Ukraine war – latest updates: Outrage as Russia takes charge of UN Security Council; Kim Jong Un’s sister accuses Kyiv of calling for nuclear weapons
Russia assumes the presidency of the UN Security Council, a body responsible for maintaining peace and combatting acts of international aggression; North Korea’s Kim Yo Jong claims a petition calling for Ukraine to host nuclear weapons could be a political ploy by Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
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Russia assumes the presidency of the UN Security Council View post
Kim Jong Un’s sister accuses Ukraine of seeking nuclear weapons View post
Ukraine to attempt ‘splitting Russian troops in two’ with counter-offensive View post
Five-month-old boy killed by Russian artillery View post
Top Russian tennis players react to end of Wimbledon ban View post | Ukraine demands UK ban their visas View post
‘War commander pushing his luck with Kremlin’ View post
Finland to join NATO ‘within days’ and double the alliance’s border with Russia View post
Live reporting by Chris Lockyer, and earlier, Brad Young
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6h ago
16:40
Evacuations continue in the eastern frontline city Avdiivka
Halyna, 73, is one of those who is being forced to flee Avdiivka in the Donetsk region, amid continued Russia assaults on the city.
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8h ago
15:31
Ukrainian cleric sentenced to house arrest over claims he supports Russian invasion
We told you in our 14.44 post that officials had asked a court to place Metropolitan Pavel under house arrest, over suspicions he condoned Russia’s invasion.
The cleric strongly rejected the claim and described the accusations against him as politically driven, threatening Volodymyr Zelenskyy with damnation.
He is abbot of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra monastery where the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) is based, which has been accused of having ties to Russia by Ukrainian security agencies.
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8h ago
15:06
Read again: The boy who cried wolf: Should Putin’s nuclear threat be believed?
By military analyst Sean Bell
Vladimir Putin’s decision to forward deploy tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus has made headlines around the world – but forward-basing of nuclear weapons has limited military benefit.
Intercontinental ballistic missiles have virtually unlimited range, so forward-deploying nuclear weapons to Belarus territory is not driven by military necessity.
However, the primary benefit is maintaining the omnipresent threat of nuclear confrontation at the forefront of Western leaders’ minds, to deter continued western military support for Ukraine.
So, this appears to be further sabre-rattling by Putin – but at what cost?
Read Mr Bell’s full analysis here…
Ukraine war: The boy who cried wolf – should Putin’s nuclear threat be believed? | World News | Sky News
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9h ago
14:28
Russia’s UNSC leadership is ‘absurd’, Zelenskyy says
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has used his nightly address to blast Russia’s leadership of the UN Security Council.
He said it showed the UN’s “total bankruptcy”.
The presidency rotates on a monthly basis.
He also said in his address that Russian shelling had killed a five-year-old boy.
Sky News has not verified the claim.
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9h ago
14:00
‘The enemy continues to cynically wage war against civilians’ – Ukraine’s general staff
Ukraine’s General Staff of the Armed Forces has delivered its daily update, saying Russia “continues to cynically wage war against civilians”.
The update also claims missile strikes have hit civilian building’s today in Donetsk, and battles in Bakhmut, Avdiivka and Maryinka remain “fierce”.
They also say Ukrainian citizens in the occupied territory Zaporizhzhia are being forced to get Russian passports, and are being threatened with job losses and searches if they do not comply.
Sky News has not verified any of the above claims.
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10h ago
13:21
Russia’s UNSC leadership is a ‘slap in the face’, senior Ukrainian official says
Dmytro Kuleba, Ukraine’s foreign minister, has called Russia’s presidency of the United Nations Security Council as a “slap in the face”.
Writing on Twitter, he also shared his statement from December, suggesting Russia did not technically join the bloc.
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10h ago
12:51
Weapon production in Russia has increased, country’s defence minister claims
The production of weapons in Russia has increased “significantly”, the country’s defence minister Sergei Shoigu has revealed.
Speaking to the Joint Group Of Forces, Mr Shoigu said: “Steps to expand production capacities and improve productivity have made it possible to significantly increase the production of weapons for the troops, including conventional and high-precision weapons.”
“All this allows us to achieve the goals set by the supreme commander-in-chief based on the plan of the special military operation,” he added
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11h ago
12:17
Will Ukraine achieve victory?
Retired Air-Vice Marshal Sean Bell gives his assessment of the latest developments in the Ukraine war.
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12h ago
11:32
The situation in Russia is ‘hopeless’ – the creator of Tetris
You might not know the name Alexey Pajitnov – but you will definitely have heard of the game he invented – Tetris.
The story of Pajitnov, who was born in Moscow when Russia was the USSR, is currently being played out in new film Tetris on Apple TV+, starring Taron Egerton, which charts the fight for the game’s rights from the Soviets during the Cold War.
