Volodymyr Zelensky has said it is “difficult to repeatedly hear” Western allies say they are working on a decision to lift limits on the use of long-range missiles as Vladimir Putin “burns down our cities and villages”.
Mr Zelensky has pleaded with allies for months to allow his military to fire long-range US ATACMS and British Storm Shadow missiles at Russian targets used to launch devastating daily attacks on Ukraine.
On Friday, UK prime minister Keir Starmer met with US president Joe Biden at the White House were they discussed Ukraine and the Middle East. There was no announcement on the use of long-range weapons.
“Putin interprets delays in helping us and in making strong decisions for Ukraine as permission to do whatever he wants,” Mr Zelensky wrote on X.
Meanwhile, Russian president Vladimir Putin warned Nato will be directly at war with Moscow if the US and UK allow Kyiv to use the weapons.
The Russian president claimed the programming of Western missiles would have to be done by Nato military personnel - bringing the organisation into direct confrontation with the Kremlin.
Key Points
- Zelensky calls for quick decision on long-range missiles
- Starmer in Washington for talks with Biden on Ukraine missile use
- UK says Russian accusations against British diplomats are ‘completely baseless’
- Russia expels six British diplomats it accuses of spying and sabotage
Putin's options for Ukraine missiles response include nuclear test, experts say
07:13
Shweta Sharma
Vladimir Putin’s options to retaliate if the West lets Ukraine use its long-range missiles to strike Russia could include striking British military assets near Russia or, in extremis, conducting a nuclear test to show intent, experts have said.
As East-West tensions over Ukraine enter a new and dangerous phase, British prime minister Keir Starmer and US president Joe Biden met in Washington to discuss whether to allow Kyiv to use long-range US ATACMS or British Storm Shadow missiles against targets in Russia.
Ulrich Kuehn, an arms expert at the Institute for Peace Research and Security Policy in Hamburg, told Reuters he did not rule out Vladimir Putin choosing to send some kind of nuclear message - for example testing a nuclear weapon in an effort to cow the West.
“This would be a dramatic escalation of the conflict,” he said in an interview. “Because the point is, what kind of arrows has Mr Putin then left to shoot if the West then still continues, apart from actual nuclear use?”
Russia has not conducted a nuclear weapons test since 1990, the year before the fall of the Soviet Union, and a nuclear explosion would signal the start of a more dangerous era, Mr Kuehn said, cautioning that Putin may feel he is seen as weak in his responses to increasing NATO support for Ukraine.
“Nuclear testing would be new. I would not exclude that, and it would be in line with Russia shattering a number of international security arrangements that it has signed up to over the decades during the last couple of years,” he said.
Gerhard Mangott, a security specialist at the University of Innsbruck in Austria, said in an interview he also thought it was possible, though in his view not likely, that Russia’s response could include some form of nuclear signal.
“The Russians could conduct a nuclear test. They have made all the preparations needed. They could explode a tactical nuclear weapon somewhere in the east of the country just to demonstrate that (they) mean it when they say we will eventually resort to nuclear weapons.”
Putin has laid out many red lines about Ukraine – are long-range missiles targeting Russia the last one?
07:00
Alexander Butler
The West cannot back down from supportng Ukraine with long-range missiles to use on targets deep inside Russia despite Vladimir Putin’s fresh threats of possible war with Nato, Kremlin critics, military leaders and Ukrainian officials have toldThe Independent.
The Russian president would regret a direct confrontation with the alliance, Kremlin critics said, but senior military figures have warned that due to the unpredictable nature of the Russian president and the “immense risks” involved, his threats “can’t be dismissed out of hand”.
With prime minister Keir Starmer in Washington to meet Presiddent Biden, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has said it is “difficult to repeatedly hear” Western allies say they are “working on” a decision permit the use of long-range missiles into Russia while “Putin continues to burn down our cities and villages”.
Read the full article here:
Zelensky dismisses Trump’s contentious comments as political rhetoric
06:49
Shweta Sharma
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky dismissed Donald Trump’s comments about how he could end the war in 24 hours as “election messages” for his own campaign.
