Updates: Russia says Ukraine forces are cut off inside Bakhmut
All the updates from April 13 as they happened.
The live blog is now closed, thank you for joining us. Here are the updates for April 13:
The live blog is now closed, thank you for joining us. Here are the updates for April 13:
- Russia’s defence ministry says Ukrainian forces are blocked from leaving or entering Bakhmut, but Kyiv rejects the claim.
- Kyiv and Moscow announce separate investigations into a gruesome video believed to have been filmed by Wagner Group mercenaries that allegedly shows the beheading of a Ukrainian soldier.
- Norway’s government says it will expel 15 Russian diplomats suspected of spying while working at the Russian embassy in Oslo.
- Poland has doubts regarding French attempts to organise talks between Ukraine and Russia, the Polish foreign minister said.
Cyprus probes citizens named over Russian sanctions evasion
Cyprus’ government is looking into how a number of Cypriot nationals were included in a new round of US and UK sanctions targeting the financial networks of Russian oligarchs Alisher Usmanov and Roman Abramovich.
In a statement, government spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis said a number of decisions were taken “for the exclusive purpose of protecting Cyprus’ name as a reliable, financial and business center”.
“The president of the republic considers the entire matter as particularly serious and has issued instructions to thoroughly investigate it,” the statement said.
Cyprus has in recent years been at pains to shake off a reputation of being in the pockets of Russian oligarchs who have concealed their assets through a maze of Cyprus-registered trusts and brass-plate companies.
UN nuclear chief: Ukraine plant ‘living on borrowed time’
United Nations nuclear chief Rafael Grossi says “we are living on borrowed time” following two recent landmine explosions near Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia plant.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has repeatedly expressed fears over the safety of the plant, which is Europe’s largest atomic power station. Russian forces took control of the six-reactor plant in embattled southern Ukraine in March last year.
“We are living on borrowed time when it comes to nuclear safety and security at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant,” IAEA Director-General Grossi said in a statement.
“Unless we take action to protect the plant, our luck will sooner or later run out, with potentially severe consequences for human health and the environment,” he added.
Russian court fines Wikipedia for article about Ukraine war
A court in Moscow fined Wikipedia for a Russian-language article it refused to remove about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The court fined Wikimedia Foundation – the nonprofit that runs the free, publicly edited online encyclopedia – two million roubles ($24,464) for not removing a Wikipedia article titled “Russian occupation of the Zaporizhzhia region”, a reference to one of four Ukrainian provinces that Russia annexed last September.
Most countries have condemned the annexation, as well as that by Russia in 2014 of Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula, as illegal.
The state TASS news agency said the Wikimedia Foundation had failed to heed the demands of Russia’s state communications watchdog Roskomnadzor to remove articles containing “false information.” TASS said a Wikipedia representative asked the court to reject the removal demand as vague.
Refusing Putin’s war: The Russians fleeing to Kazakhstan
Hundreds of thousands of Russians have fled their homeland since the beginning of the war in Ukraine in February 2022.
Afraid they could be sent to fight, some left by car, bicycle, even by foot, crossing into neighbouring Kazakhstan just hours after President Vladimir Putin ordered a military mobilisation.
Others decided to flee due to fear they could be punished for speaking out against the war.
Kazakhstan has largely welcomed the sudden influx, but for many new arrivals, the future is uncertain.
Al Jazeera’s 101 East meets young Russians opposed to the war in Ukraine who are starting new lives in Kazakhstan.
Serbia denies arms sale to Ukraine, Russia
President Aleksandar Vucic says Serbia never sold weapons or ammunition to Ukraine or Russia, although Serbian arms might have reached the battlefield via third countries.
He spoke a day after the Reuters news agency reported that, according to a supposed classified Pentagon document, Belgrade had agreed to supply arms to Kyiv, which is fighting a Russian invasion, or sent them already.
“Serbia has not and will not export weapons to Ukraine,” Vucic told reporters, adding that it equally “has not and will not” export arms or ammunition to Russia, its traditional ally.
“There’s no document that can prove that,” he said.
Russia says it escorted Norwegian patrol plane over Barents Sea
Russia says it sent a MiG-31 fighter jet to escort a Norwegian patrol aircraft over the Barents Sea after it approached the Russian border, the RIA news agency reported.
This latest development comes hours after Norway expelled 15 Russian embassy officials, saying they were intelligence officers operating under cover of diplomatic positions.
Ukraine, Romania, Moldova boost ties at security meeting
Neighbours Romania, Ukraine, and Moldova signed cooperation agreements in Romania’s capital after a trilateral meeting on ways to strengthen security in their Black Sea region to counter threats posed by Russian aggression.
The Black Sea Security Conference in Bucharest brought together the three countries’ foreign and defence ministers, government officials and international partners. The aim was to address the wide-ranging impact that Moscow’s war in Ukraine is having on the region.
