Ukraine-Russia war – live: Blow for Putin as Kyiv repels frontline attacks on key village Avdiivka

Ukrainian soldiers successfully repelled Russian attacks along the war frontline at Avdiivka on Tuesday in a blow to Vladimir Putin’s forces, officials said.

“I can add that our defenders on the Avdiivka front repelled all the attacks of the enemy, no losses of lines and positions were sustained,” colonel Oleksandr Shtupun, Kyiv’s spokesperson of the joint press centre of defence forces, said.

He confirmed an escalation of Russian military offensive actions on the same front. He said Ukrainian forces repelled attacks in Keramika, Ocheretyne, Berdychiv, Stepove, Lastochkyne, Tonenke, Avdiivka, and Pervomaiske in Donetsk oblast.

It comes as Vladimir Putin is set to visit Kyrgyzstan on Thursday, the presidential office of the Central Asian country said, in what would be the Russian leader's first known trip abroad since the International Criminal Court issued a warrant for his arrest.

Meanwhile, Russia has failed in its bid to return to the United Nations’ top human rights body on Tuesday, in a sign Moscow will continue to be isolated on the international stage.

Key Points

• Putin travelling on first trip abroad since ICC arrest warrant

• Russian bid to return to UN rights body fails after vote

• Russia sends dozens of drones into Ukraine in latest air strike

• Ukraine makes advances near Bakhmut

• UN members condemn village wake bombing

• Record number of Russian drone attacks expected this winter

Putin travelling on first trip abroad since ICC arrest warrant

07:35 , Tara Cobham

Vladimir Putin will visit Kyrgyzstan on Thursday, the presidential office of the Central Asian country said, in what would be the Russian leader's first known trip abroad since the International Criminal Court issued a warrant for his arrest.

Putin has rarely travelled abroad since the start of Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in early 2022 and is not known to have left Russia since the ICC issued in March a warrant for him on suspicion of illegally deporting hundreds of children from Ukraine. The Kremlin denies those allegations.

"At the invitation of the President of the Kyrgyz Republic, Sadyr Japarov, on October 12 of this year, the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, will make an official visit to the country," the Kyrgyz presidential administration said in a statement on its website.

Putin agreed in May during talks with Japarov to visit Kyrgyzstan, but there has been no official confirmation yet from the Kremlin that the Russian president will travel there on Thursday.

The Russian leader is also due to travel to China next week for the third Belt and Road Forum in Beijing. Neither Kyrgyzstan nor China are members of the ICC, which was established to prosecute war crimes.

Moscow denies the ICC allegations and the Kremlin said the warrant was evidence of the West's hostility to Russia, which opened a criminal case against the ICC prosecutor and the judges who issued the warrant.

Belgium's prime minister says his country supports a ban on Russian diamonds as part of sanctions

16:27 , Joe Middleton

Belgium’s prime minister said his country, which has the biggest interest in the global diamond trade in the European Union, is supporting a ban on Russian diamonds as part of sanctions targeting President Vladimir Putin’s government for its war against Ukraine.

This came during Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyya’s visit to Brussels on Wednesday. He has repeatedly asked for such a move since the start of Russia’s invasion in February 2022.

For months, the Group of Seven advanced economies and the EU have been working on a way to trace and restrict the trade in Russian diamonds to prevent it from skirting the sanctions. Russia exports about $4 billion worth of rough diamonds a year, nearly a third of the world’s total, according to various estimates.

Belgium's prime minister says his country supports a ban on Russian diamonds as part of sanctions

Returning Russians who backed Ukraine must be sent to mines, says Putin ally

15:18 , Tara Cobham

Russians who fled the country to side with Ukraine should be charged with treason and sent to work in mines in parts of Russia where there is no summer if they return home, the chairman of Russia's parliament said on Wednesday.

Russia's war in Ukraine, something it calls a "special military operation", and a subsequent mobilisation campaign, prompted several hundred thousand Russians to leave their homeland, though it is unclear exactly how many.

Moscow has tried to encourage some specialists, such as IT workers, to return and says some Russians have come back.

But Vyacheslav Volodin, the speaker of the Duma, the lower house of parliament, made it clear on Wednesday that the authorities were less keen to see Russians whom he and others regard as traitors returning.

"If they start returning now but have made statements against the country and financed the armed forces of Ukraine then of course we must choose a place to send them immediately," Volodin told parliament.

"Such actions relate to article 275 of the criminal code - state treason. We're probably... talking about mines and we need to find territories where the weather is more constant, where there's no summer."

Volodin, an ally of President Vladimir Putin, had suggested on Monday that such people, known in Russian as "relokanty", should be sent to the far eastern region of Magadan known for its Stalin-era Gulag camps.

Former Australian PM had ‘China in mind’ when arming Ukraine

14:22 , Tom Watling

Former Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Wednesday that he also had Beijing on his mind when he decided to help arm Ukraine given Western concern about the global expansion of authoritarianism.

Morrison, who was prime minister from 2018 to 2022, had repeated disputes with China, including in 2020 when Canberra called for an independent investigation into the origins of the coronavirus pandemic, first identified in central China in 2019.

China responded by imposing tariffs on Australian commodities, including wine and barley, and limited imports of Australian beef, coal and grapes, moves described by the United States as “economic coercion”.

