Ukraine-Russia war news: Putin's sick forces launch brutal strike on APARTMENT block leaving 18 dead including children | The Sun
VLADIMIR Putin's sick forces have struck residential buildings killing scores of people – including two children, authorities have reported.
Russian missile attacks on residential buildings in the Ukrainian port city of Odesa early Friday killed at least 18 people, authorities confirmed.
A spokesman for the Odesa regional government, Serhiy Bratchuk, said on the Telegram messaging app that another 30 had been injured.
Ukrainian news reports said the target of the missile attack was a multi-story apartment building and a recreational area.
The assault comes after Russian forces pulled out from Snake Island on Thursday, potentially easing the threat to Odesa, it was initially thought.
And yesterday, Britain handed Ukraine fighters a £1billion arms boost — as the West built its own Iron Curtain against Vladimir Putin.
Sweden and Finland were cleared to join Nato, Britain put thousands more troops on stand-by in Estonia, and US President Joe Biden agreed to more planes at UK bases.
Read our Ukraine war live blog below for the latest up-to-date news…
- Joseph Gamp
Russia’s Medvedev says sanctions could be justification for war
Russia’s Deputy Security Council Chairman Dmitry Medvedev said on Thursday that in certain circumstances, sanctions against Moscow may be seen as an act of aggression and a justification for war.
“I would like to point out once again that under certain circumstances such hostile measures can also qualify as an act of international aggression. And even as a casus belli (justification for war),” Medvedev said, adding that Russia has the right to defend itself.
Russia has faced a barrage of crippling economic sanctions from Western countries in response to its Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine, which it calls a “special military operation”.
Medvedev, a former Russian president who was once seen as a liberal, has emerged as one of the most hawkish proponents of the war, delivering a series of scathing denunciations of the West.
- Joseph Gamp
‘Big disaster’ for Putin
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace has said Russia had lost 25,000 troops in 120 days and added: “They’re grinding at First World War levels of advancement, a few metres a day.
“It’s a pretty big disaster and they haven’t even begun to occupy.”
It comes as Britain handed Ukraine a £1billion arms boost yesterday — as the West built its own Iron Curtain against Russia.
Sweden and Finland were cleared to join Nato, Britain put thousands more troops on stand-by in Estonia, and US President Joe Biden agreed to more planes at UK bases.
- Louis Allwood
Boris says he would rather have a smaller army with the top-of-the-range kit
In Madrid the PM also batted away questions about why the size of Britain's armed forces has shrunk.
Mr Johnson said he'd rather have a smaller army with the top-of-the-range kit they deserve.
Alongside defence spending at home, in Spain world leaders discussed what more they can do to band together and help out hero President Zelensky abroad.
Today the UK pledged an extra billion pounds in funding to aid the Ukrainian war effort.
- Louis Allwood
Boris Johnson says Putin has pushed the West closer together
The UK's Prime Minister Boris Johnson, has just defended the "robust health" of Nato during his conference speech in Madrid.
He once again stated that Russia's invasion has brought Nato closer to its doorstep, adding Putin's actions had made the alliance "stronger".
- Louis Allwood
Boris Johnson vows to hike defence spending by billions
Boris Johnson has pledged a whopping 20 per cent hike in UK military spending by 2030.
Speaking from Madrid where he is attending the NATO summit, the Prime Minister said the government will aim to spend 2.5 per cent of GDP on defence in the next eight years.
The massive increase will be welcomed by Defence Secretary Ben Wallace, who called on the PM to make the important commitment to our forces this week.
Mr Johnson said: "We need to invest for the long term in vital capabilities like future combat air, while simultaneously adapting to a more dangerous and more competitive world.
"The logical conclusion of the investments we propose to embark, of these decisions, is 2.5 per cent of GDP on defence by the end of the decade."
The PM's major funding pledge follows huge pressure from cabinet ministers Liz Truss and Mr Wallace, who over the past few months have begged him to hike spending.
