Ukraine-Russia war – live: Putin ally Lukashenko warns of ‘serious stalemate’ as he urges fighting to ‘stop’

The Russia and Ukraine war is now “seriously stalemate” Alexander Lukashenko has warned as he urged the two sides to “come to an agreement”.

The Belarus leader and Vladimir Putin ally, who has provided his country’s territory as a launch pad for Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, said that Ukraine‘s demands for Russia to quit its territory needs to be resolved at the negotiating table “so nobody dies”.

He 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,” Lukashenko said.

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

Speaking in a question and answer video posted on the website of the Belarusian state news agency BelTA, he added: “We need to sit down at the negotiating table and come to an agreement.

“As I once said: no preconditions are needed. The main thing is that the ‘stop’ command is given.”

Key Points

• 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

Ukraine ‘make advances near Bakhmut'

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.

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

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

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'

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

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

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

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’

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

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”.

Two injured in Odesa shipyard attack, Ukraine say

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’

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

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

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

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.

Moscow succession: What would happen if Putin dies?

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

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

Energy cooperation with EU is pointless, says former Russia president

04:00 , Holly Evans

Russia’s former President, Dmitry Medvedev, was quoted as saying on Sunday that cooperation with Europe in energy matters was frozen or pointless as European countries had fallen on hard times and had poor growth prospects.

“Europe has castrated itself in bloody fashion and without anaesthesia by walking away from energy cooperation with our country,” Russian news agencies quoted Medvedev, now Deputy Secretary of the Security Council, as saying on social media. “This cooperation is either spoiled or frozen for some time.”

Medvedev, president from 2008 to 2012, has positioned himself as one of Russia’s most vocal hardliners

On Avdiivka’s wretched battlefield, Russian soldiers who refuse to advance face an impossible decision

03:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

So brutal is the conflict in the heavily fortified battlefields around the city of Avdiivka, in eastern Ukraine, that Western intelligence suggests some Russian commanders are now executing soldiers who refuse to advance into the tempest of rocket and gunfire.

Avdiivka, a scarred and jagged outpost of the Russian-occupied city of Donetsk, has become the new focal point of Kremlin efforts to snatch something they can present as a victory. Despite severe censorship, Russians now understand that Vladimir Putin’s decision to launch a full-blown invasion has been a catastrophe, with casualties, by some estimates, topping more than a quarter of a million dead and wounded.

Soldiers who don’t follow the suicidal Kremlin orders now risk gunfire from both sides of the war, says Askold Krushelnycky in Ukraine:

Russian soldiers who refuse to advance face an impossible decision

Russia to simplify inward investment for 'friendly' countries

09:24 , Athena Stavrou

Russia’s Prime Minister said on Monday that Russia would create a simplified procedure for citizens and companies from “friendly” countries to invest there.

Mikhail Mishustin said entities from a list of 25 countries would be allowed to open bank accounts in Russia and make deposits via a simplified procedure.

“Creating more convenient conditions for foreign enterprises and entrepreneurs is an important part of the government’s systemic efforts to achieve financial sovereignty as part of the implementation of the national goals set by our president,” Mishustin said in a statement.

It said the procedure would apply to 25 “friendly” countries including China, India, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Kazakhstan and Belarus.

Moscow defines “unfriendly” countries as those that have joined a barrage of Western-led economic sanctions in response to Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Thousands of Ukrainians run to commemorate those killed in the war

02:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Around 2,000 Ukrainians ran a one-kilometer race on Sunday in Kyiv, wearing bibs displaying the name of a person instead of a number.

Each runner chose one person to whom they dedicated their run. Spouses, children, friends, siblings, neighbors, and colleagues ran for someone they knew who either was killed, taken captive or injured during Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine.

The crowd cheered the runners, and many in the audience wept while waiting for participants at the finish line. Amid the lively backdrop of Ukrainian songs, joy and sorrow intermingled in the air as life carried on despite the war.

