Ukraine news – live: Russia ‘has proof’ of UK involvement in Black Sea drone strike

Moscow has claimed it will publish proof that British specialist troops were involved in a drone attack over the weekend on Russia’s Black Sea Fleet.

It comes as the British ministry of defence dismissed Russia’s allegation as an “invented story” which says “more about arguments going on inside the Russian government than it does about the West”.

Andrei Kelin, the Russian ambassador to the UK, said it will publish its evidence “pretty soon”, adding that the UK is in “too deep” with its Ukrainian involvement.

He told Sky News: “We perfectly know about participation of British specialists in training, preparation and execution of plans against the Russian infrastructure and the Russian fleet in the Black Sea. We know that it has been done,” he said.

Meanwhile, a Ukrainian official has suggested that Russia’s decision to withdraw troops from the west bank of the Dnipro river in Kherson could be a trap as Moscow prepares the settlements for street battles.

Key Points

• Russia warns Britain ‘too deep’ into Ukraine conflict

• Russia trying to humiliate Ukrainians by attacking energy sites, says Zelensky

• Russia threatening to shoot own retreating soldiers, says UK

• Russia left with seven ships in Black Sea, says Ukraine

• Russia ‘withdrawal’ from Kherson city could be a trap, says Ukraine

• Russia claims it will release ‘proof of British involvement’ in Black Sea drone strike

Russia claims it will release ‘proof of British involvement’ in Black Sea drone strike

15:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Moscow has claimed it will publish proof that British specialist troops were involved in a drone attack over the weekend on Russia’s Black Sea Fleet.

It comes as the British ministry of defence dismissed Russia’s allegation as an “invented story” which says “more about arguments going on inside the Russian government than it does about the West”.

Andrei Kelin, the Russian ambassador to the UK, said it will publish its evidence “pretty soon”, adding that the UK is in “too deep” with its Ukrainian involvement.

Read more here:

Russia claims it will release ‘proof of British involvement’ in Black Sea strike

US talk show host David Letterman interviews Zelensky for upcoming episode

14:50 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

American talk show host David Letterman travelled to Kyiv to interview Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky for an upcoming episode of My Next Guest Needs No Introduction with David Letterman.

The episode will be released later this year.

In pictures: Russian shelling in the Donetsk region

14:35 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Photos show the cost of relentless shelling in the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine.

G7 foreign ministers condemn Mali abuses of Russia's Wagner mercenaries

14:15 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

The foreign ministers of the G7 group of advanced industrial democracies condemned the activities of the Russian-backed Wagner Group of mercenaries in Mali and elsewhere in Africa, where they have been linked to human rights violations.

“We are appalled by the violations and abuses of human rights against civilian populations, including those committed by terrorist groups and the Russia-affiliated Wagner Group forces in Mali,” the foreign ministers of Germany, Britain, Canada, France, Italy, Japan and the U.S. said at the conclusion of their meeting in Muenster, Germany.

Last month, the U.S. accused Russian mercenaries of exploiting natural resources in the Central African Republic, Mali, Sudan and elsewhere to help fund Moscow’s war in Ukraine, a charge Russia rejected as “anti-Russian rage.”

G7 agreed on coordination mechanism to help Ukraine defend its infrastructure

13:55 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Top diplomats from the Group of Seven countries have agreed on the need for a coordination mechanism to help Ukraine repair and defend its critical energy and infrastructure from Russia‘s attacks, a senior State Department official said on Friday.

G7 countries gathered in the western German city of Muenster this week with Russia‘s Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine, Iran’s deepening military alignment with Moscow over the war as well as China’s growing assertiveness topping the agenda.

The countries also discussed the state of the battlefield to figure out which weapons to provide to Kyiv, although this time the focus was more on assistance that would allow Ukraine to defend itself from the intensifying Russian attacks on its energy and water infrastructure, the official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said.

“They discussed what needs Ukraine was facing as it heads into the winter and agreed that there needed to be a G7 coordinating mechanism to help Ukraine repair, restore and defend its critical energy and water infrastructure,” the official told reporters.

“That’s something that will be a core focus of this group in the days and weeks ahead,” the official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said.

“There was a decent amount of discussion of that, and what countries have the ability to provide the individual systems and support that might enable Ukraine to better defend itself against these UAV and missile attacks,” the official added.

Ukrainian foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba joined the G7 discussion virtually.

