Ukraine: Locals put in camps and moved to distant Russia – ‘like Nazi Germany’
Ukraine: Former soldier fumes at 'leak' of British information
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Ukrainian MP Inna Sovusan says Vladimir Putin’s forces are taking civilians from Mariupol, the port city where some 400,000 people are trapped due to constant bombardments, to camps where they are forced to sign in papers in which they agree to work, with no pay, in “distant parts” of the country.
This, Ms Sovusan says, is what “completely totalitarian states” do.
She tells Times Radio: “The very logic of Russia right now is the logic of the Soviet Union and the logic of the Nazi Germany.”
When asked whether where Ukrainians are being taken are “labour camps”, she replies: “Exactly.”
According to the MP, this was confirmed by Mariupol’s mayor, Vadym Boichenko, and by the council.
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KEY EVENTS
That’s all from Ukraine live reporting tonight
Thanks for following our live Ukraine coverage, check back tomorrow for more.
Here is a reminder of some of the top stories of the day:
– Russian naval officer ‘shot dead’ by Ukraine forces
– UNICEF: Millions of children displaced
– What we know about Russia’s ‘filtration camps’
– Putin ‘replenishes’ Black Sea fleet in preparation for reinforced attack on Ukraine
Putin betrayed as Belarusian troops turn on Russia and side with Ukraine
A battalion of Belarusian troops has turned on Russia and vowed to help Ukrainian forces free people in Mariupol.
A volunteer battalion released a video that declares their support for Ukraine as they promise to ‘de-blockade’ the besieged Mariupol from Russian forces.
Belarus is one of President Putin’s few remaining allies and has been used by Russia to launch attacks and deploy troops to Ukraine.
A troop in the video says: “The most difficult situation is near Mariupol, which is surrounded. Russia is conducting a true genocide there.
“They want to wipe Mariupol from the face of the Earth. Mariupol must be de-blockaded.”
The troop added: “We will provide support to all residents of Mariupol and will be trying to help Ukraine to de-blockade Mariupol.”
Putin ‘replenishes’ Black Sea fleet in preparation for reinforced attack on Ukraine
Russia’s naval force in the Black Sea has significantly increased compared to its usual fleet as Russian warships block Ukrainian ports, sink cargo ships and shell cities, a recent report has claimed.
The threat of a Russian amphibious operation has been present since the beginning of the conflict in Ukraine and concerns are rising as warships have been seen moving down the Japan strait.
The current fleet operating off southern Ukraine includes cruisers, frigates, missile corvettes and amphibious landing ships which can transport thousands of troops.
Over 30 warships have been reported to have amassed in the Black Sea including intelligence-gathering ships, repair vessels, tugs and minesweepers.
The threat of an amphibious operation has increased as Russia deployed more landing ships to the Black Sea and conducted naval exercises on amphibious operations linked with airborne operations.
Boris Johnson tipped to visit Kyiv despite safety warnings while Biden has ‘no such plans’
Boris Johnson is reported to be planning a swift trip to Ukraine in a show of solidarity with President Zelensky as Ukraine continues to battle Russia’s invasion, sources claim.
The British Prime Minister has reportedly spoken to officials for an assessment of the logistics of a trip to Kyiv and its practicality in order to have talks with the Ukrainian President.
It has been reported that security officials are “having kittens” over the PM’s proposed trip to the war zone that continues to be shelled leaving many dead and destroying huge swathes of the city.
Despite the concerns of security officials, a source in Whitehall has said that if Mr Johnson is adamant to visit the besieged capital, the logistics can be ironed out.
The source stated: “If you set aside the security concerns, which are considerable, the question is whether there is anything additional you could achieve by visiting in person, or whether it would just be a show of solidarity, and whether that is a sufficient goal in itself.”
Speaking to The Sunday Times, Boris Johnson said: “I have a very, very strong desire to support him [Zelensky] in any way I can.
“Whether that would be a useful way of showing my support I don’t know, but it is of huge strategic, political, economic, moral importance for Putin to fail and Zelensky to succeed.”
