Ukraine says its drones have destroyed at least six military aircraft and badly damaged eight others, in what would be one of the country’s most successful cross-border strikes in the war.
Kyiv successfully hit the Engels-2 air base, located in Russia’s Saratov Oblast, located over 750 kilometers away from the nearest Ukrainian-controlled border, a military source told Kyiv Independent.
The strikes come as a top Ukrainian military commander warned Ukraine’s fightback in Avdiivka has been significantly setback by delays in Western aid and supplies.
Speaking to The Independent from an undisclosed location in Donetsk, deputy commander of Ukraine’s 3rd Assault Brigade, Maksym Zhorin said the problems caused by belated mobilisation drives and delayed Western aid are being felt across the frontline but they are acute in the Avdiivka direction.
Despite the calibre of Ukrainian soldiers in the area, Mr Zhorin says they are unable to launch anything other than localised counter-attacks that “are more a form of defence attack as opposed to a large-scale counter”.
Key Points
Top Ukrainian military chief’s stark warning to western allies about Putin
Ukraine claims it destroyed Russian warplanes in one of its biggest drone attacks of the war
Six killed and 10 injured in latest Russian attack on Kharkiv
Ukraine and Russia blame each other for Zaporizhia attacks
Drone strikes hit southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don
Russia calls for investigation into ‘dangerous’ Transdniestria drone attack
13:30 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Russia on Saturday condemned as a provocation a drone attack on a military facility of pro-Russian separatists in Moldova’s breakaway Transdniestria region and called for an investigation.
A kamikaze drone hit a facility belonging to the separatist authority’s defence ministry six km (four miles) from the border with Ukraine, the region’s security ministry said on Friday.
Russia‘s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 sparked fears that Moscow might seek to sweep west through southern Ukraine all the way to Transdniestria, linking up with its garrison there. Those fears faded as Kyiv’s troops beat back Russian forces to the eastern side of the Dnipro river.
The nearest front lines lie around 200 km (125 miles) from eastern Moldova.
“We regard this incident as yet another provocation aimed at exacerbating the already tense situation around Transdniestria,” Russia‘s foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a statement.
“We expect a thorough investigation into all the circumstances of what happened. We trust that those behind this reckless action will fully realize its dangerous consequences.”
Russian missile strike on Kharkiv kills six and wounds 11
12:30 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Russian forces attacked Ukraine with drones and missiles overnight, killing at least six people and wounding 11 more in Kharkiv, Ukraine‘s second largest city, local officials reported.
Governor of the Kharkiv region Oleh Syniehubov said missile strikes on the city damaged residential buildings, a petrol station, a kindergarten, a cafe, a shop and cars.
Overall, Russia fired 32 Iranian-made Shahed drones and six missiles at Ukraine overnight, according to the air force commander.
Ukrainian air defence forces shot down three cruise missiles and 28 drones, Lieutenant General Mykola Oleshchuk said in a statement.
“Russian killers continue to terrorise Ukrainians and attack Kharkiv and other peaceful cities,” he said.
Russian officials again try to link the Moscow concert attack with Ukraine despite Kyiv’s denials
12:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Russian authorities on Friday again tried to link the deadly attack on a Moscow concert hall to Ukraine, saying one of the detained suspects had photos on his phone depicting troops in camouflage uniforms with the Ukrainian flag.
Ever since the March 22 mass shooting and fire at the Crocus City Hall concert venue that killed 145 people, Russian officials have sought to blame Ukraine for the massacre, even though Kyiv has denied any involvement and an affiliate of the Islamic State claimed responsibility.
Authorities, including President Vladimir Putin, have provided no evidence for the link as they sought to shift the narrative from the failure by security services to prevent the attack.
Russian officials again try to link the Moscow concert attack with Ukraine despite Kyiv’s denials
Ukrainian man who helped Russia target missile strike on pizzeria jailed for life
11:30 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
A Ukrainian man has been jailed for life for helping Russia target a missile strike on a pizzeria in the eastern city of Kramatorsk last year.
“A local resident was sentenced to life imprisonment for guiding the occupiers’ missile attack on the pizzeria in Kramatorsk,” the office of the war-torn country’s prosecutor general said on Wednesday.
The 27 June attack on Ria Pizza killed 13 people, including novelist Victoria Amelina, and wounded 61. The attack also destroyed several nearby structures.
Ukrainian man who helped Russia target missile strike on pizzeria jailed for life
Ukrainian forces still control eastern town of Chasiv Yar, top general says
10:50 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Ukrainian forces are still in control of the town of Chasiv Yar in eastern Ukraine despite attempts by Russian troops to break through their defences, Commander-in-chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said on Saturday.
