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Ukraine – latest: Putin’s regime will be ‘crushed’, widow of Russian defector says; Hungary signals delay in Finland and Sweden NATO approval
The wife of Alexander Litvenenko says Vladimir Putin’s regime will be “crushed” and a new one will rise; Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban warns of further delays in Budapest’s approval of Finland and Sweden joining NATO. Listen to the Ukraine War Diaries podcast below.
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Key points
Putin’s regime will be ‘crushed’, widow of Alexander Litvenenko says View post
Hungary signals delay in Finland and Sweden NATO approval View post
Labour calls for Wagner Group to be proscribed as a terror organisation View post
Belarusian president to visit China View post
Russian attacks injure five in Donetsk region View post|Three people in hospital after Kherson missile strike View post
US urges G20 leaders to condemn war after dispute over communique wording View post
Diana Magnay: Don’t expect peace in 2023, the likelihood of Putin retreating is zero View post
Live reporting by Bhvishya Patel, with Deborah Haynes in Ukraine, Dominic Waghorn in Poland and Diana Magnay in Moscow
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2h ago
17:52
In pictures: Demonstrators attend rally in solidarity with Ukraine in Paris
People have been attending a rally to mark the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in Paris today.
After a sombre and defiant day of commemorations yesterday, Volodymyr Zelenskyy followed up with new video posts in which he said “Russia must lose in Ukraine” and its forces can be defeated this year.
In a separate tweet, Mr Zelenskyy also pushed for more sanctions pressure on Russia after the UK, US and European Union all announced new measures aimed at further choking off funding and support for Moscow.
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2h ago
17:35
Labour calls on ministers to proscribe Wagner Group as terror organisation
Labour has called on ministers to proscribe Russia’s Wagner Group involved in Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine as a terrorist organisation.
Shadow foreign secretary David Lammy and shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper have jointly demanded the UK government formally label the Russian mercenary group a terror organisation after accusing it of committing “appalling atrocities”.
The party said the move would make it a criminal offence to belong to the private military company, attend its meetings, encourage support or carry its logo in public.
The Wagner Group, led by Yevgeny Prigozhin, has been fighting battles alongside the Russian president’s armed forced in areas of eastern Ukraine.
The mercenaries, made up of contractors and recruited convicts, have battled to take the town of Soledar, a salt-mining town, and is currently involved in a casualty-heavy fight for the town of Bakhmut, also in the eastern Donetsk region.
Labour wants ministers to follow the US’s lead after Washington last month designated Wagner a “significant transnational criminal organisation”.
In a join statement, Mr Lammy and Ms Cooper said: “The Wagner Group is responsible for the appalling atrocities in Ukraine and across the world.
“No-one in the UK should be allowed to belong to the Wagner Group, support it or promote it.”
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3h ago
16:49
Ukraine’s NATO membership must be considered after war ends, says Czech president-elect
Ukraine’s NATO membership will have to be considered after the war comes to an end, the Czech Republic’s president-elect, Petr Pavel has said.
In an interview with the Ukrainian publication Suspilne, Mr Pavel, a retired general, said when it came to considering new members in the defence alliance common values, long-term interests and technical compatibility had to be considered.
He said from the point of view of technical compatibility, “Ukraine has done its homework”.
Mr Pavel went on to say that from the point of view of international law, as soon as Ukraine became a member of NATO, while still in conflict, the alliance would become a party to that conflict.
“One can only imagine how large-scale the conflict between NATO and Russia will be then, most likely, even with the use of nuclear weapons. So we have to wait for the end of the war and the restoration of Ukraine’s sovereignty,” he added.
Mr Pavel added that once the war was over he would “support” a decision for them to join NATO.
“I believe that Ukraine deserves to be considered as a new member of NATO — for maintaining standards, for protecting values that are important to all of us,” he added.
“And the Ukrainian military will probably be the most experienced of all, and would be a great advantage for NATO countries.
“So, there is every reason why we should consider Ukraine’s membership in NATO immediately after the war.”
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4h ago
16:15
Ukraine stands firm a year into the fight – but the war is likely to grind on
Ukraine hopes to defeat Russia’s invasion this year but, unless the West provides sufficient weapons to achieve a decisive victory or Vladimir Putin gives up, this war is set to grind on.