‘Lay down arms’ Ukrainian forces issued 5am Mariupol surrender ultimatum by Putin’s troops
Ukrainian forces have been issued with a Mariupol surrender ultimatum by Vladimir Putin’s troops as Russian regiments enter their 25th day in the ex-Soviet state.
Moscow has given Ukrainian forces until 5am (3am GMT) on Monday to lay down their arms in the eastern port city of Mariupol.
According to the Guardian, many of the 400,000 residents are even reported to be trapped in the city without or with very little food, water and power.
RIA Novosti, a state-owned news agency service, revealed a Kremlin official has detailed the warning to Kyiv.
Colonel-General Mikhail Mizintsev, who heads up the Russian National Defence Control Centre, said: “From 10am to 12pm – for all armed units of Ukraine and foreign mercenaries without exception, without any weapons and ammunition along the route agreed with Ukraine.
“From 12 am simultaneous passage of humanitarian convoys with food, medicines and essentials: from the east — Russian humanitarian convoy, from the west — formed by the Ukrainian side.”
RIA Novosti also claimed “each Mariupol citizen and foreign citizen” is guaranteed a voluntary choice of any of the humanitarian corridors or the right to stay in the eastern city.
GB News: Former Army Officer discusses ‘Game-changing move’ to end Ukraine conflict
Former army officer Patrick Benham-Crosswell joined GB News to give his opinion and verdict on when the conflict in Ukraine could come to an end.
Mr Benham-Crosswell explained: “I’m afraid, I think everyone is going to, have fought themselves to a stand-still.
“Ukrainians will carry on sniping and making the Russian’s life miserable, the Russians will carry on shelling Ukraine.
“There is going to be a halt in the spring when the ground will reharden, and then it will be the case of ‘Okay, double or quits’ or maybe sit down and get someone to mediate and say ‘stop this’.
“It is hard to see that the Russians are going to accept anything other than some form of territorial gain, and then there is the argument of who pays for the thrashing of the cities.”
He concluded: “I’m afraid I don’t see this ending easily anytime soon unless there is a game-changing diplomatic move.”
Good Evening
Hello, I’m Emma Crabtree and I’ll be bringing you all the latest developments on the conflict in Ukraine. Please feel free to get in touch with me as I work if you have a story or tips to share! Your thoughts are always welcome.
Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @emmacrabtree98
EU come under furious attack for Russian oil dependency ‘Funding Putin’s genocide!’
THE EU was blasted for helping to fund Vladimir Putin’s “genocide” through its purchases of Russian oil, by a US political commentator.
The comments were made by Linda Li, a member of the Democratic National Convention and also a former delegate for Joe Biden.
Ms Li vented her fury at Brussels in the wake of allegations that the Russians had deported thousands of Mariupol residents to camps in remote areas of Russia.
Europe’s dependency on Russian fossil fuels is a well known fact and a source of tension between Washington and Europe’s capitals.
Ms Li wrote: “EU has spent $16 BILLION on Russian oil since the war.
“The blasted truth is that our allies are funding Putin’s genocide.”
Liz Truss
The British Foreign Secretary has said she is “appalled” at claims Vladimir Putin is deporting Mariupol residents to camps in Russia.
The besieged city’s council alleged thousands of civilians were rounded up by Russian trops and sent to camps in remote parts of Russia.
In response to the allegations, Liz Truss wrote ion Twitter: “
I am appalled by Russian atrocities in Mariupol, including attacks on schools sheltering civilians and the abduction and deportation of Ukrainians.
“Putin is resorting to desperate measures as he is not achieving his objectives.
“Putin and his regime will be held to account.”
Boris pledges to continue support for Ukraine
Boris Johnson has said he will continue to ensure that Ukraine receives military, economic and diplomatic support from the UK.
The PM wrote on his Twitter account: “I spoke to President @ZelenskyyUa this afternoon to set out how I will be working to advance Ukraine’s interests at meetings of NATO and the G7 this week.
