Ukraine-Russia war – live: Zelensky and Dutch PM visit Odesa and agree to boost air defence

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte, visiting the Black Sea port of Odesa, vowed on Friday to improve Ukraine’s air defences and to increase the security of a “humanitarian corridor” for grain exports.

Zelensky said Kyiv was working to strengthen its position in the Black Sea so that it can continue grain exports, which are vital to ensuring budget revenues following a surge in defence spending following Russia’s invasion last year.

“Today we had a busy day in your beautiful city of Odesa, which was dedicated to global and security issues,” Zelensky told a joint press conference with Rutte.

The Odesa region has came under frequent Russian missile and drone attacks, and Zelensky and Rutte visited a damaged port.

It comes as Russian and Ukrainian forces fought fierce battles for a fourth day around the strategically important eastern Ukrainian town of Avdiivka after Moscow launched one of its biggest military offensives in months.

In other developments, The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reported on Thursday that Vladimir Putin’s troops are subsequently “exhausted” and suffering “significant” losses, according to Russian “Vostok” Battalion Commander Alexander Khodakovsky.

Key Points

• Russia’s ‘exhausted’ troops ‘suffer significant losses in key town Avdiivka’

• Ukraine hit two Russian vessels, says intelligence source

• French police probe ‘poisoning’ of TV journalist who denounced war

• Ukraine says it prevented Russian saboteurs crossing border

• Death toll from Hroza missile strike rises to 59, Ukraine says

Russia ‘relocating prize Black Sea assets'

16:02 , Sam Rkaina

Russia’s Black Sea Fleet has moved a number of its ‘prestige assets’ following a series of strikes by Ukraine in August and September, the Ministry of Defence has said.

In it’s daily update on progress on the war, the MoD said cruise missile capable ships and submarines had been relocated from Sevastopol to bases further east.

“The risk of further military losses and the dire political consequences of Russian naval forces overtly attacking merchant shipping would highly likely outweigh any gain from attempting to enforce a blockade of Ukrainian-bound trade.”

Russian attacks in east “relentless"

13:58 , Sam Rkaina

Ukrainian officials have said assaults being carried out by Russian forces are “relentless”, as the ongoing attack on the eastern Ukrainian city of Avdiivka entered its fifth day.

“The enemy has not stopped either assaulting or shelling positions” around Avdiivka, city head Vitalii Barabash said on Ukrainian television.

Barabash also reported that Moscow was deploying additional forces to encircle the strategically important city in the eastern Donetsk region, situated just north of the Moscow-held regional capital, also called Donetsk.

Around 1,600 civilians remain within the city, a stark contrast to its prewar population of about 31,000.

Barabash’s comments came after Russia’s U.N. ambassador, Vassily Nebenzia, told a U.N. Security Council meeting on Friday that the intensified attacks in the east amounted to a new stage in Moscow’s campaign in Ukraine.

“Russian troops have, for several days now, switched over to active combat action practically throughout the entire front line — The so-called Ukrainian counteroffensive can therefore be considered finished,” he said.

Ukraine sappers uncover more than 700,000 explosives

12:47 , Sam Rkaina

Ukraine has said they have uncovered more than 700,000 explosive objects in the country.

Sappers surveyed more than 152,000 hectares looking for potentially deadly devices.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine posted a video of their efforts on X on Saturday morning.

'Boy, 11, killed’ in Russian attack on Donetsk Oblast

11:36 , Sam Rkaina

An 11 year-old boy has reportedly been killed in a Russian attack on a Ukraine village.

The child died during a rocket strike against the village of Bahatyr, Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine’s National Police said on Saturday.

His brother, six, and their mother, 31, were also injured in the blast, the Kyiv Independent reported.

Fighting in east “significantly worsened”, Kyiv warns

10:44 , Sam Rkaina

Fighting along the northern portion of Ukraine‘s eastern front has “significantly worsened” in recent days, the commander of Kyiv’s ground forces said on Saturday.

Oleksandr Syrskyi, who was visiting Ukrainian troops in the area, said Russian forces had regrouped after suffering losses and were attacking around the village of Makiivka and towards the city of Kupiansk.

“The main objective of the enemy is the defeat of a grouping of our troops, the encirclement of Kupiansk and to reach the Oskil River,” he said in comments carried by an official military platform.

Syrskyi added that Russian forces were carrying out “dozens” of assaults each day, but that Ukrainian troops had been ready and were holding their ground.

The development comes as Kremlin forces were also pummelling the strategic Ukrainian city of Avdiivka, on a different section of the eastern front, in what Russian and Western officials said amounted to a new offensive.

A four-month-old Ukrainian counteroffensive has made some progress in both the east, near Bakhmut, and in the south, where Kyiv hopes to reach the Sea of Azov, but gains have been incremental.

Updated map shows latest situation on the ground

10:16 , Sam Rkaina

The Ministry of Defence has posted a new map showing the latest situation on the ground in Ukraine.

The UK’s MoD shared the image on Friday, highlighting two likely Ukrainian advances in Bakhmut in the east and Orikhiv in the south.

US ‘confident Ukraine will beat back new Russian offensive'

09:00 , Sam Rkaina

In Washington, National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said the Russian action amounted to a “new offensive”, showing that Russia was in no way ready to give up its campaign.

But the United States, he said, was confident that the Ukrainian military would beat back Russian forces.

Military analyst Serhiy Zgurets, writing on the Espreso TV website, said Avdiivka had withstood Russian attacks in 2014, when Russian-financed separatists had seized large chunks of Ukrainian territory. The area had since been fortified.

“All Russian attacks have resulted in significant losses for them,” he wrote.

‘New stage’ in Russian campaign

08:30 , Sam Rkaina

Russia’s representative to the United Nations, Vasily Nebenzia, said the intensified battles in the east signified a new stage in its campaign.

“Russian troops have, for several days now, switched over to active combat action practically throughout the entire front line,” Nebenzia told a session of the U.N. Security Council.

“The so-called Ukrainian counteroffensive can therefore be considered finished.”

Russian forces pound Avdiivka for fourth day in row

08:01 , Sam Rkaina

Russian forces pounded the eastern Ukrainian city of Avdiivka for the fourth day in a row on Friday, a new offensive in Putin’s 19-month-old invasion.

In attacks elsewhere in Ukraine, a Russian missile strike killed one person in the city of Pokrovsk, also in the east, while a drone attack in the south killed a women and seriously injured her husband.

In Avdiivka, known for its large coking plant in Ukraine‘s Donbas industrial heartland, officials said the Russian assaults had left the already-gutted city in flames.

“The fighting has been going on for four consecutive days,” Vitaliy Barabash, head of the city’s military administration, told Ukrainian national television.

“They have substantial reserves of personnel and equipment. Avdiivka is completely ablaze. They shoot, using everything they have. The hospital is again under fire, as are administrative buildings and our volunteer centre.”

White House warns Israel crisis is stretching its ability to support Ukraine: ‘Running out of runway’

06:00 , Joe Middleton

The White House said it was “running out of runway” on supporting both Ukraine and Israel as US Republican lawmakers warned they would protest any funding request for military aid from the Biden administration for the two crisis-hit nations.

“I think in the immediate term, right now, we can continue to support – with the authorities in the appropriations we have – Israel and Ukraine. But, you know, we’re ... certainly running out of runway,” said John Kirby, a spokesperson for the National Security Council.

White House warns Israel crisis is stretching its ability to support Ukraine

Ukraine holds out as Russia steps up relentless assault on Avdiivka: ‘The enemy does not stop’

05:00 , Joe Middleton

The Ukrainian military continues to hold its ground in the face of Russia’s relentless assault on the eastern city of Avdiivka, Volodymyr Zelensky has said, as the battle intensified for a third day.

Russia has moved a large armoured column of three battalions, including some 2,000 troops, dozens of armoured vehicles and jets into the northern flank of the Avdiivka front for what has been described as the biggest military offensive in months.

The Ukrainian forces said they had repelled more than 20 attacks by the Russian army in Avdiivka and the surrounding regions in the past 24 hours, in what was described as a blow to Moscow’s attempts to use the offensive to show that the tide of the war was turning in its favour.

Ukraine holds out as Russia steps up relentless assault on Avdiivka

North Korea has delivered more than 1,000 containers of military equipment and munitions to Russia, says White House

04:00 , Joe Middleton

The White House said on Friday that North Korea has delivered more than 1,000 containers of military equipment and munitions to Russia for its ongoing war in Ukraine.

Speculation about a possible North Korean plan to refill Russia’s munition stores drained in its protracted war with Ukraine flared last month, when North Korean leader Kim Jong Un travelled to Russia to meet President Vladimir Putin and visit key military sites.

White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said that the US believes Kim is seeking sophisticated Russian weapons technologies in return for the munitions to boost North Korea’s nuclear programme.

The White House released images that it said show the containers were loaded onto a Russian-flagged ship before being moved by train to southwestern Russia.

The containers were shipped between September 7 and October 1 between Najin, North Korea, and Dunay, Russia, according to the White House.

Putin makes first trip abroad since international arrest warrant issued over Ukraine invasion

03:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Russian president Vladimir Putin is visiting Kyrgyzstan for his first trip abroad since the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for him over war crimes in Ukraine.

Mr Putin arrived in the central Asian nation on Thursday for a two-day state visit for bilateral meetings and a ceremony marking the 20th anniversary of the founding of Russia’s Kant military airbase outside Bishkek, the Kyrgyz capital.

The Kremlin chief has rarely taken trips abroad since he launched what he called a “special military operation” in Ukraine in early 2022 and is not known to have stepped out of Russia since the ICC warrant was issued.

Putin makes first trip abroad since international arrest warrant issued

Ukraine holds out as Russia steps up relentless assault on Avdiivka: ‘The enemy does not stop’

02:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

The Ukrainian military continues to hold its ground in the face of Russia’s relentless assault on the eastern city of Avdiivka, Volodymyr Zelensky, as the battle intensified for a third day.

Russia has moved a large armoured column of three battalions, including some 2,000 troops, dozens of armoured vehicles and jets into the northern flank of the Avdiivka front for what has been described as the biggest military offensive in months.

The Ukrainian forces said they repelled more than 20 attacks by the Russian army in Avdiivka and the surrounding regions in the past 24 hours, in what was described as a blow to Moscow’s attempts to use the offensive to show the tide of the war turning in its favour.

Ukraine holds out as Russia steps up relentless assault on Avdiivka

IOC bans Russian Olympic Committee for including annexed Ukraine territories

01:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Russia has been suspended by the Olympic authorities with immediate effect after it tried to include four regions in eastern Ukraine under its sporting jurisdiction.

The land grab in sports administration saw Russia’s Olympic officials announce last week that they were accepting the local sports councils of Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia as new members.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced Russia’s suspension saying the move by the Russian Olympic Committee was a breach of the Olympic Charter, a set of rules and principles for international sports bodies.

The suspension will not have any immediate effect on Russians who are in line to compete at international events as neutral athletes, such as in qualifying stages for next year’s Paris Olympics.

IOC bans Russian Olympic Committee for including annexed territories

Russia hit 6 ships, 150 port facilities, destroyed 300,000 T of grain -Kyiv government

Saturday 14 October 2023 00:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Russia has hit six civilian ships, 150 port and grain facilities and destroyed over 300,000 tonnes of grain since Moscow quit a deal allowing safe Black Sea exports of Ukrainian grain, the Kyiv government said on Friday.

In a statement, it said 21 vessels had been already loaded with grain for exports and used a new “humanitarian” grain corridor in the Black Sea announced by Kyiv in August. It said a total of 25 ships had entered Ukrainian ports for loading.

Russia destroyed 300,000 tons of grain since July in port, ship attacks

Friday 13 October 2023 23:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Russia has destroyed almost 300,000 metric tons of grain since July in attacks on Ukraine‘s port facilities and on ships, the Ukrainian government said on Friday, underscoring the war’s threat to global food security.

In summer, Moscow quit a U.N.-brokered deal that had allowed exports of Ukrainian grain through the Black Sea safely. Since then, Russian forces have hit six civilian ships and 150 port and grain facilities during 17 attacks, destroying crops headed for export, Deputy Prime Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov said in a statement.

“This is Russia‘s attempt to deepen the food crisis in the countries which depend on Ukrainian products,” Kubrakov said.

The damage on Ukrainian ports reduced the country’s grain export potential by 40%, he said. Russia has attacked port facilities on both the Black Sea and Danube River.

Ukraine is one of the world’s largest wheat and corn exporters.

The Russian Defence Ministry could not be immediately reached for comment.

Kubrakov said 21 grain-loaded vessels have already used a new “humanitarian” grain corridor in the Black Sea that Kyiv established in August.

He said that under the previous U.N. Black Sea Grain Initiative, Ukraine had exported 33 million tonnes of grain, with 60% of that shipped to African and Asian countries.

US says North Korea delivered 1,000 containers of equipment and munitions to Russia for Ukraine war

Friday 13 October 2023 21:38 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

The White House said on Friday that North Korea has delivered more than 1,000 containers of military equipment and munitions to Russia for its ongoing war in Ukraine.Speculation about a possible North Korean plan to refill Russia‘s munition stores drained in its protracted war with Ukraine flared last month, when North Korean leader Kim Jong Un traveled to Russia to meet President Vladimir Putin and visit key military sites.White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said that the U.S. believes Kim is seeking sophisticated Russian weapons technologies in return for the munitions to boost North Korea’s military and nuclear program.The White House released images that it said show the containers were loaded onto a Russian-flagged ship before being moved via train to southwestern Russia. The containers were shipped between Sept. 7 and Oct. 1 between Najin, North Korea, and Dunay, Russia, according to the White House.“We condemn the DPRK for providing Russian with this military equipment, which will be used to attack Ukrainian cities and kill Ukrainian civilians and further Russia‘s illegitimate war,” Kirby said, using the initials for Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, the country’s official name. “In return for support, we assess the Pyongyang is seeking military assistance from Russia including fighter aircraft, surface to air missiles, armored vehicles, ballistic missile production equipment, or other materials and other advanced technologies.”

Ukrainians may be among Hamas hostages, according to reports

Friday 13 October 2023 20:11 , Joe Middleton

Ukrainian citizens may be among those being held hostage by Hamas, it has been reported.

Ukraine’s Ambassador to Israel Yevhen Korniychuk said Israeli authorities believe it is possible that Ukrainians were taken by the militants, although there is no concrete information yet, reported The Kyiv Independent.

Russian air strikes kill two in Ukraine, Kyiv officials say

Friday 13 October 2023 18:48 , Joe Middleton

At least two people were killed and 15 wounded in Russian air strikes in southern and eastern Ukraine on Friday, Ukrainian officials said.

One person was killed and 13 wounded by a missile strike on the city of Pokrovsk in the eastern region of Donetsk, the Ukrainian Interior Ministry said, citing preliminary information.

Emergency services said two administrative buildings had been damaged.

A 34-year-old woman was killed and her 36-year-old husband seriously injured in a drone strike on their vehicle in the town of Beryslav in the southern Kherson region, regional governor Oleksandr Prokudin said on the Telegram messaging app.

