Russia begins long-awaited push to seize eastern Ukraine … fight to the death in Mariupol … and the cost of war in Russia
Every week we wrap up the must-reads from our coverage of the Ukraine war, from news and features to analysis, visual guides and opinion.
Continue reading...Ukraine president warns citizens against handing over personal information, as satellite images of mass graves emerge near Mariupol
Volodymyr Zelenskiy has accused Russia of planning to “falsify” an independence referendum in the partly occupied southern regions of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, telling Ukrainians there not to give personal information to occupying forces.
The warning came after Mariupol’s mayor accused Russia of hiding evidence of its “barbaric” war crimes by burying the bodies of up to 9,000 civilians in a new mass grave, allegations backed up by satellite images from US company Maxar.
Continue reading...Ultimatum by Russia to Ukrainian fighters to surrender passes before civilian buses reported to have left besieged port city
Ukraine’s deputy prime minister Iryna Vereshchuk has announced on Telegram that a humanitarian corridor has been agreed to evacuate women, children and the elderly from the besieged southern port city of Mariupol. She posted:
Given the catastrophic humanitarian situation in Mariupol, it is in this direction that we will focus our efforts today. We managed to agree in advance on a humanitarian corridor for women, children and the elderly.
Due to the very difficult security situation, changes may occur during the corridor. So, please follow the relevant official announcements. We will do our best to make everything work properly.
Do not believe in any words from Russia. It would be good if they allowed civilians to leave the Azovstal, but they didn’t allow this for 50 days, why should they allow this now?
Continue reading...Marine commander appeals for help as another Russian ultimatum calling for remaining troops in city to surrender expires
A Ukrainian marine commander fighting in Mariupol has said his forces are “maybe facing our last days, if not hours”, as another Russian ultimatum to the remaining Ukrainian troops in the besieged port city to surrender or die expired with no mass capitulation.
“The enemy is outnumbering us 10 to one,” Serhiy Volyna, a commander from the 36th separate marine brigade, said in a video message posted on Facebook. “We appeal and plead to all world leaders to help us. We ask them to use the procedure of extraction and take us to the territory of a third-party state.”
Continue reading...UK Ministry of Defence says Russian offensive in east is increasing but beset by problems; Russia says it will offer Mariupol ceasefire on Wednesday to allow Ukrainian defenders to lay down arms
The US is reportedly seeking to seize a superyacht suspected of belonging to a Russian oligarch that is docked in the Pacific island nation of Fiji.
A restraining order filed on Tuesday by Fiji’s director of public prosecutions and seen by Reuters showed the vessel arrived in Fiji a week ago after leaving Mexico 18 days earlier and crossing the Pacific.
Continue reading...Volodymyr Zelenskiy says ‘battle for Donbas’ has begun as Russia mounts anticipated offensive in the eastern part of Ukraine
Russia’s expected offensive in the eastern part of Ukraine has begun. Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelenskiy said a “significant part” of the Russian army was now focused on taking control of eastern Ukraine. “Now we can already state that the Russian troops have begun the battle for the Donbas, for which they have been preparing for a long time,” he said in a video address.
Zelenskiy’s chief of staff Andriy Yermak called it “the second phase of the war” and assured Ukrainians that their forces could hold off the offensive. “Believe in our army, it is very strong,” Yermak said.
There are now 76 Russian battalion tactical groups in the Donbas region of Ukraine and in the country’s southeast, a senior US defence department official said. Eleven of those groups were added over the last several days.
The first shipments of a new US military aid package have arrived at Ukraine’s borders, a senior Pentagon official said. Last week, the United States unveiled a $800-million tranche of equipment for Ukraine, including helicopters, howitzers and armoured personnel carriers.
Seven people were killed in strikes in the western city of Lviv. Maksym Kozytskyy, the governor of Lviv, said preliminary reports suggested there were four strikes there, three on warehouses that were not in use by the military and another on a car service station. “It was a barbaric strike at a service station, it’s a completely civilian facility,” he told a news conference.