“The UK will continue to step up military, economic and diplomatic support to help bring an end to this terrible conflict.”
His remarks come as a new poll shows more Ukrainians in favour of a military and economic pact with the UK than with NATO.
Russia-Ukraine conflict: Mykolaiv will ‘die for the cause’
MYKOLAYIV is a city of mixed Russian and Ukrainian speakers and tradition.
Before February 24, there would have been a large number of Kremlin-leaning locals who looked eastwards in politics, culture and heritage. But no more.
The flattening of parts of their city and killing of civilians has alienated them from old allegiances.
It’s a huge own-goal by Vladimir Putin. When I saw crying children amid rubble, I realised he has created a visceral loathing of Russia that will continue for generations.
Putin’s forces currently surround this strategically important city – one of several they must take to create a land corridor to the Black Sea port of Odesa – on three sides and its people are facing a battle for their existence.
Putin shamed as crying Russian troops tell world ‘We cannot win this war’
CAPTURED Russian soldiers have broken into tears and announced “liar” Putin will never conquer Ukraine.
The troops urged their people to rise up against Putin. They also warned fellow soldiers are being thrown into mass graves. The group of Russian soldiers spoke during a press conference with news agency Interfax-Ukraine.
Alexei Zheleznyak is one of the soldiers, of the 34th Russian motorised rifle brigade, to surrender to Ukraine’s forces.
He warned the Kremlin would never be able to send enough soldiers into Ukraine to take the country.
Fears British fighters may have triggered deadly strike on base
British volunteer fighters are feared to have triggered the deadly attack on Ukraine’s Yavoriv military base last Sunday, as several UK phone numbers were reportedly visible to surveillance and could have been passed to Russian intelligence.
Some 12 to 14 numbers starting with +44 were detected in the area of the base in the hours before the missile strike killed 35 people on March 13. Knowledge of British personnel through snooping technology could have led the Kremlin to immediately order an attack.
A security source told The Telegraph: “As soon as Moscow got any whiff of possible British presence on the base, they would have immediately ordered a strike.”
Russia is thought to have access to a vast array of phone numbers linked to elite British units — with which many of the volunteers in Ukraine formerly served — gathered through secretive surveillance operations near military bases in the UK.
A second source said: “There was potentially a mole placed in the unit (on the Yavoriv base) who was seen running from the camp around 30 minutes before the attack, with a laptop and kit.”
The target on the base, near the Polish border, is believed to have been the International Centre for Peacekeeping and Security, where Kyiv has been training foreign civilian recruits.
More from Zelensky: ‘If we were a NATO member, a war wouldn’t have started’
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, speaking to CNN’s Fareed Zakaria, said Russia would not have invaded Ukraine if the country had been admitted into NATO earlier.
He said: “If we were a NATO member, a war wouldn’t have started. I’d like to receive security guarantees for my country, for my people.”
Emphasising he was grateful for the aid the Alliance has provided since Moscow’s attacks began, he said: “If NATO members are ready to see us in the alliance, then do it immediately because people are dying on a daily basis.
“But if you are not ready to preserve the lives of our people, if you just want to see us straddle two worlds, if you want to see us in this dubious position where we don’t understand whether you can accept us or not — you cannot place us in this situation, you cannot force us to be in this limbo.”
He continued: “I requested them personally to say directly that we are going to accept you into NATO in a year or two or five, just say it directly and clearly, or just say no.
“And the response was very clear, you’re not going to be a NATO member, but publicly, the doors will remain open.”
After, when asked about Putin’s claims that the Ukrainian government is full of neo-Nazis, Mr Zelensky said he cannot take those statements “seriously”, dubbing them “laughable.”
Yet, he admitted the Russian president’s remarks do make him worry.
He said: “I’m not afraid of anything except for people, but the fact, the fact is that if he is serious about this statement he might be capable of very horrendous steps because that would mean that this is not a game for him.
“If he really believes in this, if it’s not a game, then we will just continue fighting against it.