A 79-year-old woman who was standing nearby was also hurt, he said.

“This is a deliberate hunt for civilians,” Andriy Yermak, the head of the presidential office, said on Telegram.

Reuters could not independently verify the information. Russia has denied deliberately targeting civilians although many have been killed in attacks across Ukraine.

Britain to boost military presence in Northern Europe

Friday 13 October 2023 17:35 , Joe Middleton

Britain said it planned to step up its military presence in Northern Europe, including deploying 20,000 troops to the region next year, to help protect critical infrastructure at a time of growing concern over Russian sabotage.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak earlier on Friday met fellow leaders as part of the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) defence cooperation summit on the Swedish island of Gotland in the Baltic Sea.

Britain said in a statement it would send 20,000 soldiers, sailors, marines and air men and women plus eight Royal Navy ships and a group of fast jets and military helicopters to help police and deter threats from Russia.

Britain said they would take part in large-scale, multi-country exercises, and carry out air policing and cold weather training.

JEF, a defence cooperation group between the Nordic and Baltic states, the Netherlands and Britain, was meeting days after a pipeline and a data cable in the Gulf of Finland were damaged due to “outside activity”, stoking concerns about security in the wider Nordic region.

“This week, we have seen yet again that our security cannot be taken for granted. It is vital that we stand united against those with malign intent,” Sunak said in a statement.

Zelenskiy and Dutch PM visit Odesa and agree to boost air defence

Friday 13 October 2023 16:22 , Tara Cobham

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, visiting the Black Sea port of Odesa, vowed on Friday to improve Ukraine's air defences and to increase the security of a "humanitarian corridor" for grain exports.

Zelenskiy said Kyiv was working to strengthen its position in the Black sea so that it can continue grain exports, which are vital to ensuring budget revenues following a surge in defence spending following Russia's invasion last year.

"Today we had a busy day in your beautiful city of Odesa, which was dedicated to global and security issues," Zelenskiy told a joint press conference with Rutte. "We are working with partners to protect properly these corridors, and strengthen our positions in the Black Sea, and it also applies to the protection of Odesa's skies and in the region as a whole..."

The Odesa region has came under frequent Russian missile and drone attacks, and Zelenskiy and Rutte visited a damaged port.

Zelenskiy described the air strikes as "vile tactics" and thanked Rutte for a new air defence package, which would include missiles for Patriot air defence systems and patrol ships.

The Netherlands has provided Ukraine with financial aid and weapons during the war, and has led efforts to help train Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets.

Putin on fate of Russian tycoon Fridman

Friday 13 October 2023 15:43 , Tara Cobham

The fate of anyone who returns to Russia from abroad depends on how they have behaved, President Vladimir Putin said when asked about the future of Russian billionaire Mikhail Fridman.

Fridman was reported to have returned to Russia this week for the first time since the start of the Ukraine conflict. Russian senator Dmitry Rogozin has asked investigators to check reports of possible funding of the Ukrainian armed forces by Fridman.

If someone has behaved immorally and returns, "they will feel it", Putin told reporters.

Britain to boost military presence in Northern Europe

Friday 13 October 2023 15:29 , Tara Cobham

Britain said it planned to step up its military presence in Northern Europe, including deploying 20,000 troops to the region next year, to help protect critical infrastructure at a time of growing concern over Russian sabotage.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak earlier on Friday met fellow leaders as part of the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) defence cooperation summit on the Swedish island of Gotland in the Baltic Sea.

Britain said in a statement it would send 20,000 soldiers, sailors, marines and air men and women plus eight Royal Navy ships and a group of fast jets and military helicopters to help police and deter threats from Russia.

Britain said they would take part in large-scale, multi-country exercises, and carry out air policing and cold weather training.

JEF, a defence cooperation group between the Nordic and Baltic states, the Netherlands and Britain, was meeting days after a pipeline and a data cable in the Gulf of Finland were damaged due to "outside activity", stoking concerns about security in the wider Nordic region.

"This week, we have seen yet again that our security cannot be taken for granted. It is vital that we stand united against those with malign intent," Sunak said in a statement.

Ukraine to receive German grant to bolster grid defences

Friday 13 October 2023 15:08 , Katy Clifton

Ukraine‘s national grid operator Ukrenergo has said it would be receiving a 76-million-euro grant from Germany’s KfW to strengthen defences of the grid over winter and increase the reliability of electricity supplies.

Ukraine is bracing for renewed Russian attacks this winter on its power infrastructure, which remains vulnerable after damaging air strikes last winter resulted in long periods without light, heating or water supplies.

Ukrenergo said in a statement the financing from the German development bank would be channelled to the construction of “engineering defence” of energy facilities and modernisation of networks “on the border with Europe”.

It said that in total it has attracted over 220 million euros of grants and loans from KfW intended for restoration and reconstruction.

Ukraine says it blew up railway line in Russian-occupied Melitopol

Friday 13 October 2023 13:41 , Tara Cobham

Ukraine's Special Operation Forces blew up a railway line in the Russian-occupied southeastern city of Melitopol on Friday morning, they said in a statement.

"As a result of the explosion, the railway track and the train delivering ammunition and fuel to Russia's army was damaged," the special forces said.

Russian air strikes kill two in Ukraine, Kyiv officials say

Friday 13 October 2023 12:42 , Tara Cobham

At least two people were killed and 15 wounded in Russian air strikes in southern and eastern Ukraine on Friday, Ukrainian officials said.

One person was killed and 13 wounded by a missile strike on the city of Pokrovsk in the eastern region of Donetsk, the Ukrainian Interior Ministry said, citing preliminary information.

Emergency services said two administrative buildings had been damaged.

A 34-year-old woman was killed and her 36-year-old husband seriously injured in a drone strike on their vehicle in the town of Beryslav in the southern Kherson region, regional governor Oleksandr Prokudin said on the Telegram messaging app.

A 79-year-old woman who was standing nearby was also hurt, he said.

"This is a deliberate hunt for civilians," Andriy Yermak, the head of the presidential office, said on Telegram.

Reuters could not independently verify the information. Russia has denied deliberately targeting civilians although many have been killed in attacks across Ukraine.

Ukrainians may be among Hamas hostages, according to reports

Friday 13 October 2023 12:00 , Tara Cobham

Ukrainian citizens may be among those being held hostage by Hamas, it has been reported.

Ukraine’s Ambassador to Israel Yevhen Korniychuk said Israeli authorities believe it is possible that Ukrainians were taken by the militants, although there is no concrete information yet, reported The Kyiv Independent.

Recap: White House warns Israel stretching ability to support Ukraine

Friday 13 October 2023 11:35 , Tara Cobham

The White House said it was “running out of runway” on supporting both Ukraine and Israel as US Republican lawmakers warned they would protest any funding request for military aid from the Biden administration for the two crisis-hit nations.

“I think in the immediate term, right now, we can continue to support – with the authorities in the appropriations we have – Israel and Ukraine. But, you know, we’re ... certainly running out of runway,” said John Kirby, a spokesperson for the National Security Council.

Mr Kirby was answering a question at a daily briefing on the administration meeting the immediate needs of Ukraine and Israel along with the continuing fight to elect a House Speaker.

Arpan Rai reports:

White House warns Israel crisis is stretching its ability to support Ukraine

Ukraine hit two Russian vessels, says intelligence source

Friday 13 October 2023 11:25 , Tara Cobham

Ukraine struck a Russian missile carrier and a patrol ship in separate attacks this week involving sea-borne drones carrying experimental weapons, a Ukrainian intelligence source said on Friday.

The source gave no details of the damage but said the "Buyan" missile carrier was attacked on Friday and the "Pavel Derzhavin" missile carrier was attacked on Wednesday in joint operations carried out by the Ukrainian Security Service and naval forces.

"After the first detonation, Russian minesweepers and divers were unable to discover our know-how," the source told Reuters. "The Buyan missile carrier... was struck today on the Sevastopol route by experimental weapons on 'Sea Babies' (naval drones)."

Reuters could not immediately verify the reports independently.

Anton Gerashchenko, Advisor to the Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, is among those who have on Friday posted footage on social media, which is suggested to show smoke emerging from a Russian vessel in the roadstead of Sevastopol, Crimea.

Russia continues to pummel Avdiivka in fourth day of fighting

Friday 13 October 2023 11:19 , Tara Cobham

Russian forces pummelled the eastern Ukrainian town of Avdiivka from the ground and air on Friday, the fourth day of intense fighting in the biggest offensive by Russian forces in months.

Ukraine said its forces were holding their ground but Vitaliy Barabash, the head of Avdiivka's military administration, said the town was under constant attack from air, artillery and large numbers of troops.

"The battles have been going on for four days now. Fierce and really non-stop ... They are firing from everything they have available," Barabash said in televised comments.

"It was a very hot night in Avdiivka. There were several air strikes on the city itself ... the attacks do not stop day or night."

The attack on Avdiivka is one of the few big assaults Russia has mounted since Ukrainian forces launched a counteroffensive in early June to try to drive out Russian troops occupying large swathes of territory in the east and south.

Russia will never be seen as reliable energy supplier, US energy official says

Friday 13 October 2023 10:45 , Tara Cobham

US Assistant Secretary for Energy Resources Geoffrey Pyatt said on Friday Russia would never again be viewed as a reliable energy supplier, a day after Washington imposed fresh sanctions on Moscow because of its war in Ukraine.

Speaking at an online briefing ahead of next week's US-Japan Energy Security Dialogue, Pyatt also said the United States and its partners in the Group of 7 were committed to denying Russia any energy revenues.

The United States on Thursday imposed the first sanctions on owners of tankers carrying Russian oil priced above the G7's price cap of $60 a barrel, in an effort to close loopholes in the mechanism.

"It's very clear to me that Russia is never again going to be viewed as a reliable energy supplier," Pyatt told reporters.

"In the case of our G7 partners in particular, we are also committed to work jointly to deny Russia future energy revenues, and target in particular investments and projects growing Russia's future energy revenue," he added.

