Russia said the crew of its Black Sea fleet flagship were evacuated on Thursday and measures were being taken to tow the stricken ship back to port, after an explosion of ammunition on board that Ukraine said was caused by a missile strike. Russia's defence ministry said the fire on the Soviet-era missile cruiser Moskva had been contained, but left the ship badly damaged. It did not acknowledge the ship, which had more than 500 sailors on board, had been attacked and said the cause of the fire was under investigation. Ukraine's southern military command said that it hit the warship with a Ukrainian-made Neptune anti-ship missile and that it had started to sink.
China rejects ''pressure or coercion'' over Russia relations
China on Thursday said it would reject any pressure or coercion over its relationship with Russia, in response to a call from U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen for Beijing to use its special relationship with Russia to persuade Moscow to end the war in Ukraine. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian defended China's position on the war, saying it had made considerable efforts to de-escalate the situation, defuse the crisis and rebuild peace." China is playing a constructive role in the Ukraine issue," Zhao told reporters at a daily briefing. China has refused to condemn the invasion of Ukraine by strategic partner Russia, or even refer to the conflict as a war in deference to Moscow, which uses the term special military operation." We oppose unfounded accusations and suspicions against China, nor will we accept any pressure or coercion," Zhao said. Time will tell that China's claims are on the right side of history."
Russia warns of nuclear deployment if Sweden and Finland join NATO
One of Russian President Vladimir Putin's closest allies warned NATO on Thursday that if Sweden and Finland joined the US-led military alliance then Russia would have to bolster its defences in the region, including by deploying nuclear weapons. Finland, which shares a 1,300-km (810-mile) border with Russia, and Sweden are considering joining the NATO alliance. Finland will make a decision in the next few weeks, Prime Minister Sanna Marin said on Wednesday. Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, said that should Sweden and Finland join NATO then Russia would have to strengthen its land, naval and air forces in the Baltic Sea. Medvedev also explicitly raised the nuclear threat by saying that there could be no more talk of a "nuclear free" Baltic - where Russia has its Kaliningrad exclave sandwiched between Poland and Lithuania.
Russia says fire on the Moskva missile cruiser is contained
Russia's defence ministry said on Thursday that sailors had contained a fire on board the Moskva missile cruiser, the flagship of Russia's Black Sea fleet, and that measures were being taken to tow it back to port. The ministry, which said the blaze broke out after ammunition blew up on board, said the cruiser's main weaponry had not been damaged and that its crew had been evacuated onto other ships in the Black Sea. "The source of the blaze on the Moskva cruiser has been contained," the ministry said in a statement, adding that the vessel remained afloat. "The explosions of ammunition have stopped." It said it was still trying to establish the cause of the incident.
Ukraine says missiles struck Russian flagship crippled by blast
The flagship of Russia's Black Sea fleet was seriously damaged and its crew evacuated on Thursday, following an explosion on board that Ukraine said was caused by a missile strike. The loss of the Soviet-era missile cruiser Moskva would be a blow for Russia - on the 50th day of its war in Ukraine - as it readies for a new assault in the eastern Donbas region that is likely to define the outcome of the conflict.
Neighbours back Ukraine, demand accountability for war crimes
The presidents of four countries on Russia's doorstep toured war-ravaged areas near the Ukrainian capital and demanded accountability for what they called war crimes, as Kyiv and Moscow gave conflicting accounts of what happened to a badly damaged missile cruiser that is the flagship vessel of Russia's fleet in the Black Sea. Wednesday's visit by the leaders of Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia was a strong show of solidarity from the countries on NATO's eastern flank, three of them like Ukraine once part of the Soviet Union. They travelled by train to the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, to meet with their counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and visited Borodyanka, one of the nearby towns where evidence of atrocities was found after Russian troops withdrew to focus on the country's east.
US should help India address its defence needs says Republican Senator
The US should help India address its defence needs so as to reduce its dependence on Russia, an influential Indian-American community leader has quoted a top Republican Senator as saying. According to the Congressional Research Service (CRS) report, since 2010, Russia has been the source of nearly two-thirds (62 per cent) of all Indian arms imports and India has been the largest Russian arms importer, accounting for nearly one-third (32 per cent) of all Russian arms exports.