Speaking at a forum in Taipei, Mr Morrison said his decision to fund lethal defensive weapons for Ukraine after Russia's invasion had a broader message.

“When my government took the decision for Australia to swiftly provide lethal aid to support and assist Ukraine following the illegal invasion by Russia, that decision was taken with as much of having Beijing in mind as Moscow,” Mr Morrison said.

“We did it certainly to support Ukraine in their time of need and to defend democracy there, but we also did it to demonstrate our alignment with a global Western resolve to resist the aggression of authoritarianism, especially given the tacit endorsement of that invasion by Beijing,” he added.

“As I said, I was as concerned about Beijing as I was about Moscow.”

Belgium to supply Ukraine with F-16s to Ukraine

13:24 , Tom Watling

Belgium has announced that it hopes to send F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine by 2025.

Prime Minister of Belgium, Alexander De Croo, said this during a meeting in Brussels for the Ramstein discussions.

Mr Kroo said: “We joined the F-16 coalition from the beginning. And we said from the beginning that we would provide training, training personnel, and our own F-16 aircraft, including 2-seat F-16s, that would participate in the training mission in various locations in Europe in the next few months.

“We will be providing maintenance for the aircraft that you will receive and training Ukrainian workers to be able to maintain the aircraft.”

Russian military facing mental health crisis, says MoD

12:43 , Tara Cobham

The Russian military is facing a mental health crisis, the UK’s Ministry of Defence (MoD) has said in its latest intelligence update.

In December, 100,000 military personnel were found by Russian psychologists to be suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), according to the MoD, with this number expected to have risen since.

Consequently, the MoD said: “Russia’s combat fighting effectiveness continues to operate at sub-optimal levels.”

Ukraine accuses two villagers of helping deadly strike on Hroza

12:28 , Tara Cobham

Ukraine's domestic intelligence service on Wednesday accused two villagers who fled to Russia of helping guide a missile strike that killed dozens of people, mostly civilians, at a soldiers' wake in the Ukrainian village of Hroza.

The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said in a statement on the Telegram messaging app that the two suspects, who were brothers, worked for Russian occupation authorities when Moscow controlled the village for several months in 2022.

The SBU said the men fled to Russia shortly before Ukraine regained control of the village in September last year. After this, the agency said the men continued to work for Russia by building a network of informants in Ukraine.

When Reuters visited the village last Friday, two residents said that SBU officials had visited the village and checked residents' phones after the attack.

According to the SBU, the brothers started gathering information on the wake in Hroza at the beginning of October.

"Under the guise of friendly conversations and correspondence in the messenger (service), the traitors asked people for information about the deployment of the Defence Forces and mass events in the region," the SBU said.

The agency posted images which appeared to show Russian passports and other documents belonging to the men, as well as screenshots of messenger conversations where the men obtained information about the wake.

NATO boss says Putin planning to use winter as 'weapon'

12:18 , Tara Cobham

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said Putin was "preparing once again to use winter as a weapon of war" by attacking energy infrastructure in Ukraine.

"We need to prevent that, with more advanced and increased capabilities for air defence, we can make a big difference," Stoltenberg said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Wednesday asked NATO allies for more weapons and air defences to tide his country through another wartime winter as it braces for a barrage of Russian attacks on power stations and other infrastructure.

Denmark to send Ukraine F-16 fighters jets by March or April next year

11:42 , Tom Watling

Denmark expects to make its first delivery of F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine in March or April next year, national broadcaster TV2 reported on Wednesday, citing Defence Minister Troels Lund Poulsen.

Geolocated footage shows destroyed Russian military vehicle near Avdiivka

11:27 , Tom Watling

Geolocated footage has shown the Ukrainian destruction of a Russian BMP-1, an infantry fighting vehicle, near the frontline in Avdiivka.

Earlier, it was reported that Ukraine was “repelling” Russian attacks in the area as they launched an offensive.

“I can add that our defenders on the Avdiivka front repelled all the attacks of the enemy, no losses of lines and positions were sustained,” colonel Oleksandr Shtupun, Kyiv’s spokesperson of the joint press centre of defence forces, said.

US says it will support Ukraine for as long as it takes

11:26 , Tara Cobham

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Wednesday the United States would continue to support Ukraine for as long as it takes, amid political chaos in Congress and the crisis in the Middle East.

"The United States will stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes," Austin said at the start of a meeting of Ukraine's allies in Brussels.

"We’re here to dig deep to meet Ukraine’s most urgent needs, especially for air defence and ammunition," Austin said, sitting alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.

Zelensky expresses solidarity with Israel

11:15 , Tom Watling

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has expressed solidarity with Israel, saying that it is “important not to be alone” during times of violence.

Speaking in Brussels ahead of the 16th Ramstein meeting to discuss military aid to Ukraine, he said of Israel and the full-scale invasion of Ukraine: “We are in the war, so we understand these terrorist attacks.”

Russia says it will maintain contact with both sides of Israel-Palestine conflict

10:48 , Tom Watling

Russia will maintain contacts with both sides of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and will remain involved in its settlement, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday.

Moscow’s top priority is the safety of its citizens who are present on territories controlled by both parties, Peskov told a briefing.

