Ukraine-Russia news – live: Belarus issues stark warning on Putin’s war
The president of Belarus has warned his country will join the war if “even one soldier” enters his territory and kills his people.
Until now, Alexander Lukashenko repeatedly denied claims from Kyiv and the West that his country could be dragged further into the war in Ukraine on the side of Moscow.
However, today he said he would order his troops to fight alongside ally Russia if another country launches an attack against Belarus, the state-run Belta news agency reported.
“I am ready to fight with the Russians from the territory of Belarus in only one case: If even one soldier comes onto the territory of Belarus to kill my people,” Belta quoted Mr Lukashenko as telling a news conference on Thursday.
“If they commit aggression against Belarus, the response will be the most severe, and the war will take on a completely different nature.”
Russia used Belarus as a staging post for its full-scale invasion of Ukraine last year, launching its failed offensive on the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv from the country.
Key Points
Lukashenko warns Belarus will join war alongside Russia if attacked
Russia launches fresh missile strikes across Ukraine
Russia deploys ships armed with tactical nuclear weapons for first time in 30 years, says Norway
Russia failing to ‘punch through’ despite 97% of army at war
Ukraine prosecutor says probes Russian killing of civilians in Bakhmut
03:30 , Namita Singh
Russian Grad rockets and barrel artillery slammed into a residential district in the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut yesterday, killing three men and two women and wounding nine more, Ukraine’s prosecutor general said, adding it was being investigated as a war crime.
“Five dead and nine wounded due to shelling of Bakhmut by the invaders,” read a caption under blurred images of the victims shared on Telegram by the office of the prosecutor general. “Criminal proceedings have been initiated.”
An investigation had determined that Russia fired barrel artillery and Grad rockets at Bakhmut on 16 February, the office said. “The occupiers’ shells once again hit the city’s residential quarter.”
There was no immediate word from Moscow on the allegation that civilians were killed, and Reuters could not independently confirm the battlefield report.
Russia says it strives to avoid injuring civilians. A current focus of its forces is Bakhmut in Donetsk, one of two regions making up the Donbas, the country’s industrial heartland now partially occupied by Russia.
China's Xi plans 'peace speech' on Ukraine invasion anniversary, Italy min says
09:08 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
China’s President Xi Jinping will deliver a ‘peace speech’ on the anniversary of Russia‘s invasion of Ukraine, Italy’s foreign minister said on Friday, citing top diplomat Wang Yi.
Wang Yi “told me that Xi will deliver a peace speech on the anniversary of the invasion of Ukraine“ on Feb. 24, 2022, Minister Antonio Tajani told Italian radio RAI, the day after he met the top Chinese diplomat in Rome.
Tajani said that in the meeting with Wang Yi, he called for China to use all its powers to persuade Russia to sit at the peace table to ensure Ukraine‘s independence and bring the war to an end.
Asked about Italy’s partnership in China’s Belt and Road Initiative trade project, Tajani said Rome was assessing the issue and would decide what to do “at the appropriate time”.
Italy, in 2019, became the first major industrialised nation to sign up for the initiative - a colossal project designed to improve Beijing’s trade reach.
Little has so far come of the pact, signed during a state visit to Italy by Xi Jinping.
Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said last year, before she was elected, that she did not want “to favour Chinese expansion into Italy or Europe”, and she would not look to pursue the project.
In December, the European Commission unveiled a plan called Global Gateway to invest 300 billion euros ($319 billion)globally by 2027 in infrastructure, digital and climate projects as a better alternative to China’s Belt and Road Initiative.
Watch live: Russian foreign ministry spokesperson gives weekly briefing
08:41 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Watch live as the Russian foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova gives a weekly briefing.
It comes as Russia rained missiles across Ukraine yesterday and struck its largest oil refinery, Kyiv said, while the head of the Wagner mercenary group predicted the long-besieged city of Bakhmut would take weeks if not months to fall.
Live: Russian foreign ministry spokesperson gives weekly briefing
Russia appoints Mordvichev to head Central Military District
07:52 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Russia has officially appointed Lieutenant-General Andrey Mordvichev as commander of the country’s Central Military District, replacing promoted Colonel-General Alexander Lapin, the RBC news outlet reported on Friday.
Lapin was appointed chief of staff of the country’s ground forces last month despite fierce criticism from leading hawks over his performance in Ukraine.
Mordvichev led Russian troops during last year’s offensive in the southern Ukrainian port city of Mariupol, RBC said, culminating in a months-long siege at the city’s Azovstal steelworks and its eventual capture by Russian troops.
His appointment had been flagged in January by Dmitry Sablin, a lawmaker from Russia‘s ruling party.
Mordvichev’s appointment follows other sweeping changes to Moscow’s military leadership during the almost year-long war in which Russian forces have seized large parts of southern and eastern Ukraine but suffered painful defeats and retreats.
Last October Russia named Air Force General Sergei Surovikin as the overall commander of its forces in Ukraine, shortly after the reported sacking of the commanders of the Eastern and Western military districts.
President Xi to deliver speech for anniversary of invasion
07:31 , William Mata
China's President Xi Jinping will deliver a peace speech on the anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Italy's foreign minister said on Friday, citing top diplomat Wang Yi.
Wang Yi "told me that Xi will make a peace speech on the anniversary of the invasion of Ukraine" on February 24, Minister Antonio Tajani told Italian radio RAI, the day after he met the top Chinese diplomat in Rome.
Asked about the Belt and Road Initiative, Tajani said the Italian government was assessing the issue and would decide what to do "at the appropriate time"
Facebook ran ads in Moldova for oligarch sanctioned by US
07:15 , Namita Singh
Facebook allowed an exiled Moldovan oligarch with ties to the Kremlin to run ads calling for protests and uprisings against the pro-Western government, even though he and his political party were on US sanctions lists.
The ads featuring politician and convicted fraudster Ilan Shor were ultimately removed by Facebook but not before they were seen millions of times in Moldova, a small nation of about 2.6 million sandwiched between Romania and war-torn Ukraine.
Seeking to exploit anger over inflation and rising fuel prices, the paid posts from Shor’s political party targeted the government of pro-Western president Maia Sandu, who earlier this week detailed what she said was a Russian plot to topple her government using external saboteurs.
“Destabilisation attempts are a reality and for our institutions, they represent a real challenge,” Ms Sandu said yesterday as she swore in a new government led by pro-Western prime minister Dorin Recean, her former defence and security adviser.
“We need decisive steps to strengthen the security of the country.”
The ads reveal how Russia and its allies have exploited lapses by social media platforms — like Facebook, many of them operated by US companies — to spread propaganda and disinformation that weaponises economic and social insecurity in an attempt to undermine governments in Eastern Europe.
Mr Shor’s ads have helped fuel angry protests against the government and appear to be aimed at destabilising Moldova and returning it to Russia’s sphere of influence, according to Dorin Frasineau, a foreign policy adviser to former Moldovan prime minister Natalia Gavrilita, whose resignation led to the formation of the new government on Thursday.
“Even though he is on the US sanctions list, I still see sponsored ads on Facebook,” Mr Frasineau said, saying he had spotted what he believes were fake accounts sharing the posts this week.
He said the Moldovan government sought answers from Facebook to no avail. “We have talked with Facebook, but it is very hard because there is no specific person, no contact.”
Main developments on battlefield from Thursday
07:00 , Sam Rkaina
* Echoing a pattern of heavy aerial bombardment at times of Ukrainian battlefield or diplomatic advances, Russia launched 32 missiles in the early hours, Ukraine’s Air Force said. Half were shot down, it added, a lower rate than normal.
* Among them, air defences in the south downed eight Kalibr missiles fired from a ship in the Black Sea, Ukrainian officials said. Other missiles struck northern and western Ukraine as well as the central regions of Dnipropetrovsk and Kirovohrad.
* However, Ukraine’s energy minister and the national power grid operator signalled that the overnight Russian air strikes had not caused major disruption to electricity supplies.
* Russia has usually carried out its biggest waves of air strikes in daylight, striking energy facilities, but Ukrainian officials suggest Moscow is starting to adapt strategy, including using air balloons for reconnaissance.
* Russia and Ukraine exchanged 101 prisoners of war in their latest prisoner swap on Thursday, authorities said.
* Russia’s current battlefield focus is on the small city of Bakhmut in Donetsk, one of two provinces making up the easterm Donbas, Ukraine’s industrial heartland now partially occupied by Russian forces.
* Russian Wagner militia chief Yevgeny Prigozhin forecast that Bakhmut, now bombed-out from months of heavy shelling, would fall next month or in April, depending on how many men Ukraine throw into the fight and how well his men are supplied.
With eye on Russia, Greece and Bulgaria expand gas deal
06:45 , Namita Singh
The leaders of Greece and Bulgaria have announced plans to expand natural gas cooperation with a deal that could help other countries in the region lower their dependence on Russian energy.
Under an agreement signed in Athens yesterday, Greece will gain access to Bulgaria’s gas storage facilities in exchange for expanded use by Bulgaria of a liquefied natural gas terminal near Athens.
Russian supplier Gazprom halted gas deliveries to Bulgaria over a pay mechanism dispute last April, two months after Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine. Greece has also drastically reduced Russian gas imports over the past year.
Report:
With eye on Russia, Greece and Bulgaria expand gas deal
Russia’s crude output cut signals unsold oil, says US official
06:30 , Namita Singh
Russia’s decision to cut crude oil production by 500,000 barrels per day reflects its inability to sell all of its oil, Ben Harris, a US treasury department assistant secretary, said on Thursday.
Russia’s deputy prime minister Alexander Novak last week said it would voluntarily cut production beginning next month following the start of Western price caps on Russian oil and oil products on 5 February. The move to cut around five per cent of output temporarily pushed up global prices.
“They cut back on production because they just couldn’t sell it (the oil), not because they wanted to weaponise oil and refined products,” Ms Harris said in remarks at the Argus Americas Crude Summit.
The cut follows embargoes and sanctions, including an unprecedented $60 a barrel price cap on its crude, by Western countries to punish Moscow for its invasion of Ukraine. Poland, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia have pushed for lowering the crude oil cap.
Russia’s monthly budget revenues from oil and gas fell 46 per cent in January to their lowest level since August 2020 under the impact of Western sanctions on its most lucrative export, according to finance ministry data.
The cap sought to maintain market stability and to drive down Russian revenue, both of which have been achieved, Harris said.There have been no American companies involved in trading Russian oil above the price cap, he said.
Keir Starmer tells Zelensky UK support will ‘remain the same’ under Labour government
06:15 , Namita Singh
Sir Keir Starmer has promised Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky that the UK’s commitment to the country would “remain the same” if there is a Labour government.
During a visit to Kyiv on Thursday, the Labour leader said he had a “very constructive meeting” with Mr Zelensky to discuss military support and the need to prosecute Russia’s leaders for “war crimes”.
With his party well in front of the Tories in the opinion polls, Sir Keir also stressed he was committed to Kyiv’s cause if he enters No 10 after the next general election.
Read the details in this report from our political correspondent Adam Forrest:
Keir Starmer tells Zelensky UK support will ‘remain the same’ under Labour
U.S. curbs ‘slowly crippling Russia’s military'
06:00 , Sam Rkaina
A top U.S. trade official said on Thursday that export controls placed on Russia after the invasion of Ukraine have slowly reduced the supply of materials that Moscow can use to rebuild its war machine.
The U.S. and a coalition of 37 other countries imposed unprecedented export controls on Russia over the past year in response to its unprovoked assault on Ukraine, and more actions are in the works.
Alan Estevez, Under Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Security, said Russia is working hard to evade those controls, but that the goods that are being smuggled in cannot replace everything that needs to be resupplied.
“Evasion techniques are not going to get you the scale you need to reconstitute your military over time,” Estevez said in an interview with Reuters.
Estevez’s comments come amid reports of new ways of getting tech to Russia.
Senior Russian military official ‘plunges 16 storeys to her death falling from window’
05:45 , Namita Singh
A senior military official in Russia heavily involved in funding Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine has reportedly plummeted 16 storeys to her death in St Petersburg.
The body of Marina Yankina was found on the pavement below an apartment building in the city’s Kalininsky district shortly before 8am on Wednesday morning, according to local reports.
The 58-year-old was finance director of the Western Military District, one of the five geographical battalions which comprise Russia’s army, the leader of which Mr Putin has replaced multiple times since invading Ukraine last February.
My colleague Andy Gregory has more:
Senior Russian military official ‘dies after plunging 16 storeys falling from window’
Moscow not invited to global security gathering
05:30 , Namita Singh
Even as leading diplomats from around the world gather in Munich today to survey a European security landscape since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Moscow leaders will be notable by their absence.
The conference has sometimes served as a barometer of relations between Russia and the West, most notably in 2007 when Putin attacked the United States in a speech now widely seen as a harbinger of a far harsher stance against liberal democracies.
Conference chair Christoph Heusgen, a veteran German diplomat, said organisers had not invited any Russian officials as Mr Putin had “broken with civilisation”.
By contrast, a US delegation of record size is expected at the conference, including vice president Kamala Harris, secretary of state Antony Blinken and a third of the US Senate.
“We expect a signal of unity from the transatlantic community,” Mr Heusgen told reporters this week.
Discussions at the conference will also highlight a rude awakening for Western leaders - the war has made clear that much of the rest of the world does not see things their way.
Efforts to get African, Asian and Latin American leaders to isolate Moscow have often floundered, due to Russian diplomatic and economic clout - and anger in the Global South that the West has shown far less interest in conflict and injustice there.
Other big international issues will also feature at the conference, particularly relations between the West and China.
Top Chinese diplomat Wang Yi is expected to attend and Mr Blinken is considering meeting him there, in what would be their first face-to-face talks after the United States shot down what it said was a Chinese spy balloon and other flying objects.
Ben Wallace admits West needs to ‘ramp up’ production of ammunition for Ukraine
05:15 , Namita Singh
The defence secretary Ben Wallace has admitted that Western allies need to “ramp up” production of ammunition to support Ukraine as it faces increasingly intense assault by Russia‘s forces.
Moscow has been bombarding the frontlines in the east Ukrainian regions of Donetsk and Luhansk. The two areas make up what is known as the Donbas, Ukraine’s industrial heartland, which Russia is keen to control. Ukraine says that the situation is “difficult”.
Read more about his remarks in this report:
Ben Wallace admits West needs to ‘ramp up’ production of ammunition for Ukraine
Zelensky urges filmmakers to take sides in speech opening Berlin Film Festival
05:00 , Sam Rkaina
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky urged filmmakers to take sides in what he termed a battle between freedom and tyranny, drawing a parallel in his speech opening the Berlin Film Festival between Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the Berlin Wall.
Zelenskiy recalled his own experience as an actor, urging colleagues to “break the fourth wall” by directly addressing their audiences.
“For many years Potsdam Square was divided by the Berlin Wall,” he said via video link. “Today Russia wants to build the same wall in Ukraine: a wall between us and Europe, to separate Ukraine from its own choice for its future.”
Now in its 73rd year, the Berlinale owes its reputation as the most political of the main film festivals to its origins as a divided city on the front lines of the Cold War between the Soviet Union and the West.