Pentagon, U.S. arms makers to talk Russia, labor and supply chain

13:38 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Pentagon leaders plan to meet with defense industry executives next week to discuss ways to tackle supply-chain problems, a U.S. official told Reuters, amid an expected surge in demand for weapons from U.S. allies due to Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

Deputy Secretary of Defense Kath Hicks will host a classified meeting with top U.S. defense contractors to discuss the National Defense Strategy, securing supply chains and shoring up the defense industrial base, including workforce challenges, spokesperson Eric Pahon told Reuters earlier this week.

Concern among Pentagon officials is growing that top U.S. defense suppliers will struggle with a surge in orders for weapons from European nations like Germany and Poland, amid growing fears of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s ambitions in the region.

Prior meetings between Pentagon officials and top arms makers including Lockheed Martin Corp, Raytheon Technologies Corp and General Dynamics Corp were focused on Ukraine and hypersonic weapon development.

Despite global interest in weapons, major U.S. arms makers continue to cite a tight labor market and lingering supply-chain problems from the coronavirus pandemic to tamp down expectations about how quickly they will be able to deliver on those expected orders.

“We have heard the concerns from industry regarding supply-chain challenges and workforce issues and we share them,” the Pentagon’s chief weapons buyer Bill LaPlante told Reuters in a statement.

Pandemic related supply-chain issues are still hurting defense contractors because components and materials fail to arrive on time, which delays production and ultimately payment.

The Pentagon plans $500 million in workforce training and retention programs coupled with over $2 billion in supply-chain investments in the coming years as part of an effort to tackle the problems.

But Russia‘s invasion of Ukraine has prompted countries like the United States and Germany to raise their defense spending budgets to record levels.

Finnish president optimistic Turkey will ratify Nato bid

13:23 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Finnish president Sauli Niinisto is optimistic Turkey will ratify Finland’s application to join Nato, he told reporters on Friday.

“I’m optimistic that at the end Turkey will ratify our membership, I hope it takes place as soon as possible,” Niinisto told a joint news conference with Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda in Vilnius.

Finland and neighbouring Sweden applied for membership of the defence alliance after Russia‘s invasion of Ukraine.

The process has been prolonged by negotiations between Finland, Sweden and Turkey after Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan claimed the Nordic countries support groups Turkey deems terrorists.

Niinisto repeated his stance that Finland and Sweden joining together would benefit the whole alliance.

“It’s very important to walk hand in hand with Sweden ... Swedish membership is important for all of us,” he said.

Nato secretary general Jens Stoltenberg is currently in Turkey and will meet with Erdogan on Friday while Swedish prime minister Ulf Kristersson is due to travel to Ankara on Nov. 8.

Poland, Lithuania analysing Ukrainian troop training, says general

13:06 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Poland and Lithuania are looking at how to maintain the training of Ukrainian troops through what they expect to be a tough winter, a general was quoted as saying on Friday, as the nations signed an agreement to deepen defence cooperation.

“The Russians are... preparing for the next phase, so we are considering how to maintain the training rhythm of the Ukrainian army at various levels, integration, logistics,” General Rajmund Andrzejczak, chief of the general staff of the Polish Armed Forces, was quoted as saying by state-run news agency PAP.

Andrzejczak was speaking in Vilnius at the signing of an agreement on defence cooperation and intelligence sharing between Poland and Lithuania, PAP reported.

“The agreement contains concrete guidelines on the exchange of intelligence information in all dimensions,” Lithuania’s Chief of Defence General Valdemaras Rupsys was quoted as saying.

Poland is already serving as a site for training Ukrainian troops.

The European Union agreed in October to set up the Military Assistance Mission in support of Ukraine (EUMAM Ukraine), and appointing Polish general Piotr Trytek to lead training that will mostly take place in Poland.

Meanwhile, Canada said in October it would send 40 more combat engineers to help support Polish efforts to train Ukrainian forces.

Japan to keep stake in Russian energy project in Sakhalin

12:47 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

A Japanese consortium has decided to retain its stake in the new Russian operator of the Sakhalin-1 oil and gas project and is set to notify Moscow, moving to secure stable energy supplies for resource-scarce Japan.

“It’s an extremely important project,” Economy and Industry Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura said Friday in welcoming the unanimous decision by the shareholders in Sakhalin Oil and Gas Development Co., or SODECO, a consortium of Japanese companies holding a 30% stake in Sakhalin-1 in Russia‘s Far East.