NATO member Romania’s Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu called Russia “the most direct and serious threat” to the Black Sea region and the Western alliance, and said war-torn Ukraine and embattled Moldova are “essential to our future European security.”
“Instead of peace and stability, the Black Sea region has become the primary target of the Russian aggression,” he said, adding that a strong NATO presence there “is a must.”
Russia to probe video alleging Ukrainian POW beheading
Russia says it is opening a preliminary investigation into footage purporting to show the beheading of a Ukrainian prisoner of war.
The emergence of the disturbing footage sparked fury in Ukraine.
“In order to assess the reliability of these materials and make an appropriate decision, they were sent to the investigating authorities to organise a probe,” Russian Prosecutor-General’s Office said in a statement.
Russia has vigorously denied various war crime allegations brought by Kyiv and its Western allies since it invaded last February.
Polish PM says relationship with Hungary ‘changed a lot’
Poland’s previously close relationship with Hungary has “changed a lot” over Budapest’s position on Ukraine, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said.
“Our relationship with Hungary changed a lot because of the position of Hungary towards Ukraine and Russia, that’s a fact. We had once very strong cooperation on the level of the Visegrad group, now it’s much less so,” Morawiecki said at the Atlantic Council think tank in Washington.
The Visegrad group comprises the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia.
“Instead of Hungary, we cooperate very very closely with Romania and the Baltics, this is why I said that Eastern European countries, minus Hungary, have the same opinion on what’s going on in Ukraine,” he added.
The Polish prime minister did not say the consequences of weakened relations, but the two EU members used to be strong allies in their rows with Brussels over the rule of law, immigration and LGBT rights.
China, Russia ministers discuss Ukraine in Samarkand
Chinese and Russian foreign ministers discussed the conflict in Ukraine during a meeting in Uzbekistan’s Samarkand, the Chinese foreign ministry said.
There is no “panacea” for resolving the crisis, China’s Foreign Minister Qin Gang told his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov, adding that China will continue to play a constructive role in promoting a political settlement and restarting peace talks, the ministry said.
Representatives from Iran and Pakistan also attended the meeting in Samarkand.
Joining NATO is the only option for security: Ukraine
Ukraine’s membership in the NATO military alliance is the only option for the country’s future security, Defence Minister Oleksii Reznikov said
“We need a system of guarantees that would make aggression from Russia impossible,” he told a Black Sea security conference in Bucharest.
“There is no alternative to Ukraine’s accession to NATO.”
No extension to grain deal unless obstacles removed: Russia
Russia said there would be no extension of the Black Sea grain deal beyond May 18 unless obstacles to exporting Russian grain and fertiliser were removed.
“Without progress on solving five systemic problems … there is no need to talk about the further extension of the Black Sea initiative after May 18,” the Russian foreign ministry said in a statement.
“We note that, despite all the high-sounding statements about global food security and assistance to countries in need, the Black Sea Initiative both served and continues to serve exclusively commercial exports of Kyiv in the interests of Western countries,” the ministry said.
The United Nations and Turkey brokered the Ukraine grain Black Sea export deal in July last year to help a global food crisis worsened by the war.
To help persuade Russia to allow Ukraine to resume its Black Sea grain exports last year, a separate three-year agreement was also struck to help Russia with its food and fertiliser exports.
Polish PM warns of threat to Taiwan if Russia win war
The Polish prime minister says if Ukraine is defeated in its war with Russia, China may decide to invade Taiwan shortly afterwards.
“God forbid, if Ukraine falls, if Ukraine gets conquered, the next day China may attack Taiwan,” Mateusz Morawiecki said in a speech at the Atlantic Council think tank in Washington, DC.
“I see lots of connectivity, lots of interdependency between the situation in Ukraine and the situation in Taiwan.”
Moscow says forces ‘block’ Ukrainian troops in Bakhmut
Moscow says its forces were “blocking” Ukrainian forces from getting in or out of Bakhmut.
“Airborne troops are providing support to advancing assault troops, blocking the transfer of Ukrainian army reserves to the city and the possibility of retreat for enemy units,” the Russian defence ministry said in a statement.
“Wagner assault units were continuing high-intensity combat operations to oust the enemy from the central quarters” of Bakhmut.
In a statement, Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin said, however, it was “too early” to say Russia has Bakhmut surrounded.
“The Armed Forces of Ukraine continue to pull up reserves and transfer them to the city limits. There are severe bloody battles, so it’s too early to talk about the complete encirclement of Bakhmut,” he said.
Who controls what?
Here are four maps that we update daily, charting the latest war developments.
MSF held talks with Russian diplomats over aid access
Doctors Without Borders (Medecins Sans Frontieres, or MSF) spoke to Russian diplomats in Geneva last month about providing aid to areas of Ukraine under Russian military control but has yet to be granted access, the medical charity said.