The southern port city of Mariupol has not fallen to Russian forces, US officials said. “Our assessment is Mariupol is still contested,” the Pentagon official said. If Russian forces succeed in taking full control of Mariupol, that could free up nearly a dozen battalion tactical groups for use elsewhere in the Donbas.
About 1,000 civilians are reportedly hiding in underground shelters beneath the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol, according to the city council. Most of the civilians are believed to be women with children and elderly people.
Shelling in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region killed four people, regional governor, Pavlo Kirilenko, said.
US president Joe Biden will on Tuesday hold a call with allies to discuss the Ukraine crisis, including on how to coordinate on holding Russia accountable, the White House said.
Despite urging from Zelenskiy, Biden has made no plans to visit Ukraine, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said, adding that details would not be provided if that decision changed, for security reasons.
Family members of sailors who served onboard the Russian warship Moskva are demanding answers as the ministry has sought to suppress information about what happened to the ship or its estimated 510-strong crew.
The total number of dead, wounded and missing remains a state secret. A number of families have gone public saying they cannot find their sons who were serving onboard.
Two British fighters captured in Ukraine by Russian forces have been paraded on Russian state TV asking Boris Johnson to help free them, in a dramatic escalation of the propaganda war. Footage showed Shaun Pinner and Aiden Aslin calling on the British prime minister to help free them in exchange for Ukraine releasing the pro-Kremlin politician Viktor Medvedchuk.
Ukraine is hoping to receive candidate country status to join the European Union within weeks, Zelenskiy said. The European Union’s ambassador in Ukraine, Matti Maasikas, said he received a completed questionnaire from Zelenskiy just 10 days after the document was provided to Kyiv. “Extraordinary times take extraordinary steps and extraordinary speed,” he tweeted.
Russian forces edge closer to control of port city whose fall would deal economic blow to Kyiv and symbolic victory for Moscow
Ukraine has vowed that its forces will “fight to the end” in the besieged port city of Mariupol, after a Russian ultimatum for the remaining Ukrainian troops there to surrender expired.
Moscow is edging closer to full control of the city in what would be its biggest prize since it invaded Ukraine in February. Relentless bombardment and street fighting have left much of the city pulverised, killing at least 21,000 people by Ukrainian estimates.
Continue reading...Mariupol forces defy Russian demand for surrender, as European Commission chief urges fast supply of arms to Ukraine
The remaining Ukrainian forces in the southern port city of Mariupol were still fighting on Sunday and continued to defy a Russian demand that they surrender, according to the Ukrainian prime minister, Denys Shmyhal.
The president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, urged member states to supply Ukraine with weapons systems “quickly” and suggested that a new round of EU sanctions could target Russia’s powerful Sberbank and include an embargo on Russian oil.
A Ukrainian health official said at least five people were killed in the Russian shelling of Kharkiv on Sunday. Maksym Haustov, the head of the Kharkiv regional administration’s health department, said another 13 residents were wounded in the bombardment of Ukraine’s second largest city.
At least two people were killed and four injured on Sunday in shelling of the eastern Ukrainian town of Zolote, the local governor said. “In one of the high-rise buildings, two floors were destroyed … we have at least two dead citizens, four more wounded,” said Serhiy Gaidai, the governor of Luhansk.
Ukraine and Russia failed to agree on humanitarian convoys for the evacuation of civilians from war-affected areas, according to Ukraine’s deputy prime minister, Iryna Vereshchuk.
Another missile attack in the early hours of Sunday damaged infrastructure in Brovary, near Kyiv, said the city’s mayor, Igor Sapozhko, in an online post.
Russian armed forces destroyed an ammunition factory near Kyiv, the Russian defence ministry spokesperson Igor Konashenkov said.
Many of the nearly 5 million people who have fled Ukraine will not have homes to return to, the United Nations warned.
Ukraine has asked G7 nations for $50bn (£38bn) in financial support and is also considering issuing 0% coupon bonds to help it cover a war-linked budget deficit over the next six months, the president’s economic adviser Oleg Ustenko said.
