Ukraine news – live: UK accuses Putin of ‘disinformation’ over depleted uranium ammo claims
The UK has accused president Vladimir Putin of stirring deliberate disinformation after he claimed the UK was supplying Ukraine with “weapons with a nuclear component”.
Mr Putin said Russia will “respond accordingly” if Britain sends depleted uranium tank ammunition to the government in Kyiv.
In response, the British defence ministry said: “The British Army has used depleted uranium in its armour piercing shells for decades. It is a standard component and has nothing to do with nuclear weapons or capabilities.”
“Russia knows this, but is deliberately trying to disinform.”
This comes as Russian defence minister Sergei Shoigu has said there were fewer and fewer steps left before a potential “nuclear collision” between Russia and the West, reports say.
Moscow would respond to reports that Britain would supply Ukraine with ammunition containing depleted uranium, he said, even after the defence ministry called the depleted uranium a “standard component”.
And, the US has called on Chinese president Xi Jinping to urge Russia to end its invasion of Ukraine if Beijing wants to play a constructive role.
Key points
UK dismisses Putin ‘disinformation’ over depleted uranium tank ammunition
Nato warns China against supplying lethal weapons to Russia
Xi tells Putin: China and Russia should push for more ‘practical’ cooperation
Shipment of Russian cruise missiles destroyed in Crimea, says Ukraine
Russia flies jets over Sea of Japan as Kishida visits Ukraine
Bakhmut under fire as leaders meet
Tell Vladimir Putin to get out of Ukraine, US urges Chinese president
UK dismisses Putin ‘disinformation’ over depleted uranium tank ammunition
03:56 , Arpan Rai
Britain has accused Vladimir Putin of stirring deliberate disinformation after he claimed the UK was supplying Ukraine with “weapons with a nuclear component”.
Following talks in Moscow with China’s president Xi Jinping, Mr Putin said Russia will “respond accordingly” if Britain sends depleted uranium tank ammunition to the government in Kyiv.
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) however dismissed the warning, saying the armour-piercing shells had been standard equipment for decades and were “nothing to do with nuclear weapons or capabilities”.
Read the full story here:
UK dismisses Putin ‘disinformation’ over depleted uranium tank ammunition
‘Signs’ Putin has requested lethal weapons from China, Nato chief says
06:29 , Arpan Rai
Nato general secretary Jens Stoltenberg has warned that China appears to be mulling arms supplies to Russia as Xi Jinping discussed Beijing’s peace plan for Ukraine with Vladimir Putin in Moscow.
“We haven’t seen any proof that China is delivering lethal weapons to Russia but we have seen some signs that this has been a request from Russia, and that this is an issue that is considered in Beijing by the Chinese authorities,” Mr Stoltenberg told reporters in Brussels.
He said China should not provide weapons that could be used in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, as “that would be to support an illegal war.” He added that arms supplies would prolong the conflict.
Read the full sotry here:
‘Signs’ Putin has requested lethal weapons from China, Nato chief says
ICYMI | Vladimir Putin appears to be heckled during visit to Mariupol
06:00 , Emily Atkinson
Artillery attacks near Bakhmut doubled up as residents queue up for water and food
05:42 , Arpan Rai
The Russian attacks in and around Bakhmut have risen sharply in the past 24 hours as Ukrainian officials gave the latest details from the fiercest battle along the frontline.
Bursts of incoming and outgoing artillery fire could be heard in the town of Chasiv Yar just west of Bakhmut where intense fighting has been observed in the last few months.
The fiercest fighting continued to take place near Bakhmut and Avdiivka to the south, said the general staff of the Ukrainian armed forces.
Ukrainian military analyst Oleh Zhdanov said: “Today the number of Russian attacks rose sharply. There were some 120 along the principal parts of the front line, about double the number from the day before.”
With fighting taking place in largely residential neighbourhoods, elderly residents queued for water and food delivered by a team from the state emergency services between apartment blocks in Chasiv Yar.
One of the residents, Oleksii Stepanov, said he had been in Bakhmut until five days ago but was evacuated when his house was destroyed by a missile.
“We were in the kitchen and the missile came through the roof. The kitchen was all that was left standing,” the 54-year-old said.
Putin does not have whole lot of friends on international stage, says White House
05:11 , Arpan Rai
The White House has said that Vladimir Putin really needs and wants his Chinese counterpart’s support as he does not have a lot of international allies.
“In president Xi, president Putin sees a potential backer here. This is a man who doesn’t have a whole lot of friends on the international stage; they can count them on one hand mostly. And he really needs and wants president Xi’s support for what he’s trying to do, because he’s running through — he’s blowing through inventory,” the White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said.