Thousands of Ukrainians run to commemorate those killed in the war

Russia accuses Ukraine of damaging a nuclear waste warehouse as the battle for Avdiivika grinds on

01:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Russia accused Ukraine on Saturday of damaging a nuclear waste storage facility in a drone strike on the Kursk nuclear power plant while fighting raged on for the control of the key eastern city of Avdiivika, where Russians apparently suffered heavy losses.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said that three drones armed with explosives targeted the power plant on Thursday evening. 26, hitting both the station’s administration building and a warehouse storing nuclear waste.

The press service for the Kursk nuclear power plant confirmed the strike on Friday, but told journalists that there had been no significant damage or casualties and that operations were continuing as normal.

Russia accuses Ukraine of damaging a nuclear waste warehouse as the battle for Avdiivika grinds on

Putin’s many ‘heart attacks’ and why the rumours may be in his favour

00:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

For years, the health of Vladimir Putin has been the subject of lurid speculation and rumours. Recent reports have included body doubles, secret chemotherapy, Parkinsons disease and claims that he fell down the stairs, landed on his coccyx and soiled himself.

Yet this week, the most drastic rumour of ill health began to circulate about the 71-year-old. According to shadowy sources, members of his security service were alerted to banging from his private bedroom, only to discover him convulsing on the ground.

Food and drinks were allegedly overturned, with doctors rushing to perform resuscitation while the news of his supposed cardiac arrest caused panic amongst his inner circle.

Putin’s many ‘heart attacks’ and why the rumours may be in his favour

Ukraine eyes global peace summit this year, says deputy foreign minister

Sunday 29 October 2023 23:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Ukraine aims to hold a global “peace summit” of world leaders this year, Deputy Minister Mykola Tochytskyi said on Sunday after international representatives met in Malta over the weekend to discuss Kyiv’s peace formula for its war with Russia.

“This aim remains necessary and possible ... it has been demonstrated that there is interest in this,” Deputy Minister Mykola Tochytskyi told Reuters by phone shortly after concluding his meetings. Heads of state and heads of government would attend the meeting, he said.

The Malta meeting on Saturday and Sunday was attended in person or online by representatives from 66 countries, Kyiv said, with over 20 more countries participating than at the last such meeting in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, in August.

The talks do not include Russia.

Tochytskyi said the Malta meeting discussed five points of the 10-point formula put forward by President Volodymyr Zelenskiy last year: Nuclear safety, food security, energy security, release of prisoners and deported persons, and territorial integrity.

Thousands of Ukrainians run to commemorate those killed in the war

Sunday 29 October 2023 22:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Around 2,000 Ukrainians ran a one-kilometer race on Sunday in Kyiv, wearing bibs displaying the name of a person instead of a number.

Each runner chose one person to whom they dedicated their run. Spouses, children, friends, siblings, neighbors, and colleagues ran for someone they knew who either was killed, taken captive or injured during Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine.

The crowd cheered the runners, and many in the audience wept while waiting for participants at the finish line. Amid the lively backdrop of Ukrainian songs, joy and sorrow intermingled in the air as life carried on despite the war.

Thousands of Ukrainians run to commemorate those killed in the war

A Russia without Putin? Be careful what you wish for...

Sunday 29 October 2023 21:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

As rumours swirl about the health of the Russian president, Mary Dejevsky explains what the death of Putin could mean for Russia, Ukraine and the rest of the world:

As if there were not enough uncertainty in the world at the moment, the week opened with new speculation about the health of Vladimir Putin. The Russian president, who recently turned 71, was said to have suffered a stroke at his residence outside Moscow and to be in intensive care or, at the very least, under the beady eye of his doctors.

A Russia without Putin? Be careful what you wish for... | Mary Dejevsky

Russia is executing its own retreating soldiers as Ukraine offensive fails, says US

Sunday 29 October 2023 20:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

In case you missed it...