One year into a full-scale invasion intent on toppling the government and imposing a pro-Russian regime, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was standing firm on Friday.
But this was a day for commemoration, not celebration as the nation observed a one minute’s silence to remember the tens of thousands of Ukrainian service personnel who gave their lives to protect Ukraine’s freedom.
They also know that there are many more days, months – even years – of tough fighting ahead.
Read more from Sky’s security and defence editor Deborah Haynes here…
Ukraine stands firm a year into the fight – but the war is likely to grind on
Sky News
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4h ago
15:47
EU vows to ramp up pressure on Moscow as it issues fresh sanctions
The EU has vowed to increase pressure on Moscow “until Ukraine is liberated” as it adopted a tenth package of sanctions on Russia today.
European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said the bloc was turning up the pressure on those trying to circumvent EU sanctions.
She said on Twitter: “We now have the most far-reaching sanctions ever – depleting Russia’s war arsenal and biting deep into its economy.”
Meanwhile, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell warned the bloc would continue to pile more sanctions on Moscow.
“We will continue to increase pressure on Russia – and we will do it for as long as needed, until Ukraine is liberated from the brutal Russian aggression,” he said in a statement.
Mr Borrell said the latest sanctions tackled the banking sector, Moscow’s access to technology that can be used for civilian and military purposes and advanced technologies.
The package adds electronic components used in Russian weapons systems retrieved on the battlefield, including drones, missiles, helicopters, as well as specific rare earth materials, electronic integrated circuits, and thermal cameras to the list of banned exports.
It also imposes tighter export restrictions on another 96 entities for supporting Russia’s military and industrial complex, including for the first time seven Iranian entities manufacturing military drones used by Moscow.
Additional restrictions are imposed on imports of goods which generate significant revenues for Russia, such as asphalt and synthetic rubber.
Separately, the EU imposed sanctions on 11 individuals and seven entities linked to the Wagner group, whose mercenaries are fighting in Ukraine.
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5h ago
15:19
Kremlin did not want to capture Kyiv in three days, Russian pundit claims
The Kremlin did not want to take Kyiv in three days, a Russian pundit has claimed.
In a clip shared by BBC journalist Francis Scarr, Yulia Vityazeva is heard saying on what appears to be Russian state television that yesterday Ukraine was marking their “day of invincibility”.
“They were saying that Ukraine’s main achievement is that Kyiv still hasn’t been taken in three days as was promised, as was predicted by the American general Mark Milley,” she says.
Ms Vityazeva goes on to say that in Ukraine “everyone preferred to forget the fact that these were the words of an American general”.
She adds: “So they’re all saying that we planned to take Kyiv in three days. Let me repeat myself: if we had wanted to do it, we would have done it!
“What’s more, we have all the capacity and resources to have done it just like the Americans took Fallujah.
“But our supreme commander-in-chief does not want to. He doesn’t need that Pyrrhic victory and we don’t either because we’ll be living there later.”
For context: In early February last year, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark Milley warned US lawmakers that Kyiv could fall within 72 hours if Russian launched an invasion of Ukraine.
After Russian forces entered Ukraine, they made their way to the capital in an effort to seize it.
However, they soon retreated from the area and set their sights on the capture of the eastern flank of the country.
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5h ago
14:51
‘It was terrible’: Ukrainian artist who survived Bucha massacre describes early days of invasion
A woman who survived the Bucha massacre, on the outskirts of Kyiv, has described the early days of Russia’s invasion and returning to her home to find that everything had been stolen.
Artist and gallery owner Alina Kosenko, who had lived in Bucha all her life, said she remembered in the early days seeing lots of smoke from her window and then realising there were lots of planes and helicopters in the sky.
Speaking to the PA news agency with the help of a translator, Ms Kosenko said: “Every night I’ve heard rockets, I’ve heard airplanes and helicopters, and we called with my close people every day to check if they’re fine.”
She also recalled seeing Russian tanks near her building.
“It was terrible,” she said.
“So already on first day there was no heating, no water, it was really, really cold. But I tried to do my work, and I’ve made some artworks, but it was really, really hard to continue, but I continued working.”
