The European Union’s top foreign policy official said Thursday that membership candidate Serbia faces a “strategic choice” of direction, just weeks after Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic defied EU warnings and attended Russia’s Victory Day parade in Moscow.

Britain and the European Union have imposed sweeping sanctions targeting Russia, particularly its shadow fleet of oil tankers, over its war in Ukraine.

US President Donald Trump has held conversations with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian leader Vladimir Putin. Meanwhile, EU leaders have politically endorsed the creation of a €150 billion loan fund to fund weapons amid growing threats from Russia.

The EU is preparing new sanctions on Russia despite a potential meeting between Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Thursday, three sources told CNBC.

The European Union expects that the Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin will be ready to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Thursday 15 May, and is also prepared to impose additional sanctions on Russia if a ceasefire is not achieved.

The European Union is working on a new sanctions package that could target not only Russian financial institutions but also foreign banks that help the Kremlin evade restrictions and finance its war against Ukraine,

Vladimir Putin has boasted of a massive missile strike on a military base in Ukraine’s Sumy region that the Kremlin claims killed as many 70 soldiers.

Volodymyr Zelensky has accused Vladimir Putin of making a “mockery of the entire world” in its delay to respond to calls for a ceasefire after the first stage of a large-scale prisoner swap between Ukraine and Russia.

The EU intends to increase pressure on Moscow until Vladimir Putin is ready for peace talks with Ukraine, France24 reports, citing European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. The European high-ranking official said that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy "was ready to meet,