The Kremlin finds itself in a “tricky position” over the ongoing conflict in Israel and Gaza, according to Pavel Luzin, a Russian foreign policy expert.

He told The Independent that Russian officials are struggling to find a balance between maintaining its well-known alliances with Iran and Hamas, as well as Hezbollah, without jeopardising its “vulnerabilities in the region”, namely military bases in Syria, that Israel could target.

Russia and Israel may be allied with opposing sides of the wider geopolitical conflict but they have maintained a “deconfliction mechanism” in Syria.

Russian air defences are not allowed to be used in Syria to strike Israeli air forces, which have been tasked with preventing Iranian weapons making it to Hezbollah in neighbouring Lebanon.

Footage shows Zelensky’s meeting in Brussels as US pledges $200m

10:36 , Tom Watling

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has released footage of his meeting with US defence secretary Lloyd Austin in Brussels.

It came as the Pentagon announced a new $200 million package to Kyiv.

The package includes weapons for air defense such as the AIM-9 Sidewinder missile, artillery munitions for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), TOW anti-tank missiles, and 155mm and 105mm rounds, according to a US official who spoke to VOA on condition of anonymity to discuss the package prior to its announcement.

Ukraine’s forces repel Russian attacks near Avdiivka

10:10 , Tara Cobham

Ukrainian soldiers successfully repelled attacks along the war frontline at Avdiivka on Tuesday as a new offensive from Russian soldiers erupted near the eastern Ukraine town, officials said.

“I can add that our defenders on the Avdiivka front repelled all the attacks of the enemy, no losses of lines and positions were sustained,” colonel Oleksandr Shtupun, the spokesperson of the joint press centre of defence forces, said.

He confirmed an escalation of Russian military offensive actions on the same front. He said Ukrainian forces repelled attacks in Keramika, Ocheretyne, Berdychiv, Stepove, Lastochkyne, Tonenke, Avdiivka, and Pervomaiske in Donetsk oblast.

Arpan Rai reports:

Ukraine’s forces repel Russian attacks in east as Putin’s troops launch new offensive

Ukraine ‘improve tactical position’ on main axis of attack

09:01 , Tom Watling

Ukrainian forces have “improved their tactical position” along their main axis of the ongoing counteroffensive, a commander has said.

Brigadier General Alexander Tarnavsky, in an update on Telegram wrote: “The Defense Forces of Ukraine continue to conduct an offensive operation in the Melitopol direction - they have improved their tactical position west of Robotyne.”

Russia loses vote to rejoin UN’s top human rights body

08:30 , Tara Cobham

Russia’s desperate bid to rejoin the UN’s top human rights body with a charm offensive involving stolen Ukrainian grain and arms was defeated by a significant majority in a General Assembly vote on Tuesday.

Russia received 83 votes from the 193-member UN, significantly more than the 24 countries who supported Moscow when it was booted out of the Human Rights Council in another vote more than one year ago.

Russia was competing against Albania and Bulgaria for two seats on the Geneva-based UNHRC, representing the East European regional group. Bulgaria secured 160 votes, Albania received 123, while the Vladimir Putin-led nation managed only 83.

Arpan Rai reports:

Russia loses vote to rejoin UN top human rights body despite Putin’s charm offensive

Zelenskiy arrives for talks with senior NATO officials

08:14 , Tara Cobham

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy underlined the importance of a visit to Brussels on Wednesday after arriving for talks with senior NATO officials on security cooperation.

"A visit to NATO headquarters that will be critical to our resilience this winter," Zelenskiy said on the Telegram messaging app. He said he would also hold talks with Belgium's prime minister.

Britain pledges £170m in military aid to Ukraine

07:39 , Tom Watling

Grant Shapps has announced an additional £170 million in aid to Ukraine ahead of a meeting of Kyiv’s allies in Brussels later today.

Speaking to BBC, the defence secretary said the UK would supply Ukraine with £100m-worth of military equipment that can be used to breach minefields.

He noted that Ukraine is “probably now the most mined country in the world”.

He added that the provision of the multi-use MSI-DS Terrahawk Paladin, a remote-controlled air-defense system that also has the capability to defend against ground threats, will make up part of an additional £70m budget.

He spoke in Brussels ahead of the 16th Ramstein meeting, otherwise known as the Contact Group on Defence Matters for Ukraine.

Defence ministers in support of Kyiv will gather to discuss how best to militarily support Ukraine. President Volodymyr Zelensky will attend.

Ukraine's Zelenskyy visits neighboring Romania to discuss security and boost ties

06:00 , Joe Middleton

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy traveled to neighboring Romania on Tuesday for talks with his counterpart on regional security and strengthening bilateral ties against the backdrop of Russia’s invasion of his country.

Zelenskyy met with President Klaus Iohannis in the capital, Bucharest. The two are also expected to discuss security cooperation in the Black Sea region, Zelenskyy said on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.

After he arrived in Romania, Zelenskyy described the NATO and European Union member country as “a friend who came to our help on our darkest day and whose support gets stronger with time.”

Ukraine's Zelenskyy visits neighboring Romania to discuss security and boost ties

Uefa backtracks on plans to reintegrate Russia to Under-17s competition

05:00 , Joe Middleton

A controversial plan to admit Russian under-17 teams to Uefa competitions amid the invasion of Ukraine has been shelved.

In late September, a motion passed by Uefa’s executive committee had asked the organisation’s administrators to look at a “technical solution” to enable the under-17 boys and girls teams to enter qualification for finals tournaments due to take place in Cyprus and Sweden next year.

A number of associations, including the English Football Association, had announced their opposition to the plan, insisting that England teams would not line up against Russian opponents under any circumstances.

Uefa backtracks on plans to reintegrate Russia to Under-17s competition

Russia claims it will try to help resolve Israel-Palestine conflict

04:00 , Alexander Butler

Russia will try to resolve the Israel-Palestine conflict, the Kremlin claimed.

Moscow has long-standing historical ties with the Palestinians but also “a lot in common” with Israel, including the fact that many Israelis are former Russian citizens, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

“Therefore, we maintain relations with both sides of this conflict,” he said.

“We conduct contacts and take part in all the - unfortunately few - formats that are looking for common ground for a settlement and which do not work very effectively, as recent practice has shown.

“But nevertheless, we intend to keep making efforts and play our role in terms of providing assistance to seek ways to a settlement.”

NATO to support allies affected by alleged pipeline attack

03:00 , Alexander Butler

NATO is ready to support allies affected by an alleged attack on a key gas pipeline connecting Finland and Estonia.

Writing on X, formerly Twitter, NATO general-secretary Jens Stoltenberg said: “Spoke with President Sauli Niinisto on damage to undersea infrastructure between Estonia & Finland. NATO is sharing information & stands ready to support Allies concerned.”

Estonia and Finland taking alleged attack ‘very seriously'

02:00 , Alexander Butler

Estonia and Finland are taking an alleged attack on a key gas pipeline connecting the two countries ‘very seriously’ the Estonian prime minister said.

Writing on X, formerly Twitter, prime minister Kaja Kallas said: “I convened ministers and relevant authorities to discuss incidents regarding Baltic Connector and an undersea communication cable.

“While there’s no threat to our security of supply, both Estonia and Finland are taking the incidents very seriously.”

Estonian prime minister to remain in ‘close contact’ with NATO

01:00 , Alexander Butler

The Estonian prime minister has said she will remain in ‘close contact’ with NATO after an alleged attack on a key gas pipeline connecting Finland and Estonia.

Writing on X, formerly Twitter, she said: “I called Jens Stoltenberg to brief him on the incidents related to Baltic Connector and a submarine communications cable between Estonia and Finland.

“We discussed how to increase the protection of critical infrastructure in light of this. We agreed to remain in close contact.”

Ursula von der Leyen condemns alleged pipeline attack

Wednesday 11 October 2023 00:00 , Alexander Butler

EU Commission president Ursula von der Leyen has condemned the alleged attack on a key gas pipeline connecting Finland and Estonia.

Writing on X, formerly Twitter, she said: “I held calls with Prime Ministers Kaja Kallas and Petteri Orpo on the on-going investigations into the damage on the gas pipeline and data cable connecting Estonia and Finland. I strongly condemn any act of destruction of critical infrastructure.”

NATO Secretary-General says organisation is ready to support Finland

Tuesday 10 October 2023 23:00 , Alexander Butler

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg reacted to Finland’s claim that one of its pipelines to Estonia had been attacked.

He said the alliance was sharing its information over the damage to underwater infrastructure between the two member countries - and that it stood ready to support the allies concerned.

Russia accuses US of nuclear testing

Tuesday 10 October 2023 22:00 , Alexander Butler

Russia accused the United States of carrying out preparations at its nuclear test site in Nevada but said that Moscow would not restart its own nuclear testing programme unless Washington did.

Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov made the charge as Russia’s lower house of parliament urgently studies how to revoke Moscow’s ratification of a landmark treaty banning nuclear tests and as tensions with the West are at their highest level since the 1962 Cuban missile crisis.

A U.S. State Department spokesperson rejected Ryabkov’s allegation, calling it “a disturbing effort by Moscow to heighten nuclear risks and raise tensions in the context of its illegal war in Ukraine.”

UK ready to help Finland in pipeline investigation, says Sunak

Tuesday 10 October 2023 20:49 , Alexander Butler

The UK is “ready to support” Finland with its investigation into damage to a gas pipeline connecting the country with Estonia, prime minister Rishi Sunak said.

Writing on X, formerly Twitter, Mr Sunak said: “As NATO allies and friends, we are committed to the security of the Baltic Sea. The UK stands ready to support you with your investigation.”

Bulgaria arrests 12 people accused of violating export rules to Russia

Tuesday 10 October 2023 20:15 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Bulgarian police have arrested 12 people accused of illegally exporting dual-use goods to Russia that can be used by the Russian military in the war in Ukraine.

The Interior Ministry chief secretary Zhivko Kotsev told reporters on Tuesday the suspects included citizens of Bulgaria, Russia and Belarus.

The operation to arrest the suspects was carried out by several agencies after the State Agency for National Security received information about the illegal transfer of goods with possible dual use, the agency head Plamen Tonchev said.

Such exports to Russia are banned under EU sanctions imposed on Russia after it launched its war in Ukraine.

“An international network has been revealed for the illegal supply of dual-use goods with civilian and military applications from European countries to the Russian Federation,” Mr Tonchev said.