‘World Athletics will address Russian doping before Ukraine’
04:45 , Namita Singh
World Athletics will look at the issue of Russian athletes competing while the Ukraine war continues only after it has been decided whether the country has cleaned up its act on doping sufficiently to be reinstated, Sebastian Coe said today.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is facing a major backlash after opening the door for athletes from Russia and its ally Belarus to compete at next year’s Olympics in Paris despite the ongoing military action in Ukraine.
The Russian Athletics Federation (RAF) has been banned from athletics since 2015 as a result of the country’s widespread doping, although some athletes from Russia were allowed to compete at the last two Summer Olympics as neutrals.
Mr Coe said doping would still take precedence when the governing council meets next month to decide whether the RAF has made sufficient progress along its “road map” to warrant reinstatement.
“The Council will discuss the roadmap for reinstatement but specifically around the egregious attack on the integrity of our sport through doping,” he told reporters at the world cross-country championships in Bathurst, New South Wales.
“Only on the basis of that conversation, or that discussion, would we move on to the second discussion.”
That said, Mr Coe thought it unlikely that the blanket ban on Russian and Belarusian athletes imposed last year, including a suspension of the option to compete as a neutral, would be lifted.
“The council last February made (a) judgment (on) the situation in Ukraine and the inability of Ukrainian athletes to be competing openly and fairly and with the kind of integrity that we demand in our competitions,” he added.
“It was decided by the council it was inconceivable that Russia athletes (could compete) ... So the council will make a decision about whether that position that we decided upon in February still pertains ...
“But, as far as I’m concerned, the principles still sit there.”
War in Ukraine to dominate global security gathering in Munich
04:30 , Namita Singh
Leading politicians, military officers and diplomats from around the world gather in Munich today to survey a European security landscape transformed by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
German chancellor Olaf Scholz, French president Emmanuel Macron and US vice president Kamala Harris are among many top officials attending the Munich Security Conference, a major annual global gathering focused on defence and diplomacy.
Senior Ukrainian officials are also expected to address the conference, which begins on Friday and runs until Sunday at the luxury Bayerischer Hof hotel in the southern German city.
Last year’s conference took place just days before the war began. As Russian troops massed on Ukraine’s borders, Western leaders in Munich urged president Vladimir Putin not to invade and warned of dire consequences if he did so.
This year, leaders will grapple with the profound consequences of Mr Putin’s decision to ignore their pleas and unleash the most devastating war in Europe since World War Two that has killed countless thousands and forced millions to flee.
“If Putin wins in Ukraine, the message to him and other authoritarian regimes is that force is rewarded,” NATO secretary-general Jens Stoltenberg said this week.
“That would make the world more dangerous. And all of us more vulnerable,” said Mr Stoltenberg, speaking ahead of a meeting of the alliance’s defence ministers, who pledged to ramp up military supplies to Kyiv even as they admitted their own munitions stockpiles have been badly depleted by the war.
Imperative for all civilians to leave Bakhmut, says deputy PM
04:00 , Namita Singh
Ukrainian deputy prime minister Iryna Vereshchuk said the killing in Bakhmut yesterday showed it was imperative that all remaining civilians leave what was once a city of 70,000 residents. Staying put, she said, placed them in danger and created difficulties for soldiers and emergency workers.
“To be honest, I am very surprised by what 6,000 civilians are still doing there,” Ms Vereshchuk wrote on Telegram. “I appeal to civilians now in Bakhmut -- if you are practical, law-abiding and patriotic citizens, you must evacuate immediately.”
Thursday recap - Ukraine war has exposed Europe’s vulnerability, says Wallace
03:00 , Sam Rkaina
The war in Ukraine has exposed the vulnerability of Europe’s defences in the face of an aggressor, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace warned.
Mr Wallace said forces across the continent were paying the price for years of “hollowing out” that has seen ammunition stocks depleted, readiness levels reduced and essential maintenance neglected.
He said that at a time that the world was becoming “much more dangerous and unstable” it underlined the need for a long-term increase in the defence budget.
His comments came as The Daily Telegraph reported French officials have warned that UK defence cuts have led to concern among Nato allies about the state of Britain’s armed forces.
Mr Wallace, who is in Brussels for a meeting of Nato defence ministers, said the problems facing the UK were not unique to Britain.
“Ukraine has exposed across Europe – including in France and in Germany and other nations – our own vulnerabilities,” he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.
Click here for the full story.
Shot down over Kyiv, the Russian spy balloons becoming Putin’s new line of attack
02:00 , Sam Rkaina
The balloons moved slowly across the blue sky on a quiet and sunny winter’s day when missiles suddenly streaked in and struck them down.
The two white balloons over a village near Kyiv are among six which the Ukrainian military say they have taken down in the last few days amid a marked increase in Russian air activity. It comes as reports emerge that the Kremlin is massing warplanes across the border as the first anniversary of the war approaches.
The balloons are the latest in a wave of Russian attempts to gather intelligence, and to both deplete Ukrainian air defences and impede the use of warplanes.
Click here for the full story.
“When there’s a hope, and when there’s a last man standing, there is, there is a chance to win this war”
01:00 , Sam Rkaina
The U.S. and allies have been pressing to get tanks and ammunition into Kyiv this spring to help Ukraine seize what is considered a critical moment in the war.