Putin makes first trip abroad since arrest warrant issued

Friday 13 October 2023 10:00 , Tara Cobham

Russian president Vladimir Putin is visiting Kyrgyzstan for his first trip abroad since the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for him over war crimes in Ukraine.

Mr Putin arrived in the central Asian nation on Thursday for a two-day state visit for bilateral meetings and a ceremony marking the 20th anniversary of the founding of Russia’s Kant military airbase outside Bishkek, the Kyrgyz capital.

The Kremlin chief has rarely taken trips abroad since he launched what he called a “special military operation” in Ukraine in early 2022 and is not known to have stepped out of Russia since the ICC warrant was issued.

Shweta Sharma reports:

Putin makes first trip abroad since international arrest warrant issued

Ukraine says its forces are holding their ground around Avdiivka

Friday 13 October 2023 09:20 , Tara Cobham

Ukrainian troops are holding their ground near the eastern town of Avdiivka in heavy fighting against Russian forces, the head of the president's office said on Friday.

Andriy Yermak said on the Telegram messaging app that Ukrainian forces were holding their positions "in difficult fighting" despite a large number of Russian reinforcements.

One killed and 12 hurt in Russian attack on Ukraine’s Pokrovsk

Friday 13 October 2023 08:54 , Tara Cobham

One person was killed and 12 wounded in a Russian attack on the city of Pokrovsk in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine on Friday, emergency services said.

The emergency services said in a statement that two administrative buildings had been damaged as a result of the attack and three people had been rescued from under rubble.

Ukraine holds out as Russia steps up relentless assault on Avdiivka

Friday 13 October 2023 08:37 , Tara Cobham

The Ukrainian military continues to hold its ground in the face of Russia’s relentless assault on the eastern city of Avdiivka, Volodymyr Zelensky, as the battle intensified for a third day.

Russia has moved a large armoured column of three battalions, including some 2,000 troops, dozens of armoured vehicles and jets into the northern flank of the Avdiivka front for what has been described as the biggest military offensive in months.

The Ukrainian forces said they repelled more than 20 attacks by the Russian army in Avdiivka and the surrounding regions in the past 24 hours, in what was described as a blow to Moscow’s attempts to use the offensive to show the tide of the war turning in its favour.

Shweta Sharma reports:

Ukraine holds out as Russia steps up relentless assault on Avdiivka

Four Dutch companies fined for helping Russia build Crimea bridge

Friday 13 October 2023 08:15 , Tara Cobham

The Dutch prosecutor has penalised four Dutch companies and eight people for breaching EU sanctions on Russia between 2014 and 2017 for helping Moscow build a bridge to Crimea, it said in a statement on Friday.

The eight people were sentenced to community service ranging from 20 to 60 hours while the companies paid fines totalling 160,000 euros ($169,000).

The companies involved supplied machines, machine parts and other services for the construction of the 19 kilometre (11.8 mile) long bridge spanning the Strait of Kerch, the prosecutor's office said.

"The Crimean bridge was built partly due to the use of Dutch knowledge and expertise," it added.

By committing the sanction violations, one company benefited from supplying the prohibited goods and services. This illegally obtained benefit amounting to 71,330 euros has been confiscated by the Dutch prosecutor.

The prosecutors' office did not name the companies involved.

IOC bans Russian Olympic Committee over annexed territories

Friday 13 October 2023 08:04 , Tara Cobham

Russia has been suspended by the Olympic authorities with immediate effect after it tried to include four regions in eastern Ukraine under its sporting jurisdiction.

The land grab in sports administration saw Russia’s Olympic officials announce last week that they were accepting the local sports councils of Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia as new members.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced Russia’s suspension saying the move by the Russian Olympic Committee was a breach of the Olympic Charter, a set of rules and principles for international sports bodies.

Shweta Sharma reports:

French police probe ‘poisoning’ of journalist who denounced war

Friday 13 October 2023 08:03 , Tara Cobham

French police are investigating the suspected poisoning of a Russian state TV journalist who denounced Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine live on air and later fell suddenly ill.

Marina Ovsyannikova, who escaped Russia after her on-air protest and settled in France, reported feeling suddenly ill as she left her Paris apartment and was hospitalised after she called emergency services.

She said she suspected she was poisoned, the Paris prosecutor’s office said, adding that they were examining her apartment and an investigation was underway.

Shweta Sharma reports:

French police probe ‘poisoning’ of journalist who denounced Putin’s war live on TV

Russia’s ‘exhausted’ troops ‘suffer significant losses in key town Avdiivka’

Friday 13 October 2023 07:47 , Tara Cobham

Russian troops are “exhausted” after suffering “significant” losses following their major attack on the key Ukrainian town of Avdiivka, a US war think tank has said.

Russian and Ukrainian forces fought fierce battles around the strategically important eastern town for a third day after Moscow launched one of its biggest military offensives in months.

The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reported on Thursday that Vladimir Putin’s troops are subsequently “exhausted”, according to Russian “Vostok” Battalion Commander Alexander Khodakovsky, who is now even “advocating for Russian forces to freeze the frontlines in Ukraine” in order to make replacements.

