Legislation would allow recruitment of older professionals as military faces infantry shortage
Senior Russian officials have proposed a new law that would eliminate age limits for military contract soldiers, in another sign the country is facing a shortage of infantry to continue its offensive in Ukraine.
Two members of the ruling United Russia party who introduced the law said the move would enable the military to utilise the skills of older professionals.
Continue reading...Magazines, production lines and consumer choices suffer as isolation from the west bites
A trip to the mall in Russia is a different experience today than it was just a few short months ago.
“When I had my first child, there was all this choice. Mothercare, Zara, you name it,” said Evgenia Marsheva, a 33-year-old architect. But when she went shopping in Moscow this month for her newborn, many of those large retail brands had been shuttered.
Continue reading...Russian forces thought to be trying to cut one of the main supply routes to Ukrainian defenders in the area
Intense fighting has been reported around the Ukrainian city of Severodonetsk as Russian forces appear to be stepping up an offensive to encircle its Ukrainian defenders.
Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, said the eastern provinces of Luhansk and Donetsk – known collectively as the Donbas – were being turned into “hell” and warned that what he called the “final stage of the war” would be the bloodiest.
Continue reading...Tank commander Vadim Shysimarin, 21, tells court he was ‘nervous’ and ‘didn’t want to kill’ unarmed civilian
A Russian tank commander who pleaded guilty earlier this week to shooting dead an unarmed Ukrainian civilian has said he will accept any punishment from the court, on the third day of the first war crimes trial resulting from Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Vadim Shysimarin, 21, told courtroom No 201 of the Kyiv tribunal that he “was nervous about what was going on” on the day 62-year-old Oleksandr Shelipov died and that he “didn’t want to kill”.
Artem Mazhulin, AFP and Reuters contributed to this report.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Transportation secretary says there is global support for reconstruction effort to help recovery from Russian invasion
A leading figure in the Biden administration has backed a recovery programme for Ukraine in the style of the Marshall plan, which helped rebuild Europe after the second world war.
Pete Buttigieg, the US transportation secretary, said there was plenty of political will at home and internationally towards cooperating in long-term reconstruction efforts including to buttress existing infrastructure in Ukraine.
Continue reading...Donbas region has been ‘completely destroyed’, Zelenskiy says; Russia will consider opening Ukraine’s Black Sea ports only if western sanctions lifted, Moscow says
Continue reading...This blog has now closed. Please join us again in a few hours when we will launch a new live blog
The UK’s ministry of defence has issued its daily public intelligence briefing on the situation with Russia and Ukraine, and this morning it is concentrating on the situation within Russia’s military. The ministry claims that Lieutenant General Serhiy Kisel has been suspended for failing to capture Kharkiv and Vice Admiral Igor Osipov has been suspended from commanding the Black Sea Fleet. It says:
A culture of cover-ups and scapegoating is probably prevalent within the Russian military and security system. Many officials involved in the invasion of Ukraine will likely be increasingly distracted by efforts to avoid personal culpability for Russia’s operational set-backs.
Continue reading...Shortages of grain and fertiliser could cause ‘mass hunger and famine, says chief, as World Bank pledges another $12bn to ease shortfall
The United Nations has warned that the war in Ukraine has helped to stoke a global food crisis that could last years if it goes unchecked, as the World Bank announced an additional $12bn in funding to mitigate its “devastating effects”.
UN secretary general António Guterres said shortages of grain and fertiliser caused by the war, warming temperatures and pandemic-driven supply problems threaten to “tip tens of millions of people over the edge into food insecurity”, as financial markets saw share prices fall heavily again on fears of inflation and a worldwide recession.
Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, used his nightly address to claim that Russia’s use of laser weapons to down drones to save stocks of conventional missiles “indicates the complete failure of the invasion” and that mistakes had been made at the highest level. He compared their use to propaganda efforts by Nazi Germany promoting a “wunderwaffe” or “wonder weapon”. Russia has claimed it is using a new generation of laser weapons to burn up drones.
Zelenskiy said he had signed a decree to extend martial law by 90 days in order to allow further time to expel invasion forces. The decree needs to be approved by parliament.
Sweden and Finland have formally submitted their applications to join Nato but Turkey blocked an early move to fast-track the Nordic countries’ requests, demanding they extradite “terrorists” and that the alliance respect its concerns. US president Joe Biden said Washington would in the meantime work with Finland and Sweden in the event of the “threat of aggression”.
The US embassy in Kyiv has resumed operations, the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, said after nearly three months of closure. A small number of diplomats will return initially to staff the embassy, according to a spokesperson.
G7 finance minister will meet in Brussels on Thursday hoping to find a solution for Kyiv’s budget troubles as the fallout from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continues to roil the global economy. The US has already pledged a $40bn aid package to fill Kyiv’s coffers and military stores.
Continue reading...Zelenskiy says Russian use of laser weapons shows invasion has failed; World Bank agrees $30bn global food aid plan
Continue reading...Analysis: By demanding extradition of alleged PKK members, Turkish president could have one eye on elections
After initial hesitation about the seriousness of Turkey’s objections, its president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, has doubled down on his threat to veto Finland’s and Sweden’s applications for membership of Nato, saying there is no point in either country sending delegations to Ankara to persuade him otherwise.
On Wednesday, he also extended his demands from the two he outlined on Monday to 10, leading to claims that he is using blackmail.
Continue reading...Fate of soldiers leaving Azovstal steel site unclear and numbers not confirmed by Ukraine
More than 900 Ukrainian troops who were at Mariupol’s besieged Azovstal steel plant have been sent to a prison colony on Russia-controlled territory, Moscow said on Wednesday, as their fate remained uncertain.
A foreign ministry spokesperson, Maria Zakharova, said on Wednesday evening that of the 959 Ukrainian service personnel Russia says have surrendered since Tuesday, 51 were being treated for their injuries and the remainder had been sent to a former prison colony in the town of Olenivka in a Russian-controlled area of Donetsk region.
Continue reading...US president pledges support for Finland and Sweden while Nato applications are considered; Russian soldier in war crimes trial pleads guilty
Russia’s ministry of defence has issued a statement on Telegram saying it has been requested by the investigative committee of Russia to provide information on “the illegal actions of Ukrainian armed formations related to the use of civilian objects for military purposes”.
Without providing evidence, it claims “the Azov Battalion used the buildings of kindergartens and schools to equip barracks” and that members of the ‘Aidar’ battalion also “equip firing positions in places not intended for this, creating a real danger to the civilian population”.
Continue reading...Move comes hours after the Nordic nations officially launched their bids to join the alliance
Sweden and Finland have formally submitted their applications to join Nato but Turkey blocked an early move to fast-track the Nordic countries’ requests, demanding they extradite “terrorists” and that the alliance respect its concerns.
The Nato secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, accepted the two historically non-aligned Nordic countries’ membership requests, each in a white folder embossed with their national flag, at the US-led defensive alliance’s HQ in Brussels on Wednesday.
Continue reading...Analysis: UK among hardest-hit countries thanks to perfect storm of war in Ukraine, Covid and Brexit
Britain’s inflation rate has soared to the highest level since the early 1980s. After a record increase in gas and electricity bills in April, inflation is the highest in the G7. Having reached 9% last month, it is above the 8.3% rate in the US and Germany’s reading of 7.4%. Japan, an economy characterised by low inflation for decades thanks to an ageing population, has the lowest rate at 1.2%.
Here are some of the reasons why prices are rising faster in the UK than in other major economies.
Continue reading...Tank commander Vadim Shysimarin, 21, admits shooting dead a 62-year-old civilian who was on a bicycle
A Russian tank commander has pleaded guilty to shooting dead 62-year-old man as he rode his bicycle down a village road, in Ukraine’s first trial for war crimes committed during the Russian invasion.
Vadim Shysimarin, 21, sat emotionless as prosecutors detailed charges that he had fired his AK-47 at the unarmed cyclist from the window of a car in the north-eastern Sumy region in late February.
Continue reading...Group warns of ‘cascade of export bans’ amid failure to ease grain bottlenecks fuelling shortages and inflation, MHP said
One of Ukraine’s largest farming groups has called for an urgent solution to unblock the country’s Black Sea ports as exports of grain, sunflower and rapeseed are being held up by the Russian naval blockade, driving inflation and shortages around the world.
G7 ministers have held urgent talks about trying to open routes through Romanian and Baltic ports, potentially fed with an army of 10,000 trucks making a five-day trip from Ukraine.
Continue reading...Fate of Ukrainian soldiers unclear after evacuation from Mariupol; peace talks stall between Russia and Ukraine
The fate of more than 260 Ukrainian soldiers who have ended weeks of resistance at the Azovstal steelworks in Mariupol remains unclear, after the fighters surrendered and were transferred to Russian-controlled territory. Ukraine’s deputy defence minister said they would be swapped in a prisoner exchange, but some Russian officials said they could be tried or even executed.
Eight people died and 12 were wounded after Russia launched a missile strike on the village of Desna in the northern Ukrainian region of Chernihiv, according to Ukraine’s state emergency service. The regional governor, Viacheslav Chaus, said Russia launched four missiles at about 5am local time on Tuesday. Two of the missiles hit buildings in the village, he said.
Peace talks between Russia and Ukraine have stalled, according to both sides. The Ukrainian negotiator Mykhailo Podolyak said negotiations with Russia had been suspended, blaming Moscow’s “stereotypical mindset”. Russia’s deputy foreign minister, Andrei Rudenko, said that virtually no peace talks were going on at the moment and blamed Ukraine for having “practically withdrawn” from the process.
France’s president, Emmanuel Macron, promised his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, that French arms deliveries to Kyiv would intensify in the coming days, the Élysée said. Zelenskiy said he had had a “long and meaningful” conversation with Macron.
The EU’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, said Russian forces may have sustained “impressive losses” since their invasion of Ukraine. He said: “If it is true that Russia has lost 15% of their troops since the beginning of the war, this is a world record of the losses of an army invading a country.” Borrell also said all EU member states would support Finland and Sweden in their applications to join Nato.
Finland’s parliament has overwhelmingly approved a government proposal to join Nato, a day after Sweden confirmed its intention to join the alliance. The Finnish president, Sauli Niinistö, said he was sure both countries would overcome Turkish opposition to their membership bids.
Niinistö and Sweden’s prime minister, Magdalena Andersson, will meet Joe Biden on Thursday, the White House said. The leaders are expected to discuss Finland and Sweden’s Nato applications, European security and support for Ukraine amid Russia’s invasion, it said.
Russia’s foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, has said Finland and Sweden joining Nato would probably make “not much difference”. The two Nordic countries “have been participating in Nato military exercises for many years”, Lavrov said.
Vladimir Putin has said that by abandoning Russian energy supplies, Europe risks paying the most expensive energy prices in the world. Speaking at a meeting with domestic oil managers and government officials, Putin said it was impossible for some European countries to quickly ditch Russian oil.
Continue reading...Ukraine says there will be prisoner swap but some Russian officials have said forces could be tried or executed
The fate of hundreds of Ukrainian soldiers who have ended weeks of resistance at the Azovstal steelworks in Mariupol remains unclear, after the fighters surrendered and were transferred to Russian-controlled territory.
Ukraine’s deputy defence minister said they would be swapped in a prisoner exchange, but some Russian officials said on Tuesday they could be tried and even executed. MPs in Russia’s State Duma said they would propose new laws that could derail prisoner exchanges of fighters who Moscow claims are “terrorists”.
Continue reading...This blog is now closed.
The evacuation of Ukrainian fighters from Mariupol’s Azovstal steel plant, their last remaining redoubt in the city, began on Monday. Here are some images from that evacuation:
A village in Russia’s western province of Kursk bordering Ukraine came under Ukrainian fire on Tuesday, regional governor Roman Starovoit said, according to Reuters, but there were no injuries, although three houses and a school were hit.
Continue reading...Fears system could crash entirely amid growing reports of people being made to leave by sponsors
Growing numbers of refugees are being made homeless, and in many cases destitute, after relationship breakdowns with their Homes for Ukraine hosts in the UK, community organisations have said.
Some predict the system could crash entirely after reports of Ukrainian refugees being asked to leave the homes of their sponsors with only one day’s notice, leaving them with no option but to be referred to local authorities as homeless or, if they can afford to, attempt to seek last-minute rented accommodation.
Continue reading...