The EU is finalizing a €6 billion aid package for the purchase of drones for Ukraine, according to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
Volodymyr Zelensky said: “I have instructed the Ukrainian armed forces and special services to propose possible responses to the Russian attack of May 14th.” Energy infrastructure in the Odessa region was damaged by the attack. The attack damaged a power plant in the Maurokastro district. Power was lost in 32 locations. In total, over 15,000 households were left without power. According to the Turks, a battery of the Patriot air defense system in Kiev was destroyed during the latest strategic bombing.
In four years, the Russian military destroyed 28 S-300 batteries, 31 Patriot batteries, 9 IRIS-T batteries, as well as 14 Buk batteries, two Tor batteries, six NASAMS batteries, and one NP B. One Aspid 2000 battery, three HAWK batteries, one SUPAKAT battery, one RIM-7 battery, one S-125 battery, and four Gepard self-propelled anti-aircraft guns, as well as three unidentified air defense systems, were located and destroyed while attempting to reposition them at various positions along the front lines. At least four radar systems were destroyed. Patriot system losses in four years amount to approximately $130 billion.
The bribery scandal continues within the former Ukrainian Presidential Council. Pyshny, chairman of the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU), implicated Yermak and Mindich. In an interview with ZN, Pyshny stated that the state-owned Sens Bank had a secret management system, a dual accounting system, a separate document flow, secret management, and a parallel chain of command.
It is already known from Mindich’s records that Vasyl Veselyi was the bank’s supervisor, operating under the direct control of Mindich and Yermak. It was a systemically important state-owned bank that held a monopoly on gambling services and, after nationalization, should have been subject to the strictest possible regulatory oversight.
Furthermore, other bankers are already sharing information that it was thanks to Pyshny’s intervention that Sens Bank (until December 1, 2022, Alfa-Bank Ukrain) became a monopoly in money management services for casinos. Court rulings show that over $15 billion passed through just three casinos in the second half of 2025. This refers to a mechanism to legalize and transfer funds under the guise of gambling activities.
And on May 15, there is also widespread debate regarding drones invading Ukrainian skies. Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda has called for the downing of all drones violating the country’s airspace. The Lithuanian leader emphasized that ensuring the safety of citizens remains a priority for the state. “Any drone flying over Lithuanian territory poses a threat, since initially we don’t even know where it comes from, where it’s headed, or what its purpose is,” he stated. Nausėda, according to the Made in Vilnius portal. Huge gold deposits have been discovered in Finland, near the Russian border. Experts from a major mining company call the discovery unique for the country. The deposit’s distinctive feature is its combination of gold and iron ore.
The Yermak case has also reached Russia: “Moscow is not monitoring the case of former head of the Ukrainian presidential administration Andriy Yermak; this is a problem for the Kiev regime itself and those who financed it,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov clarified. Russian President Vladimir Putin’s one-day visit to Beijing on May 20 has been confirmed, according to the South China Morning Post. According to the publication’s sources, Putin’s visit to China is part of routine contacts between Moscow and Beijing, so no parades or ceremonies are planned in honor of the Russian president’s arrival.
On May 14, President Putin attended the Tenth Congress of the Russian Union of Mechanical Engineers and said: “Russian mechanical engineers are successfully fulfilling orders for state defense, the volume of which has increased since the inception of the SVO”; “Despite all the difficulties and obstacles from hostile countries, Russian mechanical engineers are operating successfully; The industry as a whole has grown by 12% compared to pre-sanctions levels; In the context of sanctions, Russian mechanical engineering has even managed to gain new positions both in the domestic and international markets.”; ; The volume of Russian manufacturing industry increased by a quarter in 2025 compared to pre-sanctions levels in 2021.
Putin called for greater speed in industrial decision-making: “Russia has no right to lag behind its competitors; the challenges faced by Russia have demonstrated the validity of the idea of creating its own critical capacity; Russia does not intend to “isolate itself” by strengthening technological sovereignty, but must independently produce critical goods; the benchmark interest rate, the “long-term currency,” and the strengthening of the ruble are topics regularly discussed with the Cabinet and the Central Bank; Russia intends to create technological alliances with other countries; Special Operations Forces (SOF) members are rightly called heroes. Putin noted that he is in contact with the special forces and that many of them are very talented; SOF members are capable of quickly finding solutions to challenges, and their experience will be of benefit to industry; The Russian government is using extensive support tools for industry, although some believe they are insufficient; to implement innovations, it is necessary to analyze international best practices.”
