Russia has suffered record losses for a second consecutive day, Ukraine has claimed, as Vladimir Putin’s forces seek to advance in Donbas and repel Kyiv’s incursion into Kursk.
Just 24 hours after Ukraine claimed Russia had suffered a record 1,770 losses, Kyiv’s military claimed this grim total had been surpassed by 1,950 casualties on Monday – which would mark Russia’s worst single day since launching its full-scale invasion in February 2022.
The totals given by Ukraine’s military do not specify between troops killed, wounded or captured. Ukraine now claims to have inflicted a total of 712,610 casualties upon Russia – which is broadly in line with estimates given by Ukraine’s Western allies. Neither Moscow nor Kyiv provide statistics on their own losses.
Russia appears to be stepping up its efforts to claw back territory in Kursk, after Ukraine’s daring cross-border raid in August. With reports of North Korean troops also being deployed to the Russian region, war monitors said on Monday that both Kyiv and Moscow appeared to have made recent gains in the region.
Key Points
- Russia suffers second consecutive day of record casualties, Kyiv claims
- North Korea ratifies major defence treaty with Russia
- Ukrainian forces engaged against 50,000 troops in Russia’s Kursk region, Zelensky says
- Kremlin claims reports of Trump-Putin phone call are ‘pure fiction’
Ukraine in 'final stages' to set up three new JVs with European armsmakers
04:13
Arpan Rai
Ukraine is close to setting up three new joint ventures with European weapons producers in its effort to boost arms output during the war with Russia, the first deputy prime minister said.
Yulia Svyrydenko, who is also the economy minister, said five joint ventures with Western weapon producers had already been set up, including with German and Lithuanian companies. Several arms producers have opened offices in Ukraine.
“We have three more agreements with European companies in the final stages to set up joint ventures,” Svyrydenko told Reuters in an interview in the government headquarters in central Kyiv.
She gave no details about the planned new ventures or the scale of the investments.
Ukraine’s military industrial production has exploded in size with state and private companies rapidly increasing their production and innovating, as the government has scrambled to respond to Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Pentagon leaker who shared secrets about Ukraine war sentenced to 15 years
04:08
Arpan Rai
A federal judge on Tuesday sentenced a Massachusetts Air National Guard member to 15 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to leaking highly classified military documents about the war in Ukraine.
Jack Teixeira pleaded guilty earlier this year to six counts of willful retention and transmission of national defense information under the Espionage Act following his arrest in the most consequential national security case in years. He was brought into court in an orange jumpsuit and showed no visible reaction as he was sentenced by US District Judge Indira Talwani.
Earlier in the hearing he apologized before the judge.
Nato chief calls for more Western support for Ukraine, warns of Russian alliances
04:00
Andy Gregory
Nato chief Mark Rutte has called on Western allies to provide Ukraine with further support “to change the trajectory of the conflict” with Russia.
Speaking ahead of a meeting Tuesday in Paris with French President Emmanuel Macron, Rutte said: “We must do more than just keep Ukraine in the fight.”
He added: “We need to raise the cost for Putin and his enabling authoritarian friends by providing Ukraine with the support it needs to change the trajectory of the conflict.”
Rutte, who did not provided details about the military equipment and weapons needed for that purpose, said it was “very concerning” that Russia was getting “closer to its allies, China, Iran and North Korea.”
Russian doctor sentenced to 5 years for alleged anti-war comments to patient’s family
03:55
Arpan Rai
A doctor accused of criticising the war in Ukraine in front of a patient was convicted Tuesday of spreading false information about the Russian military and sentenced to five and a half years in prison, part of an unrelenting Kremlin crackdown on dissent.
Dr Nadezhda Buyanova, 68, was arrested in February after Anastasia Akinshina, the mother of one of her patients, reported the paediatrician to authorities. Akinshina alleged that Buyanova told her and her son that his father, a Russian soldier who was killed in Ukraine, was a legitimate target for Kyiv’s troops and had blamed Moscow for the war.
A video of the outraged Akinshina complaining about Buyanova was widely publicised, and chief of Russia’s Investigative Committee Alexander Bastrykin personally demanded a criminal case be brought against the doctor.
UK may deploy troops in Ukraine if Trump cuts support, says Boris Johnson
03:39
Arpan Rai
British forces could be deployed in Ukraine if US President-elect Donald Trump reduces military aid to Kyiv, former prime minister Boris Johnson said.
“What I’m saying is for people watching, thinking why are we supporting the Ukrainians? It’s because otherwise our collective security will be really degraded by a resurgent Russia threatening all sorts of parts of Europe,” he told GB News.
In such a scenario, the UK will be compelled to send troops directly, he said. “We will then have to pay to send British troops to help defend Ukraine,” Mr Johnson said.
Full story: Starmer and Macron vow to put Ukraine ‘in strongest possible position’ before Trump becomes president
03:30
Tara Cobham
Sir Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron have vowed to put Ukraine in the “strongest possible position” going into winter, in a boost in support before Donald Trump returns to the Oval Office.
In a show of European solidarity days after Trump’s election win, the two leaders held talks in Paris to mark Armistice Day and consider how best to continue supporting the war-torn country.
It comes amid suggestions that the UK and France could seek to persuade Joe Biden to permit Ukraine to use Storm Shadow missiles to strike into Russia before he leaves the White House.
The Independent’s political correspondent Millie Cooke has the full story:
Russia flies strategic bombers fly over neutral waters of Black sea
03:19
Arpan Rai
Russia’s defence ministry said two Tu-22M3 strategic bombers made a scheduled flight over the neutral waters of the Black sea, state news agency RIA reported.
The Tu-95s flew for more than five hours, escorted by SU-30SM and SU-27 fighter jets, the ministry said yesterday.
The ministry said earlier on Tuesday that two Tu-95MS strategic bombers made a scheduled flight over the neutral waters of the Barents sea.
North Korean soldiers joining Russia in combat, US State Dept says
03:08
Arpan Rai
North Korean troops have begun engaging in combat operations alongside Russian forces, the US State Department said yesterday, expressing concern that Russia had turned to North Korea for soldiers to fight in its war with Ukraine.
“Over 10,000 DPRK (North Korean) soldiers have been sent to eastern Russia, and most of them have moved to the far western Kursk Oblast, where they have begun engaging in combat operations with Russian forces,” State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel told reporters at a briefing.
Chief of defence staff 'confident' that the UK could fight full-scale war
03:00
Andy Gregory
Full story: Doctor given more than five years in prison for criticising Russia’s war in Ukraine
02:30
Tara Cobham
A doctor accused of criticizing the war in Ukraine in front of a patient was convicted Tuesday of spreading false information about the Russian military and sentenced to five-and-a-half years in prison, part of an unrelenting Kremlin crackdown on dissent.
Dr Nadezhda Buyanova, 68, was arrested in February after Anastasia Akinshina, the mother of one of her patients, reported the pediatrician to authorities. Akinshina alleged that Buyanova told her and her son that his father, a Russian soldier who was killed in Ukraine, was a legitimate target for Kyiv’s troops and had blamed Moscow for the war.
A video of the outraged Akinshina complaining about Buyanova was widely publicized, and chief of Russia’s Investigative Committee Alexander Bastrykin personally demanded a criminal case be brought against the doctor.
Read the full story here:
‘Massive’ Russian losses ‘won’t see war grind to a halt any day soon’
02:00
Andy Gregory
Leading Russia expert Mark Galeotti, has warned that Russia’s war in Ukraine is unlikely to grind to a halt any day soon in spite of “massive” losses for Moscow, as Ukraine claimed that Moscow had suffered record losses for two consecutive days.
“I think both sides are able just about to hold on,” he told Sky News. “The Russians can’t really continue quite at this rate indefinitely. But on the other hand, they have the economy for at least another year or two at something like this kind of tempo.
“So it’s not as if this is a war which is going to grind to a halt any day soon, unfortunately.”
