Ukraine-Russia war – live: Kyiv says it ‘successfully’ hit Russia’s air defence system in Crimea overnight

Ukrainian Armed Forces have said they “successfully hit a strategic object of the air defence system” in Crimea’s west.

The Russian Ministry of Defence said its air defence systems destroyed eight Storm Shadow cruise missiles over Crimea in a fresh assault on the territory which Kyiv claims is a strategic target in its counteroffensive push. Russian military bloggers speculated the US-provided Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) or longe-range guided missiles were behind the attack.

Several Russian sources said that the latest attack was carried out using “combined” long-range assault weapons like ATACMS, Storm Shadow missiles and sea drones between Sunday and yesterday.

If confirmed, this would be the first time Ukraine has used the top-tier missile system provided by the US to hit targets on the Crimean coast.

This comes as Russia significantly bulks up its forces around the devastated city of Bakhmut in the east and has switched its troops from a defensive posture to taking “active actions”, a Ukrainian military commander said.

Russia captured Bakhmut, the scene of some of the most intense fighting of the 20-month war, in May. Ukraine has been on the counteroffensive since June to try to retake occupied land in the south and east, including the town.

Key Points

• Ukraine ‘successfully’ hits Russia’s air defence system in Crimea

• Belarus leader Lukashenko says Ukraine and Russia are locked in a ‘stalemate’

• US says executing own soldiers is ‘barbaric'

• Putin pushes more soldiers to frontline despite failing offensive

• North Korea on course to be ‘significant supplier’ of arms to Russia

• Russia tests its ability to deliver massive retaliatory nuclear strike

• Russian drone strike in Khmelnitskyi region was likely targeting nuclear power station

White House warns Republicans against ‘politicising national security'

12:32 , Alexander Butler

The White House has warned US House Republicans against “politicising national security” after they introduced a bill separating aid to Israel and Ukraine.

“Demanding offsets for meeting core national security needs of the United States — like supporting Israel and defending Ukraine from atrocities and Russian imperialism — would be a break with the normal, bipartisan process and could have devastating implications for our safety and alliances in the years ahead,” the White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said.

House Republicans, led by Speaker Mike Johnson, unveiled a $14.3bn spending bill only for Israel. The plan leaves out aid to Ukraine and Taiwan as well as humanitarian assistance to civilians in Israel and Gaza.

Arrest made after ‘attempted assassination’ of pro-Russian lawmaker in Ukraine

11:50 , Alexander Butler

Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) has detained an accomplice in the attempted killing of a former Ukrainian lawmaker and pro-Russian politician, according to Russian state media.

The FSB said evidence had been obtained about the involvement of Ukrainian special services in the attempted assassination of Oleg Tsaryov.

A Ukrainian intelligence source said on Friday that the attempt in Yalta, Crimea, had been carried out by the Security Service of Ukraine.

Hundreds of strikes carried out on southern front

11:18 , Alexander Butler

Hundreds of strikes were carried out in Kherson and Zaporizhzhia over the last 24 hours, according to regional officials.

The Russian military carried out 148 strikes on 27 communities, said Yuriy Malashko, head of the Zaporizhzhia military administration.

And in Kherson, 98 attacks were carried out, including 447 shells from mortars, artillery, tanks, planes and drones, its regional administration said. He added that the strikes killed one person and injured 16.

Mapped: Kurdyumivka and Robotyne

10:59 , Alexander Butler

Ukrainian troops have made confirmed advances near Bakhmut, Donetsk, and Robotyne, Zaporizhzhia, according to the Institute for the Study of War.

“Geolocated footage posted on 30 October shows that Ukrainian forces have advanced northeast of Kurdyumivka (10km southwest of Bakhmut),” it said.

Ukrainian forces have also “marginally advanced” west of Robotyne, Zaporizhzhia, according to geolocated footage seen by the think tank.

Russian oligarch detained in France in sanctions probe

10:45 , Alexander Butler

A Russian tycoon has been detained for questioning in France in connection with alleged tax evasion, money laundering and violating international sanctions, the French financial prosecutors’ office has said.

Searches took place yesterday at Alexei Kuzmichev’s Paris home and in the Mediterranean Var region as part of the investigation, according to the office.

Russia will be able to defend the rights of Russian businessman Alexey Kuzmichev, who has been detained in France, once Paris provides detailed information about his case, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

10:30 , Alexander Butler

Russia had lost 300,810 troops in Ukraine since the beginning of its full-scale invasion on 24 February last year, according to the General Staff of Ukraine’s Armed Forces.

The number includes 870 casualties suffered over the last day amid a “meat assault” offensive near the eastern Ukrainian town of Avdiivka.

Russia has also lost 5,211 tanks, 321 airplanes, 324 helicopters, 5,440 drones, 844 multiple launch rocket systems and 562 air defense systems, the report said.

Russia has turned the Black Sea into a battleground, Zelensky says

10:00 , Alexander Butler

Vladimir Putin has turned the Black Sea into a “battleground” used for aggression and the curtailing of freedom of navigation, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said.

“The Black Sea has strategic significance not just for its neighboring nations but for Europe, the Middle East, and global food security.

“Russia has turned it into a battleground, using it for aggression and threatening freedom of navigation. Today, we need to work together to restore the Black Sea as a zone of peace, trade, and development,” he said on X, formerly Twitter.

Airport riot shows 'growing radicalisation' of Russian society

09:30 , Alexander Butler

A riot which broke out in a Russian airport which saw a violent mob searching for Israelis reflects the growing radicalisation of Russian society, the Institute for the Study of War said.

