More than 20,000 troops killed or missing, Russian officials appear to admit

More than 20,000 Russian troops are dead or missing in Ukraine, Kremlin officials have reportedly admitted as the "second phase" of the war centres on the country's south and east.

The pro-Kremlin website Readovka wrote on VK, a Russian social media network, that 13,400 Russian troops had been killed during the war and a further 7,000 could be missing in action.

The report, which was hastily deleted, said the casualties were announced at a closed briefing of the Russian Ministry of Defence.

The figures have not been verified but would be a stark increase on the previous troop toll announced by the Russian ministry on March 25, of 1,351 killed and 3,825 wounded.

Readovka reported that among the new casualties were 116 sailors who died when missiles hit Moscow's Moskva warship in the Black Sea, with another 100 crew still missing after it sank.

11:45 PM

What happened today

• France and Germany armed Russia with €273 million (£230 million) of military hardware now likely being used in Ukraine, an EU analysis shared with The Telegraph has revealed

• A top Russian commander said Moscow had expanded its goals to take “full control” of southern Ukraine, as well as the eastern Donbas region

• Russian forces would create a land bridge to Crimea and could push as far as the border of Moldova, said Major General Rustam Minnekayev

• In New Delhi, Boris Johnson on Friday warned that Russia could still win the war, announcing plans to send British tanks to Poland so that Ukraine could receive Warsaw’s Soviet-era T-72 models

• On Friday, Putin told Charles Michel, the president of the European Council, that the marines holed up in the city’s Azovstal steel plant would be allowed to live if they surrendered

• Thanks to European resupplies, Ukraine’s military now has more tanks on the battlefield than Russia does, according to the Pentagon

• Vladimir Putin’s alleged mistress has resurfaced in Moscow after speculation that she has been hiding out in Switzerland

10:59 PM

Ukraine can win this war, says prime minister

Ukraine will be victorious in its war against Russia very soon, its prime minister said on Friday, after Boris Johnson said it remained a realistic possibility that Russia could still win.

"We are absolutely sure that Ukraine will win in this war and victory will be in a very short period," Denys Shmyhal told CNN, when asked about Mr Johnson's comment.

10:20 PM

Another mass grave in Mariupol - officials

Another mass grave has been found outside Mariupol, the city council and an adviser to the mayor have said.

The city council posted a satellite photo provided by Planet Labs, below, showing what it said was a mass grave 45 metres by 25 metres (148 by 82 feet) that could hold the bodies of at least 1,000 Mariupol residents.

It said the new reported mass grave is outside the village of Vynohradne, which is east of Mariupol.

Earlier this week, satellite photos from Maxar Technologies revealed what appeared to be rows upon rows of more than 200 freshly dug mass graves in the town of Manhush, located to the west of Mariupol.

The discovery of mass graves has led to accusations that the Russians are trying to conceal the slaughter of civilians in the city.

08:59 PM

Dispatch: ‘One minute away from death', the lucky escape Mariupol

After being trapped for 56 days in besieged Mariupol, the Grinchuk family had two hours to make their way from the ruined building in which they were sheltering to the evacuation point on Taganrog Street.

Iryna Grinchuk, a 47-year-old woman cradling two chihuahuas, credited a tiny transistor radio with enabling her escape with her family. “It was our only link to the outside world,” she said this week from a processing centre for Ukrainian civilians fleeing the Russian invasion.

It would take yet another 24 hours for them to reach safety, however, navigating a gauntlet of over a dozen Russian checkpoints along a “green corridor” to the southeastern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhya.

They were among 79 people to arrive on the first evacuation convoy to successfully leave Mariupol since last week.

Ukrainian authorities had hoped to rescue up to 6,000 people — including civilians trapped inside the Azovstal steelworks, the last bastion in the city where Ukrainian forces are still holding out.

• Read more from Campbell MacDiarmid in Zaporizhzhya

08:52 PM

Five things you may have missed

Here are some key developments from this afternoon.

1. Putin to meet with UN chief, Kremlin says: Russian leader Vladimir Putin is set to meet with António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations, in Moscow next week, it was announced.

2. Russia sets entire southern Ukraine in its sights: in an indication of a major expansion of its war goals, Moscow is now aiming to occupy all of southern Ukraine as well as taking the Donbas in the east, a top Russian commander said on Friday.

3. Putin’s alleged mistress resurfaces in Moscow: the Russian leader's alleged mistress has been photographed in the Russian capital, marking the first sighting of her since the beginning of the invasion. It follows speculation that she has been hiding out in Switzerland.

4. Britain to reopen embassy in Kyiv: Boris Johnson has announced that the UK will reopen its embassy in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, after it was temporarily relocated days before the Russian invasion began.

5. Britain and India call for immediate ceasefire: India and Britain on Friday called on Russia to declare an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine, amid an expansion of economic and defence ties.

Read more on each of these here.

08:43 PM

Zelensky: Allies finally delivering weapons we asked for

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday said allies were finally delivering the heavy weapons that Kyiv had asked for, adding the arms would help save the lives of thousands of people.

In a late night video address, Mr Zelensky also said comments earlier in the day by a Russian commander about the need to link up with Moldova showed Moscow wanted to invade other countries.

08:42 PM

Humanitarian corridor out of Mariupol may be opened this weekend

Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk on Friday said "there is a possibility" a humanitarian corridor out of the besieged port city of Mariupol could be opened up on Saturday.

"Watch the official announcements tomorrow morning. If all goes well, I will confirm," she said in an online address to people waiting to be evacuated.

08:40 PM

Exclusive: France and Germany evaded arms embargo to sell weapons to Russia

France and Germany armed Russia with €273 million (£230 million) of military hardware now likely being used in Ukraine, an EU analysis shared with The Telegraph has revealed.

They sent equipment, which included bombs, rockets, missiles and guns, to Moscow despite an EU-wide embargo on arms shipments to Russia, introduced in the wake of its 2014 annexation of Crimea.

The European Commission was this month forced to close a loophole in its blockade after it was found that at least 10 member states exported almost €350 million (£294 million) in hardware to Vladimir Putin’s regime. Some 78 per cent of that total was supplied by German and French firms.

Olaf Scholz, the German chancellor, has faced fierce criticism this week for his reluctance to provide heavy weapons to Ukraine. Emmanuel Macron’s efforts to negotiate with Putin have seen the French president accused of appeasement.

• Here's more on this story

08:20 PM

Ukraine defence ministry accuses Russia of 'imperialism'

Russia now aims to occupy all of southern Ukraine as well as taking the Donbas in the east, a top Russian commander said on Friday, indicating an expansion of Moscow’s war goals.

Maj Gen Rustam Minnekayev, the deputy commander of the Russian central military district, said one of the current objectives for Russian troops in Ukraine was to gain “full control over the Donbas and southern Ukraine”.

“Control over the south of Ukraine is another way out to Transnistria, where there are also facts of oppression of the Russian-speaking population,” he told a meeting in Yekaterinburg, quoted by Russian news agencies.

Taking enough territory to reach Transnistria in neighbouring Moldova – if that is the goal – would require Russia to not only hold the territory it has seized so far, including Mariupol, but also to make gains further west, including the city of Odesa, where there has been relatively little fighting so far. More on that here.

This prompted a furious reaction from the Ukrainian defence ministry, see below, which labelled it "imperialism".

08:03 PM

Watch: Russia launches four missiles at ground targets in Ukraine

07:48 PM

Kremlin confirms first casualties from Moskva strike

Russia announced on Friday that one crew member died and 27 went missing after the Moskva missile cruiser sank last week, Moscow's first admission of the losses following the tragedy.

"As a result of a fire on April 13, the Moskva missile cruiser was seriously damaged due to the detonation of ammunition," the defence ministry said in a statement carried by Russian news agencies.

"One serviceman was killed, another 27 crew members went missing," the ministry said, adding that "the remaining 396 members" had been evacuated.

This contrasts with a private briefing by the same Russian defence ministry which reportedly said 116 sailors died in the incident and a further 100 were missing, according to Readovka, a pro-Kremlin website which hastily deleted its post on the figures.

Hundreds of sailors were believed to have died aboard the flagship after it was sunk by Ukrainian missiles, with reports suggesting that just a few dozen of the 510-strong crew were able to be rescued.

07:27 PM

UN finds 'horror story of violations against civilians' in Ukraine

Russian actions in Ukraine may amount to war crimes, the UN said Friday, listing summary execution of civilians and levelling of civilian infrastructure among offences needing investigation.

"Our work to date has detailed a horror story of violations perpetrated against civilians," United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet said on Friday.

"Over these eight weeks, international humanitarian law has not merely been ignored but seemingly tossed aside," she said.

"Russian armed forces have indiscriminately shelled and bombed populated areas, killing civilians and wrecking hospitals, schools and other civilian infrastructure, actions that may amount to war crimes," said spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani.

In the town of Bucha, near Kyiv, a UN rights monitoring mission has documented that 50 civilians were killed there, including by summary execution, Shamdasani said.

Bachelet added: "We know much more needs to be done to uncover what happened there and we also know Bucha is not an isolated incident."

07:22 PM

Ukraine now has more tanks on the battlefield than Russia

Thanks to European resupplies, Ukraine’s military now has more tanks on the battlefield than Russia does, according to the Pentagon.

Two months into the war, the delivery of Soviet-era T-72 tanks to Kyiv from the Czech Republic and other European Nato allies has effectively eroded Russia’s advantage, experts have claimed.

“Right now, the Ukrainians have more tanks in Ukraine than the Russians do, and they certainly have the purview to use them,” an unnamed senior US defence official told reporters on Thursday.

Ukraine's armed forces have previously claimed Russia has lost more than 680 of its tanks, the majority of which were destroyed.

A wealth of video footage has emerged online of Russian tanks and armoured vehicles on fire, while others appear to be rusting by the side of roads in rural Ukraine.

• Josie Ensor has more on this

07:13 PM

Minister rejects proxy war fears between Nato and Russia

British defence minister Leo Docherty was asked earlier if there is effectively a proxy war between Nato allies and Russia now that Ukrainian troops are in the UK being trained on how to use new equipment.

"Not at all. I think what it shows is that we are standing by our our brothers and sisters in Ukraine," he said at the Invictus Games in The Hague.

"We've done that all along. We've been very much on the front foot. We were the first European nation to give lethal aid. And we're very proud of that.

"We're proud of the fact that we've been able to help Ukraine defend their homeland."

06:56 PM

War in Ukraine: latest pictures

06:41 PM

Pentagon expects 20 nations at Ukraine talks

The US military expects more than 20 countries to attend Ukraine-focused defence talks it will host in Germany next week that will focus in part on Kyiv's long-term defense needs, the Pentagon said on Friday.

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby appeared to play down expectations of announcements about long-term assistance at the April 26 talks, saying: "We're not going into this with a pre-cooked set of endings here."

He added that about 40 nations are invited to attend the talks, which are not being organised under the Nato alliance umbrella, and include non-Nato nation states.

06:21 PM

Scholz says top priority is avoiding Nato clash with Russia

Nato must avoid a direct military confrontation with Russia that could lead to a third world war, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has warned after he was asked about Germany's failure to deliver heavy weapons to Ukraine.

Mr Scholz is facing growing criticism at home and abroad for his government's apparent reluctance to deliver heavy battlefield weapons to Ukraine.

Asked in an extensive Der Spiegel interview why he thought delivering tanks could lead to nuclear war, he said Germany risked being considered a party to the war in Ukraine.

"That's why it is all the more important that we consider each step very carefully and coordinate closely with one another," he was quoted as saying.

"To avoid an escalation towards Nato is a top priority for me. That's why I don't focus on polls or let myself be irritated by shrill calls. The consequences of an error would be dramatic."

06:04 PM

Clip of captured British-Ukrainian marine pulled from YouTube

YouTube has removed an “interview” of the captured British-Ukrainian marine Aiden Aslin after receiving a “valid privacy complaint”, Daniel Capurro reports.

The video website, which is owned by Google, has also indefinitely suspended monetisation on the channel of Graham Phillips, 43, the British blogger and apparent Russian propagandist who performed the interview.

The company had come under fire from human rights lawyers and Mr Aslin’s MP for hosting the video in which a hand-cuffed Mr Aslin denounces Ukraine and asks Boris Johnson to arrange a prisoner swap so that he might avoid the death penalty.

Geoffrey Robertson, a leading human rights barrister, told The Telegraph earlier this week that both YouTube and Mr Phillips risked prosecution for war crimes.

That allegation was then repeated in the House of Commons by Robert Jenrick, the MP for Newark and a former Cabinet minister.

A YouTube spokesman said: “The video in question has been removed after we received a valid privacy complaint.”

05:50 PM

Illustrated: Ukraine refugees and hardware losses

05:33 PM

UK set to provide Poland with Challenger II tanks in Ukraine arms drive

Britain is planning to send tanks to Poland so more can be provided to Ukraine, Boris Johnson has announced as he warned Russia could still win the war.

The Prime Minister said that he wants to “backfill” supplies of Soviet-era T-72 tanks being provided by Warsaw to help fight off the Russian invasion.

“We are looking at sending tanks to Poland to help them as they send some of their T72s to Ukraine,” he said.

Speaking during a trip to India, the Prime Minister also revealed early plans for Western allies to provide “security guarantees” to Ukraine to avoid it ever being invaded again if the conflict comes to an end.

• Ben Riley-Smith has the latest

05:27 PM

Watch: Britain to reopen embassy in Kyiv, Boris Johnson announces

05:26 PM

Vladimir Putin’s alleged mistress resurfaces

Vladimir Putin’s alleged mistress has resurfaced in Moscow after speculation that she has been hiding out in Switzerland.

Alina Kabaeva, one of Russia’s most revered gymnasts and the woman long rumoured to be the mistress of the 69-year-old Russian president, was photographed on Thursday for the first time since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Dispelling rumours that she is hiding in Switzerland, the 38-year-old Olympic medalist stopped by a rehearsal at Moscow’s VTB Arena ahead of the Alina Festival, her annual charity event scheduled for Saturday.

Photos of Ms Kabaeva were posted late on Thursday by Yekaterina Sirotina, a well-known rhythmic gymnastics choreographer.

• More from Nataliya Vasilyeva, our Russia Correspondent

05:07 PM

Kremlin may have lost 20,000 of its troops in Ukraine

Russia may have lost up to 20,000 troops in the nearly two months since it invaded Ukraine, according to a report on a pro-Kremlin website which was hastily deleted.

The website Readovka said on the Russian social media network VK that around 13,400 Russian troops had been killed during the war and a further 7,000 could be missing in action.

The report, which was rapidly deleted, said the figures were announced at a closed briefing of the Russian Ministry of Defence.

The figures have not been verified but would be a stark increase on the previous troop toll announced by the Russian ministry on March 25, of 1,351 killed and 3,825 wounded.

Readovka reported that among the new casualties were 116 sailors who died when a Moskva missile cruiser struck a warship in the Black Sea, with another 100 crew still missing after it sank.

04:56 PM

Moldova summons Russian ambassador over military statements

Moldova on Friday summoned Moscow's envoy after a senior Russian commander said Moscow sought "control over the south of Ukraine" that could provide access to Moldova's breakaway region of Transnistria.

"Moldova's foreign ministry views these statements as unfounded and contradicting Russia's position in support of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of our country within internationally recognised borders," the ministry said in a statement.

04:40 PM

Scholz rejects 'slanderous' criticism of party's Russia policy

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has hit back against accusations his centre-left Social Democrats have been too lenient towards Russia.

Opponents have confronted his Social Democratic Party (SPD) with a "distorted and slanderous depiction" of its Russia policy since the Second World War, Mr Scholz said in an interview with German weekly Spiegel.

"That annoys me," he said, adding that the SPD was "bound into the Western and transatlantic alliance".

"I support any debate on future policy. But I reject that the ticket to a debate is a lie," Mr Scholz added.

Germany said on Thursday it had reached an agreement with eastern European partners to supply Ukraine with a new batch of heavy weapons "in the next few days".

But the EU country has come under fire for refusing to directly send heavy weapons to Ukraine as Western allies step up their deliveries.

04:24 PM

UN chief to meet Putin in Moscow

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will visit Moscow on Monday, where he will meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin following the invasion of Ukraine.

Guterres will also have a working meeting and lunch with Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov, Eri Kaneko, associate spokesperson for the UN chief, told reporters.

04:19 PM

Russian military says it has captured Ukrainian arms depot

Russia's defence ministry said on Friday that its military had captured a large arms depot in Ukraine's Kharkiv region, the TASS news agency reported.

The defence ministry said that the arms depot contained thousands of tonnes of ammunition, according to TASS.

04:02 PM

Russia-Ukraine talks have stalled, says Lavrov

Talks between Moscow and Kyiv to put an end to the war in Ukraine have stalled, Russia's foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said on Friday.

"They (negotiations) have stalled now," he said after talks with his Kazakh counterpart in Moscow, adding that Russia has still not received an answer to a latest proposal sent around five days ago.

Lavrov said he was under the impression Kyiv may not want to continue the talks.

"It is very strange for me to hear every day statements by various Ukrainian representatives, including the president and his advisers, that make one think that they do not need these negotiations at all, that they have resigned themselves to their fate," he added.

Kremlin aide Vladimir Medinsky, who is Russia's chief negotiator with Kyiv authorities, said however that he had spoken to his Ukrainian counterpart on Friday.

Talks have continued since early in the fighting but offered no concrete results.

03:43 PM

Latest pictures: Pro-Russian troops roam Mariupol

03:30 PM

Next weeks may be decisive in Ukraine war, EU official says

Russia will likely increase its military attacks in eastern Ukraine and along the country's coast, a senior EU official has warned, with the next weeks seen as potentially decisive for the war.

"This is not a fairy tale with an imminent happy ending. I think we are likely to see a very significant increase in the intensity of Russian military attacks in the east, I think we are likely to see an intensification of Russian military attacks along the coast," the official told reporters on Friday afternoon speaking anonymously.

"I think we will see the next couple of weeks as being decisive."

03:28 PM

What Vladimir Putin's staged appearance tells us about the state of the war

When Vladimir Putin announced the “liberation” of Mariupol, he was at pains to stress that the move was aimed at preserving “the life and health” of Russian soldiers.

The leader’s painfully staged conversation in the Kremlin with his defence minister, Sergei Shoigu, was his first public intervention in the war at this tactical level and, to some observers, it reflected ordinary Russians’ concerns about the conflict.

“We must always think, but even more so in this case – about preserving the life and health of our soldiers and officers,” he told Shoigu, as if he had not risked the lives of these very men with his bloody invasion.

After all, Russian forces have been at it for weeks now with little to show for their efforts besides nine exhausted battalion tactical groups and massive civilian misery.

Putin knows he needs those troops and, just as with those that made it back from the mauling north of Kyiv, it will take weeks for them to be in any shape at all to contribute to the effort in the Donbas.

• Dominic Nicholls has this analysis

03:06 PM

In maps: three phases of war

02:56 PM

Britain and India call for immediate ceasefire in Ukraine

India and Britain on Friday called on Russia to declare an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine, as Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced an expansion of economic and defence ties.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he and Mr Johnson discussed the situation in Ukraine during a meeting in New Delhi and underscored the importance of diplomacy and dialogue.

Mr Johnson did not pressure Mr Modi to take a tougher stand against Russia over its actions in Ukraine, said Harsh Shringla, India's foreign secretary.

While India has condemned the killings of civilians in Ukraine, it has so far not criticised Russian President Vladimir Putin, and abstained when the UN General Assembly voted this month to suspend Russia from the Human Rights Council.

India was an ally of Moscow during the Cold War but has since sought to maintain ties with both Russia and Western nations.

02:31 PM

We share struggle against authoritarianism, Taiwan tells Ukraine

Taiwan's foreign minister told the mayor of Ukraine's capital on Friday their democracies stood on "the frontline of resisting the expansion of authoritarianism as he announced a donation of £6.2 million to Kyiv and Ukrainian medical institutions.

The war in Ukraine has garnered broad sympathy in Taiwan, with many seeing parallels between Russia's invasion and growing military pressure from China, which views the democratically governed island as its own territory.

Taiwan has condemned Russia's invasion, joined Western-led sanctions and donated £15.5 million for Ukrainian refugees, mostly raised from the public. China has not condemned Russia.

Speaking by video conference to Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko, Taiwan's foreign minister Joseph Wu added: "The Taiwanese government and people also face a high threat from the authoritarian regime across the Taiwan Strait, and therefore feel the current situation faced by Ukraine as though it is happening to ourselves."

02:19 PM

War in Ukraine: latest pictures

02:06 PM

Nuclear watchdog chief to visit Ukraine's Chornobyl next week

The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) will visit Ukraine's Chornobyl dormant nuclear plant next week, the watchdog said on Friday.

Rafael Grossi will head an expert mission to step up efforts to help prevent the danger of a nuclear accident during the conflict in the country, the agency said in a statement.

The team of nuclear safety, security and safeguards staff will be in Chornobyl from April 26 to deliver vital equipment and conduct radiological and other assessments at the site, which was held by Russian forces for five weeks before they withdrew on March 31, it said.

Grossi added that more IAEA missions to Chornobyl and other nuclear facilities in Ukraine would follow within weeks.

01:57 PM

British ambassador 'looking forward' to Kyiv return

I'm heading back. Looking forward to working in Kyiv #Ukraine️ again. https://t.co/1lJRVqVQnR

— Melinda Simmons (@MelSimmonsFCDO) April 22, 2022

01:47 PM

Kyiv refusing to allow Mariupol troops to surrender, says Putin

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday accused Kyiv of refusing to allow Ukrainian troops to surrender in the besieged port city of Mariupol, as he spoke to EU chief Charles Michel.

"All servicemen of the Ukrainian armed forces, militants of the national battalions and foreign mercenaries who laid down their arms are guaranteed life, decent treatment in accordance with international law, and the provision of quality medical care," Putin told the European Council President, according to the Kremlin.

"But the Kyiv regime is not allowing for this opportunity to be used."

Ukraine says hundreds of its forces and civilians are holed up inside the sprawling Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol and Kyiv has repeatedly called for a ceasefire to allow women, children and the elderly to safely exit the shattered city.

During what the Kremlin called "lengthy" phone talks with Michel, Putin also claimed that "numerous war crimes" of Ukrainian forces have been ignored.

01:36 PM

France sending heavy artillery to Ukraine

France is sending several heavy artillery pieces to Ukraine, President Emmanuel Macron has announced, as growing numbers of Western nations contribute heavier arms.

"We are delivering significant equipment, from Milan (anti-tank missiles) to Caesar (self-propelled howitzers)," Mr Macron told regional newspaper Ouest-France.

"I think we have to continue on this route. Always with the red line that we will not become parties to the conflict."

Defence Minister Florence Parly confirmed on Twitter that France would send "several Caesar artillery cannons and thousands of shells".

Built by partly state-owned arms maker Nexter, the Caesar is a 155mm howitzer mounted on a six-wheeled truck chassis, capable of firing shells at ranges of more than 40 kilometres (25 miles).

01:29 PM

Moscow lifts lid on next phase of invasion

Russia has given the most detailed description yet of its goals in the "second phase" of its war on Ukraine, saying it wants to carve out a sizeable slice of the country.

Ukraine's government, emboldened by a fresh influx of high-grade Western weaponry, said its beleaguered forces were still holding out inside a sprawling, seaside steelworks in the razed city of Mariupol.

But the Kremlin has claimed the "liberation" of Mariupol, whose control is pivotal to its war plans nearly two months after the invasion.

"Since the start of the second phase of the special operation... one of the tasks of the Russian army is to establish full control over the Donbas and southern Ukraine," Russia's Major General Rustam Minnekaev said.

"This will provide a land corridor to Crimea," he added, according to Russian news agencies, referring to the peninsula Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014.

01:22 PM

US politicians call for field hospitals on Ukrainian border

A bipartisan group of US lawmakers is calling on the Biden administration to establish field hospitals near Ukraine's border and ramp up medical support.

Forces aligned with Ukraine have suffered thousands of casualties since Russia invaded on February 24, while Russian strikes on hospitals and other non-military targets have killed large numbers of civilians.

The Associated Press has documented three dozen Russian attacks on medical facilities, hitting medics, patients and even newborns.

More than a dozen House of Representatives members wrote on Friday to the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin asking for the US to fill gaps in Ukraine's medical infrastructure.

The steps recommended by the group include opening field hospitals in eastern Poland, providing Ukraine with armored ambulances and taking some of the sick and wounded to the US military's Landstuhl regional hospital in western Germany.

01:07 PM

EU says gas payments may be possible in Russian roubles

European Union companies may be able to comply with Russia's proposed system to pay for gas in roubles without falling foul of the bloc's sanctions against Moscow, but it is not yet clear how such a procedure would work, the European Commission said on Friday.

Moscow in March issued a decree proposing that energy buyers open accounts at Gazprombank, where payments in euros or dollars would be converted to roubles. That decree does not necessarily prevent a payment process that would comply with the EU's sanctions regime, the Commission said in a guidance document sent to EU member states and published online.

"However, the procedure for derogations from the requirements of the decree is not clear yet," the document said.

12:52 PM

Tens of thousands of Ukrainians still fleeing war, UN says

A total of 5,133,747 Ukrainians have fled the country since Russia invaded on February 24, the UN refugee agency said Friday.

The figure marks an increase of 48,387 from Thursday's data, UNHCR said.

Some 1,098,000 Ukrainians have left the country during April so far, compared with 3.4 million for the whole of March.

Women and children account for 90 percent of those who fled abroad, with men aged 18 to 60 eligible for military call-up unable to leave.

The UN's International Organization for Migration (IOM) said an additional 218,000 citizens of third-countries - largely students and migrant workers - have also escaped to neighbouring countries.

Beyond the refugees, the IOM estimates 7.7 million people are displaced within in Ukraine.

12:51 PM

Britain considering sending tanks to Poland to support Ukraine's fight, Boris Johnson says

Boris Johnson today revealed the UK is considering donating tanks to Poland to replace any heavy armoured vehicles which the country may decide to give to Ukraine as it fights back against the Russian invasion.

The Prime Minister said the Government is "looking more at what we can do to backfill in countries such as Poland who may want to send heavier weaponry to help defend the Ukrainians".

The arrangement would see the UK send tanks to Poland should Warsaw decide to donate some of its fleet of Russian-made T-72s to Ukraine.

The announcement represents a significant step forward in Britain's response to the war as it continues to expand its offer of support to Kyiv.

Meanwhile, Mr Johnson also predicted the UK and other Western allies will eventually give "security guarantees" to Ukraine in order to deter a future Russian attack.

Speaking at a press conference in New Delhi, India, Mr Johnson said countries are likely to promise Ukraine weaponry, training and intelligence sharing to "make sure that their territory is so fortified as to be impregnable".

Jack Maidment has all the latest politics news on our dedicated live blog.

12:46 PM

Putin tells EU's Michel Ukraine is being 'inconsistent' at talks

Russian President Vladimir Putin told European Council President Charles Michel that he would only hold direct talks with Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky if ongoing discussions between the two countries produce concrete results, the Kremlin said on Friday.

Putin told Mr Michel that Kyiv was showing that it was not ready to seek mutually acceptable solutions and accused the Ukrainian side of being "inconsistent" in negotiations.

12:45 PM

Pictured: British embassy in Kyiv which is due to reopen next week

12:32 PM

Watch: Russia claims victory in Mariupol despite Azov Commander saying Ukrainian troops hold the city

12:17 PM

Ukraine's postal service hit by cyberattack after sales of warship stamp go online

Ukraine's national postal service Ukrposhta said it had been hit by a cyberattack on Friday after sales of a postage stamp depicting a Ukrainian soldier making a crude gesture to a Russian warship went online.

Queues formed to buy the stamp when it went on sale at the postal headquarters in Kyiv last week following the sinking of the flagship of Russia's Black Sea fleet. Kyiv said it had hit the cruiser Moskva with missiles. Russia said the ship sank while being towed in stormy seas after a fire caused by an explosion of ammunition.

Ihor Smilianskyi, Ukrposhta's director general, issued an apology to customers for what he said was a DDoS (distributed denial-of-service) attack but did not say who might be behind it.