“If it’s a game. But if it’s not a game, if he’s serious about it, if he thinks that this is his mission to conquer our territory and if he sees signs of neo-Nazis in our country, then many questions emerge about what else he is capable of doing for the sake of his ambitions, for the sake of his mission.”
Russia launches SECOND ‘hypersonic missile’ attack
A Russian defence ministry official says Vladimir Putin’s forces have launched a hypersonic missile attack on Ukraine for the second consecutive day.
The weapon — known as Kinzhal, meaning dagger — hit a Ukrainian fuel depot near the Black Sea port of Mykolaiv, the official claims.
Moscow on Saturday said it had used the missile, which can strike targets 1,250 miles away at a speed 10 times faster than sound, to destroy a Ukrainian underground depot in the Ivano-Frankivsk region on Friday.
The video below is from the attack reported by Russia’s MoD yesterday.
Ukraine: Russian hypersonic missile hits ammunition depot
Failed negotiations could mean World War Three – Zelensky
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has reiterated he is “ready for negotiations” with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
He warned, however, that if they fail, the conflict between Moscow and Kyiv could lead to World War Three.
In an interview with CNN’s Fareed Zakaria, he said: “I’m ready for negotiations. I was ready for the last two years. And without negotiations, we cannot end this war.
“All the people who think that this dialogue is shallow and that it is not going to resolve anything, they just don’t understand that this is very valuable.
“If there is just one percent chance for us to stop this war we need to take this chance, we need to do that.
“I can’t tell you about the result of these negotiations [but] we’re losing people on a daily basis, innocent people on the ground.
“Russian forces have come to exterminate us, to kill us. And we have demonstrated the dignity of our people, and our army, we are able to deal a powerful blow, we are able to strike back.
“But unfortunately, our dignity is not going to preserve their lives. We have to use any format, any chance, in order to have the possibility of negotiating the possibility of talking to Putin.
“But if these attempts fail, that would mean that this is a third world war.”
What we know about Russia’s ‘filtration camps’
Mariupol’s city authorities echoed MP Inna Sovusan’s claims.
Pavlo Kyrylenko, the head of the Donetsk regional administration, said more than 1,000 residents had been deported to the camps.
He said: “The occupiers are sending the residents of Mariupol to filtration camps, checking their phones and seizing (their) Ukrainian documents.”
The city council said: “People who are being forcibly taken to Russia are being stripped of their Ukrainian passports and given a piece of paper that carries no legal weight and is not recognised by the entire civilised world.”
Watch what Ms Sovusan told Times Radio’s Tom Newton Dunn and Lucy fisher below.
‘They want to wipe out Mariupol’: Fighting continues in port city
Petro Andrushenko, an advisor to Mariupol’s mayor, said on Telegram: “The city continues to be shelled both from the sky and the sea.”
Civilians in the port city, where 400,000 people are said to be trapped due to constant bombardments in the last two weeks, continue to struggle to leave.
Mr Andrushenko said those trying to flee in their cars are being shot at by Russian forces.
He wrote: “Last night, cars trying to drive towards the village of Melekine [10km west of the city centre] were fired upon.
“Evacuation is difficult – difficult but moving.
“The Russians are doing everything to complicate things.”
Condemning Moscow’s actions, Mr Andrushenko added: “It seems the occupiers are so eager to wipe out Mariupol that they are ready to cover themselves with fire.”
Despite the dangers, the Ukrainian government announced the humanitarian corridor linking Mariupol to Zaporizhzhia, outside Russian-occupied territory, had been agreed for today.
A council official confirmed that a column of 11 buses carrying nearly 800 people had completed the second part of the journey, from Berdiansk to Zaporizhzhia, by 12pm Kyiv time.
Ukraine border guard shames Belarus Ambassador with ’30 silver pieces’ over Russia backing
Belarus has come under fire for allowing Russia to use it as a launching pad for its invasion of Ukraine in February.
Authoritarian president Alexander Lukashenko originally denied any contribution to the war but has since confirmed Moscow has been allowed to station missile launchers used against Ukrainian defence forces in his country.