Russia‘s RIA news agency on Friday cited an official as saying Russian forces had entered the suburbs of the town, which Moscow sees as an important staging point for Kyiv’s troops. Ukrainian military said the report was untrue. “Chasiv Yar remains under our control, and all enemy attempts to break through to the settlement have failed,” Syrskyi said on the Telegram messaging app on Saturday.
A rapid Russian advance on Chasiv Yar, a heavily fortified town with a pre-war population of 12,200 situated west of the ruined Russian-occupied city of Bakhmut, would be a grim setback for Kyiv.
Russian forces are inching forward in eastern Ukraine after capturing the bastion town of Avdiivka in February. Kyiv’s soldiers are trying to dig in, facing long-term shortages of artillery shells with U.S. aid stuck in Congress.
Avdiivka fightback thwarted by Western weapon delays, military chief warns
10:06 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
During his interview, the first with Western media since the fall of the city, Maksym Zhorin was blunt about the reality of the eastern frontline while Western weapons supplies are delayed or simply being withheld – and he was frank about the future of European security.
A US military package worth roughly $60 billion has been in limbo in Washington for seven months, victim to squabbling politicians, while European partners have failed to send more than half of the million artillery shells they promised to Kyiv by this year, unable to agree on how to finance their production.
Hours after Nato secretary general Jens Stoltenberg announced a long-term proposal for a €100 billion military package to Ukraine this week – a step in the right direction for Kyiv – Mr Zhorin said that the pledge will help but it is, like all Western aid, coming too late.
Thousands in Russia’s Orenburg forced to evacuate as ‘critical’ flooding causes dam burst
09:29 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Thousands of people living in Russia’s Orenburg region have been forced to evacuate after severe flooding caused a dam to burst in the Ural river.
“Don’t wait for the situation to become threatening! Leave! You need to evacuate as quickly as possible,” the region’s mayor Sergei Salmin told residents, Reuters reported.
The situation in the city, about 1,500 km (930 miles) east of Moscow, is “critical” and some 300 houses have already been submerged, according to the mayor.
Burst dam forces thousands in Russia’s Orenburg to evacuate
‘Prepare for your own war’: Top Ukrainian military chief’s stark warning to western allies about Putin
09:00 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Russia is ready to “swallow” Europe whole, a top Ukrainian commander has warned – less than two months after he led a costly evacuation from a key city on the eastern frontline.
Speaking to The Independent from an undisclosed location in Donetsk, deputy commander of Ukraine’s 3rd Assault Brigade, Maksym Zhorin, issued a troubling warning to Kyiv’s Western partners.
The West, he said, must urgently prepare. “Create serious defence systems that could counteract Russia because it will undoubtedly open its mouth and try to swallow the rest of Europe,” he warned.
Top Ukrainian military chief sends warning to western allies about Russia
Russian descent vehicle lands in Kazakhstan with three astronauts
08:51 , Maryam Zakir-Hussain
A Russian descent vehicle landed in Kazakhstan on Saturday, returning from the International Space station with astronauts from Russia, Belarus and the United States, live footage broadcast by Russia’s Roscosmos space agency showed.
Russian Oleg Novitsky and Belarusian Marina Vasilevskaya departed for the ISS last month on a Soyuz spacecraft. They returned to Earth on Saturday along with U.S. astronaut Loral O’Hara, who had been aboard the orbital station since September.
Four dead and 20 injured after Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia hit by Russian missiles
08:00 , Tara Cobham
Russia fired five missiles on Ukraine’s southern city of Zaporizhzhia on Friday, killing at least four people, injuring 20 and damaging residential buildings and industrial facilities, the regional governor said.
Two journalists covering the aftermath of the strikes were among those wounded in the city, which is near the frontline in the war with Russian forces.
“What marks today’s strikes: first, there were two missile strikes, and then, about 40 minutes later, there were other strikes at the same place – just as rescuers, police started working,” Ivan Fedorov said on national TV.
The local prosecutor’s office said 20 people were wounded. They included a nine-year old boy. Four were in hospital in grave condition.
Fedorov said at least three apartment blocks, 10 private houses, shops and an unidentified industrial facility were damaged.
Emergency crews encountered the body of a victim lying next to a pool of blood. At least two cars in the street were engulfed in flames.
Images shared by Fedorov and the interior ministry, captured shattered windows of a cafe and a small shop.
