Have you missed the latest events on the war in Ukraine? 20 Minutes takes stock for you every evening. Here is the gist of this Saturday, May 9, 2026, on the 1,536th day of the conflict.
News of the day
Russian President Vladimir Putin affirmed on Saturday that his army was confronting “aggressive” forces in Ukraine supported by NATO, during a brief speech on Red Square for modest commemorations of May 9, 1945, the first day of a truce accepted by kyiv. This parade was marked by the absence of military equipment, such as tanks and missile launchers which usually go up the central square of Moscow. It lasted only 45 minutes and was reinforced at the last minute by the entry into force of a three-day truce announced the day before by Donald Trump.
Threats of Ukrainian drone attacks to disrupt the ceremonies marking the Soviet victory against Nazi Germany, celebrated on May 9 in Russia, and of Russian strikes in retaliation against the center of Kiev had loomed over the previous days.
“The great feat of the victorious generation (against Adolf Hitler) today inspires the soldiers who lead the special military operation (in Ukraine). They face an aggressive force armed and supported by the entire NATO bloc, declared Vladimir Putin from the podium. I firmly believe that our cause is just. We are together. The victory was ours and it will be forever.”
Sentence of the day
« Crimes committed in territories controlled by the self-proclaimed Donetsk Republic of pro-Russian separatists, ahead of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, have been widely documented by Ukrainian civil society. »
Oksana Pokalchuk and Dmytro Koval, co-executive directors of Truth Hounds, welcomed the prosecution in Paris for crimes against humanity targeting a Ukrainian, alleged torturer in a prison in Donetsk then under pro-Russian control.
These proceedings were revealed on Friday by the National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor’s Office (Pnat), competent in matters of crimes against humanity or war crimes.
The number of the day
7. The government of Honduras said Friday it was providing consular assistance to seven of its nationals saying they had been lured to Russia by false promises of employment, then pushed to join as mercenaries in the conflict in Ukraine.
After presenting themselves to their interlocutors, their passports were confiscated and they were the subject of an attempt to integrate into a group of mercenaries on behalf of the Russians, they explained to the Honduran media.
Five managed to escape and are in a reception center awaiting repatriation. Two others are detained by Russian authorities.
Today’s trend
Ukraine and Russia accused each other on Saturday of violating a three-day ceasefire negotiated by the United States and announced by American President Donald Trump.
Our file on the war in Ukraine
/regions/2026/05/09/69ff3b477ccb7862247374.png "VIDEO. “If you have to go, you have to go”: meeting with these young people ready to join the Army")