Full story: NATO’s Rutte calls for more Western support for Ukraine and warns of Russian alliances
01:30
Tara Cobham
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte has called on Western allies to provide Ukraine with further support “to change the trajectory of the conflict” with Russia.
Speaking ahead of a meeting Tuesday in Paris with French President Emmanuel Macron, Rutte said: “We must do more than just keep Ukraine in the fight.”
He added: “We need to raise the cost for Putin and his enabling authoritarian friends by providing Ukraine with the support it needs to change the trajectory of the conflict.”
Read the full story here:
Britain shadows Russian warship as it transits through Channel
01:00
Andy Gregory
Britain’s Ministry of Defence has said it shadowed a Russian warship as it passed through the English Channel on Sunday.
Russian state media reported that the Admiral Golovko frigate carried out military drills in the Channel, however it is understood that UK observers witnessed no evidence of this.
An MOD spokesperson said: “The Russian frigate Admiral Golovko was shadowed by a number of maritime and air assets, including HMS Iron Duke, as it transited the English Channel on Sunday.
“The Royal Navy monitors UK territorial waters to protect the UK, including to ensure compliance with maritime law and deter malign activity.
“The passage was in line with international law and norms.”
Macron vows to continue to push for aid to be sent to Ukraine for as long as necessary
00:30
Tara Cobham
French President Emmanuel Macron has vowed to continue to push for aid to be sent to Ukraine for as long as necessary.
"It is the only way towards negotiations and I want to be clear, when the time comes, nothing should be decided on Ukraine without the Ukrainians and on Europe without the Europeans," he said.
China needs to feel ‘higher cost’ for its Russia support, Kallas says
Tuesday 12 November 2024 23:59
Andy Gregory
The nominee to be the European Union’s next top diplomat has warned that China should feel a “higher cost” for lending support to Russia that helps Moscow pursue the war in Ukraine.
Speaking at her confirmation hearing in the European Parliament, former Estonian prime minister Kaja Kallas said: “Without China’s support to Russia, Russia would not be able to continue its war with the same force. China needs to also feel a higher cost.”
Rutte calls for continued support for Ukraine
Tuesday 12 November 2024 23:30
Tara Cobham
Kyiv is now battling to put itself in the strongest position for any negotiations, including by securing more arms and holding out on the battlefield, with a senior Ukrainian official telling Reuters the next four to five months will be pivotal.
"We must recommit to stay the course of the war and we must do more than just keep Ukraine in the fight," NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said on Tuesday.
"We need to raise the cost for (Russian President Vladimir) Putin and his enabling authoritarian threats by providing Ukraine with the support it needs to change the trajectory of the conflict."
Russia’s Medvedev says Europe is trying to escalate Ukraine conflict after Trump win
Tuesday 12 November 2024 23:00
Andy Gregory
Former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev has accused European leaders of seeking to dangerously escalate the Ukraine conflict following the re-election of former US president Donald Trump.
In his latest post on Telegram, Mr Medvedev – once viewed as a moderate – claimed that European politicians were aiming to “push the conflict with Russia into an irreversible phase” while they could and warned against allowing Kyiv to use Western long-range missiles to fire at targets inside Russia.
Mr Medvedev dismissed what he called “ultimatums” issued by German opposition leader and possible next chancellor Friedrich Merz about Ukraine’s use of such weapons as “electioneering in nature”.
With Sir Keir Starmer and France’s Emmanuel Macron having also reaffirmed their support for Kyiv during talks in Paris on Monday, Mr Medvedev added: “Generally speaking, it is surprising to what extent the current generation of European politicians wants to drag the war into their territory.”
Recap: Watch as Zelensky reveals Ukraine’s ‘good conversations’ with Trump in video address
Tuesday 12 November 2024 22:30
Tara Cobham
Ukraine military chief details Kursk battle
Tuesday 12 November 2024 22:00
Andy Gregory
Ukraine’s armed forces commander General Oleksandr Syrskyi said he travelled to the front in Russia’s Kursk region where a surprise Ukrainian incursion carved out a chunk of land in August that president Volodymyr Zelensky said could be used as a bargaining chip.