Ukraine’s air force issued a ballistic missile raid alert for the region, part of which is occupied by Russia. Moscow has recently stepped up usage of ballistic missiles that are harder to intercept.
Zelensky marks second anniversary of Russian troops leaving Chernihiv
07:00 , Jane Dalton
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky inspected new fortifications for servicemen near the Belarusian border in the Chernihiv region, on the second anniversary of the Russian army fleeing the Chernihiv, Sumy and Kyiv regions.
He posted on social media: “The Chernihiv region, like all of our border areas, is subjected to constant Russian humiliation: airstrikes and terror.
“The border areas of the Chernihiv region are home to 15,000 people who are constantly subjected to strikes.
“Over the course of the past year, Russian terrorists fired 15,000 shells at them.
“They have no mercy. They try to get each person here and destroy all life.
“Everyone who defends our people in the Chernihiv region, our communities across Ukraine, and everyone in the world who supports Ukraine is a true defender of life. I am grateful to all such people.”
MSF condemns missile attack on its office
06:40 , Vishwam Sankaran
Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has condemned a missile attack on its office building in Pokrovsk yesterday in Donetsk oblast.
The building was completely destroyed, injuring five, including MSF’s security staff, the humanitarian organisation said.
“This act of violence against a humanitarian organisation cannot be brushed off as just another casualty of war,” Vincenzo Porpiglia, emergency coordinator for MSF in Ukraine, said.
MSF said it has suspended its medical humanitarian activities in the Donetsk region temporarily.
“Attacks on any facility where humanitarian staff work not only jeopardise the safety of our staff, but also hinder the provision of lifesaving care to those in need,” Mr Porpiglia said.
Russia’s use of prohibited chemical weapons is now ‘systemic,’ Ukraine says
06:00 , Vishwam Sankaran
Ukraine says Russia’s use of weapons with prohibited chemicals has become “systemic.”
The command of Ukraine’s Support Forces has recorded 371 uses of munitions containing prohibited chemicals over the past month, many of which included grenades delivered via drones.
The Support Forces’ report noted that Russian troops used weapons banned by the Chemical Weapons Convention 1412 times over the past year.
“Such actions on the part of the Russian Federation are taking on systemic pattern, and this tendency only grows,” the report noted.
Six killed and 10 injured in latest Russian attack on Kharkiv
05:40 , Vishwam Sankaran
Russia’s attack on Ukraine’s Kharkiv Oblast earlier today has left 6 dead and at least 10 injured, according to the city’s mayor Ihor Terekhov.
The attack began at midnight, destroying several buildings and dormitories, private vehicles, as well as local businesses, Kyiv Independent reported.
The city has been under a constant near-daily barrage of missile attacks from Russian troops since the invasion began in February 2022.
Government estimates suggest over 20,000 buildings have been destroyed in Kharkiv since Russia’s invasion began.
In pictures: Attack on Zaporizhia
05:30 , Jane Dalton
Special tribunal may be formed to hold Russia accountable, says EU’s top justice official
05:00 , Vishwam Sankaran
A special international tribunal may be set up by the end of the year to hold Russia accountable for war crimes in its invasion of Ukraine, European Commissioner for Justice Didier Reynders said.
“We are discussing this tribunal with various international actors,” Mr Reynders told Deutsche Welle in the Netherlands.
A political declaration by the Restoring Justice for Ukraine conference on 2 April, signed by 44 countries, condemns Russia’s actions in Ukraine and calls for setting up a special tribunal to address Russian crimes in Ukraine.
“Two main options are now being considered — an international tribunal based on a multilateral agreement or a simplified solution based on a bilateral agreement between Ukraine and the Council of Europe,” Mr Reynders said on the sidelines of the conference.
“The next step is a matter of political will. Now is just the beginning of the year, and by the end of the year, this should become possible,” he said.
India to receive Russian warships despite sanctions – report
04:30 , Vishwam Sankaran
India will reportedly receive two Russia-made warships despite US sanctions.
One of the ships will be delivered to India in September and the other expected next year, Bloomberg reported, citing unnamed Indian officials.
Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022, India has positioned itself as a neutral country, while maintaining closer economic ties with Moscow.
The ships are part of an agreement signed between India and Russia in 2018.
Russia continues to be India’s largest supplier of military equipment, contributing more than a third of the country’s arms imports, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.
Russia keeps trying to link Moscow concert attack to Ukraine
04:00 , Jane Dalton
Russian authorities have again tried to link the deadly attack on a Moscow concert hall to Ukraine, saying one of the detained suspects had photos on his phone depicting troops in camouflage uniforms with the Ukrainian flag:
Russian officials again try to link the Moscow concert attack with Ukraine despite Kyiv’s denials
‘Pure barbarity’: Rescuers killed as Russia launches double drone attack on Kharkiv – recap
02:45 , Jane Dalton
Resistance by Kharkiv’s vastly outnumbered defenders has infuriated Vladimir Putin, as Askold Krushelnycky reports:
‘Pure barbarity’: Rescuers killed in Russian ‘double tap’ drone attack on Kharkiv
Russia bombards Kharkiv
01:15 , Jane Dalton
Ukraine’s northeastern Kharkiv region, near the Russian border, came under intense air attack on Friday afternoon, according to local media and regional officials.
There were no immediate reports of casualties but Russia has stepped up attacks on Ukrainian grid infrastructure in recent weeks, aiming to disrupt the country’s power and energy network.
Three killed in Russian missile strikes in Zaporizhia
Friday 5 April 2024 23:59 , Jane Dalton
Russia fired five missiles on Ukraine’s southern city of Zaporizhia on Friday, killing at least three people and damaging homes and an industrial facility, the regional governor said.
“What marks today’s strikes: first, there were two missile strikes, and then, about 40 minutes later, there were other strikes at the same place – just as rescuers and police started working,” Ivan Fedorov said.
Thirteen people were wounded, including a nine-year old boy, and four were taken to hospital in a serious condition. Two journalists were among the wounded in the city, which is near the front line in the war.
At least three apartment blocks, 10 private houses, shops and an unidentified industrial facility were damaged, he added.
Ukraine’s air force issued a ballistic missile raid alert for the region, part of which is occupied by Russia. Moscow has recently stepped up usage of ballistic missiles that are harder to intercept.
Ukrainian man who helped Russia stage missile strike on pizzeria jailed for life
Friday 5 April 2024 22:59 , Jane Dalton
A Ukrainian man has been jailed for life for helping Russia target a missile strike on a pizzeria in the eastern city of Kramatorsk last year:
Ukrainian man who helped Russia target missile strike on pizzeria jailed for life
Russians expelled from Nato HQ in recent years, alliance says
Friday 5 April 2024 22:00 , Jane Dalton
Comments by Nato secretary general Jens Stoltenberg about expulsions of Russians from Nato headquarters referred to incidents from recent years, not recent months, as originally reported by German daily Bild, the alliance said on Friday.
Bild also issued a correction to its report, clarifying that Stoltenberg had not mentioned a timeframe when talking about the expulsions in an interview with the German outlet.
In the interview, Stoltenberg said: “We have seen that Russian intelligence services have operated across European countries for many years. We’re also seeing attempts to step up their activities but of course, Nato allies are monitoring, following this very closely.”
Cameron to press US Republicans to back military aid
Friday 5 April 2024 21:00 , Jane Dalton
Foreign secretary David Cameron will travel to the United States next week to urge politicians to approve a package of military aid for Ukraine.
Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson has held up a bill for months that would supply $60 billion in military and financial aid.
Lord Cameron said he would meet Mr Johnson to urge him to pass the aid package.
“Speaker Johnson can make it happen in Congress. I am going to go see him next week and say we need that money, Ukraine needs that money,” he posted.
In February, Cameron urged Republican lawmakers not to “show the weakness displayed against Hitler” in the 1930s.
Ukraine claims it destroyed Russian warplanes in one of its biggest drone attacks of the war
Friday 5 April 2024 20:00 , Jane Dalton
Ukrainian officials claimed Friday they used a barrage of drones to destroy at least six military aircraft and badly damage eight others at an airfield in Russia’s Rostov region, while Russian defense officials claimed they intercepted 44 Ukrainian drones and that only a power substation was damaged in the attack.
The assault appeared to be one of Kyiv‘s biggest air attacks in the war, coming as its forces step up their assaults on Russian soil. The Associated Press could not independently verify either side’s claims.
Ukraine claims it destroyed Russian warplanes in one of its biggest drone attacks of the war
Russian minister casts prospective Ukraine peace talks as Western plot to win hesitant Global South
Friday 5 April 2024 19:00 , Tom Watling
Russia’s top diplomat warned Thursday that prospective negotiations to end the fighting in Ukraine could be successful only if they take Moscow‘s interests into account, dismissing a planned round of peace talks as a Western ruse to rally broader international support for Kyiv.
Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov charged that Ukraine’s Western allies are currently involved in a massive diplomatic blitz to persuade as many countries of the Global South as possible to join a meeting in Switzerland to discuss a potential peace plan.
Russian minister casts prospective Ukraine peace talks as Western plot to win hesitant Global South
‘Pure barbarity’: Rescuers killed as Russia launches ‘double tap’ drone attack on Kharkiv
Friday 5 April 2024 18:00 , Tom Watling
Resistance by Kharkiv’s vastly outnumbered defenders has infuriated Vladimir Putin, as Askold Krushelnycky discovers at the scene of a cruel attack on brave Ukrainian rescue workers
‘Pure barbarity’: Rescuers killed in Russian ‘double tap’ drone attack on Kharkiv
Ukraine and Russia blame each other for Zaporizhia attacks
Friday 5 April 2024 16:58 , Jane Dalton
A Russian air attack on Ukraine’s southern city of Zaporizhia, home to Europe’s largest nuclear plant, killed two people and injured six more, the regional governor said.
A nine-year old boy was among the injured, Ivan Fedorov added on the Telegram messenger. It was unclear what was hit but an image posted by the governor showed a cafe with shattered windows.
Separately, the Russian state-run RIA news agency quoted the press service of the Russian-controlled facility as saying that Ukrainian military drones attacked the nuclear power plant. However, it caused no damage to its critical infrastructure, it said.
A series of blasts were reported in the city of Zaporizhia on Friday afternoon.
Scandals blight Denmark’s buildup of its armed forces as it eyes possible threats from Russia
Friday 5 April 2024 16:00 , Tom Watling
A series of scandals has blighted Denmark’s Armed Forces at a time when the Scandinavian country and member of the NATO alliance is building up its defenses, chiefly as a response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The events have so far led to the dismissal this week of Denmark’s top military chief, Gen. Flemming Lentfer, who failed to inform the defense minister about an incident on the frigate HDMS Iver Huitfeldt last month while deployed to the Red Sea, where it was part of a U.S.-led operation to defend commercial shipping against Houthi militants.
Scandals blight Denmark’s buildup of its armed forces as it eyes possible threats from Russia
Several Russian spies uncovered in Nato HQ
Friday 5 April 2024 15:40 , Jane Dalton
Several Russian personnel have been expelled from Nato headquarters amid espionage claims, Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg told Germany’s Bild tabloid in an interview released on Friday.
“We realised that they were carrying out activities that were not actually diplomatic work, but intelligence work,” Stoltenberg was quoted as saying by Bild.
There was no immediate comment from Nato.
In rare call, Russian defense minister warns French counterpart against sending troops to Ukraine
Friday 5 April 2024 15:10 , Tom Watling
Russia’s defense minister warned his French counterpart against deploying troops to Ukraine in a rare phone call Wednesday and noted that Moscow is ready to take part in talks to end the conflict.
Sergei Shoigu told French Defense Minister Sébastien Lecornu that if Paris follows up on its statements about the possibility of sending a French military contingent to Ukraine, “it will create problems for France itself,” according to a statement from the Russian Defense Ministry. It didn’t elaborate.
The conversation followed French President Emmanuel Macron’s comments in February, in which he said that the possibility of Western troops being sent to Ukraine could not be ruled out.
In rare call, Russian defense minister warns French counterpart against sending troops to Ukraine
Russian bomb destroys Medics Without Borders office in eastern Ukraine
Friday 5 April 2024 14:40 , Tom Watling
A Russian bomb has destroyed a Medics Without Borders (MSF) office in Pokrovsk near the frontline in eastern Ukraine, the organisation has reported.
“Today, April 5th at around 3am, our MSF office in Pokrovsk, in the Donetsk region, in Ukraine was bombed and completely destroyed,” a statement read. “All our staff are safe. Five civilians who were close to the office were injured.”
Ukraine’s prosecutor general said a 14-year-old boy was among those injured in the attack.
The small city in Donetsk Oblast has been regularly hit by Russian forces, who are just over 30 miles away in the recently-occupied city of Avdiivka.
Today, April 5th at around 3:00am, our @MSF office in Pokrovsk, in the Donetsk region, in Ukraine was bombed and completely destroyed. All our staff are safe. Five civilians who were close to the office were injured. #WarInUkraine pic.twitter.com/SnHC0CusUC
— MSF Ukraine (@MSF_Ukraine) April 5, 2024
Here are some of the latest photos from Ukraine
Friday 5 April 2024 14:10 , Jane Dalton
Below are some of the latest photos from Ukraine.
Ukraine and Russia each intercept drones
Friday 5 April 2024 13:40 , Jane Dalton
In a conflicting version of events, Russia’s defence ministry said 44 drones were intercepted and destroyed in the Morozovsky district, more than 60 miles from the border.
Rostov governor Vasily Golubev said eight people near the airfield targeted by Ukraine were injured.
Russian military bloggers confirmed an attempted attack by Ukrainian drones on a military air base in Morozovsk but said there were no casualties at the base and no damage to warplanes.
The Russian defence ministry said nine more drones were intercepted over the border regions of Kursk, Belgorod, Krasnodar and the nearby Saratov region, bringing the total of attack drones deployed by Ukraine overnight to 53.
Ukraine’s air force said it intercepted 13 Russian drones launched overnight at the southern regions of Odesa, Zaporizhia and Dnipropetrovsk, but five missiles got through. Authorities did not report any casualties.
Russian military planes destroyed in Ukrainian attack, say officials
Friday 5 April 2024 13:30 , Jane Dalton
Ukrainian officials say they have used a barrage of drones to destroy at least six military aircraft and badly damage eight others at an airfield in Russia’s Rostov region.
Russian defence officials, however, claim they intercepted 44 Ukrainian drones and that only a power substation was damaged.
The assault appears to be one of Kyiv’s biggest air attacks in the war, coming as its forces step up their assaults on Russian soil.
The overnight attack, which officials said was conducted by Ukraine’s Security Service in co-operation with the army and Ukrainian intelligence, targeted a military airfield near Morozovsk in Russia.
They said about 20 airfield staff were killed or injured.
Morozovsk airfield is used by Russian bombers that have been launching guided aerial bombs at Ukraine’s cities and frontline positions, the officials say.
If true, the attack would be among Ukraine’s most successful cross-border strikes.
Germany says Russia very likely responsible for Baltic GPS disruptions
Friday 5 April 2024 13:00 , Tom Watling
Russia is very likely to have been behind a series of disturbances affecting GPS navigation in the Baltic region, the German Defence Ministry said on Thursday, pointing to the Kaliningrad exclave as a source of the problem.
“The persistent disruptions to the global navigation satellite system are very likely of Russian origin and are based on disruptions in the electromagnetic spectrum, including those originating in the Kaliningrad Oblast,” a spokesperson for the ministry told Reuters, confirming a report by news website t-online.
The spokesperson declined to give details on how Berlin made its assessment or the exact nature of the disruptions, citing “reasons of military security”.
Kaliningrad is Russian territory wedged between Lithuania and Poland on the coast of the Baltic Sea.
The Russian embassy in Berlin declined to comment on the matter.
Last month, a government source told Reuters that Russia was believed to have jammed the satellite signal on an aircraft used by British defence minister Grant Shapps when it flew close to Kaliningrad.
The aviation industry has voiced concern over a surge in GPS interference linked to conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East.
The jamming of GPS signals can be disruptive to commercial airliners but they can usually navigate by other means.
Ukrainian man who helped Russia target missile strike on pizzeria jailed for life
Friday 5 April 2024 12:30 , Tom Watling
A Ukrainian man has been jailed for life for helping Russia target a missile strike on a pizzeria in the eastern city of Kramatorsk last year.
“A local resident was sentenced to life imprisonment for guiding the occupiers’ missile attack on the pizzeria in Kramatorsk,” the office of the war-torn country’s prosecutor general said on Wednesday.
The 27 June attack on Ria Pizza killed 13 people, including novelist Victoria Amelina, and wounded 61. The attack also destroyed several nearby structures.
Ukrainian man who helped Russia target missile strike on pizzeria jailed for life
NATO weighs a plan to provide long-term military help to Ukraine as Russian troops assert control
Friday 5 April 2024 12:00 , Tom Watling
NATO is debating a plan to provide more predictable military support to Ukraine in coming years as better armed Russian troops assert control on the battlefield, the organization’s top civilian official said Wednesday.
“We strongly believe that support to Ukraine should be less dependent on short-term, voluntary offers and more dependent on long-term NATO commitments,” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said before chairing a meeting of the alliance’s foreign ministers in Brussels.
NATO weighs a plan to provide long-term military help to Ukraine as Russian troops assert control
Dialogue must remain open with Russia, Italy defence minister says
Friday 5 April 2024 11:30 , Tom Watling
Communications with Russia must remain open despite its attack on Ukraine, Italy’s defence minister said on Friday, commenting on recent talks between his French and Russian counterparts.
On Wednesday, French Armed Forces Minister Sebastien Lecornu had a phone conversation with Russia’s Sergei Shoigu – the first since October 2022 – during the course of which France condemned Russia’s “war of aggression” in Ukraine.
