New foreign secretary David Cameron meets Zelensky
Ukraine’s long-range precision strikes are inflicting mass casualties among Vladimir Putin’s forces “well behind” Russia’s frontline, the UK’s Ministry of Defence has claimed.
The dire lack of rotation among frontline troops is leaving Russia’s commanders with “an acute dilemma” of whether to keep soldiers safely dispersed or gather them in groups to boost morale, the ministry claimed – pointing to two recent strikes which likely caused dozens of casualties in Russian-held territory.
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s military claimed to be inflicting major losses as Russia seeks to try and encircle the key strategic city of Avdiivka in the east, with Kyiv insisting its soldiers are “standing their ground” and “steadfastly holding the defence”.
It came as the Washington Post reported that Ukraine’s security service had intercepted emails showing Chinese business executives were potentially open to helping Russia construct a vast underwater tunnel linking the mainland to annexed Crimea.
While the project would likely take years to complete, retaining the annexed peninsula is a priority for Vladimir Putin, whose prized 11-mile bridge over the Kerch Strait is under sustained Ukrainian attacks.
Russia vows to retaliate after Moldova’s ‘hostile’ adoption of EU sanctions
Russia views Moldova’s decision to join European Union sanctions against it as a hostile step aimed at destroying ties with Moscow and will retaliate, Russia’s foreign ministry has said.
“We regard this as yet another hostile step by the Moldovan leadership, which is fully integrated into the anti-Russian campaign of the ‘collective West’,” the ministry said in a statement.
“Its aim is the complete destruction of Russian-Moldovan relations, which, through the fault of official Chisinau, are already in a very deplorable state.”
Andy Gregory24 November 2023 14:28
Ministry of Defence publishes new battlefield map of Ukraine
Britain’s Ministry of Defence has published a new battlefield map of Ukraine, showing “likely Ukrainian attacks” near the Dnipro River in Kherson, close to Orikhiv and around Bakhmut – and highlighting the Russian assault on Avdiivka.
Andy Gregory24 November 2023 13:54
More than 150 ships have passed through Black Sea corridor, says US diplomat
Some 153 ships have so far passed through Ukraine’s humanitarian corridor in the Black Sea since Russia pulled out of the UN-brokered grain deal in July, the US ambassador in Kyiv has said.
Andy Gregory24 November 2023 13:29
Germany extends protection status for Ukrainian refugees until March 2025
The residence permits of refugees from Ukraine who fled the war and received protection status in Germany will be extended until March 2025, the interior ministry has said.
The Bundesrat upper house of parliament had approved the decree from the ministry on Friday, the ministry said in a statement.
This means that those affected do not have to apply for an extension of their residence status, and no associated appointments with the immigration authorities are necessary, it added.
Andy Gregory24 November 2023 13:02
Dutch minister says she hopes aid to Ukraine will continue despite election outcome
Dutch defence minister Kajsa Ollongren has said she hoped the country’s military support to Ukraine would continue even under a new government led by anti-EU populist Geert Wilders – who has said the Dutch should stop providing Kyiv with arms.
Ms Ollongren said Mr Wilders’ victory in this week’s elections had led to concerned phone calls from colleagues around Europe asking whether the Dutch stance on Ukraine would change.
“In the Netherlands there is broad support for our help to Ukraine,” she told reporters on Friday. “I hope and expect this will not change in the new parliament. But the PVV is now the largest party and they have never been enthusiastic about support to Ukraine. They have even been pro-Russia at times. So that has me worried.”
The Dutch government last week earmarked an additional €2bn in military aid for Ukraine in 2024, taking total support since the start of the Russian invasion to around €7.5bn.
It is still unclear how Dutch talks that began on Friday on the formation of a new government will unfold, but none of the PVV’s potential coalition partners share his views on ending support for Ukraine.
Andy Gregory24 November 2023 12:43
Moscow accuses Ukraine of launching huge drone attack on Crimea
Ukraine has launched one of its largest drone attacks on Crimea since Moscow’s invasion last February, Russian officials have claimed.