He added: “He’s [Putin] blowing through manpower. His military is getting embarrassed constantly. They’ve lost greater than 50 per cent of the territory that they took in the first few months of this war. He needs help from president Xi, and that’s what this visit was all about.”
Mr Kirby was answering a question on whether the world is “watching a budding alliance between China and Russia” after the bilateral meet in Moscow.
“I wouldn’t go so far to call it an alliance. Yesterday I called it a ‘marriage of convenience’, because that’s what I think it is. In president Putin and Russia, president Xi sees a counterweight to American influence and Nato influence certainly on the continent and elsewhere around the world,” he said.
US announces sanctions on Iran drone procurement network
05:00 , Emily Atkinson
The United States said Tuesday it is imposing a new round of sanctions on Iranian firms and people accused of procuring equipment used for Iranian drones.
Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control coordinated with the FBI to designate four firms and three people in Iran and Turkey for allegedly buying equipment, including European-made engines, to be used for Iran’s drone and weapons programs.
The Associated Press has more on this story here:
US announces sanctions on Iran drone procurement network
China is not impartial on Ukraine invasion, says US
04:03 , Arpan Rai
White House national security spokesperson John Kirby has said that the US does not view China as an impartial player in the continuing war on Ukraine as claimed in the joint statement issued by Moscow and Beijing.
On being asked about the statement which stated that “the Russian side speaks positively of China’s objective and impartial position on the Ukraine issue” and whether China has an impartial position, Mr Kirby answered in a firm no.
“...I don’t think you can reasonably look at China as impartial in any way. They haven’t condemned this in — this invasion. They haven’t stopped buying Russian oil and Russian energy,” he said.
He added: “President Xi saw fit to fly all the way to Moscow, hasn’t talked once to President Zelensky, hasn’t visited Ukraine, hasn’t bothered to avail himself of the Ukrainian objective. And he and his regime keeps parroting the Russian propaganda that this is somehow a war of the West on Russia, that it’s some sort of existential threat to Mr Putin. That’s just a bunch of malarkey. Ukraine posed no threat to anybody, let alone Russia.”
Dramatic moment Russian fighter jet ‘intercepts two US nuclear bombers over Baltic Sea’
04:00 , Emily Atkinson
Russia has claimed it scrambled one of its fighter jets to intercept a pair of US nuclear bombers over the Baltic Sea.
The Russian Defence Ministry released the footage on Tuesday, which it claimed was captured from a Russian Su-45 on Monday.
It said its fighter jet met B-52 strategic bombers flying towards the Russian border on Monday, but that it returned to base after they moved away.
Kate Plummer has the details:
Moment Russian fighter jet ‘intercepts two US nuclear bombers over Baltic Sea’
China should urge end of Ukraine invasion to be constructive, says White House
03:37 , Arpan Rai
Chinese president Xi Jinping should urge Russia to end its invasion of Ukraine if Beijing wants to play a constructive role for the European nation under siege for more than a year, the White House said.
Suggesting that one way to stop the hostilities in Ukraine is to pull Russian troops out of thewar-hit nation, the White House national security spokesperson said that “short of that, Mr Putin could stop bombing hospitals, could stop bombing schools.”
“He could stop launching Iranian drones into civilian infrastructure. He could stop the forcible deportation of young kids — thousands of them — putting them in filtration camps inside other places inside Ukraine but also inside Russia. He could stop reducing cities like Bakhmut to bricks — to piles of bricks. That is a way to stop the prolongation of hostilities,” Mr Kirby said. He added: “So, now, if China wants to play a constructive role here in this conflict, then they ought to press Russia to pull its troops out of Ukraine and Ukrainian sovereign territory. They should urge president Putin to cease bombing cities, hospitals, and schools; to stop the war crimes and the atrocities; and end the war today. It could happen right now.”
The White House official was speaking about the diplomatic meeting between the Chinese and Russian president in Moscow where the two emerged from two days of talks with warm words of friendship between China and Russia and joint criticism of the West.
However, there was no sign of a diplomatic breakthrough over Ukraine.
Ukraine marks one-year anniversary of first win in Russian invasion, says Zelensky
03:14 , Arpan Rai
Volodymyr Zelensky cheered on the one year anniversary of Ukraine’s first battle victory in Kyiv.
“Ukraine began to mark the first anniversary of the first victorious battles of the full-scale war - the battles in the north of our country that made the occupier flee,” Mr Zelensky said last night.
He added: “It was on 21 March last year that the Battle of Moshchun, a small village in the Kyiv region, ended, and it was the first major step of our country towards victory in this war.”
“There were other such steps... The Battle of Hostomel. The Battle of Irpin. Fighting in the Chernihiv and Sumy regions. The Battle of Zmiinyi. A fierce confrontation in the south of Ukraine and our unique defence operation that returned freedom to the Kharkiv region,” Mr Zelensky said.
Watch: Putin hails China’s Xi plan to settle ‘acute crisis’ in Ukraine
03:00 , Emily Atkinson
‘Signs’ Putin has requested lethal weapons from China, Nato chief says
02:00 , Emily Atkinson
China appears to be mulling arms supplies to Russia, Nato general secretary Jens Stoltenberg warned as Xi Jinping discussed Beijing’s peace plan for Ukraine with Vladimir Putin in Moscow.
“We haven’t seen any proof that China is delivering lethal weapons to Russia but we have seen some signs that this has been a request from Russia, and that this is an issue that is considered in Beijing by the Chinese authorities,” Mr Stoltenberg told reporters in Brussels.
He said China should not provide weapons that could be used in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, as “that would be to support an illegal war.” He added that arms supplies would prolong the conflict.
Liam James reports:
‘Signs’ Putin has requested lethal weapons from China, Nato chief says
Latest images from Kishida’s visit to Kyiv
01:00 , Emily Atkinson
Watch: Putin hits out at British plans to supply Ukraine with weapons containing nuclear components
00:00 , Emily Atkinson
Russia targets Nobel Peace Prize rights group with raids
Tuesday 21 March 2023 23:00 , Emily Atkinson
Russian authorities on Tuesday raided the homes and offices of multiple human rights advocates and historians with the prominent rights group Memorial that won the Nobel Peace Prize last year.
The wave of searches, after which police took Memorial activists in for questioning, is part of a steady and sweeping crackdown that the Kremlin has unleashed against dissent in recent years. It has intensified after Moscow invaded Ukraine more than a year ago.
Russia targets Nobel Peace Prize rights group with raids
UK dismisses Putin ‘disinformation’ over depleted uranium tank ammunition
Tuesday 21 March 2023 22:00 , Emily Atkinson
Britain has accused President Vladimir Putin of deliberate disinformation after he claimed the UK was supplying Ukraine with “weapons with a nuclear component”.
Following talks in Moscow with China’s President Xi Jinping, Mr Putin said Russia will “respond accordingly” if Britain sends depleted uranium tank ammunition to the government in Kyiv.
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) however dismissed the warning, saying the armour-piercing shells had been standard equipment for decades and were “nothing to do with nuclear weapons or capabilities”
We have more on the MoD’s response here:
UK dismisses Putin ‘disinformation’ over depleted uranium tank ammunition
Putin’s claim Britain is sending nuclear arms to Ukraine is ‘bonkers’, says expert
Tuesday 21 March 2023 21:30 , Emily Atkinson
China’s peace plan could be the basis for settling the war in Ukraine, Vladimir Putin claimed on Tuesday as he accused Britain of using “nuclear” tank ammunition.
Speaking after marathon talks in Moscow with Xi Jinping, the Russian president accused the West of not being interested in a deal.
“It looks like the West indeed intends to fight Russia until the last Ukrainian,” he said.
Alastair Jamieson has more:
Putin’s claim Britain is sending nuclear arms to Ukraine is ‘bonkers’ – expert
IMF 'reaches staff agreement with Ukraine over financial package’
Tuesday 21 March 2023 21:10 , Emily Atkinson
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has reached a staff agreement with Ukraine for a four-year financing package worth about $15.6 billion, sources familiar with the agreement have told Reuters.
The agreement follows months of negotiations between IMF staff officials and Ukrainian authorities.
What Russia-China joint statement says about Ukraine
Tuesday 21 March 2023 21:00 , Emily Atkinson
Russia and China issued a joint statement on Thursday following talks between presidents Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping. Here is the section of the statement that relates to the war in Ukraine.
Translation by Reuters:
The Russian side positively assesses the objective and unbiased position of the Chinese side on the Ukrainian question. The parties are opposed to any states and their blocs damaging the legitimate security interests of other states in order to obtain military, political and other advantages. The Chinese side positively assesses the willingness of the Russian side to make efforts to restart peace talks as soon as possible.
Russia welcomes China’s readiness to play a positive role in a political-diplomatic settlement of the Ukrainian crisis and the constructive ideas set forth in the document drawn up by the Chinese side “On China’s Position on the Political Settlement of the Ukrainian Crisis.”
The parties note that in order to resolve the Ukrainian crisis, it is necessary to respect the legitimate concerns of all countries in the field of security and prevent the formation of bloc confrontation, and halt actions that further fuel the conflict.
The parties stress that responsible dialogue is the best way for a sustainable resolution of the Ukrainian crisis, and the international community should support constructive efforts in this regard.
The parties call for an end to all steps that contribute to the escalation of tension and prolongation of hostilities, to avoid further degradation of the crisis to the point where it could cross over into an uncontrollable phase. The parties oppose all unilateral sanctions imposed in circumvention of the UN Security Council.
Kim Sengupta: No country can afford to ignore the war in Ukraine – visits by China and Japan to Moscow and Kyiv prove that
Tuesday 21 March 2023 20:30 , Emily Atkinson
While Vladimir Putin was meeting his “dear friend” Xi Jinping in Moscow, the Japanese prime minister, Fumio Kishida, was 500 miles away in Kyiv showing his country’s solidarity with Ukraine.
The presence of the two Asian leaders in the rival capitals illustrated the global impact of this conflict in the heart of Europe, with old strategic alliances being strengthened and new ones being formed, writes Kim Sengupta.
Analysis: It is becoming clear that no country can ignore the war in Ukraine
Zelensky: Kyiv waiting on response from Beijing over Ukraine’s peace formula
Tuesday 21 March 2023 19:50 , Emily Atkinson
Ukraine‘s President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Tuesday that Kyiv had suggested to China that Beijing join a Ukrainian peace formula to end Russia’s war in Ukraine, but that it was still waiting for an answer.
He made the remark during a joint briefing in Kyiv with Japanese prime minister Fumio Kishida.
Beijing has proposed a 12-point peace proposal, but Kyiv insists on a full Russian troop withdrawal and has been promoting its own plan in recent months.
I brought two Ukrainian refugees to the US. One month later, this is what they think
Tuesday 21 March 2023 19:25 , Emily Atkinson
After Clare Cannon made the decision to sponsor Katya and Dima to settle in New York, she knew she’d be responsible for helping them overcome their culture shock. Here, she documents one month of ups and downs in the US — and what actually happens to Ukrainian refugees once they arrive on American soil.
I brought two Ukrainian refugees to the US. One month later, this is what they think
Zelensky says he will join G7 summit virtually
Tuesday 21 March 2023 19:00 , Emily Atkinson
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has aaid he would join an upcoming G7 summit in Japan via an online link following an invitation from Japanese prime minister Fumio Kishida.
He made the remark during a joint briefing in Kyiv with Kishida.
Japan is due to host the summit in Kishida’s hometown of Hiroshima in May.
Latest images from Putin and Xi’s Kremlin talks
Tuesday 21 March 2023 18:35 , Emily Atkinson
Putin blasts UK move to send ammo with depleted uranium to Ukraine
Tuesday 21 March 2023 18:10 , Emily Atkinson
Russian President Vladimir Putin has joined his defence minister in condemning British plans to send tank ammunition that contains depleted uranium to Ukraine.
“If all this happens, Russian will have to respond accordingly, given that the West collectively is already beginning to use weapons with a nuclear component,” Putin said in remarks after a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping, without elaborating.
Nato to hold Ukraine meeting despite Hungary’s objections
Tuesday 21 March 2023 17:45 , Emily Atkinson
Nato secretary-general Jens Stoltenberg has said he would call a high-level meeting of the military organisation’s main forum for cooperation with Ukraine next month despite objections from Hungary.
The Nato-Ukraine Commission hasn’t met at a ministerial level for several years. The last meeting was held at a lower level in 2019 in Kyiv, with Nato ambassadors joining Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy and some of his Cabinet ministers, about three years before Russia’s full-scale invasion.
More on this story from the AP here:
NATO to hold Ukraine meeting despite Hungary's objections
China has peace plan for Ukraine when West is ready, says Putin
Tuesday 21 March 2023 17:20 , Emily Atkinson
A Chinese peace plan could provide a basis for a settlement of the fighting in Ukraine, when the West is ready for it, Russian president Vladimir Putin has said.
Speaking after talks with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, Mr Putin said Ukraine‘s western allies so far have shown no interest in that.
Putin welcomes ‘dear friend’ Xi for hours of talks at Kremlin
Tuesday 21 March 2023 16:57 , Emily Atkinson
Vladimir Putin held more than four hours of talks with “dear friend” Xi Jinping of China at the Kremlin on Monday, showing off his relationship with his most powerful ally just days after an arrest warrant was issued over his war in Ukraine.
More from Alastair Jamieson here:
Putin flaunts alliance with Xi as ‘dear friends’ meet in Kremlin
Russian defence minister warns of possible ‘nuclear collision’ with West
Tuesday 21 March 2023 16:25 , Emily Atkinson
Russian defence minister Sergei Shoigu said there were fewer and fewer steps left before a potential “nuclear collision” between Russia and the West, Interfax news agency reported.
Shoigu was responding to media reports that Britain would supply Ukraine with ammunition containing depleted uranium, a move to which he said Moscow would respond, Interfax reported.
Xi and Putin stress ‘responsible dialogue’ as solution to Ukraine crisis
Tuesday 21 March 2023 16:10 , Emily Atkinson
Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Tuesday stressed that “responsible dialogue” is the best way to steadily solve the Ukraine crisis, China’s state media reported.
The Russian side reaffirmed its commitment to resuming peace talks as soon as possible, according to Chinese state media, following the conclusion of talks between Xi and Putin in Moscow.
The two sides pointed out that to resolve the Ukraine crisis, the “legitimate security concerns” of all countries must be respected and that confrontation between camps should be avoided, Chinese state media reported.
Russia wants Chinese business to replace Western firms, Putin tells Xi
Tuesday 21 March 2023 15:27 , Emily Atkinson
Moscow is ready to help Chinese businesses replace Western firms that have left Russia over the Ukraine conflict, president Vladimir Putin told Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Tuesday during talks at the Kremlin.
Speaking on the second day of Xi’s state visit to Moscow, Putin also said the two leaders had discussed the proposed Power of Siberia 2 pipeline, which would ship Russian gas to China.
The planned pipeline would deliver 50 billion cubic metres (bcm) of natural gas per year from Russia to China via Mongolia. Moscow put forward the idea many years ago, but it has gained urgency as Russia turns to China to replace Europe as its major gas customer.
“I am convinced that our multi-faceted cooperation will continue to develop for the good of the peoples of our countries,” Putin said in televised comments to Xi, adding that Russia is a “strategic supplier” of oil, gas and coal to China.
Xi tells Putin: China and Russia should push for more ‘practical’ cooperation
Tuesday 21 March 2023 15:02 , Emily Atkinson
China and Russia should work more closely to push forward greater “practical cooperation”, Chinese president Xi Jinping told his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Tuesday.
“The early harvest of (our) cooperation can be seen, and further cooperation is being advanced,” Xi told Putin in formal talks in Moscow, according to Hong Kong cable television.
Nato warns China against supplying lethal weapons to Russia
Tuesday 21 March 2023 14:41 , Emily Atkinson
Nato secretary-general Jens Stoltenberg has warned China against supplying lethal weapons to Russia, as leaders of both countries were meeting in Moscow for talks.
“We haven’t seen any proof that China is delivering lethal weapons to Russia but we have seen some signs that this has been a request from Russia, and that this is an issue that is considered in Beijing by the Chinese authorities,” Stoltenberg told reporters in Brussels.
“China should not provide lethal aid to Russia, that would be to support an illegal war.”
Ukraine to receive Abrams tanks from US 'as soon as this fall’
Tuesday 21 March 2023 14:22 , Emily Atkinson
The Pentagon plans to speed up the delivery of Abrams tanks to Ukraine, a US official and a source familiar with the situation told Reuters, providing the vital equipment to Kyiv as soon as this fall.
The Biden administration pledged to supply Ukraine with 31 advanced M1 Abrams tanks after months of shunning the idea of deploying the difficult-to-maintain tanks to Ukraine. The new plan speeds up delivery by about a year, according to a Congressional aide briefed on the matter.
A Pentagon spokesman declined to comment on the faster timeline because the department of defence had not previously offered any specific date for its effort to get the tanks into Ukrainian hands, only saying it would take “months.”
“We’re working on that,” White House spokesperson John Kirby told CNN on Tuesday. “There’s some changes that you can make to the process to sort of speed that up.”
China and Russia should promote economic and trade cooperation, says Xi
Tuesday 21 March 2023 14:00 , Emily Atkinson
China’s President Xi Jinping told Russian prime minister Mikhail Mishustin both nations should promote the quality and volume of economic and trade cooperation, the official CCTV reported on Tuesday.
Xi arrived in Moscow on Monday for a state visit, in his first trip abroad since he secured an unprecedented third term earlier this month.