“(Russian forces) are trying to dislodge our troops and advance deep into the territory we control,” he said on Telegram.
Ukraine says Russia has deployed 11,000 North Korean troops to the Kursk region and that they have already been involved in clashes, urging the West to respond robustly.
Moscow neither denies nor confirms their presence.
Syrskyi said the Kursk operation had drawn in crack Russian fighters and relieved pressure that would have been brought to bear on several important outposts in the east where Russia has been making gains at its fastest clip since 2022.
“These tens of thousands of enemies from the best Russian shock units would have stormed our positions in the Pokrovsk, Kurakhove or Toretsk directions, which would have significantly worsened the situation at the front,” he said.
John Healey defiant over US support for Ukraine after Trump re-election
Tuesday 12 November 2024 21:30
Tara Cobham
The defence secretary has struck a defiant tone on US support for Ukraine amid fears Donald Trump will force Volodymyr Zelensky to do a deal with Russia.
John Healey said he expects the Americans to stand with Ukraine for “as long as it takes to prevail over (Vladimir) Putin’s invasion”.
He said that the former president, who will return to the White House in January after a sweeping election win, “recognises that countries get security through strength, just as alliances like Nato do”. And Mr Healey stressed that America’s determination to support Ukraine in its campaign against Russia is “just as strong” as before voters in the US went to the polls.
Political correspondent Archie Mitchell reports:
North Korean soldiers joining Russia in combat, US State Dept says
Tuesday 12 November 2024 21:03
Tara Cobham
North Korean troops have begun engaging in combat operations alongside Russian forces, the US State Department has said, expressing concern that Russia had turned to North Korea for soldiers to fight in its war with Ukraine.
"Over 10,000 DPRK (North Korean) soldiers have been sent to eastern Russia, and most of them have moved to the far western Kursk Oblast, where they have begun engaging in combat operations with Russian forces," State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel told reporters at a briefing on Tuesday.
Wath: Putin calls Trump ‘courageous’ as he congratulates future US president on election
Tuesday 12 November 2024 21:00
Andy Gregory
Surprising alliance of Trump, Orban and Pope that could derail support for Ukraine
Tuesday 12 November 2024 20:30
Tara Cobham
A surprising trinity of Donald Trump, Hungary’s right-wing prime minister Viktor Orban and Pope Francis could spell the end to hopes for continued support for Ukraine in fighting the war against Vladimir Putin’s Russia.
The Independent has spoken to Hungary’s ambassador to the Vatican, Eduard Habsburg-Lothringen, who has been critical in attempting to create an international coalition to find a “peace deal” to end the war.
He has spoken about how Pope Francis has played an important role in supporting a deal that will probably see Mr Trump push for Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky to cede territory to Russia.
Political editor David Maddox reports:
Russian power creeps across West Africa with Equatorial Guinea mission
Tuesday 12 November 2024 20:00
Reuters
Russia has deployed up to 200 military instructors to Equatorial Guinea in recent weeks to protect the presidency, sources told Reuters, showing Moscow is expanding its footprint in West Africa despite a recent defeat in Mali.
The sources said the Russians were training elite guards in the two main cities of the tiny oil-exporting country of 1.7 million people, where U.S. energy firms invested billions of dollars in the first decade of the century before scaling down.
The deployment fits into a wider pattern of waning Western influence and increasing Russian interventions in West and Central Africa, where Moscow has sent thousands of mercenaries to protect military regimes and help them fight insurgents.
For Russia, the assignments are a way to make money from government fees and economic opportunities in mining or energy, while defying the West as part of a global geopolitical confrontation playing out most dramatically in Ukraine.
Macron reiterates call for ‘strong Europe’ in apparent reference to Trump reelection
Tuesday 12 November 2024 19:30
Tara Cobham
French President Emmanuel Macron has reiterated his call for a "strong Europe" as being key to NATO but also as a response to "what the US administration rightly expects" in an apparent reference to the election of Donald Trump for a second term.
During his first in the White House, Trump pushed the European NATO allies to spend more on defence, up to and beyond 2 per cent of gross domestic product, and to be less reliant on US military cover.
"For too long, Europe has avoided bearing the burden of its own security, believing that it could, in a way, receive the dividends of peace without any time limit," Macron said on
Trump eyeing China hawk Mike Waltz as national security adviser
Tuesday 12 November 2024 19:00
Andy Gregory
Donald Trump has asked Republican Florida congressman Mike Waltz to serve as his national security adviser, multiple news outlets report.
“President-Elect Trump will begin making decisions on who will serve in his second Administration soon,” Karoline Leavitt, spokeswoman for the Trump transition team, told The Independent. “Those decisions will be announced when they are made.”
The Independent has contacted Waltz for comment. Reacting to the reported offer, former Florida governor Jeb Bush praised Waltz on X as a “great choice” and a “patriot.”
If Waltz joins the Trump White House, he’ll confront a number of complicated national security issues, including Israel’s expanding regional war with Hamas and Lebanon, the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and competition with China.
Our US reporter Josh Marcus has more details:
More than 1,000 Russians implicated in criminal cases over speaking out on Ukraine war
Tuesday 12 November 2024 18:30
Tara Cobham
More than 1,000 people have been implicated in criminal cases in Russia on charges related to speaking or acting out against the war in Ukraine, according to one of Russia’s leading rights groups that tracks political arrests.
The data from OVD-Info comes as a doctor accused of criticizing the war in Ukraine in front of a patient was convicted on Tuesday of spreading false information about the Russian military and sentenced to five-and-a-half years in prison.
"Spreading false information" about the army has been a criminal offence since March 2022, when Russia adopted a series of laws prohibiting any public expression about the invasion that deviated from the official narrative. Authorities started actively using them against critics and protesters.
UK will not have air supremacy over enemies in future wars, RAF chief warns
Tuesday 12 November 2024 18:01
Andy Gregory
The UK will not enjoy supremacy in the air in future warfare but will have to fight against an “ever-improving enemy” for control, the head of the Royal Air Force has warned, as he claimed that the UK faces the most difficult strategic environment in decades.
Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton, chief of the Air Staff, suggested the era of unchallenged Western dominance in the air had come to an end, adding that it was imperative the RAF modernise its efforts to stay ahead of the likes of China and Russia.
Our foreign affairs reporter Tom Watling reports:
Russian strategic bombers fly over neutral waters of Black sea, RIA reports
Tuesday 12 November 2024 17:30
Tara Cobham
Russia's defence ministry said two Tu-22M3 strategic bombers made a scheduled flight over the neutral waters of the Black sea, state news agency RIA reported on Tuesday.
The Tu-95s flew for more than five hours, escorted by SU-30SM and SU-27 fighter jets, the ministry said.
The ministry said earlier on Tuesday that two Tu-95MS strategic bombers made a scheduled flight over the neutral waters of the Barents sea.
British troops may have to be deployed to Ukraine if Trump pulls support, Boris Johnson claims
Tuesday 12 November 2024 17:02
Andy Gregory
British troops may have to be deployed in Ukraine if Donald Trump cuts Kyiv’s funding, Boris Johnson has warned.
Mr Johnson said: “If Ukraine goes down, then we face an even bigger threat on our borders, the borders of the European continent wherever the democracies butt up against Russia.”
He told GB News that the knock-on effects would be felt in the Baltic states and the South China Sea, adding: “What I’m saying is for people watching, thinking ‘why are we supporting the Ukrainians?’
“It’s because otherwise our collective security will be really degraded by a resurgent Russia threatening all sorts of parts of Europe, and we will then have to pay to send British troops to help defend Ukraine.”
Our political correspondent Archie Mitchell reports:
Nato chief issues warning over growing Russian cooperation with China, Iran and North Korea
Tuesday 12 November 2024 16:05
Andy Gregory
Russia’s growing economic and military cooperation with China, North Korea and Iran is threatening Europe, the Indo-Pacific and North America, Nato secretary general Mark Rutte has said.
In what appeared to be a message to the incoming Trump Administration, Mr Rutte underlined the importance of transatlantic unity and continued support for Ukraine in its war with Russia, describing what he saw as the dangers posed by North Korean and Iranian military assistance for Russia.
“At the same time, China backs Russia’s economy, enables its defence industry and amplifies its narrative all over the world stage,” Mr Rutte said, ahead of talks with France’s Emmanuel Macron.
“Russia working together with North Korea, Iran and China is not only threatening Europe, it’s threatening peace and security, yes, here in Europe, but also in the Indo-Pacific and in North America.”
Full report: Doctor convicted for alleged criticism of Russia’s war in Ukraine
Tuesday 12 November 2024 15:36
Andy Gregory
A doctor accused of criticising the war in Ukraine in front of a patient has been jailed, as part of an unrelenting Kremlin crackdown on dissent.
Dasha Litvinova has the full report:
Nato chief says alliance must back Ukraine for ‘the long haul'
Tuesday 12 November 2024 15:17
Andy Gregory
As he held talks with France’s Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday, Nato chief Mark Rutte stressed the need to back Ukraine for the “long haul”.
Highlighting the “importance of keeping up the support as Ukrainians prepare to face what could be their harshest winter since 2022”, the new Nato secretary-general said: “We must recommit to stay in the course for the long haul. And we must do more than just keep Ukraine in the fight.
“We need to raise the cost for Putin and his enabling authoritarian friends, by providing Ukraine with the support it needs to change the trajectory of the conflict.”
Russian strategic bombers patrol over neutral waters of Barents sea, Interfax reports
Tuesday 12 November 2024 14:58
Andy Gregory
Russia’s defence ministry said two Tu-95MS strategic bombers made a scheduled flight over the neutral waters of the Barents sea on Tuesday.
The Tu-95s flew for around four hours, according to a statement cited by the Interfax news agency. The Barents is a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean, off the northern coasts of Russia and Norway.
Pentagon secrets leaker Jack Teixeira set to be sentenced
Tuesday 12 November 2024 14:39
Andy Gregory
A Massachusetts Air National Guard member who pleaded guilty to leaking highly classified military documents about the war in Ukraine is expected to be sentenced in federal court on Tuesday.
Prosecutors have argued that Jack Teixeira should be sentenced to 17 years in prison, saying he “perpetrated one of the most significant and consequential violations of the Espionage Act in American history”.
The leak exposed to the world unvarnished secret assessments of Russia’s war in Ukraine, including information about troop movements in Ukraine, and the provision of supplies and equipment to Ukrainian troops. Teixeira also admitted posting information about a US adversary’s plans to harm US forces serving overseas.
Michael Casey reports:
Trump may look to rekindle dialogue with North Korea ‘sooner rather than later’, analyst says
Tuesday 12 November 2024 14:20
Andy Gregory
Donald Trump may look to rekindle a conversation with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un “sooner rather than later”, an analyst has suggested.
With reports of 10,000 North Korean troops being deployed to Russia, as both nations ratified a new military pact, Bulent Gokay, professor of international relations at Keele University, suggested the US president-elect could also soon look to reopen a dialogue with the pariah state.
Professor Gokay said: “Since Trump last met with Kim, the North has greatly expanded its military arsenal, in particular massive intercontinental ballistic missiles and hypersonic and short-range weapons that could deliver nuclear warheads against the US mainland or military bases in the region.
“Despite this, Trump may feel that his engagement worked well during his first presidency in that he feels that he can ‘solve’ the North Korean nuclear issue without any violent encounter. So, he may look to rekindle a conversation with Kim sooner or later.”
Russian doctor jailed over alleged comments about war in Ukraine
Tuesday 12 November 2024 14:01
Andy Gregory
A Russian court has sentenced a Moscow paediatrician to five and a half years in a penal colony, after the mother of one of her patients made a video criticising comments the doctor allegedly made about Russian soldiers in Ukraine.