The White House said it had information that Russia was executing its own soldiers who retreated from an offensive in Ukraine or refused to follow orders.

“We have information that the Russian military has been actually executing soldiers who refuse to follow orders,” White House spokesperson John Kirby told a media briefing on Thursday.

“It’s reprehensible to think about that you would execute your own soldiers because they didn’t want to follow orders and now threatening to execute entire units, it’s barbaric,” Mr Kirby said.

Russia is executing its own retreating soldiers as Ukraine offensive fails, says US

War-weary mothers, wives and children of Ukrainian soldiers demand a cap on military service time

Sunday 29 October 2023 19:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Scores of protesters gathered on the streets of Ukrainian cities on Friday to demand a cap of 18 months on mandatory military service, amid new suggestions of possible Ukrainian and international weariness with the 20-month war.

Both the warring sides are striving to keep their military momentum, though neither side is able to land a knockout blow, and the fighting is expected to drag on deep into next year.

The 18-month service limit would be the same maximum as before the war. It is currently open-ended for draftees. The protesters, who are part of a loose national network, want the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine’s parliament, to consider possible alternatives on service time.

War-weary mothers, wives and children of Ukrainian soldiers demand a cap on military service time

Anchorage's oldest building, a Russian Orthodox church, gets new life in restoration project

Sunday 29 October 2023 18:15 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

The Russian Orthodox church on the outskirts of Alaska’s biggest city is packed with treasures for the Christian faithful: religious icons gifted by Romanov czars, panels of oil paintings and jewel-studded incense burners. But outside the hand-hewn log sanctuary, dozens of miniature Alaska Native spirit houses sit by aging gravesites alongside Orthodox crosses poking from the cemetery grounds.

The narrow church with white-framed windows near Anchorage is a vestige of Russia‘s nearly 150-year attempt to colonize Alaska and the Indigenous people who lived here. But over time, St. Nicholas Church became an important touchstone for Alaska Natives as well. The church lies within the Alaska Native village of Eklutna, and many are buried there.

Now, an extensive, three-year restoration project that began this month is bringing more attention to the tiny church that is a window into a complex, and often-forgotten, chapter of Alaska’s unique history.

Anchorage's oldest building, a Russian Orthodox church, gets new life in restoration project

Thousands of Ukrainians run to commemorate those killed in the war

Sunday 29 October 2023 17:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Around 2,000 Ukrainians ran a one-kilometer race on Sunday in Kyiv, wearing bibs displaying the name of a person instead of a number.

Each runner chose one person to whom they dedicated their run. Spouses, children, friends, siblings, neighbors, and colleagues ran for someone they knew who either was killed, taken captive or injured during Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine.

The crowd cheered the runners, and many in the audience wept while waiting for participants at the finish line. Amid the lively backdrop of Ukrainian songs, joy and sorrow intermingled in the air as life carried on despite the war.

Thousands of Ukrainians run to commemorate those killed in the war

Latest update from the Ministry of Defence

Sunday 29 October 2023 15:05 , Holly Evans

In their latest update on social media, the Ministry of Defence said that it is likely Russia wishes to suppress negative perspectives on the ‘special military operation’ ahead of Putin’s bid for re-election in 2024.

Moscow will confiscate EU assets if Brussels 'steals' frozen Russian funds, Putin ally says

Sunday 29 October 2023 13:11 , Athena Stavrou

Russia will confiscate assets belonging to European Union states it deems unfriendly if the bloc “steals” frozen Russian funds in a drive to fund Ukraine, a top ally of President Vladimir Putin said on Sunday.

Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, said on Friday that the EU executive was working on a proposal to pool some of the profits derived from frozen Russian state assets to help Ukraine and its post-war reconstruction.

“A number of European politicians, led by the president of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, have once again started talking about stealing our country’s frozen funds in order to continue the militarisation of Kyiv,” Vyacheslav Volodin, the chairman of the State Duma and a close Putin ally, said in a statement on the Telegram messaging app.

