Ukraine and Russia agree on another prisoner exchange in Istanbul.

Following a new round of negotiations between Moscow and Kyiv, the Ukrainian negotiator accuses Russia of playing for time. On Facebook, Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umyerov accused Moscow of continuing to reject Kyiv's 30-day ceasefire as a basis for further peace talks. "Russia rejects even the idea of ​​a cessation of killing," Umyerov wrote.

Russia deliberately withheld its memorandum for the talks until the start of the meeting in Istanbul, creating a smokescreen. While Ukraine submitted its memorandum outlining its ideas for a path to peace days before the meeting, Russia waited until the start of the new round of negotiations. "It appears that the Russians are once again pursuing delaying tactics, trying to present the United States with an 'image of diplomacy' without actually taking any action."

At the latest round of negotiations, which lasted just under an hour, Russia and Ukraine only agreed on the next exchange of prisoners of war. "There will be 1,000 for 1,000. Perhaps another 200 for 200," said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Kyiv wants to release more military personnel, as well as political prisoners and journalists. A preparatory exchange of names and their subsequent review are scheduled to take place this week.

Umyerov had previously announced that the exchange would primarily involve seriously injured and seriously ill prisoners of war and young soldiers between the ages of 18 and 25. Zelenskyy also confirmed that the return of 6,000 soldiers' bodies was planned.

A few hours after the peace negotiations, the Russian military again deployed swarms of drones against targets in Ukraine. Air raid sirens were triggered overnight in numerous Ukrainian regions, including Kyiv. Explosions were reported in Kharkiv, Chernihiv, and Mykolaiv, and a power outage occurred in Poltava following an explosion. According to initial media reports, several people were injured in the attacks.

Following the Ukrainian surprise attack on Russian military airfields the previous day, Zelensky again spoke of a "brilliant operation." He expressed no sympathy if Russia was upset about the loss of strategic bombers. In war, losses occur daily, Zelensky wrote on X. "No, nobody cares if Russia is upset."

The day before, the Ukrainian secret service had attacked Russian military airfields with combat drones in a long-planned, spectacular operation and, according to its own statements, destroyed about a third of the Russian fleet of strategic bombers on the ground.

Kyiv has received an invitation to the upcoming NATO summit in The Hague. "We have been invited to the NATO summit. I think this is important," said President Zelensky. The invitation was made during his meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in Vilnius. Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha has been tasked with preparing for the meeting. He left open whether Zelensky himself would travel to the Netherlands. The summit of the member states of the military alliance NATO will meet in The Hague in just under three weeks.

For the Kremlin, one of the main reasons for the war is to prevent Kyiv from joining NATO, which is enshrined in its constitution.

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is personally advocating for further sanctions against Russia if there is no progress in peace talks on the Ukraine war. "We stand ready in Europe," she said on the ZDF program "What Now?"

If Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin doesn't seriously come to the negotiating table, there will be further sanctions, for example against the Nord Stream gas pipelines or the Russian shadow fleet. She also spoke this morning with US Senator Lindsey Graham, who is preparing another sanctions package for the US Senate.

The EU recently enacted a 17th package of sanctions against Russia. An 18th package is being planned. Among other things, it is intended to prevent the resumption of operation of the Nord Stream gas pipelines. It also envisages a reduction in the price cap for Russian oil and further sanctions against the Russian financial sector.

Republican U.S. Senator Graham expects President Donald Trump to support new sanctions against Russia. The corresponding bill enjoys broad bipartisan support, Graham explained on ARD's "Tagesthemen." Eighty-two senators are behind the proposal. Congress could pass the package before the G7 summit in Canada in mid-June.

According to Graham, the draft proposes drastic punitive tariffs against countries that import Russian oil, gas, or other energy products. The goal is to further weaken the Kremlin's economic base by placing increased pressure on major buyers such as China and India. China, in particular, has so far merely stood by while Putin continued his war of aggression against Ukraine – this must now be decisively countered, Graham said.

Following massive Russian missile strikes on gas storage and production facilities, a natural gas shortage is looming in Ukraine. "We have a deficit, and a sufficiently large amount," Zelenskyy said. Kyiv is currently looking for alternative sources. "We have found half, but half is still missing," the head of state explained. The amount involved is one billion euros, and he has negotiated it with Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre.