Live blog: Russian air advantage limiting Ukraine advance — Zelenskyy

Friday, April 19, 2024

1522 GMT — Russia currently has an advantage in the air, limiting Ukraine's ability to advance on the frontline, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has told a virtual meeting of NATO defence ministers.

"It is obvious that now, while Russia has air advantage and can rely on its drone and rocket terror, our capabilities on the ground, unfortunately, are limited," Zelenskyy said.

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1844 GMT — US would send weapons to Ukraine 'right away' if money approved: White House

The United States would send shipments of arms to Ukraine "right away" if a funding request to help Ukraine repel Russia is approved, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre has said.

US House Speaker Mike Johnson looks set to push forward this weekend on a $95 billion aid bill for Kiev, Israel and other allies, despite a firestorm of protest from hardline Republicans that could lead to an attempt to oust him.

1641 GMT — US House advances $95B Ukraine-Israel package toward vote

The US House of Representatives advanced a $95 billion legislative package providing aid to Ukraine, Israel and the Indo-Pacific in a broad bipartisan vote, overcoming hardline Republican opposition that had held it up for months.

Friday's procedural vote, which passed 316-94 with more support from Democrats than the Republicans who hold a narrow majority, advanced a package similar to a measure that passed the Democratic-majority Senate in February.

In addition to the aid for allies, the package includes a provision to transfer frozen Russian assets to Ukraine, sanctions targeting Hamas and Iran and to force China's ByteDance to sell social media platform TikTok or face a ban in the US.

1536 GMT — Netherlands to provide over $200M of extra military support for Ukraine

The Netherlands will provide more than $213.26 million of additional military support to Ukraine for air defence and artillery ammunition, said Dutch defence minister Kajsa Ollongren.

1520 GMT — Ukraine needs at least seven Patriot systems: Zelenskyy tells NATO

Ukrainian Zelenskyy has said his country needs at least seven Patriot air defence systems and pressed NATO leaders to hurry the supply of arms to his struggling forces.

"We need seven more Patriots or similar air defence systems - and it's a minimum number," Zelenskyy told a meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Council.

"This year we can't wait for decisions to be made," he added, urging Ukraine's backers to speed up their decision-making.

1455 GMT — NATO countries agree to give Ukraine more air defences: Stoltenberg

NATO countries have agreed to give Ukraine more air defences after desperate pleas from Kiev for advanced systems to shoot down Russian attacks, alliance chief Jens Stoltenberg has said.

"NATO has mapped out existing capabilities across the alliance and there are systems that can be made available to Ukraine. So I expect new announcements on air defence capabilities for Ukraine soon," Stoltenberg said after virtual talks between NATO defence ministers and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

1417 GMT — Russia prioritises negotiation over confrontation but talks with Zelenskyy 'senseless': Lavrov

Russia consistently prioritizes negotiations over confrontation and military conflict, yet engaging in discussions with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy proves senseless for many reasons, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said.

If the West genuinely seeks dialogue, it must first abandon the so-called "Zelenskyy formula," "an ultimatum" demanding Russia's surrender, withdrawal to 1991 borders, leadership trial, reparations, and weapon placement restrictions within a 200 km frontline zone, Lavrov said in an interview with Russian radio stations.

"All other issues - food, energy, nuclear security, humanitarian aid, prisoner exchange, and missing persons - merely serve to adorn this ultimatum, aiming to rally support from the majority of world nations," Lavrov said.

1310 GMT — Ukraine says bomber it destroyed struck two cities

Ukraine has said that the long-range Russian bomber plane it shot down earlier had launched deadly strikes on the cities of Dnipro and Kryvy Rig.

"This was the plane that bombed Dnipro and Kryvy Rig. We took our revenge for our cities and civilians," Air Force spokesperson Illya Yevlash said.

1305 GMT — Port infrastructure damaged in Russian attack on Odessa region: Ukraine

A Russian missile attack has damaged port infrastructure in Ukraine's southern Odessa region, the governor said.

One person was injured, he added on the Telegram messenger app.

1213 GMT — G7 powers to boost Ukraine air defences in face of Russian strikes

G7 powers are determined to bolster Ukraine's air defences, their foreign ministers have said after repeated Russian air strikes which have wrecked power infrastructure and killed hundreds.

The G7 will "bolster Ukraine's air defence capabilities to save lives and protect critical infrastructure," the foreign ministers said, adding they would increase defence and security assistance for Kiev.

"We are determined to continue to provide military, financial, political, humanitarian, economic, and development support to Ukraine and its people," they added.

1205 GMT — China fuelling Ukraine war by aiding Russia: US

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said that China was indirectly fuelling the Ukraine war with the supply of components to Russia which it uses for its military expansion.

"When it comes to Russia's defence industrial base, the primary contributor in this moment to that is China," he told reporters after a G7 ministers meeting in Capri, adding that this is "allowing Russia to continue the aggression against Ukraine".

0718 GMT — Russia says crew member killed in bomber crash

Russia said a crew member was killed when a military bomber crashed in the southern Stavropol region, adding that it was searching for a fourth pilot.

"To my deep regret, the third crew member has been killed. The search for the fourth pilot is continuing," Stavropol region governor Vladimir Vladimirov said.

Two other crew members have been hospitalised.

0705 GMT — Ukraine says Russia launched 36 missiles, drones overnight, 29 downed

Ukraine said that Russian forces had launched 22 missiles and more than a dozen drones across the country in an overnight barrage that left at least eight dead.