He added that the shipments were not intended for the regular Russian army, but for the special forces fighting in Ukraine, such as the Akhmat paramilitary unit.

Mr Tonchev also said that the criminal group has been operating in other EU member states, as well as in Britain, Serbia, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates.

Damage to gas pipeline, telecom cable connecting Finland and Estonia caused by 'external activity'

Tuesday 10 October 2023 19:30 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Damage to an undersea gas pipeline and telecommunications cable connecting Finland and Estonia appears to have been caused by “external activity,” Finnish officials said Tuesday, adding that authorities were investigating.

Finnish and Estonian gas system operators on Sunday said they noted an unusual drop in pressure in the Balticconnector pipeline after which they shut down the gas flow.

The Finnish government on Tuesday said there was damage both to the gas pipeline and to a telecommunications cable between the two NATO countries.

Speaking at a news conference Tuesday, Prime Minister Petteri Orpo stopped short of calling the pipeline leak sabotage but said it could not have been caused by regular operations.

“According to a preliminary assessment, the observed damage could not have occurred as a result of normal use of the pipe or pressure fluctuations. It is likely that the damage is the result of external activity,” Orpo said.

Zelensky thanks Germany for military aid package

Tuesday 10 October 2023 19:06 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Ukraine’s Volodymr Zelensky said he is “grateful to Germany for today’s large military aid package. Patriot, IRIS-T, Gepard, tanks, armored vehicles, and other items”.

Uefa backtracks on plans to reintegrate Russia to Under-17s competition

Tuesday 10 October 2023 18:45 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

A controversial plan to admit Russian under-17 teams to Uefa competitions amid the invasion of Ukraine has been shelved.

In late September, a motion passed by Uefa’s executive committee had asked the organisation’s administrators to look at a “technical solution” to enable the under-17 boys and girls teams to enter qualification for finals tournaments due to take place in Cyprus and Sweden next year.

A number of associations, including the English Football Association, had announced their opposition to the plan, insisting that England teams would not line up against Russian opponents under any circumstances.

Uefa backtracks on plans to reintegrate Russia to Under-17s competition

Zelensky says Russia trying to incite war in the Middle East

Tuesday 10 October 2023 18:30 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Zelensky says Russia trying to incite war in the Middle East

What is the UN Human Rights Council and what does it do? Part two

Tuesday 10 October 2023 18:10 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

- The U.N. Human Rights Council meets three times a year at the U.N. in Geneva in sessions attended by diplomats, ministers, presidents, civil society and human rights victims and activists.

- It also holds regular peer review sessions where countries scrutinise each other’s human rights records.

- The body does not have legally binding powers but its meetings raise scrutiny and it can mandate investigations to document abuses, which sometimes form the basis for war crimes prosecutions.

- Russia was suspended in April 2022 following a U.S.-led push after its invasion of Ukraine. Council suspensions are rare.

- The United States under former president Donald Trump walked out of the body in 2018 over an alleged chronic bias against Israel. It has since rejoined and is a voting member.

- The council opened an investigation in March 2022 into the Ukraine war and has accused Russian forces of violations that may constitute crimes against humanity. It also appointed an investigator into Russia‘s domestic rights record last year.

- Other ongoing probes include an international investigation into repression in Iran and an inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Israel.

What is the UN Human Rights Council and what does it do? Part one

Tuesday 10 October 2023 17:47 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Russia missed out on a bid to return to the United Nations’ top human rights body on Tuesday, losing a vote to Albania and Bulgaria at the General Assembly in New York.

Here is what the U.N. Human Rights Council does:

- The United Nations Human Rights Council has 47 voting members from five regional groups. They are elected for three years for a maximum period of two consecutive terms.

- Members are voted on by secret ballot by the General Assembly in New York.

- In this vote, 17 countries competed for 15 seats starting from 2024-2026.

- The body was created in 2006 and is responsible for “promoting universal respect for the protection of all human rights and fundamental freedoms for all, without distinction of any kind and in a fair and equal manner”.

- It replaced the Human Rights Commission which was dissolved partly due to a controversy over membership.

- New rules were created on eligibility meant to prevent major abusers getting voting rights.

Russian bid to return to UN rights body fails after vote

Tuesday 10 October 2023 17:26 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Russia failed in its bid to return to the United Nations’ top human rights body on Tuesday, which will see Moscow continue to be isolated.

In the secret ballot, Russia won 83 votes versus 160 for Bulgaria and 123 for Albania, which had competed against it in the same eastern Europe grouping for two seats on the Geneva-based Human Rights Council.

“UN member states sent a strong signal to Russia’s leadership that a government responsible for countless war crimes and crimes against humanity doesn’t belong there,” said Louis Charbonneau, United Nations director at Human Rights Watch. There was no immediate reaction from Moscow.

Russia was ousted from the council 18 months ago in a U.S.-led diplomatic push following its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Amid creeping signs of Ukraine war “fatigue”, some diplomats had said Russia had a reasonable chance of getting voted back onto the council.

Russians who back Ukraine should be sent to region known for Gulag camps - continued

Tuesday 10 October 2023 16:53 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

For Russians, Magadan is synonymous with the Gulag - a series of forced labour camps where Russians were used as slave labour under Soviet dictator Josef Stalin.

