Ukraine news - live: Putin ‘has lost’ as ‘global pariah Russia is paying enormous price’ for war
Vladimir Putin has lost “strategically, operationally and tactically” in his war on Ukraine, as Russia is now a “global pariah”, a top US general has said.
General Mark Milley was speaking after a meeting with his Nato counterparts in Brussels as Putin’s forces were said to be making incremental gains in the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut.
With him was the US defence secretary Lloyd Austin, who added that while Russia was introducing new troops to the battlefield, many are “ill-trained and ill-equipped”.
Ukraine urgently needs more military aid, the United States and NATO said on Tuesday, pledging that western support will not falter in the face of a new Russian offensive as the war was about to mark the first full year since it began.
Western defence chiefs met in Brussels to discuss new arms provisions to Kyiv, which is pleading for greater firepower, and maintenance of existing supplies including shells whose production can hardly keep pace with the war.
It comes as the UK government announced that an unidentified British national has died in Ukraine.
Key Points
Kyiv troops ‘blow up bridge’ near Bakhmut as Russia bombards city
Bakhmut under Russia’s ‘crazy, chaotic shelling' in new offensive – officials
Wagner has ‘almost certainly’ made gains around Bakhmut – UK intelligence
Putin ‘changing generals like socks’ — White House
Moscow can take Kyiv, Kharkiv and Odesa, Russian official claims
Russia ‘held 6,000 Ukrainian children for re-education'
04:45 , Stuti Mishra
Russia has held at least 6,000 Ukrainian children with the aim of political re-education, according to a U.S.-backed report published on Tuesday.
The report said Yale University researchers had identified at least 43 camps and other facilities in Russia and Crimea where Ukrainian children have been held that were part of a “large-scale systematic network” operated by Moscow since its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
The children included those with parents or clear familial guardianship, those Russia deemed orphans, others who were in the care of Ukrainian state institutions before the invasion and those whose custody was unclear or uncertain due to the war, it said.
“The primary purpose of the camp facilities we’ve identified appears to be political re-education,” Nathaniel Raymond, one of the researchers, said in a briefing to reporters.
Some of the children were moved through the system and adopted by Russian families, or moved into foster care in Russia, the report said.
The youngest child identified in the Russian program was just four months old, and some camps were giving military training to children as young as 14, Raymond said, adding that researchers had not found evidence those children were later deployed in combat.
Moscow has denied intentionally targeting civilians in what it calls a “special military operation” in Ukraine, and has pushed back against previous claims it had forcibly moved Ukrainians.
Russia bombards eastern frontline as Ukraine prepares for street fighting in Bakhmut
04:15 , Stuti Mishra
Intense fighting continues in Bakhmut as Russia has bombarded the eastern frontline in what appeared to be the early salvoes of a new offensive.
Much of Russia’s artillery fire was focused on Bakhmut, a bombed-out city in Donetsk province and a principal target for president Vladimir Putin.
Ukrainian troops there have fortified positions in anticipation of street fighting.
Bakhmut’s capture would provide a stepping stone for Russia to advance on two bigger Donetsk cities, Kramatorsk and Sloviansk, and give Moscow momentum after months of battlefield setbacks following its invasion last February.
Meanwhile, Volodymyr Zelensky has urged for “speedy” help from allies as he says Russia is in a hurry to achieve as much as it could with its latest push before Ukraine and its allies could gather strength.
“That is why speed is of the essence,” he said in an evening video address after Nato defence ministers met in Brussels on Tuesday to discuss the war and stockpiles.
Dutch F-35s intercept Russia aircraft near Poland
03:45 , Sam Rkaina
Two Dutch F-35 fighters intercepted a formation of three Russian military aircraft near Poland and escorted them out, the Netherlands’ defence ministry said.
“The then unknown aircraft approached the Polish NATO area of responsibility from Kaliningrad,” the ministry statement said on Monday.
Kaliningrad is a Russian Baltic coast enclave located between NATO and European Union members Poland and Lithuania.
“After identification, it turned out to be three aircraft: a Russian IL-20M Coot-A that was escorted by two Su-27 Flankers. The Dutch F-35s escorted the formation from a distance and handed over the escort to NATO partners.”
The Il-20M Coot-A is NATO’s reporting name for the Russian Ilyushin Il-20M reconnaissance aircraft while the Su-27 Flankers are NATO’s reporting name for the Sukhoi Su-27 fighter aircraft.
The Netherlands’ defence ministry said that eight Dutch F-35s are stationed in Poland for February and March.
Putin holds talks with Azeri counterpart
02:45 , Sam Rkaina
Russian President Vladimir Putin talked to Azeri counterpart Ilham Aliyev and noted the importance of ensuring stability and security in the southern Caucasus region, the Kremlin said on Tuesday.
Tensions are high between Azerbaijan and neighbouring Armenia over the disputed enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh, which has a largely ethnic Armenian population but is internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan.
In 2020, Azerbaijan retook territory in and around the enclave after a war that ended in a Moscow-brokered ceasefire upheld by Russian peacekeepers. Both sides accuse each other of violations and Armenia now says Azerbaijan is blockading the only road into Nagorno-Karabakh, a charge Baku denies.
“The importance of consistent steps to ensure stability and security on the Azerbaijani-Armenian border was noted,” said a Kremlin readout of the call between Putin and Aliyev.
“In this context, it was reaffirmed that all the relevant agreements between Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia at the highest level should be implemented unconditionally.”
Late last month Yerevan asked Putin to take a tougher line on Nagorno-Karabakh and for Russian peacekeepers to end what it called the blockade.
Germany calls for ramp up in ammunition production
01:45 , Sam Rkaina
NATO defence ministers met with Ukrainian Defence Minister Oleksii Reznikov after the Ramstein group gathering.
The alliance plans to increase targets for stockpiling ammunition as Kyiv is burning through shells much faster than the West can produce them, leaving stocks badly depleted.
German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius called on the national defence industry to ramp up production capacity.
He said Berlin had signed contracts with arms maker Rheinmetall to restart production of ammunition for the Gepard anti-aircraft guns it has delivered to Kyiv.
It had been trying for months to find new munitions for the guns, which its own military decommissioned in 2010.
Russia is ‘now a global pariah'
00:45 , Sam Rkaina
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg gave the same message about Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion.
“We see no signs that President Putin is preparing for peace. What we see is the opposite, he is preparing for more war, for new offensives and new attacks,” he told reporters.
Nevertheless, the top U.S. general, Mark Milley, said Russia had already lost in the eyes of the world.
“Russia is now a global pariah and the world remains inspired by Ukrainian bravery and resilience. In short, Russia has lost: they’ve lost strategically, operationally and tactically,” Milley, chair of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters.
‘Speed is of the essence’ Zelensky says
Tuesday 14 February 2023 23:45 , Sam Rkaina
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia was in a hurry to achieve as much as it could with its latest offensive before Kyiv and its allies could gather strength.
“That is why speed is of the essence. Speed in everything - adopting decisions, carrying out decisions, shipping supplies, training. Speed saves people’s lives, speed brings back security,” he said in an evening video address.
Mr Zelensky - thanking allies for their promises of more air defence weapons, tanks, artillery, shells and training - said much of what had been discussed should be kept a secret.
Mr Austin said he expected Ukrainian forces to conduct an offensive of their own in the spring, and Kyiv’s allies were working to ensure they had the armour, firepower and the logistics to make it effective.
“We believe that there’ll be a window of opportunity for them to exercise initiative,” Austin said.
“The Kremlin is still betting it can wait us out, but one year on we are as united as ever. That shared resolve will help sustain Ukraine’s momentum in the crucial weeks ahead.”
US says Ukraine is at ‘crucial’ point in war
Tuesday 14 February 2023 22:45 , Sam Rkaina
Ukraine urgently needs more military aid, the United States and NATO said on Tuesday, pledging that western support will not falter in the face of a new Russian offensive as the war was about to mark the first full year since it began.
Western defence chiefs met in Brussels to discuss new arms provisions to Kyiv, which is pleading for greater firepower, and maintenance of existing supplies including shells whose production can hardly keep pace with the war.
“Ukraine has urgent requirements to help it meet this crucial moment in the course of the war,” U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said at a meeting of the so-called Ramstein group of allies.
Moscow accuses Japan of 'Russophobia’
Tuesday 14 February 2023 21:45 , Sam Rkaina
Russia, locked in a decades-old territorial dispute with Tokyo over a chain of Pacific islands, has accused Japan of ‘Russophobia’ and mounting “vicious attacks” over the war in Ukraine.
Soviet troops seized the islands off the northern coast of Japan at the very end of World War Two.
The unresolved clash over who has sovereignty over the chain - known in Russia as the Kuril Islands and in Japan as the Northern Territories - has prevented the two sides from signing a formal peace treaty.
Japan - which joined other allies in imposing sanctions on Russia over the Ukraine invasion - marks a Northern Territories Day commemoration every 7 February to remind people of its claim.
Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the event this year “was marked by a particular intensity of Russophobia,” citing statements by officials and what she called “aggressive actions” by far-right Japanese forces near Russian missions.
“We noted that this time the baseless territorial claims to the southern Kuril Islands were accompanied by vicious attacks against Russia in connection with the situation in Ukraine,” she said in a statement. The Russian military has presence on the islands, which have a population of roughly 20,000.
Zakharova, reiterating Russia’s long-standing position that it has sovereignty over the islands, accused Japan of rewriting history and ignoring post-war realities. Japan’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Japan tightened its Russia sanctions last month in the wake of missile attacks on Ukraine, adding goods to an export ban list and freezing the assets of Russian officials and entities. This prompted Moscow to warn of an unspecified impact on its relationship with Japan.
Who are the Wagner mercenaries and why are they so involved in Ukraine?
Tuesday 14 February 2023 20:45 , Sam Rkaina
Russian soldiers fighting in Ukraine have been supported on the battlefield by tens of thousands of mercenaries from a shadowy group led by a businessman and longtime affiliate of President Vladimir Putin.
The Wagner private military company, under the control of Yevgeny Prigozhin, cut its teeth in deployments to Crimea and eastern Ukraine’s Donbas region in 2014 and has since contracted troops to several conflicts in the Middle East and Africa, including the Syrian Civil War.
In Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Wagner has proved indispensable, but a power struggle between the Kremlin and the outspoken Mr Prigozhin recently led to the group having its wings clipped by Moscow.
Click here for the full story.
Key developments on Tuesday so far
Tuesday 14 February 2023 19:42 , Sam Rkaina
Russia’s army bombarded front-line Ukrainian troops and towns in the eastern Donetsk region in what appeared to be early salvoes of a new offensive, as Western allies met to weigh sending more arms to Kyiv for an expected counter-attack.
* Ukraine reported Russian shelling all along the frontline and said 16 settlements had been bombarded near the town of Bakhmut.
* In the last three days, Russia’s Wagner group of fighters made further small gains around the northern outskirts of Bakhmut in Ukraine, Britain’s defence ministry said.
* Ukraine’s military said its forces had repelled attacks in five settlements in Luhansk and six in Donetsk, including around Bakhmut, over the past 24 hours.
Ukraine prepares counter offensive as Russia steps up assault – but needs more Western ammunition
Tuesday 14 February 2023 18:47 , Sam Rkaina
Ukraine is preparing its own counter offensive in the face of intensifying Russian bombardment as it fights Moscow’s invasion – but the West is in danger of running out of the ammunition and heavy weaponry components Kyiv will need.
At a meeting of Western defence chiefs in Brussels, the head of Nato – Jens Stoltenberg – said that “we see no signs that President [Vlaimir] Putin is preparing for peace... What we see is the opposite, he is preparing for more war, for new offensives and new attacks” as the anniversary of the invasion approaches.
He added that is is “clear that we are in a race of logistics” and that this required a “huge effort by allies to actually be able to get in the ammunition, the fuel, the spare parts, which are needed” in what has “become a grinding war of attrition”.
Click here for the full story.
Watch: Russian state TV journalist recounts daring escape from country
Tuesday 14 February 2023 18:08 , Andy Gregory
Breaking - British national has died in Ukraine
Tuesday 14 February 2023 17:51 , Sam Rkaina
A British national has died in Ukraine, the government said.
A Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office spokesperson said: “We are supporting the family of a British national who died in Ukraine, and are in contact with the local authorities.”
We’ll have more on this breaking news story as we get it.
China’s Xi meets with Iranian president as Tehran seeks closer ties with Moscow
Tuesday 14 February 2023 16:59 , AP
Chinese leader Xi Jinping has expressed support for Iran during a visit by its president, as Tehran tries to expand relations with Beijing and Moscow to offset Western sanctions over its nuclear development.
The official Chinese account of Xi’s meeting with Ebrahim Raisi gave no indication whether they discussed Russia’s attack on Ukraine. Tehran supplied military drones to Russian President Vladimir Putin's government but says they were delivered before the war began.
China's Xi expresses support for Iran amid Western pressure
No signs Russia preparing for larger air attack on Ukraine, says US
Tuesday 14 February 2023 16:31 , Andy Gregory
There are currently no signs that Russia is amassing aircraft for a larger air attack on Ukraine, the US defence secretary has said.
“In terms of whether or not Russia is massing its aircraft for some massive aerial attack: we don’t currently see that”, Lloyd Austin said, after a meeting with allied defence ministers in Brussels.
“We do know that Russia has a substantial number of aircraft in its inventory. That’s why we’ve emphasised that we need to do everything that we can to get Ukraine as much air defence capability as we possibly can”, he added.
Putin’s forces making incremental progress in Bakhmut, says White House
Tuesday 14 February 2023 15:58 , Andy Gregory
Vladimir Putin’s forces have made incremental progress over the past few days in their assault on Bakhmut – but it remains unclear whether it will fall to the Russians, the White House has said.
Answering questions from reporters, White House spokesperson John Kirby said that, if Bakhmut were to fall to Moscow, “it would not have a strategic impact on the overall war.”
EU group to seek access to frozen Russian funds
Tuesday 14 February 2023 15:30 , Emily Atkinson
The EU will on Wednesday launch an ad hoc group to investigate how frozen Russian funds can be accessed for the benefit of reconstruction in Ukraine, Sweden’s prime minister Ulf Kristersson has said.
“The mandate is to contribute to mapping which funds have been frozen in the European Union ... and secondly how to legally proceed to access those funds,” Mr Kristersson told a news conference in Stockholm.
Ukraine offensive expected this spring
Tuesday 14 February 2023 15:20 , Katy Clifton
US defence secretary Lloyd Austin said he expects Ukraine to conduct an offensive against Russia in spring.
“Ukraine wants to create momentum ... We expect to see them conduct an offensive sometime in the spring”, he told reporters after meeting with NATO defence ministers in Brussels.
He also said that Russia is introducing a number of new troops to the battlefield but that many are ill-trained and ill-equipped.
Asked whether Ukraine’s allies on Tuesday discussed the issue of sending fighter jets to help the country in its war effort, Austin said “I don’t have any announcement to make today.”
‘Russia has lost strategically, operationally and tactically'
Tuesday 14 February 2023 15:18 , Katy Clifton
Russia has lost strategically, operationally and tactically in its war in Ukraine, US joint chiefs chair army General Mark Milley told reporters on Tuesday, after a meeting with NATO defence ministers in Brussels.
“Russia is now a global pariah and the world remains inspired by Ukrainian bravery and resilience. In short, Russia has lost; they’ve lost strategically, operationally and tactically”, he said.
Kyiv troops ‘blow up bridge’ near Bakhmut as Russia bombards city
Tuesday 14 February 2023 15:10 , Emily Atkinson
Ukrainian forces have blown up a bridge near the embattled town of Bakhmut, reports suggest – hinting that Kyiv might be plotting a retreat.
The bridge is located between Bakhmut and Konstantivka, another town under Kyiv control, according to local Telegram news channel, which posted videos from the scene.
Moldova reopens airspace after temporary closure
Tuesday 14 February 2023 15:00 , Emily Atkinson
Moldova has reopened its airspace for civil aviation just hours after closing it for security reasons, its aviation authority said.
Air Moldova, the national carrier, said earlier the small east European country had temporarily closed its air space.
In a brief statement announcing it was open again, the aviation authority said it would provide more information later.
Britain to mark first anniversary of Ukraine war with minute’s silence
Tuesday 14 February 2023 14:40 , Emily Atkinson
The UK will mark the first anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine with a national minute’s silence, in an expression of solidarity with Kyiv.
Prime minister Rishi Sunak will lead a one-minute silence at 11am on 24 February and will encourage individuals and organisations across Britain to participate.
“As we approach the anniversary of Russia’s barbaric and deplorable invasion of Ukraine, as a nation we pay tribute to the incredible bravery and resilience of the Ukrainian people,” Mr Sunak said in a statement.
“Russia’s unjustifiable attack brought war and destruction to our continent once again, and it has forced millions from their homes and devastated families across Ukraine and Russia.”
Russia and Belarus planes forced to take bizarre flight paths
Tuesday 14 February 2023 14:20 , Emily Atkinson
Western airlines are having to fly extended paths to avoid Russian and Belarusian airspace. But a European ban on airlines from those two countries because of the invasion of Ukraine has also created bizarre flight paths for holiday journeys.
Flights from both Russia and Belarus are operating regularly to and from Turkey, particularly Istanbul – the biggest city. Between Moscow and Istanbul’s main airport there are typically 17 daily flights.
The most direct flight path from the Russian capital to Turkey’s biggest city covers 1,077 miles. The flying time would normally be 2h30m or less. But that route crosses Ukraine, which is off-limits to all civilian aircraft.
Our travel correspondent Simon Calder has the details:
Russia and Belarus planes forced to take bizarre flight paths
Stoltenberg plays down dispute over Nordic Nato bids
Tuesday 14 February 2023 13:50 , Emily Atkinson
Nato secretary-general Jens Stoltenberg has played down the importance of Finland and Sweden joining the military alliance, at the same time as Turkey refuses to ratify their membership.
“The main question is not whether Finland and Sweden are ratified together. The main question is that they are both ratified as full members as soon as possible,” Stoltenberg told reporters.
The consensus at Nato is that both the Nordic neighbors should join at the same time.Mr Stoltenberg said that he is “confident that both will be full members and are working hard to get both ratified as soon as possible.”
It had been hoped that both countries would be welcomed in at Nato’s next summit in Lithuania in July.
Norway to send 8 Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine
Tuesday 14 February 2023 13:20 , Emily Atkinson
Norway will send eight German-made Leopard 2 battle tanks and other equipment to Ukraine to aid in the war with Russia.
“It is more crucial than ever to support Ukraine‘s fight for freedom,” Norwegian prime minister Jonas Gahr Stoere said in a statement.
Norway said it will also send four special purpose tanks from its armoured engineering and bridge layer category, with the exact selection depending on what Ukraine needs the most.
Norway will also set aside funds for ammunition and spare parts, the defence ministry said.
Norway, which shares a border with Russia in the Arctic, has 36 Leopard 2 tanks in total.
Watch: Russian state TV journalist recounts daring escape from country
Tuesday 14 February 2023 12:50 , Emily Atkinson
Wagner head admits links to US election-meddling ‘troll farm’
Tuesday 14 February 2023 12:20 , Emily Atkinson
Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of Russia’s Wagner mercenary group, said on Tuesday that he founded and financed and the Internet Research Agency, a company Washington says is a “troll farm” which meddled in the 2016 US presidential election.
Prigozhin, an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, spent years operating on behalf of the Kremlin in the shadows, but has emerged in recent months as one of the most high profile figures connected with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
He has previously admitted interfering in U.S. elections, but his statement on Tuesday appears to go further than before in outlining his specific links to the St. Petersburg-based Internet Research Agency (IRA).
“I was never just the financier of the Internet Research Agency. I thought it up, I created it, I managed it for a long time,” Prigozhin said in a post shared on social media by the press service of his Concord catering group.
“It was created to protect the Russian information space from the West’s boorish and aggressive anti-Russian propaganda,” Prigozhin said.
Putin making ‘no significant breakthroughs’ as Russia escalates war
Tuesday 14 February 2023 11:49 , Emily Atkinson
Russia is making “continuous offensive efforts” in eastern Ukraine, though these local attacks still remain on too small a scale to achieve a “significant breakthrough”, according to UK intelligence.
The tactical Russian advance to the south of Bakhmut has likely made little progress, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) said in its regular Twitter bulletin.
“Russia likely aims to reverse some of the gains Ukrainian forces made over September-November 2022: there is a realistic possibility that their immediate goal is to advance west to the Zherberets River,” it added.
Ukraine renews appeal for fighter jets
Tuesday 14 February 2023 11:33 , Emily Atkinson
Ukraine has renewed its appeal for fighter jets to help frustrate Moscow’s invasion.Ahead of the meeting of the Ukraine contact group at Nato headquarters in Brussels, Ukraine made its requirements clear.
Defence minister Oleksiy Reznikov, when asked what military aid his country is seeking now, showed reporters an image of a fighter jet.Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky pushed hard for combat planes last week when he visited London, Paris and Brussels on just his second foreign trip since Russia invaded.
Finding air defences ‘more important’ than fighter jet discussions, says Germany
Tuesday 14 February 2023 11:00 , Emily Atkinson
German defence Minister Boris Pistorius has said that finding ammunition and air defences is “much more important at the moment than the discussion about fighter jets.”
Mr Pistorius told reporters that getting pilots up to speed on new aircraft and “training just to fly them takes several months, never mind teaching the abilities needed to deploy the weapons systems.”
He said Ukraine’s partners “should focus on what is now at center stage, particularly in view of a Russian offensive that is apparently taking place.”
Putin orders troops to advance as he ‘struggles to achieve major breakthrough’ in Ukraine
Tuesday 14 February 2023 10:30 , Emily Atkinson
Vladimir Putin’s troops have been commanded to advance in “most sectors” but are struggling to achieve a major breakthrough on the Ukrainian front line, British military chiefs have said.
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said on Tuesday that the Russians have “not massed sufficient offensive combat power” on any one axis to “achieve a decisive effect”.
Its intelligence assessment said Wagner Group mercenaries have likely made “further small gains” around the northern outskirts of the heavily-contested town of Bakhmut.
Putin orders troops to advance as he ‘struggles to achieve major breakthrough’
Russia suffering 824 losses a day in Ukraine war, MoD says
Tuesday 14 February 2023 10:10 , Emily Atkinson
Russia has likely suffered an average of 824 casualties a day in the Ukraine conflict in the past two weeks, Britain’s Ministry of Defence has said.
This is the highest rate of casualties since Vladimir Putin ordered his troops to invade Ukraine on 24 February last year and four times the rate reported over the June-July period.
Earlier, Russian mercenary group Wagner said it had taken control of a village near the key city of Bakhmut in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk Oblast region.
Martha McHardy has more:
