Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky says he believes Kyiv has the opportunity to end the war with Russia by next year, as long as his country receives sufficient support from its allies.
“In October, November and December we have a chance to move things toward peace and lasting stability,” he told the Ukraine-South East Europe summit in Dubrovnik.
“The situation on the battlefield creates an opportunity to make this choice for decisive action to end the war no later than in 2025.”
Zelensky also used the summit to call on southeastern European countries to invest in weapons production in Ukraine.
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s military said its forces had struck a base in southern Russia’s Krasnodar region storing hundreds of Shahed drones yesterday. “According to available information, nearly 400 strike drones were stored there,” Ukraine’s General Staff said in a statement.
“Based on objective control results, a direct hit was made on the target. Secondary explosions were observed at the site,” it said.
And the Russian military is looking to make significant advances in the Donbas region before muddy ground conditions in the autumn set in, a US-based think-tank has said.
Key Points
- Prime Minister welcomes Zelensky to Downing Street
- Zelensky says battlefield situation ‘creates opportunity’ to bring an end to war in 2025
- Ukraine's military says it struck Russian weapons arsenal in Bryansk region
- Ukraine’s Ramstein meet canceled as Biden postpones Germany visit
Two men accused of hammer attack on Navalny aide may be released on bail
10:30
Barney Davis
Two men suspected of attacking Leonid Volkov, an exiled aide to late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, may be released on bail from detention in Poland, a court has ruled.
Volkov suffered injuries from hammer blows in the attack on March 12 outside his home in Vilnius, the Lithuanian capital. Two men suspected of attacking him were arrested in Poland in April on a European Arrest Warrant issued by Lithuania.
“Each must pay 50,000 zlotys ($12,700) bail within a week... If they pay, they will be released, if they don’t pay, they won’t be released,” Piotr Jaszke, the lawyer of one of the suspects told Reuters.
Navalny, Russia’s most prominent opposition leader, died in February after collapsing at the Arctic penal colony where he was serving a long jail term.
Zelensky seeking greater military support as he visits Downing Street
09:52
Barney Davis
The Ukrainian president and the Prime Minister embraced outside No 10 before a series of talks which will also involve Nato’s new secretary-general Mark Rutte.
The visit was Mr Zelensky’s second trip to Number 10 since Sir Keir came to power after he addressed an extraordinary meeting of the Cabinet in July.
Mr Zelensky has been presenting his “victory plan” to Western leaders as he lobbies for greater military assistance, such as permission to use equipment including UK-supplied Storm Shadow missiles to hit targets within Russia.
Welcoming Mr Zelensky in No 10’s Pillared Room, Sir Keir said it was “very important we’re able to show our continued commitment to support Ukraine” and it was a chance to “go through the plan, to talk in more detail”.
The pair then held private talks in the Small Dining Room before conversations involving their wider teams.
Defence Secretary John Healey, Chief of the Defence Staff Admiral Sir Tony Radakin and National Security Adviser Sir Tim Barrow were among the senior figures involved in the meeting with the Ukrainians.
The UK and US have so far stopped short of explicitly giving Kyiv permission to fire Western-supplied missiles at targets within Vladimir Putin’s country over concerns about further escalating the conflict, but Mr Zelensky has likened his position to having to fight with his hands tied.
New sanctions unit launched as Zelensky arrives in Downing Street
09:36
Barney Davis
The UK’s sanctions against Russia, worth £20billion, are set to be strengthened as the Government launches a new unit to penalise companies who do not comply.
The new Office of Trade Sanctions Implementation (OTSI), launching today, will work with industry to make complying with sanctions obligations as straightforward as possible by issuing guidance and user-friendly online tools.
For the minority of businesses that don’t comply to sanctions, OTSI will have powers to publish information about sanctions breaches and impose civil monetary penalties.
Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said: “Sanctions are vital in defunding Putin’s illegal war and only by working hand in hand with business can we make them as effective as possible.