Nishimura said SODECO was expected to notify the Russian operator of its decision by Nov. 11, meeting a deadline set by Russia. The government will do its utmost to ensure Japan’s energy security by working closely with the private sector, he said.

The decision by SODECO shareholders Friday came days after Nishimura met with consortium executives asking them to keep their stake in the Russian project.

Many major Western energy companies have withdrawn from projects in Russia due to the war in Ukraine. Japanese officials maintain that oil and gas from Sakhalin is vital for the country’s energy security.

Germany's Scholz urges Xi to exert influence on Russia

12:18 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

In a much-scrutinised meeting Friday with president Xi Jinping in Beijing, German chancellor Olaf Scholz urged China to exert its influence on Russia, while the Chinese leader repeated a call for talks between Moscow and Ukraine and warned against the conflict going nuclear.

Scholz is in Beijing for a one-day visit that has drawn criticism over China’s tacit support for Russia, lingering controversies over economic ties and human rights issues, as well as the timing of the trip.

It comes after Xi further cemented his authoritarian rule at a major Communist Party congress last month and as China continues to refuse to criticize Russia.

“At present, the international situation is complex and changeable,” Xi was quoted as telling Scholz by state broadcaster CCTV. “As influential powers, China and Germany should work together in times of change and chaos to make more contributions to world peace and development.”

On Ukraine, Xi “pointed out that China supports Germany and the EU in playing an important role in promoting peace talks and promoting the building of a balanced, effective and sustainable European security framework,” CCTV reported.

That was apparently a nod to Russia‘s anger over NATO’s eastern expansion, largely a result of Moscow’s increasingly belligerent policies toward its neighbors.

The international community should “create conditions for the resumption of negotiations (and) jointly oppose the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons,” Xi said.

Putin signs mobilisation law for people who have committed serious crimes

11:57 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Russian president Vladimir Putin has signed a law allowing the mobilisation of people who have committed serious crimes, RIA news agency said on Friday.

The law excludes those convicted of child sex abuse, treason, spying or terrorism, RIA said.

Putin says civilians in Ukraine's Kherson should be evacuated

11:39 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Russian president Vladimir Putin said on Friday that civilians in the Ukrainian region of Kherson which Russia declared it had annexed in September must be evacuated from the conflict zone, state-owned news agency RIA reported.

RIA quoted Putin as saying during a meeting with pro-Kremlin activists: “Now, of course, those who live in Kherson should be removed from the zone of the most dangerous actions, because the civilian population should not suffer.”

Russian-installed officials in Kherson region, one of four Ukrainian provinces that Putin declared part of Russia at a Kremlin ceremony in September, have pleaded for civilians to leave the region’s west, where Ukrainian forces have retaken ground in recent weeks.

On Thursday, Kherson’s Russian-appointed deputy governor Kirill Stremousov issued several video appeals for civilians to leave the part of the province on the west bank of the Dnipro river. He said that

Russian forces would likely soon give up the west bank of the Dnipro to Ukraine.

In pictures:

11:20 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Photos from Makiivka in eastern Ukraine show a destroyed building following shelling by Ukrainian forces.

Russia ‘withdrawal’ from Kherson city could be a trap, says Ukraine

11:13 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

A Ukrainian official has called Russia’s move to withdraw troops from the west bank of the Dnipro river in Kherson a trap and said it was making the settlements appear safer but setting them up as a pretext for street battles.

“This could be a manifestation of a particular provocation, in order to create the impression that the settlements are abandoned, that it is safe to enter them, while they are preparing for street battles,” Natalia Humeniuk, spokesperson for Ukraine’s southern military command, said in televised remarks.

This comes a day after a Russian-backed official in southern Ukraine’s Kherson city – one of the four cities captured by Moscow in an illegal referendum last month – said Russia’s soldiers will be leaving the critical riverside area which has served as a ground for Moscow’s military unit.

Arpan Rai has more:

Russia ‘withdrawal’ from Kherson city could be a trap, says Ukraine

Erdogan and Putin agree Russian grains should go to poor African countries for free

11:06 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday that he had agreed with counterpart Vladimir Putin that Russian grains sent under the Black Sea export deal should go to poor African countries for free.

“In my phone call with Vladimir Putin, he said ‘Let’s send this grain to countries such as Djibouti, Somalia and Sudan for free’ - and we agreed,” Erdogan said in a speech to businesspeople in Istanbul.

