Biden makes the case for democracy after meeting with Zelensky

President Volodymyr Zelensky addressed recent claims by Russian President Vladimir Putin that he is no longer Ukraine’s legitimate president in a joint news conference with France’s President Emmanuel Macron in Paris on Friday.

If martial law had not been imposed, the next presidential election in Ukraine would have been held in March of 2024 and Zelensky’s first term would have ended in May. Putin’s comments dismissed Ukraine’s Martial Law Act introduced after Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022 which remains in place and which explicitly bans elections during wartime. 

Zelensky also commented on the upcoming Summit on Peace in Ukraine scheduled for June 15-16 in Switzerland. He called on the world’s leaders to participate in person and show that they “are not afraid” of Russia.

France will begin training Ukrainian pilots and mechanics on the Mirage 2000-5 fighter jet “in the coming days,” French President Emmanuel Macron said Friday.

Macron would not give additional details on the number and source of the jets that France plans to send to Ukraine as part of a coalition of partners “out of a concern for efficiency,” he said. The training will take place in France, according to Macron.

Pressed for details on whether France will deploy military instructors to Ukraine, he said there were still “no taboos” about doing so. 

“Who would we be to cede to the threats of Russia that will de facto decide that Ukraine has no sovereignty to invite companies or instructors (onto its territory)?” Macron said. 

However, he added that France would send about 20 technical experts from different ministries to Ukraine to help Kyiv’s integration with European Union standards. 

Separately, French-German defense firm KNDS signed two contracts Friday with the Ukrainian government to launch the production of spare parts for French-made CAESAR howitzers and 155mm artillery shells in Ukraine. 

US President Joe Biden delivers a speech at the Pointe du Hoc monument in Normandy, France, on Friday.

US President Joe Biden made a sweeping pledge for democracy on Friday, against the backdrop of Ukraine’s grinding fight in the face of Russia’s full-scale invasion.

His speech came as Western leaders commemorated the largest operation by Allied forces against Nazi Germany during World War II, drawing parallels between the actions of veterans and Kyiv’s forces on the ground today.

Here are the latest developments:

Participants stand next to a giant screen broadcasting Russian President Vladimir Putin's address during the Saint Petersburg International Economic Forum in Saint Petersburg, Russia, on Friday.

Russia is not currently supplying weapons to other countries as a retaliatory move to Western weapon deliveries to Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday. But he didn’t rule out sending weapons in the future.

Speaking at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Putin further justified this stance, questioning, “If they (Western countries) deliver them to a combat zone and call for the use of these weapons, why don’t we have the right to do the same, to respond in a mirror way?”

“I’m also not ready to say that we will do this tomorrow, because any such delivery is associated with a number of circumstances that in one way or another affect certain regions of the world and we must, of course, think about it,” he added.

This statement follows Putin’s earlier warning to Western countries, highlighting the risks of supplying weapons to Ukraine and suggesting such actions could provoke Russia to arm its adversaries.

Ukrainian authorities implemented several measures to reduce electricity consumption, as the country grapples with historic low energy capacity caused by Russian strikes on critical infrastructure.

Limited use of electric trains and air conditioning: Across the country, government and regional administrative offices will halt their use of air conditioning and outdoor lighting at buildings and surrounding areas, according to Shmyhal.

Law enforcement agencies, the judiciary and other government agencies are also encouraged to take similar steps. Local authorities will limit street lighting at night. 

The Ukrainian national railway company Ukrzaliznytsia announced on Thursday it is temporarily changing the schedule of suburban electric trains to save power. Some trains will stop running while others will run less frequently. 

By the numbers: Nearly half of Ukraine’s available energy capacity has been damaged or destroyed as a result of Russian attacks, according to the CEO of Ukraine’s power grid operator, Volodymyr Kudrytskyi. The United Nations recorded 24 attacks on Ukrainian energy facilities in May, it said Friday. 

Russian President Vladimir Putin said that “all armed conflicts end with certain peace agreements” while speaking at a panel during the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. 

The Russian president added that Russia “must seek conditions that would correspond to our interests and would be reliable,” but he did not elaborate on what said condition would be. 

However, he went on to accuse the West of being deceptive in its approach to talks, saying, “they deceive you at every step; they say one thing, do another.”

Putin added that “either on the basis of military defeat, or on the basis of victory, we certainly strive and will achieve victory.” 

For context: An international peace summit on Ukraine is scheduled to be held in Switzerland next weekend. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Russia — with China’s help — last week of attempting to pressure countries not to join the upcoming summit.

Reuters reported in late May that Moscow was willing to consider peace talks that would freeze the current Russian occupation of about a fifth of Ukraine. Putin responded to that report by suggesting Russia was willing to talk peace, based on earlier agreements. He hinted at an aborted deal in Istanbul, just after the war began in 2022, which fell apart, mostly because Moscow’s forces were still rampaging across Ukrainian territory and massacres around Kyiv had come to light. CNN’s Nick Paton Walsh outlines two reasons why Putin may be talking about peace again.

Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers a speech at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum in Saint Petersburg, Russia, on Friday.

Even though Russia has “many more” nuclear bombs than the US and Europe, discussions about a possible nuclear war are not necessary, Russian President Vladimir Putin warned Friday. 

“There is no need to think about it [nuclear war]. And I would ask anyone to not mention anything like that,” he said at the St. Petersburg Economic Forum. 

Putin added that Russian forces are “increasing their effectiveness,” about 27 months into Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Russia’s defense industry has increased shell production by 20%, and its forces are “surpassing the capabilities of our enemies” when it comes to aircraft and tanks, he said.

Veiled threats: Putin has repeatedly made remarks on the possibility of using nuclear weapons. On Friday, the Russian leader said his country has nuclear weapons that are more powerful than the bombs the Americans dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in World War II, “but it won’t come to this.” Russia’s total nuclear stockpile is larger than the United States’, at around 6,250 total nuclear warheads, according to the Arms Control Association. The US has more than 5,500.

Legacy of nuclear war: Washington unleashed atomic bombs on both Japanese cities in August 1945, leaving years of destruction and psychological trauma on communities there.

At least 70,000 people were killed in the initial blast in Hiroshima, while approximately 70,000 more died from radiation exposure. The US dropped another bomb on Nagasaki three days later killing up to 80,000 people.

The US remains the only country to ever use an atomic bomb in war.

U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks at the World War II Pointe du Hoc Ranger Monument following the 80th anniversary of the 1944 D-Day landings in Cricqueville-en-Bessin, Normandy, France, on June 7.

During a speech commemorating the 80th anniversary of D-Day at Pointe du Hoc in Normandy, France, US President Joe Biden honored and thanked veterans for their service, while stressing the importance of democracy and issuing a warning against a rising tide of isolationism.

Here are highlights from his speech:

Private First Class John Wardell, born July 1925, came ashore in Normandy on June 16, 1944, shortly after the D-Day invasion. He was just 18.

Wardell served with rangers in the Battle of Brest and was wounded in Germany during the latter stages of the war, the White House said.

In his speech at Pointe du Hoc, US President Joe Biden paid tribute to Wardell, from New Jersey, who was sat in the audience next to Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

In his closing remarks, US President Joe Biden described his country as “the fortunate heirs of the legacy” of the veterans who scaled the cliffs at Pointe du Hoc on D-Day, and vowed to continue their mission.

The line was an indirect shot at Biden’s political rival, former President Donald Trump, whose signature slogan — “Make America Great Again” — and campaign speeches often imply that the country’s best days are behind it and carry the vision of a dark future.

Biden said the veterans are “not asking us to give or risk our lives, but they’re asking us to stay true to what America stands for.”