Russian gas pipeline explodes in huge fireball blast amid series of ‘Ukrainian strikes’
Pope Francis has condemned the “madness” of Vladimir Putin’s war on Ukraine as the Vatican sought to row back from comments that provoked a backlash from Kyiv and its Western allies.
The pontiff had earlier suggested in a broadcast interview that Ukraine should “show the courage of the white flag” and open talks with Russia, but his deputy Cardinal Pietro Parolin clarified in a Tuesday interview that Russia should first halt its aggression.
This came as the Russian Embassy to the Holy See congratulated Francis on the 11th anniversary of his election, hailing him on X as a “true and sincere advocat(e) of humanism, peace and traditional values”.
Meanwhile, Volodymyr Zelensky hit out at Russian “evil” as Ukraine reported deadly missile attacks in several parts of the country, including his hometown Kryvyi Rih.
“Every day our cities and villages suffer similar attacks. Every day Ukraine loses people because of Russian evil,” he said.
At least five people died from the Russian missile attack on Mr Zelensky’s hometown, while 43 people were wounded, including 12 children, the youngest a two-month-old infant, said governor Serhii Lysak.
Putin says he will station troops and ‘systems of destruction’ at Finland’s border
Vladimir Putin has claimed that Finland and Sweden’s entry into Nato is “a meaningless step” – as he warned that Russia will deploy troops and systems of destruction to the Finnish border.
“This is an absolutely meaningless step [for Finland and Sweden] from the point of view of ensuring their own national interests,” the Russian president told state news agencies and broadcasters.
“We didn’t have troops there, now they will be there. There were no systems of destruction there, now they will appear.”
By Andy Gregory, 14 March 2024 06:58
Pope backtracks on Ukraine ‘white flag’ comments
The Pope issued a fresh condemnation of all wars yesterday, days after backlash from Kyiv and Western capitals for appearing to suggest that Ukraine should surrender and negotiate peace with its Russian invader.
Pope Francis told Swiss broadcaster RSI that Ukraine should “show the courage of the white flag” and open talks with Russia, but his deputy Cardinal Pietro Parolin clarified in a Tuesday interview that Russia should first halt its aggression.
“Many young people, many young people go to die (in war). Let’s pray to the Lord to give us the grace to overcome this madness of war, which is always a defeat,” the pope said during his weekly audience in St Peter’s Square.
By Namita Singh, 14 March 2024 06:51
Putin makes another rambling threat: What is the truth behind Russia’s nuclear arsenal?
President Vladimir Putin has claimed Russia is ready to use nuclear weapons if there is a threat to statehood, sovereignty or independence.
In a rambling interview with Russian state television released early on Wednesday, Mr Putin also said he hoped the US would refrain from actions that could trigger a nuclear conflict.
His statement is another blunt warning to the West ahead of a presidential vote this week in which he is all but certain to win another six-year term.
By Namita Singh, 14 March 2024 06:09
How this obscure House procedure can pass Ukraine aid without Mike Johnson
By Namita Singh, 14 March 2024 06:07
The Ukrainian couple who were due to marry the day Russia invaded
Svitlana and Leonid had chosen a beautiful venue for their big day; her wedding dress was picked out, and the most pressing concern on the horizon was where to spend their honeymoon – Turkey had been earmarked as top choice.
“It was a wonderful time, as if we knew each other our whole lives,” says Svitlana Chepalova in an interview with The Independent, speaking of her fairytale romance with her Ukrainian Marine Corps fiance.
There was one problem, the day they had picked. Initially scheduled for 22 February 2022, it had to be pushed back two days to Thursday 24 February. That date is now branded in the memories of all Ukrainians as the day Vladimir Putin declared his “special military operation” and sent thousands of troops across the border to attack Russia’s neighbour to the west.
Serving with Ukraine’s 501 Marine Battalion in Mariupol was never supposed to be easy, particularly with the mounting warnings at the time that Russia was preparing the ground for an invasion. But the speed with which Putin decided to order the attack still took many by surprise, and the siege of Mariupol effectively crashed Chepalova’s wedding. Within just a few weeks of the conflict, on 4 April, Leonid was taken prisoner by Russian soldiers.
Svitlana Chepalova was supposed to marry her Marine Corps fiance on 24 February 2022. Instead, he joined the battle to save Mariupol and was captured. Like thousands more wives and partners of Ukrainian prisoners of war, she is increasingly alarmed by reports of the harsh conditions and daily beatings in Russian prison colonies.
By Andy Gregory, 14 March 2024 05:44
EU agrees €5bn boost for Ukraine military aid fund
European Union countries agreed on Wednesday to provide €5bn (£4.2bn) for military aid to Ukraine as part of a revamp of an EU-run assistance fund, handing Kyiv a timely boost as its forces struggle against Russia’s invasion.