About 800,000 people are estimated to have passed through the camps of Magadan between 1932 -- seven years before the city was officially founded -- and the mid-1950s.

Overall, around 18 million people passed through the Soviet Gulag, which was immortalised by Russian novelist Alexander Solzhenitsyn - himself a survivor of incarceration there - in “The Gulag Archipelago”. His book was banned in the Soviet Union after its 1973 publication in the West.

The full Volodin remark was published on the Telegram messaging app by the State Duma’s press service.

The post elicited a mixture of resigned sarcasm, calls for Russian politicians to actually put their words into action, and also some humour.

One anonymous reply to the post on Telegram suggested that the Magadan region, a vast and sparsely populated area, might not cope with such an influx so the new arrivals should be put to work on building a new city.

Russians who back Ukraine should be sent to region known for Gulag camps - Duma speaker

Tuesday 10 October 2023 16:30 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Russians who leave the country and support Ukraine should be sent to a far eastern region known for its Stalin-era Gulag prison camps if they ever return home, according to the speaker of Russia‘s State Duma lower house of parliament.

Russia‘s 2022 invasion of Ukraine and its subsequent mobilisation campaign prompted at least several hundred thousand Russians to leave their homeland, though it is unclear exactly how many.

More than a year and a half of war has made Russia a much shriller place: dissidents have been jailed; state television periodically discusses nuclear attacks on the West; and some politicians have suggested rather quixotic policies.

Vyachelav Volodin, the speaker of the Duma, told lawmakers on Tuesday that those who had left Russia and rejoiced at Ukrainian drone and missile attacks on their country should know that they were no longer welcome in their homeland.

“Those who left the country and committed despicable acts, rejoicing at the shots fired on the territory of the Russian Federation, wishing victory to the bloody Nazi Kyiv regime, should realise that no one is waiting for them here - but if they do come back, then Magadan will be provided for them,” Volodin said.

Russia will only resume nuclear tests if the US does it first, a top Russian diplomat says

Tuesday 10 October 2023 15:56 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Russia will move to revoke the ratification of a global nuclear test ban to put itself on par with the United States but will only resume nuclear tests if Washington does it first, a senior Russian diplomat said Tuesday.

Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told reporters that Moscow will rescind the ratification of the nuclear test ban treaty to “mirror” the action by the U.S. He added that if the U.S. conducts a nuclear test, “we will be forced to mirror that as well.”

The Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, adopted in 1996 and known as the CTBT, bans all nuclear explosions anywhere in the world, although it has never fully entered into force. It was signed by both the Russian and U.S. presidents but was never ratified by the U.S.

Russia will only resume nuclear tests if the US does it first, a top Russian diplomat says

UN set to decide on Russia’s Human Rights Council membership as Putin ‘uses Ukrainian grain to buy votes’

Tuesday 10 October 2023 15:35 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Russia is poised to discover whether its efforts to rejoin the UN’s Human Rights Council – using stolen Ukrainian grain to win votes in the process – have been successful.

A secret ballot of UN member states will be held later on Tuesday to allocate 15 seats for the top human rights body, more than a year after Russia was booted out for invading Ukraine.

Experts previously told The Independent that Russia will try to lure African allies and other friendly nations with stolen Ukrainian grain and arms in exchange for their votes. The vote is seen as a key test of Western efforts to keep Moscow diplomatically isolated.

Putin is using stolen Ukraine grain to buy UN votes. Will it work?

Two top Polish army commanders quit 5 days ahead of election

Tuesday 10 October 2023 15:18 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Two top Polish army commanders quit on Tuesday, spokespeople said, just days ahead of a parliamentary election in which the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party has made national security a key issue in its bid for an unprecedented third term in power.

No reason was given for the resignations.

However, they come against a backdrop of heightened tension between the upper echelons of the armed forces and the government, after Defence Minister Mariusz Blaszczak said in May the army had failed to inform him of a missile heading towards the country in December.

Polish media reported that a military object found in a forest in northern Poland in April was a Russian KH-55 missile, and that Polish armed forces had seen an object entering the country’s air space in December but then had lost track of it.

On Tuesday, armed forces operational commander Tomasz Piotrowski and chief of staff Rajmund Andrzejczak submitted their resignations, spokespeople for the respective services told Reuters.

“I can confirm that the operational commander (Piotrowski) has terminated his employment relationship. He has resigned from professional military service,” said the press spokesman for the Polish Armed Forces, Jacek Goryszewski.

The resignations were first reported by Rzeczpospolita daily.

Russia faces a tough fight to regain its seat in the UN's top human rights body

Tuesday 10 October 2023 14:57 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Russia faces a tough fight to regain a seat in the U.N.’s premiere human rights body in Tuesday’s election in the General Assembly, which voted last year to suspend Moscow after its invasion of Ukraine.

The 193-member assembly will be electing 15 members to the Geneva-based Human Rights Council, with candidates put forward by the U.N.’s five regional groups.

Russia is competing against Albania and Bulgaria for two seats allotted to the East European regional group, and Moscow’s U.N. ambassador, Vassily Nebenzia, accused the United States on Monday of leading a campaign to prevent their return to the council.

