Here are the latest developments in the war in Ukraine:
– Stop ‘idle’ nuclear threats: Biden –
US President Joe Biden blasts Moscow for “idle comments” on the possible use of nuclear weapons in the Ukraine conflict, saying such talk showed Russia’s “desperation”.
His comments come a day after Russian President Vladimir Putin warned that if Western forces intervene in Ukraine, they will face a “lightning-fast” military response, saying “We have all the tools for this.”
Biden says the United States is “not attacking Russia” despite Moscow’s “disturbing rhetoric”.
Biden also says his country will not let Russia use “gas blackmail” to pressure European allies and to undermine sanctions placed on Moscow for its invasion of Ukraine.
Asking Congress for $33 billion more for Ukraine, he says it is “not cheap” but that Washington cannot stand by in the face of Russia’s “atrocities and aggression”.
Earlier the White House proposed using assets seized from Russian oligarchs to compensate Ukraine for damage caused by the war.
– Russian soldiers suspected of war crimes in Bucha –
The Ukrainian prosecutor’s office says it has identified 10 Russian soldiers suspected of committing war crimes in the Kyiv suburb of Bucha.
It says the troops from the 64th motorised infantry brigade are suspected of “premeditated murder”, cruel treatment and other violations of the laws and customs of war during their occupation of Bucha in March.
Investigators have also identified more than 8,000 cases of suspected war crimes since Russia’s invasion, prosecutor general Iryna Venediktova tells Deutsche Welle.
“It’s actually 8,600 cases only about war crimes, and more than 4,000 cases that are connected with war crimes,” Venediktova says.
– Security Council ‘failed’: UN chief –
UN chief Antonio Guterres says during his visit to Kyiv the Security Council failed to go far enough in its efforts to “prevent and end” Russia’s war in Ukraine.
“Let me be very clear: the Security Council failed to do everything in its power to prevent and end this war. And this is the source of great disappointment, frustration and anger,” he says at a joint news conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
He speaks after visiting Bucha and two other towns where Russian forces are accused of massacring civilians, on his first visit to Ukraine since Russia invaded.
– Kyiv hit as UN chief visits –
Russian strikes hit Kyiv as Guterres is visiting in the first such bombardment of Ukraine’s capital since mid-April, the president’s office and AFP correspondents say.
“Missile strikes in the downtown of Kyiv during the official visit of @antonioguterres,” tweets the office of Zelensky, with AFP correspondents hearing the blast and seeing smoke and flames coming from the area.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba condemns the strikes as a “heinous act of barbarism”.
– Kremlin warning on weapons –
The Kremlin says that Western arms deliveries to Ukraine are a threat to European security.
“The tendency to pump weapons, including heavy weapons into Ukraine, these are the actions that threaten the security of the continent, provoke instability,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov tells reporters.
He was reacting to comments by Britain’s Foreign Secretary Liz Truss, who called on Kyiv’s allies to send more tanks and other heavy weapons to Ukraine.
The German parliament meanwhile backs providing Ukraine with heavy weapons, marking a shift from its previously cautious approach to Russia.
– Seven Ukrainian depots destroyed –
Russia’s defence ministry says its forces have destroyed seven Ukrainian fuel and ammunition depots with “high-precision missiles”.
– Briton killed –
The UK’s foreign ministry confirms to AFP that a British citizen has been killed in Ukraine and another is missing.
British media report that the pair may have been fighting Russian forces. Several British and dual British-Ukrainian citizens are known to have volunteered on the Ukrainian side.
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