Ukraine-Russia war – live: Putin admits he is facing ‘serious challenges’

Ukrainian forces are finding a growing number of components from China in Russian weapons used in Ukraine, a senior adviser in president Volodymyr Zelensky’s office said, as Western supplies are squeezed by sanctions.

The comments came as Russian president Vladimir Putin and defence minister Sergei Shoigu met with China’s defence minister general Li Shangfu less than a month after Xi Jinping held a three-day state visit to Moscow.

In “the weapons recovered from the battlefield we continue to find different electronics,” said Vladyslav Vlasiuk, who advises the Ukrainian president’s chief of staff on sanctions policy.

“The trend is now that there is less Western-made components but more – not hard (to) guess which country – made components. Of course, China,” he said via a video call.

China has repeatedly denied sending military equipment to Russia since Moscow’s all-out invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, officially remaining neutral in the conflict.

Earlier, Mr Putin admitted on Sunday that he is facing “serious challenges” as he celebrated the second Orthodox Easter of his war with Ukraine.

Key Points

• US document leak reveals were already known, Kyiv officials claim

• Russia says Belarusian air force now trained for using its nuclear weapons

• Vladimir Putin’s Bakhmut offensive ‘re-energised’ as Ukraine ‘loses ground’

• ‘Pentagon papers’ leak suspect to appear in US court after FBI arrest

• Russian oil exports exceed pre-war levels as India and China buy crude

• Ukraine says UN Security Council has lost 'meaning’

Wagner releases 100 Ukrainian prisoners of war for Easter

Sunday 16 April 2023 10:48 , Tara Cobham

Wagner, Russia’s most powerful mercenary group, sent at least 100 Ukrainian prisoners of war back to Ukrainian forces to mark Orthodox Easter, according to a video posted by the group's founder, Yevgeny Prigozhin, on Sunday.

"Prepare all of them, feed and water them, check the wounded," Prigozhin was shown saying in a video posted on Telegram by his press service.

A group of Ukrainian prisoners was then shown being told that they would be passed back to Ukrainian forces to mark Orthodox Easter.

"I hope you don't fall back into our hands," an armed Wagner soldier was told telling the men before they were ordered into a truck, some loading packs of water bottles.

More than 100 men, some limping and some being carried on stretchers by their comrades, were shown making their way in line along a muddy road as a man standing on a tank held a white flag.

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, said 130 Ukrainian prisoners of war have been released and returned home in a "great Easter exchange". It was not clear how many Russians were sent back the other way.

Russia's Wagner Group has been gradually pushing out Ukrainian forces from Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine. Wagner now claims control of most of the city, though Ukraine has repeatedly disputed claims its forces have almost been pushed out.

Prigozhin was shown greeting refugees in the city, including a boy named Vladimir, before they were evacuated. The people appeared to be sleeping in a cramped underground cellar of some kind. Prigozhin handed out chocolate bars to the children.

Ukraine says it is finding more Chinese components in Russian weapons

04:35 , Namita Singh

Ukrainian forces are finding a growing number of components from China in Russian weapons used in Ukraine, a senior adviser in president Volodymyr Zelensky’s office told Reuters, as Western supplies are squeezed by sanctions.

In “the weapons recovered from the battlefield we continue to find different electronics,” said Vladyslav Vlasiuk, who advises the president’s chief of staff on sanctions policy.

“The trend is now that there is less Western-made components but more – not hard (to) guess which country – made components. Of course, China,” he said.

China has repeatedly denied sending military equipment to Russia since Moscow’s all-out invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

The assault triggered Western sanctions, including on sending military and dual-use technology such as microchips that could be used in either ordinary appliances or weapons.

Intelligence gathered by Ukrainian experts from the battlefield and shared with Reuters stated that Chinese-made components were found in a navigation system in Orlan aerial drones that had previously used a Swiss system.

The experts also reported finding Chinese parts in the fire control system in Russian tanks that had earlier used French-made parts.

Reuters could not independently verify the intelligence, including whether the components mentioned may have been intended for non-military use or whether they were moved to Russia by a third party.

“We’re picking (up) a lot of different stuff, China made,” Mr Vlasiuk said.

Putin meets with China’s defense minister in Moscow

04:00 , Eleanor Noyce

Russian President Vladimir Putin met with China‘s defense minister on Sunday, underscoring Beijing‘s strengthening engagement with Moscow, with which it has largely aligned its foreign policy in an attempt to diminish the influence of the United States and other Western democracies.

Putin and Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu met with Gen. Li Shangfu less than a month after Chinese leader Xi Jinping held a three-day state visit to Moscow.

China has refused to criticize Russia’s military actions in Ukraine and blames the United States and NATO for provoking Moscow. But China’s foreign minister said last week that China wouldn’t be helping Russia with weapons, as the U.S. and other Western allies have feared.

Officially, China remains neutral in the Ukraine conflict. However, Xi’s trip emphasized how China is increasingly becoming the senior partner in the relationship as it provides Russia with political cover and an economic lifeline during the Ukraine conflict.

In comments opening the meeting, Putin praised the general development of Russia-China relations.

Read more:

Putin meets with China's defense minister in Moscow

Evan Gershkovich pens letter home from Russian prison: ‘I am not losing hope’

02:00 , Eleanor Noyce

In case you missed it...

Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich has sent his first letter home after being detained and imprisoned by Russian intelligence forces.

Mr Gershkovich, 31, has been accused Russian officials of engaging in espionage. The reporter has categorically denied the allegations.

In his letter home, Mr Gershkovich said he was optimistic, looked forward to seeing his family, and poked fun at Russian prison food, according to the Wall Street Journal.

“I want to say that I am not losing hope,” he wrote. “I read. I exercise. And I am trying to write. Maybe, finally, I am going to write something good.”

The letter was addressed to his family in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and dated 5 April. His mother told the paper that he tried to comfort them by adding humour to the note, joking about her cooking.

Read more:

Evan Gershkovich pens letter home from Russian prison: ‘I am not losing hope’

Ukraine’s foreign minister to visit Iraq for first time since Russia’s invasion

01:00 , Eleanor Noyce

Ukraine’s foreign minister is to visit Iraq for the first time since Russia’s invasion in February 2022.

Dmytro Kuleba will land in Baghdad on Monday, AFP reports. Here, he is expected to hold talks with Iraq’s foreign minister alongside Prime Minister Mohamed Shia al-Sudani.

Last week, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky held a telephone call with Mr Sudani.

Notably, Iraq has adopted a neutral stance since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, maintaining economic ties with both nations.

Russia attempting to deport Ukrainian children in occupied zone, Ukrainian official claims

Sunday 16 April 2023 23:49 , Eleanor Noyce

Russia is attempting to deport children in the occupied city of Zaporizhzhia in southeastern Ukraine, a Ukrainian military spokesperson has said.

According to CNN, Oleksii Dmytrashkivskyi made the claim on Ukrainian national TV. Some children were reportedly taken from their families and transported to Crimea in buses, Sky News reports.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin last month, citing an alleged scheme to deport Ukrainian children to Russia.

Iran: Jail terms for those behind downing of Ukraine flight

Sunday 16 April 2023 23:00 , Eleanor Noyce

An Iranian court has sentenced an air defense commander allegedly responsible for the deadly downing of a passenger plane amid Iran-U.S. tensions several years ago, a state news agency reported Sunday.

Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard mistakenly shot down the Ukraine International Airlines flight in January 2020. The missile strike killed all 176 people on board and came as Tehran and Washington teetered on the brink of war.

The Guards commander who officials purport ordered the strike was sentenced to 13 years in prison, the official judiciary news outlet said.

Mizan said the commander did not follow protocols in the moments leading up to the shooting down of the plane. The commander was ordered to pay fines to families of victims, the report added.

Mizan said the court also sentenced two personnel allegedly involved in running the surface-to-air missile system Tor M-1 to one year in prison each.

Read more:

Iran: Jail terms for those behind downing of Ukraine flight

Russian hockey competition linked to war in Ukraine ending

Sunday 16 April 2023 22:30 , Eleanor Noyce

Russia and Belarus won’t be allowed to compete in International Ice Hockey Federation tournaments as long as the war in Ukraine continues, the group’s president said Sunday.

With both nations already barred from competing in IIHF events through 2024, its president, Luc Tardif, said a decision on the two countries’ eligibility in 2025 will be made in March.

“I hope Russia and Belarus will come back as soon as possible, because it will mean the war is over,” Tardif said during a news conference held on the final day of the women’s world hockey championships being held in the Toronto suburbs.

“It’s a question of security for fans, our teams. Anyway, no visa, cannot travel,” Tardif added. “And nobody knows how long it’s going to take.”

Russian men’s and women’s hockey players last competed under the Russian Olympic Committee banner at the 2022 Beijing Games, which concluded shortly before Russia invaded Ukraine. That led to the IIHF barring Russia and ally Belarus from competition, and also having Finland and Latvia host the men’s world championships being held next month, after the event was initially awarded to St. Petersburg, Russia.

Read the full story:

Russian hockey competition linked to war in Ukraine ending

Ukraine has repelled more than 45 attacks today, General Staff of the Armed Forces says

Sunday 16 April 2023 21:55 , Eleanor Noyce

Ukraine has repelled more than 45 attacks from Russia today alone, the country’s General Staff of the Armed Forces has confirmed.

“During the day of 16 April, Ukrainian defence forces repelled more than 45 enemy attacks in these areas on the frontline,” the General Staff of the Armed Forces stated.

At least 28 air strikes were fired at Ukraine alongside 25 air defence system missile strikes.

“The Russian aggressor keeps using terror tactics. The likelihood of missile and air strikes across Ukraine remains high,” the authority added.

UK forms nuclear fuel alliance with US, Canada, Japan and France

Sunday 16 April 2023 20:30 , Eleanor Noyce

The UK, US, Canada, Japan and France have formed an alliance to develop shared supply chains for nuclear fuel.

The announcement, made at G7 talks in the northern Japanese city of Sapporo, is aimed at pushing Russia out of the international nuclear energy market, the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero said.

The five countries will use their civil nuclear power sectors to undermine Russia’s grip on supply chains, cutting off another means for President Vladimir Putin to fund his invasion of Ukraine.

Sophie Wingate reports:

UK forms nuclear fuel alliance with US, Canada, Japan and France

14-year-old girl rescued from rubble following Russian rocket attack

Sunday 16 April 2023 19:57 , Eleanor Noyce

A 14-year-old girl has been rescued from the rubble following a Russian rocket attack in eastern Ukraine, Sky News reports.

Russian forces destroyed a five-storey building in Slovyansk, Donetsk on Friday. The bodies of two men were also retrieved from the ruins on Sunday afternoon, bringing the death toll up to 15.

A further 24 people have been injured, with the strike further hitting flats, cars and houses across the city.

Putin hails military cooperation in meeting with Chinese defence minister - Reuters

Sunday 16 April 2023 19:15 , Eleanor Noyce

On Sunday, Russian President Vladimir Putin met with Chinese Defence Minister Li Shangfu in Moscow, notably hailing the military cooperation between the two nations.

Footage of the meeting posted by the Kremlin showed Putin shaking hands with Li. Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu was also present.

“Development of relations between our two nations is going well in all areas -- in the economy, social, cultural and educational sectors, and in military departments,” Putin said in opening remarks.

Beijing had previously announced Li’s visit to Moscow last week, but made no mention of a meeting with Mr Putin.

‘America’s latest intel leak is more Jim Carrey than James Bond', writes Borzou Daragahi

Sunday 16 April 2023 18:46 , Eleanor Noyce

It’s like the plot of a John le Carre novel, if spymaster George Smiley’s people were a clique of confused, pimple-faced gamers. Or James Bond, if 007 were a peach-fuzz-faced lad asked by the bartender for proof of age every time he ordered his vesper martini.

“Shaken, not stirred.”

“Er, how about an apple juice instead, son?”

This week came the revelation that America’s latest intelligence breach was not the work of a crafty Russian mole seeking to undermine the US, nor even a wannabe do-gooder hoping to strike a blow against the abuses of America’s deep state. He was Jack Teixeira, a 21-year-old Massachusetts Air National Guard IT specialist who leaked documents to impress his buddies – a couple of dozen young video game and gun aficionados on an online message board.

Perhaps the key to uncovering America’s most precious secrets is not to graduate with a journalism degree, but to join a group of teenagers on a messaging board trading tips about guns and video games, writes Borzou Daragahi:

America’s latest intel leak is more Jim Carrey than James Bond | Borzou Daragahi

Easter: church head laments conflict in 'historical' Russia

Sunday 16 April 2023 18:15 , Martha Mchardy

Worshipers including President Vladimir Putin crowded into Moscow‘s vast Christ the Savior Cathedral for Easter services led by Russian Orthodox Church head Patriarch Kirill, a supporter of Russia’s military actions in Ukraine.

The services began late Saturday and were to extend long into Sunday as phalanxes of white-robed clerics circulated through the cathedral swinging smoking censers and a choir sang and chanted.

Most Western churches observed Easter on April 9, but the Russian Orthodox Church follows a different calendar.

In a video message broadcast on state televison before the start of the service, Kirill lamented the “grave events taking place on our Russian historical land, ” echoing the claim of Putin and other Russian officials that an independent Ukraine is essentially a fiction.

Kirill called for prayers “so that peace and a common good life, fraternal relations again unite our peoples, who were once the one people of united Russia.”

Putin was shown among the standing worshipers, holding a thin red candle.

EU says unilateral action on trade unacceptable after grain import bans

Sunday 16 April 2023 17:45 , Martha Mchardy

Unilateral action on trade by European Union member states is unacceptable, a European Commission spokesperson said on Sunday, after Poland and Hungary announced bans on grain and other food imports from Ukraine to protect the local agricultural sector.

After Russia’s invasion blocked some Black Sea ports, large quantities of Ukrainian grain, which is cheaper than that produced in the European Union, ended up staying in Central European states due to logistical bottlenecks, hitting prices and sales for local farmers.

The issue has created a political problem for Poland’s ruling nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party in an election year as it has angered people in rural areas where support for PiS is usually high.

“We are aware of Poland and Hungary’s announcements regarding the ban on imports of grain and other agricultural products from Ukraine,” the spokesperson said in an emailed statement. “In this context, it is important to underline that trade policy is of EU exclusive competence and, therefore, unilateral actions are not acceptable.”

“In such challenging times, it is crucial to coordinate and align all decisions within the EU,” the statement added.

The Polish ban, which came into effect on Saturday evening, will also apply to the transit of these products through the country, the development and technology minister said on Sunday.

“The ban is full, including the ban on transit through Poland,” Waldemar Buda wrote on Twitter, adding that talks would be held with the Ukrainian side to create a system that ensures goods only pass through Poland and do not end up on the local market.

Ukraine’s ministry of agrarian policy and food said on Saturday that the Polish ban contradicted existing bilateral agreements on exports, and called for talks to settle the issue.

Ukraine’s state-run Ukrinform news agency said Ukrainian and Polish ministers are due to meet on Monday in Poland and the transit arrangement would be focused on in the talks.

Poland’s Agriculture Minister Robert Telus was quoted as saying on Sunday that the ban was necessary to “open the eyes of the EU to the fact that further decisions are needed that will allow products from Ukraine to go deep into Europe, and not stay in Poland.”

Ukraine exports most of its agricultural goods, especially grain, via its Black Sea ports, unblocked in July in line with an agreement between Ukraine, Turkey, Russia and the United Nations.

Around 3 million tonnes of grain left Ukraine every month via the Black Sea grain corridor while only up to 200,000 tonnes are moving to European ports through Polish territory, according to the Ukrainian ministry.

Ukraine’s farm minister Mykola Solsky said at the weekend that 500,000 to 700,000 tonnes of various agricultural products cross the Polish border every month, including grain, vegetable oil, sugar, eggs, meat and other products.

Dozens of POWs freed as Ukraine marks Orthodox Easter

Sunday 16 April 2023 17:15 , Martha Mchardy

More than 100 Ukrainian prisoners of war have been released as part of a major Easter exchange with Russia, a top official said Sunday, as Orthodox Ukrainians marked the holiday for a second time since Moscow unleashed its brutal full-scale war last February.

While celebrations were subdued due to security risks, with a curfew barring the faithful from customary all-night services, Ukrainian authorities and ordinary people shared messages of hope, linking the story of Jesus’ resurrection to their longing for peace and a Ukrainian victory.

Dozens of families had special reasons to rejoice, as presidential adviser Andriy Yermak announced that 130 soldiers, sailors, border guards and others captured by Moscow were on their way back home following a “big Easter prisoner exchange.”

Yermak said in a Telegram post Sunday that those released included troops who fought near Bakhmut, the eastern mining city which has for months been the focus of Russia’s grinding offensive.

“The lives of our people are the highest value for us,” Yermak said, adding that Kyiv’s goal was to bring back all remaining POWs.

There was no immediate information on how many Russian prisoners were released, but the press service of the founder of the Wagner Group, the Kremlin-affiliated paramilitary force whose fighters are prominent in eastern Ukraine, also released a video Sunday showing Ukrainian prisoners of war being readied for an exchange.

The video, published on the Telegram messaging service, features Wagner founder Yevgeny Prigozhin instructing a soldier to prepare the Ukrainian captives to leave Russian-controlled territory “by lunchtime” on Sunday. The POWs are then shown boarding trucks and walking along a road.

Hanna Arhirova reports:

Dozens of POWs freed as Ukraine marks Orthodox Easter

Brazil's Lula calls for 'peace group' to broker Ukraine-Russia deal

Sunday 16 April 2023 16:44 , Martha Mchardy

Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Sunday again proposed establishing a group of countries not involved with the Russia-Ukraine war to broker peace, saying he had discussed the matter with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping earlier this week.

“I think we need to sit on a table and say, ‘that’s enough, let’s start talking’ because war never brought and will never bring any benefit to humanity,” said president Lula, who has been critical of the United States and the European Union for their role in the conflict.

The Brazilian president told reporters in Abu Dhabi, where he finished a trip to Asia, that he was trying to gather a group of leaders that “prefer to talk about peace rather than war.”

He cited Xi and the president of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, both of whom he met this week.

President Lula had previously said the group should gather countries not “encouraging” war, adding that nations that are supplying weapons should be convinced to stop doing so.

The United States and the European Union have been providing Ukraine with weapons and other support since Russia invaded the neighbouring country more than a year ago. Germany earlier this year reportedly asked Brazil to supply arms as well, but president Lula refused.

The Brazilian president repeated that the decision to start war was “made by two countries,” appearing to also place some blame on Ukraine, and added that ending it will be harder as more nations would need to be persuaded.

“We are trying to form a group of countries that have no kind of involvement with the war to talk to Russia and Ukraine, but also the U.S. and EU, to convince people that peace is the best way to establish a process of conversation,” president Lula said.

Mr Lula had a call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy earlier this year. On Monday, his administration will host Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Brasilia.

Putin admits he is facing ‘serious challenges’

Sunday 16 April 2023 15:40 , Tara Cobham

Russian President Vladimir Putin has admitted he is facing “serious challenges” as he celebrates the second Orthodox Easter of his war with Ukraine.

“The wonderful, beloved Easter holiday gives believers hope, inspires good thoughts and deeds, and serves to affirm high moral ideals and values in society,” said Putin, who is waging a war on Ukraine that is feared to have already killed more than 200,000 people.

“The Church has always been together with the people, sharing joys and hardships with them. And today, in the face of serious challenges, it is actively involved in the affairs of mercy and charity, helping people find a strong spiritual support.”

Putin attended an Easter service conducted by the Russian Orthodox Church, which has strongly backed the Kremlin leader’s decision to invade Ukraine, on Sunday.

Putin, dressed in a dark suit, white shirt and dark purple tie, stood to one side in Moscow’s Christ the Saviour Cathedral, holding a lit red candle, live images of the midnight service showed. He also attended last year.

The Russian leader crossed himself several times during the ceremony, known as the Divine Liturgy. When Patriarch Kirill announced “Christ has risen”, Putin joined the other members of the congregation with the reply “Truly he is risen”. He otherwise did not speak.

Kirill’s statements backing Russia’s invasion, which Kyiv and Western nations condemn as an act of aggression, have splintered the worldwide Orthodox Church.

In January, Putin praised the church for supporting Moscow’s forces fighting in Ukraine in an Orthodox Christmas message designed to rally people behind his vision of modern Russia.

Polish ban on Ukrainian grain imports to apply to transit

Sunday 16 April 2023 12:28 , Tara Cobham

A Polish ban on imports of Ukrainian grain and other food will also apply to the transit of these products through the country, the development and technology minister said on Sunday.

Poland and Hungary said on Saturday that they had decided to ban imports from neighbouring Ukraine to protect the local agricultural sector after a flood of supply depressed prices across the region. The Polish ban came into effect on Saturday evening.

"The ban is full, including the ban on transit through Poland," Waldemar Buda wrote on Twitter, adding that talks would be held with the Ukrainian side to create a system that ensures goods only pass through Poland and do not end up on the local market.

Ukraine's ministry of agrarian policy and food said on Saturday that the Polish ban contradicted existing bilateral agreements on exports, and called for talks to settle the issue.

After Russia's invasion blocked some Black Sea ports, large quantities of Ukrainian grain, which is cheaper than that produced in the European Union, ended up staying in Central European states due to logistical bottlenecks, hitting prices and sales for local farmers.

The issue has created a political problem for Poland's ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party in an election year as it has angered people in rural areas where support for the party is usually high.

YouTube ‘hosting videos glorifying and fundraising for Wagner'

Sunday 16 April 2023 08:42 , Tara Cobham

YouTube is hosting videos glamorising and raising funds for the Wagner Group, it has been reported, leading to claims the platform could have breached sanctions law.

Multiple propaganda clips feature on the video and social media platform glorifying the Russian private military company accused of war crimes, reported The Sunday Times. The videos also raise money for ammunition for the mercenaries, who have been accused of rape, torture and murder in Ukraine and elsewhere. The clips, which include rap songs, even encourage viewers to join the paramilitary organisation, which include tens of thousands of convicts from jails in Russia and Africa.

The group, which is leading the bloodiest battle of the war in Bakhmut, eastern Ukraine, has been sanctioned by many western governments, with the US designating it a “transnational criminal organisation” and the UK sanctioning its leader Yevgeny Prigozhin.

Experts said YouTube, which is owned by Google, could be breaching sanctions law. Jonathan Winer, a former deputy assistant US secretary of state for international law enforcement, told The Sunday Times: “Tech platforms like YouTube do not get a free pass in providing services to sanctioned entities like the Wagner Group.”

The algorithm of YouTube, which is owned by Google, also appears to be fuelling pro-Russian disinformation, evidenced by the platform directing viewers to more violent Wagner videos after the previous one ends.

The clips also seem to break the platform’s community guidelines, which ban “content praising or justifying violent acts carried out by violent extremist, criminal, or terrorist organisations”.

One recruitment promotional video is of dancing balaclava-clad mercenaries chanting the lyrics: “War is our element / Come on, Russia, get up / Come on Russia / Come on, Wagner play / It’s the breath of Armageddon / This is the birth of a new country / Russia, rise under the holy banners / Holy banners of holy war.”

A YouTube spokeswoman told The Sunday Times: “Content intended to praise, promote, or aid violent extremist or criminal organisations is not allowed on YouTube. Google is committed to compliance with US sanctions laws and enforces related policies unader its terms of service.”

‘Unprecedented bloody battles’ in Bakhmut, says Ukraine

Sunday 16 April 2023 07:27 , Tara Cobham

“Bloody battles unprecedented in recent decades” are taking place between Ukrainian and Russian armed forces in the eastern city of Bakhmut, but pro-Kyiv forces are still holding on, Ukraine’s military reported on Saturday.

Fighters of Russia’s Wagner mercenary group also captured two more areas of Bakhmut, Russia’s Defence Ministry said earlier on Saturday, but the report could not be independently confirmed.

Serhiy Cherevatyi, a spokesperson for Ukraine’s eastern military command, told the 1+1 television channel: “Bloody battles unprecedented in recent decades are taking place in the middle of the city’s urban area.

“Our soldiers are doing everything in bloody and fierce battles to grind down [the enemy’s] combat capability and break its morale. Every day, in every corner of this city, they are successfully doing so.”

As Russia launched a renewed assault in Bakhmut, Ukrainian troops had been forced to cede some territory there, the UK said in an intelligence update on Friday.

The extraordinarily bloody fighting comes as the death toll from a Russian attack on residential buildings in nearby Sloviansk rose to 11. Russian missiles hit residential buildings in the eastern Ukrainian on Friday, killing 11 people, wounding 21 and reducing parts of apartment blocks to a tangled mess of metal and concrete.

Russia should pay for damage caused in Ukraine, US treasury secretary says

Sunday 16 April 2023 06:40 , Vishwam Sankaran

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen says Russia should pay for the damage caused in Ukraine during Moscow’s invasion.

Ms Yellen said talks are ongoing on the potential mechanisms to make that happen.

“That’s a responsibility that I think the global community expects Russia to bear. This is something we’re discussing with our partners, but there are legal constraints on what we can do with frozen Russian assets,” she said in an interview with CNN’s Fareed Zakaria.

Finland unveils first section of fence under construction along border with Russia

Sunday 16 April 2023 06:20 , Vishwam Sankaran

Finland has unveiled the first section of its barbed-wired fence under construction along its long border with Russia, mainly meant to curb illegal migration.

The Finnish Border Guard showcased the building of the initial 3km (1.8 mile) stretch of the fence on Friday less than two weeks after the Nordic country joined NATO as the 31st member of the military alliance.

The border’s construction was approved last year amid wide political support mainly to prevent illegal immigration from Russia.

In 2015-2016, as a show of its strength Moscow organise large numbers of asylum-seekers, mostly from Afghanistan, Iraq, and other Middle Eastern countries, to northern Finnish crossing points.

Putin signs bill allowing electronic conscription notices

Sunday 16 April 2023 06:00 , Eleanor Noyce

In case you missed it...

Russian President Putin has signed a bill allowing authorities to issue electronic notices to draftees and reservists amid the fighting in Ukraine. The bill signed into law by Putin was published Friday on the official register of government documents.

Russia’s military service rules previously required the in-person delivery of notices to conscripts and reservists who are called up for duty. Under the new law, the notices issued by local military conscription offices will continue to be sent by mail but they would be considered valid from the moment they are put on a state portal for electronic services.

In the past, many Russians avoided the draft by staying away from their address of record. The new law closes that loophole in an apparent effort to create a tool for quickly beefing up the military ahead of a widely anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive in the coming weeks.

Recipients who fail to show up for service would be prohibited from leaving Russia, would have their drivers’ licenses suspended and would be barred from selling their apartments and other assets.

Read more:

Putin signs bill allowing electronic conscription notices

Brazil's president says US should stop 'encouraging war'

Sunday 16 April 2023 05:40 , Vishwam Sankaran

After his China visit and meeting his counterpart in Beijing, Brazil’s president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said the US should stop “encouraging war” in Ukraine.

“The US needs to stop encouraging war and start talking about peace. The European Union needs to start talking about peace,” Mr Lula said, according to AFP.

With that, he said, the international community could “convince” the Russian and Ukrainian presidents that “peace is in the interest of the whole world.”

Zelensky discusses China over phone call with Macron

Sunday 16 April 2023 05:20 , Vishwam Sankaran

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said he had an “hour and a half” phone call yesterday with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron, discussing the latter’s recent visit to China.

Mr Macron made a three-day visit to China earlier this month along with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen hoping to talk the Chinese president out of supporting Russia in its invasion of Ukraine.

“The time is not for negotiations, even if we prepare them, we have to set milestones,” the French president said after his China visit.

Over the phone call, Mr Zelensky said he also discussed “the need for Ukraine to obtain effective security guarantees even before our country joins (NATO)” with Mr Macron.

From Putin’s health to spying on allies: Five key takeaways from leaked Pentagon documents

Sunday 16 April 2023 05:00 , Eleanor Noyce

Highly classified military documents shedding light on American intelligence gathered about other countries were released online this week, sending the Pentagon into full-speed damage control to assure allies and assess the scope of the leak.

On Thursday, armed FBI officers arrested a member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard. Authorities raided the home of 21-year-old Jack Teixeira — who worked in cyber security for the Guard — and took him into custody.

The information has apparently highlighted potential vulnerabilities in Ukraine’s air defence capabilities and exposed private assessments by allies on an array of intelligence matters, raising questions about whether the leak will erode allies’ trust in sharing information with the US or affect Ukraine’s strategic combat plans.

My colleague Tara Cobham reports:

What was in the Pentagon leak?

Ukraine pushes back on Poland's food grain import ban

Sunday 16 April 2023 04:40 , Vishwam Sankaran

Following Poland’s move to temporarily ban grain and other food imports from Ukraine to soothe its own farmers, Ukrainian agriculture minister has said the decision violates an agreement reached earlier this month.

The Ukrainian minister Mykola Solskyi said during a briefing that he hopes the issue would be resolved in a week.

“We understand this tough competition, which resulted from the blockade of Ukrainian ports. But, it is obvious – for the whole world and for any person in this world – that the Ukrainian farmer is in the most difficult situation. And we ask the Polish side to take this into account,” Mr Solskyi said, according to local news.

“Considering our strong firm and ongoing cooperation with the Polish side...I hope that we will reach an agreement early next week,” he added.

Zelensky imposes sanctions against nearly 700 Russians

Sunday 16 April 2023 04:20 , Vishwam Sankaran

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky signed two decrees yesterday that impose sanctions on over 690 Russian individuals and legal entities.

Sanctions imposed included those on a number of Russian athletes as well as Russian search engines like Rambler and Yandex.

In a video address earlier this month, the president said: “None of those who help terrorists, work for them, supply or produce weapons for terror will escape responsibility.”

Mr Zelensky has not commented on the new sanctions yet.

Russia trained Belarusian pilots in nuclear weapons use

Sunday 16 April 2023 04:00 , Martha Mchardy

Belarusian air force crews have completed their training for using tactical nuclear weapons as part of Russia‘s plan to deploy the weapons to its ally Belarus amid the fighting in neighboring Ukraine, the Russian Defense Ministry said Friday.

The ministry released a video in which a Belarusian pilot said that the training course in Russia had given the crews of the Belarusian air force’s Su-25 ground attack jets the necessary skills for using the weapons.

Russian President Vladimir Putin declared last month that Moscow planned to put some of its tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus. It was another attempt by the Kremlin leader to dangle the nuclear threat to discourage the West from supporting Ukraine.

Read the full story:

Russia trained Belarusian pilots in nuclear weapons use

Hungary temporarily bans food imports from Ukraine

Sunday 16 April 2023 03:38 , Vishwam Sankaran

Following Poland, Hungary has also banned the import of food grains and agricultural products from Ukraine to soothe its own farmers.

“The government is committed to representing the interests of the Hungarian farming community, which is why, in the absence of meaningful European Union measures, it is temporarily prohibiting the import of grain and oilseeds originating from or coming from Ukraine,” Hungarian Agriculture Minister Istvan Nagy said.

Since the beginning of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, cheap Ukrainian grain has been flooding the market in Europe, helped by the EU waiving customs duties and import quotas to help keep Ukraine’s agricultural sector running.

The import restrictions are to last until 30 June, which the minister said should be enough time for the EU to introduce measures.

Poland prohibits food imports from Ukraine to soothe farmers

Sunday 16 April 2023 03:00 , Martha Mchardy

Poland’s government said Saturday that it has decided to temporarily prohibit grain and other food imports from Ukraine as it seeks to soothe the rising anger of Polish farmers, who say they are losing huge amounts of money to a glut of Ukrainian grain on the market.

Ruling party leader Jarosław Kaczyński said at a party convention in eastern Poland that the Polish countryside is facing a “moment of crisis,” and that while Poland supports Ukraine, it was forced to act to protect its farmers.

“Today, the government has decided on a regulation that prohibits the importation of grain, but also dozens of other types of food, to Poland,” Kaczyński said.

Read the full story:

Poland prohibits food imports from Ukraine to soothe farmers

Watch: Clean-up efforts underway after volcanic eruption buries Russian villages in ash - ICYMI

Sunday 16 April 2023 02:00 , Martha Mchardy

James Cleverly to discuss support for Ukraine at G7 ministers' meeting

Sunday 16 April 2023 01:30 , Eleanor Noyce

James Cleverly will use a trip to the G7 foreign ministers’ meeting in Japan, and then to the Pacific Islands and New Zealand, to promote a “free and open” Indo-Pacific.

The Foreign Secretary and his counterparts from the Group of Seven of the world’s advanced economies begin their three-day gathering in Karuizawa on Sunday, ahead of the G7 leaders’ summit in Hiroshima in May.

Discussions are expected to focus on support for Ukraine in its fight against Russia‘s invasion, and closer security and defence ties in the face of China’s growing assertiveness in the Pacific.

Ahead of his travels, Mr Cleverly said: “With increasing competition in the region, it is more important than ever that we promote a free and open Indo-Pacific.

“It is critical to the UK, to our economy, our security and our values.

“Throughout my visit, I will build on commitments to our friends across the Pacific nations in their bid to promote peace and prosperity in the region.”

In pictures: Eleven killed in Russian rocket attack in eastern Ukraine - ICYMI

Sunday 16 April 2023 01:00 , Martha Mchardy

Putin signs bill allowing electronic conscription notices

Sunday 16 April 2023 00:00 , Martha Mchardy

Russian President Putin has signed a bill allowing authorities to issue electronic notices to draftees and reservists amid the fighting in Ukraine. The bill signed into law by Putin was published Friday on the official register of government documents.

Russia’s military service rules previously required the in-person delivery of notices to conscripts and reservists who are called up for duty. Under the new law, the notices issued by local military conscription offices will continue to be sent by mail but they would be considered valid from the moment they are put on a state portal for electronic services.

In the past, many Russians avoided the draft by staying away from their address of record. The new law closes that loophole in an apparent effort to create a tool for quickly beefing up the military ahead of a widely anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive in the coming weeks.

Read the full story:

Putin signs bill allowing electronic conscription notices

NATO member Finland breaks ground on Russia border fence

Saturday 15 April 2023 23:00 , Martha Mchardy

The construction of barbed-wired fence along Finland’s long border with Russia - primarily meant to curb illegal migration - has broken ground near the southeastern town of Imatra less than two weeks after the Nordic country joined NATO as the 31st member of the military alliance.

The Finnish Border Guard on Friday showcased the building of the initial three kilometer (1.8 mile) stretch of the fence to be erected in Pelkola near a crossing point off Imatra, a quiet lakeside town of some 25,000 people.

Finland’s 1,340 kilometer (832 mile) border with Russia is the longest of any European Union member.

Read the full story:

NATO member Finland breaks ground on Russia border fence

Spring call-up is running as planned, Russia confirms

Saturday 15 April 2023 22:45 , Eleanor Noyce

Russia’s regular spring military draft campaign is going ahead as scheduled, with no new plans to send out mass electronic notices under a system recently signed into law by President Vladimir Putin.

The announcement was made by Colonel Andrei Biryukov, an official in an armed forces department responsible for the draft. The statement appeared to be aimed at quelling speculation that Russia may quickly use the new system to launch another mass call-up for the war in Ukraine.

Russia is currently in the process of calling up 147,000 men aged 18 to 27 between 1 April and 15 July to perform compulsory military service as part of its longstanding twice-yearly conscription cycle.

Biryukov said the first conscripts would be dispatched to “permanent deployment points on the territory of the Russian Federation” from 20 April.

He emphasised that some people were still entitled to defer their military service, and said there would be no mass mailings of new electronic summonses to people of conscript age.

Ukraine's Marchenko says G7 support crucial for 'longer' war with Russia

Saturday 15 April 2023 22:15 , Eleanor Noyce

Amid growing recognition that the war could continue for longer than expected, a new international economic support package of $115 billion has given Ukraine more confidence that it can prevail in battling Russia’s invasion.

As confirmed by Ukrainian Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko, the G7 finance ministers assured him during this week’s International Monetary Fund and World Bank meetings in Washington that they will support Ukraine for as long as needed.

He said the fresh pledge of economic support - unlocked by a new four-year, $15.6 billion IMF loan - was “tremendously” important for Ukraine.

“It helps us tremendously because it provides certainty that the IMF, together with G7 nations and supporters of Ukraine, will step in with money to cover our needs for four years,” he said.

“Compared with the last spring meetings, I’m feeling more confident that we can prevail in this war.”

“Financial support is very necessary, as well as military support,” he said, acknowledging growing acceptance that the military conflict could drag on.

Vlad the impressor – how an old friend became a constant thorn in Putin’s side

Saturday 15 April 2023 22:00 , Martha Mchardy

On Monday, Russian opposition activist Vladimir Kara-Murza will be sentenced – his cause is our cause and he should be regarded as one of our own.

Tom Peck reports:

Vlad the impressor – how an old friend became a thorn in Putin’s side | Tom Peck

Ukraine reports unprecedentedly bloody fighting in Bakhmut - Reuters

Saturday 15 April 2023 21:23 , Eleanor Noyce

As Ukrainian and Russian armed forces fight “extraordinarily bloody battles” in the eastern city of Bakhmut, pro-Kyiv forces are still holding on, Ukraine’s military said on Saturday.

Russia’s defence ministry said earlier in the day that fighters from the Wagner mercenary group had captured two more areas of Bakhmut, the main target of Moscow’s offensive in eastern Ukraine.

Since last summer, Wagner has been leading Russia’s efforts to seize Bakhmut, the longest and deadliest battle of the war for both sides.

“Bloody battles unprecedented in recent decades are taking place in the middle of the city’s urban area,” said Serhiy Cherevatyi, spokesperson for Ukraine’s eastern military command.

“Our soldiers are doing everything in bloody and fierce battles to grind down (the enemy’s) combat capability and break its morale. Every day, in every corner of this city, they are successfully doing so,” he told the 1+1 television channel.

Evan Gershkovich pens letter home from Russian prison: ‘I am not losing hope’

Saturday 15 April 2023 21:20 , Eleanor Noyce

Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich has sent his first letter home after being detained and imprisoned by Russian intelligence forces.

Mr Gershkovich, 31, has been accused by Russian officials of engaging in espionage. The reporter has categorically denied the allegations.

In his letter home, Mr Gershkovich said he was optimistic, looked forward to seeing his family, and poked fun at Russian prison food, according to the Wall Street Journal.

“I want to say that I am not losing hope,” he wrote. “I read. I exercise. And I am trying to write. Maybe, finally, I am going to write something good.”

The letter was addressed to his family in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and dated 5 April. His mother told the paper that he tried to comfort them by adding humour to the note, joking about her cooking.

My colleague Graig Graziosi reports:

Evan Gershkovich pens letter home from Russian prison: ‘I am not losing hope’

Sunak and Zelensky discuss accelerating military support to Ukraine

Saturday 15 April 2023 21:00 , Martha Mchardy

Rishi Sunak and Volodymyr Zelensky discussed ramping up military support to Ukraine in a phone call on Friday, Downing Street said.

The Prime Minister told the Ukrainian president that Britain and its allies “needed to continue to ensure Ukraine was in the strongest possible position to build on its recent battlefield successes”.

The two leaders discussed the latest developments in Russia’s invasion, with Mr Sunak paying tribute to the efforts of Ukrainian troops in the highly-contested town of Bakhmut.

Sophie Wingate reports:

Sunak and Zelensky discuss accelerating military support to Ukraine

Voices: Marjorie Taylor Greene’s defence of the Pentagon leaker isn’t just absurd – it’s dangerous

Saturday 15 April 2023 20:00 , Martha Mchardy

The suspect’s white Christian identity combined with his alleged deeds make him the perfect avatar for conservatives raging against internationalism.

Eric Garcia reports:

Marjorie Taylor Greene’s defence of Pentagon leaker is just absurd and dangerous

Russia has lost 10,000+ military vehicles since invasion of Ukraine, UK MoD says

Saturday 15 April 2023 19:38 , Eleanor Noyce

Russia has lost over 10,000 military vehicles since its invasion of Ukraine in March 2022, the UK Ministry of Defence has stated.

Open source intelligence trackers estimate that the total losses could be far greater than this figure.

Verified Russian equipment losses currently include 1900 tanks, more than 3500 other armoured vehicles, over 2400 logistics and supplies vehicles, dozens of radars and command vehicles, and 78 combat jets.

What do the Pentagon Papers really tell us?

Saturday 15 April 2023 19:00 , Martha Mchardy

As the focus around the rather grandiosely-titled Pentagon Papers switches to the identity of the leaker, the question of what the intelligence files reveal goes on apace. The astonishing arrest of a rookie guardsman, Jack Teixeira, is already sparking congressional inquiries into how the 21-year-old was allegedly able to leak up to 300 documents to his friends on the gaming platform, Discord. America’s embarrassment is plain for all to see and her allies will be thinking twice about sharing their own intelligence with the US for fear it too could end up being pored over in some teenager’s chatroom.

So what do these Pentagon Papers tell us and how much damage has Teixeira – or whoever was responsible – done?

Anthony Harwood reports:

What do the Pentagon Papers really tell us?

President Zelensky meets with Emmanuel Macron

Saturday 15 April 2023 18:57 , Eleanor Noyce

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has confirmed that he spoke with French president Emmanuel Macron on Saturday.

Mr Zelensky stated that the pair had discussed Macron’s recent visit to China, further thanking Mr Macron for “condemning the terrible execution” of Ukrainian soldiers by Russian “war criminals.”