She said the tanks left on the seventh day and she went to her brother’s house and stayed in the basement.
“It was safer there for me,” she said.
Ms Kosenko returned home on the eighth day to get food which she shared with others.
She added: “When I went back home I saw that all my stuff was stolen. There was nothing inside. No money, no credit cards, even pottery.
“They’ve stolen everything. And my neighbours saw how Russians took everything with them.”
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5h ago
14:40
The Russian region with high casualties where an army contract is big money
Buryatia feels like it is a world away from war in Europe.
It is a different Russia. Vast snowy plains and Buddhist temples, closer at first glance to Mongolia next door than it is to Moscow, five time zones away.
But the motifs of Russia’s war in Ukraine are everywhere.
A huge Z and V stuck to the side of an apartment building we pass. Another giant V sign on the side of the world’s largest Lenin’s head in the centre of the regional capital, Ulan-Ude.
Read more from Sky’s Moscow correspondent Diana Magnay here…
Ukraine war: The Russian region with high casualties where an army contract is big money
Sky News
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6h ago
14:02
Russian jet spotted flying over southern Ukraine – reports
A trail from a Russian jet has been spotted over occupied southern Ukraine on satellite imagery, Brady Africk from the American Enterprise Institute reports.
Mr Africk said Russia had several bases in nearby Crimea and operates in the area often.
The analyst said the Russian aircraft was heading toward Crimea when this satellite imagery was captured.
Fighting is grinding on in Ukraine after the country marked the anniversary of Russia’s invasion – with authorities reporting dozens of new Russian strikes and attacks on cities in the east and south.
Earlier today, Ukraine’s military reported 27 Russian airstrikes and 75 attacks from multiple rocket launchers in the most recent 24-hour spell.
It said Russian offensive efforts continue to be concentrated in Ukraine’s industrial east and northeast.
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6h ago
13:34
In pictures: Ukrainian troops near Bakhmut region
Ukrainian soldiers have been firing at Russian positions near the eastern city of Bakhmut as both sides continue to fight over the region.
The months-long struggle for Bakhmut has seen some of the bloodiest fighting of Russia’s year-old invasion of Ukraine.
Between 7-12 February, Wagner forces appeared to have advanced several kilometres around the north of Bakhmut and begun to encircle it – a rapid push in a battle where frontlines had been frozen for months.
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7h ago
13:11
Thousands join Berlin rally calling for Ukraine peace talks
Thousands of protesters in Berlin carried out a demonstration against supplying Ukraine with weapons for war with Russia today and called for peace talks to end the war.
The “Uprising for Peace” was organised in part by Sahra Wagenknecht, a member of Germany’s left-wing Die Linke party, and comes a day after the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which drew promises of more weapons from Western allies.
The protest’s organisers said on their website: “We call on the German chancellor to stop the escalation of arms deliveries now.
“Every day lost costs up to 1,000 more lives – and brings us closer to a Third World War.”
Germany, along with the US, has been one of the biggest suppliers of weapons for Ukraine.
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7h ago
12:47
Expert predictions: Morale could be ‘dangerous’ and West will need to look at Russian threat beyond Ukraine
Throughout the last couple of days, we have been bringing you the predictions by experts on where the Ukraine war could go in the next 12 months.
For Dr Marina Miron, a research fellow in the Centre for Military Ethics, there is a “very high likelihood” the war will still be going on by this time next year.
Speaking to our live blogger Jess Sharp, she said Ukraine could become a situation similar to Syria, where war is still going on but without the same intensity.
“There is a possibility that some parts of the frontline will remain static but that there will be movements, especially from Russia towards Luhansk and Kramatorsk,” she added.
“That’s what they were kind of planning, and in the longer term they were also aiming for Odessa to leave Ukraine landlocked.”
However, she added Vladimir Putin’s troops may not have the capability to go through their plan, especially as their manpower dwindles.
“They do not have the manpower to launch offensives along the frontline, so they will have to set priorities in terms of where they can go,” Dr Miron added.
For Ukraine, she said that the possibility of them taking back ground is “problematic” because the country is reliant on Western help.
“I’m seeing a lot of problems, first being manpower,” she said.
“They are trying to mobilise aggressively, and it is creating a lot of problems because many people don’t want to fight.”