“Such a decision would require a symmetrical response from the Russian Federation. In that case, far more assets belonging to unfriendly countries will be confiscated than our frozen funds in Europe,” he said.

Ukraine shoots down five exploding drones launched by Russia

Sunday 29 October 2023 12:14 , Holly Evans

In Ukraine, the country’s air force said on Sunday it had shot down five Iranian-made Shahed exploding drones launched by Russia overnight.

Close to the front line in the country’s east, where Ukrainian and Russian forces are locked in a grinding battle for control, four police officers were injured when a shell fired by Russian troops exploded by their police car in the city of Siversk, located in the partly occupied Donetsk province.

British intelligence assessed this weekend that Russia had suffered some of its biggest casualty rates so far this year as a result of continued “heavy but inconclusive” fighting around the town of Avdiivka, also in the Donetsk province.

Russia shoots down 30 Ukraine drones over the Black Sea

Sunday 29 October 2023 11:18 , Holly Evans

Russian air defense shot down over 30 Ukrainian drones over the Black Sea and the Crimean peninsula overnight Saturday, Russia’s Defense Ministry said Sunday.

“The air defense systems in place destroyed 36 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles over the Black Sea and the northwestern part of the Crimean peninsula,” the ministry wrote on Telegram.

Local authorities in the southern Krasnodar region bordering the Black Sea said that a fire broke out at an oil refinery in the early hours of Sunday, but did not specify the cause.

“The reasons for the incident are being established,” a statement from local authorities said, amid claims in local media outlets that the fire had been caused by a drone strike or debris from a downed drone.

Drone strikes and shelling on the Russian border regions and Moscow-annexed Crimea are a regular occurrence. Ukrainian officials never acknowledge responsibility for attacks on Russian territory or the Crimean peninsula.

Putin ally Lukashenko calls for sit down meeting for an end of war agreement

Sunday 29 October 2023 10:22 , Holly Evans

Belarus leader and Putin ally Alexander Lukashenko Lukashenko said that Ukraine’s demands for Russia to quit its territory needs to be resolved at the negotiating table “so nobody dies”.

“We need to sit down at the negotiating table and come to an agreement,” Lukashenko said in a video posted on the website of the Belarusian state news agency BelTA. “As I once said: no preconditions are needed. The main thing is that the ‘stop’ command is given.”

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

Sunday 29 October 2023 09:18 , Holly Evans

The authoritarian leader of Belarus has said that Russia and Ukraine are locked in a stalemate on the frontlines of their war and the two sides need to sit down and negotiate an end to the conflict.

Alexander Lukashenko, who is an ally of Russian president Vladimir Putin, described the current state of the conflict as “head-to-head, to the death, entrenched. People are dying”.

“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,” he said.

Moscow succession: What would happen if Putin dies?

Sunday 29 October 2023 08:13 , Holly Evans

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.

Read the full article below

If Putin dies, this is what would happen in Russia

Experts reveal what the winter will bring for the Ukraine war – and why Putin will be banking on Trump

Sunday 29 October 2023 07:15 , Holly Evans

The Ukraine war may remain a “stalemate” throughout 2024, military experts have told The Independent, as hopes fade for a major breakthrough in this year’s counteroffensive against Russia.

Delays in Western military aid handed Moscow time to build heavily fortified defences which have largely held up against months of intense assaults – and constraints in ammunition and weaponry now mean both armies may struggle to sustain the current pace of the war, some analysts believe.

With the prospect of a Middle East conflict likely to further stretch Washington – Ukraine’s largest backer – ahead of a US presidential election in November 2024, Vladimir Putin’s strategy may now be to preserve the current state of the front line and “wait it out”, Western experts say.