"We are really doing everything, together with internet providers, to restore both the online store and other Ukrposhta systems that are also temporarily not working due to a DDos attack on our systems," he wrote on Facebook.

12:10 PM

EU chief pushes Putin for Mariupol humanitarian access

European Council president Charles Michel said he urged Russian President Vladimir Putin in a phone call Friday to allow humanitarian access to the besieged Ukrainian city of Mariupol during Orthodox Easter.

"Strongly urged for immediate humanitarian access and safe passage from Mariupol and other besieged cities all the more on the occasion of Orthodox Easter," Mr Michel said on Twitter after the call, adding he "firmly reiterated the EU's position: support for Ukraine and her sovereignty, condemnation and sanctions for Russia's aggression."

11:35 AM

Russia ready for truce at Mariupol plant 'at any moment'

Russia's defence ministry said Friday it was ready for a humanitarian ceasefire at Mariupol's Azovstal steel plant - the last stronghold of Ukrainian forces in the strategic port city - if Kyiv's soldiers surrender.

"We once again declare that Russia is ready at any moment to introduce a regime of silence and announce a humanitarian pause for the evacuation of civilians," the defence ministry said, adding that the ceasefire would start with the "raising of white flags" by Ukraine's forces.

11:25 AM

Erdogan says he plans calls with Putin and Zelensky for leaders' meeting

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday he was planning to hold phone calls with his Russian and Ukrainian counterparts in the coming days, adding that he hoped the calls could lead to a leaders' meeting in Turkey to end the Russia-Ukraine war.

Nato member Turkey shares a martime border with Ukraine and Russia in the Black Sea, has good ties with both, and has taken a mediating role. It has hosted talks between the Ukrainian and Russian foreign ministers in Antalya, and negotiators from both countries in Istanbul, while pushing for a leaders' meeting.

"We are not without hope," Mr Erdogan told reporters when asked about the peace talks between Kyiv and Moscow.

"Our friends will get in touch with them today, we plan to hold a call again with Putin and Zelensky today or tomorrow," he said.

"With the calls, we plan to carry the process in Istanbul to the leaders' level," he added.

10:53 AM

Russia prepared to stop firing to allow evacuation of Mariupol's Azovstal plant, RIA reports

Russia is prepared to stop firing to allow fighters at the Azovstal steel works in Ukraine's port city of Mariupol to leave the plant, along with any civilians that are still there, RIA cited the defence ministry as saying on Friday.

The ministry said claims by Ukraine and some western countries that Russia was preventing civilians from leaving the city were "groundless", the TASS news agency reported.

10:29 AM

Over 369,000 refugees from Ukraine registered in Germany

More than 369,000 people fleeing the war in Ukraine have been recorded in Germany thus far, said a German Interior Ministry spokesperson.

The tally since the start of the war was at 369,381, said the spokesperson at a regular government news conference on Friday, adding that the actual number is likely much higher.

10:04 AM

Pictured: Ukrainian family gets in car after loading up belongings in Borodyanka

10:01 AM

Baltic nations not buying Russian gas at the moment, Latvia says

Baltic European Union members Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania are not buying Russian gas at the moment and aim to also avoid doing so in the future, Latvia's Prime Minister Krisjanis Karins said on Friday.

"We will cooperate for that, to ensure enough gas supplies, and we will use the underground gas storage in Latvia," Mr Karins told a joint news conference following a meeting of the three Baltic prime ministers.

09:47 AM

Scholz says top priority is avoiding Nato confrontation with Russia

Nato must avoid a direct military confrontation with Russia that could lead to a third world war, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said in an interview with Der Spiegel when asked about Germany's failure to deliver heavy weapons to Ukraine.

Mr Scholz is facing growing criticism at home and abroad for his government's apparent reluctance to deliver heavy battlefield weapons, such as tanks and howitzers, to Ukraine to help it fend off Russian attacks, even as other Western allies step up shipments.

Asked in an extensive interview published on Friday why he thought delivering tanks could lead to nuclear war, he said there was no rule book that stated when Germany could be considered a party to the war in Ukraine.

"That's why it is all the more important that we consider each step very carefully and coordinate closely with one another," he was quoted as saying. "To avoid an escalation towards Nato is a top priority for me."

"That's why I don't focus on polls or let myself be irritated by shrill calls. The consequences of an error would be dramatic."

09:41 AM

One dead in Ukraine transport plane crash

Ukraine said Friday that at least one person died and two were injured when a transport plane crashed over the centre of the country, the latest incident involving accident-prone Soviet-era aircraft.

"An AN-26 aircraft, which according to preliminary information belonged to Ukraine, crashed today in the vicinity of Mikhailovka in the Zaporizhzhia region," the region's administration wrote in a statement on social media.

"The aircraft was performing a technical flight. It has been established that one person was killed and two more were injured."

Crew numbers and the cause of the crash were being investigated, the statement added.

The Soviet-designed Antonov aircraft, still widely used in military and civilian aviation across Russia and the former USSR, crash regularly.

09:29 AM

Russian actions in Ukraine 'may amount to war crimes', UN says

The United Nations on Friday accused Russia of taking action in Ukraine "that may amount to war crimes", including indiscriminate bombing that killed civilians and destroyed schools and hospitals.

"Russian armed forces have indiscriminately shelled and bombed populated areas, killing civilians and wrecking hospitals, schools and other civilian infrastructure, actions that may amount to war crimes," said Ravina Shamdasani, spokesperson for the UN's Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.

09:21 AM

Kremlin condemns suspension of Olympic swimmer Rylov over Ukraine stance

The Kremlin on Friday condemned the nine-month suspension of Olympic champion swimmer Evgeny Rylov over his presence at a rally in support of Moscow's military campaign in Ukraine.