The ISW added that, in the face of relentless attacks, Ukrainian forces have managed to destroy at least 36 Russian armoured vehicles, including tanks, according to a Ukrainian reserve officer.

Avdiivka is described as a gateway to the city of Donetsk, the capital of the Donbas region, and has become a symbol of resistance since Russia’s invasion.

Village in ruins

Friday 13 October 2023 05:00 , Jane Dalton

The village of Velyka Novosilka, in the south of the Donetsk region has been almost reduced to ruins:

Putin could restart banned nuclear tests

Friday 13 October 2023 03:45 , Jane Dalton

A recap: Vladimir Putin has told Russian lawmakers to find how best to revoke Moscow’s ratification of a critical nuclear treaty which bans Russia from testing atomic weapons shortly after he suggested the possibility of resuming such testing:

Putin could restart banned nuclear tests as Russian lawmakers review treaty

Life without power and under fire in Donetsk

Friday 13 October 2023 02:30 , Jane Dalton

A 72-year-old woman takes care of her sick husband, 75, who spent more than a year in the basement of their home in Velyka Novosilka, Donetsk region.

The town has been constantly shelled since the beginning of Russia’s invasion. Before the war, it had a population of around 6,000. Today only around 600-700 people still live there, without electricity or water, and constantly taking cover from shelling in basements.

How journalist risked everything to protest against war on live TV

Friday 13 October 2023 01:22 , Jane Dalton

This is how Marina Ovsyannikova put her career, her family - and even her life - on the line last March, to tell Russian viewers they were being lied to by state television:

Russian journalist who held ‘no war’ sign on TV says she was questioned for 14 hours

Putin wants worst-case scenario in Middle East, says Zelensky

Friday 13 October 2023 00:20 , Jane Dalton

Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky has accused Russia of wanting the worst-case scenario in the Middle East.

“I am grateful to everyone worldwide who is making efforts to prevent an explosion in the Middle East, and to hold terrorists accountable for their actions in Israel—against children and women, against ordinary people,” he said in his nightly address.

It was important to continue to deprive Russia of its ability to finance aggression through energy resources, he said.

US cobbles together global parts to build new weapons

Thursday 12 October 2023 23:10 , Jane Dalton

The US has cobbled together radars and other parts contributed by various countries to build a new missile launcher for Ukraine, in a Frankenstein-like programme for surface-to-air missiles:

Pentagon's 'FrankenSAM' program cobbles together air defense weapons for Ukraine

IOC bans Russian Olympic Committee

Thursday 12 October 2023 22:59 , Joe Middleton

The Russian Olympic Committee was banned with immediate effect on Thursday for recognising regional organisations from four territories annexed from Ukraine, the International Olympic Committee said.

The IOC added the ROC would not be eligible for any funding after it recognised earlier this month Olympic Councils from the regions of Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia but that it would not affect any Russian athletes competing as neutrals.

“The unilateral decision taken by the Russian Olympic Committee on 5 October 2023 to include, as its members, the regional sports organisations which are under the authority of the National Olympic Committee (NOC) of Ukraine (namely Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia) constitutes a breach of the Olympic Charter,” the IOC said in a statement.

US sanctions tanker owners for Russian oil above price cap

Thursday 12 October 2023 22:05 , Jane Dalton

The US has imposed the first sanctions on owners of tankers carrying Russian oil above the G7 price cap of $60 a barrel, one based in Turkey and one in the United Arab Emirates, in an effort to close loopholes on the mechanism designed to punish Moscow for the war in Ukraine.

The US, other G7 countries and Australia imposed the cap last year, seeking to reduce Russia’s revenues from seaborne oil exports as part of sanctions for its invasion of Ukraine.

The cap bans Western companies from providing maritime services, including insurance, finance and shipping, for Russian seaborne oil exports sold above $60 a barrel, while seeking to keep oil flowing to markets. Caps also were imposed on Russian fuel exports.

French police probe ‘poisoning’ of TV journalist who denounced war

Thursday 12 October 2023 21:01 , Jane Dalton

French prosecutors are investigating the suspected poisoning of a Russian journalist who fled after denouncing the war in Ukraine on live television:

French police are probing possible poisoning of Russian journalist who denounced Ukraine war on TV

Nato to hold major nuclear exercise

Thursday 12 October 2023 20:00 , Jane Dalton

Nato will hold a major nuclear exercise next week, the alliance’s chief said, after Russia warned it would pull out of a global nuclear test ban agreement:

NATO will hold a major nuclear exercise next week as Russia plans to pull out of a test ban treaty

Girl, 4, and two other people ‘killed in drone attack on Russia'

Thursday 12 October 2023 18:55 , Jane Dalton

A four-year-old girl was among three people killed in a Ukrainian drone attack on a village in Russia that left her father in a coma and her mother seriously injured, authorities say.

Vyacheslav Gladkov, governor of the southern Belgorod region, said debris from the drone had destroyed one house and that three bodies - of a man, a woman, and a child - had been recovered from under the rubble. Two other houses had been damaged.

It was not immediately clear who the dead man and woman were or whether they were related to the child.