In line with Russia’s crackdown on discussion of the war since it began in full in February 2022, Nadezhda Buyanova, aged 68, was charged with spreading “fake” information about the Russian army, over remarks that she has denied making.
Ms Boyanova’s supporters, some wearing T-shirts carrying prints of her face printed on, packed the courtroom to hear the sentencing, erupting in protest and crying “shame” as she was handed the lengthy term, Russian media reported. “The sentence is monstrously cruel,” Buyanova’s lawyer told Mediazona.
“I can’t get my head around it,” Buyanova, her grey hair closely cropped, told reporters before the verdict.
As Judge Olga Fedina pronounced her guilty, the courtroom erupted in protest. Several cried “Shame!”, Russian media said.
The legal action came after Anastasia Akinshina recorded a video in which she said Ms Buyanova had referred to her child’s father as a “legitimate target of Ukraine” – comments she denies. The clip was picked up by Telegram channels with millions of subscribers.
A group of Russian doctors previously wrote an open letter in Buyanova’s defence, calling the denunciation a “disgrace”, while a petition for her release has garnered over 6,000 signatures.
Starmer says Ukraine must be put in ‘strongest position’ possible, ahead of Trump presidency
Tuesday 12 November 2024 13:37
Andy Gregory
Sir Keir Starmer is pushing Western allies to step up support to put Ukraine in the “strongest position” possible before Donald Trump takes office.
Asked what his message to Mr Trump was, the prime minister told reporters at the Cop29 climate summit: “I’m not going to start sending messages to the president-elect but I’m very happy to be very clear about what my own position is, because it’s been my position since the very start, which is that we strongly support Ukraine in the face of Russian aggression.
“I’m very proud of the fact that the UK has stood firm in that commitment throughout the duration of this conflict. I now think that we need to put Ukraine in the best possible position as we go forward.
“That has been the centre of the discussions that I’ve been having with other leaders in recent weeks. So, strong support for Ukraine, we want to put Ukraine in the best possible, strongest position as we go forward.
“And I’m not going to be drawn into discussions about capabilities as we go forward but that is the strong and in principle position that I take.”
US secretary of state to attend Ukraine meetings in Brussels this week
Tuesday 12 November 2024 13:18
Andy Gregory
US secretary of state Antony Blinken will travel to Brussels to discuss support for Ukraine in meetings with Nato and European Union counterparts this week, the State Department has said.
Following meetings on Tuesday and Wednesday, Mr Blinken with then travel to Peru and Brazil for the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders’ Week and the G20 Leaders’ Summit, the department said in a statement.
Russia's Duma adopts bill banning 'child-free ideology'
Tuesday 12 November 2024 13:01
Andy Gregory
Russia's lower house of parliament has voted to adopt new legislation that would outlaw "propaganda" discouraging Russians from having children, Reuters reports.
In a move chiming with Vladimir Putin’s war-motiviated push to encourage procreation as a nationalistic duty, the legislation would ban materials on the internet, in the media and in advertising that are deemed to portray a child-free lifestyle as attractive, and subject the authors to fines.
Zelensky expresses gratitude to Ukrainian rescue officials
Tuesday 12 November 2024 12:44
Andy Gregory
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has expressed his gratitude to rescue officials in Ukraine responding to daily Russian attacks.
In a post on X, Mr Zelensky said: “No rescue service has ever faced challenges like those our rescuers, police, medics, and everyone helping them tackle every day—often under fire or under threat of renewed Russian attacks. Every day, there is a necessary and immediate response, no matter the challenges.
“I thank everyone who saves lives after Russian strikes, clears rubble, provides first aid, extinguishes fires, and eliminates the consequences to save people’s lives.”
EU top diplomat nominee strongly backs Ukraine and underlines China's links to the war
Tuesday 12 November 2024 12:25
Andy Gregory
The European Union must back Ukraine against Russia for as a long as it takes and persuade the United States that its strategic interests in China are tied up in the outcome of the war, the nominee to become the bloc’s top diplomat for the next five years has warned.