The comment came after Moscow resumed on Wednesday its participation in the U.N. and Turkey-brokered grain agreement, ending four days of non-cooperation that still saw exports continue from Ukrainian ports.

Earlier this week, Putin said even if Russia withdrew from the deal again, it would substitute the entire volume of grain destined for the “poorest countries” for free from its own stocks.

Zelensky accuses Russia of ‘energy terrorism'

10:49 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has accused Russia of engaging in “energy terrorism” after Russian strikes on Ukraine‘s energy network left millions of residents without power.

About 4.5 million people were without electricity across the country, Zelenskyy said in his nightly address Thursday. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said 450,000 apartments in the capital alone did not have on Friday.

“I appeal to all residents of the capital: save electricity as much as possible, because the situation remains difficult!” the mayor wrote on Telegram.

State-owned grid operator Ukrenergo reported on Friday that emergency blackouts would be taking place across Kyiv.

Russia has carried out missile and drone attacks on Ukrainian power facilities, particularly in recent weeks. In his address, Zelenskyy described the targeting of energy infrastructure as a sign of weakness.

“The very fact that Russia is resorting to energy terrorism shows the weakness of our enemy,” he said. “They cannot beat Ukraine on the battlefield, so they try to break our people this way.”

Russia and North Korea forge closer ties amid shared isolation- Part Three

10:32 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Continued from previous post

Economic ties

Russia and North Korea recently restarted train travel for the first time since railway journeys were cut during the COVID pandemic with an unusually opulent cargo - 30 grey thoroughbred horses. Russia‘s RIA state news agency said medicines would follow in later cargos.

The vast majority of North Korea’s trade goes through China, but Russia is a potentially important partner as well, particularly for providing oil, experts said. Moscow has denied breaking U.N. sanctions, but Russian tankers have been accused of helping evade caps on exporting oil to North Korea and sanctions monitors have reported labourers remain in Russia despite a ban.

Russian officials have openly discussed “working on political arrangements” to employ 20,000 to 50,000 North Korean labours, despite U.N. Security Council resolutions that ban such arrangements.

Russian officials and leaders in the breakaway regions in Ukraine have also discussed the possibility of having North Korean workers help rebuild those war-torn areas.

Russia and North Korea forge closer ties amid shared isolation- Part Two

10:16 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Continued from previous post

Ukraine war support

North Korea has reciprocated with public support for Moscow after Russia invaded Ukraine. It was one of the only countries to recognise the independence of breakaway Ukrainian regions, and it expressed support for Russia‘s proclaimed annexation of parts of Ukraine.

“Moscow’s ‘special military operation’ in Ukraine has ushered in a new geopolitical reality in which the Kremlin and (North Korea) may become increasingly close, perhaps even to the point of resurrecting the quasi-alliance relationship that had existed during the Cold War,” Artyom Lukin, a professor at Far Eastern Federal University in Vladivostok, wrote in a recent report for 38 North.

It is notable Pyongyang has begun using the new phrase “tactical and strategic collaboration” to describe its relationship with Russia, he added.

Both Russia and North Korea have denied claims by the United States that Russia has sought to buy millions of rounds of ammunition and other weapons from North Korea.

Russia and North Korea forge closer ties amid shared isolation- Part One

10:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

The United States said this week it has information indicating North Korea is covertly supplying Russia with a “significant” number of artillery shells, in what would be a further sign of deepening ties between the two pariah states.

As Russia‘s isolation over its war in Ukraine has grown, it has seen increasing value in North Korea. For North Korea’s part, relations with Russia haven’t always been as warm as they were during the heady days of the Soviet Union, but now the country is reaping clear benefits from Moscow’s need for friends.

Here’s how North Korea-Russia relations began, and how they are becoming closer:

Political backing

Communist North Korea was formed in the early days of the Cold War with the backing of the Soviet Union. North Korea later battled the South and its U.S. and United Nations allies to a stalemate in the 1950-1953 Korean War with extensive aid from China and the Soviet Union.

North Korea was heavily reliant on Soviet aid for decades, and when the Soviet Union collapsed in the 1990s, it helped spark a deadly famine in the North.

Pyongyang’s leaders have tended to try to use Beijing and Moscow to balance each other. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un initially had a relatively cool relationship with both countries, which both joined the United States in imposing strict sanctions on North Korea over its nuclear tests.

