Ukraine-Russia war – live: Putin’s offensive slowing as forces ‘struggling to advance’

Russian forces are operating at a decreased rate and its offensive in Ukraine is reaching “culmination”, according to an assessment from the Institute for the Study of War.

Military sources have contributed to the analysis which indicates that Vladimir Putin’s forces in the country are now focused more on distracting and dispersing the Ukrainian army.

Council of Reservists of the Ukrainian Ground Forces Head Ivan Tymochko has said that “Russian forces are not making serious advances anywhere on the frontline” and that attacks have slowed down.

It comes as a 50-year-old man and his 11-year-old daughter were killed after Russian forces struck a residential building in the southeastern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia early on Sunday, authorities said.

Ukraine‘s State Emergency service also reported that a 46-year-old woman, who it described as the wife and mother of the victims, was pulled from the wreckage.

City council secretary Anatoliy Kurtev said two missiles had destroyed one building and damaged dozens of others during the overnight strike.

Key Points

• Putin’s offensive slowing as forces ‘struggling to advance’

• Two killed after Russian forces strike residential building in Zaporizhzhia, Ukrainian authorities say

• Pentagon investigating leak of secret US and Nato war plans for Ukraine

• More than 30 children reunited with families in Ukraine

ICYMI: Russia digging trenches in Crimea and redeploying weapons as it fears Ukraine counteroffensive

21:00 , Joe Middleton

There are signs Russia is taking key equipment from occupied Crimea and redeploying it in Ukraine’s southern sector while also fortifying the contested peninsula ahead of an expected Ukrainian spring counteroffensive.

This comes as Ukraine has said talks with Russia on Crimea will take place if the planned counteroffensive succeeds.

“Russian forces may have withdrawn equipment from occupied Crimea for redeployment elsewhere in southern Ukraine out of fear of a Ukrainian counteroffensive,” the US-based Institute for the Study of War has said.

Russia digging trenches in Crimea as it fears Ukraine counteroffensive

Ukraine's coal miners dig deep to power a nation at war

20:00 , Joe Middleton

Deep underground in southeastern Ukraine, miners work around the clock extracting coal to power the country’s war effort and to provide civilians with light and heat.

Coal is central to meeting Ukraine’s energy needs following the Russia‘s military’s 6-month campaign to destroy power stations and other infrastructure, the chief engineer of a mining company in Dnipropetrovsk province said.

Elevators carry the company’s workers underground to the depths of the mine. From there, they operate heavy machinery that digs out the coal and moves the precious resource above ground. It is hard work, the miners said, but essential to keep the country going.

Ukraine's coal miners dig deep to power a nation at war

ICYMI: Defecting Russian protection officer labels Vladimir Putin 'war criminal'

19:00 , Joe Middleton

ICYMI: US sanction officials plan missions to clamp down on Russia

18:00 , Joe Middleton

Top sanctions officials from the U.S. Treasury Department plan special international trips this month to pressure firms and countries still doing business with Russia to cut off financial ties because of the war on Ukraine.

US sanction officials plan missions to clamp down on Russia

Ukrainians celebrate Palm Sunday in church marred by dispute

17:05 , Joe Middleton

Willow branches in hand, Ukrainians marked Palm Sunday in the country’s most revered Orthodox site that has been at the heart of a religious dispute playing out in parallel with the war against Russia.

Dozens of worshippers filled the grand Refectory Church of Anthony and Theodosius located inside the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra monastic complex. Many more waited outside in the sprawling courtyard and observed the service there.

The occasion marks the first significant religious service to be held in the complex following the March 29 eviction order issued by the Ukrainian government against Orthodox monks residing in the monastery over their alleged links with Russia. The monks had refused to leave the premises before the eviction deadline.

Ukrainians celebrate Palm Sunday in church marred by dispute

Russia launches 40 air strikes and four missile strikes on Ukraine over Easter

16:01 , Joe Middleton

Between Saturday and Sunday mornings, Russian forces launched 40 air strikes, four missile strikes and 58 attacks from multiple-rocket launchers on various parts of Ukraine, the General Staff of the Ukrainian armed forces reported.

According to the General Staff, Russia focused attacks on the Donetsk province communities of Lyman, Bakhmut, Avdiivka and Marinka.

Officials in Kherson province, where Ukrainian forces forced a partial Russian retreat in November, said the southern region also received numerous attacks. They did not report any casualties.

Putin’s offensive slowing as forces ‘struggling to advance’

15:13 , Joe Middleton

Russian forces are operating at a decreased rate and its offensive in Ukraine is reaching “culmination”, according to an assessment from the Institute for the Study of War (ISW)

Military sources have contributed to the analysis which indicates that Vladimir Putin’s forces in the country are now focused more on distracting and dispersing the Ukrainian army.

Council of Reservists of the Ukrainian Ground Forces Head Ivan Tymochko has said that “Russian forces are not making serious advances anywhere on the frontline” and that attacks have slowed down.

Meanwhile, a prominent Russian military blogger has suggested that “Russian forces are struggling to advance anywhere in Ukraine.”

The assessment adds: “Several Russian commentators are emphasizing Russian preparations for an anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive, suggesting that the overall focus of the Russian information space is shifting away from discussing Russian offensive capabilities and towards assessing Ukraine’s potential to regain significant ground.”

More than 30 children reunited with their families in Ukraine

13:24 , Joe Middleton

More than 30 children were reunited with their families in Ukraine this weekend after a long operation to bring them back home from Russia or Russian-occupied Crimea, where they had been taken from areas occupied by Russian forces during the war.

Kyiv estimates nearly 19,500 children have been taken to Russia or Russian-occupied Crimea since Moscow invaded, in what it condemns as illegal deportations.

Moscow says they have been transported away for their own safety.

The latest pictures from Ukraine

12:23 , Joe Middleton

Pope appeals to Russians over Ukraine in Easter message

11:40 , Joe Middleton

Pope Francis appeared to ask Russians to seek the truth about their country’s invasion of Ukraine in his Easter message to the world on Sunday and appealed for dialogue between Israelis and Palestinians following recent violence.

Francis, 86, presided at a solemn Easter day Mass in a sunny St. Peter’s Square after unseasonal cold forced him to skip an outdoor service on Friday - a precaution following his hospitalisation for bronchitis at the end of March.

A carpet of 38,000 flowers donated by the Netherlands bedecked the square for the most important and joyous date in the Church’s liturgical calendar - commemorating the day Christians believe Jesus rose from the dead. Honour units of Vatican Swiss Guards and Italian Carabinieri police - both in ceremonial dress - stood at attention.

But the traditional pomp and sacred singing then gave way to modern realities. Francis later went up to the central balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica to deliver his twice-yearly “Urbi et Orbi” (to the city and the world) message and blessing, addressing a crowd the Vatican estimated at about 100,000.

There, from the same spot where he first appeared to the world as pope on the night of his election in 2013, he spoke of “the darkness and the gloom in which, all too often, our world finds itself enveloped”, and prayed to God for peace.

“Help the beloved Ukrainian people on their journey towards peace, and shed the light of Easter upon the people of Russia,” he said.

Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February last year, Francis has at least twice a week referred to Ukraine and its people as being “martyred” and has used words such as aggression and atrocities to describe Russia’s actions.

On Sunday he asked God to “comfort the wounded and all those who have lost loved ones because of the war, and grant that prisoners may return safe and sound to their families. Open the hearts of the entire international community to strive to end this war and all conflict and bloodshed in our world.”

South Korea plans to discuss ‘issues raised’ in leaked US military documents

10:40 , Joe Middleton

South Korea is aware of news reports about a leak of several classified US military documents and it plans to discuss “issues raised” as a result of the leak with the United States, a South Korean presidential official said.

Several classified U.S. military documents have recently been posted on social media offering a partial, month-old snapshot of the war in Ukraine, three U.S. officials told Reuters on Friday, adding that Russia or pro-Russian elements were likely behind the leak.

The U.S. Justice Department has said it is investigating the leak.

The New York Times reported on Sunday that the leaked documents contain details about internal discussions among top South Korean top officials about US pressure on the staunch ally to help supply weapons to Ukraine, and its policy of not doing so.

The newspaper said that South Korea had agreed to sell artillery shells to help the United States replenish its stockpiles, insisting that the “end user” should be the US military. But internally, top South Korean officials were worried that the United States would divert them to Ukraine.

“The secret report was based on signals intelligence, which meant that the United States has been spying on one of its major allies in Asia,” the New York Times reported.

The South Korean presidential official, speaking to reporters, declined to respond to questions about U.S. spying or to confirm any details from the leaked documents.

Asked if South Korea planned to lodge a protest or demand an explanation from the United States, the official, who declined to be identified, said the government would review precedents and cases involving other countries.

Ukraine's coal miners dig deep to power a nation at war

09:59 , Joe Middleton

Deep underground in southeastern Ukraine, miners work around the clock extracting coal to power the country’s war effort and to provide civilians with light and heat.

Coal is central to meeting Ukraine’s energy needs following the Russia‘s military’s 6-month campaign to destroy power stations and other infrastructure, the chief engineer of a mining company in Dnipropetrovsk province said.

Elevators carry the company’s workers underground to the depths of the mine. From there, they operate heavy machinery that digs out the coal and moves the precious resource above ground. It is hard work, the miners said, but essential to keep the country going.

Ukraine's coal miners dig deep to power a nation at war

Archbishop of Canterbury to warn of ‘divine justice’ in Ukraine nod

09:15 , Joe Middleton

The Archbishop of Canterbury will use his Easter sermons to warn that “those who oppress and subjugate others will face divine justice”, as he reflects on the Russian invasion of Ukraine

Justin Welby will tell Canterbury Cathedral that while “cruel and oppressive rulers” may look as though they are only becoming stronger, they will “vanish”.

Turning to the war in Ukraine, as well as other conflicts around the world, the Archbishop will tell congregants that “we must not lose heart” in the face of conflict.

He will add that this is because “true peace is no aimless daydream, but a reality offered because Christ was raised from the dead. Life triumphs over death, light over darkness”.

Two killed after Russian forces strike residential building in Zaporizhzhia, Ukrainian authorities say

08:47 , Joe Middleton

A 50-year-old man and his 11-year-old daughter were killed after Russian forces struck a residential building in the southeastern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia early on Sunday, authorities said.

Ukraine‘s State Emergency service also reported that a 46-year-old woman, who it described as the wife and mother of the victims, was pulled from the wreckage.

City council secretary Anatoliy Kurtev said two missiles had destroyed one building and damaged dozens of others during the overnight strike.

“The cursed Russian terrorists attacked Zaporizhzhia again and lost human lives,” he wrote on the Telegram messaging app.

The strike was the latest in a series of recent attacks on civilian targets in the region as Moscow’s full-scale invasion drags into its second year.

Ukraine children back home after alleged deportation

08:00 , Peony Hirwani

More than 30 children were reunited with their families in Ukraine this weekend after a long operation to bring them back home from Russia or Russian-occupied Crimea, where they had been taken from areas occupied by Russian forces during the war.

In videos of the reunion, mothers can be seen hugging their sons and daughters as they crossed the border from Belarus into Ukraine.

According to Reuters, Kyiv estimates nearly 19,500 children have been taken to Russia or Russian-occupied Crimea since Moscow invaded in February last year, in what it condemns as illegal deportations.

Moscow, which control chunks of Ukraine’s east and south, denies abducting children and says they have been transported away for their own safety.

Russia likely to blame for documents leak, says US

07:00 , Liam James

Russia or pro-Russian elements are likely behind the leak of several classified US military documents posted on social media that offer a partial, month-old snapshot of the war in Ukraine, three US officials told Reuters.

The documents appear to have been altered to lower the number of casualties suffered by Russian forces, the US officials said, adding their assessments were informal and separate from the investigation into the leak itself.

The Kremlin and Russia’s embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The US Justice Department said late on Friday it was in touch with the Defense Department and began a probe into the leak. It declined further comment.

Click here for more on this story.

06:50 , Peony Hirwani

The leader of Russia's Wagner private militia group Yevgeny Prigozhin attended Vladlen Tatarsky’s funeral on Saturday.

Russian investigators inspect the blasted ‘Street bar’ cafe

06:30 , Peony Hirwani

Moment ‘female assassin delivers bomb hidden in gift’ that killed pro-Putin blogger

06:00 , Peony Hirwani

A woman has been arrested after pro-Putin military blogger Vladlen Tatarsky was killed in a cafe blast in St Petersburg.

The 40-year-old blogger died while leading a discussion at the cafe on the banks of the Neva River. Russian reports claimed the bomb was concealed in a statuette of the blogger given to him as a gift just before the explosion.

CCTV footage has been released which appears to show a woman carrying a box walking towards the ‘Street Bar’ cafe in Russia where the blogger was killed.

The seconds-long clip sees the blonde-haired woman, wearing a long brown coat and heeled ankle boots, enter through the glass doors at the front of the establishment. Her face is not shown.

Emily Atkinson reports.

Moment ‘female assassin delivers bomb hidden in gift’ that killed pro-Putin blogger

Hundreds attend Moscow funeral of pro-war blogger

05:30 , Peony Hirwani

Hundreds of mourners, including the leader of Russia’s Wagner private militia group, attended the funeral on Saturday of pro-war blogger Vladlen Tatarsky, who was killed on 2 April in a cafe bomb blast that Moscow has blamed on Ukraine.

The 40-year-old blogger, whose real name was Maxim Fomin, was accorded military honours including a gun salute and an army band at the funeral at Moscow’s Troyekurovskoye cemetery due to his past participation in military operations in eastern Ukraine alongside Moscow-backed separatists battling Kyiv’s forces.

Crucified Filipino carpenter prays for end to war in Ukraine

05:00 , Liam James

Eight Filipinos were nailed to crosses to reenact Jesus Christ’s suffering in a bloody Good Friday tradition, including a carpenter, who was crucified for the 34th time with a prayer for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to end because it has made poor people like him more desperate.The real-life crucifixions in the farming village of San Pedro Cutud in Pampanga province north of Manila resumed after a three-year pause due to the coronavirus pandemic. About a dozen villagers registered but only eight people showed up, including 62-year-old carpenter and sign painter Ruben Enaje, who screamed as he was nailed to a wooden cross with a large crowd watching in the scorching summer heat.In a news conference shortly after his crucifixion, Enaje said he prayed for the eradication of the COVID-19 virus and the end of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which has contributed to gas and food prices soaring worldwide.

Ukraine can export electricity again, says minister

03:53 , Liam James

Ukraine can now resume exporting electricity after a six-month gap, given the success of repairs carried out after repeated Russian attacks, energy minister Herman Halushchenko said.

Last October, Ukraine halted exports of electricity to the European Union – its main export market for energy since the war began – following Russia strikes on energy infrastructure.

“The most difficult winter has passed,” Halushchenko said in a statement on the ministry’s website, noting that the system had been working normally for almost two months.

On Saturday, the British Ministry of Defence said Russia’s intense campaign of bombing Ukrainian power stations and generators had “likely failed” and attacks had subsided in the past few weeks.

Pope condemns ‘icy winds of war’ on eve of Easter

02:40 , Liam James

Pope Francis led the world’s Roman Catholics into Easter at a Saturday night vigil Mass in St Peter’s Basilica, decrying the “icy winds of war” and other injustices.

Francis has called for an end to all wars, and since Russia invaded Ukraine in February, 2022, he has repeatedly referred to Ukraine and its people as being “martyred”.

Belarus jails opposition leader

01:40 , Liam James

A Belarusian opposition leader and former ally of President Alexander Lukashenko received a 17-year prison sentence in absentia Friday on charges that included forming an extremist group and discrediting Belarus.

Valery Tsepkalo, 58, was also fined around $14,000 (£11,000) and barred from holding public office for five years following a closed-door trial that resulted in his conviction. Other charges included issuing calls to seize power, slander and insulting the country’s president.

Mr Tsepkalo fled to Russia in 2020 after the Central Election Commission barred him and eight other candidates from challenging Lukashenko in a presidential election that year. He later moved to Ukraine, Latvia and Greece.

Full story: Russia likely behind classified Pentagon documents leak, US officials say

Sunday 9 April 2023 00:30 , Sam Rkaina

The secret Pentagon documents that were discovered on 4chan, Twitter, Telegram and other websites were related to Ukraine, the Middle East and China.

They also appeared to detail US and NATO aid to Ukraine, but may have been altered or used as part of a misinformation campaign.

Three US officials told Reuters that they believed Russia was behind the leak.

Click here for more on this story.

Ukraine's coal miners dig deep to power a nation at war

Saturday 8 April 2023 23:30 , Sam Rkaina

Deep underground in southeastern Ukraine, miners work around the clock extracting coal to power the country’s war effort and to provide civilians with light and heat.

Coal is central to meeting Ukraine’s energy needs following the Russia‘s military’s 6-month campaign to destroy power stations and other infrastructure, the chief engineer of a mining company in Dnipropetrovsk province said.

