Key city in east of country ‘fully cleared’ of Russian forces, says Zelenskiy; European leaders call annexation ‘blatant’ violation of international law
The Ukrainian armed forces have updated their estimate of Russian casualties in the war so far.
As of this morning they claim that around 60,110 Russian soldiers have been killed and 2,377 tanks destroyed.
Continue reading...Task Force Rusich, linked to the Wagner Group, advises its fighters not to report the capture of Ukrainians to Russian commanders
A neo-Nazi pro-Kremlin group active in Ukraine is inciting atrocities against prisoners of war and explicitly advocates the torture of captives including “removing body parts”. The self-styled “Task Force Rusich” is fighting in Ukraine on behalf of the Kremlin and is linked to the notorious Wagner Group mercenaries.
A message on Rusich’s Telegram channel sent on 22 September advocates the “destruction of prisoners on the spot”.
Continue reading...Even as Russia lays claim to more of the country, confidence is growing that the former territory can be retaken
From an elegant mansion in Kyiv’s government quarter, Tamila Tasheva is planning what the Ukrainian takeover of Crimea might look like.
Tasheva, president Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s top representative for Crimea, and her team spend their days discussing issues such as how many Ukrainian teachers or police should be sent to the peninsula if Kyiv regains control, and what else would be required to help reverse eight years of Russian rule.
Continue reading...Russian forces retreat from stronghold of Lyman hours after Putin declares it Russia’s ‘for ever’; Germany minister visits Ukraine; Nord Stream pipeline leak halted
Continue reading...Military defeat in Donetsk comes hours after Moscow declared that the region was Russian territory ‘for ever’
Russia suffered a humiliating military defeat on Saturday when Ukrainian troops liberated the key eastern city of Lyman, with videos showing them raising a blue and yellow national flag and performing a victory dance.
In a severe embarrassment for Vladimir Putin, Russia’s ministry of defence admitted its soldiers had retreated. They had been “withdrawn to more advantageous lines”, the ministry said, following their encirclement by Ukrainian forces.
Continue reading...Russian defence ministry says troops have withdrawn amid ‘threat of encirclement’
It’s 12pm in Ukraine, here’s the latest:
Ukraine has encircled Russia’s forces around a bastion that is critical for Moscow at the eastern town of Lyman, in an operation that is still under way. Russia’s forces at Lyman totalled about 5,000 to 5,500 soldiers, but the number of encircled troops may have fallen because of casualties and some soldiers trying to break out of the encirclement, according to a spokesperson for Ukraine’s eastern forces.
The Ministry of Defence said Russia’s expansion strategy has resulted in “killing civilians it now claims are its own citizens”.The MoD said Russia is expending “strategically valuable military assets” in attempts to gain tactical advantage.
Ukraine’s president thanked his US counterpart, Joe Biden, on Saturday for signing an additional $12.35 bn (£11bn) in support for Ukraine. Volodymyr Zelenskiy said “This help is more important today than ever.”
The Ukrainian director-general of the Russian-held Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant has been detained by a Russian patrol, according to Energoatom. The company said his detention on Friday “jeopardises the safety of operation of Ukraine and Europe’s largest nuclear power plant.”
Turkey which has been at the centre of mediation between the west and Russia, rejected Russia’s annexation of Ukraine, calling the decision a “grave violation” of international law.
The World Bank said it will provide an additional US$530m in support to Ukraine, bringing the total aid by the bank to $13bn. The aid is supported by the UK ($500m) and Denmark ($30m).
Lyman is important because it is the next step towards the liberation of the Ukrainian Donbas. It is an opportunity to go further to Kreminna and Sievierodonetsk, and it is psychologically very important.
The occupiers trapped in Liman asked the Russian command to allow them to leave the city, but were refused.
Continue reading...Brokers in Monaco told it is ‘strictly prohibited’ to advertise sale of MySky on print or the internet
A superyacht built for an oligarch subjected to sanctions over the supply of weapons to the Russian army is being discreetly offered for sale for £26m, with buyers advised that any viewings will be in the Maldives in the Indian Ocean.
Brokers are being warned that the sale of MySky, built for Igor Kesaev, should not be advertised online. The vessel’s latest recorded location was in a marina on a small island four miles south of Malé, the capital island of the Maldives.
Continue reading...Amid angry protests over the conscription of new recruits, a propaganda drive is seeking to deflect blame from Vladimir Putin
It took Alina three goes at the local conscription centre to get her husband out of Russia’s war in Ukraine.
She knew the local officials managing the mobilisation in her town south of Makhachkala, the capital of Dagestan, she said. So when her husband, who has health problems because of his weight and served in the army more than 15 years ago, was called up, she began hassling them to review his case.
Continue reading...Troops raise Ukrainian flag in city hours after Putin said area was Russia’s ‘for ever’, with Moscow admitting its forces have retreated
Russia suffered a humiliating military defeat on Saturday when Ukrainian troops liberated the key eastern city of Lyman, with videos showing them raising a blue and yellow national flag and performing a victory dance.
In a severe embarrassment for Vladimir Putin, Russia’s ministry of defence admitted its soldiers had retreated. They had been “withdrawn to more advantageous lines”, the ministry said, after their encirclement by Ukrainian forces.
Continue reading...Building defaced hours before Putin announced annexation of Ukrainian territories and Russian forces killed 30 civilians
The Russian consulate in New York has been vandalized with red spray paint, in an apparent protest against Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.
Officers said they responded to an emergency call just after 1.30am on Friday reporting that paint had been sprayed across the facade of the consulate on Manhattan’s Upper East Side.
Continue reading...As a Moscow concert marked Putin’s declaration of the annexation of four regions of Ukraine, the backlash to mobilisation reached fever pitch
A tide of Russians flowed toward Red Square as Vladimir Putin declared his annexation of Ukrainian territory that would herald a shining new era of perpetual war with Ukraine and the west. “Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Russia! Together for ever!” read the banner hanging on Manezh Square by the Kremlin.
There were busloads of tough men from a factory near Moscow alighting by the statue of Karl Marx to celebrate, university teachers passing out invitations to a pop concert to their students, workers lugging armfuls of Russian flags to distribute. Some of the tricolours bore the image of Putin.
Continue reading...Volodymyr Zelenskiy makes the announcement hours after Russia declares annexation of Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk and Luhansk. This blog is now closed
Kyrylo Tymoshenko, an adviser to the Ukrainian presidency, has said of the attack on the civilian convoy: “The terror continues. The killings continue. Sixteen missiles were launched using S-300 air defence.”
Confirming the number, he said four missiles hit near a car parts market where the convoy had gathered.
Continue reading...Attack comes as Vladimir Putin prepares to publicly sign annexation orders for four Ukrainian regions
A civilian convoy of cars heading to pick up relatives trying to flee Russian-occupied territory in Ukraine has been hit by Moscow’s forces near the city of Zaporizhzhia, with initial reports saying dozens of people were killed and injured. That casualty figure could not immediately be confirmed.
Footage posted on social media showed a horrific scene with dead and injured people lying on a road on the south-eastern outskirts of the city. In one video, taken from inside a nearby building, a woman can be heard sobbing, saying repeatedly: “Dead people are lying there.”
Continue reading...At least 25 people killed as Russian missiles hit civilian convoy; Vladimir Putin to formalise annexation of four occupied regions of Ukraine
A civilian convoy of cars heading to pick up relatives trying to flee Russian occupied territory in Ukraine has been hit by Russian forces near the city of Zaporizhzhia, with initial reports saying at least 25 people were killed and 50 people injured. Footage posted on social media showed a horrific scene with dead and injured people lying on a road on the south-eastern outskirts of the city.
The governor of Zaporizhzhia region, Oleksandr Starukh, said in a statement: “The enemy launched an attack on a civilian convoy and the outskirts of the city. People were standing in line to leave for the occupied territory to pick up their relatives and to deliver aid. There are dead and wounded. Emergency services are at the site.
According to locals, 60 cars had gathered on a road in two lines after registering for a convoy that was due to take people back into the Russian-occupied territories in the south, some planning to return to homes in places such as Mariupol, others planning to fetch relatives and bring them to government-occupied territory for fear that Russia will prevent people from leaving. In the hours before the attack, Russia launched strikes on several cities, including the centre of the nearby city of Dnipro.
The attack on the convoy on Friday morning came amid a feared Russian escalation in its war in Ukraine, as the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, prepared to publicly sign annexation orders for four regions.
Putin will sign accession documents at the Kremlin before delivering a speech. A pop concert is also planned on Red Square, where a stage and screens have been set up. The territory Russia controls amounts to about 15% of Ukraine’s total area.
The Kremlin said again on Friday that it would consider attacks against any part of the regions of Ukraine that it is about to annex – Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson – as acts of aggression against Russia itself.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters Russia would “de jure” incorporate parts of Ukraine which are not under the control of Russian forces. Of the four regions, Luhansk and Kherson are the only territories that Russia is close to having total control over.
Continue reading...Russian president expected to make speech to members of State Duma at ceremony on Friday
Vladimir Putin will sign treaties on Friday annexing territories in occupied Ukraine, the Kremlin has said, in a major escalation of Russia’s seven-month-old war.
The Russian president is expected to sign into law the annexations of the Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, where Russia held fake referendums over the last week in order to claim a mandate for the territorial claims.
Continue reading...Deripaska, 54, accused of several crimes including plotting to bring pregnant girlfriend to US so child would be American citizen
Oleg Deripaska, one of Russia’s most powerful oligarchs, who previously had deep links to British establishment figures, has been indicted by the US Department of Justice for criminal sanctions violations.
The indictment detailed a number of alleged crimes by the man who was long considered Vladimir Putin’s favourite industrialist, including an elaborate and failed attempt by Deripaska and his associates to shuttle his pregnant girlfriend to the US so that she could give birth there and secure American citizenship for their second child.
Continue reading...As Norway steps up seabed security, experts say underwater cables carrying world’s internet traffic are also at risk
Nato countries are scrambling to improve security of highly vulnerable undersea pipelines and communications cables after the apparent Nord Stream attack in the Baltic Sea underlines the west’s extreme vulnerability.
Four gas leaks on two Nord Stream pipelines have now been reported after blasts were detected on Monday. According to several reports citing European officials, Russian vessels were seen in the vicinity of the Nord Stream I and II pipelines where they were damaged, but an examination of the damage may not be possible for weeks for safety reasons, and no proof of Moscow’s involvement has been presented.
Continue reading...António Guterres warns Putin against annexation of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia before expected announcement.
This live blog is now closed
Denmark’s foreign minister, Jeppe Kofod, has said that “intentional” explosions caused the leaks in the Nord Stream pipelines, and that it was an “unprecedented” attack.
He told viewers of Sky News in the UK:
It’s clear we all need to be very aware of our critical infrastructure, when it comes to energy and other infrastructure, so we all take, I think, the right precautionary steps. Because it is unprecedented, as I’ve said, we haven’t seen that type of attack on infrastructure.
It has been clear for us for a long time in Denmark, and also now for the rest of Europe, that we need to get out of any dependence on Russian energy, whether it’s gas, coal or oil, and we’re working very hard to obtain that objective in Europe.
Denmark is doing its part, where we will focus a lot in investing massively in renewable energy, not least the offshore wind and other type of renewables, and also energy efficiency. So that is a course we will not change.”
I think we should be very concerned. Listening to Polish and Danish ministers they do suspect this was an act of Russian terrorism, and that it’s another threat from the Kremlin to Europe’s energy supplies.
But we need to stand bold against Russia supporting Ukraine.
I personally think it’s likely that Nord Stream may never reopen, and therefore the energy policy of Europe, of our country, working with our European colleagues, needs to assume that we need to get off Russian energy as fast as possible.
That will be good for our security.
This post was amended at 2.55pm on 29 September. It initially said that the Liberal Democrats were “the third largest political party in the UK’s parliament”, and then was amended to say that they were “the fourth largest political party in the UK’s parliament”. The Liberal Democrats are the fourth largest party in the House of Commons. They are the third largest political party by representation in both the House of Commons and the House of Lords.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Zelenskiy’s chief of staff says sanctions should go further as international group concludes Russia’s actions pass terrorism threshold
The head of the Office of the Ukrainian Presidency has called for sweeping American and European sanctions targeting Moscow after an official report drawn up by an international working group concluded Russia should now be declared a “state sponsor of terrorism”.
The call from Andriy Yermak, the second most powerful Ukrainian government official after president Volodymyr Zelenskiy, came after Ukraine accused Russia of sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines, an accusation that adds to its claim that Russia has shown all the characteristics of a terrorist state under US and international law.
Continue reading...‘Colossal amount’ of leaked methane, twice initial estimates, is equivalent to third of Denmark’s annual CO2 emissions or 1.3m cars
Scientists fear methane erupting from the burst Nord Stream pipelines into the Baltic Sea could be one of the worst natural gas leaks ever and pose significant climate risks.
Neither of the two breached Nord Stream pipelines, which run between Russia and Germany, was operational, but both contained natural gas. This mostly consists of methane – a greenhouse gas that is the biggest cause of climate heating after carbon dioxide.
Continue reading...