Ukraine war: 60 people killed after bomb hits school, Zelensky says

MAY 9: Earlier, the governor of Luhansk region, Serhiy Haidai, said 90 people had been sheltering in the building in Bilohorivka, and 30 were rescued. Mr Haidai said a Russian plane had dropped the bomb on Saturday - Russia has not commented. Luhansk has seen fierce combat as Russian troops and separatist fighters seek to surround government forces. Much of the region has been under the control of Russia-backed separatists for the past eight years. Bilohorivka is close to the government-held city of Severodonetsk, where heavy fighting was reported in the suburbs on Saturday. One Ukrainian newspaper, Ukrayinska Pravda, says the village became a "hot spot" during fighting last week. The blast brought down the building which caught fire and it took firefighters three hours to extinguish the blaze, according to the governor, writing on Telegram. He said almost the entire village had been sheltering in the basement of the school. The final death toll would only be known when the rubble had been cleared, the governor said. The UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said he was "appalled" by the deadly attack, adding: "civilians must always be spared in times of war". Elsewhere in the country, Ukrainian fighters at a steelworks in the port of Mariupol have told the world they will not surrender to Russian forces and have appealed for help to evacuate their wounded. Russia has besieged the area for weeks, calling on defenders from the Azov battalion to lay down their arms. But in a live news conference from the partially destroyed plant, members of the battalion said they would not give in. One of them, Lt Illia Samoilenko, said: "Surrender for us is unacceptable because we can't grant such a big gift to the enemy." He added: "We are basically dead men. Most of us know this. It's why we fight so fearlessly." The fighters also criticised the Ukrainian government, saying it had failed in the defence of Mariupol. But President Volodymyr Zelensky hit back, saying Ukraine did not have the heavy weaponry needed to unblock the city and that it was his own diplomatic efforts that had secured the evacuation of all civilians trapped inside the steelworks. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), responsible for coordinating evacuations from Mariupol alongside the UN, said 170 civilians arrived in the relatively safe city of Zaporizhzhia from Mariupol on Sunday. In a statement, the international arm of the Red Cross said the four-day operation, which began on 5 May, "included the evacuation of 51 civilians from Azovstal". Earlier in May, around 500 people were evacuated from Azovstal and the Mariupol area to Zaporizhzhia, the ICRC said. Also on Sunday, in a speech commemorating World War Two, President Zelensky accused Russia of implementing "a bloody reconstruction of Nazism" and said the Russian army was replicating wartime "atrocities". Footage in the Ukrainian leader's video address showed him against a backdrop of destroyed residential buildings. At the same time, Western governments have continued to show their support for Ukraine's struggle. Later on Sunday, Ukraine's president held talks with G7 leaders - including US President Joe Biden and the UK's Boris Johnson - via video conference. After the meeting, the leaders pledged their continuing support to Ukraine and their determination to wean themselves off Russian oil supplies. Payments for Russian energy amount to millions of dollars each day and help fund Russia's war effort. The prime minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau, also met Mr Zelensky in person after making an unannounced visit to the town of Irpin, near Kyiv, that was ravaged by Russian forces early in the invasion. At a news conference afterwards, Mr Trudeau announced further military help for Ukraine. The speaker of the German Bundestag met Mr Zelensky in Kyiv on Sunday, too, while US First Lady Jill Biden crossed into Ukraine from Slovakia to meet Mr Zelensky's wife, Olena Zelenska. Since Russia's invasion began on 24 February, the UN has recorded at least 2,345 civilian deaths and 2,919 injured in Ukraine, the High Commissioner for Human Rights said in an update last month. Thousands of combatants are also believed to have been killed or injured on both sides. More than 12 million people are said to have fled their homes since the conflict began, with 5.7 million leaving for neighbouring countries and another 6.5 million people thought to be displaced inside the war-torn country itself.

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Ukraine war: 16 killed in missile attack on market town

Sep 6: At least 16 people have been killed in a missile attack on the Ukrainian city of Kostyantynivka. President Volodymyr Zelensky, who blamed Russia, said those killed were "people who did nothing wrong" - and warned the death toll could increase.