Moscow should provide access to detained reporter Evan Gershkovich ‘now’, says U.S Secretary of State

Saturday 15 April 2023 18:45 , Eleanor Noyce

U.S. consular officers have not been granted access to Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, detained in Russia, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Saturday, adding that Moscow should provide access “now”.

The U.S. has pressed Russian authorities to grant U.S. consular access to Mr Gershkovich. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Wednesday that Moscow would provide it “in due time in line with the consular practices and Russian legislation.”

On Monday, the U.S. government declared Mr Gershkovich as “wrongfully detained,” a designation that means that a particular State Department office takes the lead on seeking his release.

President Joe Biden spoke to Mr Greshkovich’s parents on Tuesday and again condemned the journalist’s detention. “We’re making it real clear that it’s totally illegal what’s happening, and we declared it so,” the president said.

On Thursday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov again emphasised Moscow’s claim that Mr Gershkovich was caught red-handed. He denied reports that Russian President Vladimir Putin had personally sanctioned Mr Gershkovich’s arrest.

Poland prohibits food imports from Ukraine to soothe farmers

Saturday 15 April 2023 18:30 , Eleanor Noyce

Poland’s government said Saturday that it has decided to temporarily prohibit grain and other food imports from Ukraine as it seeks to soothe the rising anger of Polish farmers, who say they are losing huge amounts of money to a glut of Ukrainian grain on the market.

Ruling party leader Jarosław Kaczyński said at a party convention in eastern Poland that the Polish countryside is facing a “moment of crisis,” and that while Poland supports Ukraine, it was forced to act to protect its farmers.

“Today, the government has decided on a regulation that prohibits the importation of grain, but also dozens of other types of food, to Poland,” Kaczyński said.

The government announced that the ban on imports would last until June 30. The regulation also includes a prohibition on imports of sugar, eggs, meat, milk and other dairy products and fruits and vegetables.

Farmers in neighbouring countries have also complained about Ukrainian grain flooding their countries and creating a glut that has caused prices to fall — and causing them to take steep losses.

Vanessa Gera reports:

Poland prohibits food imports from Ukraine to soothe farmers

‘The evil state once again demonstrates its essence’, Zelensky says following Sloviansk missile attack

Saturday 15 April 2023 18:21 , Eleanor Noyce

Following a Russian missile attack on the Ukrainian city of Sloviansk, President Zelensky has condemned the “evil” state’s actions.

Eleven people were killed and 21 wounded, Ukrainian public broadcaster Suspilne reported on Saturday.

“The evil state once again demonstrates its essence,” Zelensky wrote in a post accompanied by footage of a damaged building. “Just killing people in broad daylight. Ruining, destroying all life.”

In his nightly video address, issued later, Zelensky said not a single hour had passed in the run-up to this weekend’s Orthodox Easter services “without Russian murders and terror. This is the evil state and it will be the loser. Victory is our duty given humanity of this sort.”

Pavlo Kyrylenko, governor of Donetsk Region, told national television that seven Russian S-300 missiles had been fired in the attacks, confirming that there were “no fewer than seven spots hit.”

In pictures: Ukrainian forces celebrate Orthodox Easter amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine

Saturday 15 April 2023 18:00 , Martha Mchardy

11 people confirmed dead in Slovyansk following Russian missile attacks

Saturday 15 April 2023 17:47 , Eleanor Noyce

11 people have died following a Russian missile attack on the Ukrainian city of Slovyansk, the State Emergency Service has confirmed.

Rescue teams recovered two bodies from beneath the rubble of a house, and are also searching for five people in the wreckage of an apartment building targeted by Russian forces.

Vadym Liakh, the head of the local government, further confirmed that other local residents have been reported missing.

Pavlo Kyrylenko, governor of the Donetsk Region, told national television that seven Russian S-300 missiles had been fired.

How was a 21-year-old gamer able to leak a mountain of major Pentagon secrets?

Saturday 15 April 2023 17:00 , Martha Mchardy

Barely three years into his military career, Jack Teixeira allegedly exposed his country’s most sensitive intelligence gathering operations. Now the Pentagon is being forced into a reckoning on who should have access to America’s secrets.

Bevan Hurley reports:

How was 21-year-old gamer Jack Teixeira able to leak a mountain of Pentagon secrets?

Two women died in Russian shelling in Kherson on Saturday - Office of the Ukrainian Presidency

Saturday 15 April 2023 16:50 , Martha Mchardy

Two women were killed in Russian shelling in Kherson on Saturday, the head of the Office of the Ukrainian Presidency has said.

“They received mine-explosive injuries incompatible with life,” Andriy Yermak wrote on Twitter.

In pictures: Ukrainian Orthodox believers celebrate Easter amid war

Saturday 15 April 2023 16:40 , Martha Mchardy

‘No fewer than seven spots hit’ by Russian missiles in eastern Ukraine

Saturday 15 April 2023 16:23 , Martha Mchardy

Eleven people were killed and 21 wounded, Ukrainian public braodcaster Suspilne reported on Saturday, citing regional emergency services.

Pavlo Kyrylenko, governor of Donetsk Region, told national television earlier that seven Russian S-300 missiles had been fired.

He said there were “no fewer than seven spots hit” in Sloviansk, west of the city Bakhmut, site of the heaviest fighting on the Ukrainian frontline.

Rescue teams searching for victims sifted through rubble through the night, using cranes, ladders and other heavy equipment in the shells of apartments and stairwells. Workers perched precariously on slabs of concrete and moved gingerly up and down ladders.

For some of the shattered apartments, little more than window frames and dangling scraps of plaster remained.

One section of apartments was all but obliterated. A set of crimson curtains remained in place on one balcony.

Much of the work, carried out under night illumination, involved reaching the top of sprawling apartment buildings -- the top two floors of one five-storey building collapsed.

Emergency services said more than 50 rescue workers remained at the site.

Kyrylenko said teams had pulled from the rubble one woman born in 1946. A senior official in President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s office, Daria Zarivna, had earlier said a child pulled alive from the site of the attack had died on the way to a hospital.

Emergency services said several dozen multi-storey buildings and individual houses were damaged in the assault.

“The evil state once again demonstrates its essence,” Zelenskiy wrote in a separate post accompanied by footage of a damaged building. “Just killing people in broad daylight. Ruining, destroying all life.”

In his nightly video address, issued later, Zelenskiy said not a single hour had passed in the run-up to this weekend’s Orthodox Easter services “without Russian murders and terror. This is the evil state and it will be the loser. Victory is our duty given humanity of this sort.” Sloviansk and the nearby city of Kramatorsk are both coveted by Russian forces, currently bogged down in nearby Bakhmut, as they push ahead with their invasion of Ukraine.

Putin told to end war by own Wagner mercenary chief

Saturday 15 April 2023 16:13 , Martha Mchardy

Russian president Vladimir Putin has been urged to end the war in Ukraine by the head of the Wagner mercenary army deployed by the Kremlin.

Yevgeny Prigozhin claimed Russia had taken a “fat chunk” of Ukrainian territory and said president Putin should tell the world Russia has achieved the aims of its “special military operation,” in a video posted online on Friday night.

Mr Prigozhin also said Russian armed forces - who have suffered severe losses - should defend existing gains.

The Wagner mercenary chief also warned that the Russian people may seek a “scapegoat” for military failures as the war drags on, which could lead to revolutionary fervour.

Mr Prigozhin claimed Russia has destroyed “a large part of the active male population of Ukraine” and caused others to flee the country.

“For the authorities and society as a whole, it is today necessary to put a solid full stop on the special military operation,” said Mr Prigozhin.

“The ideal option is to announce the end of the special military operation, to inform everyone that Russia has achieved the results that it planned, and in a sense we have actually achieved them.

“We have ground down a huge number of fighters of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and we can report to ourselves that the tasks of the special military operation have been completed.”

He continued: “Theoretically, Russia has already [made a point] by destroying a large part of the active male population of Ukraine, and by intimidating another part of it, which fled to Europe.

“Russia cut off the Sea of Azov and a large piece of the Black Sea, seized a fat piece of Ukrainian territory and created a land corridor to the Crimea.

“Now there is only one thing left: to firmly gain a foothold, to claw in those territories that already exist.”

The comments mark the first time a senior Putin henchman directly involved in fighting on the ground has publicly called for the Kremlin to halt the war.

Marjorie Taylor Greene defends alleged Pentagon leaker as ‘white, male, Christian’

Saturday 15 April 2023 16:00 , Martha Mchardy

Marjorie Taylor Greene has defended the Air National Guardsman arrested by the FBI for allegedly leaking national security documents.

The far-right Republican lawmaker took to Twitter to show her support for Jack Teixeira who she lauded for being “white, male, christian and antiwar” – although she referred to him as “Jake Teixeira”.

Authorities raided the Massachusetts home of the 21-year-old who worked in cyber security for the Guard and took him into custody on Thursday.

Graeme Massie reports:

Marjorie Taylor Greene defends alleged Pentagon leaker Jack Teixeira

Ukraine’s Zelensky discussed Macron’s China visit with him - Kyiv

Saturday 15 April 2023 15:30 , Martha Mchardy

Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky held a call with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron on Saturday in which the leaders discussed Macron’s visit to China, president Zelensky said.

President Macron visited China last week, where he urged Chinese leader Xi Jinping to “reason” with Russia to stop the war in Ukraine.

“I told him about the situation at the front and further intentions to liberate all our territories,” president Zelensky wrote on the Telegram app. “I praised France’s intention to further strengthen important support for Ukraine on the battlefield.”

In pictures: Eleven killed in Russian rocket attack in eastern Ukraine

Saturday 15 April 2023 15:00 , Martha Mchardy

Polish government bans grain and food imports from Ukraine

Saturday 15 April 2023 14:42 , Martha Mchardy

The Polish government has decided to ban imports of grain and other food from Ukraine to protect the Polish agricultural sector, the leader of the ruling Law and Justice Party (PiS), Jaroslaw Kaczyński, said on Saturday.

Large quantities of Ukrainian grains, which are cheaper than those produced in the European Union, have ended up staying in Central European states amid logistical bottlenecks, hitting prices and sales for local farmers.

This has created a political problem for the PiS in an election year.

“Today, the government has decided on a regulation that prohibits the entry, importation of grain into Poland, but also dozens of other types of food (from Ukraine),” Mr Kaczyński said during the PiS party convention.

The list of these goods will be included in the government regulation, and there are goods “from grain to honey products, very, very many things,” he added.

“We are and remain unchanged friends and allies of Ukraine. We will support her and we support her. ... But it is the duty of every state, every authority, good authority in any case, to protect the interests of its citizens,” Mr Kaczyński said.