In an interview to CNN which is yet to be released, Mr Zelensky said his comments may not reflect what his actual policies will be if he is elected president.
“I can’t understand it for today because I don’t know the details; what he means and what does it mean,” Mr Zelensky said.
“My position is that the election period and election messages are election messages. Sometimes they are not very real,” he added said during a clip of the interview, which is set to be fully published on 15 September.
Mr Trump has said he can end the Ukraine conflict in 24 hours if he is made president, and blamed the Biden administration for fuelling the war with the supply of weapons to support Kyiv’s defences.
Two dead after Putin’s forces shell 15 border areas in Sumy
06:45
Shweta Sharma
Two people have died after Russian forces shelled 15 border areas of Ukraine’s Sumy region a total of 84 times, the regional authority said.
Dozens of people have been injured in the region which has long been under an onslaught of shelling. It lies opposite Russia’s southern Kursk region, where Ukrainian forces have launched an incursion since early in August.
The attack damaged residential houses and a clinic, and cut power supplies, the regional military administration said on Telegram messenger.
Explosions in Kyiv as drone fragments hit municipal building
06:10
Shweta Sharma
Explosions rocked parts of the Ukrainian capital this morning as drone fragments fell on a municipal building in Kyiv’s Obolon district north of the city centre.
The drone fragments did not cause a fire after they dropped on the multi-storey building early on Saturday, mayor Vitali Klitschko said.
Mr Klitschko, writing on the Telegram messaging app, said emergency services were on their way to the site. The mayor earlier said air defence units had been in action in the capital.
Several explosions were subsequently heard in the city, according to Reuters.
The head of Kyiv’s military administration, Serhiy Popko, said on Telegram that drones still posed a threat and urged people to remain in shelters.
The air raid alert was later lifted for the city, but remained in effect for several regions of central Ukraine.
China and Russia take aim at West during annual security forum in Beijing
06:00
Alexander Butler
Until now the Storm Shadow missiles have been limited to Russian targets operating inside Ukraine, as well as in occupied Crimea. The missiles were likely used in the largest Ukrainian attack on the headquarters of Russia’s Black Sea fleet last year at Sevastopol.
British Storm Shadow missiles have a range of more than 150 miles and can be fired by Ukrainian aircraft. Kyiv has long lobbied for permission to hit deep inside Russian soil via the western long-range missiles.
Manufacturer MBDA has said that the missile, which is fired from an aircraft, carries a range of around 155 miles and is designed to evade detection despite flying low after being launched.
Powered by a turbo-jet engine, the 1,300kg Storm Shadow travels at speeds of more than 600mph, is just over five metres long and has a wingspan of three metres.
Zelensky calls US and UK failure to reach long-range missiles decision 'difficult to hear'
05:15
Shweta Sharma
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky hit back at his two key Western allies over their failure to reach a decision on the use of long-range missiles inside Russia, saying “Ukraine requires strong decisions from the world”.
His comments came as Joe Biden and Keir Starmer’s summit in Washington ended with no decision for Ukraine after Vladimir Putin warned Western nations not to let Ukraine fire the missiles at internationally-recognised Russian territory.
Mr Zelensky lashed out at partners for the habit of moving from one meeting to another without any clear progress, “as if it is not clear” what steps are needed.
“It’s difficult to repeatedly hear, ‘We are working on this,’ while Putin continues to burn down our cities and villages,” Mr Zelensky said.
“Russian logistics and military sites are safe from our strikes because we cannot reach them. We have effective drones, but they cannot achieve what missiles are capable of. Meanwhile, Putin can easily acquire artillery from North Korea at low cost. When for Ukraine, every defence package is an achievement,” he said, expressing his frustration.
He said that “there should be no unanswered questions about why Ukraine needs sufficient long-range capabilities”.
How would long-range missiles help Ukraine?
05:00
Alexander Butler
Ukraine sees the ability to use long-range missiles behind enemy lines as a game-changer, allowing it to target air bases, supply depots, and communication centers hundreds of miles over the border.
It argues that this would help reduce Russia’s air superiority and weaken supply lines needed to launch daily airstrikes against Ukraine - with drones, missiles, and powerful glide bombs - and to sustain its military ground offensive into Ukraine.