“The 29 October riots in Dagestan highlight the growing radicalisation and factionalism of Russian society resulting from the hyper-nationalist ideologies that the war in Ukraine has empowered,” it said.

Russia’s interior ministry said 60 people were arrested and 150 of “the most active protesters” were identified, who had shouted antisemitic chants, video shows.

Commander of occupied-Kherson replaced, MoD confirms

09:00 , Alexander Butler

The commander of occupied-Kherson and the eastern bank of the Dnipro River has been replaced, the UK’s ministry of defence confirmed.

“The deputy commander of Russian forces in Ukraine, Colonel General Mikhail Teplinsky, has likely personally taken over Russia’s Dnipro Grouping of Forces,” the MoD said on X, formerly Twitter.

“He replaces Colonel General Oleg Makaevich. The force is responsible for the occupied areas of Kherson oblast, including the eastern bank of the Dnipro River.”

Russian forces accused of killing family-of-nine

08:45 , Alexander Butler

Russian forces allegedly gunned down an entire family of nine, including two young children, as they slept in their beds in the Russia-occupied town of Volnovakha in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk, officials in Kyiv said.

Ukrainian ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said Russian soldiers killed all members of the Kapkanets family on 27 October after the civilians refused to give them control of their house.

According to the Ukrainian prosecutor’s office in Donetsk, the attackers were in army uniforms and had demanded the family house be vacated, leading to an argument.

Family of nine shot dead as they slept in Russian-occupied Ukrainian town

Russian forces are preparing to conduct ‘meat assaults’ near Avdiivka

08:19 , Alexander Butler

Russian forces are preparing to conduct “meat assaults” near the town of Avdiivka where Putin has already lost nearly an “entire brigade”, according to the Institute for the Study of War.

Meat assaults are when Russian infantry forces in Storm Z detachments attack without artillery support to suppress Ukrainian firing positions, a Russian milblogger said.

Between 40 per cent and 70 per cent of personnel in Storm Z units are killed in highly attritional, infantry-led attacks which lack artillery support in eastern Ukraine, the ISW said.

Five communities attacked in Ukraine, officials says

08:00 , Alexander Butler

Russian forces attacked five communities near Ukraine’s northeastern Sumy Oblast, causing over 100 explosions, the regional military administration said.

The communities of Krasnopillia, Shalyhyne, Seredyna-Buda, Bilopillia, and Puty were targeted on 30 October, with at least 52 explosions recorded.

A range of different weapons were used in the attacks, including mines, mortars, and artillery, according to the Ukrainian military.

Dutch F-16 fighter jets for Ukraine to arrive in Romania, PM says

07:28 , Alexander Butler

The first US-made F-16 fighter jets the Netherlands will provide to Ukraine will arrive in Romania within two weeks, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte has said.

“I expect the Patriot missiles to be delivered shortly, to aid Ukraine in the upcoming winter. And the same speed applies to the F-16s,” Mr Rutte said during a video conference with Volodomyr Zelensky posted on X, formerly Twitter.

“The first ones will be shipped to the training centre in Romania within the next two weeks so that day we will get ready for further training.”

What would happen if Putin died?

07:00 , Lydia Patrick

Thyroid cancer, Parkinson’s disease, leprosy or declining in the aftermath of a stroke - just a few of the many unproven ailments rumoured to have afflicted the Russian leader in recent years.

Just this week, the Kremlin were forced to deny rumours that Vladimir Putin had suffered a cardiac arrest in his bedroom, months after they were forced to deny that he had soiled himself.

Since gripping the reins of power in 1999, Putin has established himself as one of the most infamous politicians in modern history, with a vicelike grip over Russia.

His current term is set to expire next year, yet under sweeping changes to the constitution that were introduced in 2020, he could rule Russia until 2036.

Yet since his invasion of Ukraine and the loss of tens of thousands of his troops, the fallout of his military gamble has caused cracks to appear for the first time under his 20-year leadership. Speculation has also dogged the ageing tyrant that his health is failing, with the future of Russia uncertain upon his demise.

Read the full story from Holly Evans here...

If Putin dies, this is what would happen in Russia

Ukraine ‘successfully’ hits Russia’s air defence system in Crimea

06:04 , Arpan Rai

Ukraine’s Armed Forces have said they “successfully hit a strategic object of the air defence system” in Crimea’s west while Russian military bloggers speculated the US-provided Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) behind the attack.

And, the Russian Ministry of Defence said its air defence systems destroyed eight Storm Shadow cruise missiles over Crimea in a fresh assault on the territory which Kyiv claims is a strategic target in its counteroffensive push.

Several Russian sources said that the latest attack was carried out using “combined” long-range assault weapons like ATACMS, Storm Shadow missiles and sea drones between Sunday and yesterday.

If confirmed, this would be the first time Ukraine has used the top-tier missile system provided by the US to hit targets on the Crimean coast.

Citing Russian insiders and military bloggers, the Washington-based think-tank the Institute for the Study of War said that the alleged Ukrainian ATACMS strike damaged vehicles and radar systems near Olenivka and killed or wounded more than 20 Russian servicemen.

“The insider source also claimed that Russian officials did not report on the Ukrainian ATACMS strike but chose to instead issue statements about the downing of Storm Shadow missiles and drones,” it said in its assessment but did not verify the claims.

ICYMI - Ukraine bombards Russian forces with drones as Putin suffers losses in fight for Avdiivka

05:00 , Lydia Patrick

Ukrainian forces fired more than 30 drones in a renewed assault over the weekend as Russian forces lost at least an entire brigade in their push for the eastern town of Avdiivka, officials said.

The Russian air defence systems destroyed 36 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles over the Black Sea and the northwestern part of the Crimean peninsula, its defence ministry wrote on Telegram on Sunday, accusing Kyiv of carrying out a “terrorist attack”.

In a separate incident, local officials in southern Russia’s Krasnodar region near the Black Sea said an oil refinery was hit and set ablaze in the early hours of Sunday but did not explain what caused the fire. Several local media outlets said that the fire was caused by a drone strike or a crashed drone’s debris.

Officials in Kyiv have not issued a comment on the Russian defence ministry’s claims. The war-hit nation rarely acknowledges responsibility for attacks on Russia and Russian-occupied territories but has admitted that striking targets there helps its counteroffensive.

The recent months have seen drone strikes and shelling on the Russian border regions and illegally annexed Crimea peninsula as a regular part of the continuing military offensive.

Ukraine bombards Russia with drones as Putin suffers losses in fight for Avdiivka

House Speaker vows to bring Israel package to floor this week – without Ukraine funding

04:00 , Lydia Patrick

Newly elected House Speaker Mike Johnson pledged on Sunday to put an aid package for Israel on the floor this week without aid for Ukraine.

Mr Johnson, whose Republican colleagues unanimously voted to make him speaker on Wednesday, called the package of support for Israel in the wake of a terrorist attack by Hamas that killed 1,400 people a “pressing and urgent need.”

“There are lots of things going on around the world that we have to address and we will. But right now, what’s happening in Israel takes the immediate attention, and I think we’ve got to separate that and get it through,” he said on Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo.

GOP vows to bring Israel package to floor this week – without Ukraine funding

ICYMI - Putin ally Lukashenko calls for ceasefire in ‘stalemate’ Ukraine war

03:00 , Lydia Patrick

Russia and Ukraine were locked in a serious stalemate in Moscow’s continuing invasion of the country and needed to sit down for peace talks, Belarusian president and Vladimir Putin’s close ally Alexander Lukashenko said.

“There are enough problems on both sides and in general the situation is now seriously stalemate: no one can do anything and substantively strengthen or advance their position,” Mr Lukashenko said.

“They’re there head-to-head, to the death, entrenched. People are dying,” he said over the weekend.

This marks the first time the Belarusian president has come forward seeking truce in the conflict and called for a “stop” command.

“We need to sit down at the negotiating table and come to an agreement,” Mr Lukashenko said in a question and answer video posted on the website of the Belarusian state news agency BelTA.

Putin ally Lukashenko calls for ceasefire in ‘stalemate’ Ukraine war

Zelensky says airport riot shows Russia cannot score ‘strategic’ victory

02:00 , Lydia Patrick

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that anti-Jewish unrest in Russia showed that Moscow’s moral foundation had become so contaminated by hate that it was no longer capable of scoring a “strategic” victory.

Zelensky said the storming on Sunday of an airport in southern Russia by protesters looking for Jewish passengers was the second time this year Moscow had lost control over events, after an abortive uprising by Russian mercenaries in June.

The airport riot in mainly Muslim Dagestan, Zelensky said in his nightly video address, showed Russia “had contaminated its own territory with such a level of hatred and degradation that for the second time this year in Russia, control over events is being lost.

“When insurgents head to Moscow and no one stops them and there is a breakdown of the power system in Dagestan, a real pogrom occurs,” he said, a reference to unrest targeting a specific group.

“These are all signals that Russia can, for the time being, sustain military action and increase pressure on the front lines in some places, but is not capable of withstanding this confrontation strategically,” he said, referring to Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

Kamala Harris to visit Rishi Sunak to discuss Israel and Ukraine

01:00 , Lydia Patrick

U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris will discuss the Israel-Hamas conflict and “consult on next steps in our support for Ukraine“ with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak during a visit to London later this week, a White House official said on Monday.

Harris will also attend a summit and deliver a speech on artificial intelligence.

US condemns violent antisemitic events reported in Russia

00:00 , Lydia Patrick

The United States on Monday condemned violent antisemitic events that have been reported in Russia threatening Israelis and Jews after rioters in the predominantly Muslim Dagestan region stormed an airport to “catch” Jewish passengers on board a flight from Tel Aviv.

Videos obtained by Reuters from the airport at Makhachkala, the regional capital of Dagestan, showed the rioters, mostly young men, waving Palestinian flags, breaking down glass doors and running through the airport on Sunday evening.

Police said they had arrested 60 people in connection with the unrest and identified 150 of the most active participants.

State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said Washington condemned the incident, and said he had seen videos of events he said “looked like a pogrom to me.”

“We call on Russian authorities to publicly condemn these violent protests, to hold anyone involved accountable and to ensure the safety of Israelis and Jews in Russia,” Miller said at a regular press briefing.

Russia’s embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Russia blames Ukraine for antisemitic riot at airport in Dagestan

Monday 30 October 2023 23:00 , Lydia Patrick

Russia blame Ukraine after Rioters in the predominantly Muslim Dagestan region stormed an airport to “catch” Jewish passengers on board a flight from Tel Aviv.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the violence was the result of “outside influence” and that “ill-wishers” had used images of suffering in Gaza to stir people up. Maria Zakharova, a spokeswoman for the Russian foreign ministry, accused Ukraine of a “direct and key role” in preparing the “provocation”.

At least 60 people have been detained after a huge crowd of pro-Palestinian protesters entered the airport in search of Jewish passengers.

Moldova blocks access to Russian news websites

Monday 30 October 2023 22:00 , Lydia Patrick

Moldova blocked access to the websites of major Russian news media including the Interfax and TASS news agencies on Monday, accusing them of taking part in an information war against the country.

Moldova, a small country with a Romanian-speaking majority located between Ukraine and NATO-member Romania, has accused Moscow of trying to overthrow its pro-Western government since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022. It holds local elections later this week.

Russian troops occupy a small, mainly Russian-speaking breakaway region, and Moldova’s main opposition parties have long had close ties to Moscow. Russia denies meddling in Moldova’s affairs and accuses President Maia Sandu of promoting animosity.

A decree published online by Moldova’s Intelligence and Security Service listed 31 websites to be blocked immediately for “online content used in the war of information against the Republic Of Moldova”, adding to 22 blocked earlier this month.

The new list included 14 Russian news sources, including prominent newspaper Komsomolskaya Pravda and website Lenta.ru, as well as TASS and Interfax.

In a separate decree, Moldova also suspended the licenses of six domestic TV channels.

Moscow did not immediately respond. The Russian Foreign Ministry has previously described the decision to block websites as a hostile step aimed at denying Moldovans access to alternative news sources.

ICYMI -

Monday 30 October 2023 21:00 , Lydia Patrick

A senior Russian Rabbi on Monday urged the Kremlin to ensure that rioters in the predominantly Muslim Dagestan region who stormed an airport to “catch” Jewish passengers on board a flight from Tel Aviv are harshly punished.

At least 60 people have been detained after a huge crowd of pro-Palestinian protesters stormed an airport in Russia’s Dagestan region on Sunday, reportedly in search of a flight arriving from Israel.

Rabbi Alexander Boroda, the president of Russia’s Federation of Jewish Communities, called for a tough response.

In a statement, Boroda said that the riot had “undermined the basic foundations of our multi-cultural and multi-national state” and that anti-Israeli sentiment fuelled by events in the Middle East had become open aggression towards Russian Jews.

“Moreover, we see that local authorities were not prepared for such incidents and allowed large-scale violations of law and order and mass demonstrations with open threats to Jews and Israelis,” Boroda said.

“I call on the country’s leadership and law enforcement agencies to find and punish all the organisers and participants of these anti-Semitic actions in the strictest possible manner.”

Russians struggle to keep alive memory of Stalin's victims

Monday 30 October 2023 20:00 , Lydia Patrick

Russians came in dribs and drabs to lay flowers on Monday to the victims of Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin’s purges, on an official day of remembrance largely shunned by an establishment keen to blank out reminders of Russia’s troubled past.

Natalia Anafonova came to St Petersburg’s Levashov Cemetery to honour her great-grandfather.

“It was a tragedy for our family,” she says. “Our (great-)grandmother, when her husband was shot, was left alone with four children. She was expelled to Uglich.

“He was shot in Moscow, but as we all live in St. Petersburg, we have made this memorial plaque here. So that we could come here, to honour his memory and remember him forever.”

Vladimir Putin has instead praised Stalin for saving the Soviet Union from Nazi invaders, and tried to channel that heroic spirit as his own forces seize parts of Ukraine in a war that he casts as a struggle against alleged Western attempts to destroy Russia.

The purge is estimated by historians to have killed between 700,000 and 1.2 million real or imagined enemies or rivals - from fellow Communists to military officers, intellectuals, professionals and peasants.

Zinaida Gerchikova said the day was sacred to her because she knew nothing about her father. “In fact, I only saw him once, when he picked me up from the maternity hospital,” she said.

“They don’t know where he was shot. Somewhere in Sverdlovsk region. I’ve been given some tips at the Big House,” Gerchikova said. The Big House is the nickname of the St Petersburg headquarters of Stalin’s NKVD secret police, which later became that of the Soviet KGB and now the Russian FSB.

It was to help people like Gerchikova that the Nobel Peace Prize-winning human rights group Memorial International was founded as the Soviet Union collapsed - to document Soviet political repression and help to rehabilitate its victims.

But the group was banned in Russia in 2021 and officially dissolved under a decades-long campaign to silence political dissent.

US made combat aircraft gifted to Ukraine

Monday 30 October 2023 19:30 , Lydia Patrick

The first U.S.-made F-16 combat aircraft the Netherlands is donating to Ukraine will arrive in Romania’s training centre within two weeks, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said.

“I expect the Patriot missiles to be delivered shortly, to aid Ukraine in the upcoming winter. And the same speed applies to the F-16s,” Rutte during a video conference with Ukrainian President posted on messaging platform X, formerly known as Twitter.

“The first ones will be shipped to the training centre in Romania within the next two weeks so that day we will get ready for further training,” he added.

Denmark, Norway and Belgium have also announced they will give F-16 jets to Ukraine.

“What is happening now in Gaza and the terrorist attack on Israel and all the follow-up from that will not, shall not and cannot distract us from what is happening between you and Russia, the fact that you are fighting off the Russia aggression,” Rutte said.

“We have to make sure that the world is able to focus both on Ukraine and of course is involved very much of what is happening now in the Middle East.”

Two civilians dead as Russia pounds frontline Kherson region

Monday 30 October 2023 19:00 , Lydia Patrick

Russian shelling pounded the frontline region of Kherson in southern Ukraine, killing two civilians and hurting at least eight others, say local authorties.

The shells struck a bus, a critical infrastructure facility and cemetery, according to local authorities.

Regional governor Oleksandr Prokudin said amongst the injured are two men and five women, adding some of the injuries are ‘severe’.

The bus had been at a crossroads when a shell exploded nearby, local prosecutors said. Images published by local officials online showed the floor of a badly-damaged bus covered in shards of glass and blood.

“Residential buildings, power lines, and vehicles were also damaged,” the prosecutors said on Telegram.

Prokudin said Russia also attacked an unspecified critical infrastructure facility in the region, leaving the residents of four small settlements without electricity.

A cemetery in the region’s village of Kindiyka also came under fire, killing one person and injuring a 62-year-old man, Prokudin said.

The city of Kherson also came under heavy overnight shelling, which killed an 85-year-old woman, Roman Mrochko, head of the city’s military administration, said on Telegram.

“In the central district of the city, high-rise buildings and one of the social institutions were hit,” Mrochko added.

Watch: Mob storms Dagestan airport ‘in search of Israel flight’

Monday 30 October 2023 18:30 , Athena Stavrou

Protesters stormed an airport in the southern Russian city of Makhachkala, Dagestan, on Sunday pouring onto the runway.

The crowd was reportedly in search of a flight arriving from Israel. All aircraft bound for Makhachkala were diverted to other airports, authorities said.

Local reports said demonstrators denouncing Israel’s actions in Gaza had gathered at the facility. Footage showed large groups of protesters entering an air terminal and then storming various rooms inside.

Clips also showed young men among the protesters carrying Palestinian flags.

Moscow succession: What would happen if Putin dies?

Monday 30 October 2023 18:00 , Athena Stavrou

Thyroid cancer, Parkinson’s disease, leprosy or declining in the aftermath of a stroke - just a few of the many unproven ailments rumoured to have afflicted the Russian leader in recent years.

Since gripping the reins of power in 1999, Putin has established himself as one of the most infamous politicians in modern history, with a vicelike grip over Russia - but what would happen if he died?

You can read more below:

If Putin dies, this is what would happen in Russia

US House Speaker says Congress will pass 'stand-alone Israel funding bill' before supporting Ukraine

Monday 30 October 2023 17:30 , Athena Stavrou

Newly installed US House Speaker Mike Johnson said on Sunday he expects floor action this week to advance a funding bill to support Israel exclusively, even though President Joe Biden is pushing for a $106 billion aid package for Israel and Ukraine combined.

“We’re going to move a stand-alone Israel funding bill this week in the House,” Johnson said in an interview on Fox News, adding that he believes the measure will draw bipartisan support and that Republicans will back a similar measure in the Senate.

Members of the US House of Representatives, which Republicans control by a narrow majority, are scheduled to return from a recess on Wednesday.

Recap: Putin ally Lukashenko calls for ceasefire in ‘stalemate’ Ukraine war

Monday 30 October 2023 16:50 , Athena Stavrou

Russia and Ukraine were locked in a serious stalemate in Moscow’s continuing invasion of the country and needed to sit down for peace talks, Belarusian president and Vladimir Putin’s close ally Alexander Lukashenko said.

“There are enough problems on both sides and in general the situation is now seriously stalemate: no one can do anything and substantively strengthen or advance their position,” Mr Lukashenko said.

“They’re there head-to-head, to the death, entrenched. People are dying,” he said over the weekend.

This marks the first time the Belarusian president has come forward seeking truce in the conflict and called for a “stop” command.

Read more:

Putin ally Lukashenko calls for ceasefire in ‘stalemate’ Ukraine war

Russian Rabbi asks Kremlin to punish mob who stormed airport to ‘catch’ Jewish passengers

Monday 30 October 2023 16:10 , Athena Stavrou

A senior Russian Rabbi on Monday urged the Kremlin to ensure that rioters in the predominantly Muslim Dagestan region who stormed an airport to “catch” Jewish passengers on board a flight from Tel Aviv are harshly punished.

At least 60 people have been detained after a huge crowd of pro-Palestinian protesters stormed an airport in Russia’s Dagestan region on Sunday, reportedly in search of a flight arriving from Israel.

Rabbi Alexander Boroda, the president of Russia’s Federation of Jewish Communities, called for a tough response.

In a statement, Boroda said that the riot had “undermined the basic foundations of our multi-cultural and multi-national state” and that anti-Israeli sentiment fuelled by events in the Middle East had become open aggression towards Russian Jews.

“Moreover, we see that local authorities were not prepared for such incidents and allowed large-scale violations of law and order and mass demonstrations with open threats to Jews and Israelis,” Boroda said.

“I call on the country’s leadership and law enforcement agencies to find and punish all the organisers and participants of these anti-Semitic actions in the strictest possible manner.”

Ukraine boosts grain deliveries to Black Sea ports as new export route working

Monday 30 October 2023 15:40 , Athena Stavrou

The success of Ukraine‘s new Black Sea export corridor has led to a sharp increase in the number of rail wagons heading to the ports of Odesa region, a senior railways official said on Monday.

Valeriy Tkachov, deputy director of the commercial department at Ukrainian Railways, said on Facebook that over the last week the number of grain wagons heading to Odesa ports increased by more than 50% to 4,032 from 2,676.

In August, Ukraine launched a “humanitarian corridor” for ships bound for African and Asian markets to try to circumvent a de facto blockade in the Black Sea after Russia quit a deal that had guaranteed Kyiv’s seaborne exports during the war.

Later, a senior agricultural official said the route - which runs along Ukraine‘s southwest Black Sea coast, into Romanian territorial waters and onwards to Turkey - would also be used for grain shipments.

More than 700,000 metric tons of grain have left Ukrainian ports via the new route since August. Ukraine shipped up to six million tons of grain per month from its Black Sea ports before Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.

Ukraine‘s first deputy farm minister said last week that grain shipments through the new corridor may exceed one million metric tons in October.

However, ministry data showed on Monday that overall grain exports fell by about 50% in October due to logistics difficulties.

Pictures: Russian shelling kills woman, 91, Ukraine says

Monday 30 October 2023 15:10 , Athena Stavrou

Ukraine says a “terrifying night” of Russian shelling has killed a 91-year-old woman in the southern Kherson region.

The overnight shelling set fire to a high-rise apartment building, blew out windows and reduced some apartments to rubble, according to video footage posted by Kherson governor Oleksandr Prokudin.

The woman died when an apartment wall fell on her, according to her daughter, who lived with her on the ninth floor.

The daughter of the woman killed in Kherson said the destruction caused by the missile blast enabled her to get out of the building alive.

“I don’t know how I would have gotten out if (the) doors hadn’t been blown out,” Nataliia, who gave no surname, told Radio Liberty. “I would have burned to death in there, too.”

Below are photos of the aftermath of the attacks:

Ukrainian presidential aide denies any Kyiv role in unrest in Dagestan

Monday 30 October 2023 14:40 , Athena Stavrou

A senior Ukrainian official said on Monday that Kyiv had nothing to do with anti-Israel unrest in Russia’s predominantly Muslim Dagestan region, rejecting an accusation by Russia to that effect as groundless.

“Of course, Ukraine has nothing to do with the latest large-scale surge of xenophobic sentiments on the territory of the Russian Federation,” Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak told Reuters in a written statement.

Earlier on Monday, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the storming of Makhachkala airport on Sunday was the result of a “provocation” orchestrated from outside Russia, with Ukraine playing a “direct and key role”.

Russia beefs up forces near Bakhmut, Ukraine says

Monday 30 October 2023 14:10 , Athena Stavrou

Russia has significantly bulked up its forces around the devastated city of Bakhmut in the east and has switched its troops from a defensive posture to taking “active actions”, a Ukrainian military commander said on Monday.

Russia captured Bakhmut, the scene of some of the bloodiest fighting of the 20-month war, in May. Ukraine as been on the counteroffensive since June to try to retake occupied land in the south and east, including the town.

“In the Bakhmut area, the enemy has significantly strengthened its grouping and switched from defence to active actions,” General Oleksandr Syrskyi, commander of the ground forces, wrote on Telegram messenger.

Syrskyi described the situation in the east as difficult with Russian forces particularly active near the northeastern Ukrainian-held town of Kupiansk, where he said Moscow’s troops were trying to advance simultaneously in several directions.

Russian troops have suffered heavy losses, he said.

It comes following reports that Ukrainian forces made advancements near Bakhmut, according to war monitoring think-tank the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).

UK government ‘re-examined’ intelligence work on Wagner group

Monday 30 October 2023 13:50 , Athena Stavrou

The Government said it has re-examined the “extent and scale” of its intelligence work on the Wagner Group, following a critical report by MPs.

PA reported that the Foreign Office also said that the death of Yevgeny Prigozhin may offer “new opportunities” to tackle the group.

The private military firm, whose former leader was killed in a plane crash over the summer, was proscribed as a terrorist group in September after the Commons Foreign Affairs Committee warned that ministers were not doing enough to counter the threat it posed.

In a response to the committee’s report, published on Monday, ministers backed or partially agreed with the vast majority of MPs’ recommendations.

It confirmed that a cross-government taskforce on the group had been created and told MPs: “We agree with the committee that intelligence gathering on Wagner’s activities is a priority and have re-examined the extent and scale of our effort.”

The Foreign Office also said it had “dedicated new resource to containing and countering Wagner” and other Russian private military companies, while also working with allies to “maximise our collective impact”.

Lunchtime roundup

Monday 30 October 2023 13:20 , Athena Stavrou

Here is the latest information from Ukraine this morning:

Ukraine ‘make advances near Bakhmut’

According to the war monitoring think-tank The Institute for the Study of War (ISW), geolocated footage indicated that Ukrainian forces advanced over a railway line south of Andriivka - 10km southwest of Bakhmut.

The Ukrainian General Staff reported that Ukrainian forces continued assault operations south of Bakhmut and offensive operations in the Melitopol direction.

Russian foreign ministry says Ukraine played ‘direct, key role’ in Dagestan unrest

The Kremlin said on Monday that the storming of an airport in the southern Russian region of Dagestan by an anti-Israeli mob on Sunday was the result of “outside influence”.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharovawith added that Ukraine played a “direct and key role”.

Woman, 91, killed in “terrifying night” of Russian shelling

The woman died when an apartment wall fell on her, according to her daughter, who lived with her on the ninth floor in the southern Kherson region.

Russia mercenary group ‘specifically recruiting women’

A Russian state-backed private military company (PMC) is specifically attempting to recruit women into combat roles in Ukraine for the first time, the UK’s latest defence intelligence update says.

Russian foreign ministry says Ukraine played 'direct, key role' in Dagestan unrest

Monday 30 October 2023 12:50 , Athena Stavrou

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Monday that the storming of Makhachkala airport in the Dagestan region on Sunday by an anti-Israeli mob was the result of a “provocation” orchestrated from outside Russia, with Ukraine playing a “direct and key role”.

At least 60 people have been detained after a huge crowd of pro-Palestinian protesters stormed an airport in Russia’s Dagestan region, reportedly in search of a flight arriving from Israel.

Woman, 91, killed in “terrifying night” of Russian shelling

Monday 30 October 2023 12:20 , Athena Stavrou

Ukraine says a “terrifying night” of Russian shelling has killed a 91-year-old woman in the southern Kherson region.

The overnight shelling set fire to a high-rise apartment building, blew out windows and reduced some apartments to rubble, according to video footage posted by Kherson governor Oleksandr Prokudin.

The woman died when an apartment wall fell on her, according to her daughter, who lived with her on the ninth floor.

The daughter of the woman killed in Kherson said the destruction caused by the missile blast enabled her to get out of the building alive.

“I don’t know how I would have gotten out if (the) doors hadn’t been blown out,” Nataliia, who gave no surname, told Radio Liberty. “I would have burned to death in there, too.”

The victim was one of three Ukrainian civilians killed in the east and south of the country over the previous 24 hours, with at least five people hurt, Ukraine‘s presidential office reported on Monday.

Russia names paratroop commander Teplinsky to head military group in Ukraine

Monday 30 October 2023 11:50 , Athena Stavrou

The commander of Russia’s airborne forces, Colonel General Mikhail Teplinsky, has been named as the new commander of Russia’s Dnipro military group in Ukraine, the state-run TASS news agency reported on Monday, citing a source.

Teplinsky replaces Colonel General Oleg Makarevich, who will be moved to other duties, the newspaper Izvestiya reported separately.

The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reported that Makarevich’s dismissal could indicate that the Kremlin or Russian military command may be “sufficiently worried of his ability to repel recent larger-than-usual Ukrainian ground operations in east bank Kherson Oblast” according to Russian millbloggers.

Russia mercenary group ‘specifically recruiting women'

Monday 30 October 2023 11:20 , Athena Stavrou

A Russian state-backed private military company (PMC) is specifically attempting to recruit women into combat roles in Ukraine for the first time, the UK’s latest defence intelligence update says.

The information posted by the Ministry of Defence says that recent social media adverts have appealed for female recruits to join Borz Battalion, a part of Russian PMC Redut, to work as snipers and uncrewed aerial vehicle operators.

They added that Redut is likely directly sponsored by the Russian Main Directorate of Intelligence.

In March 2023, Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said that 1,100 women were deployed in Ukraine, which would equate to only around 0.3 per cent of its force. But, as Redut’s advert points out, they currently serve in mostly medical support and food service roles.

The Defence Ministry said that it “remains unclear” whether official Russian defence forces will seek to follow suit and open more combat roles to women.

Eight Ukrainian missiles shot down, Russia says

Monday 30 October 2023 11:12 , Athena Stavrou

Russian air defence systems destroyed eight Storm Shadow cruise missiles launched at targets in Crimea by Ukraine, Russia’s defence ministry said on Monday.

Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014.

Putin to discuss 'Western efforts to divide Russia' with top officials on Monday

Monday 30 October 2023 10:45 , Athena Stavrou

The Kremlin said on Monday that Russian President Vladimir Putin would hold a meeting with senior officials later on Monday to discuss what it called Western attempts to “divide” Russian society.

In a call with reporters, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Russia’s defence minister and the heads of the intelligence services would attend the meeting.

It comes after Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the storming of an airport in the southern Russian region of Dagestan by an anti-Israeli mob on Sunday was the result of “outside influence”.

Latest map of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine

Monday 30 October 2023 10:15 , Athena Stavrou

Here is a map, created by war monitoring think-tank The Institute for the Study of War (ISW), showing the latest update of the assessed control-of-terrain in Ukraine.

The map is accurate as of 3pm on Sunday 29 October.

Kremlin says Dagestan airport violence result of ‘outside influence’

Monday 30 October 2023 10:13 , Athena Stavrou

The Kremlin said on Monday that the storming of an airport in the southern Russian region of Dagestan by an anti-Israeli mob on Sunday was the result of “outside influence”.

In a call with reporters, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that “ill-wishers” had used widely seen images of suffering in Gaza to stir people up in the predominantly Muslim region in the north Caucasus.

At least 60 people have been detained after a huge crowd of pro-Palestinian protesters stormed an airport in Russia’s Dagestan region, reportedly in search of a flight arriving from Israel.

Investigators have identified 150 people who were the most active protesters, the RIA news agency reported early on Monday morning. Nine police officers sustained injuries in the incident, two of whom were being treated in hospital, the authorities said.

Zelenskyy reacts to Russian airport mob

Monday 30 October 2023 09:45 , Athena Stavrou

Protesters stormed an airport in the southern Russian city of Makhachkala, Dagestan, on Sunday pouring onto the runway. The crowd was reportedly in search of a flight arriving from Israel.

Responding to the reports, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the incident was “part of Russia’s widespread culture of hatred toward other nations”.

Ukraine ‘make advances near Bakhmut'

Monday 30 October 2023 08:55 , Athena Stavrou

Ukrainian forces advanced near Bakhmut amid continued offensive operations on Sunday, according to the war monitoring think-tank The Institute for the Study of War (ISW).