- Louis Allwood
Ukraine says Russia ramped up missile strikes during 2nd half of June
Oleksii Hromov, a brigadier general in Ukraine's armed forces, said on Thursday that Russia had ramped up missile strikes in the second half of June.
Hromov told a news conference that more than half of the missiles were from Soviet reserves and less precise, adding that was why Russia was hitting residential buildings.
Russia has denied targeting civilians since invading Ukraine in late February. Reuters was not immediately able to verify Hromov's remarks.
- Louis Allwood
Russia's Medvedev says sanctions could be justification for war
Russia's Deputy Security Council Chairman Dmitry Medvedev said on Thursday that in certain circumstances, sanctions against Moscow may be seen as an act of aggression and a justification for war.
"I would like to point out once again that under certain circumstances such hostile measures can also qualify as an act of international aggression. And even as a casus belli (justification for war)," Medvedev said, adding that Russia has the right to defend itself.
Russia has faced a barrage of crippling economic sanctions from Western countries in response to its Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine, which it calls a "special military operation".
Medvedev, a former Russian president who was once seen as a liberal, has emerged as one of the most hawkish proponents of the war, delivering a series of scathing denunciations of the West.
- Louis Allwood
Bernie Ecclestone condemned over comments on Putin
Former Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone drew condemnation on Thursday after the 91-year-old defended Russian President Vladimir Putin in a television interview as a "first class person" he would "take a bullet" for.
The Briton, who is no longer involved in Formula One, also told ITV's Good Morning Britain that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy could have ended the Russian invasion of his country by talking to Putin.
British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said the comments were "absolutely extraordinary".
Formula One said in a statement they were "his personal views and are in very stark contrast to the position of the modern values of our sport".
Ecclestone had warm relations with Putin, establishing the now-cancelled Russian Grand Prix.
"He's a first-class person and what he's doing is something that he believes is the right thing he was doing for Russia," said Ecclestone, who has a history of controversial statements.
"Unfortunately he's like a lot of business people, certainly like me, that we make mistakes from time to time and when you've made the mistake you have to do the best you can to get out of it."
- Louis Allwood
Captured Azov fighters will face trial, Putin ally says
Captured members of Ukraine's armed forces who served in the Azov battalion will face trial, the speaker of Russia's lower house of parliament said on Thursday.
"These nationalists, who hands are covered in blood, are not humans.
"They are awaiting trial," said Vyacheslav Volodin, an ally of President Vladimir Putin, in a post on Telegram.
- Louis Allwood
Russia says forces have destroyed command centre near Dnipro
Russia's Defence Ministry said on Thursday its forces had destroyed a Ukrainian military control centre near the city of Dnipro in a missile strike on Tuesday.
Alongside other regions of Ukraine, the central city of Dnipro and the surrounding Dnipropetrovsk region has seen an increase in Russian shelling in recent days.
- Louis Allwood
Russia claims over 6,000 Ukrainian servicemen captured or surrendered
Russia says over 6,000 Ukrainian servicemen have been captured or surrendered, RIA news agency cited the defence ministry as saying on Thursday.
The ministry said the exchange of 144 prisoners of war with Ukraine, announced on Wednesday by Ukrainian intelligence, was organised by direct order of President Vladimir Putin, RIA cited the ministry as saying.
- Louis Allwood
Putin: Russia is open to dialogue on nuclear non-proliferation
Despite Russia's invasion of Ukraine, both Moscow and Washington have stressed the importance of maintaining communication on the issue of nuclear arms.
The two countries are by far the world's largest nuclear powers with an estimated 11,000 nuclear warheads between them.
"Russia is open to dialogue on ensuring strategic stability, preserving non-proliferation regimes for weapons of mass destruction and improving the situation in the field of arms control," Putin said in remarks to a legal forum in his home city of St. Petersburg.
He said the efforts would require "painstaking joint work" and would go towards preventing a repeat of "what is happening today in the Donbas".
The Russian leader says Moscow invaded Ukraine to protect ethnic Russians and Russian-speakers in the eastern Donbas region from persecution from Kyiv. He repeated those claims on Thursday, accusing Ukraine of "crimes against humanity."
Ukraine and the West say Russia's invasion of its neighbour was an unprovoked act of aggression, aimed at seizing Ukrainian territory and toppling President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
- Louis Allwood
Russian Duma passes law on retaliation against foreign media
Russia's top prosecutor will be empowered to shut down media from countries that ban or restrict Russian news organisations under a law passed by the lower house of parliament on Thursday.
The bill – following bans by some Western governments on Russian media they regard as mouthpieces for President Vladimir Putin and cheerleaders for his war in Ukraine – creates a legal basis for Moscow to retaliate against the media of any country that restricts the activity of Russian journalists.
Under the bill, such media will lose their accreditation and be banned from operating in Russia or distributing content there. These measures would only be lifted when the country in question allows Russian media to work without restrictions.
"This law is very important. We are creating an instrument for symmetrical response measures in the event of liquidation of our media abroad," said lawmaker Sergei Boyarsky, the bill's co-author.
The move by the lower house, the State Duma, follows threats by Russia to strip U.S. news organisations of their accreditation in retaliation for alleged harassment of Russian reporters in the United States and the withdrawal of broadcasting licences for Russian channels there.
- Louis Allwood
Why is it called Snake Island?
Prior to being known as Snake Island, the land was named "White Island" by the Greeks.
The writings of Greek poet Arctinus of Miletus insinuate that the remains of Achilles and Patroclus were brought to the island by the sea nymph Thetis, and ancient inscriptions eventually led to the Greeks renaming the island Fidonisi, which stands for Snake Island, during the Ottoman Empire, according to Ukraine.com.
The Soviets claimed the land in 1948, but following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, ownership was granted to Ukraine by the Court of Justice in February 2009.
- Louis Allwood
Why did Russia withdraw its forces from Snake Island?
It was announced on June 30, 2022, that Russia would be withdrawing its forces from Snake Island.
The decision came over four months after the country took control of the land.
Russian military spokesman, Lt. Gen. Igor Konashenkov, said the decision was a "goodwill gesture" to show that Russia is not interfering with the United Nation's attempts to find space for Ukraine so they can export agricultural products, according to USA Today.
- Louis Allwood
Where is Snake Island?
Snake Island, also known as Serpent Island or Zmiinyi Island, belongs to Ukraine.
It is located in the Black Sea, near the Danube Delta, just 30 miles from the coast.
The 46 acres of land are typically covered with rocks and grass, but following Russia's invasion of the island, it was left "covered in fire," according to The New York Times.
Prior to the invasion, it was known for its igneous rock formations and was home to an Odessa National University research facility, which students and scientists used to study flora, fauna, meteorology, geology, hydrobiology, and atmospheric chemistry, according to Ukraine.com.
It was also home to a popular lighthouse, which was built by the Russian Empire's Black Sea Fleet in the fall of 1842.
At this time, it is unclear if Ukraine will restore the island.
- Louis Allwood
Biden pledges to beef up military
Speaking at a Nato summit last night in Madrid, US president Joe Biden pledged to beef up US military might in Europe amid the growing threat of all-out war with Russia.
The US will also send two extra squadrons of F-35 jets to the UK, base two more destroyers in Spain and establish a permanent 5th Army headquarters in Poland.
- Louis Allwood
Putin promises Russia will respond if NATO deploys troops in Finland & Sweden
VLADIMIR Putin has promised Russia will respond if NATO deploys troops in Finland & Sweden after they joined the military alliance.
"With Sweden and Finland, we don't have the problems that we have with Ukraine. They want to join NATO, go ahead," Putin told Russian state television yesterday amid the war in Ukraine.