Austin’s visit to Estonia was also to offer reassurance. U.S. forces have been in constant rotation in Estonia since the invasion began as part of a commitment to defend NATO’s eastern flank.
At a news conference in Tallinn on Thursday, Austin was asked how Estonia could be sure it would have America’s protection if Russia presses through.
In response, Austin recalled his pre-invasion pledge to the Estonian defence minister: “I told him that if Russia invaded Ukraine, we would deploy forces to Estonia the next day. And we did. We were the first to be here. And we meant every word we said, and we’ll live up to our commitments going forward,” Austin said.
The pledges of military support both to the eastern flank and to Kyiv come as Ukraine is girding for what is expected to be an intense ground battle in the east and south to try to take back some of the territory seized by Russia, even as Russia amasses hundreds of thousands of troops inside Ukraine for the spring fight.
But many of the Western weapon systems that have been pledged, such as the Bradley fighting vehicles and Patriot missile defense systems, and scores of Leopard and Abrams tanks, are not yet on the battlefield, which has raised questions as to whether that aid will arrive in time to make a difference.
“It’s never too late,” Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur said during the news conference with Austin.
“When there’s a hope, and when there’s a last man standing, there is, there is a chance to win this war,” Pevkur said. “As long as we as international allies, international partners of Ukraine, can deliver them what they need.”
Stop Russia now to prevent a wider conflict, Estonia warns
00:01 , Sam Rkaina
With Russia’s invasion of Ukraine nearing the one-year mark, a top Estonian defense leader warned that if Vladimir Putin is not stopped now, he could entangle the region in a larger conflict, perhaps one with even greater security implications for the U.S.
That’s because Russia has shown it will keep trying to retake territories that were once part of the Soviet Union and, so far, economic sanctions and its significant military losses in Ukraine have not changed Putin’s larger goals, said Kristjan Mäe, the head of the Estonian Ministry of Defense’s NATO and EU department, as U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin visited the Baltic nation on Thursday.
Estonia, which borders Russia, was forcefully incorporated into the Soviet Union during World War II and gained its independence only with the Soviet collapse in 1991. It joined NATO and the European Union in 2004.
“If we do not solve this war at this moment, where it is, first of all, there’s going to be a bigger war,” Mäe said.
And a larger war could have a significant impact on the United States’ larger security concerns with China, he said.
“If Europe is tied down with this war, then the European support, allied support politically, militarily to Indo-Pacific area is going to be limited as well, it’s going to be hampered,” he said. “So the primary focus, the short term focus should be defeating Russia where it is. This is the time. It’s not just the spring, but in general, this is the time to do this.”
Starmer tells Zelensky UK support will ‘remain the same’ under Labour government
Thursday 16 February 2023 23:00 , Sam Rkaina
Sir Keir Starmer has promised Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky that the UK’s commitment to the country would “remain the same” if there is a Labour government.
During a visit to Kyiv on Thursday, the Labour leader said he had a “very constructive meeting” with Mr Zelensky to discuss military support and the need to prosecute Russia’s leaders for “war crimes”.
With his party well in front of the Tories in the opinion polls, Sir Keir also stressed he was committed to Kyiv’s cause if he enters No 10 after the next general election.
“I was able to tell him that should there be a change of government when we have a general election here, the support for Ukraine will remain the same,” he said. “It’s a very important message for me to be able to relay to the president face to face.
Click here for the full story.
Senior Russian military official ‘plunges 16 storeys to her death falling from window’
Thursday 16 February 2023 22:00 , Sam Rkaina
A senior military official in Russia heavily involved in funding Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine has reportedly plummeted 16 storeys to her death in St Petersburg.
The body of Marina Yankina was found on the pavement below an apartment building in the city’s Kalininsky district shortly before 8am on Wednesday morning, according to local reports.
The 58-year-old was finance director of the Western Military District, one of the five geographical battalions which comprise Russia’s army, the leader of which Mr Putin has replaced multiple times since invading Ukraine last February.
Click here for the full story.
Ukrainian soldiers take part in military exercise at Yorkshire training camp
Thursday 16 February 2023 21:00 , Sam Rkaina
Ukraine troops training in UK
Thursday 16 February 2023 20:15 , Sam Rkaina
The Ministry of Defence invited the media to observe training at an undisclosed site in the north of England, as the anniversary of the start of the war approached.
Platoon after platoon of recruits battled their way through a trench warfare exercise where a series of trenches were dug into the northern moorland and defended by international troops.
Smoke grenades and loud bangs heightened the reality of the exercise, which culminated in a planned attack on a wood, as hundreds of blank rounds were fired.
It was a reminder that these recruits will be facing real bullets when they return to Ukraine.
Artem, 42, formerly working in logistics in Odesa, was impressed and thankful for the international trainers’ efforts.
He said: “They really care for us very much. They have a very high level of military expertise.
“Before the full-scale invasion I didn’t have any military experience.
“Me and my brothers in arms are more than sure this will help us to fulfil the combat tasks and it will give us more strength and resilience on the battlefield.”
British troops train 10,000 Ukrainian volunteers and will help 20,000 more
Thursday 16 February 2023 18:37 , Sam Rkaina
Military trainers who have turned 10,000 Ukrainian civilians into soldiers in just weeks will put another 20,000 through their paces in the UK this year.