After his country’s last nuclear test in 2017, Kim took steps to repair ties.

Kim met Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2019 for the first time in a summit in the Russian city of Vladivostok.

In October, Kim sent a birthday greeting to Putin, congratulating him for “crushing the challenges and threats of the United States”.

Russia has joined China in opposing new sanctions on North Korea, vetoing a U.S.-led push in May and publicly splitting the U.N. Security Council (UNSC) for the first time since it started punishing Pyongyang in 2006.

Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant cut off from power grid by Russian shelling, says Ukraine

09:20 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

In case you missed it...

Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant has been disconnected from the country’s grid after Russian shelling destroyed its last remaining high-voltage power lines, according to officials.

Ukraine’s atomic energy company Energoatom had previously warned that Russia’s efforts to cut the Zaporizhzhia plant off from the grid risked a catastrophic failure of its cooling systems.

The power plant only has 15 days’ worth of fuel left to run the generators, Energoatom said. The plant’s blocks 5 and 6 are being switched into cold state, it said.

Namita Singh reports:

Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant cut off from power grid by Russian shelling, says Ukraine

Poland orders construction of electric fence along Russia’s Kaliningrad border

09:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Poland’s defence minister has ordered the immediate construction of a temporary barrier along the border with the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad in order that the country “feels safe”.

Mariusz Blaszczak said he had authorised the construction of a wall along the 210km (130-mile) border. A spokesperson for the border guard agency, Konrad Szwed, told the Associated Press that the barrier would consist of an electric fence.

Warsaw suspects that Russia plans to use the border to facilitate the crossing of migrants. Amid current simmering tensions over the war in Ukraine, Mr Blaszczak referred to a crisis triggered last autumn when thousands of African and Middle Eastern migrants tried to cross the Belarus border into Poland, some of whom died on the journey.

Emily Atkinson reports:

Poland orders construction of electric fence along Russia’s Kaliningrad border

Zelensky welcomes UN’s watchdog nuclear conclusion on ‘dirty bomb’ allegations

08:40 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenksy welcomed the UN’s watchdog nuclear conclusion regarding the “dirty bomb” accusations in his nightly video address, anf added the only “dirty thing” in Ukraine now is Russia.

“We have invited the IAEA to check, we have given them full freedom of action at the relevant facilities, and we have clear and irrefutable evidence that no one in Ukraine has created or is creating any dirty bombs,” he said.

“The only thing that is dirty in our region now is the heads of those in Moscow who, unfortunately, seized control of the Russian state and are terrorising Ukraine and the whole world.”

Russia-Ukraine war: What is a dirty bomb?

08:40 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Kyiv and western allies have accused Russia of claiming Ukraine plans to use a “dirty bomb” as a plot to use a threat of a missile laced with nuclear material as a pretext for escalation of the war.

On Sunday night, amid a Ukrainian advance on Kherson, Moscow’s defence minister Sergei Shoigu phoned Western counterparts to tell them his country suspected Kyiv of planning to use a “dirty bomb“ and that the war was trending towards “uncontrolled escalation.”

Ukraine does not possess nuclear weapons, while Russia has said it could protect its territory with its nuclear arsenal, writes Emily Atkinson.

Russia-Ukraine war: What is a dirty bomb?

We cannot put China at a level with Russia, EU top diplomat says

08:16 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Western countries need to reduce their dependencies on China but cannot put the country into one category with Russia, the European Union’s top diplomat said on Friday.

“It is clear that China is consolidating a new era of its external policy, and internal also, (that) China (is) becoming much more assertive, much more on a self-reliant course,” EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell told reporters on the sidelines of a meeting with his G7 counterparts in the German city of Muenster.

“It is clear that we want to reduce our dependencies, we want to address our vulnerabilities, to strengthen our resilience,” he added. “But at the time being, many member states have a strong economic relationship with China and I don’t think we can put China and Russia on the same level.”

Russia's Gazprom says gas shipments to Ukraine stable at 42.4 mcm Friday

07:53 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Russia‘s Gazprom on Friday said that it plans to ship 42.4 million cubic metres (mcm) of gas to Europe via Ukraine on Friday, in line with recent days.

Medvedev says Russia is fighting a sacred battle against Satan

07:34 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev on Friday cast Russia‘s war in Ukraine as a sacred conflict with Satan, warning that Moscow could send all its enemies to the eternal fires of Gehenna.