Read the full article below

Experts on what winter brings for the Ukraine war – and why Putin is banking on Trump

Russia’s strike campaign ‘damaged 70 energy facilities last autumn and winter'

Sunday 29 October 2023 06:00 , Athena Stavrou

The head of Ukraine’s state grid operations said Russian strikes on energy systems damaged 70 large facilities last autumn and winter.

Volodymyr Kudrytskyi told Voice of America that about half of Ukraine’s power system was damaged in the campaign.

He said: “Any lower-level facilities were damaged in frontline areas by artillery strikes, small transformer points or regional substations. There are probably hundreds, thousands of them.”

On Avdiivka’s wretched battlefield, Russian soldiers who refuse to advance face an impossible decision

Sunday 29 October 2023 04:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Soldiers who don’t follow the suicidal Kremlin orders now risk gunfire from both sides of the war, says Askold Krushelnycky in Ukraine:

So brutal is the conflict in the heavily fortified battlefields around the city of Avdiivka, in eastern Ukraine, that Western intelligence suggests some Russian commanders are now executing soldiers who refuse to advance into the tempest of rocket and gunfire.

Russian soldiers who refuse to advance face an impossible decision

Ukrainian drone struck Russian nuclear waste facility, ministry says

Sunday 29 October 2023 03:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

A Ukrainian drone crashed into a nuclear waste storage facility at the Kursk nuclear power plant in western Russia on Thursday, damaging its walls, Russia’s foreign ministry said on Saturday.

The ministry said in a statement that Kyiv must have known that its actions could have caused a full-scale nuclear catastrophe.

Moscow said on Friday that it had thwarted the drone attack in the country’s south, where two news outlets said an explosion had damaged the facade of a warehouse storing nuclear waste.

A Russia without Putin? Be careful what you wish for...

Sunday 29 October 2023 02:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

As rumours swirl about the health of the Russian president, Mary Dejevsky explains what the death of Putin could mean for Russia, Ukraine and the rest of the world:

As if there were not enough uncertainty in the world at the moment, the week opened with new speculation about the health of Vladimir Putin.

The Russian president, who recently turned 71, was said to have suffered a stroke at his residence outside Moscow and to be in intensive care or, at the very least, under the beady eye of his doctors.

A Russia without Putin? Be careful what you wish for... | Mary Dejevsky

Peace plan talks involving 65 countries - but not Russia

Sunday 29 October 2023 01:00 , Katy Clifton

Talks on Ukraine‘s plan for peace kicked off in Malta on Saturday, with the participation of more than 65 countries — but not Russia, Maltese and Ukrainian officials said.

The two-day meeting of national security delegates is the third round of such talks in recent months. Ukraine sees them as an opportunity to win support for president Volodymyr Zelensky’s 10-point peace plan from countries across the globe, especially as the conflict in the Middle East risks shifting the focus away from Ukraine.

Russia, which wasn’t invited to any of the meetings, has dismissed the initiative as biased.

“Ukraine‘s diplomatic efforts are paying off, as international support for the Ukrainian peace formula is growing,” the head of the Ukrainian presidential office, Andriy Yermak, wrote on X — formerly known as Twitter — ahead of the opening session.

Russia recruits prisoners for Ukraine war as Putin replicates Wagner

Sunday 29 October 2023 00:01 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Russia has taken the wheel from Wagner as the Kremlin has recruited up to 100,000 prisoners to fight in Ukraine.

The practice was a trademark move of the late mercenary boss Yevgeny Prigozhin, who filled his group’s ranks with convicted criminals.

The army unit, commonly known as Storm-Z, is reportedly seen as a disposable force in Vladimir Putin’s “special military operation”.

Russia recruits prisoners for Ukraine war as Putin replicates Wagner

On Avdiivka’s wretched battlefield, Russian soldiers who refuse to advance face an impossible decision

Saturday 28 October 2023 23:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Soldiers who don’t follow the suicidal Kremlin orders now risk gunfire from both sides of the war, says Askold Krushelnycky in Ukraine:

So brutal is the conflict in the heavily fortified battlefields around the city of Avdiivka, in eastern Ukraine, that Western intelligence suggests some Russian commanders are now executing soldiers who refuse to advance into the tempest of rocket and gunfire.

