, keep their windows closed, and drink only bottled water as authorities try to foster a sense of solidarity.

The Tuapse refinery has an annual production capacity of about 12 million metric tons, or 240,000 barrels per day, ​turning out naphtha, diesel, fuel oil and vacuum gasoil.

A Russian overnight drone and missile attack killed four people and wounded 31 in Ukraine’s central region of Poltava, while snapping gas supply to thousands, the local governor said this morning.

Direct hits and falling debris ‌were reported at ‌two sites in the Poltava district, ⁠Vitalii Diakivnych said on his Telegram channel.

An industrial enterprise was damaged, he said, ‌cutting of gas ​supply to ‌nearly ⁠3,500 customers. Railway ⁠infrastructure has also been ‌damaged.

The Russian defence ministry has threatened Ukraine with a major attack if Moscow is attacked amid its Victory Day celebrations this week.

Moscow will mark the 81st anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany in the Second World War on Friday and Saturday, but it threatened to strike back at Kyiv if it tries to disrupt the Victory Day festivities.

The defence ministry said if Ukraine attempts to disrupt Saturday’s celebrations, Russia will carry out a “massive missile strike on the center of Kyiv”.

It warned the civilian population there and employees of foreign diplomatic missions of “the need to leave the city promptly”.

Russian authorities have started blocking the internet and messaging services on cellphones in Moscow as part of its preparations to hold a secure Victory Day parade this week.

“Just got this text from my Moscow mobile operator: ‘During preparations for and the holding of holiday events from 5-9 May temporary restrictions to mobile internet and text messaging are possible in Moscow and Moscow region. This may cause difficulties with cashless payments, use of ATMs and GPS services.’,” said Steve Rosenberg, a journalist and BBC editor for Russia, based in Moscow.

The notice is similar to the last year’s preparations of military parade by the Russian authorities.

Vladimir Putin had declared a unilateral 72-hour ceasefire starting 7 May, 2025, and authorities blocked cellphone internet in Moscow for several days to avert Ukrainian drone attacks.

Last year’s parade on the 80th anniversary drew the most global leaders to Moscow in a decade, including high-profile guests like Chinese president Xi Jinping, Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Slovakia’s prime minister Robert Fico.

Ukraine has credible military and battlefield experience which makes the war-hit nation a strategic asset for Europe and Nato, Finland’s president Alexander Stubb said.

Speaking alongside his Czech counterpart Petr Pavel in Prague yesterday, Stubb called on Europe to shift its focus from “what it can do for Ukraine” to “what Ukraine can do for Europe”.

“We should gradually shift our thinking from ‘how can we help Ukraine’ to ‘how can Ukraine help us,’” Stubb said.

He added that there is “no other army in Europe or in the US that is capable of modern warfare in the way Ukraine is”.

At least two people were reportedly injured after a Russian drone attack on Brovary, a Ukrainian city northeast of Kyiv.

The drone hit residential apartments, damaging windows, the facade of a multi-storey building and a vehicle, said Kyiv regional military administration head Mykola Kalashynk.

“In Brovary, a 34-year-old woman and a 37-year-old man were injured as a result of an enemy drone attack. The woman suffered a hand injury from glass fragments. The man sustained a cut wound to his heel,” he said.

Medics have provided all necessary assistance at the scene, regional officials said.

“This is yet another reminder that the enemy targets peaceful life and our homes. I urge everyone: do not ignore air raid alerts. Stay in safe places while the threat remains,” Kalashnyk said.