"We believe this is absolutely contrary to the ideas of sport," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said of the decision by swimming's world governing body FINA to suspend Rylov. "When the strongest (competitors) lose the opportunity to participate, this ultimately harms international federations and international competitions."

Mr Rylov, who won gold in the 100 and 200 metres backstroke events at last year's Tokyo Olympics, was among several athletes who attended a massive rally at Moscow's Luzhniki stadium last month hosted by President Vladimir Putin.

08:51 AM

Ukraine says 21,200 Russian personnel killed since invasion started

Ukraine has said that 21,200 Russian personnel have been killed since the beginning of the invasion.

In its latest update, the country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs also reported that Russia had lost 2162 armoured vehicles.

08:42 AM

Pope says June meeting with Russian Orthodox Patriarch is off

Plans for Pope Francis to meet in Jerusalem in June with Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill, who has backed Russia's war in Ukraine, have been suspended, the pope has told an Argentine newspaper.

Reuters reported on April 11 that the Vatican was considering extending the pope's trip to Lebanon on June 12-13 by a day so that he could meet with Kirill on June 14 in Jerusalem.

Pope Francis told La Nacion in an interview that the plan was "suspended" because Vatican diplomats advised that such a meeting "could lend itself to much confusion at this moment".

08:27 AM

Lithuania's president calls for more Nato troops

Nato should increase its deployment of troops in Lithuania and elsewhere on Europe's eastern flank following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Lithuania's president told Germany's foreign minister during a meeting in Vilnius on Friday.

Nato's Enhanced Forward Presence Battalion should be transformed into "at least" the size of a brigade, while air defences should be improved, President Gitanas Nauseda said in a statement.

He also called for a reinforcement of the Baltics' only overland connection to the rest of the European Union, a narrow strip of land between Belarus and Russia's Kaliningrad enclave known as the Suwalki corridor.

08:22 AM

Russia says it plans to take full control of Donbas and Southern Ukraine, Ifax reports

Russia plans to take full control of Donbas and Southern Ukraine as part of the second phase of the military operation, the deputy commander of Russia's central military district said on Friday, the Interfax news agency reported.

He was also cited as saying that Russia planned to forge a land corridor between Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014, and Donbas.

08:04 AM

Russia says its air force struck 58 military targets in Ukraine overnight

Russia's defence ministry said on Friday it had struck 58 military targets in Ukraine overnight, including sites where troops, fuel depots and military equipment were concentrated.

The ministry said it had also struck three targets using high-precision missiles in Ukraine, including an S-300 air defence system and a large concentration of Ukrainian troops with their equipment.

07:46 AM

Transport plane crashes in south Ukraine on technical flight, casualties reported

A Ukrainian AN-26 transport plane crashed during a "technical flight" in southern Ukraine on Friday and there were casualties, local authorities said.

Details of the crash, in the Zaporizhzhia region, were being verified.

07:31 AM

Swimming governing body suspends Olympic champion for nine months over Putin rally

Swimming's world governing body FINA said on Friday it had suspended Russian Olympic gold medallist Evgeny Rylov for nine months after he attended a rally in Moscow in support of Russia's military campaign in Ukraine.

Mr Rylov, who won gold in 100 and 200 metres backstroke events at last year's Tokyo Olympics, was among several athletes who attended a massive rally at Moscow's Luzhniki stadium last month hosted by President Vladimir Putin.

Mr Rylov and other athletes wore the letter "Z" on their outfit, an identifying symbol used by supporters of what Russia calls its "special military operation" in Ukraine.

FINA said the suspension came "following Mr. Rylov's attendance and conduct at an event held at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow".

There was no immediate reaction from Mr Rylov, who also lost his sponsorship deal with swimwear maker Speedo over his presence at the rally.

07:18 AM

Gazprom's Russian gas exports to Europe via Ukraine edge up on Friday

Russian gas producer Gazprom was supplying natural gas to Europe via Ukraine on Friday in line with requests from European consumers, it said.

Requests stood at 58.2 million cubic metres for April 22, the company said, up from 57.3 million cubic metres for April 21.

07:17 AM

Russia's Petropavlovsk applies for export licence amid struggle to sell gold

Russian gold miner Petropavlovsk said on Friday it has applied for a new export licence as the company struggles to sell its gold to sanctions-hit lender Gazprombank, the only buyer of the mining group's entire gold output.

The sanctions imposed on several Russian companies prohibit any financial dealings with such firms and Petropavlovsk is even restricted from making debt repayment to Gazprombank, also its main lender.

The restrictions put the London-listed miner, which has not been targeted by sanctions, in a difficult position as it has an extensive commercial and financial relationship with Gazprombank.

Petropavlovsk said it continues to explore options for sale of its gold, including with other potential buyers, even as it cut its annual total gold production outlook, hurt by supply chain disruptions to output from third-party concentrate.

The company said it now expects an annual total gold production in the range of 375 kilo ounces (koz) to 405 koz, down from a previous outlook of 380-420 koz.

06:42 AM

Mariupol mayor appeals for 'full evacuation' of his southern Ukrainian city

The mayor of Mariupol issued a new appeal on Friday for the "full evacuation" of the southern Ukrainian city which President Vladimir Putin says is now controlled by Russian forces.

"We need only one thing - the full evacuation of the population. About 100,000 people remain in Mariupol," Mayor Vadym Boichenko said on national television.

06:41 AM

No civilian evacuations to take place in Ukraine on Friday

No evacuations of civilians will take place in war-torn Ukraine on Friday as the situation on the roads is too dangerous, a senior official has said.

"Because of the insecurity along the routes, there will be no humanitarian corridors today, April 22," Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk wrote on the Telegram messaging app.

06:40 AM

The latest pictures from Ukraine

06:12 AM

Britain permits gas payments to Gazprombank until May 31

Britain has granted a licence for payments until May 31 to Russia's Gazprombank and its subsidiaries, so as to ensure gas supplies to the European Union, a Treasury document showed.