Ambassadors from the EU’s 27 member countries agreed to the overhaul of the European Peace Facility (EPF) fund at a meeting in Brussels after months of wrangling, with EU heavyweights France and Germany at the centre of much of the debate.
“The message is clear: we will support Ukraine with whatever it takes to prevail,” EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell posted on social media platform X after the decision. The fund operates as a giant cashback scheme, giving EU members refunds for sending munitions to other countries.
By Namita Singh, 14 March 2024 05:38
China’s defence ministry says it held military staff dialogue with Nato
China and Nato held an eighth military staff dialogue on security policy in Beijing on Wednesday, according to a statement from the Chinese defence ministry.
The two sides exchanged views on defence matters between China and Nato, as well as the international and regional situation, the ministry said in the statement, without elaborating.
The meeting was co-chaired by the Office of International Military Cooperation of China’s Central Military Commission and the leadership of the Cooperative Security Department of the Nato International Military Staff, the statement added.
Nato said the meeting covered global and regional security landscapes, with emphasis on Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, maritime security, and issues of common concern.
Both sides agreed on the value of continued engagement, it added in a statement on its website.
By Namita Singh, 14 March 2024 05:11
Staff of barred Russian anti-war candidate arrested ahead of election
Several campaign staffers and volunteers for disqualified Russian presidential candidate Boris Nadezhdin have been arrested in what he cast as an attempt by authorities to thwart efforts to monitor the presidential election later this week.
At least one of Mr Nadezhdin’s staffers said he was physically attacked in the days before the 15 to 17 March ballot.
Although Mr Nadezhdin conceded weeks ago and had no chance of appearing on the ballot, the anti-war politician’s offices have remained active and he had said he was raising funds to train election observers and conduct exit polls.
At least 17 of Mr Nadezhdin’s associates have been detained since he was banned from running in February, Russian media reports and his team say, even as president Vladimir Putin is almost guaranteed this week to win another six years in power.
Mr Nadezhdin’s Vladivostok branch, in Russia’s Far East, said that at least three staffers had been detained on Wednesday morning and that the whereabouts of two remain unknown.
One of those detained, Igor Krasnov, the local branch head, was later given six days’ administrative arrest under an anti-LGBT propaganda statute.
Commenting on Mr Krasnov’s detention, Mr Nadezhdin said: “The real purpose of such actions by ‘law enforcement officers’ is to prevent the guys from participating in the elections on 15-17 March, including observing at the precinct election commission and participating in exit polls.
“Similar actions were also carried out in Moscow and Stavropol,” he added in a post on his Telegram channel, without elaborating.
By Namita Singh, 14 March 2024 05:08
Zelensky’s chief of staff discusses peace prospects and summit with Chinese ambassador
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky’s chief of staff met the Chinese ambassador to Kyiv yesterday and discussed a visit to Kyiv last week by a Chinese envoy and preparations for a world summit devoted to the two-year-old conflict with Russia.
Mr Zelensky’s website said chief of staff Andriy Yermak and ambassador Fan Xianrong continued the themes raised in last week’s discussions with Li Hui, China’s special representative for Eurasian affairs.
It said the discussion focused on “further joint actions” and Mr Zelensky’s plan to end the conflict.
Mr Yermak, it said, told the ambassador of the state of plans for the “peace summit” to be hosted by Switzerland and thanked China for its “interest in achieving a just peace for Ukraine”.
An account last week on the president’s website said Mr Yermak told Mr Li about the battlefield situation and prospects for Kyiv’s peace plan. He also presented what Kyiv described as evidence of North Korean weaponry supplied to Moscow.
Mr Li had met a Russian deputy foreign minister in Moscow before arriving in Kyiv.
Kyiv has been trying to cultivate good relations with Beijing, and China has attended at least one of the preparatory meetings for the summit, though Russia has not been invited.
Ukraine’s peace plan calls for the withdrawal of all Russian troops from occupied territory, the restoration of Ukraine’s 1991 post-Soviet borders and a process to make Russia accountable for its actions.
Russia has ruled out any negotiations based on that premise.
By Namita Singh, 14 March 2024 05:03
In Focus | The Russian glide bombs changing the face of the war on Ukraine’s eastern front
In a Ukrainian stronghold near the front line, less than 20 miles from the eastern city of Donetsk, a winged bomb is seen hurtling towards a multistorey building.
The 1,500-kilogram explosive hits the structure in the town of Krasnohorivka, erupting into a fireball before engulfing the whole building in a plume of grey and black smoke.
The camera, filming from several hundred metres away, shakes as the ground beneath it rocks from the aftereffects of the explosion. When the smoke subsides, the building has been completely destroyed.
This footage is one of the latest examples of Russia’s deadly new weapon, one that is proving devastating for Ukrainian defensive positions on or near the front line. My colleague Tom Watling reports:
By Andy Gregory, 14 March 2024 04:28
