Russia Ukraine war live updates: Airstrikes close to Europe with hits on two cities Ukraine’s west
The bombardment isn’t letting up as Russian airstrikes target Lutsk, which is less than 100km from the Polish border.
Russia has announced the military airfields in the western Ukrainian cities of Lutsk and Ivano-Frankivsk, which are both close to the Polish border, have been “put out of action”.
Civilians in the area are taking part in basic military training as evacuees continue to stream west from embattled eastern and central parts of the country, fleeing Putin’s advance.
It comes as Russian forces bombard the strategic central city of Dnipro, with three missiles hitting civilian buildings including a kindergarten and a shoe factory.
Ukrainian officials claim the widening of Russia’s targets followed its failure to secure cities already under siege, and insisted Moscow had made no “significant progress” in the last 24 hours. However, at least four people have been killed in the attacks.
US VOWS RUSSIA WILL PAY
The United States vowed Russia would pay a “severe price” if it goes ahead with a planned attak that intelligence officials claim will involve chemical weapons.
However, US president Joe Biden once again ruled out direct military action, warnning of “World War III” if NATO directly intervenes in the war in Ukraine, but added there would be greater consequences if chemical weapons were used in the conflict.
“I’m not going to speak about the intelligence, but Russia would play a severe price if they used chemicals,” Biden said during an announcement of more sanctions.
A US official told Reuters they believed chemical weapons could be used in a “false flag attack” to provide a retrospective justification for Russia’s invasion.
It comes as Ukraine’s intelligence agency claimed Vladimir Putin may be planning to launch a “terrorist attack” on the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in order to distract from his assault on the country.
The agency claimed in a tweet a “man-made catastrophe” was planned, “for which the occupiers will try to shift responsibility to Ukraine”.
The State Service of Special Communications and Information Protection of Ukraine alleged that Russia was seeking to draw Belarus into the war by launching an attack on the country from within Ukraine.
“Without having received the desired result from terrestrial military operation and direct negotiations, Putin is ready to resort to the nuclear blackmail of the world community for the sake of concession in the support of Ukraine,” the agency said.
UKRAINE WAR AT ‘TURNING POINT’
The warnings stand in stark contrast to indications from presidents of both Ukraine and Russia, who suggested progress in peace negotiations even as Putin’s army regrouped for an assault on Kyiv and launched its first air strikes in the west.
Volodymyr Zelensky said they were closer to freeing their land of occupying forces after Ukraine’s military reached a “strategic turning point” in its fight against Russia.
It came after Vladimir Putin made a cryptic reference to potential progress in talks with Ukraine.
“There are certain positive shifts, negotiators on our side tell me,” Putin said during a meeting with the president of Belarus, according to Reuters. “I will talk about all of this later.”
Soon after, Zelensky spoke from the presidential administration building in Kyiv to announce plans for 12 humanitarian corridors to supply food, medicine and basic goods.
“It’s impossible to say how many days we will still need to free our land, but it is possible to say that we will do it because … we have reached a strategic turning point,” he said, according to AP.
Russian forces were seen in satellite images regrouping outside Kyiv in what British intelligence said could be preparation for a major assault on the city within days.
The images showed armoured units in towns close to Kyiv’s airport in the northwest suburbs, where Russia landed paratroopers in the opening salvo of the war.
“Russia is likely seeking to reset and re-posture its forces for renewed offensive activity in the coming days,” Britain’s Ministry of Defence said in an intelligence update.
“This will probably include operations against the capital Kyiv.”
Ukraine said in a statement that Russian forces retreated to “unfavourable positions” in the Polskiy district, after taking heavy losses.
It came as the Russian offensive arrived in the west of Ukraine for the first time with air strikes in the cities of Lutsk and Ivano-Frankiivsk.
Airports came under rocket attack overnight near Lutsk, in the northwest near the borders of Poland and Belarus, and Ivano-Frankiivsk, in the southwest near the borders of Slovakia and Romania.
RUSSIAN VODKA BANNED IN NEW SANCTIONS
The United States announced a ban on Russian seafood, vodka and diamonds, as Washington tightened sanctions against the Kremlin over its invasion of Ukraine.
The US and its allies stripped Russia of “favoured nation” status guaranteeing equal treatment between international trade partners in its latest sanction over the Ukraine invasion.
Canadian, meanwhile, announced sanctions on Russian oligarchs, including Chelsea football club Roman Abramovich.
Trudeau said the billionaire owner of Chelsea football club and four other individuals would “be prevented from dealings in Canada and their assets will be frozen.” Canada is the second country to impose sanctions on Abramovich after Britain did so on Thursday.
The club said Chelsea’s players could wear a “symbol of peace” in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine after mobile network provider Three suspended its shirt sponsorship following the sanctioning.
PUTIN BACKS PLAN TO SEND VOLUNTEER FIGHTERS TO UKRAINE
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday backed plans to allow volunteers, including from abroad, to fight in Ukraine, where he has sent thousands of Russian troops in what he calls a “special military operation”.
“If you see that there are people who want on a voluntary basis (to help east Ukraine’s separatists), then you need to meet them halfway and help them move to combat zones,” Putin told Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu during a televised security council meeting.
According to Shoigu, more than 16,000 volunteers – mostly from the Middle East – have appealed to join the military action.
“As for the supply of arms, especially Western-made, which ended up in the hands of the Russian army, of course I support the possibility of transferring them to the military units of DNR and LNR,” Putin said referring to the breakaway Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics in Ukraine’s east.
Putin also ordered that Shoigu prepare a separate report on strengthening Russia’s western borders “in connection to the actions that NATO countries are taking in this direction”.
EU LEADERS DASH FAST-TRACK MEMBERSHIP HOPE
The new developments come as European Union leaders dash Ukraine’s hopes of getting a fast-tracked membership in a bid to secure more support for its fight.
Representatives from the 27 member countries met at the Palace of Versailles, near Paris, to discuss the war as well as concerns over the region’s energy supply.
French President Emmanuel Macron dubbed the hospital attack a “disgraceful act of war”, with leaders from across the bloc condemning the atrocity and pointing the finger at Moscow. Russia has denied responsibility for the attack, which killed at least three people.
Though the conflict has seen a swell of support across the EU for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, leaders say it would be impossible to expedite the application.
“There is no such thing as a fast track,” said Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte. “I want to focus on what can we do for Volodymyr Zelensky tonight, tomorrow, and EU accession of Ukraine is something for the long-term – if at all.”
LAVROV’S PEACE TALK REVEALED TO BE A FARCE
A Russian and Ukrainian face off for peace ended in farce with Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov conceding he had no authority to organise safe battlefield passage for civilians let alone a permanent ceasefire.
What was being billed as one of the bloody conflict’s best chance at a ceasefire ended with very little to discuss.
Mr Lavrov and his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba faced each other in a sterile conference centre in Antalya in neutral Turkey, for what was the highest-level talks since the war began.
But while negotiations were expected to be difficult no-one expected Russia’s top diplomat to admit he had no decision-making authority.
The pair attempted to broker at least a 24-hour ceasefire and a humanitarian corridor to allow civilians to flee the war, notably in besieged Mariupol but also other cities.
Instead Mr Lavrov stunned his hosts and opposition saying he had no mandate to make any deals on anything. Instead he just said Ukraine should surrender to end the violence and even suggested it was not Russia that had attacked Ukraine but the other way around.
“I came here with a humanitarian purpose, to walk out of the meeting with a decision to arrange a humanitarian corridor to and from Mariupol,” Mr Kuleba said, adding he had failed with no agreement reached and said Ukraine would never surrender.
He said the “apocalyptic” onslaught of civilians by Russian bombs, missiles and artillery continued.
MORE THAN 400,000 PEOPLE HOSTAGE IN MARIUPOL
“Russia continues to hold more than 400,000 people hostage in Mariupol, blocking humanitarian aid and evacuation, indiscriminate shelling continues,” he said. So far 1200 bodies have been retrieved from Mariupol rubble.
Mr Lavrov added he did not believe the conflict would spiral into a nuclear war and dismissed concerns about civilian casualties in Mariupol as “pathetic shrieks” from Russia’s enemies.
The maternity hospital struck by Russian rockets that has revolted the world he said had been seized by far-right fighters as a base and was not a hospital, despite images and videos of the aftermath showing pregnant women and children at the site.
There have been other photographs released showing a mass grave where Mariupol city officials are burying the dead from other sites in a 25m long trench. More than 70 bodies were being lowered in. Such is the desperation in the town, aid workers have reported civilians are attacking each other for food and water.
DRONE CAPTURES TANK AMBUSH ON KYIV’S OUTSKIRTS
As the foreign ministers met, Russian forced edged ever closer to Kyiv.
Their progress was not clear but a Ukrainian military drone captured the moment a column of Russian T-72 tanks and armoured vehicles was caught in an ambush on the eastern outskirts of the city, with some forced to turn back. Intercepted radio transmissions appeared to reveal the regimental commander of the column was killed in the strike.
Meanwhile, Moscow moved to retaliate against Western sanctions with some of their own including the export of medical, auto, electrical and agricultural goods, a ban on foreign ships at their ports and temporarily stopping grain and sugar exports to former Soviet allies.
Mr Putin warned the Western sanctions would see world food prices soar but would make Russia stronger than ever, despite the World Bank saying both Russia and ally Belarus were close to being bankrupt.
AUSTRALIA BANS RUSSIAN OIL; EXTENDS VISAS FOR UKRAINIANS
Foreign Affairs Minister Marise Payne has announced that Australia will ban Russian oil, refined petroleum products, gas and coal imports.
“Australia does not import large amounts, but taking this action with key partners will collectively curtail Russia’s revenue and ability to finance Russian President Vladimir Putin’s unjustified war against Ukraine,” Ms Payne said on Friday.
It comes as all Ukrainian nationals in Australia with a visa set to expire by June 30, 2022, will get an automatic extension for six months, Immigration Minister Alex Hawke has announced.
Australian has given more than 3000 visas to Ukrainians since February 23, 2022.
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