Ukraine-Russia war – latest: US airman, 21, to appear in court after arrest over Pentagon leaks

A US airman who was arrested on Thursday over the leak of classified military intelligence online is set to appear in court today.

The 21-year-old suspect has been identified as Jack Teixeira, a junior member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard.

He was arrested by armed FBI officers outside his home in North Dighton, Massachusetts.

The so-called “Pentagon Papers” include hundreds of pages of classified military intelligence that were shared with an online gaming group before becoming public in a string of disclosures last week.

After Teixeira’s arrest on Thursday the Pentagon said it would review its intelligence access procedures.

Meanwhile, UN secretary general Antonio Guterres has said that he is “not surprised” to find out he was being spied on by the US, as fresh revelations from the leaked documents reveal details of his private conversations.

This morning, China said that it was willing to work with Germany towards an end to the war in Ukraine, during a visit by the German foreign minister to Beijing.

Key Points

• Leaked documents suspect to appear in court

• Pentagon Papers leaks suspect arrested outside his home

• Pentagon to review intelligence access after major leak

• UN chief says Pentagon spying revelation not surprising

• Ukraine says UN Security Council has lost 'meaning'

• Cannot trust China if it does not seek peace, says EU

Putin told to end war by own Wagner mercenary chief

16:13 , Martha Mchardy

Russian president Vladimir Putin has been urged to end the war in Ukraine by the head of the Wagner mercenary army deployed by the Kremlin.

Yevgeny Prigozhin claimed Russia had taken a “fat chunk” of Ukrainian territory and said president Putin should tell the world Russia has achieved the aims of its “special military operation,” in a video posted online on Friday night.

Mr Prigozhin also said Russian armed forces - who have suffered severe losses - should defend existing gains.

The Wagner mercenary chief also warned that the Russian people may seek a “scapegoat” for military failures as the war drags on, which could lead to revolutionary fervour.

Mr Prigozhin claimed Russia has destroyed “a large part of the active male population of Ukraine” and caused others to flee the country.

“For the authorities and society as a whole, it is today necessary to put a solid full stop on the special military operation,” said Mr Prigozhin.

“The ideal option is to announce the end of the special military operation, to inform everyone that Russia has achieved the results that it planned, and in a sense we have actually achieved them.

“We have ground down a huge number of fighters of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and we can report to ourselves that the tasks of the special military operation have been completed.”

He continued: “Theoretically, Russia has already [made a point] by destroying a large part of the active male population of Ukraine, and by intimidating another part of it, which fled to Europe.

“Russia cut off the Sea of Azov and a large piece of the Black Sea, seized a fat piece of Ukrainian territory and created a land corridor to the Crimea.

“Now there is only one thing left: to firmly gain a foothold, to claw in those territories that already exist.”

The comments mark the first time a senior Putin henchman directly involved in fighting on the ground has publicly called for the Kremlin to halt the war.

Ukraine reports unprecedentedly bloody fighting in Bakhmut - Reuters

21:23 , Eleanor Noyce

As Ukrainian and Russian armed forces fight “extraordinarily bloody battles” in the eastern city of Bakhmut, pro-Kyiv forces are still holding on, Ukraine’s military said on Saturday.

Russia’s defence ministry said earlier in the day that fighters from the Wagner mercenary group had captured two more areas of Bakhmut, the main target of Moscow’s offensive in eastern Ukraine.

Since last summer, Wagner has been leading Russia’s efforts to seize Bakhmut, the longest and deadliest battle of the war for both sides.

“Bloody battles unprecedented in recent decades are taking place in the middle of the city’s urban area,” said Serhiy Cherevatyi, spokesperson for Ukraine’s eastern military command.

“Our soldiers are doing everything in bloody and fierce battles to grind down (the enemy’s) combat capability and break its morale. Every day, in every corner of this city, they are successfully doing so,” he told the 1+1 television channel.

Evan Gershkovich pens letter home from Russian prison: ‘I am not losing hope’

21:20 , Eleanor Noyce

Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich has sent his first letter home after being detained and imprisoned by Russian intelligence forces.

Mr Gershkovich, 31, has been accused by Russian officials of engaging in espionage. The reporter has categorically denied the allegations.

In his letter home, Mr Gershkovich said he was optimistic, looked forward to seeing his family, and poked fun at Russian prison food, according to the Wall Street Journal.

“I want to say that I am not losing hope,” he wrote. “I read. I exercise. And I am trying to write. Maybe, finally, I am going to write something good.”

The letter was addressed to his family in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and dated 5 April. His mother told the paper that he tried to comfort them by adding humour to the note, joking about her cooking.

My colleague Graig Graziosi reports:

Evan Gershkovich pens letter home from Russian prison: ‘I am not losing hope’

Sunak and Zelensky discuss accelerating military support to Ukraine

21:00 , Martha Mchardy

Rishi Sunak and Volodymyr Zelensky discussed ramping up military support to Ukraine in a phone call on Friday, Downing Street said.

The Prime Minister told the Ukrainian president that Britain and its allies “needed to continue to ensure Ukraine was in the strongest possible position to build on its recent battlefield successes”.

The two leaders discussed the latest developments in Russia’s invasion, with Mr Sunak paying tribute to the efforts of Ukrainian troops in the highly-contested town of Bakhmut.

Sophie Wingate reports:

Sunak and Zelensky discuss accelerating military support to Ukraine

Voices: Marjorie Taylor Greene’s defence of the Pentagon leaker isn’t just absurd – it’s dangerous

20:00 , Martha Mchardy

The suspect’s white Christian identity combined with his alleged deeds make him the perfect avatar for conservatives raging against internationalism.

Eric Garcia reports:

Marjorie Taylor Greene’s defence of Pentagon leaker is just absurd and dangerous

Russia has lost 10,000+ military vehicles since invasion of Ukraine, UK MoD says

19:38 , Eleanor Noyce

Russia has lost over 10,000 military vehicles since its invasion of Ukraine in March 2022, the UK Ministry of Defence has stated.

Open source intelligence trackers estimate that the total losses could be far greater than this figure.

Verified Russian equipment losses currently include 1900 tanks, more than 3500 other armoured vehicles, over 2400 logistics and supplies vehicles, dozens of radars and command vehicles, and 78 combat jets.

What do the Pentagon Papers really tell us?

19:00 , Martha Mchardy

As the focus around the rather grandiosely-titled Pentagon Papers switches to the identity of the leaker, the question of what the intelligence files reveal goes on apace. The astonishing arrest of a rookie guardsman, Jack Teixeira, is already sparking congressional inquiries into how the 21-year-old was allegedly able to leak up to 300 documents to his friends on the gaming platform, Discord. America’s embarrassment is plain for all to see and her allies will be thinking twice about sharing their own intelligence with the US for fear it too could end up being pored over in some teenager’s chatroom.

So what do these Pentagon Papers tell us and how much damage has Teixeira – or whoever was responsible – done?

Anthony Harwood reports:

What do the Pentagon Papers really tell us?

President Zelensky meets with Emmanuel Macron

18:57 , Eleanor Noyce

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has confirmed that he spoke with French president Emmanuel Macron on Saturday.

Mr Zelensky stated that the pair had discussed Macron’s recent visit to China, further thanking Mr Macron for “condemning the terrible execution” of Ukrainian soldiers by Russian “war criminals.”

Moscow should provide access to detained reporter Evan Gershkovich ‘now’, says U.S Secretary of State

18:45 , Eleanor Noyce

U.S. consular officers have not been granted access to Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, detained in Russia, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Saturday, adding that Moscow should provide access “now”.

The U.S. has pressed Russian authorities to grant U.S. consular access to Mr Gershkovich. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Wednesday that Moscow would provide it “in due time in line with the consular practices and Russian legislation.”

On Monday, the U.S. government declared Mr Gershkovich as “wrongfully detained,” a designation that means that a particular State Department office takes the lead on seeking his release.

President Joe Biden spoke to Mr Greshkovich’s parents on Tuesday and again condemned the journalist’s detention. “We’re making it real clear that it’s totally illegal what’s happening, and we declared it so,” the president said.

On Thursday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov again emphasised Moscow’s claim that Mr Gershkovich was caught red-handed. He denied reports that Russian President Vladimir Putin had personally sanctioned Mr Gershkovich’s arrest.

Poland prohibits food imports from Ukraine to soothe farmers

18:30 , Eleanor Noyce

Poland’s government said Saturday that it has decided to temporarily prohibit grain and other food imports from Ukraine as it seeks to soothe the rising anger of Polish farmers, who say they are losing huge amounts of money to a glut of Ukrainian grain on the market.

Ruling party leader Jarosław Kaczyński said at a party convention in eastern Poland that the Polish countryside is facing a “moment of crisis,” and that while Poland supports Ukraine, it was forced to act to protect its farmers.

“Today, the government has decided on a regulation that prohibits the importation of grain, but also dozens of other types of food, to Poland,” Kaczyński said.

The government announced that the ban on imports would last until June 30. The regulation also includes a prohibition on imports of sugar, eggs, meat, milk and other dairy products and fruits and vegetables.

Farmers in neighbouring countries have also complained about Ukrainian grain flooding their countries and creating a glut that has caused prices to fall — and causing them to take steep losses.

Vanessa Gera reports:

Poland prohibits food imports from Ukraine to soothe farmers

‘The evil state once again demonstrates its essence’, Zelensky says following Sloviansk missile attack

18:21 , Eleanor Noyce

Following a Russian missile attack on the Ukrainian city of Sloviansk, President Zelensky has condemned the “evil” state’s actions.

Eleven people were killed and 21 wounded, Ukrainian public broadcaster Suspilne reported on Saturday.

“The evil state once again demonstrates its essence,” Zelensky wrote in a post accompanied by footage of a damaged building. “Just killing people in broad daylight. Ruining, destroying all life.”

In his nightly video address, issued later, Zelensky said not a single hour had passed in the run-up to this weekend’s Orthodox Easter services “without Russian murders and terror. This is the evil state and it will be the loser. Victory is our duty given humanity of this sort.”

Pavlo Kyrylenko, governor of Donetsk Region, told national television that seven Russian S-300 missiles had been fired in the attacks, confirming that there were “no fewer than seven spots hit.”

In pictures: Ukrainian forces celebrate Orthodox Easter amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine

18:00 , Martha Mchardy

11 people confirmed dead in Slovyansk following Russian missile attacks

17:47 , Eleanor Noyce

11 people have died following a Russian missile attack on the Ukrainian city of Slovyansk, the State Emergency Service has confirmed.

Rescue teams recovered two bodies from beneath the rubble of a house, and are also searching for five people in the wreckage of an apartment building targeted by Russian forces.

Vadym Liakh, the head of the local government, further confirmed that other local residents have been reported missing.

Pavlo Kyrylenko, governor of the Donetsk Region, told national television that seven Russian S-300 missiles had been fired.

How was a 21-year-old gamer able to leak a mountain of major Pentagon secrets?

17:00 , Martha Mchardy

Barely three years into his military career, Jack Teixeira allegedly exposed his country’s most sensitive intelligence gathering operations. Now the Pentagon is being forced into a reckoning on who should have access to America’s secrets.

Bevan Hurley reports:

How was 21-year-old gamer Jack Teixeira able to leak a mountain of Pentagon secrets?

Two women died in Russian shelling in Kherson on Saturday - Office of the Ukrainian Presidency

16:50 , Martha Mchardy

Two women were killed in Russian shelling in Kherson on Saturday, the head of the Office of the Ukrainian Presidency has said.

“They received mine-explosive injuries incompatible with life,” Andriy Yermak wrote on Twitter.

In pictures: Ukrainian Orthodox believers celebrate Easter amid war

16:40 , Martha Mchardy

‘No fewer than seven spots hit’ by Russian missiles in eastern Ukraine

16:23 , Martha Mchardy

Eleven people were killed and 21 wounded, Ukrainian public braodcaster Suspilne reported on Saturday, citing regional emergency services.

Pavlo Kyrylenko, governor of Donetsk Region, told national television earlier that seven Russian S-300 missiles had been fired.

He said there were “no fewer than seven spots hit” in Sloviansk, west of the city Bakhmut, site of the heaviest fighting on the Ukrainian frontline.

Rescue teams searching for victims sifted through rubble through the night, using cranes, ladders and other heavy equipment in the shells of apartments and stairwells. Workers perched precariously on slabs of concrete and moved gingerly up and down ladders.

For some of the shattered apartments, little more than window frames and dangling scraps of plaster remained.

One section of apartments was all but obliterated. A set of crimson curtains remained in place on one balcony.

Much of the work, carried out under night illumination, involved reaching the top of sprawling apartment buildings -- the top two floors of one five-storey building collapsed.

Emergency services said more than 50 rescue workers remained at the site.

Kyrylenko said teams had pulled from the rubble one woman born in 1946. A senior official in President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s office, Daria Zarivna, had earlier said a child pulled alive from the site of the attack had died on the way to a hospital.

Emergency services said several dozen multi-storey buildings and individual houses were damaged in the assault.

“The evil state once again demonstrates its essence,” Zelenskiy wrote in a separate post accompanied by footage of a damaged building. “Just killing people in broad daylight. Ruining, destroying all life.”

In his nightly video address, issued later, Zelenskiy said not a single hour had passed in the run-up to this weekend’s Orthodox Easter services “without Russian murders and terror. This is the evil state and it will be the loser. Victory is our duty given humanity of this sort.” Sloviansk and the nearby city of Kramatorsk are both coveted by Russian forces, currently bogged down in nearby Bakhmut, as they push ahead with their invasion of Ukraine.

Marjorie Taylor Greene defends alleged Pentagon leaker as ‘white, male, Christian’

16:00 , Martha Mchardy

Marjorie Taylor Greene has defended the Air National Guardsman arrested by the FBI for allegedly leaking national security documents.

The far-right Republican lawmaker took to Twitter to show her support for Jack Teixeira who she lauded for being “white, male, christian and antiwar” – although she referred to him as “Jake Teixeira”.

Authorities raided the Massachusetts home of the 21-year-old who worked in cyber security for the Guard and took him into custody on Thursday.

Graeme Massie reports:

Marjorie Taylor Greene defends alleged Pentagon leaker Jack Teixeira

Ukraine’s Zelensky discussed Macron’s China visit with him - Kyiv

15:30 , Martha Mchardy

Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky held a call with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron on Saturday in which the leaders discussed Macron’s visit to China, president Zelensky said.

President Macron visited China last week, where he urged Chinese leader Xi Jinping to “reason” with Russia to stop the war in Ukraine.

“I told him about the situation at the front and further intentions to liberate all our territories,” president Zelensky wrote on the Telegram app. “I praised France’s intention to further strengthen important support for Ukraine on the battlefield.”

In pictures: Eleven killed in Russian rocket attack in eastern Ukraine

15:00 , Martha Mchardy

Polish government bans grain and food imports from Ukraine

14:42 , Martha Mchardy

The Polish government has decided to ban imports of grain and other food from Ukraine to protect the Polish agricultural sector, the leader of the ruling Law and Justice Party (PiS), Jaroslaw Kaczyński, said on Saturday.

Large quantities of Ukrainian grains, which are cheaper than those produced in the European Union, have ended up staying in Central European states amid logistical bottlenecks, hitting prices and sales for local farmers.

This has created a political problem for the PiS in an election year.

“Today, the government has decided on a regulation that prohibits the entry, importation of grain into Poland, but also dozens of other types of food (from Ukraine),” Mr Kaczyński said during the PiS party convention.

The list of these goods will be included in the government regulation, and there are goods “from grain to honey products, very, very many things,” he added.

“We are and remain unchanged friends and allies of Ukraine. We will support her and we support her. ... But it is the duty of every state, every authority, good authority in any case, to protect the interests of its citizens,” Mr Kaczyński said.

Mr Kaczyński said Poland was ready to start talks with Ukraine to settle the grain issue and the Ukrainian side had already been notified of the decisions of the Polish government.

Ukraine awaits US missile system after latest Russian strike

14:39 , Martha Mchardy

Ukraine’s air force said the country would soon have weapons with which to try to prevent attacks like the Russian missile strikes in the eastern Ukrainian city of Sloviansk which took place on Friday.

The delivery of the Patriot air defence system promised by the U.S. was expected in Ukraine sometime after Easter, Ukrainian air force spokesperson Yuriy Ihnat said.

The primarily Orthodox Christian country is preparing to observe Easter on Sunday. Speaking Saturday on Ukrainian state TV, Ihnat declined to give a precise timeline for the arrival of the defensive missile system but said the public would know “as soon as the first Russian aircraft is shot down.”

A group of 65 Ukrainian soldiers completed their training at Oklahoma’s Fort Still Army Post last month and returned to Europe to learn more about using the defensive missile system to track and shoot down enemy aircraft.

Officials said at the time that the Ukrainians would then go back to their country with a Patriot missile battery, which typically includes six mobile launchers, a mobile radar, a power generator and an engagement control center.

Germany and the Netherlands also have pledged to provide a Patriot system each to Ukraine. In addition, a SAMP/T anti-missile system pledged by France and Italy “should enter Ukraine in the near future,” Ihnat said this week.

The Ukrainian military is looking to beef up its ability to intercept missiles as it prepares for an expected spring counter-offensive to retake Russian-occupied areas of the country. Although more than a year of fighting has depleted weapons supplies on both sides, Russian forces have intensified their eight-and-a-half month campaign to seize the city of Bakhmut, the focus of the war’s longest battle so far.

Bakhmut and Sloviansk both are located about 45 kilometers (28 miles) apart in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk province.

Sloviansk death toll rises to 11 after Russian missile strikes

14:34 , Martha Mchardy

The death toll from Russian missile strikes on eastern Ukraine’s city of Sloviansk rose to 11 Saturday as rescue crews tried to reach people trapped in the rubble of an apartment building, Ukrainian authorities said.

A two-year-old boy was among the eleven people killed after Russian forces shelled a block of flats. 21 people were wounded.

Rescue teams in Sloviansk recovered the bodies of two people from under the rubble of a house hit in Friday’s missile strikes, according to the State Emergency Service. They also searched Saturday for five people who remained in the wreckage of the apartment building, as well as the residents of three units who were reported missing, Vadym Liakh, the head of the local government, said.

Kyiv said Sloviansk was hit by seven missiles which hit five buildings, five homes, a school and an administrative building.

From Putin’s health to spying on allies: Five key takeaways from leaked Pentagon documents

14:00 , Martha Mchardy

Highly classified military documents shedding light on American intelligence gathered about other countries were released online this week, sending the Pentagon into full-speed damage control to assure allies and assess the scope of the leak.

On Thursday, armed FBI officers arrested a member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard. Authorities raided the home of 21-year-old Jack Teixeira — who worked in cyber security for the Guard — and took him into custody.

The information has apparently highlighted potential vulnerabilities in Ukraine’s air defence capabilities and exposed private assessments by allies on an array of intelligence matters, raising questions about whether the leak will erode allies’ trust in sharing information with the US or affect Ukraine’s strategic combat plans.

Here are five of the key takeaways from the leaked Pentagon documents:

• UK special forces might have operated in Ukraine

• Ukrainian casualties higher and air munitions lower

• US seems to spy on its allies

• Egypt planned to supply rockets to Russia

• Rumour Putin is undergoing chemotherapy

Tara Cobham reports:

What was in the Pentagon leak?

As Putin signs new law on draft, Russia says spring call-up is running as planned

13:00 , Martha Mchardy

Russia’s regular spring military draft campaign is proceeding as scheduled and there are no plans to send out mass electronic notices under a new system just signed into law by President Vladimir Putin, a top official said on Saturday.

The announcement by Colonel Andrei Biryukov, an official in an armed forces department responsible for the draft, appeared aimed at quelling speculation that Russia may quickly use the new system to launch another mass call-up for the war in Ukraine.

Russia is currently in the process of calling up 147,000 men aged 18 to 27 between April 1 and July 15 to perform compulsory military service as part of its longstanding twice-yearly conscription cycle.

Mr Biryukov said the first conscripts would be dispatched to “permanent deployment points on the territory of the Russian Federation” from April 20.

He emphasised that some people were still entitled to defer their military service, and said there would be no mass mailings of new electronic summonses to people of conscript age.

The current planned cohort of spring conscripts is 12,500 bigger than the 134,500 who were called up this time last year. Conscripts require months of training and Russia has said they will not be sent into war zones in Ukraine, after acknowledging cases where this had happened in the first weeks of the conflict last year.

But they provide a pool of young, trained personnel who can then be encouraged or pressured into signing up as professional soldiers as Russia pursues its stated aim of boosting the armed forces by more than 30 per-cent to 1.5 million.

Tens if not hundreds of thousands of Russian men have fled abroad since the start of the war, an exodus that peaked last September when president Putin ordered a special mobilisation of 300,000 reservists with previous military experience - the first of its kind since World War Two.

President Putin on Friday signed new legislation introducing electronic draft papers, replacing a previous system where call-up notices had to be hand-delivered.

The new draft regime will close numerous loopholes exploited by draft dodgers and lays the groundwork for Russia to carry out a much more thorough and wider mobilisation campaign if and when it decides to do so.

Under the new rules, citizens who evade the draft will be banned from travelling abroad and face other restrictions including on loans and state benefits.

In pictures: Rescuer searches for survivors after Russian shelling in eastern Ukraine

12:35 , Martha Mchardy

Rescuers are searching for survivors after Russian shelling in eastern Ukraine in the city of Sloviansk on Friday killed nine people, including a toddler, and wounded 21.

A two-year-old boy was among nine people killed after Russian forces shelled a block of flats.

Kyiv said Sloviansk was hit by seven missiles which hit five buildings, five homes, a school and an administrative building.

Russia says Wagner mercenaries seize two more areas in Bakhmut

12:22 , Martha Mchardy

Fighters of Russia’s Wagner mercenary group have captured two more areas of the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, Russian news agencies quoted the Defence Ministry as saying on Saturday.

Reuters could not independently confirm the report.

Ukrainian troops have been forced to withdraw from some territory in Bakhmut as Russia mounts a renewed assault there with intense artillery fire over the past two days, Britain said in an intelligence update on Friday.

China protests US sanctioning of firms dealing with Russia

12:00 , Martha Mchardy

Beijing on Saturday protested U.S. sanctions against additional Chinese companies over their alleged attempts to evade U.S. export controls on Russia, calling it an illegal move that endangers global supply chains.

The U.S. Commerce Department on Wednesday put five firms based in mainland China and Hong Kong on its “entity list,” barring them from trading with any U.S. firms without gaining a nearly unobtainable special license.

Washington has been tightening up enforcement of sanctions against foreign firms it sees as providing assistance to Russia in its war against Ukraine, forcing them to choose between trading with Moscow or with the U.S. A total of 28 entities from countries ranging from Malta to Turkey to Singapore were added to the list.

Read the full story:

China protests US sanctioning of firms dealing with Russia

Toddler among nine killed in Russian strikes as Moscow prepares for 'lengthy conflict'

11:36 , Martha Mchardy

A two-year-old boy was among nine people killed in Russian shelling in the eastern Ukrainian city of Sloviansk on Friday, as Moscow anticipates a “lengthy conflict” in Ukraine.

The toddler was rescued from the rubble after Russian forces shelled a block of flats, but he died on his way to hospital, authorities said on Saturday.

The missile strike came as Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a bill to make it easier to mobilise Russians into the army, and prevent them from fleeing the country if drafted.

The UK Ministry of Defence said the move suggests Moscow anticipates a “lengthy conflict” in Ukraine in its latest intelligence briefing posted on Twitter.

The Ministry warned that the new law means authorities would be able to serve call-up papers electronically, rather than by letter, removing one way of avoiding military duties.

Vadim Lyakh, the head of Sloviansk’s military administration said 21 people were wounded in shelling in the city, which is part of the Donetsk region that is under Ukrainian control.

Kyiv said Sloviansk was hit by seven missiles which hit five buildings, five homes, a school and an administrative building.

11:00 , Martha Mchardy

Drones were used by Russia to attack police officers in Kherson, according to the region’s police force.

In a Facebook post earlier today, Kherson’s police said: “The Russian military once again attacked police officers with the help of drones. In Kherson, in the Korabel area, a police car was attacked by a UAV. Two police officers were injured, the car was damaged.”

Ukrainian pianist seeks victory on cultural front at contest in Switzerland

10:30 , Martha Mchardy

Before arriving in Geneva for a renowned piano competition, Ukrainian pianist Roman Lopatynskyi rehearsed in the dark and played concerts by candlelight as air raid sirens resounded across his native Kyiv.

The 29-year-old is participating in the International Competition for Young Pianists in Memory of Vladimir Horowitz, which is being held outside Ukraine for the first time since its inception in 1995 due to the Russian invasion.

In his fourth appearance at the competition, which concludes on April 21, Mr Lopatynskyi hopes to give his nation a reason to be proud.

“If everything works out ... it will be a definite victory for Ukraine on the cultural front,” he told Reuters as he rehearsed in the basement of the Geneva Conservatory on Friday.

As a male of military age, Mr Lopatynskyi requires permission to leave the country for competitions and concerts abroad. But after he performs, he always returns to Ukraine, despite having received numerous offers to relocate.

“If everyone leaves, what will be left there?” said Mr Lopatynskyi, who finished first in the intermediate category in the 2010 edition of the Horowitz competition.

“We are doing everything for there to be life there and for people to look at Ukraine as a country with prospects, possibilities. That there are musicians there, and businesses and even maybe a future.”

Russian-installed official says Ukrainian shelling kills four civilians north of Donetsk

09:16 , Martha Mchardy

Four people were killed and 10 wounded by Ukrainian shelling of a residential area in a Russian-controlled town in eastern Ukraine, the top Russian-installed official in the region said.

The official, Denis Pushilin, said a seven-year-old girl was among those wounded in the town of Yasynuvata, just north of Donetsk.

The shelling and the casualties have not been independently verified.

Yasynuvata is about 80 km (50 miles) south of Sloviansk, where Russian missiles hit residential buildings on Friday and killed at least nine people, including a two-year-old child.

Finland’s embassy in Moscow ‘receives letter of unknown powder’

08:12 , Tara Cobham

Finland's embassy in Moscow received a letter containing an unknown powder and has reported the matter to the Russian authorities, Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Friday.

This comes after Finland became Nato’s newest member earlier this month, posing a “real dilemma” for Russian President Vladimir Putin, according western officials. Finland, which has an 830-mile border with Russia, will be able to make a “significant” contribution to its armament, officials said on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, diplomatic tensions continue to rise elsewhere as the Norwegian PST security police said on Friday that fifteen Russian diplomats expelled by Norway this week had sought to recruit sources, intercept communications and buy advanced technology.

China opposes U.S. Russia-related sanctions on its firms

07:34 , Tara Cobham

China "resolutely opposes" the sanctions the United States placed on some Chinese firms over their alleged involvement with Russia, state media reported the country’s commerce ministry said on Saturday.

The United States on Wednesday imposed sanctions on over 120 targets, including a China-based firm, to squeeze Russia for its war in Ukraine.

The ministry said Washington should immediately correct what it called wrongdoing and stop unreasonable suppression of Chinese companies, media reported.

As Western supplies are squeezed by sanctions, Ukrainian forces are finding more components from China in Russian weapons used in Ukraine, according to a senior adviser in President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's office.

This comes as China’s Defence Minister Li Shangfu will visit Russia from 16-19 April, and meet Russian military officials, the Chinese defence ministry said. U.S. officials have expressed concern China might supply arms to Russia, something Beijing has denied.

US document leak reveals were already known, Kyiv officials claim

06:37 , Vishwam Sankaran

Information on Ukraine’s war efforts against invading Russian forces, which were revealed from the leak of secret US Pentagon documents, were already known and not surprising, according to top officials in Kyiv.

The problems faced by the country were already known, BBC quoted a senior Ukrainian official as saying. The official added that the leaks would not affect relations between the US and Ukraine.

One of the leaked documents suggested the Ukrainian army continued to face challenges in massing troops, equipment, and ammunition.

It suggested Ukraine may fall short of its goals to launch a counter-offensive against Russia.

Ukraine’s National Security and Defence Council head Oleksiy Danilov said the leaks did not affect the military’s plans, adding that “everything will be decided at the last moment”.

Russia fines Wikipedia for Ukraine war article

06:10 , Vishwam Sankaran

A Moscow court has fined the Wikimedia Foundation which owns Wikipedia two million rubles (about $25,000) for refusing to remove an article on the war in Ukraine.

Court documents say Wikipedia refused to remove details about the hostilities “within the framework of the special military operation” in Ukraine, Russia’s state-owned news agency TASS reported.

Over recent months, Wikipedia has had “a steady stream of takedown orders that target well-sourced content on Wikipedia and Wikimedia projects”, CNN reported, citing a senior legal manager at the foundation.

Harsh penalties for people who evade Russia's new military call-up

05:50 , Vishwam Sankaran

Russian president Vladimir Putin has signed into law yesterday a bill that allows for setting up electronic draft call-up procedures. The law is expected to make military mobilisation more streamlined in Russia.

And those failing to comply may face restrictions such as being prohibited from leaving the country, Kyiv Independent noted.

People who are non-compliant with the draft call-ups may also reportedly be restricted from performing societal functions like buying real estate or taking out a loan.

Russia using more Chinese electronic components in weapons, Ukraine claims

05:36 , Vishwam Sankaran

Ukraine has alleged that it is finding more Chinese components in Russian weapons.

A growing number of components in Russian weapons recovered from the battlefield in Ukraine are reportedly originating from China, Reuters reported, citing a senior adviser to Volodymyr Zelensky.

The trend marks a shift away from Russia’s use of Western-made electronics to Chinese ones, the official said.

Two-year-old among civilians killed in Russian missile strikes

05:19 , Vishwam Sankaran

A two-year-old girl was among the civilians killed in missile strikes in eastern Ukraine yesterday, according to the Prosecutor General’s Office.

At least eight people were killed, and 21 injured as a Russian missile hit a five-story building in Donetsk Oblast.

Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky condemned the attack saying “the invaders brutally bombed the city”.

Ukraine PM says Kyiv, Washington remain united despite document leaks

04:02 , Vishwam Sankaran

In an address in the US yesterday, Ukraine’s prime minister Denys Shmyhal said Kyiv and Washington remain united, but declined to say if the mass leak of classified documents was discussed in meetings with US officials.

Mr Shmyhal said he welcomed the “continuous, ironclad and unprecedented support” of the US.

The prime minister’s statement comes as classified documents were leaked in the US which shared the plans for both Ukraine and Russia as the invasion moves forward.

He shared his plans for Ukraine’s future to focus on its reconstruction and restoration to its pre-war state.

Poland plans to 'gradually' supply fighter jets to Ukraine

03:47 , Vishwam Sankaran

Polish president Andrzej Duda said yesterday in a press conference that the country would transfer MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine “gradually”.

Poland’s prime minister Mateusz Morawiecki said the country, which has so far given eight MiG-29 aircraft to Ukraine, can send only a limited number of fighter jets.

It plans to send six more in the coming weeks.

Ukraine’s Spokesperson for the Air Force Command Yurii Ihnat has repeatedly said it needs fighter jets to defend against Russian aircraft dropping high-explosive bombs.

Russian oil exports back above pre-Ukraine war levels as India and China buy 90% of Moscow’s crude

03:30 , Sam Rkaina

Russian crude oil exports are back above levels seen before Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, despite the ratcheting up of Western sanctions, new data shows.

India and China now account for 90 per cent of Russia’s seaborne crude oil exports, according to figures shared with The Independent by commodities tracking firm Kpler.

The Asian giants are each buying an average of 1.5 million barrels per day (bpd), absorbing the shortfall in exports to European nations that previously accounted for two-thirds of Russian crude.

Despite Western sanctions designed to stop funds reaching Vladimir Putin’s war chest following his Ukraine invasion, Russia’s crude oil exports have actually risen from 3.35 million bpd in 2022 to 3.5 million in the first quarter of 2023, Kpler said. After India and China, the two largest buyers of Russian crude are now Turkey and Bulgaria.

Click here for the full story.

Ukrainian prime minister Denys Shmyhal discusses country’s future in Washington DC

02:30 , Sam Rkaina

Ukraine’s prime minister Denys Shmyhal made an address in Washington DC today (14 April), ahead of the country’s risky decision to launch a counteroffensive in the ongoing war with Russia.

The timing also closely aligns with a classified documents leak, sharing the plans for both Ukraine and Russia as the invasion moves forward.

Yesterday (13 April), Shmyhal welcomed the “continuous, ironclad and unprecedented support” of the United States, insisting that Ukraine had accounted for every dollar it had received in help.

The prime minister now plans to focus on Ukraine’s reconstruction, and restoring it to its pre-war state.

Energy, humanitarian demining, housing, critical and social infrastructure, and private sector development were all seated firmly at the top of his list of priorities.

Sunak and Zelensky discuss accelerating military support to Ukraine

01:30 , Sam Rkaina

Rishi Sunak and Volodymyr Zelensky discussed ramping up military support to Ukraine in a phone call on Friday, Downing Street said.

The Prime Minister told the Ukrainian president that Britain and its allies “needed to continue to ensure Ukraine was in the strongest possible position to build on its recent battlefield successes”.

The two leaders discussed the latest developments in Russia’s invasion, with Mr Sunak paying tribute to the efforts of Ukrainian troops in the highly-contested town of Bakhmut.

Click here for the full story.

How was a 21-year-old gamer able to leak a mountain of major Pentagon secrets?

00:30 , Sam Rkaina

Handcuffed and with his legs in shackles, Jack Douglas Teixeira glanced nervously around a crowded Boston courtroom on Friday morning.

The 21-year-old Massachusetts National Guard airman whispered “yes” when informed of his rights as a criminal defendant, according to CNN, showing no hint of the swagger of his online persona OG.

As the hearing concluded, a man in the public gallery shouted: “Love you, Jack.” Without looking back, Mr Teixeira replied: “You too, Dad”.

Federal prosecutors allege that the low-level IT worker, while caught up in the braggadocio culture of online gaming, shared hundreds of classified documents on a Discord chat server in the biggest leak of US intelligence data in a decade.

Despite his low-level rank as a “cyber systems journeyman” with the National Guard, he has held top secret security clearance since 2021, according to charging documents unsealed on Friday.

Click here for the full story.

Ukraine secures promises of $5 billion in additional funding

23:30 , Sam Rkaina

Ukraine secured promises of $5 billion in additional funding to support its ongoing fight against Russia amid “fruitful meetings” in Washington this week, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said.

Shmyhal met with representatives of the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the European Investment Bank as well as top U.S. officials, on the sidelines of the spring meetings of the IMF and the World Bank.

He said Ukraine received new pledges of additional support from Switzerland, Denmark and a number of other countries during the meetings, as well as an agreement from U.S. aircraft maker Boeing to relieve Ukrainian companies of $200 million in previous commitments. Kyiv expected to receive more support during an upcoming conference in London, he added.

Ukraine ‘buying time’ for counteroffensive

22:22 , Sam Rkaina

Ukrainian officials have said they’re buying time by depleting Russian forces in the battle while Kyiv prepares a counteroffensive.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy argues that if Russia wins the Bakhmut battle, Russian President Vladimir Putin might be able to begin building international support for a deal that would require Ukraine to make unacceptable compromises to end the war.

The Ukrainian president’s office said Friday that fighting over the previous 24 hours in Bakhmut destroyed two kindergartens and residential buildings. The city already resembles a ghost town.

The British military observed that regular Russian troops have increasingly joined the battle.

“Wagner assault groups continue to conduct the main advance through the center of town, while Russian airborne forces have relieved some Wagner units securing the northern and southern flanks of the operation,” the British military said on Twitter.

It noted, however, that though the Ukrainian defenders have “significant resupply issues” their withdrawals from Bakhmut positions have been made in an orderly fashion.

Fighting continued elsewhere in the Donetsk region that includes Bakhmut. Five people were killed when Russian missiles struck the city of Sloviansk on Friday, said regional governor Pavlo Kyrylenko.

Earlier, the presidential office said at least three civilians were killed and nine wounded from Thursday to Friday.

Battle for Bakhmut ‘heating up again'

21:25 , Sam Rkaina

The battle for Bakhmut is heating up again, analysts and Russian officials said on Friday, as Ukrainian defenders of the devastated city resisted a coordinated three-pronged attack by the Kremlin’s forces and efforts to stop supplies from reaching them.

“Russia has re-energized its assault” on Bakhmut, the U.K. Ministry of Defence said of recent developments in the eastern Ukraine city, which for eight and a half months has been the stage for the war ‘s longest and bloodiest fight.

“The Ukrainian defense still holds the western districts of the town but has been subjected to particularly intense Russian artillery fire over the previous 48 hours,” the ministry’s assessment said.

Until recently, private Russian military contractor the Wagner Group spearheaded the campaign to take Bakhmut, making slow, grinding progress at the cost of thousands of lives on both sides. Now, regular Russian units have joined the thrust.

Military analysts have said that seizing Bakhmut would have public relations and tactical military value for Moscow though it would be unlikely to prove decisive in the war’s outcome. The Russian Defense Ministry also noted the stepped-up fighting in western parts of the city Friday.

“Wagner assault detachments are engaged in high-intensity combat operations to capture areas of western Bakhmut with airborne forces supporting on the flanks,” the ministry said in a statement.

It added: “The units of the airborne forces operating on the flanks are providing support to the assault squads and stop the enemy’s attempts to deliver ammunition to the city and bring in reserves.”

Bakhmut lies in Donetsk province, one of four provinces Russia illegally annexed last fall. Moscow controls about half of the province. Bakhmut is a stepping stone to seizing the remaining half.

Putin signs new law for electronic draft call-up

20:20 , Sam Rkaina

Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed into law a bill on setting up electronic draft call-up procedures aimed at making military mobilisation more efficient and closing loopholes.

A website outlining legislative procedures said Putin signed the law, endorsed this week by the State Duma lower house of parliament.

Russia says it mobilised just over 300,000 men last year to help bolster its “special military operation” in Ukraine.

UN chief raises concerns with Russia about Ukraine grain deal

19:30 , Sam Rkaina

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has written to Russia, Ukraine and Turkey to raise concerns about the implementation of a deal that allows the safe wartime export of grain from several Ukrainian Black Sea ports, a U.N. spokesman said on Friday.

The move comes after the United Nations said no ships were inspected on Tuesday under the deal “as the parties needed more time to reach an agreement on operational priorities.”

Inspections resumed on Wednesday.

Five people and 17 wounded in Russian missile strike on Sloviansk

18:42 , Sam Rkaina

A Russian missile has struck the eastern Ukrainian city of Sloviansk, killing at least five people and wounding 17, officials said.

Ukraine’s National Police, in a post on Telegram, put the death toll at five after S-300 missiles damaged 10 apartment buildings and other sites.

A senior official in President Volodymyr Zelensky’s office, Daria Zarivna, said a child pulled alive from the site of the attack had died on the way to a hospital.

Donetsk Region Governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said seven people were believed to have been trapped under rubble.

“The evil state once again demonstrates its essence,” Zelenskiy wrote in a separate post accompanied by footage of a damaged building. “Just killing people in broad daylight. Ruining, destroying all life.”

The police said the two top floors of a five-storey building had collapsed after the strike and a fire had broken out opposite the site.

Rescue teams were combing through the affected area. Sloviansk is one of two eastern cities coveted by Russian forces, currently bogged down in nearby Bakhmut, as they push ahead with their invasion of Ukraine.

Russia's Pacific Fleet put on high alert for snap drills

17:30 , Eleanor Noyce

The entire Russian Pacific Fleet was put on high alert on Friday for snap drills that will involve practice missile launches in a massive show of force amid the tensions with the West over the fighting in Ukraine.

Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said the goal of the war games was to test the capability of Russia’s armed forces to mount a response to aggression.

Along with the missile launches, the drills will also involve nuclear-capable strategic bombers and other warplanes besides ones from the Pacific Fleet’s air arm, Shoigu said.

The Russian military has concentrated the bulk of its forces on the front lines in Ukraine, but also continued conducting regular drills across Russia to train its forces and demonstrate their readiness.

Shoigu said the scenario for Friday’s manoeuvres envisages a response to an adversary’s attempt to make a landing on Sakhalin Island and the southern Kuril Islands.

Read more:

Russia's Pacific Fleet put on high alert for snap drills

Russian oil exports back above pre-Ukraine war levels as India and China buy 90% of Moscow’s crude

17:10 , Eleanor Noyce

Russian crude oil exports are back above levels seen before Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, despite the ratcheting up of Western sanctions, new data shows.

India and China now account for 90 per cent of Russia’s seaborne crude oil exports, according to figures shared with The Independent by commodities tracking firm Kpler.

The Asian giants are each buying an average of 1.5 million barrels per day (bpd), absorbing the shortfall in exports to European nations which previously accounted for two-thirds of Russian crude.

Despite Western sanctions designed to stop funds reaching Vladimir Putin’s war chest following his Ukraine invasion, Russia’s crude oil exports have actually risen from 3.35 million bpd in 2022 to 3.5 million in the first quarter of 2023, Kpler said. After India and China, the two largest buyers of Russian crude are now Turkey and Bulgaria.

Read the full story here:

How India and China are helping Putin beat sanctions impact

What we know about the leaked Pentagon documents on Ukraine

16:50 , Eleanor Noyce

It’s been less than a week since news of highly classified military documents on the Ukraine war surfaced, sending the Pentagon into full-speed damage control to assure allies and assess the scope of the leak.

The information on scores of slides has publicized potential vulnerabilities in Ukraine’s air defence capabilities and exposed private assessments by allies on an array of intelligence matters, raising questions about whether the leak will erode allies’ trust in sharing information with the US or impact Ukraine’s plans to intensify the fight against Russia this spring.

Overall, the leaked documents present a “very serious risk to national security,” a top Pentagon spokesman told reporters Monday.

This is a look at what the documents are, what is known about how they surfaced, and their potential impact:

What we know about the leaked Pentagon documents on Ukraine

King Charles praises ‘courageously indomitable Ukrainian people’ at Sandhurst Sovereign’s Parade

16:30 , Eleanor Noyce

On Friday, King Charles attended the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst for the 200th Sovereign’s Parade. Here, he saw the 171 cadets who have completed their training as army officers and will receive their commission at midnight.

He spoke of the war in Ukraine and praised the support given by the British Army as well as the “courageously indomitable Ukrainian people”.

He said: “As we have now passed the first anniversary of the conflict in Ukraine, it is worth saying that I have been particularly impressed and proud of the role the British Army, alongside wider defence, has played in supporting Ukraine.

“The UK has been a leading nation in delivering training expertise, equipment and advice alongside our allies and partners.”

Full report: Sunak and Zelensky discuss accelerating military support to Ukraine

16:10 , Andy Gregory

Rishi Sunak and Volodymyr Zelensky discussed ramping up military support to Ukraine in a phone call on Friday, Downing Street said.

The Prime Minister told the Ukrainian president that Britain and its allies “needed to continue to ensure Ukraine was in the strongest possible position to build on its recent battlefield successes”.

You can read the full report here:

Sunak and Zelensky discuss accelerating military support to Ukraine

‘Pentagon Papers’ suspect remanded in custody ahead of hearing next week

15:54 , Andy Gregory

The Massachusetts Air National Guardsman arrested in the leak of highly classified US military documents has been ordered to remain behind bars pending a hearing next week.

Jack Teixeira, 21, appeared in federal court on Boston on Friday, one day after his arrest by armed FBI agents.

A federal magistrate judge ordered that he should remain in jail at least a detention hearing set for next Wednesday.

Belarus 'already preparing' sites to host Russian nuclear weapons

15:11 , Andy Gregory

Belarus is “already preparing” sites to host Russian tactical nuclear weapons, Minsk’s defence minister has said – in addition to the smaller strategic nuclear weapons Vladimir Putin already plans to station there.

Viktor Khrenin said on Friday that “it could be the next step” if the West continues what he described as its hostile course, adding: “We will respond to force only with force. Otherwise, they don’t get it in the West.

“We are already preparing the sites that we have.”

The threatening remarks came as Russia’s defence ministry claimed that Belarusian pilots had completed their training for using tactical nuclear weapons.

The ministry released a video in which a Belarusian pilot said that the training course in Russia had given the crews of the Belarusian air force's Su-25 ground attack jets the necessary skills for using the weapons.

Denmark to send artillery weapons

14:51 , Jane Dalton

Ukraine will receive 19 French-made Caesar howitzer artillery systems within the coming weeks, the Danish defence ministry says.

Denmark’s government in January announced it would donate the weapons after Kyiv had asked Copenhagen to supply them.

Russians stock up on food and water at nuclear power plant

14:48 , Jane Dalton

Russian forces have taken large amounts of provisions and water supplies to the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant, which they captured in southeastern Ukraine after invading last year, Kyiv’s state atomic agency says.

Energoatom said the move might indicate Russia is preparing to barricade employees inside because of an acute shortage of qualified staff at Europe’s largest nuclear plant and Ukraine‘s much-expected counter-offensive.

“Given the intense shortage of nuclear specialists needed to operate the temporarily occupied Zaporizhia NPP, and fearing a Ukrainian offensive, the (Russians) are preparing for the long-term holding of ZNPP employees as hostages,” Energoatom said.

“The invaders have already brought a lot of provisions and water to the station,” it added in a statement. “The occupiers will probably not allow the station staff to leave after one of the regular work shifts, forcibly blocking them at the ZNPP.”

Energoatom has repeatedly accused Russian forces of abusing and intimidating their employees there, which Moscow denies.

Russian oil exports exceed pre-war levels as India and China buy crude

14:17 , Jane Dalton

India and China are more than making up for Western sanctions on Russian oil by ramping up their imports of Moscow’s crude, The Independent can reveal.

The Asian giants are now each buying an average of 1.5 million barrels per day (bpd), absorbing the shortfall in exports to European nations which previously accounted for two-thirds of Russian crude:

Russia’s oil exports at pre-war levels as India and China take 90%

Belarus says its pilots have completed training with Russia

13:29 , Andy Gregory

Belarusian pilots have finished training in Russia, where they were learning how to operate Su-25 fighter planes, according to Minsk’s defence ministry.

“The acquired knowledge and skills will serve to ensure the military security of the Union State,” the ministry said, referring to Belarus’s political union with Russia.

Russian court fines Wikipedia for article about Ukraine war

13:18 , Andy Gregory

A Moscow court has once again fined Wikipedia for a Russian-language article it refused to remove about the invasion of Ukraine.

The court fined the Wikimedia Foundation 2 million rubles (£19,600) for not removing a Wikipedia article titled “Russian occupation of the Zaporizhzhia region”.

The state Tass news agency said the Wikimedia Foundation failed to heed the demands of Russia’s state communications watchdog Roskomnadzor to remove articles it claimed contained “false information.” A Wikipedia representative asked the court to reject the removal demand as vague, Tass reported.

Expelled Russian diplomats tried to recruit sources and intercept communications, says Norway

13:05 , Andy Gregory

Fifteen Russian diplomats subject to the largest ever explusion by Norway this week had sought to recruit sources, intercept communications and buy advanced technology, Norwegian security police have alleged.

The diplomats’ real employers were the Russian GRU, FSB and SVR intelligence services, counterintelligence chief Inger Haugland claimed.

“This lowers the threat from Russian intelligence in Norway by permanently reducing the number of intelligence officers operating under diplomatic cover,” Haugland said of the expulsions, to which Russia has vowed to respond.

Nato member Norway is now Europe’s top gas supplier following a drop in Russian flows, and has stepped up security since the invasion of Ukraine.

Sunak and Zelensky discuss military support, says No 10

12:28 , Andy Gregory

Rishi Sunak and Volodymyr Zelensky have discussed ramping up military support to Ukraine in a phone call this morning, according to No 10.

“The leaders discussed the latest situation on the battlefield and the prime minister paid tribute to the efforts of the Ukrainian forces in Bakhmut,” a Downing Street spokesperson said.

“Discussing the abhorrent beheading of a Ukrainian soldier shown on social media in recent days, the prime minister said the video was appalling and those responsible had to be held to account.

“The leaders also discussed efforts to accelerate military support to Ukraine, and the prime minister said the UK and its allies needed to continue to ensure Ukraine was in the strongest possible position to build on its recent battlefield successes.

“That included increasing interoperability with Nato both in the short and long term, the prime minister added. The leaders agreed to stay in close touch.”

Ukraine will ‘test and use’ any non-banned weapons to retake Crimea, says Kyiv security chief

12:02 , Andy Gregory

Ukraine will “test and use” any non-banned weapons to liberate its territory, including annexed Crimea, the head of Kyiv’s National Security and Defence Council has said.

“Crimea is the territory of Ukraine, and we will test and use any weapons not prohibited by international laws, that will help liberate our territories,” said Oleksiy Danilov.

The 21-year-old National Guardsman suspected of leaking secret Pentagon documents

11:41 , Andy Gregory

Armed FBI officers have arrested a member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard over the alleged leak of classified military intelligence online.

My colleagues Joe Sommerlad and Graeme Massie detail what we know so far about the suspect:

What we know about suspect in leak of secret Pentagon documents

China says no weapons exports to parties in Ukraine conflict

11:09 , Andy Gregory

China will not sell weapons to parties involved in the conflict in Ukraine and will regulate exports of items with dual civilian and military use, Beijing’s foreign minister has said.

The US and European allies have expressed concerns that China was considering providing military assistance to Russia, which Beijing has backed politically and rhetorically in the conflict while formally saying it remains neutral.

Qin Gang reiterated China’s willingness to help facilitate negotiations to find a peaceful resolution to the conflict and said all parties should remain “objective and calm.”

Russian and Chinese defence ministers to hold security talks this weekend

10:44 , Andy Gregory

Chinese defence minister Li Shangfu and his Russian counterpart Sergei Shoigu will discuss global and regional security at planned talks between Sunday and Tuesday, Moscow’s defence ministryhas said.

Russia and China have declared a “no limits” partnership” and have moved to further strengthen their economic, political and military ties since Moscow invaded Ukraine.

Finland’s embassy in Moscow ‘receives letter containing powder’

10:21 , Andy Gregory

Finland’s embassy in Moscow has contacted the Russian foreign ministry after it received three letters, one of which contained powder, the RIA news agency said on Friday.

Relations between Moscow and Helsinki have sharply deteriorated since Finland formally joined Nato 10 days ago – doubling the length of the military alliance’s border with Russia.

Russia puts Pacific naval fleet on high alert

09:45 , Andy Gregory

Russia has put its Pacific naval fleet on high alert as part of a surprise inspection aimed at building its defensive capabilities, state media reported, citing Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu.

“The main objective of this inspection is to increase the ability of the Armed Forces to repel the aggression of a probable enemy from the direction of ocean and sea,” Shoigu said, according to the RIA news agency.

Ukraine bans athletes from competing alongside competitors from Russia or Belarus

08:59 , Andy Gregory

Ukraine has banned its national sports team from competing in Olympic, non-Olympic and Paralympic events which include competitors from Russia and Belarus.

The sports ministry’s decree comes after the International Olympic Committee (IOC) angered Kyiv by paving the way for Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete as neutrals despite Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

But it was criticised by some Ukrainian athletes, including Olympian skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych, criticised the ban saying it would lead to the destruction of Ukrainian sports.

“If Ukrainian representatives are not present at competitions, then we completely vacate the international sports grounds and give the Russian/Belarusian representatives the opportunity to promote their narratives and propaganda,” he wrote on Twitter.

Russia ‘re-energises’ assault on Bakhmut as Ukraine makes ‘orderly withdrawals’, says UK

08:43 , Andy Gregory

Russia has “re-energised” its assault on Bakhmut and has subjected Ukraine’s troops in the frontline Donetsk city to “particularly intense” artillery fire over the past 48 hours, according to Britain’s Ministry of Defence.

Amid “improved co-operation” between the Wagner mercenary group and Russian ministry of defence’s forces, the private army continues to conduct the main advance through the centre of Bakhmut, while Russian airborne forces have relieved some Wagner units securing the northern and southern flanks, the ministry said.

Ukrainian forces, who still hold the city’s western districts, “face significant resupply issues but have made orderly withdrawals from the positions they have been forced to concede”, it added.

Marjorie Taylor Greene defends alleged Pentagon leaker as ‘white, male, christian, and antiwar’

08:18 , Andy Gregory

US politician Marjorie Taylor Greene has defended the Air National Guardsman arrested by the FBI for allegedly leaking national security documents, my colleague Graeme Massie reports.

The far-right Republican took to Twitter to show her support for Jack Teixeira who she lauded for being “white, male, christian and antiwar” – although she referred to him as “Jake Teixeira”.

Authorities raided the Massachusetts home of the 21-year-old who worked in cyber security for the Guard and took him into custody on Thursday.

Marjorie Taylor Greene defends alleged Pentagon leaker Jack Teixeira

China willing to work with Germany on peace in Ukraine

08:00 , Sravasti Dasgupta

China has said that it is willing to work with Germany towards an end to the war in Ukraine, and described the two countries as partners not adversaries.

The comments were made by Chinese foreign minister Qin Gang while addressing a joint press conference in Beijing on Friday with his German counterpart Annalena Baerbock.

On the issue of Ukraine, Mr Qin said China was willing to continue to work for peace and hoped that all parties involved in the crisis would remain “objective and calm” and work together.

After talks between the two minister concluded, Ms Baerbock said that China has been warned against using military force in Taiwan.

“Conflicts must be solved peacefully,” she said, adding Germany was monitoring the tensions in the Taiwan Strait with great concern.

“A unilateral, violent change of the status quo would be unacceptable for us Europeans.”

Cannot trust China if it does not seek peace, says EU

07:45 , Sravasti Dasgupta

The European Union (EU) has said that China cannot be trusted if it does not try to seek peace in the ongoing Ukraine crisis.

The remarks by foreign policy chief Joseph Borrell were published on the EU’s website which were due to be delivered at a think tank in Beijing on Friday.

Mr Borrell said in his remarks that it would be very difficult, if not impossible, for Europe to trust China if it did not try to seek a political solution to the Ukraine crisis.

The foreign policy chief had to cancel his trip to China after contracting Covid.

Leaked documents suspect to appear in court

07:25 , Sravasti Dasgupta

Jack Teixeira, a junior member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard who was arrested on Thursday over the leak of classified US military intelligence, is set to appear in court today.

The 21-year-old suspect was arrested by armed FBI officers outside his home in North Dighton, Massachusetts yesterday.

The authorities raided his Massachusetts home as footage taken from a helicopter showed the suspect in handcuffs as he was marched to a car by heavily-armed federal agents.

The so-called “Pentagon Papers” include hundreds of pages of classified military intelligence that were shared with an online gaming group before becoming public in a string of disclosures last week.

Ukraine bans national sports teams from competing with Russia

07:00 , Sravasti Dasgupta

Ukraine has banned its national sports teams from competing with athletes from Russia and Belarus.

The decision came through a decree issued by Ukraine’s ministry of youth and sports on Thursday.

It comes as the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has recommended the return of Russian and Belarusian athletes to international sporting events.

Pentagon to review intelligence access after major leak

06:30 , Sravasti Dasgupta

The Pentagon will review its intelligence access procedures after classified military information was leaked online.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in a statement that the Pentagon would conduct a review of its “intelligence access, accountability and control procedures” to prevent such a leak from happening again.

Mr Austin’s statement came after armed FBI officers arrested 21-year-old Jack Teixeira, a relatively junior member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard, on suspicion of leaking documents.

The 21-year-old National Guardsman suspected of leaking secret Pentagon documents

06:00 , Sravasti Dasgupta

Armed FBI officers have arrested 21-year-old Jack Teixeira, a member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard over the alleged leak of classified military intelligence online.

Video showed the suspect in handcuffs as he was marched by heavily-armed federal agents from a home in North Dighton, Massachusetts, wearing shorts and a t-shirt.

Joe Sommerlad and Graeme Massie report on what we know about the suspect:

What we know about suspect in leak of secret Pentagon documents

Ukraine says UN Security Council has lost 'meaning'

05:30 , Sravasti Dasgupta

As Russia continues to preside over the UN Security Council, Ukraine has said that the body has lost any “meaning”.

Ukraine’s national security and defence secretary Oleksii Danilov said in a Telegram post on Thursday that Russia’s presidency is “incompatible with any logic.”

“This institution (UN Security Council), currently chaired by Russia, with the norms and rules that were fixed after the Second World War, has already lost its meaning,” he said.

“It is no longer the influential institution whose decisions are binding for all countries. When an aggressor country, a terrorist country that killed and continues to kill children, is the chairman of the UN Security Council , then these things are generally incompatible with any logic, not to mention justice. Where is this justice then?”

Russia became the chair of the UN Security Council on 1 April and will hold the presidency for one month.

US thinks UN chief too accommodating to Russia, leaked files suggest

04:41 , Sravasti Dasgupta

The US believes that UN secretary general Antonio Guterres is too willing to accommodate Russian interests, according to fresh revelations in leaked classified documents.

The documents suggest that the US has been closely monitoring the secretary general, reported BBC.

They also describe private communications involving Mr Guterres and his deputy as well as candid observations about the war in Ukraine and a number of African leaders.

“Guterres emphasised his efforts to improve Russia’s ability to export,” the document says of the Black Sea Grain deal brokered by the UN and Turkey that was brokered in July amid fears of a global food crisis.

“Even if that involves sanctioned Russian entities or individuals,” the document adds.

Mr Guterres’ spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said that the secretary general is not surprised that he was being spied on.

“The Secretary-General has been at this job, and in the public eye, for a long time,” he was quoted as saying.“He’s not surprised by the fact that people are spying on him and listening in on his private conversations. What is surprising is the malfeasance or incompetence that allows for such private conversations to be distorted and become public.”

US, EU, UK brief finance chiefs on sanctions evasion

03:00 , Liam James

Senior officials from the United States, Europe and Britain met representatives of financial institutions to brief them on efforts by Russia to evade Western sanctions imposed over its invasion of Ukraine, a senior US Treasury official told reporters.

The firms indicated they were working hard to prevent Russian efforts to evade sanctions and export controls, said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Western countries are ratcheting up their efforts to crack down on sanctions evasion efforts, the official said, noting Moscow was in a critical period where it needed not only weapons and electronics, but also smaller components to make ammunition.

02:00 , Liam James

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal on Thursday welcomed the “continuous, ironclad and unprecedented support” of the United States as his country fights Russia‘s invasion, and underscored Ukraine’s commitment to battling corruption.

Shmyhal, speaking alongside US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, said it was critically important for Ukraine to begin reconstruction this year, and said Kyiv had identified a priority funding gap of $14bn needed this year.

Ms Yellen, who paid a surprise visit to Kyiv in February, told Shmyhal she had seen “firsthand the bravery and resilience of the Ukrainian military and people,” recounting a visit to a school damaged by Russian attacks where community members were making trench candles to send to the front lines.

She said the United States had stood with Ukraine since the first day of the war, and would continue to back it “for as long as it takes.”

The United States had disbursed significant economic support since the start of the war and would provide more in coming months, on top of security and humanitarian aid, she said.

Jack Teixeira arrest: In pictures

Friday 14 April 2023 00:30 , Liam James

FBI agents descended on the small town of Dighton, Massachussetts this afternoon to arrest a suspect in the investigation into a massive leak of sensitive government documents.

Jack Teixeira, the suspect, was detained.

Pentagon leaks: Armed FBI agents arrest Air National Guardsmen over ‘deliberate criminal’ leaks

Thursday 13 April 2023 23:35 , Liam James

Graeme Massie brings full coverage of Jack Teixeira’s arrest:

Armed FBI officers arrested a member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard over the alleged leak of classified military intelligence online.

Authorities raided the Massachusetts home of 21-year-old Jack Teixeira, who worked in cyber security for the Guard and took him into custody without incident on Thursday.

Armed FBI agents arrest Air National Guardsmen over ‘deliberate criminal’ leaks

All we know about the 21-year-old National Guardsman suspected of leaking secret Pentagon documents

Thursday 13 April 2023 22:23 , Sam Rkaina

A Facebook post last July from the 102nd Intelligence Wing, which is based at Otis Air National Guard Base on Cape Cod, congratulated someone by the name of Jack Teixeira for promotion to airman first class, reported The Washington Post.

The US intelligence community has been racing to track down the person who leaked scores of highly-classified documents online about the Ukraine war, and much else, a week after their existence was first revealed.

The so-called “Pentagon Papers”, widely shared and leaving many in Washington ashen-faced with embarrassment, have yet to be officially authenticated but appear to contain details on deeply sensitive matters pertaining to national security and foreign affairs.

The slides of photographed files that were made public include detailed battlefield maps from Russia’s war in Ukraine and the alarming suggestion that the US believes Kyiv will soon run out of missiles for its air defence systems, in addition to awkward revelations about America’s attitude towards many of its allies around the world, including the UK, South Korea, Egypt, Israel and the UAE.

Precisely how many documents were leaked is not known, with estimates varying from 50 into the hundreds.

Click here for all we know so far.

Leaked Pentagon documents include rumour Putin is undergoing chemotherapy

Thursday 13 April 2023 21:20 , Liam James

Recently leaked documents from the Pentagon include a rumour that Russian President Vladimir Putin is undergoing chemotherapy (Ariana Baio writes).

The papers, labelled as “Top Secret”, also indicate that Russian Chief of General Staff Valery Gerasimov and Russian National Security Council Secretary Nikolay Patrushev “devised” a plan to “sabotage” Mr Putin while he undergoes medical treatment.

The papers do not specify what alleged medical condition Mr Putin has that requires chemotherapy but there have been longstanding rumours that the Russian president has cancer.

The source’s name is redacted in the report and claims they received their information from an unidentified Russian source who has access to Kremlin officials.

Click here for the full story:

Leaked Pentagon documents include rumour Putin is undergoing chemotherapy

Full story so far: Armed FBI agents arrest Air National Guardsmen over ‘deliberate criminal’ leaks

Thursday 13 April 2023 20:22 , Sam Rkaina

Armed FBI officers have arrested a member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard over the alleged leak of classified military intelligence online.

Authorities raided the Massachusetts home of 21-year-old Jack Teixeira, a member of the Guard’s intelligence wing, on Thursday, according to The Associated Press.

Hundreds of pages of classified military intelligence have been shared with an online gaming group before becoming public in a string of disclosures last week.

Click here for the full story so far.

Attorney General confirms suspect’s identity

Thursday 13 April 2023 20:01 , Sam Rkaina

The US attorney general has confirmed that Jack Texeria has been arrested in connection with the Pentagon documents leak.

Footage from the scene shows the 21 year-old being taken away by armed FBI agents.

The Massachusetts Guardsman is to be charged with unauthorized removal of classified national defence information.

FBI at scene of national guardsman’s home

Thursday 13 April 2023 19:49 , Sam Rkaina

FBI agents converged at the Massachusetts home of a member of that state’s Air National Guard, who has emerged as a main person of interest in the disclosure of highly classified military documents on the Ukraine war.

Investigators believe that the guardsman, who specializes in intelligence, led the chat group where the documents were posted, according to the two people, who were not authorized to discuss an ongoing investigation publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity to The Associated Press.

They identified the guardsman as 21-year-old Jack Teixeira.

Law enforcement officials roped off the street near the home. The New York Times, which first identified Teixeira on Thursday, said that a man who had been standing outside the Teixeira home earlier said that “he needs to get an attorney if things are flowing the way they are going right now. The Feds will be around soon, I’m sure.”

The emergence of Teixeira as the apparent primary suspect is bound to raise questions about how the highest-profile intelligence leak in years, one that continues to unfold with almost daily revelations of highly classified documents, could have been caused by such a young, low-ranking service member.

The Biden administration has scrambled for days to contain the fallout from the leaked information, which has publicized potential vulnerabilities in Ukraine’s air defense capabilities and exposed private assessments by allies on an array of intelligence matters.

The National Guard did not confirm his identity but said in a statement that, “We are aware of the investigation into the alleged role a Massachusetts Air National Guardsman may have played in the recent leak of highly-classified documents.”

Pentagon leak “a deliberate criminal act” as suspect arrested

Thursday 13 April 2023 19:35 , Sam Rkaina

The FBI confirmed it has “made an arrest and is continuing to conduct authorized law enforcement activity at a residence in North Dighton, Massachusetts,” amid a media report a suspect in the leak of classified has been identified.

The leak of classified information was a “deliberate, criminal act,” the Pentagon said at a press briefing tonight.

Pentagon spokesman Brigadier General Pat Ryder referred questions about the investigation to the Department of Justice.

Ryder added the Pentagon had taken steps to review distribution lists and ensure that people receiving information had a need to know.

Ukraine, Romania, Moldova sign Black Sea treaty

Thursday 13 April 2023 19:15 , Liam James

Romania, Ukraine and Moldova signed cooperation agreements in Romania’s capital today after a trilateral meeting on ways to strengthen security in their Black Sea region to counter threats posed by Russian aggression.

The Black Sea Security Conference in Bucharest brought together the three neighbouring countries’ foreign and defence ministers, government officials and international partners.

The aim was to address the wide-ranging impact that Moscow’s war in Ukraine is having on the region.

Nato member Romania’s foreign minister Bogdan Aurescu called Russia “the most direct and serious threat” to the Black Sea region and the Western alliance, and said war-torn Ukraine and embattled Moldova are “essential to our future European security”.

Main suspect in Pentagon intelligence leak identified

Thursday 13 April 2023 18:55 , Sam Rkaina

A member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard has been identified by investigators as the main suspect in the leak of classified military intelligence online, according to reports.

Authorities are focussing on 21-year-old Jack Teixeira, a member of the Guard’s intelligence wing, senior law enforcement sources told The New York Times and Washington Post.

Hundreds of pages of classified military intelligence have been shared with an online gaming group before becoming public in a string of disclosures last week.

No arrests or charges have been made in the case and investigators continue to collect evidence and are preparing for a prosecution, according to CNN.

Earlier, Joe Biden told reporters in Dublin, Ireland, that the US government was closing in on the leaker.

Click here for the full story.

Pentagon leaks reveal it’s increasingly hard to keep a secret

Thursday 13 April 2023 18:45 , Liam James

The scale of the leak was enormous – thousands of secret documents, some of the most sensitive and important held by United States intelligence, downloaded and put into the public domain in a huge blow to Western security (Kim Sengupta writes).

Classified information was downloaded from the computers of the National Security Agency (NSA) and Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) by a civilian private contractor who had been vetted and provided with one of the highest forms of security clearance.

That was Edward Snowden, whose devastating disclosures were made almost exactly 10 years ago.

Now there is another huge security leak, from the Pentagon, almost certainly carried out by another civilian contractor.

Click here for the full story:

Pentagon leaks reveal it’s increasingly hard to keep a secret

Russia may consider prisoner swap with US for jailed journalist, says minister

Thursday 13 April 2023 18:15 , Liam James

Russia may be willing to discuss a potential prisoner swap involving jailed Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich with the US after a court delivers its verdict, a top Russian diplomat said today.

Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told state news agency Tass that talks about a possible exchange could take place through a dedicated channel that Russian and US security agencies established for such purposes.

“We have a working channel that was used in the past to achieve concrete agreements, and these agreements were fulfilled,” Mr Ryabkov said, adding that there was no need for the involvement of any third country.

However, he emphasised that Moscow would only negotiate a possible prisoner exchange after a court delivers its verdict in the espionage case against Mr Gershkovich, 31.

The journalist’s detention was widely expected to be used for leverage in prisoner swap discussions with the US.

Russian opposition leader may be ailed with ‘slow poison’

Thursday 13 April 2023 17:45 , Liam James

Alexei Navalny, Russia’s most prominent opposition politician, is grappling with severe stomach pain in jail that could be some sort of slow acting poison, his spokeswoman said on Thursday.

An ambulance was called for Navalny overnight on Friday to Saturday to the maximum security IK-6 penal colony at Melekhovo, about 115 miles east of Moscow, where he is being held. Kira Yarmysh, his spokeswoman, told Reuters.

Mr Navalny was suffering from severe stomach pain, she said, and could not eat the prison food provided to him because it was making his pain worse and since Monday has has been banned from buying alternative food.

Germany approves Polish planes for Ukraine

Thursday 13 April 2023 17:15 , Liam James

Germany has approved Poland’s request to export five old MiG-29 fighter jets to bolster Ukraine’s air power against the Russian invasion, the German defence ministry said just now.

Poland’s defence ministry did not immediately comment.

Get ready ‘for real combat’ President Xi tells Chinese forces

Thursday 13 April 2023 16:45 , Liam James

China’s President Xi Jinping has urged his military to strengthen its readiness for “real combat” following the country’s recent display of force around Taiwan (Maryam Zakir-Hussain writes).

Inspecting his country’s Southern Theatre Command navy he stressed the need to deepen military training and preparation, state media reported.

During his visit, Xi said it was necessary to speed up the transformation and construction of the armed forces and comprehensively raise their level of modernization, CCTV news reported.

Get ready ‘for real combat’ President Xi tells Chinese forces

Nato membership the ‘only option’ for Ukraine, says Kyiv

Thursday 13 April 2023 16:15 , Liam James

Ukraine‘s membership in the Nato military alliance is the only option for the country’s future security, defence minister Oleksi Reznikov said today.

“We need a system of guarantees that would make aggression from Russia impossible,” he told a Black Sea security conference in Bucharest. “There is no alternative to Ukraine‘s accession to Nato.”

Nato says it has an “open-door” policy and expects to admit Ukraine in the future.

Last month Jens Stoltenberg, Nato secretary general, said: “Nato allies have agreed that Ukraine will become a member of our alliance, but at the same time that is a long-term perspective.

“What is at issue now is that Ukraine can prevail as a sovereign independent nation.”

Click here to read the full blog on The Independent's website