"But they must understand there was no threat before, while now, if military contingents and infrastructure are deployed there, we will have to respond in kind and create the same threats for the territories from which threats towards us are created."
The evil despot said it was "inevitable" that Moscow's relations with Helsinki and Stockholm would sour over their NATO membership.
He warned: "Everything was fine between us, but now there might be some tensions, there certainly will. It's inevitable if there is a threat to us."
Putin made his comment a day after NATO member Turkey lifted its veto over the bid by Finland and Sweden to join the alliance after the three nations agreed to protect each other's security. read more
The move means Helsinki and Stockholm can proceed with their application to join NATO, marking the biggest shift in European security in decades.
- Louis Allwood
Putin blames the West for any potential global food crisis
Speaking at a news conference with Widodo in Moscow following their meeting Putin said: "I am convinced that the agreements reached today will further strengthen the Russian-Indonesian partnership."
He added: "We have repeatedly stressed that the imbalance of food markets is a direct consequence of many years of irresponsible economic policies of a number of countries, uncontrolled emission and accumulation of unsecured debts, and the situation has worsened since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.
"However, Western countries, not wanting to admit the fallacy of their economic course, are further destabilising global agricultural production by imposing restrictions on the supply of Russian and Belarusian fertilisers."
- Louis Allwood
Indonesian President asks for war to end soon
Indonesian President Joko Widodo, says his country would like the war to end soon.
Speaking at a news conference with Putin in Moscow following their meeting, AFP quoted Widodo as saying: "Although the external situation is still difficult, it is still important to move towards a settlement and open dialogue.
"I call on all world leaders to revive the spirit of co-operation."
- Louis Allwood
'Big disaster' for Putin
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace has said Russia had lost 25,000 troops in 120 days and added: “They’re grinding at First World War levels of advancement, a few metres a day.
“It’s a pretty big disaster and they haven’t even begun to occupy.”
It comes as Britain handed Ukraine a £1billion arms boost yesterday — as the West built its own Iron Curtain against Russia.
Sweden and Finland were cleared to join Nato, Britain put thousands more troops on stand-by in Estonia, and US President Joe Biden agreed to more planes at UK bases.
- Louis Allwood
Luhansk facing 'endless air strikes'
According to the governor of the Luhansk region, Serhiy Haidai, the city "suffers from endless air strikes".
He says in a post on Telegram the Russians are using "almost all their forces" to try to capture the city.
Haidai says "there is a lot of destruction" in Lysychansk, the police department has been destroyed and the city's oil refinery damaged.
Haidai says: "It is difficult to find a safe place in the city".
"People dream of at least half an hour of silence, but the occupiers do not stop firing from all available weapons," he added.
- Louis Allwood
Zelensky meets Sir Richard Branson in Kyiv
Sir Richard Branson has travelled to Ukraine to meet president Volodymyr Zelensky.
Following an invitation from the Ukrainian leader, the entrepreneur met with Zelensky, foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba and a group of Ukrainian business leaders.
Sir Richard said the purpose of the meeting was to “learn what business, in partnership with civil society and governments, can do to support Ukraine most effectively”.
- Louis Allwood
US will offer more aid to Ukraine
Joe Biden says he will be announcing a further $800m (£658m) worth of military aid for Ukraine in the coming days to help Ukranian defences.
The money is likely to cover air defence, artillery, counter-battery systems and other weaponry.
It's the latest in a series of announcements of support the US has given Ukraine since Russians' invasion began.
- Louis Allwood
Boris says he would rather have a smaller army with the top-of-the-range kit
In Madrid the PM also batted away questions about why the size of Britain's armed forces has shrunk.
Mr Johnson said he'd rather have a smaller army with the top-of-the-range kit they deserve.
Alongside defence spending at home, in Spain world leaders discussed what more they can do to band together and help out hero President Zelensky abroad.
Today the UK pledged an extra billion pounds in funding to aid the Ukrainian war effort.
Source: Read Full Article