Israel pounds Gaza, killing 42, as EU, UK step up pressure

Israeli forces continue bombarding Gaza, killing at least 42 people since dawn, dismissing criticism from the UK and the EU over the “monstrous” war in the enclave.

Authorities in Gaza say Israel’s “starvation policy” has killed at least 326 Palestinians since March 2, as the UN warns that 14,000 babies are at risk of dying within 48 hours.

The UN also says no aid has been distributed in Gaza because of Israeli restrictions despite a handful of aid trucks entering the territory.

Israel’s war on Gaza has killed at least 53,573 Palestinians and wounded 121,688, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. The Government Media Office updated the death toll to more than 61,700, saying thousands of people missing under the rubble are presumed dead.

European and UK officials ratcheted up pressure on Israel over its latest offensive in Gaza, expanding the international outcry over the humanitarian crisis caused by the conflict.

Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares said the European Union should use diplomatic measures and possibly even sanctions to persuade Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to halt the assault.

Britain, France and Canada Condemn Israel’s Expansion of Gaza War

Israel’s threats to drastically escalate the war in Gaza and its blockade of humanitarian aid to a Palestinian population at risk of famine have drawn the sharpest condemnation yet from some powerful Western allies since the conflict began 19 months ago.

On Tuesday, Britain said it was suspending talks with Israel on expanding a free-trade agreement. The day before, Britain, France and Canada issued a rare public reprimand of Israel, demanding it cease the renewed military offensive.

“We have always supported Israel’s right to defend Israelis against terrorism,” a joint statement by the three countries said. “But this escalation is wholly disproportionate.”

The message made clear that Israel’s conduct of the war in Gaza, the high Palestinian death toll and the abysmal humanitarian conditions in Gaza were pushing some of the country’s most powerful international supporters to the limits of what they would tolerate.

Israel is threatening to take full control of Gaza in the next stage of the war and hem Gazans into even more limited zones. Israel has also been blocking humanitarian aid from Gaza for more than two months, even as the U.N. warns that the population is under threat of famine.

This weekend, Israel said it would begin allowing some humanitarian aid to flow into Gaza. But the authorities let only five trucks in on Monday.

Britain, France and Canada called the expanded Israeli campaign against Hamas in Gaza and the withholding of aid “egregious actions” that cannot continue.

“If Israel does not cease the renewed military offensive and lift its restrictions on humanitarian aid, we will take further concrete actions in response,” the statement said.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel said Britain, France and Canada had handed a “huge prize” to Hamas. He accused them of tacitly encouraging a repeat of the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks, that killed some 1,200 people in Israel, with 250 taken as hostages to Gaza.

“This is a war of civilization over barbarism,” Mr. Netanyahu said on social media. “Israel will continue to defend itself by just means until total victory is achieved.”

The statements from allied countries were a distinct contrast from the early days after the 2023 attack, when governments rushed to back Israel. But as the death toll in Gaza grows and suffering deepens, diplomatic support is fading.

Israel has killed more than 53,000 Palestinians in Gaza, according to Gazan health officials, who do not distinguish between civilians and combatants.

The United States, Israel’s most powerful patron, has not publicly criticized the renewed Israeli offensive. But President Trump has increasingly bypassed Mr. Netanyahu, cutting a separate deal with Hamas to free the last living American hostage and skipping Israel on his trip to the Middle East last week.

On Friday, Mr. Trump said “a lot of people are starving” in Gaza under the Israeli blockade and the United States wanted to help alleviate the suffering.

In Britain on Tuesday, Foreign Secretary David Lammy announced in Parliament the suspension of free-trade talks with Israel, condemning what he said were Mr. Netanyahu’s plans to “drive Gazans from their homes into a corner of the strip to the south and permit them a fraction of the aid that they need.”

European Officials Step Up Pressure on Israel Over Gaza War

The European Union will review its wide-ranging trade and cooperation agreement with Israel over its widened offensive in Gaza and its failure to fully lift a two-month aid blockade.

The decision came on Tuesday after 17 of the bloc's 27 foreign ministers backed the move, tabled earlier this month by the Dutch foreign minister Caspar Veldkamp.

It means the EU executive will now launch a review to establish whether Israel has violated its human rights obligations under Article 2 of the EU-Israel Association Agreement, a broad-ranging pact that defines the trading and diplomatic relations between both sides.

"It is clear from today's discussions that there is a strong majority in favour of a review of article 2 of our Association Agreement with Israel," the EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Kaja Kallas, told reporters in Brussels.

"We will launch this review and in the meantime, it is up to Israel to release more humanitarian aid."

The EU is Israel’s biggest trade partner, with the trading relationship valued at more than €45 billion a year.

Ireland and Spain first tabled the prospect of re-opening the Association Agreement in a yet-unanswered letter to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen 15 months ago, but failed to secure the firm backing of any other EU country.

But the move gained new momentum in recent weeks when the Netherlands, considered a firm ally of Israel, said that Israel's “humanitarian blockade” on Gaza, where a limited quantity of critical supplies entered for the first time in more than eleven weeks on Monday, is in "violation of international humanitarian law" and therefore of Article 2.

Nine member states — Belgium, Finland, France, Ireland, Luxembourg, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden — had publicly backed the Netherlands' proposal ahead of Tuesday's gathering of foreign ministers.

Denmark, Estonia, Malta, Poland, Romania and Slovakia also backed the review on Tuesday, according to diplomatic sources. Austria, a staunch supporter of Israel, did not take the floor to voice any opposition, another diplomat said.

Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy and Lithuania were said to be against, while Latvia was "neutral", the sources also said.

Another proposal to ramp up pressure on Israel by introducing further sanctions on Israeli settlers responsible for violence in the West Bank was backed by 26 of the 27 member states but vetoed by Hungary.

The Swedish foreign minister, Maria Malmer Stenergard, had suggested that she would go further and “push for EU sanctions against individual Israeli ministers.”

Earlier on Tuesday, the UK suspended trade talks and summoned the Israeli ambassador over what it described as the “intolerable” offensive in Gaza. It came after the leaders of the UK, France, and Canada threatened “concrete actions” if Israel did not halt its campaign and aid lift restrictions.

The EU’s position on the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, triggered by Hamas’ attacks on Israel on 7 October 2023, has always been deeply divided.

Former EU High Representative Josep Borrell personally tabled the prospect of suspending ties with Israel back in November, which ultimately led to the convening of a closed-door meeting between the Israeli foreign minister and his EU counterparts.

In that meeting, chaired by Borrell’s successor Kaja Kallas, calls for reviewing Article 2 were completely muted as a ceasefire was in force in Gaza.

The eleven-week blockade on the entry of aid seems to have triggered a shift in thinking among the 27.

Top diplomat Kaja Kallas said that while Israel's decision to allow a limited number of trucks to enter the enclave was "welcome", it was a "drop in the ocean".

"Aid must flow immediately and at scale," Kallas said.

Ukrainian neo-Nazis would finish second in a competition for idiots – Putin

FILE PHOTO: Members of the Azov battalion in Kiev, July 28, 2024. ©Maxym Marusenko/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Radical Ukrainians are idiots for targeting Soviet monuments to World War II heroes, Russian President Vladimir Putin has said.

This behavior alone “gives us reasons to say that these people have a neo-Nazi ideology,” he stated during a visit to Kursk Region, which borders Ukraine, on Tuesday.

”If they participated in a competition for idiots, they would have finished in second place. Why? Because they are idiots,” he added, paraphrasing a popular joke. “By doing what they are doing, they show their nature.”

Last August, Ukrainian forces launched an incursion into border areas of Kursk Region in what Kiev claimed to be an attempt to seize some territory as leverage for eventual peace negotiations. The Russian military reported its full liberation in late April.

Putin’s visit, which was only made public on Wednesday morning, was his first to the region since the Ukrainian operation. He surveyed the site of a nuclear power plant that Kiev’s troops had unsuccessfully attempted to capture, inspecting its ongoing expansion, and met with volunteers who were involved in repelling the attack.

Following a Western-backed coup in 2014, Kiev instigated a policy of “de-communization” in which various streets and communities were renamed in an attempt to ‘cancel’ Ukraine’s Soviet heritage. It also went about toppling statues and eliminating memorials dedicated to the Red Army’s liberation of the country in WWII.

