BEIJING, May 10 (Xinhua) -- The following are the latest developments regarding the conflict between Russia and Ukraine:
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday submitted the second part of the questionnaire for Ukraine's candidate status of a European Union (EU) membership to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, said Zelensky's press service.
The document was handed over during an online meeting between the leaders of Ukraine and the EU, the press service said on Telegram.
During the meeting, Zelensky thanked von der Leyen for the "clear signals of support" for Ukraine on its path towards the EU membership.
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Russia held a grand military parade in central Moscow's Red Square on Monday to commemorate the 77th anniversary of the Soviet Union's victory in the Great Patriotic War.
In an address to troops and guests ahead of the annual event, Russian President Vladimir Putin said, "it is our duty to keep the memory of those who crushed Nazism and bequeathed vigilance to us, and do everything so that the horror of a global war does not happen again."
Russia has always advocated for creating a system of equal and indivisible security, a system that is vital for the entire world community, he said.
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Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal and visiting European Council President Charles Michel on Monday discussed steps to solve the issues concerning Ukraine's agricultural exports, the government press service reported.
During the talks in Ukraine's southern port city of Odessa, Shmyhal said that the shipping of goods through the Ukrainian ports via the Black Sea was suspended since Feb. 24 due to the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Currently, about 70 vessels are blocked in the seaports of Ukraine, including 10 in the port of Odessa, Shmyhal said.
"The vast majority of ships are bulk carriers and mixed cargo vessels. Some 90 million tons of agricultural products that Ukraine planned to supply to countries in Africa, Asia and Europe have been blocked," he said.
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Monday he had discussed defense support for his country amid the conflict with Russia with Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson.
According to Zelensky, other topics of the conversation were energy cooperation between Ukraine and Sweden and the strengthening of sanctions on Russia.
For her part, Andersson tweeted that she expressed steadfast support for Ukraine during the phone call with Zelensky.
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German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Monday held talks with visiting French President Emmanuel Macron, vowing to provide further financial and military support for Ukraine.
Scholz highlighted the need to act together as part of Europe, vowing measures necessary to prevent the war from spreading to other countries.
Macron called for an immediate cease-fire in Ukraine and noted that important decisions would be made at the European level in terms of sanctions against Russia in the coming days. ■