Dmitry Kiselyov, director-general of state media group Russia Today, was cited by the RIA news agency as saying that Khaybar Akifi, a 29-year-old man who worked for the Sputnik news agency, had been seriously injured in the incident, along with his wife, Olesya.

Amina, the couple’s four-year-old daughter, had been killed, he said.

Denmark and Czech Republic to send Kyiv heavy fighting gear

Thursday 12 October 2023 18:15 , Jane Dalton

The Czech Republic and Denmark will jointly supply heavy military equipment to Ukraine in the coming months, the Czech Defence Ministry says.

It said the supplies would be from Czech defence companies and financed from the Danish budget.

The joint plan was first announced last month.

The Czech ministry says the first shipment will include nearly 50 infantry fighting vehicles and main battle tanks, 2,500 hand guns, 7,000 rifles, 500 light machine guns, 500 sniper rifles and equipment for electronic warfare and intelligence.

The supplies will include new and modernised equipment.

The ministry said last month the first shipment would include 15 modernised T-72EA main battle tanks.

Nato warns of ‘united and determined’ response to pipeline attack

Thursday 12 October 2023 17:39 , Jane Dalton

The head of Nato has warned of a “united and determined response” if it turns out that damage to a gas pipeline and data cable running between member states Finland and Estonia was a deliberate attack.

Damage to the pipeline and telecommunications cable was confirmed on Tuesday after one of the two pipeline operators, Finland’s Gasgrid, noted a drop in pressure and possible leak on Sunday night during a storm.

Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said the bloc was working with Estonia and Finalnd as they try to establish the facts.

“If this is proven to be a deliberate attack on critical infrastructure it will be a serious incident and it would be met by united and determined response,” Mr Stoltenberg said.

The pipeline runs across the Gulf of Finland, part of the Baltic Sea that stretches eastward into Russian waters and ends at the port of St Petersburg.

White House warns Israel stretching its ability to support Ukraine

Thursday 12 October 2023 17:12 , Jane Dalton

The White House said it was “running out of runway” on supporting both Ukraine and Israel as US Republican lawmakers warned they would object to any funding request for military aid for the two crisis-hit nations:

White House warns Israel crisis is stretching its ability to support Ukraine

Russia set to scrap nuclear test ban treaty ratification

Thursday 12 October 2023 16:42 , Jane Dalton

Russia’s parliament will vote next week on withdrawing Moscow’s ratification of the global treaty that bans nuclear tests, politicians have said.

The move could provide Moscow with legal cover to conduct a test involving a nuclear explosion for the first time since 1990, even though it says it has no such intention.

Parliament’s lower house, the State Duma, said it would hold a first reading on the bill next Tuesday. Leonid Slutsky, head of the Duma’s international affairs committee, said he expected it to complete its passage two days later.

All 450 members of the Duma would sponsor the motion, Slutsky said, a sign that its unanimous approval is guaranteed.

Russia ratified the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty in 2000; the United States has signed but never ratified it.

‘We must not give terror a single chance'

Thursday 12 October 2023 16:12 , Jane Dalton

Watch again as Volodymyr Zelensky addressed Nato’s Parliamentary Assembly on Monday:

Watch: Zelensky addresses Nato’s Parliamentary Assembly amid new Russian attacks

Drone fragments found in Romania after Russian attacks

Thursday 12 October 2023 15:40 , Jane Dalton

Romania’s defence ministry says it has found a drone crater near the country’s border with Ukraine following Russian attacks on Ukrainian port infrastructure last night.

Russia has been targeting Ukrainian ports and warehouses along the Danube between Ukraine and Nato member Romania since pulling out of a deal in July that had allowed Kyiv to export grain from its Black Sea ports. The strikes seem designed to choke off the main alternative route for Ukraine‘s farm exports.

In that time, Romania has reported isolated incidents of drone parts landing in the country, although it has said Romanian territory was not the intended target.

Authorities there have confirmed other drone fragments on its soil in recent weeks.

The defence ministry said there was a “possible explosion on impact” at the crater, measures had been taken to secure the area and forces would continue to monitor Romanian airspace.

“The Ministry of National Defence strongly condemns the attacks carried out by the Russian Federation against some objectives and elements of civil infrastructure in the Ukrainian ports on the Danube,” it said.

Russia steps up assault on symbolic town of Avdiivka

Thursday 12 October 2023 15:10 , Jane Dalton

Russia has pounded port and grain facilities in southern Ukraine and launched new attacks on the eastern town of Avdiivka in one of its biggest offensive operations in months.

Underlining the intensity and importance of the assault on Avdiivka, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukrainian forces were holding their ground. Ukraine’s military said it had repelled more than 10 Russian attacks near the town.

Russia is hitting back more than four months into a Ukrainian counteroffensive in the east and south that has encountered stiff Russian resistance.

Avdiivka, which is home to a big coking plant in the southwest of the Donetsk region, lies just northwest of the Russian-held city of Donetsk. A symbol of resistance to Russia’s invasion in February last year, it has helped ensure Moscow could not gain full control of a region it says it has annexed.

Russia has also intensified air strikes on Danube River ports in the southern Odesa region that have become Kyiv’s main route for food exports since Moscow quit a deal allowing shipments via the Black Sea in July.