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New developments:
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has signed a bill to officially mark May 8 as the Day of Remembrance and Victory over Nazism in World War II, breaking away from Russia's May 9 V-Day anniversary tradition.
Most European nations celebrate the anniversary of Germany's unconditional surrender on May 8. Russia and some former Soviet countries celebrate Victory Day on May 9, using the term the 'Great Patriotic War,' to stress Russia's victory over Nazi Germany.
Ukraine's Victory Day anniversary was also the same say as Russia's, but this changed after Russia annexed Crimea in 2014.
"We will never forget the contribution of the Ukrainian people to the victory over Nazism. And we will not allow lies as if the victory in that war could happen without the participation of any country or nation," Zelenskyy said in his address Monday.
The Ukrainian president decreed May 9 to be Europe Day instead, marking Europe's support for Ukraine in its fight against Russian aggression.
"Today, I signed the relevant decree, and every year from tomorrow, May 9, we will commemorate our historic unity - the unity of all Europeans who destroyed Nazism and will defeat 'rashism,'" Zelenskyy said, using a word Ukrainians have coined to describe what they call Russian fascism.
"This will be the Day of Europe, which helps us fight in all directions: on the battlefield with weapons and on the diplomatic front with determination against missile terror and the winter blackout, in the economy and on the legal front," Zelenskyy said. "This will be the Day of Europe - our ally. Which gives shelter to Ukrainian women and children. Which does not encroach on our sovereignty and does not call into question our right to choose our own national path."
The Ukrainian president said Monday that Russian forces in Ukraine will be defeated like Nazi Germany was defeated in World War II.
"We fought then, and we fight now so that no one ever again enslaves other nations and destroys other countries," Zelenskyy said in a video message. "And all those old evils that modern Russia is bringing back will be defeated just as Nazism was defeated," he said.
Russian attacks
Explosions were heard overnight in the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on the messaging app Telegram that three people were wounded in blasts in Kyiv's Solomyanskyi district and two in the Sviatoshyn district, both west of the capital's center in the "biggest" kamikaze drone attack so far.
This was the fourth attack on Kyiv in eight days and was launched 24 hours before Russia's Victory Day anniversary on May 9.
Ukraine's First Deputy Foreign Minister Emine Dzhaparova tweeted that those Ukrainian forces shot down 35 Iranian-made Shahed drones, but that debris had hit apartment buildings in Kyiv and injured five people.
In the Black Sea city of Odesa, Dzhaparova said Russian missiles hit a food warehouse and a recreation area, killing one person and injuring three others. A missile strike "completely" destroyed a Red Cross warehouse in the city, the humanitarian aid organization reported.
Russian artillery shelling also wounded eight people, including a 9-year-old boy, in two villages in Ukraine's southern region of Kherson, regional officials said.
Russia has also intensified its attacks on Bakhmut. Yevgeny Prighozin and his Wagner group continue their assault on the besieged city after the Russian military promised them more arms and ammunition. Russia wants to take Bakhmut by Tuesday in time for its V-Day anniversary.
Nuclear plant concerns
Fears about the safety of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in east Ukraine grew Sunday after Russian officials ordered the evacuation of civilians from 18 settlements around the nuclear power plant.
The plant is near the front line of battles between Russian and Ukrainian forces. Russia fired more than 30 shells at Nikopol, a Ukrainian-held town neighboring the plant, killing a 72-year-old woman and injuring three others Sunday, according to Ukrainian authorities.
Ukraine has also mounted attacks in the vicinity of the plant, according to The Associated Press.
The head of the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog agency said in a statement Saturday the situation near the plant "is becoming increasingly unpredictable and potentially dangerous."
"I'm extremely concerned about the very real nuclear safety and security risks facing the plant," International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Grossi said. "We must act now to prevent the threat of a severe nuclear accident and its associated consequences for the population and the environment."
Some material in this report came from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters.