Andreas Rentz / Getty Images Andrey Zvyagintsev received the Grand Prix at the 79th Cannes Film Festival for the film “Minotaur”. This is the director's fourth award at Cannes. In 2011, his film “Elena” was awarded the jury prize in the “Un Certain Regard” competition program. In 2014, “Leviathan” was awarded the prize for best screenplay. The film “Loveless” received the jury prize at the Cannes Film Festival in 2017.

Andrei Zvyagintsev addressed Vladimir Putin from the stage of the Cannes Film Festival Marko Djurica / Reuters / Scanpix / LETA Russian director Andrei Zvyagintsev, who received the Grand Prix at the 79th Cannes Film Festival for the film “Minotaur,” addressed Vladimir Putin from the stage. That's what he said. There is one person to whom I would like to address today on my own behalf. He doesn't use a VPN to watch this ceremony live.

The Grand Prix of the 79th Cannes Film Festival (the second most important prize) was awarded to the film “Minotaur” by Russian director Andrei Zvyagintsev. This was announced at the closing ceremony of the film festival on the evening of May 23. The main award, the Palme d'Or, went to the film "Fjord" by Cristian Mungiu.

The Blue Nights food and drink festival in St. Petersburg was canceled right before the start of the event, Fontanka reports. “Blue Nights” was supposed to take place on May 23 from 13:00 to 20:00 at the DAA EXPO exhibition complex near the Novocherkasskaya metro station. Tickets to the festival cost from three to 15 thousand rubles. Their price includes unlimited tasting of drinks.

Vladimir Zelensky said that Russia is preparing an attack on Ukraine, including Kyiv, using the Oreshnik medium-range missile system. The President of Ukraine wrote about this in his telegram channel: There was a report from our intelligence: we received information, including from American and European partners, about the Russians preparing a strike using the hazelnut. We are checking this information.

It also shows how Asimov turned science fiction from pulp fiction into an entire industry. In the spring of 2026, the publishing house Individuum published the memoirs of science fiction writer Isaac Asimov. It was Asimov who came up with the three laws of robotics, which - due to the rapid development of AI - are becoming more relevant every year. The book “I, Asimov” was published in 1994 in English, two years after the writer’s death.

Andrei Zvyagintsev does not object to his new film “Minotaur” being watched illegally in Russia. In a conversation with the Dozhd TV channel, the director expressed confidence that the film would be watched in Russia one way or another. “At least all those who know how to press the VPN button will definitely see it, because the pirates will have this picture. I’m not at all against [the film being viewed illegally]. She has no other way,” Zvyagintsev said.

Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky sent a letter to European leaders in which he called the proposal to grant Kyiv the status of an “associate member” of the European Union “unfair.” This is reported by the Reuters agency, whose journalists got acquainted with the contents of the letter. The idea of ​​“associate membership” of Ukraine in the EU was proposed by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz as a temporary compromise until Kyiv meets all the basic criteria for joining the community.

Every year the Anti-War Committee of Russia holds a conference. Why is it actually needed? Meduza report Vasily Krestyaninov / SOPA Images / LightRocket / Getty Images Mikhail Khodorkovsky. Strasbourg. May 20, 2026 At the end of May, a two-day conference of the Anti-War Committee of Russia, an association of Russian politicians, public and cultural figures in exile who oppose the war, was held in Strasbourg.

In 2025, Apple removed 2,045 mobile applications from the App Store due to government claims—and in more than half of the cases this was done at the request of Roskomnadzor. This is stated in Apple's annual transparency report (first noticed by Important Stories). As follows from the report, Russia by a large margin took first place in the world in the number of applications withdrawn from the Apple store.

Foreign nationals seeking proof of U.S. residency and work (green cards) may apply only from outside the United States. This is stated in a new memorandum from the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). “From now on, an alien who is temporarily in the United States and wants to obtain a green card must return to his home country to apply,” USCIS spokesman Zach Kahler said.

Coach Mikel Arteta, a Guardiola student who broke Arsene Wenger's record, changed everything Leon Neal/Getty Images Fans celebrate Arsenal's title win outside Emirates Stadium. May 19, 2026 On May 20, Arsenal ahead of schedule became the champion of the English Premier League this season. One round before the end of the tournament, the Londoners are four points ahead of Manchester City in the table and will not lose their lead even if they lose the last match.

One person died as a result of a Russian drone attack on a funeral procession in Sumy, said the head of the military administration of the Sumy region Oleg Grigorov. According to local authorities, a funeral procession heading to one of the city cemeteries was hit on the afternoon of May 23 by an FPV drone using fiber optics. The drone exploded on the roadway next to the bus in which the participants of the funeral procession were traveling. Authorities initially reported nine wounded.

On the morning of May 23, a drone flew into Latvian territory. Local residents notified the state police about this. According to eyewitnesses, the drone fell into Lake Dridzis in the Kraslava region in the southeast of the country near the border with Belarus. On contact with water it detonated. Police have already discovered possible drone debris. No one was injured as a result of the incident.

1550th day. A blow to the college in Starobelsk. 11 people died. Putin blamed the “Kyiv regime” for the terrorist attack and threatened with a response Evgeny Biyatov / RIA Novosti / Sputnik / Profimedia Pedagogical College dormitory building in Starobelsk, May 22, 2026 Since February 24, 2022, Meduza has been broadcasting live about the Russian-Ukrainian war. We publish your letters every day because we are sure that we need to continue talking about the war.