With winter likely to slow that advance, long-range air strike capabilities will become a higher priority. Kyiv wants to go back on the offensive to offset military manpower shortages 2 years into the war and to protect its badly-damaged power infrastructure.
Starmer-Biden talks end with no decision on missiles hitting Russia
04:22
Shweta Sharma
UK prime minister Sir Keir Starmer and Joe Biden did not announce any decision on allowing Ukraine to use long-range weapons inside Russia following their talks in Washington.
Sir Kier said the two leaders had “a long and productive discussion on a number of fronts, including Ukraine, as you would expect, the Middle East and the Indo-Pacific” after he was asked about the outcome.
“This wasn’t a meeting about a particular capability. That wasn’t why we got our heads down today.
“It was to allow ourselves the space, which we took, the time, which we took, to have a strategic discussion so that tactical decisions could be seen within the wider strategy.”
He said the UK and the US have come to a “strong position” in their quest for a resolution to the conflict in Ukraine and described his discussions with Mr Biden as “long and productive”.
At the beginning of their meeting in the Blue Room at the White House in Washington DC on Friday, Mr Biden said “I don’t think much about Vladimir Putin” when asked about the Russian president’s threat of war with Nato.
Zelensky calls for quick decision on long-range missiles
04:00
Alexander Butler
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has said it is “difficult to repeatedly hear” Western allies say they are “working on” a decision to free up long-range missiles to be used deep inside Ukraine while “Putin continues to burn down our cities and villages”
Mr Zelensky has been calling for the US and UK to agree to allow them to strike infrastructure such as airfields that contribute to the barrages of missiles and drones that strike across Ukraine on a near-daily basis.
The president wrote on X, formerly Twitter, that: “Putin interprets delays in helping us and in making strong decisions for Ukraine as permission to do whatever he wants.”
Recap: US not planning change in policy on long-range strikes into Russia, White House says
03:58
Shweta Sharma
The US is not planning to make any changes to its policy regarding Ukraine’s use of Western weapons to conduct long-range strikes into Russia, National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby told reporters.
“There is no change to our view on the provision of long-range strike capabilities for Ukraine to use inside of Russia,” Mr Kirby said.
“I would not expect any major announcement in that regard,” he said.His comments came over speculations of a decision on the matter as US president Joe Biden and UK prime minister Keir Starmer met in Washington.
Russia warned at the United Nations on Friday that authorizing Ukraine to fire missiles far into Russia would turn Nato into “a direct party to hostilities against a nuclear power,” and Russian president Vladimir Putin has said that such a move would alter the scope of the conflict.
Mr Kirby said the United States took such threats seriously, even as he acknowledged there was nothing new in Mr Putin’s rhetoric.
Russia produces new kamikaze drone with Chinese engine, report says
03:00
Alexander Butler
Russian forces have focused their assaults in eastern Ukraine near the embattled town of Kurakhove as Ukrainian troops tried to hold the line at a critical juncture of the war, Kyiv said.
The Russians also pressed towards Ukraine‘s rail hub of Pokrovsk, about 20 miles north of Kurakhove, in an attempt to open new lines of attack, disrupt Ukrainian logistics, and take control of the rest of the eastern Donetsk region two-and-a-half years on from Russia’s invasion of its neighbour.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has praised his troops for holding their positions in Pokrovsk and Kurakhove, the two most difficult sectors in the east.
Ukraine‘s forces are stretched thin but the military said they had repelled 64 assaults near Kurakhove in the past day, the most intense fighting there this month.
The Ukrainian military also reported repelling 36 attacks near Pokrovsk on the same day.
Watch: Biden scolds Sky News journalist over shouted question about Putin
02:30
Alexander Butler
US president Joe Biden scolded a British journalist in a fiery exchange during a bilateral meeting with Sir Keir Starmer in Washington.
Mr Biden told Sky News US correspondent James Matthews to be quiet as he shouted a question about Vladimir Putin’s threat of war over Kyiv’s use of long-range missiles.
Mr Biden and Sir Keir met at the White House on Friday amid reports they could allow Ukraine to launch Western missiles deep inside Russian territory.