Russia, contesting elections to four UN committees, lost all of them, including one to Ukraine, a verdict being seen as Moscow's isolation on the global stage. Elections were held in the United Nations Economic and Social Council on Wednesday to fill various vacancies in subsidiary and related bodies. Russia was contesting elections to the Committee on Non-Governmental Organisations, UN Women Executive Board, UNICEF Executive Board and Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he's sincerely thankful to the U.S. for the new round of $800 million in military assistance. In his daily late-night address to the nation, Zelenskyy also said he was thankful for Wednesday's visit by the presidents of Poland, Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia. He said those leaders have helped us from the first day, those who did not hesitate to give us weapons, those who did not doubt whether to impose sanctions.
German authorities seize superyacht belonging to sister of Russian oligarch
German authorities say they have seized a massive superyacht in Hamburg after determining that it belongs to the sister of Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov. The Federal Criminal Police Office said Wednesday that, after extensive investigations and despite offshore concealment, it had been able to determine that the owner is Gulbakhor Ismailova, Usmanov's sister. Superyacht Dilbar is flagged in the Cayman Islands and registered to a holding company in Malta, two banking havens where the global ultra-rich often park their wealth. It was launched in 2016 at a reported cost of more than $648 million.
No discussion on 'operationalising rupee-rouble arrangement' with Russia: Commerce secretary
Canada PM Trudeau calls Russian assault in Ukraine 'genocide'
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Wednesday it was "right" to describe Russia's attacks in Ukraine as "genocide," repeating US President Joe Biden's accusation. "I think it's absolutely right that more and more people be talking and using the word genocide in terms of what Russia is doing, what Vladimir Putin has done," Trudeau told reporters in Quebec, making him one of the first world leaders to use the term.
Russia, contesting elections to four UN committees, lost all of them, including one to Ukraine, a verdict being seen as Moscow's isolation on the global stage. Elections were held in the United Nations Economic and Social Council on Wednesday to fill various vacancies in subsidiary and related bodies. Russia was contesting elections to the Committee on Non-Governmental Organisations, UN Women Executive Board, UNICEF Executive Board and Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues.
The Russian navy's Black Sea flagship has been "seriously damaged" by an ammunition explosion: Russian state media
Australia imposed targeted financial sanctions on 14 Russian state-owned enterprises on Thursday, including defence-related entities such as truckmaker Kamaz, and shipping companies SEVMASH and United Shipbuilding Corp. Sanctions will also extend to electronic company Ruselectronics, responsible for the production of around 80% of all Russian electronics components, and Russian Railways over Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, Foreign Minister Marise Payne said in a statement.
Russia-Ukraine war threatening developing economies, warns UN
A UN task force is warning in a new report that Russia's war against Ukraine threatens to devastate the economies of many developing countries that are now facing even higher food and energy costs and increasingly difficult financial conditions. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres launched the report Wednesday stressing that the war is supercharging a crisis in food, energy and finance in poorer countries that were already struggling to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change and a lack of access to adequate funding for their economic recovery.
Russia says flagship of Black Sea fleet badly damaged by blast
Russia on Thursday said the flagship of its Black Sea fleet was seriously damaged and its crew evacuated following a fire that caused an explosion, as a Ukrainian official said the vessel had been hit by missiles. The incident on the Moskva missile cruiser occurred after ammunition on board blew up, Interfax news agency quoted the Russian defence ministry as saying. "As the result of a fire on the Moskva missile cruiser, ammunition detonated," it said in a statement. Maksym Marchenko, governor of the region around the Black Sea port of Odesa, said in an online post that the 12,500-tonne ship was hit by two missiles, without providing evidence. "Neptune missiles guarding the Black Sea caused very serious damage," he said in an online post.
After Biden remark, US yet to commit to its own genocide probe of Russia
The United States on Wednesday stopped short of promising to launch its own inquiry to determine whether genocide was committed by Russia in Ukraine but said it will support international efforts to hold Russia accountable. President Joe Biden said for the first time on Tuesday that Russia's invasion of Ukraine amounts to genocide, a significant escalation of his rhetoric. US State Department spokesperson Ned Price on Wednesday declined to say whether Biden's comments reflected the overall position of the US government, but said the president "was speaking to the impression he had garnered from watching the horrific footage that we've all seen" from Ukraine.