"In total, the enemy used 36 air attack weapons — 22 missiles of various types and 14 attack drones ... 29 air targets were destroyed," Ukraine's air force said in a statement.

0652 GMT — Ukraine consolidates support in US Congress ahead of vote on aid

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said he consolidated support in the US Congress ahead of aid package voting.

"We received assurances of unwavering support," Shmyhal said on Thursday after meeting with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.

The House of Representatives is expected to have its long-awaited vote for Ukraine, Israel, and the Indo-Pacific on Saturday. If passed, the bills will be sent to the Senate. President Joe Biden pledged to sign the bills immediately upon approval.

Shmyhal also met with Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell in Washington.

"Bipartisan support from Congress is extremely important for Ukraine. We talked about our country's need for weapons and funding. We expect the Ukraine aid package bill to be voted on as soon as possible," the prime minister said on X.

Shmyhal also met with Hakeem Jeffries, the leader of the Democrats in the US House of Representatives, with whom he exchanged views on military assistance to Ukraine, budget support, and the confiscation of Russian assets.

"We are sincerely grateful for $22.9 billion of direct financial support. And especially for more than $45 billion in military aid. We expect the strong support of the United States to continue in the future," Shmyhal added.

0641 GMT — Ukraine destroys Russian long-range strategic bomber

Ukraine said that for the first time since Russia's invasion, its forces had downed a long-range bomber used to fire cruise missiles at cities across the war-battered country.

"For the first time, anti-aircraft missile units of the Air Force in cooperation with the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine destroyed a Tu-22M3 long-range strategic bomber," the military said in a statement on social media.

The Ukrainian military intelligence agency said the warplane had been taking part in a long-range attack on Ukraine.

The Russian defence ministry said the bomber had no longer been carrying any bombs.

The Russian regional governor said the pilots had ejected, but that one of them had died. A rescue operation was underway for the fourth, he said.

0630 GMT — Ukraine says eight killed in overnight Russian strikes

Russian strikes overnight killed eight people, including two children, and injured 25, and damaged critical infrastructure facilities in Ukraine's central Dnipropetrovsk region, the interior ministry said, updating the toll.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the attack damaged multiple storeys of a residential building and a train station in the regional capital, Dnipro, as he called for additional air defences.

"Russia must be held accountable for its terror, and every missile, every Shahed (drone) must be shot down," Zelenskyy said. "The world can guarantee this, and our partners have the necessary capabilities."

Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said at least eight people died in the attack, two in Dnipro and six in Synelnykivskyi district of the region, where more than a dozen homes were damaged.

0218 GMT — CIA warns Ukraine could lose to Russia in 2024 without new aid

The CIA chief has warned that Ukraine could lose the war to Russia by the end of this year unless the United States sends more military aid.

Bill Burns' grim warning came as the US House of Representatives is scheduled to vote on Saturday on a $61 billion aid package for Ukraine that has been held up for months by Republican lawmakers allied with Donald Trump as he seeks reelection.

"With the boost that would come from military assistance, both practically and psychologically, I think the Ukrainians are entirely capable of holding their own through 2024," Burns said.

"Without supplemental assistance, the picture is a lot more dire," he added.

"There is a very real risk that the Ukrainians could lose on the battlefield by the end of 2024, or at least put Putin in a position where he could dictate the terms of a political settlement," he said, referring to Russia's president.

0054 GMT — Zelenskyy meets with German economy minister

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with German Economy Minister Robert Habeck, who arrived earlier in the day in Ukraine's capital, Kiev, in a surprise visit.

"I am grateful to Germany and the entire German society for their extremely tangible support of Ukraine throughout the full-scale war at a time of all these challenges," Zelenskyy said in a statement on Telegram.

Noting that he and Habeck spoke about the growing intensity of Russian missile attacks against Ukraine, Zelenskyy said it is important to continue to strengthen his country's air defence with modern Western systems.

He said that Germany's decision to support Ukraine with the transfer of an additional Patriot missile defence system is "difficult to overestimate."

2134 GMT — EU's lending arm pledges to speed up Ukraine spending

The European Union's lending arm, the European Investment Bank (EIB), has signed a pledge to speed up the use of over $595.90 million, and it is ready to support Ukraine's rebuilding effort this year.

The EIB and Ukraine's government said a new memorandum of understanding (MoU) had been signed "to accelerate deployment of financial support and project execution on the ground".

"The memorandum signed today calls for the rapid implementation of ongoing EIB projects in Ukraine," the statement said after the MoU was signed by Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal and EIB President Nadia Calvino at IMF meetings in Washington.

It highlighted that the country has access this year to $530 million in EIB loan funds and $63 million in EU grants.

2102 GMT — Trump says Europe should give Ukraine more aid

Donald Trump said that Europe should give more money to Ukraine, days before US lawmakers are to vote on a long-delayed $61 billion aid package for the war-torn nation.

"As everyone agrees, Ukrainian Survival and Strength should be much more important to Europe than to us, but it is also important to us! GET MOVING EUROPE!" Trump said on his social media platform Truth Social.

Trump, who will battle President Joe Biden for the White House in November, wrote: "Why is it that the United States is over $100 Billion Dollars into the Ukraine War more than Europe, and we have an Ocean between us as separation!

"Why can't Europe equalise or match the money put in by the United States of America in order to help a Country in desperate need?"

For our live updates from Thursday, April 18, click here.