Mr Kaczyński said Poland was ready to start talks with Ukraine to settle the grain issue and the Ukrainian side had already been notified of the decisions of the Polish government.

Ukraine awaits US missile system after latest Russian strike

Saturday 15 April 2023 14:39 , Martha Mchardy

Ukraine’s air force said the country would soon have weapons with which to try to prevent attacks like the Russian missile strikes in the eastern Ukrainian city of Sloviansk which took place on Friday.

The delivery of the Patriot air defence system promised by the U.S. was expected in Ukraine sometime after Easter, Ukrainian air force spokesperson Yuriy Ihnat said.

The primarily Orthodox Christian country is preparing to observe Easter on Sunday. Speaking Saturday on Ukrainian state TV, Ihnat declined to give a precise timeline for the arrival of the defensive missile system but said the public would know “as soon as the first Russian aircraft is shot down.”

A group of 65 Ukrainian soldiers completed their training at Oklahoma’s Fort Still Army Post last month and returned to Europe to learn more about using the defensive missile system to track and shoot down enemy aircraft.

Officials said at the time that the Ukrainians would then go back to their country with a Patriot missile battery, which typically includes six mobile launchers, a mobile radar, a power generator and an engagement control center.

Germany and the Netherlands also have pledged to provide a Patriot system each to Ukraine. In addition, a SAMP/T anti-missile system pledged by France and Italy “should enter Ukraine in the near future,” Ihnat said this week.

The Ukrainian military is looking to beef up its ability to intercept missiles as it prepares for an expected spring counter-offensive to retake Russian-occupied areas of the country. Although more than a year of fighting has depleted weapons supplies on both sides, Russian forces have intensified their eight-and-a-half month campaign to seize the city of Bakhmut, the focus of the war’s longest battle so far.

Bakhmut and Sloviansk both are located about 45 kilometers (28 miles) apart in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk province.

Sloviansk death toll rises to 11 after Russian missile strikes

Saturday 15 April 2023 14:34 , Martha Mchardy

The death toll from Russian missile strikes on eastern Ukraine’s city of Sloviansk rose to 11 Saturday as rescue crews tried to reach people trapped in the rubble of an apartment building, Ukrainian authorities said.

A two-year-old boy was among the eleven people killed after Russian forces shelled a block of flats. 21 people were wounded.

Rescue teams in Sloviansk recovered the bodies of two people from under the rubble of a house hit in Friday’s missile strikes, according to the State Emergency Service. They also searched Saturday for five people who remained in the wreckage of the apartment building, as well as the residents of three units who were reported missing, Vadym Liakh, the head of the local government, said.

Kyiv said Sloviansk was hit by seven missiles which hit five buildings, five homes, a school and an administrative building.

From Putin’s health to spying on allies: Five key takeaways from leaked Pentagon documents

Saturday 15 April 2023 14:00 , Martha Mchardy

Highly classified military documents shedding light on American intelligence gathered about other countries were released online this week, sending the Pentagon into full-speed damage control to assure allies and assess the scope of the leak.

On Thursday, armed FBI officers arrested a member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard. Authorities raided the home of 21-year-old Jack Teixeira — who worked in cyber security for the Guard — and took him into custody.

The information has apparently highlighted potential vulnerabilities in Ukraine’s air defence capabilities and exposed private assessments by allies on an array of intelligence matters, raising questions about whether the leak will erode allies’ trust in sharing information with the US or affect Ukraine’s strategic combat plans.

Here are five of the key takeaways from the leaked Pentagon documents:

• UK special forces might have operated in Ukraine

• Ukrainian casualties higher and air munitions lower

• US seems to spy on its allies

• Egypt planned to supply rockets to Russia

• Rumour Putin is undergoing chemotherapy

Tara Cobham reports:

What was in the Pentagon leak?

As Putin signs new law on draft, Russia says spring call-up is running as planned

Saturday 15 April 2023 13:00 , Martha Mchardy

Russia’s regular spring military draft campaign is proceeding as scheduled and there are no plans to send out mass electronic notices under a new system just signed into law by President Vladimir Putin, a top official said on Saturday.

The announcement by Colonel Andrei Biryukov, an official in an armed forces department responsible for the draft, appeared aimed at quelling speculation that Russia may quickly use the new system to launch another mass call-up for the war in Ukraine.

Russia is currently in the process of calling up 147,000 men aged 18 to 27 between April 1 and July 15 to perform compulsory military service as part of its longstanding twice-yearly conscription cycle.

Mr Biryukov said the first conscripts would be dispatched to “permanent deployment points on the territory of the Russian Federation” from April 20.

He emphasised that some people were still entitled to defer their military service, and said there would be no mass mailings of new electronic summonses to people of conscript age.

The current planned cohort of spring conscripts is 12,500 bigger than the 134,500 who were called up this time last year. Conscripts require months of training and Russia has said they will not be sent into war zones in Ukraine, after acknowledging cases where this had happened in the first weeks of the conflict last year.

But they provide a pool of young, trained personnel who can then be encouraged or pressured into signing up as professional soldiers as Russia pursues its stated aim of boosting the armed forces by more than 30 per-cent to 1.5 million.

Tens if not hundreds of thousands of Russian men have fled abroad since the start of the war, an exodus that peaked last September when president Putin ordered a special mobilisation of 300,000 reservists with previous military experience - the first of its kind since World War Two.

President Putin on Friday signed new legislation introducing electronic draft papers, replacing a previous system where call-up notices had to be hand-delivered.

The new draft regime will close numerous loopholes exploited by draft dodgers and lays the groundwork for Russia to carry out a much more thorough and wider mobilisation campaign if and when it decides to do so.

Under the new rules, citizens who evade the draft will be banned from travelling abroad and face other restrictions including on loans and state benefits.

In pictures: Rescuer searches for survivors after Russian shelling in eastern Ukraine

Saturday 15 April 2023 12:35 , Martha Mchardy

Rescuers are searching for survivors after Russian shelling in eastern Ukraine in the city of Sloviansk on Friday killed nine people, including a toddler, and wounded 21.

A two-year-old boy was among nine people killed after Russian forces shelled a block of flats.

Kyiv said Sloviansk was hit by seven missiles which hit five buildings, five homes, a school and an administrative building.

Russia says Wagner mercenaries seize two more areas in Bakhmut

Saturday 15 April 2023 12:22 , Martha Mchardy

Fighters of Russia’s Wagner mercenary group have captured two more areas of the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, Russian news agencies quoted the Defence Ministry as saying on Saturday.

Reuters could not independently confirm the report.

Ukrainian troops have been forced to withdraw from some territory in Bakhmut as Russia mounts a renewed assault there with intense artillery fire over the past two days, Britain said in an intelligence update on Friday.

China protests US sanctioning of firms dealing with Russia

Saturday 15 April 2023 12:00 , Martha Mchardy

Beijing on Saturday protested U.S. sanctions against additional Chinese companies over their alleged attempts to evade U.S. export controls on Russia, calling it an illegal move that endangers global supply chains.

The U.S. Commerce Department on Wednesday put five firms based in mainland China and Hong Kong on its “entity list,” barring them from trading with any U.S. firms without gaining a nearly unobtainable special license.

Washington has been tightening up enforcement of sanctions against foreign firms it sees as providing assistance to Russia in its war against Ukraine, forcing them to choose between trading with Moscow or with the U.S. A total of 28 entities from countries ranging from Malta to Turkey to Singapore were added to the list.

Read the full story:

China protests US sanctioning of firms dealing with Russia

Toddler among nine killed in Russian strikes as Moscow prepares for 'lengthy conflict'

Saturday 15 April 2023 11:36 , Martha Mchardy

A two-year-old boy was among nine people killed in Russian shelling in the eastern Ukrainian city of Sloviansk on Friday, as Moscow anticipates a “lengthy conflict” in Ukraine.

The toddler was rescued from the rubble after Russian forces shelled a block of flats, but he died on his way to hospital, authorities said on Saturday.

The missile strike came as Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a bill to make it easier to mobilise Russians into the army, and prevent them from fleeing the country if drafted.

The UK Ministry of Defence said the move suggests Moscow anticipates a “lengthy conflict” in Ukraine in its latest intelligence briefing posted on Twitter.

The Ministry warned that the new law means authorities would be able to serve call-up papers electronically, rather than by letter, removing one way of avoiding military duties.

Vadim Lyakh, the head of Sloviansk’s military administration said 21 people were wounded in shelling in the city, which is part of the Donetsk region that is under Ukrainian control.

Kyiv said Sloviansk was hit by seven missiles which hit five buildings, five homes, a school and an administrative building.

Saturday 15 April 2023 11:00 , Martha Mchardy

Drones were used by Russia to attack police officers in Kherson, according to the region’s police force.

In a Facebook post earlier today, Kherson’s police said: “The Russian military once again attacked police officers with the help of drones. In Kherson, in the Korabel area, a police car was attacked by a UAV. Two police officers were injured, the car was damaged.”

Ukrainian pianist seeks victory on cultural front at contest in Switzerland

Saturday 15 April 2023 10:30 , Martha Mchardy

Before arriving in Geneva for a renowned piano competition, Ukrainian pianist Roman Lopatynskyi rehearsed in the dark and played concerts by candlelight as air raid sirens resounded across his native Kyiv.

The 29-year-old is participating in the International Competition for Young Pianists in Memory of Vladimir Horowitz, which is being held outside Ukraine for the first time since its inception in 1995 due to the Russian invasion.

In his fourth appearance at the competition, which concludes on April 21, Mr Lopatynskyi hopes to give his nation a reason to be proud.

“If everything works out ... it will be a definite victory for Ukraine on the cultural front,” he told Reuters as he rehearsed in the basement of the Geneva Conservatory on Friday.

As a male of military age, Mr Lopatynskyi requires permission to leave the country for competitions and concerts abroad. But after he performs, he always returns to Ukraine, despite having received numerous offers to relocate.

“If everyone leaves, what will be left there?” said Mr Lopatynskyi, who finished first in the intermediate category in the 2010 edition of the Horowitz competition.

“We are doing everything for there to be life there and for people to look at Ukraine as a country with prospects, possibilities. That there are musicians there, and businesses and even maybe a future.”

Russian-installed official says Ukrainian shelling kills four civilians north of Donetsk

Saturday 15 April 2023 09:16 , Martha Mchardy

Four people were killed and 10 wounded by Ukrainian shelling of a residential area in a Russian-controlled town in eastern Ukraine, the top Russian-installed official in the region said.

