Ukraine-Russia war latest: Nato says Putin wants to ‘wipe Ukraine off map’ as Russia targets its energy grid
Putin ‘is trying to crush our freedom and way of life’, Nato secretary-general Mark Rutte says
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Your support makes all the difference.Nato secretary-general Mark Rutte warned that Vladimir Putin wants to “wipe Ukraine off the map” and could come after other parts of Europe next as he called for the alliance to adopt a wartime mindset.
Talking to security experts and analysts in Brussels, Mr Rutte warned of the prospect that Russia might try to use “swarms of drones” in Europe after seeing their deadly impact in Ukraine.
Moscow is preparing for a long-term confrontation with Ukraine and Nato, he said, adding that the Russian president “is trying to crush our freedom and way of life”.
This morning, Russia launched a large-scale attack using missiles targeting Ukraine’s energy facilities. Ukrainian officials said the entire country was under air raid alerts.
On the battlefield, Ukraine’s military commander admitted fighting around the key city of Pokrovsk was “extremely intense” with analysts estimating Russian forces are now within just a few kilometres of the city.
And Donald Trump has criticised Ukraine’s use of US-supplied missiles for attacks deep into Russian territory. “It’s crazy what’s taking place. It’s crazy. I disagree very vehemently with sending missiles hundreds of miles into Russia.
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We have some more details from Russia’s overnight attack on Ukraine
Ukraine’s energy minister German Galuschenko has described the latest Russian attack as a “massive” assault on the country’s energy infrastructure.
“The enemy continues its terror. Once again, the energy sector across Ukraine is under massive attack," Mr Galushchenko wrote in a post on Facebook.
Ukraine’s air force has not yet issued a summary of the latest strikes overnight but they posted missile and drone warnings on their Telegram channel roughly every few minutes from midnight to 8am GMT, indicating the size of the attack.
Ukraine's energy system has already suffered 11 Russian attack waves this year, which have caused widespread damage and lengthy power cuts all over the country.
Friday's attack prompted additional restrictions on power usage for consumers, according to the national grid operator Ukrenergo.
All of Ukraine was under air raid alarms.
Local authorities reported multiple explosions in the southern city of Odesa and Kyiv regional authorities said air defence systems were operating.
Kyiv urges rapid delivery of more air defence systems
Ukrainian foreign minister Andrii Sybiha has called on partners to deliver more air defence systems urgently as Russia once more bombarded Ukraine‘s energy system.
Ukraine’s reformed military procurement agency drives Nato ambitions
Ukraine’s defence ministry unveiled a new state agency for its armed forces last year. It was the government’s answer to the rampant corruption within the ministry’s procurement companies, and meant to be a driver of reform on the elusive path toward Nato membership.
The enterprise, in charge of purchasing nonlethal military goods such as food, clothes and fuel, has already contracted 95 per cent of the products requested for supply, and saved 25 per cent in the process, says Arsen Zhumadilov, the CEO of the State Logistics Operator, known by the local abbreviation DOT. Soon, he says, DOT also will begin procuring drones.
Ukraine's reformed military procurement agency drives the country's NATO ambitions
Ukraine's new state agency for nonlethal military procurement is an example of the type of reform that the country hopes will clear the path toward NATO
How can Putin be defeated? Assad’s fall provides lesson for West
The fall of the Assad regime in Syria has led to questions over Russia’s ability to sustain its military adventures abroad. Russia had supported Assad militarily for over a decade, building on longstanding ties between Moscow and Damascus. But the rapid advance of anti-government forces this month saw Russia apparently powerless to influence the situation beyond a number of airstrikes (as always, apparently mostly delivered on civilian targets) in support of government forces.
That has inevitably led people to draw conclusions about Russia’s ability to project power overseas, and what it may mean for the course of the war in Ukraine.
How can Putin be defeated? Assad’s fall provides lesson for West
The end of Bashar al-Assad’s rule in Syria has led to many asking questions about Russia’s ability to project power overseas, and what it may mean for the course of the war in Ukraine. Here, Keir Giles explains why we should be wary of any hasty conclusions
Russia launches large-scale attack on Ukraine energy facilities
Russia launched a large-scale attack on Ukraine’s energy facilities this morning, the war-hit country’s minister of energy German Galushchenko said.
The entire country was under an air alert after the Ukrainian Air Force issued warnings about Russia launching missiles in the attack.
Russian forces edge closer to key Ukrainian city
Russian forces edge closer to key Ukrainian city as Putin faces ‘massive cost’
Russian forces are just miles away from the key Eastern city
Why Pokrovsk will be a huge loss for Ukraine
Military bloggers in Russia claim Putin’s forces are just 1.5km (1 mile) outside the Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk after pushing up from the south.
The battles near the road and rail hub in eastern Ukraine have been “extremely fierce” according to Ukraine’s own admission.
But why does the Ukrainian city’s control matter to Kyiv?
The fall of Pokrovsk, an important logistics centre for the Ukrainian military, would be one of Ukraine’s biggest military defeats in months.
Control of the city, which the Russian media call “the gateway to Donetsk”, would allow Moscow to severely disrupt Ukrainian supply lines along the eastern front and boost its campaign to capture the city of Chasiv Yar, which sits on higher ground offering potential control of a wider area.
Squeezing the Ukrainian military’s access to the road network in the vicinity would make it harder for Kyiv’s troops to hold pockets of territory either side of Pokrovsk, which could allow Russia to consolidate and advance the frontline.
The city also hosts a mine which is Ukraine’s only domestic coking coal supplier for its once-giant steel industry.
Ukrainian steelmaker Metinvest BV has halted some operations at the mine because of its proximity to advancing Russian troops, an industry source said yesterday.
Russia signs $13bn-a-year oil deal with India in blow to Western sanctions
Russian state-owned oil firm Rosneft has signed a deal worth $13bn (£10bn) a year selling oil to Indian refiner Reliance in a blow to sanctions against Vladimir Putin’s government.
The 10-year deal is for the supply of 500,000 barrels of oil per day, or about 0.5 per cent of the world’s supply, according to the Reuters news agency.
Western nations have been cracking down on the purchase of Mr Putin’s oil and gas in an effort to choke off Russia’s economy as the country’s attack on Ukraine drags on.
Russia signs $13bn-a-year oil deal with India in blow to Western sanctions
The 10-year deal is for the supply of 500,000 barrels of oil per day, or about 0.5 per cent of the world’s supply
Russia continues advance towards strategic city in Ukraine’s east
Russian forces are reportedly just 1.5km (1 mile) outside the Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk, a road and rail hub in eastern Ukraine.
The latest Russian movements were reported by Yuri Podolyaka, a prominent Ukraine-born but pro-Russian war blogger.
He claimed Russian forces were now just 1.5km from the city, which had a pre-war population of 60,000, after a push from the south.
Russia controls a chunk of Ukraine about the size of the American state of Virginia and is advancing at the fastest pace since the early days of the 2022 invasion, according to open source maps.
Ukraine’s military said that Russian troops destroyed or captured several Ukrainian positions near the city in recent days.
AP photos from Ukraine in 2024 convey wartime horror and hope
AP photos from Ukraine in 2024 convey wartime horror and hope
A man falls to his death from the window of a burning apartment after a Russian air strike
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