The licence permits an individual or company to continue payments under contracts that began before April 21, and allows actions such as opening and closing bank accounts in order to make such payments, the document published online showed.

06:08 AM

Britain says Russia blockaded Azovstal plant to contain Ukraine resistance

Russian President Vladimir Putin's decision to blockade the Azovstal steel plant in Ukraine likely indicates a desire to contain resistance in Mariupol, a British military update said on Friday.

"A full ground assault by Russia on the plant would likely incur significant Russian casualties, further decreasing their overall combat effectiveness," the update added.

Heavy shelling continued in the eastern Donbas as Russia seeks to advance further towards settlements, including Krasnyy Lyman, Buhayikva, Barvinkove, Lyman and Popasna, the UK Ministry of Defence tweeted in a regular bulletin.

Reuters could not immediately verify the report.

04:55 AM

Mariupol 'continues to resist', Zelensky says

The devastated city of Mariupol "continues to resist" despite Russian claims to have captured it, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Friday as he welcomed fresh US aid to help confront Moscow's eastern offensive.

Russia says it has "liberated" the city, with just a few thousand Ukrainian soldiers left in the Azovstal plant complex, where thousands more civilians are also believed to have taken refuge.

But Mr Zelensky said the battle continued.

"In the south and east of our country, the occupiers continue to do everything to have a reason to talk about at least some victories," he said in a video address.

04:13 AM

Clearing Azovstal steel plant 'pointless', says Putin

Putin expressed concern for the lives of Russian troops in deciding against sending them in to clear out the sprawling Azovstal steel plant, where the die-hard defenders were hiding in a maze of underground passageways.

At a joint appearance with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, Putin declared, "The completion of combat work to liberate Mariupol is a success," and he offered congratulations to Shoigu.

Shoigu predicted the steel plant could be taken in three to four days, but Putin said that would be "pointless."

"There is no need to climb into these catacombs and crawl underground through these industrial facilities," the Russian leader said. "Block off this industrial area so that not even a fly comes through."

03:50 AM

Local official in Kherson kidnapped by Russian troops, says Ukrainian deputy PM

Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said Russian troops kidnapped a local official heading up a humanitarian convoy in the southern Kherson region. She said the Russians offered to free him in exchange for Russian prisoners of war, but she characterized that as unacceptable.

Vereshchuk also said efforts to establish three humanitarian corridors in the Kherson region failed Thursday because Russian troops did not hold their fire

03:27 AM

Tennis-Wimbledon ban will 'incite hatred,' says Belarus federation

The decision to bar Russian and Belarusian players from Wimbledon over Moscow's invasion of Ukraine will incite "hatred and intolerance", the Belarus Tennis Federation (BTF) said, adding that they are seeking legal advice on the ban.

The grasscourt major announced on Wednesday that Russian and Belarusian competitors would be banned from this year's tournament. Belarus is a key staging area for the invasion, which Russia calls a "special military operation".

"The Belarusian Tennis Federation categorically condemns the decision of the Wimbledon organizers to suspend the Belarusian and Russian tennis players," BTF said in a statement on Thursday.

03:16 AM

In pictures: Volunteer prepares dough for traditional Easter cakes in an old bakery that survived during Russia's invasion of Bucha

02:32 AM

Biden bans Russian ships from US ports

President Joe Biden announced on Thursday the United States will ban Russian-affiliated ships from American ports, joining Canada and European nations in the latest step to pressure Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.

Reuters first reported Biden's planned action on Thursday and had reported in early March that the ban was under consideration by the White House.

"That means no ship, no ship that sails under the Russian flag or that is owned or operated by a Russian entity, will be allowed to dock in a United States port or access our shores. None," Mr Biden said on Thursday.

02:10 AM

New satellite images show what appear to be mass graves near Mariupol

Satellite images released on Thursday showed what appeared to be mass graves near Mariupol, and local officials accused Russia of burying up to 9,000 Ukrainian civilians there in an effort to conceal the slaughter taking place in the siege of the port city.

Satellite image provider Maxar Technologies released the photos, which it said showed more than 200 mass graves in a town where Ukrainian officials say the Russians have been burying Mariupol residents killed in the fighting.

The imagery showed long rows of graves stretching away from an existing cemetery in the town of Manhush, outside Mariupol.

Mariupol Mayor Vadym Boychenko accused the Russians of "hiding their military crimes" by taking the bodies of civilians from the city and burying them in Manhush.

01:49 AM

US to host Ukraine-focused defense talks in Germany

NEWS: Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III to Host Meeting in Germany to Discuss Ukraine's Long-Term Defense Needs https://t.co/xsJbDi27tV

— Department of Defense 🇺🇸 (@DeptofDefense) April 22, 2022

01:27 AM

Today's top stories

• Britain is training Ukrainians in the use of armoured vehicles on UK soil to help Kyiv’s forces launch counter-offensives against Vladimir Putin’s invading army in eastern Ukraine

• Working from home increases the risk of Russian cyber attacks, intelligence agencies have warned

• A video of Vladimir Putin tightly gripping a table during a televised meeting has sparked speculation over the Russian leader’s health

• The "Butcher of Bucha" has been sanctioned by the UK after committing "heinous" acts in Ukraine, as Liz Truss announced a crackdown on Vladimir Putin's generals

• A deadly fire in Russia on Thursday destroyed the building of a top-secret military research institute working to develop Russia's newest ballistic missiles

• Germany was accused of backtracking on its pledge to buy heavy weapons for Ukraine on Thursday, amid reports it vetoed key items requested by Kyiv

• The US will supply Ukraine with deadly so-called “ghost drones” developed specifically for Ukrainian forces to use against Russian troops