The official, Denis Pushilin, said a seven-year-old girl was among those wounded in the town of Yasynuvata, just north of Donetsk.

The shelling and the casualties have not been independently verified.

Yasynuvata is about 80 km (50 miles) south of Sloviansk, where Russian missiles hit residential buildings on Friday and killed at least nine people, including a two-year-old child.

Finland’s embassy in Moscow ‘receives letter of unknown powder’

Saturday 15 April 2023 08:12 , Tara Cobham

Finland's embassy in Moscow received a letter containing an unknown powder and has reported the matter to the Russian authorities, Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Friday.

This comes after Finland became Nato’s newest member earlier this month, posing a “real dilemma” for Russian President Vladimir Putin, according western officials. Finland, which has an 830-mile border with Russia, will be able to make a “significant” contribution to its armament, officials said on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, diplomatic tensions continue to rise elsewhere as the Norwegian PST security police said on Friday that fifteen Russian diplomats expelled by Norway this week had sought to recruit sources, intercept communications and buy advanced technology.

China opposes U.S. Russia-related sanctions on its firms

Saturday 15 April 2023 07:34 , Tara Cobham

China "resolutely opposes" the sanctions the United States placed on some Chinese firms over their alleged involvement with Russia, state media reported the country’s commerce ministry said on Saturday.

The United States on Wednesday imposed sanctions on over 120 targets, including a China-based firm, to squeeze Russia for its war in Ukraine.

The ministry said Washington should immediately correct what it called wrongdoing and stop unreasonable suppression of Chinese companies, media reported.

As Western supplies are squeezed by sanctions, Ukrainian forces are finding more components from China in Russian weapons used in Ukraine, according to a senior adviser in President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's office.

This comes as China’s Defence Minister Li Shangfu will visit Russia from 16-19 April, and meet Russian military officials, the Chinese defence ministry said. U.S. officials have expressed concern China might supply arms to Russia, something Beijing has denied.

US document leak reveals were already known, Kyiv officials claim

Saturday 15 April 2023 06:37 , Vishwam Sankaran

Information on Ukraine’s war efforts against invading Russian forces, which were revealed from the leak of secret US Pentagon documents, were already known and not surprising, according to top officials in Kyiv.

The problems faced by the country were already known, BBC quoted a senior Ukrainian official as saying. The official added that the leaks would not affect relations between the US and Ukraine.

One of the leaked documents suggested the Ukrainian army continued to face challenges in massing troops, equipment, and ammunition.

It suggested Ukraine may fall short of its goals to launch a counter-offensive against Russia.

Ukraine’s National Security and Defence Council head Oleksiy Danilov said the leaks did not affect the military’s plans, adding that “everything will be decided at the last moment”.

Russia fines Wikipedia for Ukraine war article

Saturday 15 April 2023 06:10 , Vishwam Sankaran

A Moscow court has fined the Wikimedia Foundation which owns Wikipedia two million rubles (about $25,000) for refusing to remove an article on the war in Ukraine.

Court documents say Wikipedia refused to remove details about the hostilities “within the framework of the special military operation” in Ukraine, Russia’s state-owned news agency TASS reported.

Over recent months, Wikipedia has had “a steady stream of takedown orders that target well-sourced content on Wikipedia and Wikimedia projects”, CNN reported, citing a senior legal manager at the foundation.

Harsh penalties for people who evade Russia's new military call-up

Saturday 15 April 2023 05:50 , Vishwam Sankaran

Russian president Vladimir Putin has signed into law yesterday a bill that allows for setting up electronic draft call-up procedures. The law is expected to make military mobilisation more streamlined in Russia.

And those failing to comply may face restrictions such as being prohibited from leaving the country, Kyiv Independent noted.

People who are non-compliant with the draft call-ups may also reportedly be restricted from performing societal functions like buying real estate or taking out a loan.

Russia using more Chinese electronic components in weapons, Ukraine claims

Saturday 15 April 2023 05:36 , Vishwam Sankaran

Ukraine has alleged that it is finding more Chinese components in Russian weapons.

A growing number of components in Russian weapons recovered from the battlefield in Ukraine are reportedly originating from China, Reuters reported, citing a senior adviser to Volodymyr Zelensky.

The trend marks a shift away from Russia’s use of Western-made electronics to Chinese ones, the official said.

Two-year-old among civilians killed in Russian missile strikes

Saturday 15 April 2023 05:19 , Vishwam Sankaran

A two-year-old girl was among the civilians killed in missile strikes in eastern Ukraine yesterday, according to the Prosecutor General’s Office.

At least eight people were killed, and 21 injured as a Russian missile hit a five-story building in Donetsk Oblast.

Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky condemned the attack saying “the invaders brutally bombed the city”.

Ukraine PM says Kyiv, Washington remain united despite document leaks

Saturday 15 April 2023 04:02 , Vishwam Sankaran

In an address in the US yesterday, Ukraine’s prime minister Denys Shmyhal said Kyiv and Washington remain united, but declined to say if the mass leak of classified documents was discussed in meetings with US officials.

Mr Shmyhal said he welcomed the “continuous, ironclad and unprecedented support” of the US.

The prime minister’s statement comes as classified documents were leaked in the US which shared the plans for both Ukraine and Russia as the invasion moves forward.

He shared his plans for Ukraine’s future to focus on its reconstruction and restoration to its pre-war state.

Poland plans to 'gradually' supply fighter jets to Ukraine

Saturday 15 April 2023 03:47 , Vishwam Sankaran

Polish president Andrzej Duda said yesterday in a press conference that the country would transfer MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine “gradually”.

Poland’s prime minister Mateusz Morawiecki said the country, which has so far given eight MiG-29 aircraft to Ukraine, can send only a limited number of fighter jets.

It plans to send six more in the coming weeks.

Ukraine’s Spokesperson for the Air Force Command Yurii Ihnat has repeatedly said it needs fighter jets to defend against Russian aircraft dropping high-explosive bombs.

Russian oil exports back above pre-Ukraine war levels as India and China buy 90% of Moscow’s crude

Saturday 15 April 2023 03:30 , Sam Rkaina

Russian crude oil exports are back above levels seen before Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, despite the ratcheting up of Western sanctions, new data shows.

India and China now account for 90 per cent of Russia’s seaborne crude oil exports, according to figures shared with The Independent by commodities tracking firm Kpler.

The Asian giants are each buying an average of 1.5 million barrels per day (bpd), absorbing the shortfall in exports to European nations that previously accounted for two-thirds of Russian crude.

Despite Western sanctions designed to stop funds reaching Vladimir Putin’s war chest following his Ukraine invasion, Russia’s crude oil exports have actually risen from 3.35 million bpd in 2022 to 3.5 million in the first quarter of 2023, Kpler said. After India and China, the two largest buyers of Russian crude are now Turkey and Bulgaria.

Click here for the full story.

Ukrainian prime minister Denys Shmyhal discusses country’s future in Washington DC

Saturday 15 April 2023 02:30 , Sam Rkaina

Ukraine’s prime minister Denys Shmyhal made an address in Washington DC today (14 April), ahead of the country’s risky decision to launch a counteroffensive in the ongoing war with Russia.

The timing also closely aligns with a classified documents leak, sharing the plans for both Ukraine and Russia as the invasion moves forward.

Yesterday (13 April), Shmyhal welcomed the “continuous, ironclad and unprecedented support” of the United States, insisting that Ukraine had accounted for every dollar it had received in help.

The prime minister now plans to focus on Ukraine’s reconstruction, and restoring it to its pre-war state.

Energy, humanitarian demining, housing, critical and social infrastructure, and private sector development were all seated firmly at the top of his list of priorities.

Sunak and Zelensky discuss accelerating military support to Ukraine

Saturday 15 April 2023 01:30 , Sam Rkaina

Rishi Sunak and Volodymyr Zelensky discussed ramping up military support to Ukraine in a phone call on Friday, Downing Street said.

The Prime Minister told the Ukrainian president that Britain and its allies “needed to continue to ensure Ukraine was in the strongest possible position to build on its recent battlefield successes”.

The two leaders discussed the latest developments in Russia’s invasion, with Mr Sunak paying tribute to the efforts of Ukrainian troops in the highly-contested town of Bakhmut.

Click here for the full story.

How was a 21-year-old gamer able to leak a mountain of major Pentagon secrets?

Saturday 15 April 2023 00:30 , Sam Rkaina

Handcuffed and with his legs in shackles, Jack Douglas Teixeira glanced nervously around a crowded Boston courtroom on Friday morning.

The 21-year-old Massachusetts National Guard airman whispered “yes” when informed of his rights as a criminal defendant, according to CNN, showing no hint of the swagger of his online persona OG.

As the hearing concluded, a man in the public gallery shouted: “Love you, Jack.” Without looking back, Mr Teixeira replied: “You too, Dad”.

Federal prosecutors allege that the low-level IT worker, while caught up in the braggadocio culture of online gaming, shared hundreds of classified documents on a Discord chat server in the biggest leak of US intelligence data in a decade.

Despite his low-level rank as a “cyber systems journeyman” with the National Guard, he has held top secret security clearance since 2021, according to charging documents unsealed on Friday.

Click here for the full story.

Ukraine secures promises of $5 billion in additional funding

Friday 14 April 2023 23:30 , Sam Rkaina

Ukraine secured promises of $5 billion in additional funding to support its ongoing fight against Russia amid “fruitful meetings” in Washington this week, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said.

Shmyhal met with representatives of the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the European Investment Bank as well as top U.S. officials, on the sidelines of the spring meetings of the IMF and the World Bank.

He said Ukraine received new pledges of additional support from Switzerland, Denmark and a number of other countries during the meetings, as well as an agreement from U.S. aircraft maker Boeing to relieve Ukrainian companies of $200 million in previous commitments. Kyiv expected to receive more support during an upcoming conference in London, he added.

Ukraine ‘buying time’ for counteroffensive

Friday 14 April 2023 22:22 , Sam Rkaina

Ukrainian officials have said they’re buying time by depleting Russian forces in the battle while Kyiv prepares a counteroffensive.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy argues that if Russia wins the Bakhmut battle, Russian President Vladimir Putin might be able to begin building international support for a deal that would require Ukraine to make unacceptable compromises to end the war.

The Ukrainian president’s office said Friday that fighting over the previous 24 hours in Bakhmut destroyed two kindergartens and residential buildings. The city already resembles a ghost town.

The British military observed that regular Russian troops have increasingly joined the battle.

“Wagner assault groups continue to conduct the main advance through the center of town, while Russian airborne forces have relieved some Wagner units securing the northern and southern flanks of the operation,” the British military said on Twitter.