Russia‘s invasion of Ukraine has killed tens of thousands and triggered the biggest confrontation with the West since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis when the Cold War superpowers came closest to nuclear war.

Medvedev, who once cast himself as a liberal moderniser as president from 2008 to 2012, said Moscow was fighting “crazy Nazi drug addicts” in Ukraine backed by Westerners who he said had “saliva running down their chins from degeneracy”.

Ukraine and the West have repeatedly dismissed President Vladimir Putin’s assertions that Ukraine is run by fascists who have persecuted Russian speakers. Instead, they cast the war as a brutal land grab by Moscow.

In a message marking Russia‘s Day of National Unity, Medvedev said the task of the fatherland was to “stop the supreme ruler of Hell, whatever name he uses - Satan, Lucifer or Iblis”.

Medvedev, now deputy chairman of Russia‘s Security Council, said Russia had different weapons, including the ability to “send all our enemies to fiery Gehenna”, using a Hebrew term often translated as Hell.

Since the war began, Medvedev’s rhetoric has become increasingly fierce though his published views sometimes chime with thinking at the top levels of the Kremlin elite.

Satan’s weapons, Medvedev said, were “intricate lies. And our weapon is the truth. That is why our cause is right. That is why victory will be ours! Happy Holidays!”

Over 700 dolphins may have died in the Black Sea since Russia’s Ukraine invasion, report says

07:18 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has put the entire Black Sea basin under a “huge threat,” according to a report that said more than 700 dolphins and porpoises have died in the region since the conflict began.

The report, published recently by ACCOBAMS – or the Agreement on the Conservation of Cetaceans of the Black Sea, Mediterranean Sea, and Contiguous Atlantic Area – warns that military activity in the area affects marine life forms in the region, including cetaceans such as dolphins and porpoises.

It said over 700 deaths, primarily in dolphins and harbour porpoises, have been recorded on the coasts of countries bordering the Black Sea, including Bulgaria, Romania, Turkey and Ukraine.

Vishwam Sankaran reports:

Over 700 dolphins may have died in the Black Sea since Putin’s Ukraine invasion

Russia threatening to shoot own retreating soldiers, says UK

06:52 , Arpan Rai

Russia’s forces are now threatening to gun down their own retreating soldiers to drive forward Moscow’s military objectives, the British defence ministry said today.

“Due to low morale and reluctance to fight, Russian forces have probably started deploying ‘barrier troops’ or ‘blocking units’,” the British MoD said in its latest intelligence update.

These units are threatening to shoot their own retreating soldiers in order to compel offensives and have been used in previous conflicts by Russian forces, the ministry added.

“Recently, Russian generals likely wanted their commanders to use weapons against deserters, including possibly authorising shooting to kill such defaulters after a warning had been given. Generals also likely wanted to maintain defensive positions to the death,” according to the British ministry.

It added that the tactic of shooting deserters “likely attests to the low quality, low morale and indiscipline of Russian forces.”

Russia’s ‘cleansing’ operation in Bucha explained: ‘I’ve killed so many civilians'

06:41 , Arpan Rai

Barely 18 miles from Kyiv centre, the town of Bucha saw some of the worst carnage since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine within days of the start of the war.

What happened in early March in Bucha was dubbed as “zachistka” by Russian soldiers on intercepted audio calls — cleansing.

An investigation by the Associated Press and the PBS series “Frontline” found that Russians hunted people on lists prepared by their intelligence services and went door to door to identify and kill potential “threats”.

Surveillance camera footage recovered from Bucha shows, for the first time, what such a “cleansing” operation in Ukraine looks like.

In the intercepted calls, Russian soldiers have also spoken about the massacre with their families.

One soldier named Maksym told his wife on 21 March: “I think I’m going crazy. I’ve already killed so many civilians.”

Read the full story here (warning, graphic pictures included):

How Russian soldiers ran a 'cleansing' operation in Bucha

Russia left with seven ships in Black Sea, says Ukraine

06:10 , Arpan Rai

Russia is now left with seven ships in Black Sea as of Thursday, the Ukrainian military claimed today.

The military’s southern command wing said that Ukraine’s troops have caused further damage to Russia after carrying out over 160 operations on Russia’s positions in the besieged country’s south.

The latest attack has killed 32 Russian soldiers and destroyed two Russian ammunition depots and a tank, the Ukrainian military’s operational command in south said.

Ukraine says it has downed double the number of warplanes Russia lost in Afghanistan

05:18 , Arpan Rai

Ukraine has destroyed more than 270 Russian aircraft over eight months of fighting, according to the country’s commander-in-chief, surpassing the number the Soviet Union lost in its military intervention in Afghanistan.

With the help of military equipment provided by its Western allies, Ukraine is now mounting pressure on Russian occupation forces in the south.

“During the full-scale aggression, (Ukrainian) defenders destroyed (more than) twice as many (Russian) aircraft as the Soviet Union lost during the 10-year war in Afghanistan - 278 (Russian) aircraft in Ukraine against 118 Soviet aircraft in Afghanistan,” General Zaluzhny wrote on Twitter.

Though general Valeriy Zaluzhny’s statement could not be verified independently, his claim matches up with narratives of Ukraine’s soaring record of success on the battlefield, having reclaimed swathes of critical territory back from Russian occupiers of late.

Read the full story here:

Ukraine says it has downed double the number of warplanes Russia lost in Afghanistan

Mass blackouts to hit Ukraine, says Zelensky

05:12 , Arpan Rai

Volodymyr Zelensky has warned of looming blackouts in several regions of the war-hit country amid increasing Russian attacks on its energy sites.

“In general, there is damage to energy facilities in different areas across the country - this is the volume of electricity generation and transportation for millions of people,” he said in his nightly address.

He added: “Only as of this evening, about 4.5 million consumers have been temporarily disconnected from consumption under emergency and stabilisation schedules.”

“In particular, in Kyiv and ten regions: Kyiv region, Dnipropetrovsk region, Zhytomyr region, Zaporizhzhia region, Sumy region, Kirovohrad region, Kharkiv region, Chernihiv region, Khmelnytskyi region, Cherkasy region. Blackouts may take place in other regions as well,” Mr Zelensky said.

Russia trying to humiliate Ukrainians by attacking energy sites, says Zelensky

04:54 , Arpan Rai

Volodymyr Zelensky has said Russia is attacking Ukraine’s energy industry as it is facing heavy losses on the battlefield and it is an attempt to humiliate Ukrainians.

The wartime president said enduring Russian energy terror and its challenges is now Ukraine’s national task.

“The very fact that Russia resorted to terror against the energy industry shows the weakness of the enemy. They cannot defeat Ukraine on the battlefield, and that is why they are trying to break our people in this way - to humiliate Ukrainians, to strike at the morale of our people, at the resistance of our people,” he said in his nightly address.

Mr Zelensky said that the Russian attacks on Ukraine’s energy sector and its energy facilities do not stop for a single day.

“Kryvyi Rih was attacked by Iranian drones this night. Such Russian terror must receive - and surely will eventually receive - a powerful global response. I am grateful to our friends in the United States who are helping with this,” he said.

Russian commanders ‘fleeing Kherson and leaving behind ill-equipped troops’

04:31 , Arpan Rai

Russian commanders in Kherson are likely fleeing the war and leaving ill-equipped and “demoralised” troops to face increasing Ukrainian combat, western officials have said.

While more of Vladimir Putin’s troops were arriving in an apparent attempt to shore up their defensive positions in the key city, officials have said many were recently mobilised reservists who were often “woefully equipped and prepared”.

“In Kherson, it is likely that most echelons of command have now withdrawn across the river leaving demoralised and leaderless men to face Ukrainian assaults. At least some reservists are arriving in theatre [of war] without weapons,” one official said.

Read the full story here:

Russian commanders ‘fleeing Kherson and leaving ill-equipped troops behind’

Moscow warns Britain is ‘too deep’ into Ukraine conflict

04:11 , Arpan Rai

Russia has warned Britian of risking a “dangerous” escalation in the ongoing Ukraine war as it accused Britain of being drawn “too deep” into the conflict.

Andrei Kelin, the Russian ambassador to the UK, claimed British “specialists” had been involved in an audacious drone attack on Russia’s Black Sea fleet at the weekend in which three warships were reportedly damaged, including the flagship HMS Makarov.

After Britain’s ambassador to Moscow Deborah Bronnert was earlier summoned to the Russian foreign ministry in connection with the claims, Mr Kelin said the Kremlin would publish its proof “pretty soon”.

Read the full story here:

Russia warns Britain is ‘too deep’ into Ukraine conflict

03:30 , Arpan Rai

Good morning, welcome to our coverage of the Ukraine war on Friday, 4 November.