Ukraine warned on Wednesday that Russia was ramping up efforts in the South and East as it seeks full control of Mariupol, in what would be the first major city to fall, while Western governments committed more military help to bolster Kyiv. The Kremlin's nearly seven-week-long incursion, the biggest attack on a European state since 1945, has not gone to plan. Russia has been forced to pull back from some northern areas even as attacks across the country have turned Ukrainian cities to rubble and caused more than 4.6 million people to flee abroad.
Russia's defence ministry on Wednesday said 1,026 soldiers from Ukraine's 36th Marine Brigade, including 162 officers, had surrendered in Mariupol, which has been besieged for weeks, and that the port was fully under its control.
The United States has a wide variety of additional sanctions that it can impose on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters on Wednesday. Psaki said secondary sanctions and the targeting of additional financial firms are among a range of potential sanctions actions remaining that could be aimed at Russia.
Visiting Kyiv, leaders of Poland and Baltic states condemn Russia
The presidents of Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia met President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv on Wednesday and called for increased military support for Ukraine and for Russia to be held accountable for the actions of its troops on the ground. European politicians have flocked by train to the Ukrainian capital since Russian forces withdrew from the country's North in the face of strong Ukrainian resistance earlier this month. Before meeting Zelenskyy, the four presidents visited areas in Kyiv region where hundreds of slain civilians have been discovered after the Russian withdrawal. Moscow has denied responsibility and dismissed allegations its troops committed war crimes there as fake news.
UK sanctions Russian separatists in breakaway regions, Lukoil chief
Britain said on Wednesday it had imposed new sanctions on 206 individuals in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, including 178 who it said were involved in propping up Russian-backed breakaway regions of Ukraine. The Foreign Office said those slapped with asset freezes and travel bans included Alexander Ananchenko and Sergey Kozlov, which it described as self-styled Prime Minister and Chair of Government of the so-called Donetsk and Luhansk People's republics. Vagit Alekperov, president of Russian oil producer Lukoil who Britain said had a fortune worth 18 billion pounds ($23.6 billion), and Vladimir Yevtushenkov, chair of Russian business conglomerate Sistema, were also sanctioned.
Biden approves $800 million in new military assistance to Ukraine, including helicopters, and artillery to fight Russia.
European rights experts say Russia has committed war crimes in Ukraine
A mission of experts set up by Organization for Security and Cooperation and Europe (OSCE) nations has found evidence of war crimes and crimes against humanity by Russia in Ukraine, the mission said in a report on Wednesday. The mission was set up last month by 45 of the OSCE's 57 participating states to look into possible offences in Ukraine including war crimes and to pass on information to bodies such as international tribunals. Russia opposed it. The OSCE is an international organisation that includes former Cold War foes the United States and Russia and various countries in Europe, Central Asia and North America.
Russia closes in on last holdout in Ukrainian port, prepares for new offensive
More than 1,000 Ukrainian marines have surrendered in the port of Mariupol, Russia's defence ministry said on Wednesday, signalling that it had moved closer to capturing the ruined city, its main strategic target in eastern Ukraine. Taking the Azovstal industrial district, where the marines have been holed up, would give the Russians full control of Mariupol, Ukraine's main Sea of Azov port, and reinforce a southern land corridor before an expected new offensive in the country's east. Surrounded and bombarded by Russian troops for weeks and the focus of some of the fiercest fighting in the war, Mariupol would be the first major city to fall since Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24.
Oil traders to cut Russian oil purchases from May 15
Major global trading houses are planning to reduce crude and fuel purchases from Russia's state-controlled oil companies as early as May 15, sources said, to avoid falling foul of European Union sanctions on Russia. The EU has not imposed a ban on imports of Russian oil in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, because some countries such as Germany are heavily dependent on Russian oil and do not have the infrastructure in place to swap to alternatives.
Trading companies are, however, winding down purchases from Russian energy group Rosneft as they seek to comply with language in existing EU sanctions that were intended to limit Russia's access to the international financial system, the sources said.
German court hands Russian man suspended sentence for space tech spying
A German court on Wednesday sentenced a Russian researcher to a one-year suspended prison sentence for spying on Europe's Ariane space launcher project. The man, identified by the court only as Ilnur N., handed over information on research projects, including the Ariane Next launcher, to a handler from Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) on several occasions between 2019 and 2021, according to the court verdict.
The trial casts a spotlight on Russian intelligence activity in the West, which has introduced sweeping sanctions against Russia over what Moscow calls a "special military operation" in Ukraine, launched on Feb. 24.
(With inputs from agencies)