She explained this could affect the morale of Ukrainian troops, which would be “very dangerous”.
“If Russia manages to break Ukrainians psychologically, any equipment coming from the West won’t save the situation,” Dr Miron said.
Despite all this, she believes looking beyond Ukraine is going to be the important thing over the course of 2023.
“We are now focused on the battlefield because that’s where all the action takes place, but we’re kind of neglecting the fact that for instance, China, Russia and South Africa are conducting a military exercise right now,” she said.
“While we’re all distracted with Ukraine, Russia is trying to kind of create this web around the globe.
“Right now we’re not containing Russia anywhere else, and that is a danger.”
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8h ago
12:20
Zelenskyy: Now is the time when our bravery and weapons can restore peace
Now is the time bravery and weapons can restore peace and “create a historically important deterrent to any aggression”, Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said.
In a message on Twitter, the Ukrainian leader said it had been a year since “everything has changed”.
He said: “Diplomacy did not work. The existing security architecture did not work. But there was something that did work. Unity of Ukraine, Germany, and the entire free world.”
He went on to say: “Now is the time when our bravery and our weapons can restore peace and create a historically important deterrent to any aggression.”
In a separate tweet, Mr Zelenskyy also pushed for more sanctions pressure on Russia after the UK, US and European Union all announced new measures aimed at further choking off funding and support for Moscow.
“The pressure on Russian aggressor must increase,” he tweeted.
Mr Zelenskyy said Ukraine wanted to see “decisive steps” against Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom and the Russian nuclear industry as well as “more pressure on military and banking”.
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8h ago
11:56
Wagner fighters capture village near Bakhmut
Wagner group fighters have captured the village of Yahidne, just north of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine, Russian mercenary boss Yevgeny Prigozhin has claimed.
Mr Prigozhin made the claim in a short audio message.
Sky News has not been able to verify the claim.
Once home to more than 70,000 civilians, the eastern city of Bakhmut now has fewer than 12,000 residents in the region.
In recent months, the battle in the city has become one of the fiercest in the war so far, with residents forced to shelter underground and in freezing conditions.
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8h ago
11:35
Former boxing champion drives Leopard 2 tank in Ukraine
Footage has appeared of former professional boxer Wladimir Klitschko driving one of Ukraine’s new Leopard 2 battle tanks.
In a clip shared by Anton Gerashchenko, an adviser to Ukraine’s ministry of internal affairs, Mr Klitschko is seen driving the tank through woodland area.
He says: “I never thought a year ago that I was going to drive this ‘cat’.
“A year of war in Ukraine. A year of suffering. And a year of willpower stronger that ever.”
He goes on to thank Germany and the free world “for all that you do for us Ukrainians”.
For context: Yesterday, pictures emerged of Leopard 2 tanks arriving in Kyiv.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal and Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki shook hands in front of the battle tanks, which were provided to Kyiv by Warsaw.
The modern tanks are thought to be a gamechanger for Ukraine, which is planning to launch a counteroffensive in the coming weeks.
Last month, Germany – which manufactures the vehicles – had come under pressure to send them to Ukraine, and to allow its allies to send their stocks.
It has since agreed to send some of its own stocks as well as allowing other countries to send theirs.
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9h ago
11:11
Ukrainian Arsenal player named captain for Leicester away game
Oleksandr Zinchenko has been named Arsenal’s captain for this afternoon’s away game in Leicester as a mark of respect for the first anniversary of the war.
The Ukrainian wore an armband in his country’s colours of blue and yellow for the match which kicked off at 3pm.
Arsenal’s Oleksandr Zinchenko (left) with Gabriel Martinelli
Arsenal’s Oleksandr Zinchenko (left) with Gabriel Martinelli
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9h ago
10:47
How significant is China’s 12-point peace plan?
Beijing’s 12-point peace plan is “unacceptable” to Ukraine and the West – but contains some elements which could be agreed on, defence and security expert Michael Clarke has said.
As part of its plan for peace, unveiled yesterday, China has called for an immediate ceasefire from both Russia and Ukraine.
But Mr Clarke said this won’t be accepted by Kyiv and Western nations as it would ensure Moscow keeps the gains it has made over the last year.