Russia faces a tough fight to regain its seat in the UN's top human rights body

Ukraine makes advances near Bakhmut

Tuesday 10 October 2023 14:31 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Ukraine has made advances south of the Bakhmut region in Donetsk as they have seen “partial gains” near Andriivka, officials have reported.

The army repelled four Russian attacks near Klishchiivka, Donetsk Oblast, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said, and continued their assault operations south of Bakhmut in Donetsk Oblast.

Ukrainian soldiers succeeded in “inflicting losses in manpower and equipment on the enemy and consolidating their positions,” the report added.

Sixty Russian schools renamed to honor Russian soldiers

Tuesday 10 October 2023 21:27 , Alexander Butler

At least sixty Russian schools have been renamed to honor Russian soldiers, reports suggest. Two schools in Vladivostok and Balashikha near Moscow are named after mercenaries of the Wagner PMC, according to Russia news outlet Important Stories.

One of the schools in the Khabarovsk Territory was renamed in honor of all the “heroes of the Northern Military District” at once.

Zelensky says ‘good news’ on air defence after talks in Romania

Tuesday 10 October 2023 13:56 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Tuesday he had “good news” on artillery and air defence supplies after talks with Romanian President Klaus Iohannis in Bucharest, but gave no details.

“My main accent today was air defence. And I’m glad that Ukraine was heard by the Romanian side,” Zelensky, who has been seeking more arms to defend Ukraine against Russia‘s invasion, told a joint press conference in the Romanian capital.

Zelensky also said everything possible should be done to prevent Russia turning part of the Black Sea or the Danube region into what he described as a maritime “dead zone”.

Russia has pulled out of a deal that guaranteed safe shipments of Ukrainian grain via the Black Sea, and has been attacking Ukrainian port infrastructure on the Danube River.

Zelensky claims Russia ‘helped’ violence in Middle East

Tuesday 10 October 2023 13:42 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Volodymyr Zelensky has blamed the conflict in Israel-Palestine on Russia, claiming the country is among those “who helped” and is “behind such moves”.

‘A friend who came to help on our darkest day’: Zelensky visits Romania

Tuesday 10 October 2023 13:23 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky travelled to neighbouring Romania on Tuesday for talks with his counterpart on regional security and strengthening bilateral ties against the backdrop of Russia‘s invasion of his country.

Mr Zelensky met with President Klaus Iohannis in the capital, Bucharest. The two are also expected to discuss security co-operation in the Black Sea region, Mr Zelensky said on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.

After he arrived in Romania, Mr Zelensky described the Nato and European Union member country as “a friend who came to our help on our darkest day and whose support gets stronger with time”.

“Ukraine is grateful for Romania’s support, which strengthens our state, as well as its constructive solidarity, which enables our nations to be security donors for the world, notably in food security,” Mr Zelensky said.

Putin could restart banned nuclear tests

Tuesday 10 October 2023 12:45 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain

Vladimir Putin has given Russian lawmakers 10 days 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.

The chair of the State Duma (lower house of parliament) Vyacheslav Volodin and other parliament heads laid out a deadline for Russian lawmakers to study the de-ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) option until 18 October, a statement from the Duma read.

Mr Volodin said revoking the ratification on testing nuclear weapons will be in Russia’s national interest as he discussed the matter with parliamentary leaders on Monday.

If revoked, Russia will signal a warning to the US that Moscow can fundamentally change the assumptions of post-Cold War nuclear planning.

Ukraine investigates 260 cases of alleged military recruitment abuses

Tuesday 10 October 2023 12:00 , Tara Cobham

Ukrainian authorities are investigating 260 criminal cases involving alleged "violations" at military recruitment offices, the State Bureau of Investigations (SBI) said on Tuesday.

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy dismissed the heads of regional recruitment centres in August after widespread allegations of criminal abuse and corruption.

The SBI said 21 indictments against 35 individuals had been sent to court, and that another 58 people had been identified as suspects.

It also said it had documented around $110,000 worth of alleged bribes and that courts had seized around $88,000 worth of property.

"Although the vast majority of...employees conscientiously perform their duties, in many regions there are cases of abusing official positions or exceeding authority," it said in a statement.

Zelenskiy and his government are keen to show that Ukraine is fighting corruption after setting their sights on membership of the European Union.

Russian court dismisses US reporter’s complaint against detention

Tuesday 10 October 2023 11:23 , Tara Cobham

A Russian court on Tuesday dismissed a complaint by US reporter Evan Gershkovich against the extension of his pre-trial detention, more than six months after his arrest on spying charges which he denies

Gershkovich, a reporter for the Wall Street Journal, was detained by the Federal Security Service (FSB) on March 29 in the Urals city of Yekaterinburg on charges of espionage that carry up to 20 years in prison.

"The appeal complaint is left without satisfaction," the presiding judge said after a closed hearing.

UN Human Rights Council set to vote on restoring Russia

Tuesday 10 October 2023 11:21 , Tara Cobham

Russia’s desperate bid to rejoin the UN’s top human rights body will be tested in a General Assembly vote on Tuesday, more than a year after it was booted out for invading Ukraine.

The 193-member assembly will be electing 15 members to the Geneva-based United Nations Human Rights Council, with candidates put forward by the UN’s five regional groups.

