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Morning Headlines

Reuters: Ukrainian tennis player Elina Svitolina said it was painful to see the International Olympic Committee clear the path for Belarusian athletes ​to return to the global stage under their own flag ‌while Russia's war against her country rages on.

The Guardian: Authorities in Greece have intensified investigations into how an explosive-packed drone ended up in waters off the west of the country. An inquiry, involving specialised military teams, broadened at the weekend after bomb disposal experts detonated the unmanned device at sea.

ISW has increasingly observed footage created using artificial intelligence purportedly showing Russian forces raising flags in several sectors of the frontline in recent days.

10.05.2026

Reuters: Latvian Defence ​Minister Andris Spruds resigned on Sunday, ‌after two Ukrainian drones on Thursday flew in from Russia and hit oil storage ​facilities. Earlier on Sunday, Latvian Prime Minister ​Evika Silina demanded the resignation, saying anti-drone ⁠systems had not been deployed fast ​enough.

ERR: Estonia's government has said it expects Ukraine to improve control over its drones after a series of airspace breaches on the borders of the Baltic states in recent months.

Reuters: Trump on Sunday posted on social media that ‌three Polish and two Moldovan prisoners had been released from Belarusian and Russian detention.

The Kyiv Independent: U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner may visit Moscow in the near future to continue dialogue with the Russian side, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said on May 10.

Reuters: Germany dismissed on Sunday a suggestion from Putin that former Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder could coordinate talks with the European Union ‌to secure a peace deal in Ukraine.

The Kyiv Independent: Russian attacks against Ukraine killed at least one civilian and injured at least 19 others over the past day, during what was supposed to be a three-day ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine, regional authorities reported on May 10.

ISW: Russian forces used the ceasefire to conduct rotations, reinforcements, redeployments, and logistics throughout the theater, likely to support imminent future offensive operations.

The Kyiv Independent: Polish authorities have discovered a reconnaissance drone near the town of Bartoszyce, approximately 20 kilometers (12 miles) from the border with Russia's Kaliningrad Oblast, the Polish military police reported on May 9.

09.05.2026

ISW: Russia is supporting Iranian efforts to rebuild Iran’s military capabilities during the ceasefire period.

The Kyiv Independent: A Russian drone slammed into a residential building in the northwestern city of Kharkiv the night of May 9, less than 24 hours into what was supposed to be a three-day ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine.

Ukrainska Pravda: One woman was killed and another injured in Russian drone attacks on Dnipropetrovsk Oblast on 9 May, when the so-called "ceasefire" with Russia was supposed to be in effect.

Japan Today: Japan is preparing to send an economic delegation to Russia later this month in a move aimed at laying the groundwork for expanded business activity after the war in Ukraine ends.

Ukraine’s MoD: More than 10 military units are already using a compact AI-powered turret developed by a participant of the Brave1 defense innovation cluster. These systems help protect Ukrainian service members even from fiber-optic-controlled drones that are immune to electronic warfare.

ISW: Russian forces are performing worse on the battlefield in Spring 2026 than when the Kremlin emphasized its demand for Donetsk Oblast in 2025.

The Kyiv Independent: Law enforcement officials in France have arrested a Ukrainian man charged with committing war crimes at the Russian-run Izolyatsia prison in occupied Donetsk, Ukraine's Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko reported on May 8. The man is accused of voluntarily collaborating with Russian occupation authorities from 2017-2019 and assisting the head of the prison in the torture of detainees.

08.05.2026

ISW: The Russian proposal seen by the Economist offers Iran 5,000 short-range fiber-optic drones, an unspecified number of longer-range satellite-guided drones equipped with Starlink terminals, and training for Iranian personnel to operate both systems.

United24 Media: Satellite images have verified successful strikes against a major Russian ammunition depot and two facilities responsible for manufacturing explosives, according to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on May 8.

The Kyiv Independent: The "Alpha" Special Operations Center of the Security Service of Ukraine struck an oil refinery in the Russian city of Perm for the third time in two weeks, the agency said on May 8.

Reuters: European Union foreign ministers are ​expected to adopt new ‌sanctions on Monday related to the deportation of ​Ukrainian children to ​Russia.

The Kyiv Independent: A Ukrainian delegation asked U.S. officials to verify whether vessels in Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet” are using Starlink technology, a possible violation of U.S. sanctions policy, during a recent visit to Washington.

The Moscow Times: Japanese refiner Idemitsu Kosan has purchased a shipment of Russian crude oil, the company told Russian state media on Friday, becoming the second firm in Japan to buy oil from Russia since the conflict in the Middle East disrupted global energy supplies.

The Kyiv Independent: The EU is not about to hold its own peace talks with Russia and has no concrete plans to do so, several bloc's leaders and diplomats have confirmed on May 8, following news reports that suggested otherwise.

Reuters: Russia has increasingly focused its aerial attacks on small Ukrainian power substations, with increased drone capacity allowing it to disrupt Ukraine's grid over the past winter more than ever, data from ‌a London-based research group shows.

VSquare: A Russian spy who spent years infiltrating think-tanks and academic institutions close to the Orbán government was sent home from Budapest — but only after Orbán’s electoral defeat removed the political obstacle that had shielded the operative for months.

Reuters: Ukraine is running short of air defence missiles after Russia's massive winter attack campaign, the country's air force said on ‌Friday, as it braces for further strikes.

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