France later denied Russian claims that it expressed willingness to hold dialogue on Ukraine or discuss possible peace negotiations when the two countries’ defence ministers spoke on Wednesday.
“Although the Russian Federation has invaded a sovereign country, and for this reason Italy and France always support and will support Ukraine, it is important (…) that channels of confrontation and dialogue are also kept open,” Italy’s Guido Crosetto said in a statement.
Crosetto, who spoke to Lecornu on Thursday, added that “tough and critical” communication, is essential to achieve the goal of stopping the Russian attacks and to be able to “create the conditions for a just peace”.
At 75, is timid, hesitant Nato now showing its age?
Friday 5 April 2024 11:00 , Tom Watling
On the alliance’s landmark anniversary, historian Sten Rynning says the future of European security may depend on whether it can convince three steadfastly neutral countries to sign up
At 75, is timid, hesitant Nato now showing its age?
Russian minister casts prospective Ukraine peace talks as Western plot to win hesitant Global South
Friday 5 April 2024 10:30 , Tom Watling
Russia’s top diplomat warned Thursday that prospective negotiations to end the fighting in Ukraine could be successful only if they take Moscow‘s interests into account, dismissing a planned round of peace talks as a Western ruse to rally broader international support for Kyiv.
Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov charged that Ukraine’s Western allies are currently involved in a massive diplomatic blitz to persuade as many countries of the Global South as possible to join a meeting in Switzerland to discuss a potential peace plan.
Russian minister casts prospective Ukraine peace talks as Western plot to win hesitant Global South
Ukraine staged major attack on Russia’s Morozovsk military air base, Kyiv source says
Friday 5 April 2024 09:56 , Tom Watling
Ukraine attacked Russia’s Morozovsk military air base in the Rostov region, destroying six Russian warplanes in a joint operation conducted by the SBU security service and military, a Kyiv intelligence source told Reuters on Friday.
Reuters could not independently verify the claim. The source did not say how the attack was conducted but that eight more warplanes had also been damaged.
Russia’s RIA news agency cited the Russian defence ministry earlier as saying Russian air defences had downed 53 Ukrainian drones overnight, most of them over the Rostov region.
The source said the Morozovsk air base was used by Russian tactical bombers like the Sukhoi Su-24 and Su-24M that Moscow’s air force uses to fire guided bombs at the Ukrainian military and frontline towns and cities.
The source described the operation as an important one.
Ukraine has significantly stepped up its drone attacks on targets in Russia in recent weeks, focusing on oil refineries in an effort to reduce Russian oil revenue.
Unable to rapidly produce long-range missiles and with limited access to those made by Western allies, Kyiv has focused on developing long-range uncrewed vehicles to strike back at Russia, which has used a sprawling arsenal of missiles and drones to bomb Ukraine.
Germany’s defense minister overhauls the military command as he seeks ‘war-capable’ armed forces
Friday 5 April 2024 09:30 , Tom Watling
Germany‘s defense minister on Thursday announced a plan to streamline and reorganize the country’s military command as part of efforts to make the armed forces of NATO’s most populous European member “war-capable.”
Chancellor Olaf Scholz set in motion a big increase in military spending shortly after Russia‘s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in early 2022, which he described as a “turning point.” Defense Minister Boris Pistorius last year took on the job of overhauling the military, the Bundeswehr, after years of neglect and in November called for a review of its structure.
Germany’s defense minister overhauls the military command as he seeks ‘war-capable’ armed forces
The true toll of the war in Ukraine is measured in bodies. This man brings them home, one at a time
Friday 5 April 2024 09:00 , Tom Watling
The smell in the car is sick and sweet, the overpowering scent of corpses that have lain too long in muck and ruin, the ones the dogs didn’t devour. Oleksii Yukov, a 38-year-old martial arts instructor who leads a team of volunteer body collectors in Ukraine, doesn’t notice.
He is on the phone with one of the mothers. She heard her son was injured in battle and left behind, but she’s not sure where.
“He was left to die and now they are telling me that ‘he died as a hero!?’” she says, choking out words between sobs.
The true toll of the war in Ukraine is measured in bodies. This man brings them home, one at a time
‘Pure barbarity’: Rescuers killed as Russia launches ‘double tap’ drone attack on Kharkiv
Friday 5 April 2024 08:30 , Tom Watling
Resistance by Kharkiv’s vastly outnumbered defenders has infuriated Vladimir Putin, as Askold Krushelnycky discovers at the scene of a cruel attack on brave Ukrainian rescue workers
‘Pure barbarity’: Rescuers killed in Russian ‘double tap’ drone attack on Kharkiv
Ukraine says it downed 13 drones launched by Russia overnight
Friday 5 April 2024 08:00 , Tom Watling
Ukraine‘s air force shot down all 13 drones used in Russia’s overnight attack on southern regions, the Ukrainian military said on Friday.