Speaking to Sky News ahead of the film’s release, he said the situation in his home country was “hopeless”, reflecting on his own experiences of Russia at war.
“Unfortunately, the situation now is even darker than you could see in the movie because, at that time, [it] was kind of very close to the end of the Soviet Union.
“It was also the perestroika time and this kind of event kind of gave us some hope.
“Unfortunately, now the situation looks much more hopeless than it used to be there.”
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12h ago
10:52
The medical train that has evacuated over 3,000 patients
A single train has evacuated more than 3,000 patients since the beginning of the war, according to the Ukrainian ministry of health.
What started as a four-car train in March 2022 has doubled in size, including fully-fledged wards and an intensive care carriage.
The train is run by the charity Doctors Without Borders in conjunction with the government, and staffed by anesthesiologists, cardiologists, intensive care nurses and a translator, the ministry said in a statement.
Christopher Stokes, the chief emergency coordinator of Doctors Without Borders, said there was a “very strong emotional connection” between patients and staff, reported the organisation in a post on Facebook.
In the same statement, they quoted the head of the train Igor Komarov as stressing the time-sensitive nature of their work.
“Sometimes there is a small gap of time between the shellings,” he said.
“We have to quickly take the patients to a safe place. Most of all, children with amputations and severe injuries are remembered.”
Mr Stokes added the train has also been used to return people to their homes in areas like Kherson in recent months.
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13h ago
09:44
Ukraine asks court to put religious leader under house arrest over alleged pro-Russia stance
Ukraine’s security agency has asked a court to put a senior Orthodox priest under house arrest over suspicions he condoned Russia’s invasion.
Metropolitan Pavel strongly rejected the claim and described the accusations against him as politically driven, threatening Volodymyr Zelenskyy with damnation.
He is abbot of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra monastery where the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) is based, which has been accused of having ties to Russia by Ukrainian security agencies.
The monastery is owned by the Ukrainian government, which notified the monks their lease would be terminated on Wednesday, but Pavel has resisted the order to vacate.
Authorities claim the monks made unapproved alterations to the historic site and other technical infractions – allegations the monks reject, filing their own lawsuit to stop the eviction.
The Kyiv government has recently cracked down on the UOC over its historic ties to the Russian Orthodox Church, whose leader, Patriarch Kirill, supported Russia’s invasion.
Authorities raided holy sites of the church and posted photos of roubles, Russian passports and leaflets with messages from Patriarch Kirill, claiming they are proof some church officials have been loyal to Russia.
The UOC has insisted it is loyal to Ukraine and has denounced the Russian invasion from the start.
The church declared its independence from Moscow.
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14h ago
09:09
Kim Jong Un’s sister accuses Ukraine of seeking nuclear weapons
The sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has accused Ukraine of seeking nuclear weapons, according to state media.
Kim Yo Jong said a pro-nuclear Ukrainian petition – which has received just 611 signatures – was a political plot by Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s office, reported KCNA.
Ms Kim, herself a senior North Korean official, provided no evidence for the assertion, which appears to be based solely on a public petition filed to the Ukrainian presidential office’s website on Thursday.
The petition followed an announcement by Vladimir Putin that Russia plans to station tactical nuclear weapons in neighbouring Belarus.
Kyiv officials have not commented on the petition so far.
North Korea has been forging closer ties with Kremlin and supported Moscow’s proclaimed annexation of parts of Ukraine after it invaded last year.
For context: Ukraine gave up its nuclear weapons in the 1990s, having inherited them after the collapse of the Soviet Union. In exchange, world powers including Russia promised not to violate its security.
A foreign policy adviser to the Ukrainian deputy prime minister said this was “a mistake” in March last year, suggesting Russia would never have invaded if Ukraine had kept its nuclear capabilities.
Kim Jong Un and his sister Kim Yo Jong in 2018. File Pic
Kim Jong Un and his sister Kim Yo Jong in 2018. File Pic
Who is Kim Yo Jong?
Ms Kim’s official title is vice department director of the Central Committee of the North’s ruling Workers’ Party, but South Korea’s spy agency has said that she handles relations with both South Korea and the US.
It has been said she is the North’s second-most powerful person after her brother.
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15h ago
08:11
World’s biggest cargo aircraft destroyed in fighting
The commander of the joint forces of the armed forces of Ukraine met with mobile air defence units at the Antonov airport in Hostomel, on the outskirts of Kyiv, today.
Serhiy Nayev spoke with soldiers before they posed in front of the gutted remains of an Antonov An-225, the world’s biggest cargo aircraft.
AP
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Serhiy Nayev, left
Serhiy Nayev, left
AP
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15h ago
07:59
Ukraine to buy 100 armoured transport vehicles from Poland
Ukraine will buy 100 armoured transport vehicles from Poland, the Polish Prime Minister has announced.