When asked what he thought about Mr Putin’s warning that doing so would bring Russia into conflict with Nato, Mr Biden snapped back: “You be quiet while I speak, OK?”
The veteran reporter asked a second time what he made of Mr Putin’s remarks, to which Mr Biden again replied: “You have got to be quiet now I have got to make a speech, OK.”
Biden and Starmer unite against Putin nuclear threat
02:00
Alexander Butler
Pressure on Joe Biden and Keir Starmer over the Ukraine war has reached boiling point as the two men met in Washington DC with nuclear war threats from Vladimir Putin and desperate demands from Volodymyr Zelensky.
The prime minister and US president have come together in the white forintensive talks on Ukraine and the Middle East in what is expected to be a decision to allow Ukraine to use long range storm shadow missiles at targets in Russia.
Putin ‘will not prevail’ in war with Ukraine, Biden says
01:30
Alexander Butler
Russian president Vladimir Putin will not prevail in the war with Ukraine, US President Joe Biden said on Friday during a meeting at the White House with UK prime minister Keir Starmer.
Boris Johnson pressures Starmer and Biden to let Ukraine use long-range missiles after Zelensky meeting
01:00
Alexander Butler
Boris Johnson has dramatically intervened in the Ukraine war piling pressure on Keir Starmer and Joe Biden to let Kyiv use long-range missiles against Russia.
In a damartic escalation of tensions, Russian president Vladimir Putin has threatened Nato with war if it allows the use of the weapons against Russia.
The former prime minister said restrictions should be lifted “as fast as possible” hours after he met Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv.
Comment: Could Britain really go to war with Russia?
Saturday 14 September 2024 00:01
Alexander Butler
Well, could we? Given the magnitude of the question, it seems to be surprisingly little talked about. It is, at least in principle, real enough.
If Keir Starmer and Joe Biden agree to allow Ukraine to use the long-range missiles we’ve sent to help them defend their country – not just near (or within) Ukraine’s borders but on legitimate military targets such as arms dumps and air force bases deep in Russian territory – it does risk “escalation”.
There may be civilian casualties – such is the nature of war. Vladimir Putin has said as much; warning that Nato will be directly at war with Russia if it lets Kyiv use such weapons.
Starmer vows to keep supporting Ukraine’s ‘fight for freedom'
Friday 13 September 2024 23:28
Alexander Butler
Sir Keir Starmer has vowed to support Ukraine’s “fight for freedom” in a bilateral meeting with US president Joe Biden in Washington.
Speaking at the White House, the UK prime minister said the next few weeks and months would be “crucial” for Kyiv’s fight against Russia which invaded Ukraine in February 2022.
It comes amid rumours Sir Keir and Mr Biden are on the cusp the cusp of allowing Kyiv to open up a new front in the war with Russia by using Western Storm Shadow long-range missiles.
When asked about what he thought about Mr Putin’s warning Nato would be at war with Russia if restrictions were lifted on the missiles, Mr Biden bluntly replied that he “didn’t think about Putin much”.
Starmer stares down Putin as he and Biden prepare to hand Ukraine missiles
Friday 13 September 2024 23:00
Alexander Butler
Sir Keir Starmer defiantly stared down a threat of retaliation by Vladimir Putin as he flew out to Washington DC for talks with Joe Biden on the Ukraine war.
The prime minister and the US president are believed to be on the cusp of allowing Kyiv to open up a new front in the war with Russia by using Western Storm Shadow long-range missiles.
But in a message apparently timed for when Sir Keir and his entourage were over the Atlantic on their way to the US, President Putin said such a move would mean that Russia would be “at war with Nato”.
Russia expels six British diplomats it accuses of spying and sabotage
Friday 13 September 2024 22:00
Alexander Butler
Russia has revoked the accreditation of six British diplomats in Moscow, accusing them of spying and sabotage.
As president Vladimir Putin warned that Nato will be at war with Moscowif Western nations allow Ukraine to use their long-range missiles to strike deep inside Russian territory, Russia’s FSB security service accused British diplomats of working to ensure Moscow’s defeat in the 30-month conflict.