Belarus on Saturday confirmed all its diplomats had been evacuated from Ukraine, with Ambassador Igor Sokol receiving a shameful farewell from a Ukrainian border guard.
Footage circulating on social media shows a security guard presenting Sokol with a bag of 30 silver pieces to hand to his Border Service chief.
Ukraine: Border chief shames Belarus Ambassador
UNICEF: Millions of children displaced
At least 1.5 million children have been made refugees by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, while another 3.3 million minors are displaced within the country, according to figures shared by UNICEF.
UNICEF spokesperson Joe English told CNN: “Each of these is an individual child whose life has been torn apart, whose world has been turned upside down.”
Russian losses in numbers
According to the Armed Forces of Ukraine, close to 15,000 Russian soldiers have died in Vladimir Putin’s war to date.
In addition, more than one hundred helicopters, 400 tanks and 900 vehicles have been destroyed.
It comes as the UK Ministry of Defence says Moscow has failed to gain control of the air in its war against Ukraine, which “significantly blunted their operational progress”.
The MoD’s intelligence report adds: “The Ukrainian Air Force and Air Defence Forces are continuing to effectively defend Ukrainian air space.”
Ukraine ‘cannot withstand alone’ – Calls for anti-war coalition
Olha Stefanishyna, Ukraine’s deputy prime minister for European and Euro-Atlantic integration, said Ukraine cannot “withstand” Russia’s attacks on its own.
Although the Kremlin has been unable so far to achieve its goals against its neighbour, Ms Stefanishyna said external help is needed for Ukrainian forces to continue to resist Vladimir Putin’s attacks.
She told Sophy Ridge On Sunday on Sky News: “The enormous bravery of Ukrainian people, army, nation and government, it’s something we would expect from all leaders around the world for standing for the values enshrined in the UN Charter.
“That’s why Ukraine will resist as long as it needed to make sure that no terror, no mass-murdering, no genocide is committed on this land in the 21st century.”
Calling on world leaders to establish an anti-war coalition, she insisted: “But it’s absolutely clear that only a Ukrainian army, and only a Ukrainian president, will not be able to withstand it alone.”
Putin and Zelensky could conduct peace talks in person
Vladimir Putin has reportedly opened the door to face-to-face negotiations with Volodymyr Zelensky.
The two leaders have let their diplomatic teams conduct peace talks on neutral ground since shortly after the start of the conflict on February 24.
BBC correspondent Lysa Doucet said the Russian president is now believed to have caved to his top diplomats and accepted he will have to attend negotiations himself “at some point.”
Speaking to BBC’s Broadcasting House, Ms Doucet said: “The diplomats are talking, the negotiators are talking.
“And we understand they are making progress. And we understand President Putin has finally agreed that he will meet, at some point, President Zelensky who has been asking for a meeting since January.
“He hasn’t said it in public, he says quite the opposite in public.
“But we understand there’s many, many eager mediators – everyone wants the prize of saying they brought this war to an end.”
Russian naval officer ‘shot dead’ by Ukraine forces
First rank captain Andrey Paliy, the deputy commander of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, has been shot dead by Ukrainian forces.
The 51-year-old is the first senior Russian naval official to die since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began on February 24.
He is, however, not the only high-ranking general to lose his life in combat – raising questions, once again, over why such senior figures are so close to or at the front line.
On Saturday, amid reports of heavy losses among the Kremlin’s troops, Lieutenant-General Andrei Mordvichev, commander of the 8th Combined Arms Army, was confirmed to have been killed in fighting at Chornobaivka, near the southern city of Kherson.
Massive metallurgical plant destroyed
Ukrainian MP Lesia Vasylenko shared a video of an attack on Mariupol’s Azovstal steel plant.
She wrote: “One of the biggest metallurgic plants in Europe destroyed. The economic losses for Ukraine are huge. The environment is devastated.”
This was confirmed in televised remarks by Vadym Denysenko, adviser to Ukraine’s interior minister, as reported by the Associated Press.