“This new unit will help ensure businesses comply with trade sanctions and take decisive enforcement action where needed so that, together with business, we can continue to exert maximum pressure on Putin’s regime.”
PM welcomes Zelensky to Downing Street
09:28
Barney Davis
Sir Keir Starmer has welcomed Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky to Downing Street as the pair discuss the UK’s support for Kyiv.
The Prime Minister said it was a chance for the Ukrainian leader to talk through his plans in more detail.
Sir Keir said it was “very important we’re able to show our continued commitment to support Ukraine” and it was a chance to “go through the plan, to talk in more detail”.
Russian strikes injure four people in Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia
08:49
Barney Davis
A flurry of Russian airstrikes injured four people and damaged 29 buildings in the southeastern city of Zaporizhzhia early on Thursday, its regional governor said.
Ukraine’s national police said Russian forces had used glide bombs in three strikes on the city, according to preliminary information.
Zaporizhzhia, an important logistical and industrial hub, has been pounded by Russian guided bombs in recent weeks.
Russian forces partially occupy the Zaporizhzhia region, one of four in Ukraine that Moscow claims to have annexed. The region is also home to Europe’s largest nuclear power plant, also currently controlled by Russian forces.
Ukraine hits Russian ammo depot with nearly 400 Shahed drones
07:30
Arpan Rai
Ukraine’s military said its forces have struck a base in southern Russia’s Krasnodar region storing hundreds of Shahed drones, scoring several hits.
A statement by the General Staff said the attack was carried out jointly by naval forces and the SBU intelligence service.
“According to available information, nearly 400 strike drones were stored there,” the statement said. “Based on objective control results, a direct hit was made on the target. Secondary explosions were observed at the site.”
It said the attack was carried out near a village identified as Oktyabrsky.
Mapped: Russia claims to have captured two Ukrainian villages as it advances in Donetsk
07:29
Tom Watling
In pics: Macron inspects Ukraine troops at a French military camp
07:09
Arpan Rai
French president Emmanuel Macron inspected the training of Ukrainian troops at a military camp in eastern France yesterday, a show of support for Ukraine as its Western allies mull a victory plan championed by Volodymyr Zelensky.The Ukrainian brigade that Macron visited is being battle-readied and armed by France for frontline deployment against the Russian invasion. For security reasons, Macron’s office said the base’s specific location could not be reported.
French military personnel are training 2,300 Ukrainian soldiers at the camp, teaching them how to use and maintain French-supplied weapons, and subjecting them to combat-like conditions, with stress, noise and drones.
Watch: Putin hosts Commonwealth leaders meeting
07:01
Tom Watling
Ukraine can hold Kursk territory for months, US officials say
06:56
Arpan Rai
Ukrainian troops can hold their captured territory in Russia’s Kursk for several months, senior US officials said, citing their latest intelligence assessment.
Kyiv’s hold on the territory hinges on the reliable flow of supplies into the region and Russia’s focus on advances in eastern Ukraine, the officials told Bloomberg on the condition of anonymity.
Ukrainian troops are now receiving a steady supply of shells after facing months of dire ammunition shortages, the officials said.
In the past three days, Ukrainian and Russian forces continued assaults in Glushkovsky Raion west of the main Ukrainian salient in Kursk but did not make any confirmed advances, the Institute for the Study of War said.
Macron meets Ukrainian soldiers in France
06:31
Tom Watling
Mapped: Russia claims to have captured two Ukrainian villages
06:29
Arpan Rai
Russia has claimed further advances in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donetsk as fears spread Moscow could capture a key city in the area.
The Russian defence ministry has claimed Moscow’s forces have captured the settlements of Zolota Nyva and Zhelanna Pershe.
The communities have an estimated population of a few hundred residents each but they lie to the north and south of the town of Kurakhove, one of the focal points of military activity on the eastern front.