The FSB claimed to have documents showing a British foreign office department in London was coordinating what it called “the escalation of the political and military situation” and was tasked with ensuring Russia’s strategic defeat against Ukraine.
What is the Storm Shadow cruise missile?
Friday 13 September 2024 21:00
Alexander Butler
Putin warns that Nato will be ‘at war’ with Russia if Ukraine missile restrictions lifted
Friday 13 September 2024 20:00
Alexander Butler
Nato countries will be at war with Russia if the United States allows Ukraine to use long-range missiles deep inside Russian territory, Vladimir Putin has warned.
The Russian president claimed the programming of Western missileswould have to be done by Nato military personnel - bringing the organisation into direct confrontation with the Kremlin.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has pleaded with allies for months to allow his military to fire long-range US ATACMS and British Storm Shadow missiles inside Russian territory.
Putin has laid out many red lines about Ukraine – are long-range missiles targeting Russia the last one?
Friday 13 September 2024 18:28
Alexander Butler
The West cannot back down from supportng Ukraine with long-range missiles to use on targets deep inside Russia despite Vladimir Putin’s fresh threats of possible war with Nato, Kremlin critics, military leaders and Ukrainian officials have toldThe Independent.
The Russian president would regret a direct confrontation with the alliance, Kremlin critics said, but senior military figures have warned that due to the unpredictable nature of the Russian president and the “immense risks” involved, his threats “can’t be dismissed out of hand”.
With prime minister Keir Starmer in Washington to meet Presiddent Biden, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has said it is “difficult to repeatedly hear” Western allies say they are “working on” a decision permit the use of long-range missiles into Russia while “Putin continues to burn down our cities and villages”.
Read the full article here:
Russia warns Nato of consequences if Ukraine allowed to do long-range strikes at UN Security Council
Friday 13 September 2024 17:20
Alexander Butler
Russia’s UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia has told the United Nations Security Council that if Western countries allow Ukraine to conduct long-range strikes in Russia then Nato countries would be “conducting direct war with Russia.”
“The facts are that Nato will be a direct party to hostilities against a nuclear power, I think you shouldn’t forget about this and think about the consequences,” Mr Nebenzia told the 15-member council.
Pictured: Ukrainian Prisoners of War embraced by family after swap with Russia
Friday 13 September 2024 17:08
Jabed Ahmed
Nato condemns Russia’s missile strike on civilian grain vessel
Friday 13 September 2024 16:56
Alexander Butler
Nato has said it strongly condemned a Russian missile strike on a civilian grain ship in the Black Sea on Thursday.
“There is no justification for such attacks. Yesterday’s strike shows once again the reckless nature of Russia’s war,” Nato spokeswoman Farah Dakhlallah said.
Zelensky says Russian counterattacks in Kursk region so far unsuccessful
Friday 13 September 2024 16:35
Jabed Ahmed
Ukraine‘s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has said that Russian counter-attacks in the Kursk region, partially held by Ukrainian troops after they staged a major incursion last month, had so far seen “no serious success”.
He also told a charity conference in Kyiv that the situation around the strategic hub of Pokrovsk in eastern Ukraine remained difficult. Russian forces have been making steady gains in the region.
Zelensky says his ‘victory plan’ is path to peace
Friday 13 September 2024 16:23
Jabed Ahmed
President Volodymyr Zelensky has said that the “victory plan” he wants to present to US leader Joe Biden later this month is a way to reach a reliable peace in the more than two-and-half-year-old Russian full-scale war in Ukraine.
“(It) can pave the way for a reliable peace and for the full implementation of the peace formula,” he said at a conference organised by the Viktor Pinchuk Foundation charity.
Russia steps up attacks near Ukraine's Kurakhove in east
Friday 13 September 2024 16:08
Jabed Ahmed
Russian forces have focused their assaults in eastern Ukraine near the embattled town of Kurakhove as Ukrainian troops tried to hold the line at a critical juncture of the war, Kyiv said.
