⚡️Putin says he believes war in Ukraine almost over. The Russian leader also said he would be willing to meet President Volodymyr Zelensky in a third country — a shift from his usual invitation to host the Ukrainian president in Moscow.

Prime Minister Péter Magyar inaugural speech: "The psyche of the whole country was poisoned by politics that was artificially inciting hatred. The Hungarian state is not allowed to do anything like this ever again... This era is, once and for all, finished."

Beelden van bovengenoemde aanvallen:

Finland’s president, Alexander Stubb, now says “the tide has turned” and “we need Ukraine more than #Ukraine needs us.” Zelensky is no longer pleading for help on behalf of his people. Kyiv now offers the world weapons that work. Hot off the press 👇 nypost.com/2026/05/09/o...

Or not

Rusland heeft sinds het begin van de grootschalige invasie meer dan 3.000 aanvallen uitgevoerd op Oekraïense ziekenhuizen en andere onderdelen van de gezondheidszorg, blijkt uit cijfers van de Wereldgezondheidsorganisatie. 🧵1/4

🇫🇮🇺🇦 The Ukrainian army is one of the four armies in the world that are "trustworthy". At the same time, Ukraine, including in its own interests, should be integrated into NATO as soon as possible, — Minister of Foreign Affairs of Finland

ik mocht op 5 mei op Vlieland de vrijheidslezing verzorgen, getiteld Bevrijdingsdag in de Schaduw van Munchen. In mooi kerkje. Ernaast de begraafplaats van 48 gevallenen. Eervol om te mogen doen! Voor de liefhebber, bijgevoegd de link met de tekst. www.vlieland.nl/vrijheidslez...

Lord, Trump is literally re writing US history to adopt Putin’s narrative. The war ended for the USA many months later.

France, Germany, and the EU all said no to Moscow's pre-9 May call to evacuate their Kyiv embassies Paris confirmed its embassy will keep working "as usual"; called Russian threats against "decision-making centers" unacceptable and contrary to international law. euromaidanpress.com/2026/05/08/f...

Everyone likes to talk about how the Trump administration is a such an outlier but to be fair they are just like recent prior administrations in vastly exaggerating the efficacy of economic pressure as an instrument of statecraft. www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...

Europarlement dringt aan: Europese defensieunie nu nodig

'The European Union is set to maintain its position and presence in the Ukrainian capital despite Russia's public threats of attack on Kyiv. The EU will not evacuate diplomats from Kyiv despite threats from Moscow, a spokesman said.' www.pravda.com.ua/eng/news/202...

👀 "Trump surprised Gulf allies by announcing Project Freedom. In response, the Kingdom informed the U.S. it would not allow the U.S. military to fly aircraft from Prince Sultan Airbase southeast of Riyadh or fly through Saudi airspace to support the effort." www.nbcnews.com/politics/whi...

📣 Nieuwe @nrc.nl column, over “geestelijke weerbaarheid”! Het is een bewerking van de tekst die ik uitsprak bij de herdenking van 4 mei in de Tweede Kamer, op uitnodiging van de Kamervoorzitters: www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2026/...

In @nytopinion.nytimes.com “Heading into the 2026 midterm elections, you can’t say that the president hasn’t warned us, over and over, that he will do all he can to prevent the congressional contests from turning into a humiliating Republican rout,” Thomas Edsall writes.

President Stubb: We in Europe have to get out of the mindset that it's only us helping Ukraine. We have to ask ourselves the question: how can Ukraine help us? That's why I have, from the beginning, been a strong advocate of Ukraine's EU membership and of Ukraine's NATO membership.

🇺🇸🇮🇷Reuters: U.S. intelligence says recent fighting has not significantly slowed Iran’s nuclear program. Officials still estimate Iran would need about 9–12 months to build a nuclear weapon if it chose to do so. Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium remains largely intact and unaccounted for.

Western militaries are pouring money into drones. Ukraine is already complicating the idea that they’re a scalable answer.

Iemand met haast maakt fouten

They all end up in a bunker, don't they? "Vladimir Putin hunkers down for fear of assassination" - giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/... via @FT

👀❗️ European intelligence reports on the risk of a coup in Russia with the participation of Shoigu, — CNN. Since the beginning of March, the Kremlin and Putin have been extremely concerned about leaks of sensitive information and the threat of conspiracy.

After the elimination of Lieutenant General Fanil Sarvarov in December 2025, the “security forces” began to massively accuse each other of security failures. Currently, the Kremlin has increased security not only for Gerasimov, but also for ten other key generals.