They reported that geolocated footage indicated that Ukrainian forces advanced over a railway line south of Andriivka - 10km southwest of Bakhmut.

The Ukrainian General Staff reported that Ukrainian forces continued assault operations south of Bakhmut and offensive operations in the Melitopol direction.

A prominent Russian milblogger also claimed that Ukrainian forces established control over unspecified positions in the Zaporizhia direction over the past week.

Two injured in Odesa shipyard attack, Ukraine say

Monday 30 October 2023 08:29 , Athena Stavrou

The governor of the Odesa region in Ukraine said two people have been wounded and buildings have been damaged in a Russian missile attack on a ship repair yard in the region.

While details are yet to be confirmed, Governer Oleh Kiper wrote on Telegram: “As a result of the attack, a fire broke out, which was promptly extinguished by our rescuers. The administrative building and equipment of the enterprise were damaged.

“Two people were injured. A man born in 1961 and a woman born in 1966 were taken to hospital in moderate condition. They are provided with all the necessary medical care.”

Watch: Mob storms Dagestan airport ‘in search of Israel flight’

Monday 30 October 2023 08:12 , Athena Stavrou

Protesters stormed an airport in the southern Russian city of Makhachkala, Dagestan, on Sunday pouring onto the runway.

The crowd was reportedly in search of a flight arriving from Israel. All aircraft bound for Makhachkala were diverted to other airports, authorities said.

Local reports said demonstrators denouncing Israel’s actions in Gaza had gathered at the facility. Footage showed large groups of protesters entering an air terminal and then storming various rooms inside.

Clips also showed young men among the protesters carrying Palestinian flags.

Russia ‘ready’ for talks on post-conflict settlement of Ukraine crisis

Monday 30 October 2023 07:45 , Athena Stavrou

Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said that Russia is ready for talks on the post-conflict settlement of the Ukraine crisis at a military forum in Beijing on Monday.

Speaking at the Xiangshan Forum, China’s largest annual military diplomacy event, Shoigu added that Russia is also ready for talks on further ‘co-existence’ with the West.

Russian state media also reported that he accused the West of wanting to expand the conflict in the Ukraine to the Asia-Pacific region.

Shoigu said NATO is covering up a build-up of forces in the Asia-Pacific region with an “ostentatious desire for dialogue”, Russia’s TASS news agency reported.

Russia arrests man in Crimea for passing secrets to Ukraine

Monday 30 October 2023 07:37 , Athena Stavrou

Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) said on Monday that it had detained a Russian man in Crimea on suspicion of treason, accusing him of passing military secrets to Ukraine, according to a state news agency.

In a statement quoted by RIA, the FSB said that the unnamed man had “collected and transmitted information about specified sites with reference to geographic coordinates to a representative of the Ukrainian military”.

Crimea, which is internationally recognised as part of Ukraine, has been under de facto Russian control since 2014

Russia’s Gazprom continues shipping gas to Europe via Ukraine

Monday 30 October 2023 07:11 , Athena Stavrou

Russia’s Gazprom said that it would send 42.4 million cubic metres of gas to Europe via Ukraine on Monday, a volume in line with recent days.

Ukraine says it is ready to repel Russia's offensive actions in Bakhmut

Monday 30 October 2023 21:16 , Lydia Patrick

Kyiv military officials said on Monday that Russia has bulked up its forces around the devastated city of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine and has switched its troops from defence to offence, but Ukraine has been preparing to repel the attacks.

Russia captured Bakhmut, theatre of some of the bloodiest fighting of the 20-month-old war, in May. Ukraine launched a counteroffensive in June aimed at retaking occupied land in the country’s south and east, including Bakhmut.

“In the Bakhmut area, the enemy has significantly strengthened its grouping and switched from defence to active actions,” General Oleksandr Syrskyi, Ukraine‘s commander of ground forces, wrote on Telegram.

Volodymyr Fityo, head of communications for Ukraine‘s ground forces command, said Russian forces had been preparing since early this month to retake positions around Bakhmut lost during the Ukrainian counteroffensive.

“We saw this, the intelligence reported everything. We had been preparing, strengthening our defensive positions, engineering fortifications and pulling up reserves,” Fityo told Reuters by telephone. “This does not come as a surprise for us.”

Moscow succession: What would happen if Putin dies?

Monday 30 October 2023 06:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Thyroid cancer, Parkinson’s disease, leprosy or declining in the aftermath of a stroke - just a few of the many unproven ailments rumoured to have afflicted the Russian leader in recent years.

Just this week, the Kremlin were forced to deny rumours that Vladimir Putin had suffered a cardiac arrest in his bedroom, months after they were forced to deny that he had soiled himself.

Since gripping the reins of power in 1999, Putin has established himself as one of the most infamous politicians in modern history, with a vicelike grip over Russia.

If Putin dies, this is what would happen in Russia

G-7 nations back strong supply chains for energy and food despite global tensions

Monday 30 October 2023 05:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Trade and economy officials from the Group of Seven wealthy democracies strengthened their pledge Sunday to work together to ensure smooth supply chains for essentials like energy and food despite global uncertainties.

The nations promised to maintain “a free and fair trading system based on the rule of law and enhancing economic resilience and economic security,” officials said in a joint statement.

Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa, who co-hosted the two-day event in the western city of Osaka, pointed to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas war as the latest threats to stable energy and food supplies.

G-7 nations back strong supply chains for energy and food despite global tensions