Russian soldiers who refuse to advance face an impossible decision

From Stalin to Putin, abortion has had a complicated history in Russia

Saturday 28 October 2023 22:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

They were banned under Soviet dictator Josef Stalin but commonplace under later Kremlin leaders. Now, after less than a century, official attitudes about abortion in Russia are changing once again.

Although abortion is still legal and widely available, new restrictions are being considered as President Vladimir Putin takes an increasingly socially conservative turn and seeks to reverse Russia’s declining population.

Having embraced the Russian Orthodox Church, he is stressing “traditional family values” — often used as code words to differentiate his country from Western social attitudes toward LGBTQ+ rights and other policies.

From Stalin to Putin, abortion has had a complicated history in Russia

Dutch PM Rutte signals interest in NATO top job

Saturday 28 October 2023 20:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Outgoing Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said on Saturday he would be interested in succeeding Jens Stoltenberg as secretary-general of NATO, although he only saw a small chance of being picked for the job.

“Such a role would be interesting as it would offer the chance to contribute for a few years on the international stage in a period of dramatic global changes,” Rutte said in an interview with radio station Den Haag FM.

“But there is a very big chance, given the political support for it, that this job will go to a European woman, which would also be very good.”

Rutte, who unexpectedly announced his departure from Dutch politics in July soon after handing in the resignation of his fourth cabinet, said he did not know if he was considered a front-runner for role as head of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and would not start a personal campaign.

Stoltenberg has been in post since 2014 and is due to step down in October 2024.

His term was extended in July for a fourth time, as the alliance’s 31 member countries opted to stick with an experienced leader rather than try to agree on a successor with Russia‘s war in Ukraine raging on NATO’s doorstep.

Russian diplomats deny Moscow executed soldiers on battlefield

Saturday 28 October 2023 19:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Russian diplomats on Friday dismissed as lies a White House allegation that Moscow’s military was executing its own soldiers if they refused to carry out battlefield orders in Ukraine.

“Whoever came up with these other-worldly lies could only have been a person with an imagination far into overdrive,” the Russian embassy in Washington said in comments carried by the RIA Novosti news agency.

“And all this simply to justify the failed, much publicised counteroffensive of its (Ukrainian) ward. Let us say with full responsibility that all insinuations about this in comments by the White House spokesperson are a lie.”

White House spokesperson John Kirby told reporters on Thursday that the U.S government had information the Russian military had been executing soldiers who refuse orders.

“We also have information that Russian commanders are threatening to execute entire units if they seek to retreat from Ukrainian artillery fire,” he said.

Kirby provided no evidence for his assertions.

War-weary mothers, wives and children of Ukrainian soldiers demand a cap on military service time

Saturday 28 October 2023 18:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Scores of protesters gathered on the streets of Ukrainian cities on Friday to demand a cap of 18 months on mandatory military service, amid new suggestions of possible Ukrainian and international weariness with the 20-month war.

Both the warring sides are striving to keep their military momentum, though neither side is able to land a knockout blow, and the fighting is expected to drag on deep into next year.

The 18-month service limit would be the same maximum as before the war. It is currently open-ended for draftees. The protesters, who are part of a loose national network, want the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine’s parliament, to consider possible alternatives on service time.

War-weary mothers, wives and children of Ukrainian soldiers demand a cap on military service time

Ukraine’s frontline troops say they are facing intensifying attacks by Putin’s forces – and ammo’s running out

Saturday 28 October 2023 17:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

In case you missed it...

As all eyes are on Israel and Gaza, Askold Krushelnycky speaks to military officers in Ukraine about facing Russian forces from multiple sides in the northern and eastern battlegrounds – and their fears that US support for Israel’s war on Hamas could drain the flow of essential munitions for their fight:

Ukraine’s troops face intensifying attacks by Putin’s forces – and ammo’s running out

Moscow succession: What would happen if Putin dies?