🇪🇺❗️European countries are preparing for a possible attack by Russia in the next two years, — Politico. Putin will invade countries near the Baltic Sea and islands in the Arctic — he has already militarized a shadow fleet. The dictator wants to sow discord in NATO over Article 5…

European officials have warned that the war in Ukraine is draining the Russian Federation’s resources, so they are looking for a way out. And this way out is not peace talks, but an expansion of the war. The start of new wars could give Russia a trump card up its sleeve.

🇺🇸 Meanwhile, the US is leaving Europe without long-range missiles, making it defenseless against the Russian Federation, - FT. The Americans will withdraw their weapons faster than European countries can develop alternatives.

Defense officials and lawmakers fear the next two years could provide Russia with the perfect chance to test the West’s commitment to NATO, according to three EU politicians with direct knowledge of the discussions.

"Oekraïne is onontbeerlijk voor de Europese veiligheid nu de Amerikanen afhaken. Als het onderuit gaat, heeft Europa een levensgroot probleem." - @carolinedegruyter.bsky.social

The thing is: people don't want to see the reality that is unfolding right before their eyes.

Arnout Brouwers: 'Om te overleven, moet "Europa" politiek en militair snel opnieuw worden uitgevonden' www.volkskrant.nl/columns-van-...

Russia and China continue to win the Iran War. www.ft.com/content/f87a...

1/ This is what $200 per barrel of oil would mean for US gas prices, which currently average $4.30 per gallon. It could go much higher. As one analyst says, once oil stockpiles are functionally exhausted by the end of May, "price increases become exponential rather than linear."

Neonborden met ‘billions and billions spent’ erop gaan geen vijanden afschrikken. Over de worsteling van herbewapening tijdens een militaire transformatie. Molumn: Om te overleven, moet ‘Europa’ politiek en militair snel opnieuw worden uitgevonden www.volkskrant.nl/cs-bfca115e/

Corruption at its finest.

A military parade without military hardware: next week’s dramatically scaled down Victory Day parade in Moscow looks set to become a symbol of Putin’s growing weakness www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/ukrain...

📈 Zorgen over externe dreigingen nemen in Nederland scherp toe, zo blijkt uit onze nieuwe Voorjaarspeiling - sterker zelfs dan in alle eerdere metingen. 📊 Lees meer in de HCSS Publieksmonitor Maatschappelijke Stabiliteit: buff.ly/1bddGhv

1/ NEW: Russian forces in April 2026 suffered a net loss of territory controlled in the Ukrainian theater for the first time since Ukraine’s August 2024 incursion into Kursk Oblast. Read more: isw.pub/UkrWar050226

Strategic developments: 🔹Trump: US may reduce EU troop presence "a lot more than 5000" 🔹US will "seriously delay" EU arms shipments like HIMARS and NASAMS 🔹Latvia warns Russia may try to attack the EU before 2030 🔹UK announces "Northen Navies" alliance against Russian threat

‼️ Trump says US plans to withdraw "a lot further" than 5,000 troops from Germany

⚡️Russia slams Kyiv with mass drone attack. Russia launched a mass drone attack against Kyiv late in the evening on May 2. The Air Force began warning that swarms of Russian drones were moving towards the capital shortly before 10 p.m. local time.

But I bought all these V-I Day balloons!!! danieldrezner.substack.com/p/happy-v-i-...

🇺🇦🇪🇺 Donald Trump’s strong focus on the war in Iran has pushed Russia’s war against Ukraine into the background. As a result, Ukraine and its European allies are adapting to a reality where they cannot rely on the United States. Read more 👀 theukrainianreview.info/ukraine-and-...

Zelenskyy stated that this week alone, Russia has launched about 1,600 strike drones, nearly 1,100 guided aerial bombs, and 3 missiles against Ukraine.

🇩🇪🇺🇸🇪🇺 German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said that Europe will have to strengthen its defense capabilities amid the reduction of the US presence. From now on, according to him, Europeans must take greater responsibility for their own security.

‼️ Ukrainian forces have destroyed 1,294 Russian ground robotic systems – General Staff to add new category to loss statistics

🇺🇦🇸🇪 Saab CEO expects to conclude a deal to supply Ukraine with Gripen fighter jets within a few months, - Militarnyi According to him, negotiations are at an advanced stage. The company is actively working with governments and partners to finalize the agreements.