Inside Politics: Kherson falls as four major explosions rock Kyiv

Strategic port city in south under Russian control as Putin troops ramp up assault on capital, writes Matt Mathers

Thursday 03 March 2022 08:40 GMT

(AFP via Getty Images)

Kherson, in the south of Ukraine, is now under Russian control, the city’s mayor has confirmed as fierce fighting continues in Kyiv – rocked by four major explosions this morning – and several other cities across the country. At home, Boris Johnson is coming under increasing pressure to crack down harder on oligarchs linked to the Russian president, Vladimir Putin. More British military equipment arrived in Ukraine yesterday and further supplies of humanitarian aid are in the sky. Liz Truss, the foreign secretary and Ben Wallace, the defence secretary, visit Baltic states later to offer their support to Nato allies neighbouring Russia. They will also inspect British military personnel stationed along the alliance’s eastern flank.

Inside the bubble

Commons action gets underway with an hour of international trade questions at 9.30am, followed by any urgent questions. After that Commons leader Mark Spencer the weekly parliamentary business statement. The main scheduled business is a backbench-led debate on Welsh affairs, lead by Labour’s Wayne David. Later, Labour MP Mick Whitley will lead an adjournment debate on support for UK shipbuilding.

Coming up:

– Shadow business secretary Jonathan Reynolds on Sky News Breakfast at 8.05am

– Security minister Damian Hinds on BBC Radio 4 Today at 8.20am

Daily Briefing

GRIM PATTERN: The war is now in its second week and entering a depressingly familiar rhythm; four major explosions have rocked the Kyiv sky in the past few hours as Russian forces ramp up their assault on the capital. It is unclear where the blasts hit or whether there are any casualties. We’ll have all the latest updates on our liveblog. Meanwhile, the city of Kherson has fallen to invading Russian forces, the city’s mayor has confirmed. Fierce fighting continues in the second-largest city Kharkiv, in Mariupol and several other cities across the country. The humanitarian crisis on the ground is worsening and the UNHCR has now confirmed that more than 1 million Ukrainians have fled the conflict since it started. Filippo Grandi, the UN high commissioner for refugees, warned that we are “looking at what could become Europe’s largest refugee crisis this century.”

REFUGEES WELCOME: We have launched a Refugees Welcome fund to raise money for the thousands of men, women and children who are fleeing the fighting. The crisis has shocked our readers and the world, and – as part of the campaign – we have set up a fund to bring desperately needed help to those who need it now. You can donate by following this link. We have also launched a petition calling for the UK to lead the international community in helping those who have been displaced by the conflict. You can sign up by following this link.

WAR CRIMES PROBE: A war crimes investigation has been launched into Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, it has been announced. The International Criminal Court (ICC) opened a probe on Wednesday night after Britain and 39 allies referred the Kremlin following another day of bombing of civilians in several cities across Ukraine. Ukraine has previously accused Russia of using illegal weapons such as cluster and oxygen bombs. ICC prosecutor Karim Khan said work would begin “immediately”, with his team already collecting evidence, after the coordinated referral freed him to get to work without the need for judicial approval. More than 2,000 Ukrainian civilians have died since it started, Ukraine’s state emergency service said, although that figure has not been independently verified.

DIRTY MONEY CRACKDOWN: Earlier this week, the government unveiled its long-awaited economic crime bill, designed to crack down on the flow of “dirty money” through the UK and its capital, London. Plans for the legislation were published in a rebuke to Putin and the oligarchs close to him after the Russian president invaded Ukraine. But the bill was immediately criticised for its lack of urgency. And Boris Johnson is coming under increasing pressure to tighten the net on illicit Russian finance in “weeks, not years”, as officials confirmed that they are aware of wealthy oligarchs moving cash out of the UK in advance of expected sanctions. Labour has tabled amendments to the bill, asking for it to require the true ownership of properties to be registered within 28 days rather than 18 months. Sir Keir Starmer – who has offered Labour’s help to rush the long-awaited legislation through the Commons in a single day on Monday – told the prime minister that the proposed delay would give cronies of Vladimir Putin plenty of time to “quietly launder their money...into another safe haven”.

PUTIN’S PALS: In the Commons on Wednesday, Johnson promised to publish a list of “Putin’s pals” with proven links to the Russian president, but gave no details of how the list would work or who would feature on it.Aides later said that those named would not necessarily face official sanctions, but that British individuals and companies should “think very carefully” before doing business with them. The move came as Roman Abramovich confirmed he is seeking buyers for Chelsea FC and reports he is also hoping to offload a number of UK properties. There was no official indication that he is under consideration for sanctions or inclusion on Johnson’s list.

TORIES UNDER PRESSURE: Conservative donations rose to £4.9m at the end of last year, new figures show, as the party comes under huge pressure to hand back money from Russia-linked supporters. Electoral Commission figures show Johnson’s party continues to accept money from Lubov Chernukhin – wife of a former minister in Putin’s government. Chernukhin gave another £80,000 in donations in the final months of 2021, sums reported to the electoral watchdog by the Tories in February. The British citizen has donated more than £2m to the Conservative HQ, local Tory parties and Tory MPs over the past eight years, as well as paying to play tennis with Johnson at a fundraising auction. Labour MP Bill Esterson asked Johnson at PMQs on Wednesday whether he would ask the Tory party to give Ms Chernukhin’s donations to “Ukrainian humanitarian causes”. “This is not about the Russia people – this is about the Putin regime,” he said.

On the record

“What we have seen already from Vladimir Putin’s regime in the use of the munitions that they have already been dropping on innocent civilians, in my view, already fully qualifies as a war crime.”

PM on bombing of civilians.