Shahed drones were destroyed over the Zaporizhzhia, Odesa and Dnipropetrovsk regions. Russia also used two S-300/S-400 missiles and three Iskander-M ballistic missiles in the attack.
One of the attacks targeted energy infrastructure in the Odesa region but air defences repelled all four drones, Ukraine‘s southern group of forces said on the Telegram messaging app. The debris damaged several private residences and farm buildings in Zaporizhzhia, the statement said.
Local officials also reported explosions in an attack in the eastern city of Kharkiv, a regular target of Russian attacks, late on Thursday. The region’s governor, Oleh Syniehubov, said the attack damaged four cars and a five-storey building with no casualties reported as of Friday morning. Russia has stepped up attacks on Ukrainian grid infrastructure in recent weeks, aiming to disrupt the country’s power and energy network.
Russia calls Swedish plans for NATO base in Baltic a provocation – RIA
Friday 5 April 2024 07:45 , Tom Watling
Russia’s foreign ministry said on Friday Sweden’s plans to set up a NATO military base on the Gotland island in the Baltic Sea were a provocation that would turn the sea into an area of geopolitical confrontation, the RIA news agency reported.
The ministry said this would increase risks for shipping in the Baltic.
Russian governor of Rostov-on-don region: air defence destroys more than 40 airborne targets
Friday 5 April 2024 07:30 , Tom Watling
The governor of Russia’s Rostov-on-Don region said early on Friday that air defence units had destroyed more than 40 airborne targets, though an electricity substation was damaged.
Vasily Golubev, writing on the Telegram messaging app, said the drone attacks had focused on Morozovsk district, northeast of Rostov-on-Don, which lies on Ukraine‘s eastern border. Golubev said work was under way to restore power supplies in affected areas.
The attack may have been targeting a military airfield in Morozovsk, Rostov Oblast, where bombers Su-24, Su-24M, and Su-34 are based.
Ukraine has for months launched drone attacks on several Russian regions on its borders.
Drones have attacked a military airfield in Morozovsk, Rostov Oblast, Russia, where bombers Su-24, Su-24M, and Su-34 are based.
Russian authorities report 44 drones destroyed and an electrical substation damaged. No mention of airfield damage. pic.twitter.com/dKgyjCofqc
— Euromaidan Press (@EuromaidanPress) April 5, 2024
Russia says it downed 53 Ukrainian drones overnight, RIA reports
Friday 5 April 2024 07:16 , Tom Watling
Russian air defences downed 53 Ukrainian drones overnight, most of them over the Rostov region, the RIA news agency cited the Russian defence ministry as saying on Friday.
One drone was downed in the Saratov region where an airbase for Russian strategic bombers is located. Drones were also downed over the Kursk, Belgorod and Krasnodar regions, the ministry said.
Nato members agree to look for more air defence systems for Kyiv
Friday 5 April 2024 07:00 , Jane Dalton
Nato alliance members agreed on Thursday to scour their arsenals for more air defence systems to protect Ukraine from Russian ballistic missile attacks, as the alliance marked a 75th anniversary overshadowed by the war on its borders.
“Allies understand the urgency,” Nato secretary general Jens Stoltenberg said after Ukrainian foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba met counterparts and appealed for new additional air defence systems, especially US-made Patriot missiles.
“Allies will now go back and look into their inventories, look into if there are any ways they can provide more systems, in particular Patriots, but also of course ensure that the systems which are already there have the ammunition but also the spare parts (they need),” Mr Stoltenberg said.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said: “I believe based on what I heard today that everyone, including the United States, is going to double back, and if necessary double down, on finding the resources that Ukraine continues to need.”
Neither official spelled out any specific pledge or aid target.
Earlier, as a ceremony with birthday cake and marching bands could not mask the sombre mood in Brussels, Mr Kuleba said: “I didn’t want to spoil the birthday party for Nato, but I felt compelled to deliver a very sobering message on behalf of Ukrainians about the state of Russian air attacks on my country.”
EMEA Tribune is not involved in this news article, it is taken from our partners and or from the News Agencies. Copyright and Credit go to the News Agencies, email news@emeatribune.com Follow our WhatsApp verified Channel