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Ukraine war: Zelensky visits The Hague as fresh blasts rock Kyiv

May 4: Explosions have been heard in Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities, a day after Russia accused Ukraine of carrying out a drone attack on the Kremlin. Attacks were also reported in Zaporizhzhia and Odesa in the south. The air strikes come

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Ukraine war: Zelensky says situation in Bakhmut worsening

Feb. 28, 2023: The situation in the city of Bakhmut, on the eastern frontline, is becoming "more and more difficult", Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has said. Russian forces have been trying to take the city for over six months. "The enemy is co

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Ukraine war: Kyiv rejects Putin's Russian Orthodox Christmas truce

JAN 6: The ceasefire - from 12:00 Moscow time (09:00 GMT) - coincides with the Russian Orthodox Christmas. Mr Putin asked Ukraine to reciprocate, but Kyiv quickly rejected the request. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky said the tru

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Ukraine war: Biden tells Zelensky his country will never stand alone

Dec 22: "You will never stand alone," Mr Biden told Mr Zelensky as he visited the White House on his first overseas trip since the Russian invasion began. Mr Biden confirmed a new package of more than $2bn (£1.7bn) in assistance for Ukraine and promised another $45bn. Mr Zelensky expressed his gratitude for Washington's backing. At Wednesday's joint news conference, Mr Biden told reporters he was "not at all worried" about holding the international coalition together. Amid concerns that some allies may be feeling the strain of the conflict's cost and disruption to global food and energy supplies, the US president said he felt "very good" about the solidarity of support for Ukraine. Mr Biden said Russian President Vladimir Putin had "no intention of stopping this cruel war". As Ukraine's most important ally, the US has already committed $50bn (£41bn) of humanitarian, financial and security assistance - far more than any other country. Mr Zelensky - wearing his trademark combat-green sweatshirt and boots - expressed hope that Congress would pass the extra $45bn in aid to Ukraine to "help us to defend our values, values and independence". Republicans - who will take control of the House of Representatives in January - have warned they will not write a "blank cheque" for Ukraine. But Mr Zelensky, who travelled on a US Air Force jet from the Polish city of Rzeszow, said that "regardless of changes in the Congress", he believed there would be bipartisan support for his country. After the White House meeting, the 44-year-old Ukrainian president gave an address to a joint session of Congress, where he was welcomed with a standing ovation. He told US lawmakers his country was still standing "against all odds" and predicted "a turning point" in the conflict next year. While vowing Ukraine would never surrender, he said it needed more weaponry. "We have artillery, yes, thank you," he told his audience. "Is it enough? Honestly, not really." "For the Russian army to completely pull out, more cannon and shells are needed," he added. Concluding his speech, Mr Zelensky presented Congress with a battle flag signed by the defenders of Bakhmut, a frontline city in the east of Ukraine that he visited on the eve of his Washington trip. The package of security assistance announced by Washington on Wednesday includes a new Patriot missile system, which is expected to help Ukraine protect its cities from missiles and drones that Russia has fired at critical facilities. A rare moment of levity arose in Wednesday's news conference as Mr Zelensky, a former comedian, answered reporters' questions. The Ukrainian president said: "What's going to happen after the Patriots are installed? After that we will send another signal to President Biden that we would like to get more Patriots." "We are in a war, I'm sorry, I'm really sorry," he deadpanned in English, as the audience in the East Room laughed. Mr Biden chuckled and said: "We're working on it." Russia's foreign ministry has said the delivery of the advanced surface-to-air missile system would be considered a provocative step. Earlier on Wednesday, Mr Putin said he believed his country was not to blame for the war in Ukraine, adding both countries were "sharing a tragedy". Since Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February, the US military estimates that at least 100,000 Russian and 100,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed or injured, along with some 40,000 civilian deaths. The UN has recorded 7.8 million people as refugees from Ukraine across Europe, including Russia. However, the figure does not include those who have been forced to flee their homes but remain in Ukraine.

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Ukraine war: Kyiv not to blame for Poland missile - Zelensky

NOV 17: Mr Zelensky said he had received assurances from his top commanders that "it wasn't our missile". He also called for Ukrainian officials to be allowed to access the blast site and to be part of the investigation. His comments came as Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg said Kyiv's air defence missiles were "most likely" to blame. US President Joe Biden also cast doubt on Mr Zelensky's statement that the missile was not of Ukrainian origin, telling reporters "that's not the evidence". The missile blast occurred on a farm in Przewodow, just 6km (4 miles) from Poland's border with Ukraine. Ukrainian air defence systems were activated on Tuesday when Russia launched what is believed to be its biggest wave of missile strikes since its February invasion. The attack, which occurred during the G20 summit in Indonesia, caused an international outcry, while news of a missile blast inside Nato member Poland's territory raised fears of a dangerous escalation in the war. But Polish President Andrzej Duda said it was "highly probable" that the missile was launched by Ukrainian anti-aircraft defence. "From the information that we and our allies have, it was an S-300 rocket made in the Soviet Union, an old rocket and there is no evidence that it was launched by the Russian side," he said. Mr Stoltenberg told the BBC that he agreed with Poland's assessment that the incident was probably caused by a Ukrainian air defence missile. "But the main message is that Russia bears the ultimate responsibility, because this would not have happened hadn't Russia waged a brutal war of aggression against Ukraine," he said. He added that Nato had pledged to supply a "more advanced air defence system" to Ukraine, which is not a member of the alliance but receives extensive military aid. And Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the US ambassador to the UN, said Russia bore ultimate responsibility for the incident. "While we still don't know all the facts, we do know one thing - this tragedy would never have happened but for Russia's needless invasion of Ukraine and its recent missile assaults against Ukraine's civilian infrastructure. The UN Charter is clear. Ukraine has every right to defend itself against this barrage," she said at a meeting of the UN Security Council. Meanwhile, the top US general has warned that an early military victory for Ukraine remains unlikely, despite a series of successful Ukrainian counter-offensives in the east and south. Last week, Ukraine recaptured Kherson, the only major city to fall to Russia since it started its invasion in February. And in the east, a Ukrainian offensive launched in September has seen Kyiv's forces advance into Donestsk and Luhansk. "The probability of a Ukrainian military victory - defined as kicking the Russians out of all of Ukraine to include what they claim as Crimea - the probability of that happening any time soon is not high, militarily," Gen Mark Milley - the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff - told reporters at the Pentagon. But he said recent Russian losses meant a "political solution" was possible. Gen Milley, who serves as President Biden's top military adviser, said the Ukrainian gains had left Russia "on its back" and observed that its losses could see Moscow agree to some sort of a political withdrawal. But the top US general did not elaborate as to what that agreement would look like. Speaking to attendees of the G20 summit in Bali earlier this week, President Zelensky laid out a 10-point peace plan that includes nuclear safety guarantees, the withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine's territory, and reparations and justice for "Russia's aggression against Ukraine". But Moscow's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Kyiv's demands were "unrealistic and inadequate". He added that Ukraine "categorically refuses" negotiations with Russia. Elsewhere, the eastern Donetsk region has seen heavy fighting in recent days, according to Ukrainian presidential adviser Oleksiy Arestovych. He said Russian troops from Kherson region had now been "redirected" towards Donetsk and Luhansk.

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Ukraine war: Nato says Poland probably hit by Ukrainian missile

NOV 17: "Most likely this is a Ukrainian air defence missile," he said as investigations continued into the blast near the Ukrainian border. But he stressed that Russia was ultimately to blame because of its ongoing invasion of Ukraine. Ukraine itself continues to say that Russia actually fired the missile. "I have no doubt that this is not our missile," President Volodymyr Zelensky said in televised remarks. "I believe that this was a Russian missile, based on our military reports." He said it was imperative for Ukraine to be allowed to join the investigation into the blast on the farm in Przewodow, 6km (4 miles) from the border. Ukrainian air defence systems were activated on Tuesday when Russia launched what is believed to be its biggest wave of missile strikes in the nine months since the invasion on 24 February. Dozens of Russian missiles targeted the country but Ukraine says it managed to shoot most of them down. The mass attack, which occurred during the G20 summit in Indonesia, caused an international outcry, while news of a missile blast inside Nato member Poland's territory raised fears that the war might be escalating dangerously. Mr Stoltenberg said Nato had pledged in response to supply a "more advanced air defence system" to Ukraine which is not a member of the alliance but receives extensive military aid. "Today I attended a meeting of a support group for Ukraine where Nato allies and partners made new pledges for more advanced air defence systems so we can help to shoot down Russian missiles," the Nato chief said. "But the best way to prevent any instances like this in the future is for Russia to stop war." "We have no indication that this is a deliberate attack from Russia," he said, speaking from Nato's headquarters in Brussels.. He added, however, that there was "no doubt that Russia is responsible because this would not have happened if Russia had not launched a barrage of missile attacks against Ukrainian cities yesterday, as they have done many times before during this war". Polish President Andrzej Duda said earlier that although a Russian-made S-300 missile was most likely to blame, there was no evidence it had been fired by the Russian side. When asked about the possibility of peace negotiations between Moscow and Kyiv, Mr Stoltenberg said previous attempts had shown that Russia's President Vladimir Putin had "no willingness to compromise and negotiate". "We have to understand if Putin and Russia stop fighting we will have peace but if Zelensky and Ukraine stop fighting, then Ukraine will cease to exist as an independent sovereign nation," he said. The top US general also commented on the war on Wednesday, saying there might be a "political solution where, politically, the Russians withdraw" from Ukraine. But Army Gen Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, warned that an early military victory for Ukraine was unlikely despite its recent successes on the battlefield. "The probability of a Ukrainian military victory - defined as kicking the Russians out of all of Ukraine to include what they claim as Crimea - the probability of that happening any time soon is not high, militarily," he told reporters at the Pentagon.

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Ukraine war: Who is winning?

SEPT 22: However, Russian forces still hold about a fifth of the country. How has the conflict changed? Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February, surrounding the Ukrainian capital Kyiv. It also launched attacks in the south, east and north of the country. In early April, Ukrainian forces retook large areas around Kyiv, after Russia abandoned its push towards the capital. Russia has since been focusing its military operations in the south, east and north-east of Ukraine, seizing large areas. However, things changed dramatically at the start of September. In a decisive offensive in the north-east, Ukraine drove back Russian forces. It claims to have regained 3,000 square kilometres (1,158 sq miles) of territory around the city of Kharkiv alone. Its forces have also retaken territory in Luhansk, in eastern Ukraine. Since July, the region had been entirely occupied by Russia. In total, Ukraine says it has retaken more than 8,000 sq km (3,088 sq miles) from Russian control in September - its most significant territorial gains since the war started. The cities of Izyum and Kupiansk, which Ukraine says were retaken on 10 September, were both key supply hubs for the Russian forces. As such, these represent important strategic gains. There is also a Ukrainian counter-attack around the Kherson region in the south of the country. The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) says Ukrainian troops have inflicted a "major operational defeat" on Russian forces. Justin Bronk of the Royal United Services Institute said Russian positions in Kharkiv had suffered a "total collapse". The Russian withdrawal was, he said, "certainly the most dramatic reverse that we've seen from the Russians since they retreated from Kyiv in April". How has Russia responded? Russia confirmed that its forces retreated from Izyum and Kupiansk. It said this was a strategic withdrawal to "regroup". It has also said it will continue to target these areas with military strikes. The Russian army appears to have abandoned large quantities of equipment and ammunition during the withdrawal. How much territory does Russia still occupy? Russia still holds about 20% of Ukraine, according to the ISW. The areas are largely in the eastern Donbas region and in the south of mainland Ukraine, as well as the Crimea peninsula which Russia annexed in 2014. The Donbas is a mainly Russian-speaking area, and after Russia seized Crimea in 2014, pro-Russian forces captured more than a third of the region. It created two so-called people's republics there. Areas in the west of the country, including Lviv, have experienced missile attacks, but no attempt by Russian forces to take and occupy ground. What does Russia want? Russia refuses to recognise its invasion as a war, and says it is undertaking a "special military operation" in Ukraine. The Kremlin said its operations would continue "until all the tasks originally set" had been achieved. When launching the invasion in February, President Vladimir Putin said his goal was to "demilitarise Ukraine". One objective was to ensure Ukraine didn't join the Western defensive alliance, Nato. Russia's initial aim was to overrun Ukraine and depose its government. However, it now appears to have limited its ambitions to securing land in Ukraine's east and south. What does Ukraine want? Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said his main goal is to drive all Russian troops out, to "de-occupy our whole territory". Mr Zelensky has appealed for more funding and equipment to retain the areas retaken from Russia. Western shipments of weaponry are being used heavily by Ukrainian forces. How many have people have died? Both sides have suffered losses, although neither publish exact numbers. Ukraine claims it has killed more than 50,000 Russian troops, and at the end of August said it had lost nearly 9,000 military personnel since the start of the conflict. Russia rarely discloses its own troop fatalities. Its most recent death count was in March, when it said 1,351 Russian soldiers had died since the invasion began. In July, US officials estimated that about 15,000 Russian soldiers had died. Civilians have also died. At the start of September the United Nations corroborated more than 5,700 deaths. However, it said the actual number is likely to be considerably higher.