“Ukraine’s victory is a priority for us all. The situation on the battlefield is very difficult,” Estonia’s ex-prime Minister Kaja Kallas told EU politicians, during a hearing she must pass to be appointed as the bloc’s foreign policy chief.
“That is why we must keep on working every day. Today, tomorrow and for as long as it takes and with as much military, financial and humanitarian aid as needed,” she said, adding that “this must be underpinned by a clear path for Ukraine to join the European Union”.
Lorne Cook has more in this report:
Moldova condemns Russia over alleged interference in presidential elections
Tuesday 12 November 2024 12:06
Andy Gregory
Moldova has handed Russia’s ambassador to Chisinau a protest note over alleged interference by Moscow in its presidential elections and a referendum on joining the European Union.
The Moldovan foreign ministry accused Russia of seeking to delegitimise the democratic process of the country’s presidential election, won by pro-Western president Maia Sandu, and a referendum on inserting a clause in the constitution defining EU membership as a goal. Moscow has denied the allegations.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs presented today to the Ambassador ... a note of protest in connection with the illegal and deliberate interference of the Russian Federation in the electoral process of the Republic of Moldova,” Moldova’s foreign ministry said.
Russian ambassador Oleg Ozerov said of the meeting: “The conversation made it possible to clarify issues related to our acute and complex bilateral relations.” Russia has claimed the election – voting in which concluded on 3 November – was unfair and that it does not see Ms Sandu as the legitimate president.
Moldova’s foreign ministry also used Tuesday’s meeting with Russia’s ambassador to condemn a violation of its airspace by two drones which it said crashed on its territory on Sunday.
Full report: Liz Truss spent final days in office ‘preparing for Putin to fire nuclear weapons’
Tuesday 12 November 2024 11:47
Andy Gregory
Vladimir Putin was so close to using nuclear weapons in October 2022 that Liz Truss spent the dying days of her premiership preparing for the potential fallout, an updated version of her biography has claimed.
The former prime minister reportedly spent her last days in office studying weather maps and preparing for cases of radiation poisoning in the UK amid US intelligence that a strike was imminent.
Our political correspondent Archie Mitchell has the full report:
Liz Truss ‘held crisis meetings in 2022 over fears Putin could launch nuclear weapon'
Tuesday 12 November 2024 11:07
Andy Gregory
Liz Truss held crisis meetings in her final days as prime minister after US intelligence suggested there was a 50 per cent chance Vladimir Putin could deploy a tactical nuclear weapon on the battlefield in Ukraine or test a larger bomb over the Black Sea, it has been reported.
Citing the biography of Ms Truss’s brief premiership, Out of The Blue, The Sun reports that Ms Truss spent “numerous hours studying satellite weather data and wind directions” over fears the “wrong weather patterns” could have a “direct fall-out effect on Britain”.
Earlier this month, it was also reported that the new book War by US journalist Bob Woodward claimed US intelligence in September 2022 had revised the prospect of Mr Putin using nuclear weapons, up from between 5 and 10 per cent, to 50 per cent.
Responding to the latest report, Phillips O’Brien of St Andrew’s University said the stories about the Biden Administration believing there was a 50 per cent chance of Mr Putin using nuclear “proves a few things – none of which is that he was ever close to actually doing it”.
Professor O’Brien said: “They had bad intelligence analysis, like they did when they were told Kyiv would fall in a week”, adding: “They didnt have the capacity to learn from this mistake, and realise that Putin’s nuclear sabre rattling was a sham.
“It’s a sign of failure that is being dressed up to scare people. Plus you can be sure it will be based on intelligence that can never be released.”
Russia suffers record losses for second consecutive day, Ukraine claims
Tuesday 12 November 2024 10:42
Andy Gregory
Russia has suffered a second consecutive day of record losses, Ukraine’s military has claimed, as Moscow seeks to advance in the Donbas and to repel Kyiv’s incursion into Kursk.
A day after Ukraine claimed Russia had suffered a record 1,770 losses, Kyiv’s military claimed this had been surpassed on Monday with a total of 1,950 casualties – which would mark Russia’s worst single day since