Drones and missiles hit Kyiv region and Zaporizhzhia as Ukrainian forces make gains around Kherson
Russia has continued to try to hit Ukrainian’s energy infrastructure but Vladimir Putin’s forces did not appear to have enjoyed any significant success.
One missile seriously damaged a key energy facility in the region around Ukraine’s capital and 10 missiles and four drones hit locations in the south-eastern city of Zaporizhzhia.
Continue reading...As newly mobilised men return from the front in coffins, critics complain of aggressive recruiting, low morale and poor training
• Russia-Ukraine war latest – live blog
Andrei Nikiforov, a lawyer from St Petersburg, was one of the hundreds of thousands of Russians mobilised since last month to hold the frontlines in his country’s faltering war in Ukraine.
On 25 September he received his call-up papers. By 7 October, just two weeks later, he was dead.
Continue reading...Dane Partridge, 34, died from injuries sustained during a Russian attack in Luhansk
Dane Partridge, a 34-year-old man from Idaho who fought as a volunteer soldier in Ukraine, died on Tuesday from injuries sustained during a Russian attack in Luhansk.
The Ukrainian government has recruited people with military experience to join the International Legion for the Territorial Defense of Ukraine. At least four other US citizens have been killed fighting in Ukraine, based on reports from families and the state department.
Continue reading...Russian submarine seen off French coast and being escorted by French navy; Vladimir Putin says ‘no need’ for talks with Joe Biden
Continue reading...Crisis is considered unlikely but officials re-examine plans to provide support for fearful populations
Western officials are engaged in “prudent planning” behind the scenes to prevent chaos and panic in their home countries in the event Russia was to detonate a nuclear bomb in or near Ukraine.
Although a nuclear crisis is considered highly unlikely, the insider said officials internationally were re-examining plans to provide emergency support and reassurance to populations fearful of nuclear escalation.
Continue reading...Russian president says any direct clash with Nato troops would be ‘global catastrophe’ as he says 220,000 will be called up. This live blog is now closed
Here are some of the latest images of the war that have been sent to us over the newswires from Ukraine and beyond.
Today is Defenders Day in Ukraine, and the US ambassador to Kyiv, Bridget A Brink, has issued a video message. In it she says:
We honour the brave men and women who have served in the defence of Ukraine’s freedom. This year, this holiday has a special symbolic meaning. Since 24 February, virtually every citizen of your country has in some way become a defender of your land, your lives, your future.
I know Russia’s war doesn’t stop at the line of contact. And I honour the bravery and resolve of all Ukrainians, men and women, children and the elderly, professional soldiers and volunteers, representatives of every aspect of society from the home front to the frontline. All of you play a vital role in defending Ukraine. We know Ukraine will prevail.
Continue reading...ICRC responds to criticism from Zelenskiy, saying it is being refused entry to Olenivka prison
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has gone public with its frustration at being refused entry to a notorious Russian prisoner of war camp after scathing criticism from Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
In his daily evening address, Ukraine’s president accused the ICRC of a lack of leadership, suggesting that officials were picking up their salaries without doing their jobs.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Survey shows strong support within alliance for tougher sanctions and Nato aid, but more pro-Russia views elsewhere
Nearly eight months into Vladimir Putin’s war on Ukraine, citizens in core western alliance countries show little appetite for the kind of concessions to Russia that might form part of an eventual agreement to end the fighting, according to a major survey.
The YouGov-Cambridge globalism project, which gauged public opinion in 25 of the world’s largest countries, also found strong support for maintaining, and often toughening and expanding, military and economic measures against Moscow.
Continue reading...Firm reportedly asks US government to pick up bill as relationship between Musk and Kyiv breaks down
Elon Musk’s SpaceX has said it cannot afford to continue to donate satellite internet to Ukraine and has asked the US government to pick up the bill, according to a report, as the relationship between the billionaire and Kyiv breaks down.
“We are not in a position to further donate terminals to Ukraine, or fund the existing terminals for an indefinite period of time,” SpaceX’s director of government sales wrote, in a letter seen by CNN.
Continue reading...Washington has accused Saudi Arabia of coercing other Opec+ members into 2m-barrel-a-day reduction
The relationship between the US and Saudi Arabia continued to worsen on Thursday as the two countries traded barbs over the decision to cut oil production, with Washington accusing Riyadh of coercing other members of the Opec+ cartel, and Riyadh suggesting the Biden administration tried to get the decision delayed by a month.
In reaction to Joe Biden’s declared intention to reevaluate the US relationship with Riyadh, the Saudi foreign ministry issued an unusually long statement rejecting “attempts to distort the facts” about the kingdom’s motives for pushing for a 2m-barrel-a-day cut to Opec+ production.
Continue reading...Deputy PM says residents will be helped to move away from southern Ukrainian region partly occupied by invaders
Moscow has announced it will evacuate Kherson after an appeal from the Russian-installed head of the region, raising fears the occupied city at the heart of the south Ukrainian oblast will become a new frontline.
Marat Khusnullin, a Russian deputy prime minister, told state television on Thursday that residents would be helped to move away from the region in south Ukraine, which remains only partly occupied by invading troops due to a successful Ukrainian counterattack in recent months.
Continue reading...EU foreign policy chief rules out nuclear response to Putin but vows powerful answer from military. This live blog is now closed
The admission of Ukraine to Nato could result in a third world war, the deputy secretary of the Russian security council, Alexander Venediktov, told the Russian state Tass news agency in an interview on Thursday.
Tass cited Venediktov as saying:
Kyiv is well aware that such a step would mean a guaranteed escalation to a World War Three.
Apparently, that’s what they are counting on - to create informational noise and draw attention to themselves once again.”
Continue reading...US president says vote sends clear message that ‘Russia cannot erase a sovereign state from the map’
The United Nations general assembly has overwhelmingly condemned Russia’s “attempted illegal annexation” of four Ukrainian regions, demanding that Moscow reverse course.
US president Joe Biden said the vote sent a “clear message” to Moscow. “The stakes of this conflict are clear to all, and the world has sent a clear message in response – Russia cannot erase a sovereign state from the map,” he said in a statement.
Continue reading...UN votes to condemn Russia’s annexation of parts of Ukraine; Nato allies pledge to deliver more air defence systems to Kyiv
Continue reading...UK to send Amraam rockets, capable of shooting down cruise missiles
Ukraine’s army boasted of territorial gains near the strategically vital southern city of Kherson on Wednesday as Nato allies including the UK delivered new air defence systems in the wake of Russia’s recent missile attacks across the country.
After 48 hours of Ukrainian cities coming under heavy fire, the government in Kyiv could celebrate positive news from both the frontlines and its diplomatic efforts to secure ground-to-air systems, including anti-aircraft weapons from the UK.
Continue reading...New national security strategy warns of Russia as more immediate threat and China as long-term competitor
Within a decade, the US will need to deter two major nuclear weapons powers for the first time, the Biden administration has warned, pointing to the Russian arsenal that is increasingly being brandished by Moscow and an expanding Chinese stockpile.
The president’s new national security strategy (NSS) depicts China as the most capable long-term competitor, but Russia as the more immediate, disruptive threat, pointing to its nuclear posturing over Ukraine. It warns that threat could grow as Russian forces continue to suffer defeats on the battlefield.
Continue reading...Reactions in Washington to slashing oil supply have not concerned Mohammed bin Salman; nor have the optics of indirectly boosting Putin’s war
Mohammed bin Salman had seen it coming. The groundswell of anger in Washington was clear and building since he helped lead an Opec+ decision to cut the world’s oil supply last week.
But for the first time in the modern era of ties between the US and Saudi Arabia, there was no rush to placate hard feelings, or gloss over a rift. This was the birth of a new realpolitik, where nascent Saudi nationalism paid no heed to a historical ally and instead aligned itself to what Riyadh literally sees as a new world order.
Continue reading...Putin says he is ready to supply the EU with gas via Nord Stream 2; head of IAEA says morning power station outage caused by Russian shelling
Serhai Haidai, Ukraine’s governor of Luhansk, has posted an update on Telegram on Ukraine’s military progress in the occupied Luhansk region. He writes:
The armed forces of Ukraine are moving forward little by little. The Russians are shelling our positions mainly with rocket and barrel artillery. The occupiers are building a multi-layer defence line in Luhansk region, the entire first section of the front line is mined by them. Our military has already encountered the first wave of partially mobilised Russians.
The Federal Security Service, together with the Investigative Committee, established that the organiser of the terrorist attack on the Crimean Bridge was the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ukrainian Defence Ministry, its head Kyrylo Budanov, employees and agents.
Currently, five citizens of Russia, three citizens of Ukraine and Armenia, who participated in the preparation of the crime, have been detained within the framework of the criminal case.
This is Martin Belam taking over the live blog in London. You can contact me at martin.belam@theguardian.com
Continue reading...Cause of leak in Druzhba line, which supplies oil from Russia, not yet known, says operator
The Druzhba oil pipeline linking Russia and Germany has been partly shut after a leak was discovered in Poland, the Polish operator Pern said on Wednesday.
“The cause of the incident is not known for the moment. Pumping in the affected line was immediately stopped. Line 2 of the pipeline is functioning normally,” the operator said.
Continue reading...Money raised after wave of Russian strikes on Ukrainian cities on Monday will be used to support army
A crowdfunding appeal that was launched after Russian attacks on cities across the country on Monday has raised $9.6m (£8.7m) in 24 hours for the purchase of kamikaze drones for the Ukrainian armed forces.
An initial 50 Ram II drones, unmanned aerial vehicles with a 3kg explosive payload, designed and built by Ukrainian companies, will be bought with the money, along with three control stations.
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