Russian ships fired cruise missiles at Ukraine
Russia has hit Ukraine with cruise missiles from ships in the Black Sea and Caspian Sea, and launched hypersonic missiles from Crimean airspace, Reuters cited the Russian defence ministry as saying today.
Spokesman Igor Konashenkov said: “Kalibr cruise missiles were launched from the waters of the Black Sea against the Nizhyn plant that repairs Ukrainian armoured vehicles damaged in fighting.”
Vladimir Putin’s forces fired the cruise missiles, which are highly precise and can travel long distances at subsonic speeds, last night and this morning.
The targets, according to Mr Konashenkov, were a fuel storage facility used by the Ukrainian military and a Ukrainian military preparation centre where foreign fighters joining Kyiv’s forces were based.
Lisa Nandy on Homes for Ukraine scheme: More clarity needed or ‘generosity will be squandered’
Labour MP Lisa Nandy, in an interview with the Observer, cited the Homes for Ukraine scheme’s “lengthy forms and the documents you need to prove your identity and residency” as a big issue for the program to succeed.
She said: “Unless urgent steps are taken to address this, we will see very small numbers of people taking up this offer and a lot of the public’s generosity squandered.”
Under the scheme, UK residents can individually sponsor a Ukrainian national’s visa.
Launched on Tuesday, some 100,000 people registered interest within the first day.
Applications opened on Friday.
Housing and Communities Secretary Michael Gove said there is no limit to how many Ukrainians can enter the program.
Each household taking in one refugee will be offered £350 a month, tax-free, and will not be expected to provide food and living expenses – though they can choose to offer this.
One of the current most evident limitations of the scheme is that Britons ready to open their home to a refugee rely on knowing a named individual from Ukraine they want to help.
According to Mr Gove, this is a temporary condition intended to get things “up and running as soon as possible”.
Ms Nandy condemned the Government’s little to no collaboration with councils and charities when setting up the scheme.
She said: “I met with a group of councils just before Michael Gove came to make a statement about the scheme to the Commons on Monday and not a single one had been contacted.
“Councils are desperate to help, but their concern is how to make this scheme work in practice.”
Zelensky: ‘Mariupol siege will be remember for centuries’
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said the siege of Mariupol would go down in history for what he dubbed “war crimes” committed by Russian troops.
He said in a video address to the nation in the early hours of Sunday: “To do this to a peaceful city, what the occupiers did, is a terror that will be remembered for centuries to come.”
The besieged and battered port city has been under heavy bombardments for more than two weeks, with some 400,000 people trapped.
Russian forces have already cut Mariupol off from the Sea of Azov.
Its fall would link Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014, to eastern territories controlled by Kremlin-backed separatists.
Art school used as shelter BOMBED by Russian forces
Russian forces have bombed an art school in the besieged Ukrainian port city of Mariupol, where about 400 residents — women, children and elderly people — had taken shelter, the city council said this morning.
In a message on the Telegram channels of Mariupol council and the Ukrainian Verkhovna Rada, it said many people remain “under the rubble” inside the destroyed G12 art school in the city’s Left Bank district.
In the statement, the council accused the Russians of committing war crimes
The number of casualties is still unclear.
UK intelligence update: ‘Limited progress’ by Russia
The latest intelligence update from the UK Ministry of Defence says Russia has made “limited progress” in capturing cities in Eastern Ukraine. However, forces are continuing to encircle them.
It adds: “It is likely Russia will continue to use its heavy firepower to support assaults on urban areas as it looks to limit its own already considerable losses, at the cost of further civilian casualties.”
The United Nations yesterday reported it had recorded the deaths of 847 civilians in Ukraine since the start of Russia’s invasion on February 24.
The true death toll, it said, is “considerably higher”.
It also recorded the injuries of 1,399 civilians.
Good morning
Hello, I’m Teresa Gottein Martinez and I’ll be bringing you all the latest developments on the conflict in Ukraine. Please feel free to get in touch with me as I work if you have a story or tips to share! Your thoughts are always welcome.
Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @TGotteinM
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