Russia said it was “concerned” about increased activity of Nato forces in the Arctic and that it saw risks of “unintended incidents” occurring in the region, Reuters reported.
In his Easter Sunday address, Pope Francis urged leaders to hear the people’s plea for peace in Ukraine and implicitly criticised Russia for dragging the country into a “cruel and senseless” conflict.
Christ’s message that good will triumph over evil resonated even more this year amid the backdrop of the war in Ukraine, Boris Johnson said.
Continue reading...Ukrainian president also reiterates in interview that he is not willing to cede territory in country’s east to end war with Russia
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy has urged US president Joe Biden to visit Ukraine and reiterated that he is not willing to cede territory in the country’s east to end war with Russia, during an extended interview with CNN broadcast on Sunday.
“I think he will,” Zelenskiy said in English when asked if he was aware of any plans for a US presidential visit. “But it’s his decision, of course, and [it] depends on the safety situation, of course. But I think he’s the leader of the United States and that’s why he should come here to see.”
Continue reading...Troops dug in at huge steel mill despite a midday deadline to surrender from Moscow
A missile attack in early hours of Sunday damaged infrastructure in the city of Brovary, near Ukraine’s capital of Kyiv, Igor Sapozhko, mayor of Brovary said in an online post.
There were no details on the extent of the destruction and potential casualties.
Continue reading...Russia says the ban on Boris Johnson and senior ministers from entering the country will soon be expanded to other politicians
Stay or go?
The question was a difficult one for Ukrainian officials in occupied areas, when deciding whether to follow President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s lead after he made the decision to remain in Kyiv as Russia invaded.
During occupation the main thing is to preserve life, and the people most in danger are the heads of the city. If the city is occupied, what should the mayor do, what should the team do? There was no single algorithm. Nobody gave us any orders. Everyone acted as they felt right.”
The situation in Mariupol is difficult and hard. Fighting is happening right now. The Russian army is constantly calling on additional units to storm the city.”
Continue reading...After two weeks of relative calm, mayor of city warns residents who have left that it is not safe to return
An arms plant in Kyiv destroyed by Russian long-range air-launched rockets allegedly produced at least one of the missiles used to sink the Moskva warship.
The attack on Friday was widely regarded by both parties as the most significant revenge strike by the Kremlin after the sinking of Russia’s flagship vessel in the Black Sea and a reminder that, despite being liberated from the occupants, the war in the Ukrainian capital is far from over.
Russia’s foreign ministry has barred entry to the country for the prime minister, Boris Johnson, the foreign secretary, Liz Truss, the defence secretary, Ben Wallace and 10 other British government politicians and members. The move was taken “in view of the unprecedented hostile action by the British government, in particular the imposition of sanctions against senior Russian officials”, Reuters reports the ministry said in a statement.
The battle for Mariupol is continuing. If Moscow captures the city, home to 400,000 people before the invasion, it would be the first big city to fall.
Nine humanitarian corridors have been agreed for Saturday, the Ukrainian deputy prime minister, Iryna Vereshchuk, announced. Five of the nine evacuation corridors are from the east, in Ukraine’s Luhansk region, which local officials have said is under heavy shelling.
Continue reading...Influences from Churchill to Tolkien are woven in to the Ukrainian president’s compelling video addresses
On day 50 of Russia’s invasion, Volodymyr Zelenskiy made his nightly address to the Ukrainian people. Vladimir Putin had confidently expected to seize Ukraine in five days, Zelenskiy said, standing outside his neo-classical administration building in central Kyiv. Putin was now “making friends with reality”, he added mordantly, hailing the bravery and staunchness of his citizens.
There was a reference to Russia’s flagship Moskva, which Ukraine says it audaciously sank last Wednesday with two lethal Neptune missiles. The warship has become a meme and symbol of national defiance, ever since Ukrainian soldiers stationed on Snake Island in the Black Sea told it in the first days of the conflict to “go and fuck yourself”.
Continue reading...Ukraine says it struck the Moskva with two anti-ship missiles without giving evidence as Zelenskiy says Russia ramping up offensive in east and south
Russia says the flagship of its Black Sea fleet has been seriously damaged and its crew evacuated following an explosion that a Ukrainian official said was the result of a missile strike.
“As a result of a fire, ammunition detonated on the Moskva missile cruiser. The ship was seriously damaged,” the Russian defence ministry was quoted as saying by state-run news agency TASS, adding that the cause of the fire was being determined and that the crew had been evacuated.
Continue reading...Governor of Luhansk urges people to evacuate as Vladimir Putin insists Moscow will achieve its ‘noble’ aims
Civilians have fled eastern Ukraine in advance of a forecast attack, as Russian forces closed in on the ruins of Mariupol – where 21,000 civilians have reportedly died – and Vladimir Putin said Moscow’s invasion would proceed “calmly” and to plan.
Ukrainian forces in the east dug in on Tuesday for a major new Russian offensive, with the governor of Luhansk, Serhiy Gaidai, urging all residents to evacuate as soon as possible using agreed humanitarian corridors. “It’s far more scary to remain and to burn in your sleep from a Russian shell,” Gaidai said on social media. “Evacuate: with every day the situation is getting worse. Take your essential items and head to the pickup point.”
Continue reading...Russian oligarch Viktor Medvedchuk, leader of Ukraine’s biggest opposition party, had been in hiding since the early days of the invasion
More than 6,000 alleged war crimes committed by Russian troops in Ukraine are under investigation, Ukraine’s prosecutor’s office has said.
A total of 6,036 cases have been reported and 186 children have been confirmed to have been killed, the office added.
Security work is under way in the northern regions of our country, from where the occupiers were expelled.
First of all, it is mine clearance. Russian troops left behind tens if not hundreds of thousands of dangerous objects. These are shells that did not explode, mines, tripwire mines. At least several thousand such items are disposed of daily.
Continue reading...Volodymyr Zelenskiy taking chemical weapons threat ‘seriously’ as Mariupol mayor says thousands have died in devastated port city
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy has voiced concerns that Russian forces are preparing “a new stage of terror” that could involve the use of chemical weapons in Ukraine, as the mayor of Mariupol said that more than 10,000 civilians had died so far in the Russian siege of his city.
“Today, the occupiers issued a new statement, which testifies to their preparation for a new stage of terror against Ukraine and our defenders,” Zelesnkiy said early on Tuesday. “One of the mouthpieces of the occupiers stated that they could use chemical weapons against the defenders of Mariupol. We take this as seriously as possible.”
US officials pointed to new signs that Russia’s military is gearing up for a major offensive in Ukraine’s eastern Donbas, switching its focus after failing in their initial drive to capture Kyiv. A senior US defence official described a long convoy now rolling toward the eastern city of Izyum with artillery, aviation and infantry support, as part of redeployment to the east.
Ukrainian authorities are warning people not to go near what they say are landmines being dropped on Kharkiv. Zelenskiy also spoke of “hundreds of thousands of dangerous objects” including mines and unexploded shells left by Russian forces in regions in Ukraine’s north.
Austria’s chancellor, Karl Nehammer, has said he told Putin during frosty talks that “all those responsible” for war crimes must be brought to justice and warned that western sanctions would intensify as long as people kept dying in Ukraine.
Sweden’s ruling party has begun debating whether the country should join Nato, and neighbouring Finland expects to reach a decision within weeks, as Moscow warned that the Nordic nations’ accession would “not bring stability” to Europe.
Continue reading...This liveblog is now closed
There have been no successful major prosecutions over the last 30 years in Ukraine, with the office of Ukraine’s prosecutor general dogged by accusations of corruption and inefficiency since the country declared independence. Now Iryna Venediktova, appointed to the role in 2019, is attempting to gather evidence of Russian war crimes.
More from Guardian correspondent Isobel Koshiw in Borodianka:
Surrounded by a scrum of reporters with a backdrop of bombed-out apartment buildings and rubble in Borodianka, a town in the Kyiv region, stood Iryna Venediktova, Ukraine’s prosecutor general.
Venediktova is carrying the weight of bringing almost 2,000 cases of war crimes committed by Russia’s occupying forces to court at home and abroad. Her office is the only body in Ukraine with the power to investigate. It is through her office that information relating to war crimes is being collected, investigations will be conducted and domestic and international cases will be built.
Continue reading...The PM flew to Poland and then travelled by Ukrainian rail for his meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskiy
Boris Johnson embarked on his trip to Kyiv in utmost secrecy. He arrived in the Ukrainian capital on Saturday without the world’s media realising he was there until footage of him strolling the streets with President Volodymyr Zelenskiy emerged.
Only after he had returned to the UK did a Downing Street spokesperson confirm he had flown to Poland and then travelled by train via Ukrainian railways.
Continue reading...Volodymyr Zelenskiy calls for oil embargo on Russia as Boris Johnson pledges more military aid during Kyiv visit
Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, has warned his country “does not have time to wait” while pushing for an oil embargo on Russia in his latest national address. He also said he is committed to pressing for peace despite Russian attacks on civilians that have stunned the world, and renewed his plea for countries to send more weapons ahead of an expected surge in fighting in the country’s east.
Zelenskiy said his country is ready for a tough battle with Russian forces amassing in the east of the country. “This will be a hard battle; we believe in this fight and our victory. We are ready to simultaneously fight and look for diplomatic ways to put an end to this war.”
The British prime minister, Boris Johnson, pledged a major new infusion of British arms and financial aid during a surprise trip to Kyiv on Saturday. Johnson said the UK and its partners and allies will provide support so that “Ukraine will never be invaded again”. The UK confirmed it will send 120 armoured vehicles and new anti-ship missile systems.
Johnson praised Zelenskiy’s “resolute leadership and the invincible heroism”. “Putin’s monstrous aims are being thwarted,” Johnson said. The reputations of the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, and his government have been “permanently polluted” by war crimes against civilians in Ukraine, he added.
Russia’s withdrawal from northern Ukraine has left evidence of “disproportionate targeting” of civilians, mass graves, the use of hostages as human shields, according to the latest British intelligence report. The report also claimed Russian forces continue to use improvised explosive devices (IEDs) to inflict casualties, lower Ukrainian morale and restrict freedom of movement.
Five people have been killed in east Ukraine shelling, according to the Donetsk governor. Four were reported killed in the city of Vugledar, and one in the town of Novomikhaylovka.
In the town of Borodianka, north-west of Kyiv, rescue teams sorted through the rubble of houses destroyed in Russian bombardments, looking for those missing. Heavy Russian bombardment has razed residential buildings and Ukrainian authorities are attempting search, clear-up and, hopefully, some rescue activities.
Ukraine carried out a prisoner exchange with Russia on Saturday, the third such swap since the start of the war, with 12 soldiers confirmed to be coming home, the Ukrainian deputy prime minister, Iryna Vereshchuk, wrote online.
A total of 4,553 people were evacuated from Ukrainian cities through humanitarian corridors on Saturday, fewer than the 6,665 who escaped on Friday, Vereshchuk said. Ten humanitarian corridors to evacuate people from embattled areas across the country had been agreed on Saturday.
The European Commission is pledging €1bn to support Ukraine and countries receiving refugees fleeing the war following Russia’s invasion, said the commission’s president, Ursula von der Leyen.
The Czech Republic has delivered tanks, multiple-rocket launchers, howitzers and infantry fighting vehicles to Ukraine among military shipments that have reached hundreds of millions of dollars and will continue, two Czech defence sources told Reuters.
The Austrian chancellor, Karl Nehammer, met Zelenskiy earlier on Saturday, following a visit to the city of Bucha to the north-west of Kyiv, where mass civilian graves and street killings by Russian forces were discovered last week.
Russia has reorganised the command of its battle operations in Ukraine, installing a new general with extensive experience in Russian operations in Syria, according to a western official. The commander of Russia’s southern military district, Gen Alexander Dvornikov, now leads the invasion, the source told the BBC, adding: “We would expect the overall command and control to improve.”
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