“Our discussion … concerned the areas of Ukraine under Russian military occupation, where we are aware of substantial medical humanitarian needs, including the lack of doctors, nurses and essential medicines,” MSF said in a statement.
“However, our teams have not yet been granted access to these areas. We continue to discuss this, and other points related to impartial medical humanitarian care in Ukraine.”
The Russian diplomatic outpost confirmed that talks had taken place but did not say what issues were raised.
Poland asks Germany to approve exporting fighter jets
Poland has asked the German government to approve exporting old MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine, a spokesperson for the defence ministry said.
Germany will decide as soon as Thursday, the DPA news agency quoted Defence Minister Boris Pistorius as saying.
Germany inherited 24 MiG-29 jets from the East German GDR during reunification in 1990.
At the time, the aircraft was seen as among the most advanced fighter jets in the world.
In 2004, Berlin passed on 22 of the aircraft to Poland.
Of the remaining two jets, one was destroyed in a crash, and one is on show at a museum.
Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 414
Click here for a roundup of the key events from day 414 of the war.
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Russia open investigation into alleged beheading video
Russia’s General Prosecutor’s Office says it has opened an investigation into a gruesome video showing the alleged beheading of a Ukrainian soldier.
“In order to assess the credibility of these materials and make an appropriate decision, they have been forwarded to the investigative authorities for verification,” it said.
On Wednesday, the Kremlin said the video, which has circulated on social media, was “awful” and that its authenticity needed to be checked.
Norway expels 15 Russian embassy officials
Norway’s foreign ministry is expelling 15 Russian embassy officials, saying they were intelligence officers operating under cover of diplomatic positions.
“The measures the government has now decided mean that 15 Russian intelligence officers, who have been under diplomatic cover in Norway, will now be declared undesirable. They must leave Norway within a short time. We will not grant visas to intelligence officers who apply for a visa to Norway,” the foreign ministry said in a statement.
“Russia is the biggest intelligence threat in Norway.”
The Russian foreign ministry said it would respond to Norway’s expulsion of 15 Russian diplomats, state-owned news agency TASS reported.
Putin did not personally approve WSJ reporter’s arrest: Kremlin
The Kremlin denies a report that President Vladimir Putin personally approved the arrest of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who has been detained in Russia on espionage charges.
“No, it is not the president’s prerogative,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. “It is the special services who are doing their job. Once again, I would like to remind you that this journalist was caught red-handed.”
On Monday, the United States formally designated Gershkovich as “wrongfully detained” and called for his release.
Ukraine reports Russian mine explosion near Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant
A Russian mine has exploded near the generator room of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Station, Ukraine’s state nuclear plant operator Energoatom says.
“According to sources, an explosion happened near the engine room of the fourth [reactor] power unit,” Energoatom said in a statement.
The statement added that Russian soldiers, who last year seized control of the plant, told workers that it was “their own mine that detonated”.
NATO should play bigger role in Black Sea, Ukraine says
NATO should play a more significant role in security in the Black Sea and integrate Ukrainian air and missile defences, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba says.
“The Black Sea is instrumental for making the whole of Europe peaceful and future-oriented,” Kuleba, speaking via video link, told a Black Sea security conference in the Romanian capital, Bucharest.
“Sadly, it is also a showcase of how rapidly things can deteriorate if one neglects threats,” he said. “It’s time to turn the Black Sea into what the Baltic Sea has become, a sea of NATO.”
Moscow and Kyiv rely on the sea to export goods, including supplying international grain markets.
“We need to address the common Russia problem together,” Kuleba said. “For instance, I support the expert idea to integrate the air and missile defence systems of Ukraine with the ones of the Black and Baltic Sea NATO allies.”
Moscow court fines Wikimedia Foundation $24,525
A Moscow court has fined the Wikimedia Foundation, owner of the Wikipedia website, 2 million roubles ($24,525) for failing to remove what the court has described as “fake information” about Russia’s military campaign in Ukraine, the Russian news agency Interfax reports.
Moscow has targeted the Wikimedia Foundation before as it pursues a crackdown on independent sources of information.
The foundation has previously said information that Russian authorities had complained about was well-sourced and in line with Wikipedia’s standards.
Russia ordered to pay $5bn in compensation for Crimea: Naftogaz
Ukraine’s state-owned gas company Naftogaz says Russia has been ordered by an arbitration court in The Hague to pay $5bn in compensation for expropriating its assets in Crimea.
Russia seized the Crimean peninsula from Ukraine in 2014.
In a statement, Naftogaz described a ruling on Wednesday as a “key victory on the energy front”.
“Despite Russia’s attempts to obstruct justice, the Arbitration Tribunal ordered Russia to compensate Naftogaz for losses of $5 billion,” it said.
Naftogaz said that the decision was made after hearings to determine the amount of compensation, which ended in March 2022.