Saturday 28 October 2023 16:30 , 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

Russia calls for condemnation after Ukrainian drone crashes into nuclear facility

Saturday 28 October 2023 14:54 , Holly Evans

Russia’s foreign ministry has called on other governments to condemn Kyiv after a Ukrainian drone crashed into a nuclear waste storage facility at the Kursk power plant in western Russia on Thursday, damaging its walls.

Ukraine must have known that its actions could have caused a full-scale nuclear catastrophe, the ministry’s statement said.

“We call on all governments to issue a strong condemnation of Kyiv’s barbaric actions, which are extremely dangerous and could lead to irreparable consequences,” said ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova.

“According to preliminary data, the drones used in the attack on the nuclear power plant used components supplied by Western countries,” she said, adding that such an attack must have had the permission or possibly of Ukraine’s allies or possibly been ordered by them.

EU summit turns its eyes away from Ukraine despite a commitment to stay the course with Zelenskyy

Saturday 28 October 2023 12:24 , Holly Evans

It was a good thing Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Zelenskyy had his videoconference address to the European Union summit pre-slotted for the opening session.

Immediately afterward, EU leaders switched off and went to the order of the day — the Israel-Hamas war. They didn’t come back to the issue of Russia‘s war in Ukraine again before Friday’s closing day of the summit.

After dominating summit after summit since Moscow launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, the timing alone, anecdotal as it was, underscored a deeper reality: Zelenskyy will be facing tougher times to get all the attention and political, economic and military aid that Ukraine wants.

Read more here

EU summit turns its eyes away from Ukraine despite a commitment to stay the course with Zelenskyy

Peace talks begin in Malta - without Russia

Saturday 28 October 2023 11:26 , Holly Evans

Peace talks that are being supported by Ukraine and representatives from more than 50 countries have begun in Malta, with Russia absteining from the discussions.

This follows similar summits in Jeddah and Copenhagen earlier this year, with Volodymyr Zelensky outlining 10-point plan to end the war.

“This meeting is a powerful signal that unity is preserved around Ukraine,” Andriy Yermak, the head of Ukraine’s presidential office, said this week.

Russian foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said the Malta talks have “nothing to do with the search for a peaceful resolution”.

Ukraine shot down three out of the four Iskander cruise missiles

Saturday 28 October 2023 10:18 , Holly Evans

Ukraine’s air force claimed it has shot down three out of the four Iskander cruise missiles that Russia launched overnight at Dnipropetrovsk oblast.

They wrote on Telegram that the launches were carried out from the Dzhankoi district of Russian-occupied Crimea and that the remaining missile did not reach its target. Explosions were heard around 1am with no casualties reported.

Ministry of Defence latest update

Saturday 28 October 2023 09:25 , Holly Evans

In their daily update on social media, the Ministry of Defence said that “heavy but inconclusive” fighting had been taking place around the town of Avdiivka, with Russian troops likely to have suffered some of their highest casualty rates in 2023.

War-weary mothers, wives and children of Ukrainian soldiers demand a cap on military service time

Saturday 28 October 2023 08:50 , Holly Evans

Scores of protesters gathered on the streets of Ukrainian cities on Friday to demand a cap of 18 months on mandatory military service, amid new suggestions of possible Ukrainian and international weariness with the 20-month war.

Both the warring sides are striving to keep their military momentum, though neither side is able to land a knockout blow, and the fighting is expected to drag on deep into next year.

The 18-month service limit would be the same maximum as before the war. It is currently open-ended for draftees. The protesters, who are part of a loose national network, want the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine’s parliament, to consider possible alternatives on service time.

Read more here

War-weary mothers, wives and children of Ukrainian soldiers demand a cap on military service time