Russia ramps up assault before muddy autumn conditions – ISW
06:21
Arpan Rai
The Russian military is looking to make significant advances on the battlefield before muddy ground conditions in the autumn set in, a US-based think-tank has said.
“The Russian military command has likely ordered Russian forces to conduct a relatively high tempo of mechanised assaults in Ukraine to pursue significant tactical advances before muddy ground conditions in fall 2024 constrain mechanised manoeuvres,” the Institute for the Study of War said.
“Poor weather conditions in fall 2024 and early winter 2024-2025 will likely complicate and constrain both mechanised and infantry manoeuvres, but Russian forces may seek to maintain their consistent offensive pressure in eastern Ukraine despite these difficulties.
“A Russian milblogger claimed on 9 October that muddy seasonal conditions have already started in Kursk oblast and are constraining manoeuvre for wheeled vehicles,” it said.
Village in Russia’s Adygeya region evacuated after drone attack
06:04
Arpan Rai
Russian officials evacuated the village of Rodnikovy in southern Adygeya Republic region due to a fire after a drone attack, regional officials said.
Region head Murat Kumpilov said the attack targeted the suburbs of the city of Maykop and there were no casualties. The Khanskaya military air base is located near the city.
Zelenskyy to seek more war support from a dozen countries in southeast Europe
06:01
Tom Watling
Ukraine says North Korean arsenal destroyed in drone attack
05:43
Arpan Rai
Ukraine’s military said it struck a Russian weapons arsenal, including those Russia got from North Korea, in the Bryansk region.
The Institute for the Study of War cited Ukrainian military officials as saying that the facility stored glide bombs, missile and artillery systems, and North Korean- and Iranian-provided weapons.
How it felt to cross the Russian border on a Ukrainian tank
05:00
Tom Watling
More weapons for Ukraine in 2014 could have avoided full-scale war, ex-Nato chief says
04:56
Arpan Rai
Nato allies could have averted Russia’s full-scale invasion by arming Ukraine in 2014, former Nato secretary general Jens Stoltenberg said.
“I continue to believe that if we had armed Ukraine more after 2014, we might have prevented Russia from invading — at least we would have increased the threshold for a full-scale invasion,” he told Politico.
A staunch ally of Kyiv, Mr Stoltenberg expressed regret at the end of his term over the alliance’s insufficient response to Russian aggression in 2014, which included the illegal occupation of Crimea.
“I worked hard to try to convince Nato allies to do more, to provide more military support, more training,” Mr Stoltenberg said.
“Some allies did, but it was relatively limited, and that was very difficult for many years because the policy in Nato was that Nato should not provide lethal support to Ukraine,” he added.
“If we had delivered a fraction of the weapons we have delivered after 2022, we may have actually prevented the war,” Mr Stoltenberg said.
Britain bolsters sanctions regime on Russia with new trade unit
04:27
Arpan Rai
Britain launched a trade sanctions unit with new powers to penalise companies that fail to comply with restrictions on exporting services to Russia.
The UK government has announced sanctions on more than £20bn ($26bn) worth of trade with Russia since it invaded Ukraine in 2022, and said the Office of Trade Sanctions Implementation would support companies in complying with those sanctions.
“This new unit will help ensure businesses comply with trade sanctions and take decisive enforcement action where needed so that, together with business, we can continue to exert maximum pressure on Putin’s regime,” business and trade secretary Jonathan Reynolds said in a statement.
The government said that the OTSI would have powers to fine companies that breached sanctions, and also be empowered to publicise them – essentially “naming and shaming” the firms involved.
Ukrainian Oscar winner Mstyslav Chernov: ‘I am the first director to admit I wish I never won this award’
04:16
Tom Watling
Six killed in Russian ballistic missile attack on Odesa
04:04
Arpan Rai
At least six people were killed and eight were injured in a Russian ballistic missile attack on the port infrastructure of Ukraine’s southern Odesa region, governor Oleh Kiper said.
The injured were all Ukrainian nationals and four of them are in serious condition, Mr Kiper said.