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Ukraine war: We retook 6,000 sq km from Russia in September, says Zelensky

SEP 13: Volodymyr Zelensky said troops have now retaken more than 6,000 sq km (2,317 sq miles) from Russian control in September, in the east and the south. The BBC cannot verify these figures. Russia has admitted losing key cities in the north-eastern Kharkiv region, in what is seen by some military experts as a potential breakthrough in the war. Moscow describes its troop withdrawal from the region in recent days as a "regrouping" with the aim of focusing on the Luhansk and Donetsk regions in Ukraine's east. That claim has been ridiculed even in Russia, with many social media users there describing the stated pull-out as "shameful". Speaking to the BBC on Monday evening, Mason Clark of the US-based think tank the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) said this was "a complete rout" of the Russian troops, who were forced to leave lots of equipment behind. And the BBC's James Waterhouse said it was the most significant Russian military retreat since its failed campaign near the capital Kyiv in late March. Speaking later on Monday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Ukrainian forces had made "significant progress" in their counter-offensive, but added that it was too early to predict the outcome. "The Russians maintain very significant forces in Ukraine as well as equipment and arms and munitions. They continue to use it indiscriminately against not just the Ukrainian armed forces but civilians and civilian infrastructure as we've seen," Mr Blinken said. Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a full-scale invasion of Ukraine on 24 February. Russia still holds about a fifth of the country. In his late video address on Monday, President Zelensky said: "From the beginning of September until today, our warriors have already liberated more than 6,000 sq km of the territory of Ukraine - in the east and south". "The movement of our troops continues," he said. The counter-offensive appears to have been rapid. Last Thursday, President Zelensky said Ukrainian forces had retaken 1,000 sq km, but by Sunday that stated figure had tripled to 3,000 sq km. Mr Zelensky thanked several of Ukraine's brigades involved in the counter-offensive, describing their fighters as "true heroes". He did not reveal which Ukrainian cities and villages had been liberated. Russia's military earlier admitted that its troops had to leave the key cities of Balakliya, Izyum and Kupiansk in the Kharkiv region. Russia now controls only a small eastern part of the region. Significant - albeit slower - advances by Ukrainian troops have also been reported in the southern Kherson region, which borders with Crimea - a Ukrainian peninsula annexed by Russia in 2014. UK defence officials say the Ukrainian army's recent successes will have "significant implications" for Russia's overall operational design. However, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has insisted that military operations in Ukraine will continue "until all the tasks that were initially set" have been fulfilled. Russia says its forces have been carrying out strikes in those areas retaken by Ukraine in recent days. With inputs from BBC

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Ukraine war: EU leaders back immediate candidate status for Kyiv

JUNE 17: "Ukraine belongs to the European family," German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said at a joint briefing in Kyiv. But he added that Ukraine still had to meet the accession criteria in full. Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron stressed the 27-member EU would stand by Ukraine until its victory against Russia. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described Russia's continuing aggression as a war "against the united Europe", adding that the "most effective weapon" was unity. And he again appealed for more heavy weapons to be sent urgently for Ukraine to be able to defend itself more effectively and liberate territories seized by Moscow since the start of the invasion on 24 February. Earlier on Thursday, the four EU leaders visited the devastated town of Irpin near Kyiv, which for several weeks was occupied by Russia. Ukraine accuses Russian soldiers of committing war crimes by killing hundreds of civilians in Irpin and nearby towns such as Bucha - a claim denied by Moscow. The visit to Kyiv comes as Russian troops are continuing their assault on the key city of Severodonetsk in eastern Ukraine. Capturing Severodonetsk - and its twin city of Lysychansk - has for weeks been a top military goal for Russia, as the Kremlin seeks to control all of the wider Luhansk region. President Macron and Chancellor Scholz, together with Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi and Romanian President Klaus Iohannis, visited Ukraine for the first time since the war began. The trip came a day before the European Commission is due to make a recommendation on whether to give Ukraine an EU candidate status. All 27 EU leaders will then discuss the issue at a summit on 23 and 24 June. Some of the bloc's members have been lukewarm about Ukraine's accession to the EU, and the words of support from France, Germany and Italy - the three EU heavyweights - could sway their position. However, candidacy status will only be the next step on the road to the full membership, which may take years. Before the Kyiv visit, Ukrainian officials repeatedly criticised France, Germany and Italy for being slow in delivering weapons and placing too much focus on appeasing Russian President Vladimir Putin. Earlier this month, Mr Macron said it was vital that Russia was not humiliated over its invasion, suggesting that Mr Putin should have a way out of what he called a "fundamental error". Meanwhile in Moscow, Dmitry Medvedev, a former Russian president who is now deputy chairman of the Security Council of Russia, on Thursday criticised the EU leaders' trip on Twitter, using a dismissive slur relating to stereotypes of three of the EU nations' cuisines. "European fans of frogs, liverwurst and spaghetti" loved visiting Kyiv, he wrote. "With zero use." With inputs from BBC

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