Ukraine-Russia live: Drone attack on Putin’s forces in Crimea as South Korea may now send arms to Kyiv
Ukrainian intelligence suggests that 10,000 North Korea soldiers were being prepared to join Russian forces
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Russian air defences destroyed 14 Ukrainian air drones overnight, including 10 drones over the Crimean Peninsula, the defence ministry said on Wednesday as Vladimir Putin welcomed two dozen world leaders to Kazan for the Brics summit.
Russia said it also destroyed four unmanned boats in the Black Sea heading towards the Peninsula.
The statement comes amid row over the deployment of North Korean troops in Ukraine to help Russia’s war efforts.
South Korea on Tuesday said Seoul was weighing the possibility of directly supplying weapons to Ukraine.
South Korea’s spy agency recently revealed that North Korea had deployed 1,500 soldiers to Russia’s far east for training, with plans to send a total of 12,000 troops to support Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Both North Korea and Russia have denied the allegations, calling them “fake news”.
Meanwhile, British prime minister Keir Starmer has accused Vladimir Putin of “harming millions of vulnerable people” as new British intelligence suggests ships carrying food aid have been caught up in Russian attacks on Ukraine’s ports.
Putin ‘harming millions’, Starmer claims amid Russian attacks on Black Sea ports
South Korea warns it could arm Ukraine amid fears of Putin Kim Jong Un weapon swap
Who is going to Putin-hosted Brics summit in Russia – and why has Brazil’s Lula dropped out?
North Korean troops in Ukraine: Everything we know about Kim Jong-un’s army joining Russian invasion
South Korea may consider supplying weapons to Ukraine
South Korea may consider supplying weapons directly to Ukraine in response to growing military ties between North Korea and Russia, officials stated on Tuesday.
This follows ongoing accusations that Pyongyang has deployed troops to fight alongside Russia in Ukraine.
A senior official from President Yoon Suk Yeol’s office said the government is preparing diplomatic, economic, and military responses to various scenarios of North Korea-Russia military cooperation. These responses could include providing Ukraine with lethal weapons if the situation escalates.
“We are considering supplying defensive weapons as part of a phased approach, and if necessary, we may also consider offensive measures,” the official told reporters.
The remarks followed an emergency meeting of South Korea’s National Security Council (NSC) to discuss North Korea’s increasing military cooperation with Russia. The NSC condemned Pyongyang for sending troops to fight as “Russia’s mercenaries,” accusing the regime of neglecting its people’s well-being and human rights.
The senior official also mentioned that a team of intelligence and defence officials would visit NATO headquarters “within the coming days” after NATO chief Mark Rutte urged President Yoon in a Monday phone call to send a delegation to strengthen information-sharing efforts.
Both Russia and North Korea have denied any arms transfers but have committed to deepening military cooperation.
Three killed, including child, in Russian strike on Sumy
Three people including a child were killed in a Russian drone strike on the northeastern Ukrainian city of Sumy, officials said on Tuesday.
The attack targeted a residential neighbourhood and critical infrastructure, regional governor Ihor Kalchenko said on the Telegram messaging app.
In a statement, the Ukrainian military said air defences had destroyed 42 out of 60 drones launched by Russia overnight across various parts of Ukraine.
Pictures from the strike are yet to emerge but we will share them as they come in.
Rachel Reeves and John Healey pictured at training ground announcing Ukraine loan
Ukraine destroys 42 Russian drones in overnight attack
Ukrainian air defences destroyed 42 out of 60 drones launched by Russia during an overnight strike, Kyiv’s Air Force said this morning.
The drones were downed over parts of central, southern and eastern Ukraine, it said.
Russia’s overnight drone attack killed three civilians, including a child, in a residential area in eastern Ukraine’s Sumy region, the regional governor said.
“Three people, including a child, died as a result of a nighttime attack by enemy drones on residential buildings,” Ihor Kalchenko, the governor, said.