Russia will be competing against Albania and Bulgaria to win back two seats reserved for the East European regional group. A total of 47 member states are part of the UNHRC based on geographic distribution, with the UN’s five regional groups sending names to be added to the shortlist.

Experts told The Independent that Russia will try to lure African and other friendly nations with stolen Ukrainian grain and arms in exchange for their votes.

Arpan Rai reports:

UN Human Rights Council to vote on restoring Russia despite ongoing Ukraine invasion

Ukraine advances in east and south with more ‘partial success’ even as rain muddies battlefield

Tuesday 10 October 2023 09:43 , Tom Watling

Ukrainian soldiers fighting off Russian attacks in the eastern battlefield achieved “partial success” in the past 24 hours while troops in southern Ukraine inflicted over a hundred Russian casualties, officials said as the war was close to clocking 600 days.

The troops secured partial success near Andriivka, a small Ukrainian village captured last month along with the nearby locality of Klishhiivka, said Ilia Yevlash, a spokesperson for Ukraine‘s eastern group of forces.

"We are repelling constant attacks near Klishchiivka and Andriivka,” the spokesperson told national television.

"Every day we are making headway in the Bakhmut sector. We are talking about hundreds of metres at a time that we are liberating from our enemies and strengthening our positions. It is, however, too early to talk about achieving concrete goals,” he said.

You can read the full story below from Arpan Rai.

Ukraine sees ‘partial success’ in east and south even as rain muddies battlefield

Death toll from last week’s Russian missile attack rises to 53

Tuesday 10 October 2023 09:32 , Tom Watling

Russia’s missile strike on a small Ukrainian village last week in Kharkiv Oblast killed 53 people, a revised death toll has shown.

The missile attack took place in the small village of Hroza, northeastern Ukraine.

It struck a cafe and a nearby shop. More than 50 people were having a meal in the cafe as part of a wake. They had been attending a funeral for a local soldier prior to the strike.

Zelenskiy visits Romania to discuss Black Sea region security

Tuesday 10 October 2023 08:54 , Tara Cobham

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Tuesday he had arrived in Bucharest, where he will meet Romanian President Klaus Iohannis and discuss security cooperation in the Black Sea region.

"We will discuss further security cooperation, developing aviation and other coalitions, strengthening Ukraine's air defense, the Black Sea security architecture, and our relations with partners," he said on the social media platform X.

Putin to focus on ‘consolidating power’ at upcoming presidential election

Tuesday 10 October 2023 08:08 , Tom Watling

Russian President Vladimir Putin will likely focus on “the theme of Russia as a separate civilisation” in the upcoming elections next year.

While Putin has not announced his intention to run in the election, which will take place next March, it is believed that he will not step down.

The British Ministry of Defence, in its latest intelligence update, said they expect the autocrat to focus his election efforts on further inculcating the “need of defence from external enemies” in Russia’s population.

You can read their full report below.

UN members condemn village wake bombing

Tuesday 10 October 2023 08:01 , Tara Cobham

UN Security Council members from around the world have condemned Russia’s bombing of a village wake that killed 52 people.

Hroza, in the northeastern Kharkiv region, lost over 15 per cent of its 300 population when a cafe holding a memorial service for a Ukrainian soldier was targeted by a Russian Iskander ballistic missile on Thursday.

"This is one of the deadliest strikes by Russia against Ukraine since the beginning of its full-scale invasion last year," said US deputy ambassador Robert Wood in Monday’s UN Security Council meeting, as he stressed his country’s support for investigators gathering possible evidence of war crimes.

Albania's UN ambassador Ferit Hoxha, this month's council president who presided at the meeting, said the missile strike and deaths in Hroza underscore again "the terrible price civilians are paying 20 months after the Russians invaded”.

He said Russia may deny responsibility, but it started and is continuing a war and committing "horrible crimes," and "it has also broken the universal ancestral law of absolute respect for those mourning”.

China's deputy UN ambassador Geng Shuang, whose country is a close ally of Russia, said Beijing finds the heavy civilian casualties in the attack on the village "concerning”.

Russia sends dozens of drones into Ukraine in latest air strike

Tuesday 10 October 2023 07:51 , Tara Cobham

Russia launched 36 Iranian-made attack drones against southern Ukraine overnight, damaging infrastructure in the Odesa region, authorities said.

The strikes targeted the Odesa, Mykolaiv and Kherson regions, the Ukrainian military reported, adding that air defence systems destroyed 27 drones.

Odesa Governor Oleh Kiper said unspecified "logistics infrastructure" had been struck but that no injuries were reported.

Reuters could not independently verify the information. There was no immediate comment from Russia.

Russian forces have carried out regular missile and drone strikes on infrastructure in southern Ukraine in recent weeks and months, targeting port facilities in particular.

Russia missile strike hits northeast Ukraine

Tuesday 10 October 2023 07:44 , Tom Watling

Three civilians have been injured after a Russian missile struck their small village in northeast Ukraine, the local governor has reported.

Two 45-year-old women and a 34-year-old man were injured following a strike on the village of Veliky Burluk in the Kupyan district, Oleh Synyehubov, governor of Kharkiv Oblast, said.

The strike happened roughly 45 miles northeast of Hroza, where more than 50 civilians were killed by a similar Russian strike last week.