When the conflict escalated in February, 2022 the practice was expanded to target any landmarks associated with Russia or Russians, such as the removal last year of a statue dedicated to the 19th century poet Alexander Pushkin in the city of Odessa, which had been designated by UNESCO a World Cultural Heritage Site.

The Ukrainian government continues to lionize historical figures who opposed Russia for any reasons. Those include members of militias who sided with Nazi Germany during World War II and committed atrocities on behalf of the invaders.

Consequently, neo-Nazi aesthetics and ideology are popular among modern radical nationalists in Ukraine. Russia has identified “de-Nazification” one of its primary objectives in the Ukraine conflict.

UK suspends trade talks with Israel as Gaza blockade ‘morally wrong’ and ‘unjustifiable’

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Foreign Secretary David Lammy attend a meeting between the UK and the European Union on May 19, 2025 [AFP

Israeli forces bomb Gaza, killing over 70 people since midnight, including in an attack on displacement shelter in Gaza City that killed 22, including children

The British government says it will suspend new free trade negotiations with Israel due to its military conduct in the war on Gaza, where hundreds of Palestinians have been killed in recent days under bombardment and as a new ground offensive has been launched.

The United Kingdom also announced on Tuesday that it was imposing sanctions on illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.

The actions came a day after the UK, France and Canada condemned Israel’s handling of the war in Gaza and assaults and raids in the West Bank.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer ramped up his pointed criticism of Israel on Tuesday, saying the level of suffering by children in Gaza was “utterly intolerable” and repeated his call for a ceasefire.

The Labour government has been heavily criticised at home for not saying or doing enough in support of Palestinians under constant fire and facing starvation in besieged Gaza. Stop the War demonstrations continue to draw thousands of protesters weekly.

Settler violence against Palestinians, backed by the Israeli army, has surged in recent months, as the military also carries out daily raids in the territory.

Foreign Secretary David Lammy said the UK’s existing trade agreement is still in effect, but new discussions cannot be undertaken with an Israeli government pursuing “egregious policies” in Gaza and the West Bank.

Lammy said the persistent cycle of violence by Israeli settlers in the West Bank demanded action. In addition to previous sanctions imposed, the UK was now imposing sanctions on another “three individuals, two illegal settler outposts and two organizations supporting violence against the Palestinian community”, he added.

“The Israeli government has a responsibility to intervene and halt these aggressive actions,” Lammy said. “Their consistent failure to act is putting Palestinian communities and the two-state solution in peril.”

Israel quickly denounced the UK decision: “Even prior to today’s announcement, the free trade agreement negotiations were not being advanced at all by the current UK government,” the Israeli Foreign Ministry said in a statement. The ministry called the UK sanctions “unjustified and regrettable.

Putin outlines results Moscow seeks in Ukraine

Russian President Vladimir Putin. 
©Sputnik

Russia is seeking to achieve “lasting and sustainable peace” by eliminating the root causes of the Ukraine conflict, President Vladimir Putin has said, in an extract of an interview released by Russia 1 TV on Sunday.

In a clip posted by journalist Pavel Zarubin on Telegram, Putin stated that Russia has “enough strength and resources to bring what was started in 2022 to its logical conclusion” while accomplishing Moscow’s key goals.

Russia wants to “eliminate the causes that caused this crisis, create conditions for long-term sustainable peace and ensure the security of the Russian state and the interests of our people in those territories that we always talk about,” he added.

The president was apparently referring to Crimea, the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics, and the regions of Kherson and Zaporozhye, which overwhelmingly voted in favor of joining Russia in referendums in 2014 and 2022

People in these former Ukrainian territories “consider Russian to be their native language” and see Russia as their homeland, he said.

Commenting on the ongoing diplomatic engagement with the US to settle the conflict, Putin acknowledged that “the American people, including their president [Donald Trump] have their own national interests.”

“We respect that, and expect to be treated the same way,” he added.

Putin’s remarks come on the heels of the first direct Russia-Ukraine talks since 2022. As a result of Turkish-mediated negotiations in Istanbul, both sides agreed to exchange lists of conditions for a potential ceasefire, conduct a major prisoner swap, and discuss a follow-up meeting. The Kremlin has not ruled out direct talks between Putin and Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky if the ongoing peace efforts result in progress and firm agreements.

Following the talks, US President Donald Trump announced he would hold a phone call with his Russian counterpart on Monday, which would focus on trade and resolving the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov discussed the Istanbul negotiations with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who welcomed the results of the talks.

Mark Zuckerberg Says Social Media Is Over

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg (Photo: Bloomberg)

What, exactly, does a social network do? Is it a website that connects people with one another online, a digital gathering place where we can consume content posted by our friends? That’s certainly what it was in its heyday, in the two-thousands.

Facebook was where you might find out that your friend was dating someone new, or that someone had thrown a party without inviting you. In the course of the past decade, though, social media has come to resemble something more like regular media.

Facebook’s founder, Mark Zuckerberg, admitted as much during more than ten hours of testimony, over three days last week, in the opening phase of the Federal Trade Commission’s antitrust trial against Facebook’s parent company, Meta.

The company, Zuckerberg said, has lately been involved in “the general idea of entertainment and learning about the world and discovering what’s going on.” This under-recognized shift away from interpersonal communication has been measured by the company itself.

During the defense’s opening statement, Meta displayed a chart showing that the “percent of time spent viewing content posted by ‘friends’ ” has declined in the past two years, from twenty-two per cent to seventeen per cent on Facebook, and from eleven per cent to seven per cent on Instagram.

'Facebook is no longer the culture', says Zuckerberg on fading relevance

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has long harboured concerns about Facebook’s waning cultural influence, according to internal emails exchanged with Facebook head Tom Alison in April 2022. The emails, presented in court this week as part of the Federal Trade Commission’s antitrust case against Meta, offer insight into Zuckerberg’s thoughts on the platform’s long-term viability, Business Insider reported.

In one of the emails presented, Zuckerberg acknowledged that while Facebook’s user engagement remained steady in many regions, its broader cultural presence was eroding. “Even though the FB app’s engagement is steady in many places, it feels like its cultural relevance is decreasing quickly and I worry that this may be a leading indicator of future health issues,” he wrote.

Zuckerberg indicated that even strong performances by Meta’s other platforms — Instagram and WhatsApp — would not compensate if Facebook’s relevance continued to decline.

‘Friending’ no longer resonates with users

The Meta founder also pointed to a shift in user behaviour, noting that Facebook’s traditional model of ‘friending’ had lost appeal. “First, a lot of people’s friend-graphs are stale and not filled with the people they want to hear from or connect with,” Zuckerberg wrote in one of his emails.

He admitted his own preference for following influencers on Instagram or Twitter, suggesting that Facebook’s friend-based model might be making it less attractive compared to platforms emphasising the ‘following’ approach.

Radical ideas to restore relevance

In the email exchange, Zuckerberg proposed several strategies to make Facebook more relevant, including what he described as a “crazy idea” — resetting users’ friend graphs entirely and starting anew.

He also mentioned that Facebook’s focus on fostering communities through groups needed more refinement. “I’m optimistic about community messaging, but after running at groups in FB for several years, I’m not sure how much further we’ll be able to push this,” he mentioned.

Zuckerberg defends Instagram, WhatsApp

In a major antitrust trial, Zuckerberg took a stand to defend his company’s acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp. The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has alleged that Meta used these said takeovers to suppress competition and maintain dominance in the social media space.

Zuckerberg, testifying as the first witness, argued the acquisitions were aimed at enhancing innovation and improving the user experience. He acknowledged that while Meta has evolved toward content discovery, connections with friends and family remain central to its mission. “Over time, the ‘interest’ part of that has gotten built out more than the friend part,” he said.

FTC trial could reshape Meta’s future

The FTC’s case could potentially force Meta to divest Instagram and WhatsApp, marking a landmark moment in tech antitrust regulation. In opening arguments, FTC attorney Daniel Matheson claimed Meta eliminated competitive threats instead of facing them, leaving users with “no reasonable alternatives”.

Meta’s legal team countered, saying the company competes with platforms like TikTok, YouTube, and iMessage, and noted regulators initially approved both acquisitions. The FTC’s case relies heavily on internal emails from Zuckerberg, which he said were taken out of context. The trial, overseen by Judge James Boasberg, will feature testimony from several top tech executives and could reshape the future of Meta.

This is why Moscow and Beijing stand together, now more than ever - Voice from China

©Stanislav Krasil'nikov/RIA Novosti

On May 9, 2025, Moscow held a grand military parade on Red Square to mark the 80th anniversary of the Soviet victory in the Great Patriotic War.

Approximately 27 foreign heads of state attended the Red Square parade, highlighting Russia’s influence on the international stage and signaling a break from Western diplomatic isolation. It also reinforced Russia’s ties with friendly nations. However, the parade was not merely a response to Western sanctions and containment. More importantly, it served as a powerful historical symbol and collective memory – a tribute to the immense sacrifices made for the victory in the global anti-fascist war, and a solemn reaffirmation of that great triumph and enduring honor.

At President Putin’s invitation, President Xi Jinping paid a state visit to Russia from May 7 to 10 and attended the Victory Day events. President Xi Jinping’s visit to Russia signals a shared commitment by China and Russia to promote an accurate understanding of World War II history, defend the post-war international order centered on the United Nations, and uphold the purposes and principles of the UN Charter. At the bilateral level, the two countries will continue to deepen their partnership through high-level exchanges, using the stability of their relationship to offset global uncertainty and advancing strategic coordination to safeguard international fairness and justice.

Eighty years ago, China and the Soviet Union fought side by side in the World Anti-Fascist War (World War II), forging a deep friendship through shared sacrifice. At this year’s military parade, President Putin praised the Chinese people’s significant contributions to the victory. In a signed article in Rossiyskaya Gazeta, President Xi Jinping also emphasized the decisive roles played by both countries.

Today, Western countries manipulate ideology through historical nihilism, double standards, and discursive reconstruction, deliberately downplaying, distorting, or even rewriting the historical contributions of China and the Soviet Union in World War II. By reshaping the narrative, they seek to undermine the foundations of the post-war international order and perpetuate their global dominance.

Against this backdrop, the renewed call by the Chinese and Russian leaders to “jointly uphold a correct view of WWII history” serves as a powerful rebuke to historical revisionism and falsification. It reflects a shared strategic resolve to break the West’s monopoly on historical discourse and to defend international justice and collective memory. This is not only a shared responsibility to safeguard historical truth, but also a deep convergence between China and Russia in promoting the democratization of international relations, building a fair and equitable global order, and opposing unilateral hegemony.

On May 8, China and Russia signed a series of cooperation documents, including two major joint statements. The first focuses on further deepening the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for the new era; the second is a joint statement on global strategic stability. In addition, the two heads of state witnessed the exchange of multiple cooperation agreements in areas such as education, investment, culture, and science and technology. These documents not only ensure the continuity and stability of bilateral ties at the strategic level, but also reflect the steady deepening of practical cooperation across key sectors.

The 'Joint Statement on Further Deepening the China-Russia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership of Coordination for the New Era' not only reaffirms the two countries’ firm commitment to safeguarding the international system with the United Nations at its core and the international order based on international law, but also elevates the promotion of a correct view of World War II history to a strategic element of institutionalized bilateral cooperation. Key measures include jointly organizing commemorative events, conducting research and exhibitions on the crimes of Nazi Germany and Japanese militarism, locating the remains of fallen soldiers, restoring memorial sites, and deepening cooperation on WWII historical memory in education, archives, media, and youth exchanges.

The 'Joint Statement on Maintaining Global Strategic Stability' reaffirms the two countries’ consistent stance on preventing the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, safeguarding the international arms control and disarmament system, and more.

It also systematically establishes a comprehensive dialogue and cooperation framework that includes nuclear security, strategic deterrence balance, and governance of militarization of emerging technologies. Notably, this statement marks the first time that biological security, chemical weapons control, and military ethics in artificial intelligence have been included in the global strategic stability agenda, signaling a significant breakthrough for China and Russia in shaping a new international security paradigm for the future.

At the bilateral cooperation level, President Xi Jinping and President Vladimir Putin witnessed the exchange of 28 cooperation documents between China and Russia, covering areas such as trade, biosafety, investment protection, digital economy, scientific facilities, quarantine, media, film, and youth exchanges.

This broad agenda strengthens traditional sectors like energy and trade, while strategically positioning both countries in emerging fields like digital economy and scientific innovation, and deepening people-to-people ties through cultural, educational, and youth cooperation.

Amid unprecedented global changes, the trajectory of China-Russia relations continues to attract international attention. Some speculate about a formal alliance or potential rifts due to diverging interests. In response, China and Russia have demonstrated through deepening cooperation that they are building a new type of major-country relationship based on “highest mutual trust, coordination, and strategic value.” As President Xi has emphasized, their relationship is driven by clear historical logic, strong internal momentum, and shared civilizational heritage, not aimed at or influenced by any third party.

History is not only a repository of memories of the past, but also serves as the foundational basis for contemporary international relations, shaping value identities and acting as the spiritual pillar for a fair and just international order. The outcomes of World War II crystallized into the cornerstone of multilateralism, with the United Nations at its core, establishing the fundamental principles that govern modern international relations.

These principles, derived from the collective sacrifices of the war, have provided a framework for diplomacy, conflict resolution, and global cooperation. As the world faces new challenges, the importance of these historical lessons becomes increasingly evident – reminding us that the stability of the global order rests on our ability to respect shared values, adhere to international norms, and safeguard the multilateral system. In this context, the victory in WWII is not just a historical event, but an enduring legacy that continues to shape global governance and the international system.

As the renowned Russian historian Vasily Klyuchevsky once said, “Those who refuse to learn from history will ultimately pay a heavy price for their ignorance and arrogance.” China also has a saying: “Those who forget the past are doomed to repeat it.” The significance of history lies in guiding us forward. Upholding the achievements of WWII and safeguarding the international system centered on the United Nations is a shared responsibility and mission for both China and Russia.

Russia standing alone against West – Putin

©Sputnik/Kristina Kormilitsyna

Russia is standing alone against the West, which is waging an “existential war” against the country, President Vladimir Putin has said.

Putin made the remarks in a documentary titled ‘Russia. Kremlin. Putin. 25 years,’ filmed by Rossiya-1 broadcaster and released on Sunday. The film marks the 25-year anniversary of Putin becoming the country’s president for the first time. He inaugurated on May 7, 2000.

The documentary features conversations between Putin and journalist Pavel Zarubin on various matters, including the hostilities between Ukraine and Russia, as well as a broader conflict between Moscow and the West.

“Russia is essentially standing alone against the collective West. This required a serious attitude to the possible development of the situation in this particular sense,” Putin stated.

It has been clear from the early 2000s that the West has been acting “insidiously” against Russia, speaking about one thing and doing the opposite, Putin noted. The West’s failure to hear Russia’s repeated warnings, as well as its refusal to fully recognize the country’s sovereignty and respect its national interests, has ultimately led to the ongoing crisis, the president explained.

“This ‘civilized world’ decided that Russia had weakened, historical Russia called the Soviet Union had collapsed, and the remaining parts needed to be finished off. The largest of them was the Russian Federation, and it also needed to be partitioned into 4-5 pieces. I was responsible for the future of the country. Of course, I began working to ensure that this never happened,” he said.

Moscow has repeatedly described the hostilities in Ukraine as a Western proxy war against Russia, in which Ukrainians are being used as “cannon fodder.” Russian officials have argued that the US and other Western powers intentionally escalated tensions by disregarding Moscow’s security concerns over NATO’s expansion in Eastern Europe and its growing military cooperation with Ukraine.

Russia and the collective West ended up locked into an “existential war,” Putin stressed, adding that many in the West have now openly admitted that. Back in March, for instance, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio described the conflict as “frankly, a proxy war between nuclear powers – the United States, helping Ukraine, and Russia” and said the West should abandon its dead-end strategy of propping up Kiev “for as long as it takes.”