Vladimir Saldo, governor in Russian-occupied parts of Kherson, said claimed dozens of drones were shot down over the region and in northern Crimea after Ukraine launched a major attack early on Friday.
The Russian defence ministry said air defences downed 13 Ukrainian drones over Crimea and three more over southern Russia’s Volgograd region.
Andy Gregory24 November 2023 11:51
Hopes fade for quick end to Polish lorry protests, as two Ukrainian drivers die in cold
Ukraine’s top hauliers’ union has warned that hopes of a rapid end to Polish lorry driver protests at the border were fading, as Kyiv prepared to evacuate its drivers stranded in Poland.
Two Ukrainian drivers have died and thousands of lorries have been stuck for days in the winter cold as Polish truckers blocked the roads to four crossings on the border.
“Frankly speaking, the more we talk to them the less hope we have,” Leonid Kostiuchenko, president of the Ukrainian Association of International Carriers, told Ukrainian broadcasters.
“I spoke to the leader of the protesters and his attitude is that we will block for such a long time that you will … celebrate New Year in a queue. I don’t understand this humour.”
The Polish truckers say they are losing out to Ukrainian companies who offer a cheaper rate and are now transporting goods within the European Union, and not just back and forth to Ukraine.
Andy Gregory24 November 2023 11:35
Russian and Chinese executives holding secret talks on underwater tunnel to Crimea
Russian and Chinese business executives have been secretly discussing the construction of an underwater tunnel from Russia to annexed Crimea, Ukraine’s security services claim.
Kyiv claims to have intercepted transmissions about plans to build a vast tunnel under the Kerch strait, as Vladimir Putin’s prized 11-mile bridge there comes under sustained Ukrainian attacks.
The emails – handed to the Washington Post, which claims to have corroborated them in its own reporting – suggest one of China’s largest construction companies has indicated its willingness to be involved, and mention meetings with Chinese delegates in Crimea.
The emails also reportedly reveal efforts to maintain secrecy, with one emphasising that the company will participate only under a “strict provision of complete confidentiality”, with its name will be replaced by “another, unaffiliated legal entity” on any contracts. Another email mentions a Chinese bank willing to “convert its dollar funds into rubles for their transfer to Crimea to fund [consortium] projects”, The Post reports.
Experts told the newspaper that any such construction would likely not be completed for many years – but that this may well fit into Mr Putin’s longer-term planning for the Ukrainian peninsula illegally seized by Russia in 2014.
Andy Gregory24 November 2023 10:53
Kremlin expresses concern over Nato calls for military ‘Schengen Zone’
Nato’s desire to create a military equivalent of the Schengen Zone has ratcheted up tensions and is a cause for concern, the Kremlin has said.
The chief of Nato’s logistics command, Lieutenant-General Alexander Sollfrank, told Reuters in an interview on Thursday that he would like to see such a zone, as he was worried that too much red tape across Europe was hindering troop movements.
Mr Sollfrank said it was a problem that could cause major delays were a conflict with Russia to erupt.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov retorted on Friday that Russia would respond if the proposal became a reality.
Andy Gregory24 November 2023 10:28
Russia pauses attacks across Ukraine frontline amid losses in fierce battle for Avdiivka
Russia’s forces have halted their fighting at hotspots on the frontline as the war in Ukraine entered its 22nd month on Friday, my colleague Arpan Rai reports.
Russian forces continued to pound the battered Ukrainian town of Avdiivka but were unable to breach the defence of Ukraine’s troops as heavy fighting engulfed Bakhmut, military officials said.
“Basically, nothing has changed. Everything is very tough. As regards the city, there is an average number of eight to 16 to 18 attacks per day. Sometimes 30. We don’t have the time to count them,” said Vitaliy Barabash, head of Avdiivka’s military administration.
Russia’s troops have unleashed “the fiercest” attacks on Avdiivka – Moscow’s newest target after the bloody battle of Bakhmut.
“I am pleased the defence line has been holding for a month and a half. It has not been breached, no matter what they say,” Mr Barabash said in a daily update of fighting on Thursday.
Andy Gregory24 November 2023 10:10