Speaking about China’s position on Russia, he said: “China won’t condemn Russia outright.
“They won’t condemn Russia, but they are being careful not to offer too much help.”
The relationship between Moscow and Beijing is “not unconditional”, he added.
Elements of China’s peace plan are more agreeable for Ukraine and the West, Mr Clarke says, including swapping prisoners of war, resolving the humanitarian crisis and keeping nuclear power plants safe.
Watch more of Mr Clarke’s analysis here…
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10h ago
10:25
Putin’s regime will be ‘crushed’, widow of Alexander Litvenenko says
Vladimir Putin’s regime will be “crushed” and a new one will rise, the wife of murdered Russian defector Alexander Litvenenko has said.
Speaking to Sky’s Milena Veselinovic in London, where Russian protesters have taken to the streets to show their support with the people of Ukraine, Marina Litvenenko said it was “very important” Russians came to the capital today to show they are against the war.
She said: “A lot of Russian are now supporting Ukraine. They are doing everything so Ukraine will win.”
Ms Litvenenko said many Russian people who live in Russia are frightened to go outside.
“Message to the international community – Russians are against the war,” she said.
“You don’t need to support Putin or make any explanation as to why he started this war.
“Putin [carried out] crimes. War crimes.”
She also said within a year it was possible to see how many people had died and now it was time to think “how to help Ukrainians”.
“Ukraine will win and Putin’s regime will be crushed and a new Russian regime will rise,” she added.
Mr Litvinenko, a British citizen, was a former KGB agent who went on to work for MI6 after fleeing to the UK.
He had also become an outspoken critic of Mr Putin.
He died an agonising death after being poisoned in London after his tea was laced with Polonium 210, a rare and very potent radioactive isotope.
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10h ago
10:08
Hungary signals delay in Finland and Sweden NATO approval
There could be further delays in Budapest’s approval of Finland and Sweden joining NATO, Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban has said.
Last year, Sweden and Finland applied to join the transatlantic defence pact after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
But all 30 NATO members need to back the applications and Sweden has faced objections from Turkey for harbouring what Ankara considers to be members of terrorist groups.
With Hungary’s ratification process stranded in parliament since July, Mr Orban has now aired concerns about Sweden and Finland’s NATO membership.
Among other criticisms, he has accused both countries of spreading “outright lies” about the health of democracy and the rule of law in Hungary.
He also said more talks were needed between parliamentary groups before lawmakers vote on the membership bids.
Earlier today, Mr Orban’s aide Gergely Gulyas said more time was needed for a vote on the NATO bids.
“Parliament will put this on the agenda on Monday and start
debating the legislation next week,” Mr Gulyas told a news conference.
“Based on Hungarian procedure, adopting legislation takes about four weeks, so it follows that parliament can have a vote on this sometime in the second half of March, on the week of 21 March.”
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban
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10h ago
09:45
Ukrainian scientists express concern over country’s ‘brain drain’
Two Ukrainian scientists have spoken of why it is more crucial than ever that women in the country are encouraged to pursue science professionally and expressed concern over their country’s “brain drain” as young people flee the war.
Olena Pareniuk studies bacteria in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone while Kateryna Shavanova is a biologist who works on the efficiency of agriculture.
They both spoke about their worry regarding young Ukrainian minds fleeing the war and studying overseas, gaining university degrees and getting jobs elsewhere.
“Ukraine desperately needs smart and young people right now,” Ms Pareniuk told PA.
“Because after the victory, we will have to rebuild the country. It should be smart, prominent young people who should do it.
“We should show the opportunities to young people who stayed in Ukraine or who left Ukraine for a scholarship. We should show them that we have something to do here and we will really appreciate you coming back.”
Dr Pareniuk added that there must be an approach to combat her country’s “brain drain”.
She added: “The feeling is very strange because by sending good students to another country, it might seem that I’m just facilitating the brain drain.
“I think that I will do my best to attract some nice funding for our research and I will do my best to employ young people, give them freedom and good advice to proceed in (a) future in science.
“That is how I hope to make my contribution in stopping the brain drain.”
The scientists both recently featured in the second season of the online docuseries Women in Science, which aims to make Ukrainian female scientists visible to society and inspire young women to build careers in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics).