The Russians also pressed towards Ukraine‘s rail hub of Pokrovsk, about 20 miles north of Kurakhove, in an attempt to open new lines of attack, disrupt Ukrainian logistics, and take control of the rest of the eastern Donetsk region two-and-a-half years on from Russia’s invasion of its neighbour.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has praised his troops for holding their positions in Pokrovsk and Kurakhove, the two most difficult sectors in the east.
Ukraine‘s forces are stretched thin but the military said they had repelled 64 assaults near Kurakhove in the past day, the most intense fighting there this month.
The Ukrainian military also reported repelling 36 attacks near Pokrovsk on the same day.
Ukraine secures return of 49 people from Russian captivity, Zelensky says
Friday 13 September 2024 15:55
Jabed Ahmed
Ukraine has secured the return of 49 Ukrainians from Russian captivity, President Volodymyr Zelensky has said.
“We must bring home all our soldiers and civilians,” he said on the Telegram messaging app, adding that servicemen from the armed forces, the national guard, the police and the border guard service were included in the latest swap.
Breaking: Boris Johnson meets Zelensky in Ukraine as Putin threatens war with the West
Friday 13 September 2024 15:51
Jabed Ahmed
Read the full story below:
Russia produces new kamikaze drone with Chinese engine, report says
Friday 13 September 2024 15:36
Jabed Ahmed
Russia started producing a new long-range attack drone called the Garpiya-A1 last year using Chinese engines and parts, which it has deployed in the war in Ukraine, according to sources and documents seen by news agency Reuters.
The intelligence - which included a production contract for the new drone, company correspondence on the manufacturing process and financial documents - indicated that IEMZ Kupol, a subsidiary of Russian state-owned weapons maker Almaz-Antey, produced more than 2,500 Garpiyas from July 2023 to July 2024.
The existence of the new Russian drone incorporating Chinese technology has not been previously reported.
The two intelligence sources said that the Garpiya, which means Harpy in Russian, has been deployed against military and civilian targets in Ukraine, causing damage to critical infrastructure as well as both civilian and military casualties.
IEMZ Kupol and Almaz-Antey did not respond to requests for comment.
Russia’s defence ministry did not respond to a request for comment for this story. The Chinese foreign ministry said in a statement to Reuters that Beijing strictly controls the export of items with potential military applications, including drones.
How would long-range missiles help Ukraine?
Friday 13 September 2024 16:07
Jabed Ahmed
Ukraine sees the ability to use long-range missiles behind enemy lines as a game-changer, allowing it to target air bases, supply depots, and communication centers hundreds of miles over the border.
It argues that this would help reduce Russia’s air superiority and weaken supply lines needed to launch daily airstrikes against Ukraine - with drones, missiles, and powerful glide bombs - and to sustain its military ground offensive into Ukraine.
With winter likely to slow that advance, long-range air strike capabilities will become a higher priority. Kyiv wants to go back on the offensive to offset military manpower shortages 2 years into the war and to protect its badly-damaged power infrastructure.
Kremlin says Putin has sent a clear message to the West on long-range missiles for Ukraine
Friday 13 September 2024 15:22
Jabed Ahmed
President Vladimir Putin has delivered a clear message to the West about the consequences it will face if it allows Ukraine to hit Russian territory with Western long-range missiles, the Kremlin has said.
Putin said on Thursday that the West would be directly fighting with Russia if it allowed Ukraine to strike Russian territory with Western-made long-range missiles, a move he said would alter the nature and scope of the conflict.
“The statement made by President Putin yesterday is very important. It is extremely clear, unambiguous and does not allow for double readings. We have no doubt that this statement reached those it was intended for,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
Kremlin declines comment on Ukrainian claim that Russia struck grain ship in Black Sea
Friday 13 September 2024 14:53
Jabed Ahmed
The Kremlin has declined to comment after Ukraine said Russia used strategic bombers to strike a civilian grain vessel in Black Sea waters near NATO member Romania on Thursday.
Ukraine and Romania both condemned the attack on the ship, which was carrying Ukrainian grain to Egypt and was hit just after it left Ukrainian territorial waters.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov referred reporters’ questions to the Russian military.
Kremlin says Russian expulsion of UK diplomats is not about severing diplomatic ties with London
Friday 13 September 2024 14:35
Chris Stevenson
Russia’s decision to expel six British diplomats over espionage concerns is not related to any effort to sever diplomatic ties with London, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Friday.