Elevators carry the company’s workers underground to the depths of the mine. From there, they operate heavy machinery that digs out the coal and moves the precious resource above ground. It is hard work, the miners said, but essential to keep the country going.

“Today, the country’s energy independence is more than a priority,” said Oleksandr, the chief engineer, who, like all the coal miners interviewed, spoke on the condition of giving only his first name for security reasons.

Russia’s attacks on Ukraine’s nuclear, thermal and other power stations continue to disrupt electricity service as the war grinds on for a second year.

Click here for the full story.

Wagner leader attends funeral of pro-war Russian blogger killed in cafe blast

Saturday 8 April 2023 22:30 , Sam Rkaina

Hundreds of mourners, including the leader of Russia’s Wagner private militia group, attended the funeral on Saturday of pro-war blogger Vladlen Tatarsky, who was killed on April 2 in a cafe bomb blast that Moscow has blamed on Ukraine.

Russia charged Darya Trepova, 26, on Tuesday with terrorist offences over the killing of Tatarsky in the St Petersburg cafe where he had been due to talk. She was remanded in custody and could face up to 20 years in jail.

The 40-year-old Tatarsky, whose real name was Maxim Fomin, was accorded military honours including a gun salute and an army band at the funeral at Moscow’s Troyekurovskoye cemetery due to his past participation in military operations in eastern Ukraine alongside Moscow-backed separatists battling Kyiv’s forces.

Tatarsky was among the best-known members of an influential group of bloggers who have provided a running commentary on the fighting in Ukraine. He was often scathing about Russia’s defence establishment but strongly backed Moscow’s actions in Ukraine and said they should be pursued more aggressively.

“Vladlen has proven that today the front line passes everywhere: in the zone of military action, in the rear, and in cities, hearts and minds,” said Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova on the Telegram messaging app, noting he had died “in the centre of peaceful St Petersburg at terrorists’ hands”.

Tatarsky made extensive reporting trips to the front lines in Ukraine and had ties to Wagner group chief Yevgeny Prigozhin, who on Saturday thanked the blogger on behalf of his fighters.

“Vladlen Tatarsky did a lot so that we could move towards victory and destroy the enemy,” Prigozhin’s press service quoted him as saying. “He is a soldier who will stay with us, whose voice will live on forever ...”

Prigozhin is also known for his sharp criticism of Russia’s top brass over their performance in Ukraine. The Wagner group has been spearheading efforts in recent months to capture the city of Bakhmut in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region.

Ukraine has not taken responsibility for the cafe bomb blast and instead blamed “domestic terrorism” in Russia.

Russian complaints persist over Ukraine grain deal

Saturday 8 April 2023 21:45 , Sam Rkaina

Russia threatened to bypass a UN-brokered grain deal unless obstacles to its agricultural exports were removed, while talks in Turkey agreed removing barriers was needed to extend the agreement beyond next month.

The deal, passed with the support of the UN and Turkey in July, unblocked shipments stuck in Ukraine’s blockaded and mined ports, alleviating rising food prices and the threat of hunger in some countries.

A separate agreement aimed to facilitate the export of Russian fertilisers and grain. Moscow has repeatedly complained that the deal failed to work for Russian agricultural exports, which have had trouble reaching world markets due to western sanctions.

The deal was extended by 60 days last month but instead of agreeing to another extension later this year, Russia may decide to co-operate directly with Turkey and Qatar to ensure grain gets to the countries that need it.

“We were treated like animals"

Saturday 8 April 2023 21:00 , Sam Rkaina

Three children - two boys and a girl - were present at the media briefing in Kyiv. Save Ukraine said they were returned to Ukraine on a previous rescue mission last month that returned 18 children in total.

The three children said they had been separated from their parents who were pressured by Russian authorities to send their children to Russian summer camps for what was billed as two weeks, from occupied parts of Kherson and Kharkiv regions.

The children at the briefing said they were forced to remain at the summer camps for four to six months and were moved from one place to another during their stay.

“We were treated like animals. We were closed in a separate building,” said Vitaly, a child from Kherson region whose age was not clear. He added that they were told their parents no longer wanted them.

Children ‘living with rats and cockroaches'

Saturday 8 April 2023 20:30 , Sam Rkaina

A grandmother who had been due to reunite with two of her grandchildren died suddenly on the trip and the children had to remain in Russia, Kuleba, Ukraine’s former commissioner for children’s rights, told a media briefing in Kyiv.

Kuleba said that all the children who have been brought back to Ukraine by Save Ukraine had said that no one in Russia was trying to find their parents in Ukraine.

“There were kids who changed their locations five times in five months, some children say that they were living with rats and cockroaches,” he said.

The children were taken to what Russians called stays in summer camps from occupied parts of Ukraine’s Kharkiv and Kherson regions, Kuleba said.

Child rescue mission reunites families after ‘forced deportations'

Saturday 8 April 2023 20:00 , Liam James

More than 30 children were reunited with their families in Ukraine this week after a long operation to bring them back from Russia, where they had been taken from occupied areas during the war, a humanitarian group said on Saturday.

Kyiv estimates as many as 20,000 children have been forcibly removed from Ukraine by Russian forces, in what it condemns as illegal deportations.

Moscow, which controls chunks of Ukraine’s east and south, denies abducting children and says they have been transported away for their own safety.

“Now the fifth rescue mission is nearing its completion. It was special regarding the number of children we managed to return and also because of its complexity,” said Mykola Kuleba, the founder of the Save Ukraine humanitarian organisation.

Russia digging trenches in Crimea, while sending arms to frontlines

Saturday 8 April 2023 18:48 , Liam James

There are signs Russia is taking key equipment from occupied Crimea and redeploying it in Ukraine’s south while also fortifying the contested peninsula ahead of an expected Ukrainian spring counteroffensive.

This comes as Ukraine has said talks with Russia on Crimea will take place if the planned counteroffensive succeeds.

“Russian forces may have withdrawn equipment from occupied Crimea for redeployment elsewhere in southern Ukraine out of fear of a Ukrainian counteroffensive,” the US-based Institute for the Study of War has said.

Russia digging trenches in Crimea as it fears Ukraine counteroffensive

Russian blogger’s funeral held in Moscow

Saturday 8 April 2023 16:46 , Liam James

Hundreds of mourners, including the leader of Russia’s Wagner private militia group, attended the funeral on Saturday of pro-war blogger Vladlen Tatarsky, who was killed on 2 April in a cafe bomb blast that Moscow has blamed on Ukraine.

Russia charged Darya Trepova, 26, on Tuesday with terrorist offences over the killing of Tatarsky in the St Petersburg cafe where he had been due to talk. She was remanded in custody and could face up to 20 years in jail.

Russia forcibly removes 20,000 kids from Ukrainian territories, a Ukrainian official says

Saturday 8 April 2023 15:40 , Jonathan Kanengoni

A Ukrainian official has said 20,000 kids have been forcibly removed from Ukrainian territories by Russian forces.

In an online conveesation with human rights lawyer Amal Clooney, Ukraine’s head of office of the President, Andriy Yermak, discussed protecting Ukrainian children and holding Russia accountable for its alleged crimes, a statement released by the president’s office on Saturday said.

Yeleman said in a Telegram post: “According to official data alone, at least 20,000 children have been forcibly removed by the Russian military from the temporarily occupied territories (of Ukraine), separated from their parents and forcibly transferred to Russian families,” adding that “their own parents have no idea where their children are or what happened to them.”

Yermak stated the “importance of getting all the deported Ukrainian children back to their homeland and punishing the Russian criminals,” and emphasised Kyiv would develop new methods of protecting children and preventing future harm.

Ukraine to bolster defence lines along Belarus border

Saturday 8 April 2023 15:08 , Jonathan Kanengoni

Ukrainian forces have been working to bolster defence lines along the border with Belarus, the defence ministry has said.

In a Facebook post, the ministry cited Lt General Serhiy Nayev, commander of the joint forces of Ukraine’s armed forces, who said:

“The expansion of the system of engineering barriers in the areas bordering Belarus and Russia is ongoing. Anti-tank minefields are being created in tank accessible areas and probable paths of pushing the enemy deep into our territory which are roads, forest lanes, bridges, power lines, etc.”

The news comes as Russian President Vladimir Putin met with his close ally and Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko on Wednesday. Lukashenko had previously given permission for Russia to use Belarus as a launch pad for the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Putin last month announced that Russia would deploy nuclear weapons in Belarus.

Two people injured by explosives in Kharkiv

Saturday 8 April 2023 14:37 , Jonathan Kanengoni

Two people have been injured by explosives in Kharkiv, The Kyiv Independent has reported.

In a tweet, the online newspaper wrote: “Explosives injure two people in Kharkiv Oblast.

“In the city of Izium, a 53-year-old woman stepped on an anti-personnel mine in a graveyard, while in the village of Slobozhanske, a man was seriously injured while trying to take apart an unidentified object.”

Ukraine's coal miners dig deep to power a nation at war

Saturday 8 April 2023 14:07 , Jonathan Kanengoni

Deep underground in southeastern Ukraine, miners work around the clock extracting coal to power the country’s war effort and to provide civilians with light and heat.

Coal is central to meeting Ukraine’s energy needs following the Russia’s military’s 6-month campaign to destroy power stations and other infrastructure, the chief engineer of a mining company in Dnipropetrovsk province said.

Elevators carry the company’s workers underground to the depths of the mine. From there, they operate heavy machinery that digs out the coal and moves the precious resource above ground. It is hard work, the miners said, but essential to keep the country going.

“Today, the country’s energy independence is more than a priority,” said Oleksandr, the chief engineer, who, like all the coal miners interviewed, spoke on the condition of giving only his first name for security reasons.

Russia’s attacks on Ukraine’s nuclear, thermal and other power stations continue to disrupt electricity service as the war grinds on for a second year.

Negotiations to demilitarize the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, which the Kremlin’s forces captured last year at the start of the full-scale invasion, are at an impasse. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy opposes any proposal that would legitimize Russian control of the plant, which is Europe’s largest nuclear energy facility.

At full capacity, the plant can produce 6,000 megawatts of electricity. The Ukrainian operators of the plant shut down the last reactor in September, saying it was too risky to run while Russia bombarded nearby areas.

Missile fired from Ukraine shot down over Crimean town, local governor claims

Saturday 8 April 2023 11:43 , Joe Middleton

A missile fired from Ukraine was shot down over the Black Sea town of Feodosia in Russian-controlled Crimea, the Russian head of Crimea’s administration said on Saturday.

“A missile launched from Ukraine was shot down over Feodosia,” Sergei Aksyonov said on Telegram.

Reuters could not immediately verify the battlefield reports.

Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula from Ukraine in 2014. Kyiv has demanded that Moscow hand it back.

Russia’s TASS news agency quoted an adviser to Aksyonov, Oleg Kryuchkov, as saying that debris had fallen in a Crimean town, but no damage or casualties had been reported.

ICYMI: Defecting Russian protection officer labels Vladimir Putin 'war criminal'

Saturday 8 April 2023 11:17 , Joe Middleton

Russia hits illegally annexed Ukraine areas from ground, air

Saturday 8 April 2023 10:35 , Joe Middleton

Russian forces used ground- and air-fired missiles, rocket launchers and weaponized drones to bombard the provinces of Ukraine it has illegally annexed but doesn’t fully control, causing casualties, building damage and power outages Friday.

The Ukrainian military said Russian forces launched 18 airstrikes, five missile strikes and 53 attacks from multiple rocket launchers between Thursday and Friday mornings.

According to the General Staff statement, Russia was concentrating the bulk of its offensive operations in Ukraine’s industrial east, focusing on the cities and towns of Lyman, Bakhmut, Avdiivka and Marinka in Donetsk province.

Russia likely behind classified Pentagon documents leak, US officials say

Russia likely behind classified Pentagon documents leak, US officials say

Saturday 8 April 2023 09:58 , Joe Middleton

The US claims Russia or pro-Russian elements are likely behind the leak of classified military documents on social media.

The secret Pentagon documents that were discovered on 4chan, Twitter, Telegram and other websites were related to Ukraine, the Middle East and China. They also appeared to detail US and NATO aid to Ukraine, but may have been altered or used as part of a misinformation campaign.

Three US officials told Reuters that they believed Russia was behind the leak.

The Justice Department said it was investigating the leak that was first reported by the New York Times on Friday.

Peony Hirwani reports.

Russia likely behind classified Pentagon documents leak, US officials say

Putin ‘has likely failed’ in campaign to break down Kyiv’s energy system

Saturday 8 April 2023 09:17 , Joe Middleton

Russia’s campaign to break Ukraine’s unified energy system (UES) during winter has ‘likely failed’, the Ministry of Defence’s latest intelligence update has said.

Large -scale attacks have become rare since early March 2023, the update said.

The report adds: “Ukraine’s energy situation will likely improve with the arrival of warmer weather. Planning and preparations for next winter have likely already begun.”

Russia loses election to three UN bodies over Ukraine

Saturday 8 April 2023 09:10 , Joe Middleton

Russia lost elections to three United Nations bodies this week, a sign that opposition to its invasion of Ukraine over a year ago remains strong.

The votes in the 54-member U.N. Economic and Social Council follow approval of six non-binding resolutions against Russia by the 193-member U.N. General Assembly.

The latest — on Feb. 23, the eve of the first anniversary of the invasion — called for Moscow to end hostilities and withdraw its forces and was adopted by a vote of 141-7 with 32 abstentions.

Russia loses election to three UN bodies over Ukraine

Russia digging trenches in Crimea and redeploying weapons as it fears Ukraine counteroffensive

Saturday 8 April 2023 08:27 , Peony Hirwani

There are signs Russia is taking key equipment from occupied Crimea and redeploying it in Ukraine’s southern sector while also fortifying the contested peninsula ahead of an expected Ukrainian spring counteroffensive.

This comes as Ukraine has said talks with Russia on Crimea will take place if the planned counteroffensive succeeds.

“Russian forces may have withdrawn equipment from occupied Crimea for redeployment elsewhere in southern Ukraine out of fear of a Ukrainian counteroffensive,” the US-based Institute for the Study of War has said.

Arpan Rai has more:

Russia digging trenches in Crimea as it fears Ukraine counteroffensive

Russia or pro-Russian elements behind leak of classified documents, say US officials

Saturday 8 April 2023 08:17 , Joe Middleton

Russia or pro-Russian elements are likely behind the leak of several classified US military documents posted on social media that offer a partial, month-old snapshot of the war in Ukraine, three US officials told Reuters.

The documents appear to have been altered to lower the number of casualties suffered by Russian forces, the US officials said, adding their assessments were informal and separate from the investigation into the leak itself.

The Kremlin and Russia’s embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

An initial batch of documents circulated on sites including Twitter and Telegram, dated March 1 and bearing markings showing them classified as “Secret” and “Top Secret.”

Later on Friday, an additional batch appearing to detail US national security secrets pertaining to areas including Ukraine, the Middle East and China surfaced on social media, the New York Times reported.

The US Justice Department said late on Friday it was in touch with the Defense Department and began a probe into the leak. It declined further comment.

One document posted on social media said 16,000 to 17,500 Russian forces had been killed since Russia’s Feb. 24, 2022, invasion of Ukraine.

The United States believes the actual figure is much higher, at around 200,000 Russians killed and wounded, officials have said.

Russia charges Wall Street Journal reporter Gershkovich with espionage

Saturday 8 April 2023 07:27 , Peony Hirwani

ICYMI: Russian investigators have charged Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich with espionage, the Interfax news agency reported, citing an unidentified source.

Russia’s Federal Security Service, the main successor to the Soviet-era KGB, said on 30 March that it had detained Gershkovich in the Urals city of Yekaterinburg and had opened an espionage case against the 31-year-old for collecting what it said were state secrets about the military-industrial complex.

Russia arrests Wall Street Journal reporter on ‘espionage’ charges

Pentagon reviewing whether Ukraine war documents were leaked

Saturday 8 April 2023 06:27 , Peony Hirwani

The Defense Department is reviewing a handful of documents that were released on several social media sites and appear to detail US and NATO aid to Ukraine, but may have been altered or used as part of a misinformation campaign.

The documents, which were posted on sites such as Twitter, are labeled secret and resemble routine updates that the US military’s Joint Staff would produce daily but not distribute publicly.

They are dated ranging from 23 February to 1 March, and provide what appears to detail the progress of weapons and equipment going into Ukraine with more precise timelines and amounts than the US generally provides publicly.

Read more:

Pentagon reviewing whether Ukraine war documents were leaked

US sanction officials plan missions to clamp down on Russia

Saturday 8 April 2023 05:27 , Peony Hirwani

Top sanctions officials from the US Treasury Department have planned special international trips this month to pressure firms and countries still doing business with Russia to cut off financial ties because of the war on Ukraine.

The message is that those working with Russia’s government must decide to continue to provide Moscow with material support or keep doing business with countries that represent 50 percent of the global economy.

Those are the choices to be laid out, senior Treasury officials told reporters on a call on Friday. They spoke on the condition of anonymity to preview the travel plans.

Read more:

US sanction officials plan missions to clamp down on Russia

Russia loses election to three UN bodies over Ukraine

Saturday 8 April 2023 04:30 , Peony Hirwani

Russia lost elections to three United Nations bodies this week, a sign that opposition to its invasion of Ukraine over a year ago remains strong.

In the ECOSOC votes, Russia was overwhelmingly defeated by Romania for a seat on the Commission on the Status of Women. It lost to Estonia to be a member of the executive board of the UN children’s agency UNICEF. And it was defeated by Armenia and the Czech Republic in secret ballot votes for membership in the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice.

US Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield said after the votes: “This is a clear signal from ECOSOC members that no country should hold positions on critical U.N. bodies when they are in flagrant violation of the UN Charter.”

In pictures: Ukrainian servicemen with the 95th Brigade take cover from incoming artillery shells in Lyman

Saturday 8 April 2023 03:00 , Emily Atkinson

Watch: Smoke rises from fire inside Russian defence ministry in Moscow

Saturday 8 April 2023 02:00 , Emily Atkinson

Putin’s forces ‘reach centre’ of key Ukrainian city Bakhmut in bloody battle

Saturday 8 April 2023 01:00 , Emily Atkinson

Russian forces are likely to have reached the centre of Bakhmut in their push to take over the city, according to UK intelligence.

Moscow’s troops have also seized the west bank of the river in the devastated area – endangering a key supply route to Ukraine.

Kyiv said Russia was concentrating all its efforts on capturing the eastern city, describing the situation as “difficult”, but said Ukrainian forces were holding out despite Russia’s numerical advantage during heavy fighting.

My colleague Jane Dalton has more:

Putin’s forces ‘reach centre’ of key Ukrainian city Bakhmut in bloody battle

Latest images from Ukraine’s Donetsk region

Friday 7 April 2023 23:00 , Emily Atkinson

Russia hits illegally annexed Ukraine areas from ground, air

Friday 7 April 2023 22:00 , Emily Atkinson

Russian forces used ground- and air-fired missiles, rocket launchers and weaponized drones to bombard the provinces of Ukraine it has illegally annexed but doesn’t fully control, causing casualties, building damage and power outages Friday.

The Ukrainian military said Russian forces launched 18 airstrikes, five missile strikes and 53 attacks from multiple rocket launchers between Thursday and Friday mornings.

According to the General Staff statement, Russia was concentrating the bulk of its offensive operations in Ukraine’s industrial east, focusing on the cities and towns of Lyman, Bakhmut, Avdiivka and Marinka in Donetsk province.

More on this story from The Associated Press here:

Russia hits illegally annexed Ukraine areas from ground, air

Russia digging trenches in Crimea and redeploying weapons as it fears Ukraine counteroffensive

Friday 7 April 2023 21:00 , Emily Atkinson

There are signs Russia is taking key equipment from occupied Crimea and redeploying it in Ukraine’s southern sector while also fortifying the contested peninsula ahead of an expected Ukrainian spring counteroffensive.

This comes as Ukraine has said talks with Russia on Crimea will take place if the planned counteroffensive succeeds.

“Russian forces may have withdrawn equipment from occupied Crimea for redeployment elsewhere in southern Ukraine out of fear of a Ukrainian counteroffensive,” the US-based Institute for the Study of War has said.

Arpan Rai has more:

Russia digging trenches in Crimea as it fears Ukraine counteroffensive

US 'weighs action against Russian cybersecurity firm Kaspersky Lab’

Friday 7 April 2023 20:00 , Emily Atkinson

The US department of commerce is weighing an enforcement action against Russian cybersecurity company Kaspersky Lab, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday citing people familiar with the matter.

President Joe Biden’s administration is looking at an enforcement action against the company under its online security rules, the report said.

The administration ramped up its national security probe into Kaspersky Lab’s antivirus software last year as fears grew about Russian cyberattacks after Moscow invaded Ukraine.

US regulators have already banned federal government use of Kaspersky software.

The commerce department’s bureau of industry and security, when asked for a comment on the report, said it does not comment on any potential company specific actions.

The department “is committed to fully exercising its authorities to protect Americans’ sensitive data, and to working with Congress in a bipartisan way to adapt to evolving risks”, it said.

Russia likely behind US military document leak, officials say

Friday 7 April 2023 19:00 , Emily Atkinson

Russia or pro-Russian elements are likely behind the leak of several classified US military documents posted on social media that offer a partial, month-old snapshot of the war in Ukraine, three US officials have told Reuters

The documents appear to have been altered to lower the number of casualties suffered by Russian forces, the US officials said, adding their assessments were informal and separate from an investigation into the leak itself.

The Pentagon has declined to comment on the authenticity of the documents circulating on sites including Twitter and Telegram, which are dated 1 March and bear markings showing them classified as “Secret” and “Top Secret.”

A leak of such sensitive documents is highly unusual and would automatically trigger an investigation.

“We are aware of the reports of social media posts and the department (of defence) is reviewing the matter,” Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh said.

One document posted on social media said 16,000 to 17,500 Russian forces had been killed since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The United States believes that actual figure is much higher, at around 200,000 Russians killed and wounded, officials say.

Poland to halt Ukraine grain imports temporarily

Friday 7 April 2023 18:30 , Emily Atkinson

Imports of Ukrainian grain to Poland will be temporarily halted to mitigate impact on prices, but transit will still be allowed, Polish agriculture minister Robert Telus has said.

Telus took office on Thursday after his predecessor resigned amid farmers’ protests over falling prices of produce.

“We agreed to limit and for now halt exports to Poland,” Telus told reporters after meeting his Ukrainian counterpart. “Transit will be allowed but will be closely monitored in both countries, so that Ukraine grain doesn’t stay in Poland.”

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.

WSJ reporter arrested in Russia formally charged with espionage

Friday 7 April 2023 18:00 , Emily Atkinson

An American journalist detained in Russia while working for the Wall Street Journal has formally denied espionage charges levied against him by the Russian government.

Evan Gerskovich, 31, was arrested and detained in Russia on spying charges last week, and has now been formally charged. An espionage conviction carries a sentence of up to 20 years in prison.

Russia’s Federal Security Service, the successor to the old KGB, claims it caught Gershkovich collecting intelligence on the national’s military infrastructure.

More on this story from Graig Graziosi:

WSJ reporter arrested in Russia formally charged with espionage

Xi says political settlement only ‘correct’ way out for Ukraine crisis

Friday 7 April 2023 17:30 , Emily Atkinson

China’s president Xi Jinping has declared that a political settlement is the only “correct” way out of the Ukraine crisis, the foreign ministry said in a statement.

All parties should meet each other halfway to create conditions for a political settlement, Xi told French president Emmanuel Macron during a dinner in the Chinese city of Guangzhou on Friday, the statement said.

Russia charges Wall Street Journal reporter Gershkovich with espionage

Friday 7 April 2023 17:00 , Emily Atkinson

Russian investigators have charged Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich with espionage, the Interfax news agency reported, citing an unidentified source.

Russia’s Federal Security Service, the main successor to the Soviet-era KGB, said on 30 March that it had detained Gershkovich in the Urals city of Yekaterinburg and had opened an espionage case against the 31-year-old for collecting what it said were state secrets about the military industrial complex.

“Gershkovich has been charged,” Interfax quoted a source as saying. He was charged with espionage.

The Journal has denied that Gershkovich was spying and demanded the immediate release of its “trusted and dedicated reporter”.

Ukraine PM to visit Canada in coming weeks

Friday 7 April 2023 16:30 , Emily Atkinson

Ukrainian prime minister Denys Shmyhal is planning to visit Canada to seek supplies of ammunition and armoured vehicles for a counteroffensive against invading Russian forces, the Globe and Mail reported on Friday.

Shmyhal said in an interview with the Canadian newspaper that he was not concerned about the lack of new military aid allocated for Ukraine in Canada’s federal budget, and hoped the country would provide more aid among other forms of assistance.

“Now, we need heavy armoured vehicles. And we need more artillery shells: ammunition for howitzers and ammunition for tanks,” Shmyhal said. “It’s crucially important for the organization of our counteroffensive.”

Shmyhal will visit Canada in coming weeks, the Globe and Mail said, adding that for security reasons the Kyiv government was not divulging the date of the trip.

The Ukrainian premier was quoted by the Globe as saying Ukraine would also like Canada to offer war risk insurance to Canadian companies investing in Ukraine to support reconstruction and foreign investment.

“So if a Canadian company will decide to invest money into Ukraine, we will ask the Canadian government to create some mechanism to support Canadian investments,” he said.

Ukraine debates ways to prevent military leaks after report of breach

Friday 7 April 2023 15:53 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Ukraine‘s president and top security brass discussed ways to prevent leaks of military information at a meeting on Friday, Kyiv said, after secret documents detailing Western help for Ukraine reportedly ended up online.

A statement about the meeting issued by the president’s office did not say a leak had occurred. It also did not refer to a New York Times report that said documents about U.S. and NATO plans to build up the Ukrainian military had been leaked online.

“The participants of the meeting focused on measures to prevent the leakage of information regarding the plans of the defence forces of Ukraine,” a presidency statement said, detailing other topics that participants also discussed.

The Times reported on Thursday that the Pentagon was investigating how documents about plans to build up Ukrainian forces before their planned counter-offensive against invading Russian forces were posted on social media channels this week.

Reuters was not immediately able to review the leaked documents.

Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak told Reuters earlier that the document leak looked like a Russian disinformation operation to sow doubts about the counter-offensive.

He said the leaked data contained a “very large amount of fictitious information” and that Russia appeared to be trying to seize back the initiative in its invasion, now in its 14th month.

“These are just standard elements of operational games by Russian intelligence. And nothing more,” Podolyak said in a written statement.

Ukrainian troops have for months faced a Russian onslaught in its east that has focused on the city of Bakhmut. Kyiv hopes its forces can launch a counter-offensive in the coming weeks or months to wrest back occupied territory.

“Russia is looking for any ways to seize back the initiative,” Podolyak said. “To try to influence the scenarios for Ukraine‘s counteroffensive plans. To introduce doubts, to compromise the ... ideas, and finally to intimidate (us) with how ‘informed’ they are.”

The Times report said the documents appeared to have been modified in certain parts. One part offered an estimate for Ukrainian military losses that was far higher than Western estimates made available so far.

Ukraine does not disclose the scale of its losses and is very sensitive about the subject.

Putin’s forces ‘reach centre’ of key Ukrainian city Bakhmut in bloody battle

Friday 7 April 2023 15:14 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Russian forces are likely to have reached the centre of Bakhmut in their push to take over the city, according to UK intelligence.

Moscow’s troops have also seized the west bank of the river in the devastated area – endangering a key supply route to Ukraine.

Kyiv said Russia was concentrating all its efforts on capturing the eastern city, describing the situation as “difficult”, but said Ukrainian forces were holding out despite Russia’s numerical advantage during heavy fighting.

Putin’s forces ‘reach centre’ of key Ukrainian city Bakhmut in bloody battle