Deputy prime minister Oleksiy Kuleba said a Panamanian-flagged container ship, the Shui Spirit, sustained damage in the attack.
“An insidious enemy is trying to disrupt the work of the Ukrainian grain corridor, killing civilians and destroying infrastructure,” the minister wrote in his post.
This attack on the port of Chornomorsk is the third in the region in the past four days.
I’ve witnessed the horrific cost of Putin’s war – as casualties hit 1m
03:44
Tom Watling
Local residents sit on benches at a park on a sunny autumn day in central Kyiv
03:15
Tom Watling
A Ukrainian author turned soldier has a stark warning for the West: ‘Be prepared for war with Russia’
02:30
Tom Watling
Navalny ally calls on West to invest in Russia’s next generation
01:45
Tom Watling
The Ukrainian fighting to keep Russia out of world chess
01:16
Tom Watling
Zelensky seeking opportunity to end war in 2025
Thursday 10 October 2024 00:43
Tom Watling
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has announced he is seeking an opportunity to end the war with Russia next year.
“In October, November and December we have a chance to move things toward peace and lasting stability,” he told the Ukraine-South East Europe summit in Dubrovnik.
“The situation on the battlefield creates an opportunity to make this choice for decisive action to end the war no later than in 2025.”
Pope Francis to meet Ukraine’s Zelensky on Friday
Thursday 10 October 2024 00:02
Tom Watling
Pope Francis will meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday morning, the Vatican said on Wednesday.
Francis last saw the Ukrainian president on the sidelines of the Group of Seven (G7) summit in southern Italy this summer. The two also met at the Vatican in December 2023.
Zelensky is also expected to hold talks with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni during his stay in Rome this week.
Russia says peace in Ukraine is impossible if Kyiv gets Nato membership
Wednesday 9 October 2024 23:30
Tom Watling
Russian foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said on Wednesday that achieving a just peace in Ukraine would be impossible if Kyiv lost its neutrality by joining a bloc such as the US-led Nato military alliance.
Russian president Vladimir Putin has said peace talks can only begin if Kyiv agrees to abandon large swaths of territory claimed by Moscow and drops its bid to join Nato.
Zakharova, speaking about reports that the West was discussing an option in which Ukraine could join Nato in return for accepting Russian control over a swathe of Ukrainian territory, said that achieving a just peace in Ukraine would be impossible without ensuring that Ukraine‘s status was neutral and non-aligned.
Zakharova said that what Moscow calls the “special military operation” in Ukraine was a reaction to Nato’s eastward expansion.
Kim Jong-un makes outlandish claim in birthday message to Putin
Wednesday 9 October 2024 22:50
Tom Watling
Putin’s fall is inevitable, says freed prisoner Vladimir Kara Murza
Wednesday 9 October 2024 22:06
Tom Watling
Watch: Putin hosts Commonwealth leaders meeting
Wednesday 9 October 2024 21:44
Tom Watling
Jailed leader of a prominent election watchdog is on trial in Russia
Wednesday 9 October 2024 21:01
Tom Watling
In pictures: Ukrainians relax in the Kyiv sun
Wednesday 9 October 2024 20:30
Tom Watling
UK facing threat of ‘plot after plot’ from Iran, warns MI5 chief
Wednesday 9 October 2024 20:01
Tom Watling
Mine-like object thrown into Kyiv metro
Wednesday 9 October 2024 19:28
Tom Watling
An unknown person threw a mine-like object into a subway car at Dnipro station in #Kyiv. Passengers hurriedly left the carriage. As it turned out, the mine-like object was a filter from a gas mask. About it reports RBC-Ukraine with reference to a source in law enforcement… pic.twitter.com/AAWhqPTZIr
— NEXTA (@nexta_tv) October 9, 2024
The Ukrainian fighting to keep Russia out of world chess
Wednesday 9 October 2024 19:01
Tom Watling
Zelenskyy to seek more war support from a dozen countries in southeast Europe
Wednesday 9 October 2024 18:24
Tom Watling
Russia's Novak says ball is in Ukraine's and EU's court on gas transit deal
Wednesday 9 October 2024 17:49
Tom Watling
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said on Wednesday that there are proposals from European Union partners to continue Russian gas purchases after the end of this year, but that the ball is in the court of Ukraine and the EU.
Despite the war, Russia continues to ship gas by pipeline across Ukraine to other European countries. But Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said this week that Kyiv will not extend the gas transit agreement with Russia after it expires at the end of 2024.
Novak, Russia’s point man for energy, said Russia was willing to continue supplying gas after the contract expires.
“We have repeatedly expressed our position that the ball is on the side of, let’s say, our buying partners and, accordingly, our colleagues from Ukraine, through which transit is carried out,” Novak told reporters.
“We have gas, we will supply it,” he added.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/emmanuel-macron-ap-ukraine-french-paris-b2626413.html
Wednesday 9 October 2024 17:21
Tom Watling
Zelensky attends Southeast Europe Croatia Ukraine summit
Wednesday 9 October 2024 16:50
Tom Watling
Zelensky to meet Scholz in Berlin on Friday, sources say
Wednesday 9 October 2024 16:18
Tom Watling
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky will travel to Berlin to meet German chancellor Olaf Scholz on Friday, two sources told Reuters on Wednesday.
“Zelensky will visit Berlin on Friday, He is meeting Scholz first and then President Frank-Walter Steinmeier. This is part of his European tour,” one of the sources said.
Zelensky is travelling to meet allies in Europe this week but was dealt a blow as a planned summit meeting in Ramstein, Germany was postponed after US president Joe Biden cancelled his visit.
Zelensky says battlefield situation ‘creates opportunity’ to bring an end to war in 2025
Wednesday 9 October 2024 15:39
Tom Watling
President Volodymyr Zelensky has said that the battlefield situation “creates opportunity” to take steps to end the war in Ukraine no later than 2025.
“In October, November and December we have chance to move things toward peace and lasting stability. The situation on the battlefield creates an opportunity to make this choice for decisive action to end the war no later than in 2025,” he told the Ukraine-South East Europe summit in Dubrovnik.
Zelensky signs co-operation agreement with Croatia
Wednesday 9 October 2024 15:29
Tom Watling
Pope Francis to meet Zelensky
Wednesday 9 October 2024 15:02
Tom Watling
Pope Francis will meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday, the Vatican said on Wednesday.
Jailed leader of a prominent election watchdog is on trial in Russia
Wednesday 9 October 2024 14:39
Tom Watling
Zelenskyy to seek more war support from a dozen countries in southeast Europe
Wednesday 9 October 2024 14:08
Tom Watling
Ramstein meeting on Ukraine postponed after Biden cancels trip
Wednesday 9 October 2024 13:41
Tom Watling
A summit meeting of Ukraine‘s key allies in Ramstein, Germany has been postponed after US president Joe Biden cancelled a scheduled overseas trip, the organisers have revealed.
Biden cancelled trips to Germany and Angola on Tuesday in a blow to plans for the highest level meeting ever of the Ramstein group of Ukraine‘s arms donors that aimed to underscore unwavering support for Kyiv against Russia’s invasion.
“The 12 October, 2024 event is postponed,” the US public affairs office at Ramstein Air Base said in an email to journalists. “Announcements about future Ukraine Defence Contact Group meetings will be forthcoming.”
The Ramstein group had been set to convene on the sidelines of Biden’s 10 - 13 October state visit to Germany, which would have been the first US state visit in nearly 40 years.
But the White House said Biden was postponing his trip to oversee preparations for Hurricane Milton and relief efforts after another hurricane last month killed more than 200 people.
“It was clear that Biden had to send the signal that he was taking care of domestic policy - so close to the (US) elections,” said Stefan Mair, director of German foreign policy think tank SWP said. “I don’t see this (postponement) as downgrading the importance of Ukraine.”
Russian court hands ex-Marine Trevor Reed long sentence in absentia
Wednesday 9 October 2024 13:13
Tom Watling
A Russian court has found Trevor Reed, a former US Marine who was freed by Russia in a 2022 prisoner swap, guilty in absentia of serving as a mercenary for Ukraine and handed him a prison sentence of 14-1/2 years.
Russia’s Investigative Committee, which handles serious crimes, said Reed had joined Ukraine‘s army in July 2023 and “directly participated on the side of the Ukrainian security forces in combat operations” against Russian troops in Ukraine.
It said it had placed Reed on the international wanted list.
Reed could not immediately be reached for comment. The US State Department said last July that he had been injured while fighting in Ukraine and had been transferred to Germany for medical care.
Reed, born in 1991, was convicted in Russia in 2019 of endangering the lives of two police officers while drunk on a visit to Moscow. The United States called his trial a “theater of the absurd”.
He was freed in a prisoner swap in April 2022 in exchange for Russian pilot Konstantin Yaroshenko, who had been convicted of conspiracy to smuggle cocaine into the US.
Separately, a Russian court on Monday sentenced a 72-year-old American, Stephen James Hubbard, to nearly seven years in prison for serving as a mercenary for Ukraine.
Lithuania fortifies defences over bridges to Russian exclave
Wednesday 9 October 2024 12:40
Tom Watling
Lithuania has fortified a bridge crossing in the direction of the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad, the ministry of defence has announced.
Several bridges are also being destroyed, they said in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
“Fortifications will be supported by firepower, in case it’s needed, to stop and destroy the enemy,” they said.
Lithuania has fortified another bridge over the Nemunas River on the route from the Kaliningrad. Fortifications are progressing as planned, with some bridges set to be demolished. Fortifications will be supported by firepower, in case it’s needed, to stop and destroy the enemy. pic.twitter.com/aixkjOJpUs
— Lithuanian MOD (@Lithuanian_MoD) October 9, 2024
Young people sit on destroyed Russian tanks in Kyiv - picture
Wednesday 9 October 2024 16:22
Tom Watling
‘Getting shot saved my life’: Escaping hell of Vladimir Putin’s war
Wednesday 9 October 2024 12:12
Tom Watling
Poland says Ukraine Ramstein meeting postponed after Biden drops out
Wednesday 9 October 2024 11:44
Tom Watling
Polish President Andrzej Duda will not travel to a summit on Ukraine in Ramstein, Germany because it will not take place as planned after US President Joe Biden decided not to attend, Duda’s aide has said.
“The (Polish) president will not go to Ramstein because this meeting will not take place in Ramstein,” Duda’s foreign policy advisor Mieszko Pawlak told Reuters. “(The meeting) is being postponed... but for now we do not have any information on when that will be.”
Zelensky arrives in Croatia
Wednesday 9 October 2024 11:25
Tom Watling
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has arrived in Croatia to discuss “further defence cooperation”.
He will also attend the third Ukraine–South East Europe Summit.
I have arrived in Croatia to meet with Prime Minister @AndrejPlenkovic and representatives of other countries in the region, and to participate in the third Ukraine–South East Europe Summit.
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) October 9, 2024
With Prime Minister Plenković, we will discuss further defense cooperation,… pic.twitter.com/OXMWpl38md
Satellite image shows fire in occupied Crimea
Wednesday 9 October 2024 10:58
Tom Watling
Satellite imagery shows that an oil depot reportedly hit by Ukrainian forces was still burning a day after the strike.
The oil depot in occupied Feodosia, Crimea, was hit on 7 October. The satellite image below is from 8 October.
This morning, there were additional reports that it was still on fire.
Sweden updates its Cold War-era warning booklet to include nuclear
Wednesday 9 October 2024 10:36
Tom Watling