Mateusz Morawiecki said EU and US cash will be used to pay for the “top shelf” Rosomaks combat transporters.
Poland has already handed over their pledged Leopard tanks, and promised four MiG-29 fighter jets earlier this month.
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16h ago
07:03
Ukraine criticises ‘symbolic blow’ of Russia leading UN Security Council
A top Ukrainian official has called Russia’s presidency of the UN Security Council a “symbolic blow” to international order.
Russia has today taken charge of the security body, whose remit covers international peace and conflict resolution, in its monthly rotation of leadership.
“It’s not just a shame. It is another symbolic blow to the rules-based system of international relations,” said Andriy Yermak, the Ukrainian president’s chief of staff.
The last time Moscow held the post was in February 2022, when it invaded Ukraine.
In comments made on Twitter, Mr Yermak also called Iran a “terror state”, with Kyiv and its allies having accused the country of supplying Russia with hundreds of assault drones.
Tehran denies supplying Russia with weapons.
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16h ago
06:50
April Fool’s Twitter spat between UK and Russian governments
The UK and Russian foreign ministries have been engaged in an April Fool’s Twitter spat.
Yesterday, Russia published its updated foreign policy doctrine, which outlined responses to so-called “existential threats” and support for non-Western regional leaders in a challenge to perceived US hegemony.
Alongside the announcement, its ministry for foreign affairs tweeted: “Russian foreign policy is peaceful, open, predictable, consistent, and pragmatic and is based on the respect for universally recognized principles and norms of international law.”
The UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office replied: “April Fool’s Day is TOMORROW.”
The Russian foreign ministry has today responded with a link to its website, which includes entries titled “political crimes committed by the UK” and “examples of Western countries fabricating pretexts for aggression”.
The accompanying text on Twitter read: “April Fool’s! Here, fixed the link for you.”
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17h ago
06:20
The boy who cried wolf: Should Putin’s nuclear threat be believed?
By military analyst Sean Bell
Vladimir Putin’s decision to forward deploy tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus has made headlines around the world – but forward-basing of nuclear weapons has limited military benefit.
Intercontinental ballistic missiles have virtually unlimited range, so forward-deploying nuclear weapons to Belarus territory is not driven by military necessity.
However, the primary benefit is maintaining the omnipresent threat of nuclear confrontation at the forefront of Western leaders’ minds, to deter continued western military support for Ukraine.
So, this appears to be further sabre-rattling by Putin – but at what cost?
Read Mr Bell’s full analysis here…
Ukraine war: The boy who cried wolf – should Putin’s nuclear threat be believed? | World News | Sky News
Sky News
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17h ago
06:00
‘War commander pushing his luck with Kremlin’
Russia’s most senior soldier is likely pushing his luck with the Kremlin after “squandering” Russia’s advantage in winter, according to British military intelligence.
Chief of the General Staff (CGS), General Valery Gerasimov, took personal command of the invasion in January, but has made only made “marginal gains”, the UK Ministry of Defence has said.
This is despite a personnel advantage granted to him by Russia’s autumn troop mobilisation.
“After ten years as CGS, there is a realistic possibility that Gerasimov is pushing the limits of how far Russia’s political leadership will tolerate failure,” the UK MOD said in its analysis.
“Gerasimov’s tenure has been characterised by an effort to launch a general winter offensive with the aim of extending Russian control over the whole of the Donbas region.
“Eighty days on, it is increasingly apparent that this project has failed.”
The MOD pointed to the tens of thousands of Russian casualties lost across the Donbas front.
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17h ago
05:41
Russia to boost ammunition supplies after criticism from paramilitary
Russia will increase munition supplies to the frontline, according to defence minister Sergei Shoigu.
Footage published by the defence ministry today shows Mr Shoigu telling senior military officers that “necessary measures” are being taken to meet demand.
The meeting at Russian forces headquarters in Moscow included General Valery Gerasimov, Russia’s most senior soldier.
Shoigu has in recent months come under bitter criticism from hardline war advocates including Yevgeny Prigozhin.
The head of the Wagner mercenary group accused Mr Shoigu of failing to supply sufficient munitions to the frontline.
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18h ago
05:12
Five-month-old boy killed by Russian artillery
A five-month-old boy has been killed by Russian artillery fire in Avdiivka, Ukraine, according to the region’s governor and confirmed by the presidential office.
Donetsk governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said a second person was killed by the three rounds of rockets fired at the frontline city, which also damaged houses in six streets.
Before the Russian invasion, approximately 25,000 people lived in the city, but just 2,000 civilians now remain.
Elsewhere in the Donetsk region, another five rockets were fired at Druzhkivka, located behind the Bakhmut front.
The attacks wounded a civilian and hit a bank, educational institution and apartments, the governor said.
More shelling was reported across the district, including Soledar, Vuhledar, Lysychansk, and Bakhmut itself.