Recruits taking part in Operation Interflex undergo an intense five-week programme learning the international laws of armed conflict, trench warfare, urban fighting, weapons handling and firing, medical training and dealing with explosives.
The courses, which are being held at sites across the UK, will harness the Ukrainians’ “offensive spirit” and give them the skills to fight effectively and survive despite coming in with little or no experience, a senior officer said.
The course is similar to what British Army reserves undertake, but it has been tweaked to reflect the reality of the war in Ukraine and has direct input from Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) soldiers who have fought there.
Starmer visits Ukraine to pledge continued commitment to Kyiv if he becomes PM
Thursday 16 February 2023 17:39 , Sam Rkaina
Sir Keir Starmer has vowed during a visit to Kyiv that the UK’s commitment to supporting Ukraine in its struggle against Russia would “remain the same” if he becomes prime minister.
The Labour leader also said there “has to be justice” for war crimes against the Ukrainian people as he visited areas that Russian president Vladimir Putin’s troops previously turned into conflict zones.
Sir Keir is in the war-torn country in eastern Europe, where he is expected to meet Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky.
Russia estimated to have lost ‘almost half’ of its key battle tanks during Ukraine war
Thursday 16 February 2023 17:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Russia is estimated to have lost almost half of its best tanks during its invasion of Ukraine, with Vladimir Putin’s troops stepping up attacks in the country’s eastern regions including Donetsk and Luhansk.
The assessment, from military think tank the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), suggests that Moscow’s pre-invasion fleet of modern T-72B3 and T-72B3M main battle tanks has been hit particularly hard, with a loss rate of up to 50 per cent.
The director general of the IISS, John Chipman, said that Moscow has been forced “to rely on its older stored weapons” thanks to production of the newer models being “slow”. That means falling back on its Soviet-era tanks.
“They’re producing and reactivating nowhere near enough to compensate for those loss rates.
Their current armoured fleet at the front is about half the size it was at the start of the war,” said Henry Boyd, research fellow at the IISS. The broader loss rate across all models of tank is thought to be around 40 per cent, the IISS said in its annual Military Balance report.
Russia estimated to have lost ‘almost half’ of key battle tanks during Ukraine war
Ukraine's Zelenskyy to address opening of Berlin film fest
Thursday 16 February 2023 16:30 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is to deliver a live video address at the opening Thursday of the annual Berlin International Film Festival, whose organizers say they will pay special tribute this year to Ukraine and to protesters in Iran.
Zelensky, a former comedian and actor, features prominently in Sean Penn’s film about the war in Ukraine, “Superpower,” which will have its world premiere at the Berlinale.
This year’s event, which runs until Feb. 26, will see 18 films compete for the Golden and the Silver Bear awards. The winners will be chosen by a jury headed by American actor, screenwriter and director Kristen Stewart.
The festival will open with the premier of Rebecca Miller’s film “She Came to Me,” starring Anne Hathaway, Marisa Tomei and Peter Dinklage.
Ukraine's Zelenskyy to address opening of Berlin film fest
Norway to donate £6bn to Ukraine over five year
Thursday 16 February 2023 16:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
The parliament of oil-rich Norway on Thursday announced that the Scandinavian country is donating 75 billion kroner (£6 billion) to Kyiv as part of a five-year support package, making Norway one of the world’s biggest donors to war-torn Ukraine.
In a video address to the 169-seat parliament, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky thanked Norway for the donation.
“You are creating a precedent for long-term financial support for a state that’s defending its independence,” Mr Zelensky said.
The 10 Norwegian party leaders spoke afterward to express their support for the package.
Only the socialist Red Party, which has eight seats, opposed the donation, because part of the money was earmarked for weapons. No vote was held.
The money will be split evenly between military and humanitarian assistance over five years, broken down to 15 billion kroner (£1.2 billion) annually.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine a year ago was “the first attack in Europe since World War II,” said Jonas Gahr Store, Norway’s prime minister.
He added that the money was from oil income, and the donation should not affect the Norwegian economy.
“This is money out of Norway that we should not use or would not use in Norway right now” he added.
Norway is one of Europe’s largest fossil-fuel exporters, and the conflict in Ukraine has boosted its revenues as European countries previously reliant on Russia seek alternative energy sources.
However, Norway has fended off accusations that it’s profiting from the war in Ukraine.
Russian defence ministry says Ukraine hands back 101 servicemen
Thursday 16 February 2023 15:41 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Russian defence ministry said Ukraine had handed back 101 prisoners of war on Thursday following talks, RIA news agency reported.
Indian pharmacist honoured by Kyiv for supporting war effort: ‘Ukraine is my nation too’
Thursday 16 February 2023 15:06 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
In case you missed it...
When Russia invaded Ukraine a year ago this month, India was one of many countries that raced to evacuate thousands of its citizens out of harm’s way. A huge operation followed, with planes, trains and buses pressed into service to rescue some 18,000 Indian nationals in the space of around three weeks.
Brijendra Rana, a 50-year-old Indian living in Ukraine, was among the few who chose to stay, despite his adopted home of Kharkiv being just 60km (37 miles) from the Russian border and among the first cities targeted by the initial wave of invading forces.
His pharmaceutical firm Ananta Medicare has provided antibiotics to hospitals and medical institutions through the course of the war. He also started volunteering with the Red Cross in the months after Russia’s invasion.
Read more from Arpan Rai here:
Why an Indian pharmacist has been honoured by Ukraine for supporting its war effort
EU on track to adopt new Russia sanctions for war anniversary
Thursday 16 February 2023 14:37 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
European Union countries were “on good track” to adopt new sanctions against Moscow in time for the Feb.24 one-year anniversary of Russia‘s invasion of Ukraine, according to diplomats in Brussels.
They spoke under the condition of anonymity because of the confidential nature of talks among the representatiives of 27 EU member countries about the proposed new sanctions estimated to be worth some 11 billion euros ($11.8 bln) in trade flows.
“The package should be concluded well in time for February 24th, it’s on good track, there are no major sticking points,” said one EU diplomat familiar with the discussions.
Another said the talks were “overall relatively positive” with some technical questions brought up to be clarified before another meeting of the ambassadors, possibly next Tuesday.
“There were some concerns raised by some member states around the reporting requirements - how it would work exactly and would there be penalties for not doing it and so on, it’s mostly a recognition of this being a complex process.”
The EU is looking at agreeing new reporting obligations for the member states to better track Russian assets in Europe as they look for ways to use them to finance rebuilding Ukraine.
The EU has so far located around 33.8 billion euros worth of Russian central bank assets on its territory, according to EU officials, from an estimated $300 billion frozen outside of Russia.
War in Ukraine at 1 year: Pain, resilience in global economy
Thursday 16 February 2023 13:55 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
An Egyptian widow is struggling to afford meat and eggs for her five children. An exasperated German laundry owner watches as his energy bill jumps fivefold. Nigerian bakeries have shut their doors, unable to afford the exorbitant price of flour.
One year after Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, and caused widespread suffering, the global economy is still enduring the consequences — crunched supplies of grain, fertilizer and energy along with more inflation and economic uncertainty in a world that was already contending with too much of both.
As dismal as the war’s impact has been, there’s one consolation: It could have been worse. Companies and countries in the developed world have proved surprisingly resilient, so far avoiding the worst-case scenario of painful recession.
But in emerging economies, the pain has been more intense.
Read more here:
War in Ukraine at 1 year: Pain, resilience in global economy
Russia bombards Ukraine as push for besieged Bakhmut grinds on
Thursday 16 February 2023 13:25 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Russia rained missiles across Ukraine on Thursday and struck its largest oil refinery, Kyiv said, while the head of the Wagner mercenary group predicted the long-besieged city of Bakhmut would fall within a couple of months.
Following a pattern of heavy bombardments after Ukrainian battlefield or diplomatic gains, Russia launched 36 missiles in the early hours, Ukraine‘s Air Force said, after NATO alliance officials met the previous day to plot more support for Kyiv.
About 16 were shot down, it added, a lower rate than normal.
The missiles triggered air-raid sirens and landed all over Ukraine, including its largest oil refinery, Kremenchuk, where the extent of damage was not immediately clear.
“Another massive missile attack by the terrorist state on civilian infrastructure in Ukraine,” the Defence Ministry tweeted. Ukraine said the barrage included three KH-31 missiles and one Oniks which its air defences cannot shoot down.
There was no word from Moscow on the strikes.
Lukashenko warns Belarus will join war alongside Russia if attacked
Thursday 16 February 2023 12:34 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Belarus’ President Alexander Lukashenko said on Thursday he would only order his troops to fight alongside ally Russia if another country launches an attack against Belarus, the state-run Belta news agency reported.
Lukashenko, who has repeatedly denied claims from Kyiv and the West that his country could be dragged further into the war in Ukraine on the side of Moscow, also said he planned to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday.
“I am ready to fight with the Russians from the territory of Belarus in only one case: If even one soldier comes onto the territory of Belarus to kill my people,” Belta quoted Lukashenko as telling a news conference on Thursday. “If they commit aggression against Belarus, the response will be the most severe, and the war will take on a completely different nature.”
Russia used Belarus as a staging post for its full-scale invasion of Ukraine last year, launching its failed offensive on the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv from the country.
A flurry of military activity and joint air force drills between Russia and Belarus earlier this year rekindled concerns that Minsk could be preparing to take a more active role in the conflict.
In the lives of 5 friends, Ukraine's war story unfolds
Thursday 16 February 2023 12:20 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
In the cemetery where Oleksii Zavadskyi and Yurii Stiahliuk are buried, the women they loved take drags on the men’s favorite brands of cigarettes. Clouds of smoke are exhaled in silence.
Interlaced between Anastasiia Okhrimenko’s dainty fingers are Camels. Anna Korostenska lights L&M’s, her hands shaking in the cold. An intimate ritual when the men were still alive — at the end of the day, when it was just the two of them — it is now a somber tradition carried on after death.
Oleksii and Yurii were killed on Ukraine’s eastern front five months apart. One was Vadym Okhrimenko’s best friend and died in his arms. “Gone, in an instant,” he says, briskly packing his combat uniform and gear. Soon he returns to the battlefield, heavy with sorrow, hungry for revenge.
The five had known each other since childhood. They came of age in Bucha, a Kyiv suburb now synonymous with the war’s most horrific atrocities. Their interwoven tales reveal how Russia‘s invasion of Ukraine exactly one year ago changed their lives, their neighborhood, their country.
“This war is not just about soldiers,” says Anna. “It’s about everyone connected to them, and their pain.”
Samya Kullab reports:
In the lives of 5 friends, Ukraine's war story unfolds
Ukraine's Zelensky to open Berlin Film Festival
Thursday 16 February 2023 11:39 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Filmmakers from the world over gathered in Berlin for the city’s venerable film festival, which is due to be opened later on Thursday with a video address by Ukraine‘s President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Now in its 73rd year, the festival will see 18 films, hailing from Mexico to Australia, competing for a coveted Golden Bear trophy that will be awarded by a jury chaired by U.S. actor Kristen Stewart.
“Full disclosure: I’m kind of shaking,” the “Twilight” and “Spencer” star told a news conference to introduce the jury, when asked how she felt about adjudicating at the most overtly political of the world’s major film festivals.
Zelensky’s appearance reflects the organisers’ focus this year on Russia‘s invasion of Ukraine and on pro-democracy protests in Iran. Films from and about both countries are prominent, while films supported by the Iranian and Russian governments are banned.
“This year with Iran, the earthquake, with Ukraine - it feels like the world is disintegrating,” said French-Iranian actress Golshifteh Farahani, another jury member.
Outside the main competition, films will tackle topics from race in America to gender transition and sexuality, while high profile visitors will include director Steven Spielberg and singer Bono, attending a documentary about U2’s legendary 1997 post-siege concert in Sarajevo.
“If you want to destroy a place the first thing you do is destroy its cinema,” said Hong Kong director and jury member Johnnie To, insisting on film’s central role in nurturing a democratic society.
“I think it’s the job of an artist to take a disgusting and ugly thing and transmute it,” Stewart added. “Put it through your body and come up with something more helpful.”
Turkey to discuss Sweden and Finland's NATO bids with U.S. Blinken
Thursday 16 February 2023 11:05 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Thursday he would discuss NATO applications of Finland and Sweden in talks next week with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
Speaking after a meeting with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, Cavusoglu said bilateral relations, as well as Russia‘s invasion of Ukraine, will also be discussed with U.S. Blinken.
Ukraine signals no major power problems after Russia attacks
Thursday 16 February 2023 10:41 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Ukraine‘s energy minister and the national power grid operator signalled on Thursday that overnight Russian air strikes had not caused major disruption to electricity supplies.
Energy Minister German Galushchenko said Ukraine was meeting consumer demand for the fifth successive day. Grid operator Ukrenergo said it saw no need to introduce emergency power outages to conserve supplies.
Ukrainian officials issued no reports of major damage after the latest in a wave of Russian attacks on energy infrastructure.
“Today’s attack will not change our plans to not conduct outages during the day,” Ukrenergo chief Volodymyr Kudrytskyi told a news briefing.
Galushchenko, who repeatedly praised the speed at which repairs are carried out after Russian air strikes, was quoted by his ministry on Facebook as saying “a certain power reserve has emerged.”
Kudrytskyi echoed this, saying: “Time is currently on the side of Ukraine‘s energy system.”
He said the energy situation could remain “stable” if Ukraine does not suffer damage to energy infrastructure on the same scale as in the autumn, when Russia stepped up attacks on energy facilities and caused widespread blackouts.
“We have improved the situation but we are still far off absolute stability,” he said.
When did Russia invade Ukraine?
Thursday 16 February 2023 10:05 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Russia’s “special military operation” in Ukraine has been raging for almost a year now, the conflict continuing to record devastating casualties and force the mass displacement of millions of blameless Ukrainians.
Vladimir Putin began the war by claiming Russia’s neighbour needed to be “demilitarised and de-Nazified”, a baseless pretext on which to launch a landgrab against an independent state that happens to have a Jewish president in Volodymyr Zelensky.
Ukraine has fought back courageously against Mr Putin’s warped bid to restore territory lost to Moscow with the collapse of the Soviet Union and has continued to defy the odds by defending itself against Russian onslaughts with the help of Western military aid.
Battle tanks from the US, Britain and Germany are now being supplied for the first time and Mr Zelensky toured London, Paris and Brussels in early February 2023 to request fighter jets be sent as well in order to counter the Russian aerial threat, a step the allies appear to have reservations about making.
Joe Sommerlad and Thomas Kingsley report:
When did Russia invade Ukraine?
Russia suffering ‘very serious losses'
Thursday 16 February 2023 09:50 , Katy Clifton
Ukraine's deputy defence minister Hanna Maliar has said Russia is suffering "very serious losses".
In a post on Telegram, Ms Maliar said Russia is bombarding Ukraine with "round-the-clock" missile strikes in the east.
She wrote: The enemy’s offensive continues in the east, (with) round-the-clock attacks.
“The situation is tense. Yes, it is difficult for us. But our fighters are not allowing the enemy to achieve their goals and are inflicting very serious losses.”