In pics: Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin in Kyiv
US defence secretary Lloyd Austin arrived in Kyiv on an unannounced visit yesterday, hours after a Russian drone attack on the Ukrainian capital. Mr Austin said his fourth visit shows “that the United States, alongside the international community, continues to stand by Ukraine.”
“We should all understand that Putin’s assault is a warning. It is a sneak preview of a world built by tyrants and thugs; a chaotic, violent world carved into spheres of influence,” he said in a speech.
Ukraine is having difficulty holding back a ferocious Russian campaign along the eastern front that is gradually compelling Kyiv’s forces to give up a series of towns, villages and hamlets.
South Korea vows countermeasures over North Korean troops in Russia
South Korea will gradually take countermeasures in line with the level of military cooperation between Russia and North Korea, deputy national security adviser Kim Tae-hyo told a briefing today.
His comments came as South Korea’s presidential office urged Pyongyang to immediately withdraw North Korean troops that Seoul says have been dispatched to Russia for the war with Ukraine.
Mr Kim made the comments in a televised briefing after a meeting hosted by National Security Adviser Shin Won-sik on the dispatch of North Koreans troops earlier today.
Mr Kim accused Pyongyang of acting like a “criminal organisation” by sending young North Koreans to fight in Russia and vowed to cooperate with allies in ensuring countermeasures against North Korea-Russia military cooperation.
It remained a possibility that South Korea could supply offensive weapons to Ukraine, the Yonhap news agency reported, citing the presidential office.
UK announces £2.26bn loan for Ukraine using frozen Russian asset funds
The UK is using profits on frozen Russian assets to loan £2.26bn to Ukraine to aid with its fight against Russia’s invasion, it has been announced.
The funds represent the UK’s share of a $50bn (£38.39bn) loan package agreed upon by the G7 nations, financed through interest generated from sanctioned Russian sovereign assets.
The money could be used to fund air defence, artillery or other military equipment and comes on top of the UK’s existing £3bn-a-year support for Ukraine.
UK announces £2.26 billion loan for Ukraine using frozen Russian asset funds
The funds represent the UK’s share of a $50 billion (£38.39 billion) loan package agreed upon by the G7 nations, financed through interest generated from sanctioned Russian sovereign assets
Ukraine drones target Russian alcohol plants, says official
Overnight drone attacks by Ukraine caused an explosion and a fire at an ethanol manufacturing plant and damaged two other alcohol producing enterprises in Russia, Russian officials said this morning.
A blast shook the Biokhim biochemical plant in Russia’s Tambov region, sparking a short-lived fire, Tambov governor Maxim Yegorov said. “According to preliminary information, there are no casualties,” Yegorov said.
Biokhim in the Tambov region, some 450km (280 miles) southeast of Moscow, is one of Russia’s oldest manufacturers of “products of strategic importance for the state”, chiefly ethanol, according to the company’s website.
The governor of the Tula region, which borders Moscow to its north, said that a Ukraine drone attack damaged two distilleries in the town of Yefremov and the village of Luzhkovskyi this morning.
There were no injuries, Tula governor Dmitry Miliayev said, adding the situation was “under control”. It was not immediately clear how big the attacks were and Miliayev did not give any further details.
Child among three killed in Russia’s overnight attack on Sumy
Russia’s overnight drone attack killed three civilians, including a child, in a residential area in eastern Ukraine’s Sumy region, the regional governor said.
“Three people, including a child, died as a result of a nighttime attack by enemy drones on residential buildings,” Ihor Kalchenko, the governor, said.
Russia says it downs 18 Ukrainian drones overnight
Russia’s air defence units destroyed 18 Ukrainian drones over several Russian regions overnight, Russia’s defence ministry said today.
Of these, 11 drones were downed over the territory of the Bryansk region, three over the Belgorod region, and the rest over the Kursk, Tula and Oryol regions, the ministry said.
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