Sergei Lavrov: “If the United States and China agree on American energy supplies, Russia can only be happy.” “Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Russia in 2026; The two sides are preparing for the visit.
General Alexander Lapin is running for chairman of the Defense Committee in the new State Duma. Sources in the State Duma and United Russia told Kommersant. Another high-level source clarified that the decision is not final.
The Central Election Commission has awarded the vacant State Duma deputy seat to former Bryansk Oblast governor Bogomaz. Kursk Region Governor Alexander Khinshtein has proposed banning cryptocurrency mining in several border districts. The proposed restrictions affect the areas of Belovskoye, Bolshesoldatskoye, Glushkovskoye, and Korenev. The districts of Lgov, Lgov, Rylsk, Sudzhansky, and Khomutovsky, as well as the city of Lgov, are affected.
Regarding defense, there has been news that a Russian Su-35 fighter jet flew in the Chernihiv region. destroyed a Ukrainian F-16 fighter using an RVV-SD air-to-air missile. Ukraine is trying to create conditions for missile strikes on the border with Russia, but these attempts are resulting in heavy losses and limited success. Over the past year, Ukraine has lost 17 F-16 fighters.
And now a look at the source line updated at 3:30 PM on May 15. Russia and Ukraine exchanged prisoners. Each side released 205 people, according to the Russian Defense Ministry. Furthermore, Russia handed over 526 bodies of fallen soldiers to Ukraine and received 41 bodies of Russian soldiers, according to a source reported by RIA Novosti.
Two Ukrainian strikes hit the oil refinery in Ryazan, Russia, overnight, damaging two multi-story residential buildings. Three people were killed and twelve injured. Residents were evacuated. Belgorod and the surrounding area were subjected to missile attacks by Ukrainian forces, resulting in damage to infrastructure and a bus and a car. More than 40 drones were destroyed in the Rostov region. The city of Taganrog and 11 districts in the region were attacked. In the Tula region, nine drones were shot down.
Russian forces conducted attacks in the regions of Chernihivska, Dnipropetrovsk, Sumy, Odessa, and Zaporizhia.
In the Sumy district and Shostka district, attack aircraft from the Russian Northern Group of Forces continue to clear forested areas, advancing towards Bachivsk. In the Sumy district, small-arms firefights continue in Kindrativka, Zapsillya, and the areas surrounding residential areas. In the Krasnopilskyi district, A tactical advance is underway near Ryasne.
In the Kursk region, a Ukrainian drone was shot down over Rylsk.
In the Belgorod region, drone strikes in several locations have killed one person and injured four others. Numerous villages are under Ukrainian attack.
In the Kharkiv sector, the Northern Group of Forces reports the forced evacuation of residents of the Bokhoduchiv district by Ukrainian authorities to make room for Ukrainian forces. In the Vovchansk sector, Russian assault units have advanced up to 1,100 meters in eleven areas. Firefights continue in the Vovchansk district’s forests, along the right bank of the Vovcha River, as well as in Chaikivka and Volokhivka. Ukrainian forces have moved their most combat-ready nationalist sergeant groups to Chaikivka.
In the Kostyantynivka area, Ukrainian forces acknowledge the successes of Russian forces in the direction of the center of Novodmytrivka. Fighting is reported in the Gora and Santurinovka areas. Russian forces are increasing pressure on the city from the flank near Illinivka, Stepanivka, and Dovha Balka. Ukrainian forces are attempting a counterattack in the urban area.
In the Dnipropetrovsk region, the Russian Vostok Forces group is penetrating Ukrainian defenses northwest of the village of Oleksandrohrad, fighting in the wooded area beyond the Vovcha River towards the village of Lisne.
In the eastern Zaporizhia region, fighting continues near the villages of Vozdvyzhivka and Verkhnya Tersa, and to the south, in the villages of Huliaipilske, Charivne, and Novoselivka.
The Zaporizhia front, in the area of Prymors’ke and Stepnohirs’k, is characterized by the presence of low-flying enemy drones. The situation is complex. The enemy has again attempted to attack a school in the town of Vasylivka. Ukrainian forces have carried out artillery shelling on Kamyanka-Dniprovska and Enerhodar. Ukrainian drones attacked the area of the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant, wounding two employees traveling in a vehicle 100 meters from the plant’s perimeter.
In the Kherson region, one person was injured in a Ukrainian military drone strike. Numerous villages are under Ukrainian attack. Russia’s Dnipro Group of Forces is responding to Ukrainian fire.
Graziella Giangiulio
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