It noted, however, that though the Ukrainian defenders have “significant resupply issues” their withdrawals from Bakhmut positions have been made in an orderly fashion.

Fighting continued elsewhere in the Donetsk region that includes Bakhmut. Five people were killed when Russian missiles struck the city of Sloviansk on Friday, said regional governor Pavlo Kyrylenko.

Earlier, the presidential office said at least three civilians were killed and nine wounded from Thursday to Friday.

Battle for Bakhmut ‘heating up again'

Friday 14 April 2023 21:25 , Sam Rkaina

The battle for Bakhmut is heating up again, analysts and Russian officials said on Friday, as Ukrainian defenders of the devastated city resisted a coordinated three-pronged attack by the Kremlin’s forces and efforts to stop supplies from reaching them.

“Russia has re-energized its assault” on Bakhmut, the U.K. Ministry of Defence said of recent developments in the eastern Ukraine city, which for eight and a half months has been the stage for the war ‘s longest and bloodiest fight.

“The Ukrainian defense still holds the western districts of the town but has been subjected to particularly intense Russian artillery fire over the previous 48 hours,” the ministry’s assessment said.

Until recently, private Russian military contractor the Wagner Group spearheaded the campaign to take Bakhmut, making slow, grinding progress at the cost of thousands of lives on both sides. Now, regular Russian units have joined the thrust.

Military analysts have said that seizing Bakhmut would have public relations and tactical military value for Moscow though it would be unlikely to prove decisive in the war’s outcome. The Russian Defense Ministry also noted the stepped-up fighting in western parts of the city Friday.

“Wagner assault detachments are engaged in high-intensity combat operations to capture areas of western Bakhmut with airborne forces supporting on the flanks,” the ministry said in a statement.

It added: “The units of the airborne forces operating on the flanks are providing support to the assault squads and stop the enemy’s attempts to deliver ammunition to the city and bring in reserves.”

Bakhmut lies in Donetsk province, one of four provinces Russia illegally annexed last fall. Moscow controls about half of the province. Bakhmut is a stepping stone to seizing the remaining half.

Putin signs new law for electronic draft call-up

Friday 14 April 2023 20:20 , Sam Rkaina

Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed into law a bill on setting up electronic draft call-up procedures aimed at making military mobilisation more efficient and closing loopholes.

A website outlining legislative procedures said Putin signed the law, endorsed this week by the State Duma lower house of parliament.

Russia says it mobilised just over 300,000 men last year to help bolster its “special military operation” in Ukraine.

UN chief raises concerns with Russia about Ukraine grain deal

Friday 14 April 2023 19:30 , Sam Rkaina

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has written to Russia, Ukraine and Turkey to raise concerns about the implementation of a deal that allows the safe wartime export of grain from several Ukrainian Black Sea ports, a U.N. spokesman said on Friday.

The move comes after the United Nations said no ships were inspected on Tuesday under the deal “as the parties needed more time to reach an agreement on operational priorities.”

Inspections resumed on Wednesday.

Five people and 17 wounded in Russian missile strike on Sloviansk

Friday 14 April 2023 18:42 , Sam Rkaina

A Russian missile has struck the eastern Ukrainian city of Sloviansk, killing at least five people and wounding 17, officials said.

Ukraine’s National Police, in a post on Telegram, put the death toll at five after S-300 missiles damaged 10 apartment buildings and other sites.

A senior official in President Volodymyr Zelensky’s office, Daria Zarivna, said a child pulled alive from the site of the attack had died on the way to a hospital.

Donetsk Region Governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said seven people were believed to have been trapped under rubble.

“The evil state once again demonstrates its essence,” Zelenskiy wrote in a separate post accompanied by footage of a damaged building. “Just killing people in broad daylight. Ruining, destroying all life.”

The police said the two top floors of a five-storey building had collapsed after the strike and a fire had broken out opposite the site.

Rescue teams were combing through the affected area. Sloviansk is one of two eastern cities coveted by Russian forces, currently bogged down in nearby Bakhmut, as they push ahead with their invasion of Ukraine.

Russia's Pacific Fleet put on high alert for snap drills

Friday 14 April 2023 17:30 , Eleanor Noyce

The entire Russian Pacific Fleet was put on high alert on Friday for snap drills that will involve practice missile launches in a massive show of force amid the tensions with the West over the fighting in Ukraine.

Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said the goal of the war games was to test the capability of Russia’s armed forces to mount a response to aggression.

Along with the missile launches, the drills will also involve nuclear-capable strategic bombers and other warplanes besides ones from the Pacific Fleet’s air arm, Shoigu said.

The Russian military has concentrated the bulk of its forces on the front lines in Ukraine, but also continued conducting regular drills across Russia to train its forces and demonstrate their readiness.

Shoigu said the scenario for Friday’s manoeuvres envisages a response to an adversary’s attempt to make a landing on Sakhalin Island and the southern Kuril Islands.

Read more:

Russia's Pacific Fleet put on high alert for snap drills

Russian oil exports back above pre-Ukraine war levels as India and China buy 90% of Moscow’s crude

Friday 14 April 2023 17:10 , Eleanor Noyce

Russian crude oil exports are back above levels seen before Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, despite the ratcheting up of Western sanctions, new data shows.

India and China now account for 90 per cent of Russia’s seaborne crude oil exports, according to figures shared with The Independent by commodities tracking firm Kpler.

The Asian giants are each buying an average of 1.5 million barrels per day (bpd), absorbing the shortfall in exports to European nations which previously accounted for two-thirds of Russian crude.

Despite Western sanctions designed to stop funds reaching Vladimir Putin’s war chest following his Ukraine invasion, Russia’s crude oil exports have actually risen from 3.35 million bpd in 2022 to 3.5 million in the first quarter of 2023, Kpler said. After India and China, the two largest buyers of Russian crude are now Turkey and Bulgaria.

Read the full story here:

How India and China are helping Putin beat sanctions impact

What we know about the leaked Pentagon documents on Ukraine

Friday 14 April 2023 16:50 , Eleanor Noyce

It’s been less than a week since news of highly classified military documents on the Ukraine war surfaced, sending the Pentagon into full-speed damage control to assure allies and assess the scope of the leak.

The information on scores of slides has publicized potential vulnerabilities in Ukraine’s air defence capabilities and exposed private assessments by allies on an array of intelligence matters, raising questions about whether the leak will erode allies’ trust in sharing information with the US or impact Ukraine’s plans to intensify the fight against Russia this spring.

Overall, the leaked documents present a “very serious risk to national security,” a top Pentagon spokesman told reporters Monday.

This is a look at what the documents are, what is known about how they surfaced, and their potential impact:

What we know about the leaked Pentagon documents on Ukraine

King Charles praises ‘courageously indomitable Ukrainian people’ at Sandhurst Sovereign’s Parade

Friday 14 April 2023 16:30 , Eleanor Noyce

On Friday, King Charles attended the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst for the 200th Sovereign’s Parade. Here, he saw the 171 cadets who have completed their training as army officers and will receive their commission at midnight.

He spoke of the war in Ukraine and praised the support given by the British Army as well as the “courageously indomitable Ukrainian people”.

He said: “As we have now passed the first anniversary of the conflict in Ukraine, it is worth saying that I have been particularly impressed and proud of the role the British Army, alongside wider defence, has played in supporting Ukraine.

“The UK has been a leading nation in delivering training expertise, equipment and advice alongside our allies and partners.”

Full report: Sunak and Zelensky discuss accelerating military support to Ukraine

Friday 14 April 2023 16:10 , Andy Gregory

Rishi Sunak and Volodymyr Zelensky discussed ramping up military support to Ukraine in a phone call on Friday, Downing Street said.

The Prime Minister told the Ukrainian president that Britain and its allies “needed to continue to ensure Ukraine was in the strongest possible position to build on its recent battlefield successes”.

You can read the full report here:

Sunak and Zelensky discuss accelerating military support to Ukraine

‘Pentagon Papers’ suspect remanded in custody ahead of hearing next week

Friday 14 April 2023 15:54 , Andy Gregory

The Massachusetts Air National Guardsman arrested in the leak of highly classified US military documents has been ordered to remain behind bars pending a hearing next week.

Jack Teixeira, 21, appeared in federal court on Boston on Friday, one day after his arrest by armed FBI agents.

A federal magistrate judge ordered that he should remain in jail at least a detention hearing set for next Wednesday.

Belarus 'already preparing' sites to host Russian nuclear weapons

Friday 14 April 2023 15:11 , Andy Gregory

Belarus is “already preparing” sites to host Russian tactical nuclear weapons, Minsk’s defence minister has said – in addition to the smaller strategic nuclear weapons Vladimir Putin already plans to station there.

Viktor Khrenin said on Friday that “it could be the next step” if the West continues what he described as its hostile course, adding: “We will respond to force only with force. Otherwise, they don’t get it in the West.

“We are already preparing the sites that we have.”

The threatening remarks came as Russia’s defence ministry claimed that Belarusian pilots had completed their training for using tactical nuclear weapons.

The ministry released a video in which a Belarusian pilot said that the training course in Russia had given the crews of the Belarusian air force's Su-25 ground attack jets the necessary skills for using the weapons.

Denmark to send artillery weapons

Friday 14 April 2023 14:51 , Jane Dalton

Ukraine will receive 19 French-made Caesar howitzer artillery systems within the coming weeks, the Danish defence ministry says.

Denmark’s government in January announced it would donate the weapons after Kyiv had asked Copenhagen to supply them.

Russians stock up on food and water at nuclear power plant

Friday 14 April 2023 14:48 , Jane Dalton

Russian forces have taken large amounts of provisions and water supplies to the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant, which they captured in southeastern Ukraine after invading last year, Kyiv’s state atomic agency says.

Energoatom said the move might indicate Russia is preparing to barricade employees inside because of an acute shortage of qualified staff at Europe’s largest nuclear plant and Ukraine‘s much-expected counter-offensive.

“Given the intense shortage of nuclear specialists needed to operate the temporarily occupied Zaporizhia NPP, and fearing a Ukrainian offensive, the (Russians) are preparing for the long-term holding of ZNPP employees as hostages,” Energoatom said.

“The invaders have already brought a lot of provisions and water to the station,” it added in a statement. “The occupiers will probably not allow the station staff to leave after one of the regular work shifts, forcibly blocking them at the ZNPP.”

Energoatom has repeatedly accused Russian forces of abusing and intimidating their employees there, which Moscow denies.

Click here to read the full blog on The Independent's website