Earlier today, Russia’s FSB security service said it had revoked the accreditation of six British diplomats in Moscow after accusing them of spying and sabotage work, signalling the Kremlin’s anger at what it sees as London’s vital role in helping Ukraine.
Zelensky calls for quick decision on long-range missiles
Friday 13 September 2024 14:25
Chris Stevenson
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has said it is “difficult to repeatedly hear” Western allies say they are “working on” a decision to free up long-range missiles to be used deep inside Ukraine while “Putin continues to burn down our cities and villages”
Mr Zelensky has been calling for the US and UK to agree to allow them to strike infrastructure such as airfields that contribute to the barrages of missiles and drones that strike across Ukraine on a near-daily basis.
The president wrote on X, formerly Twitter, that: “Putin interprets delays in helping us and in making strong decisions for Ukraine as permission to do whatever he wants.”
It’s difficult to repeatedly hear, “We are working on this,” while Putin continues to burn down our cities and villages. He doesn’t need anyone’s approval. Putin interprets delays in helping us and in making strong decisions for Ukraine as permission to do whatever he wants.
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) September 13, 2024
What is the Storm Shadow cruise missile? The British weapon banned from use in Russia by Ukrainian troops
Friday 13 September 2024 13:52
Jabed Ahmed
Until now the Storm Shadow missiles have been limited to Russian targets operating inside Ukraine, as well as in occupied Crimea. The missiles were likely used in the largest Ukrainian attack on the headquarters of Russia’s Black Sea fleet last year at Sevastopol.
British Storm Shadow missiles have a range of more than 150 miles and can be fired by Ukrainian aircraft. Kyiv has long lobbied for permission to hit deep inside Russian soil via the western long-range missiles.
Manufacturer MBDA has said that the missile, which is fired from an aircraft, carries a range of around 155 miles and is designed to evade detection despite flying low after being launched.
Powered by a turbo-jet engine, the 1,300kg Storm Shadow travels at speeds of more than 600mph, is just over five metres long and has a wingspan of three metres.
After launch, the weapon, equipped with its own navigation system, descends to a low altitude to avoid detection before locking on to its target using an infra-red seeker.
On final approach the missile climbs to a higher altitude to maximise the chances of hitting the target.
Starmer stares down Putin as he and Biden prepare to hand Ukraine missiles
Friday 13 September 2024 13:23
Jabed Ahmed
The Independent’s Political Editor David Maddox reports from Washington DC:
Russian attack kills two and injures six in Ukraine’s Sumy region
Friday 13 September 2024 12:53
Jabed Ahmed
A Russian guided bomb attack has killed two people and injured six others, including a child, in Ukraine‘s northern Sumy region, local authorities said.
The attack damaged residential houses and a clinic, and cut power supplies, the regional military administration said on Telegram.
Romania ‘strongly condemns’ Russia's 'deliberate attack on cargo ship' with Ukrainian grain
Friday 13 September 2024 12:22
Jabed Ahmed
Romania’s foreign ministry has condemned a Russian attack against a cargo ship loaded with Ukrainian grain in the Black Sea.
Russia reportedly struck the Turkish-operated merchant vessel Aya with a cruise missile at around 11pm local time on Wednesday within Romania’s exclusive economic zone.
The ship, which was carrying 26,550 metric tons of grain to Egypt from the Ukrainian port of Chornomorsk, suffered damage. None of the crew were injured.
“This event represents an unprecedented escalation of Russia’s illegal and unjustified war against Ukraine,” the Romanian foreign ministry’s statement said.
“Deliberately attacking a cargo ship is a serious violation of international humanitarian legal norms governing the conduct of war at sea.”
The statement added: “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemns the Russian Federation’s violation of the United Nations Charter through the systematic and irresponsible bombing of Ukrainian infrastructure and grain-carrying ships.”
Russia has not commented on the incident.
China and Russia take aim at West during annual security forum in Beijing
Friday 13 September 2024 11:54
Jabed Ahmed
Chinese and Russian defence officials have chided at the West at a military diplomacy forum in Beijing, with China pitching to the Global South and Russia saying the United States was shifting military conflicts to the Asia-Pacific.
In a wide-ranging speech to the annual Xiangshan Forum, China’s defence minister, Dong Jun, said China would enhance military ties with its neighbours and with developing countries in particular.
Russian deputy defence minister Alexander Fomin was more explicit, saying in his speech that the United States was trying to contain China and Russia while preparing for war in Asia by creating new security blocs.
“Russia and China support the creation of a just, multipolar world order based on equality and mutual respect,” he said.
“In order to create conditions to force Russia into negotiations based on Kyiv’s formulas, NATO countries plan to send troops to Ukraine,” he added.
“This is a dangerous game which can lead to a direct conflict of nuclear powers.”
NATO has said repeatedly it has no plans to send troops to Ukraine.
France summons Iran’s chief diplomat in Paris over tensions on ballistic missiles
Friday 13 September 2024 11:23
Jabed Ahmed
France’s foreign ministry has summoned Iran’s chief diplomatic in the country over the alleged transfer of ballistic missiles to Russia, a diplomatic source said on Friday.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said this week that Russia had received ballistic missiles from Iran and would likely use them in its war in Ukraine within weeks.
Iran has denied these claims.
Watch: Putin says West will be fighting directly with Russia if it lets Kyiv use long-range missiles
Friday 13 September 2024 10:49
Jabed Ahmed
Breaking: Russia’s accusations against British diplomats are ‘completely baseless’, Foreign Office says
Friday 13 September 2024 10:44
Jabed Ahmed
The UK’s Foreign Office has released a statement calling the accusations made by Russia’s FSB security service against its staff as “completely baseless”.
A Foreign Office spokesperson said: “The accusations made today by the FSB against our staff are completely baseless.
“The Russian authorities revoked the diplomatic accreditation of six UK diplomats in Russia last month, following action taken by the UK government in response to Russian state-directed activity across Europe and in the UK.
“We are unapologetic about protecting our national interests.”
The six diplomats left Russia weeks ago and are already being replaced.
Ukraine says Russian drone barrage injures one and damages infrastructure
Friday 13 September 2024 10:17
Jabed Ahmed
Ukraine‘s air force has said it had shot down 24 of 26 drones launched from Russia overnight over four regions.
Falling debris in the southern Odesa region injured one person and damaged 20 homes and four garages, according to regional governor Oleh Kiper.
Drone debris in the southern region of Mykolaiv caused a fire at a food enterprise that was put out, regional governor Vitaliy Kim said.
The governor of the westerly Ivano-Frankivsk region, Svitlana Onyshchuk, said authorities were dealing with the attack’s aftermath, but did not disclose details, except to say no one had been injured.
Ukraine‘s energy ministry said Russia had attacked energy infrastructure in six regions over the past day, and damaged industrial infrastructure in the Ivano-Frankivsk region.
The governor of the central Khmelnytskyi region reported no damage following the attack.
Nearly 150 frontline combat engagements on the front line in the past day, Ukraine says
Friday 13 September 2024 09:52
Jabed Ahmed
There have been 143 combat engagements recorded on the front lines in Ukraine over the past day, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine has said.
The Russian military launched an attack on the positions of Ukrainian units and settlements with an Iskander-M missile, as well as 80 air strikes, including the deployment of 117 guided aerial bombs yesterday, according to the General Staff.
Russia's Shoigu meets North Korea's Kim in Pyongyang
Friday 13 September 2024 09:24
Jabed Ahmed
Top Russian security official Sergei Shoigu held talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during a visit to Pyongyang, according to Russian news agencies.
The visit took place at a critical juncture in the war in Ukraine, for which the United States says North Korea has supplied ammunition and ballistic missiles to Russia.
Moscow and Pyongyang have denied arms transfers but have vowed to boost military ties. Russia has deepened its relations with North Korea since the start of the Ukraine war, and Kim received Putin on a state visit in June.
Shoigu was Russian defence minister until May, and is now secretary of the Security Council which brings together Putin, his military and intelligence chiefs and other senior figures.
