Live blog: Ukraine proves what it is capable of — Zelenskyy

Tuesday, March 5, 2024

1808 GMT — President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine had "proven what we are capable of" against Russia's navy and air force, but made no direct reference to the sinking of a Russian patrol ship as reported by Kiev's military.

"Ukraine has proven what we are capable of, what our strength is capable of," Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address.

"That is shown by the number of downed Russian aircraft and the capabilities of our boys against the Russian fleet. There are no safe havens for Russian terrorists in the Black Sea and nor will there be," he added.

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1811 GMT — Russian spy chief calls Macron's comments about NATO soldiers in Ukraine dangerous: RIA

French President Emmanuel Macron's comments on NATO soldiers in Ukraine show the irresponsibility of Europe's leaders and are moving the world to the brink of nuclear war, Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) chief Sergei Naryshkin was quoted by state-run RIA news agency as saying.

Last week Macron opened the door to European nations sending troops to Ukraine, although he cautioned that there was no consensus at this stage.

1701 GMT — Russia says intercepted three French aircraft over the Black Sea

Russia's Defence Ministry said it had scrambled a fighter jet to "prevent a violation of the Russian state border" by three French aircraft over the Black Sea.

Such incidents have regularly occurred, even before Russia launched its offensive in Ukraine in 2022.

"To prevent a violation of the Russian state border, a Su-27 fighter aircraft was raised into the air," Russia's defence ministry said.

1637 GMT — Hungarian president signs Sweden's bid to join NATO

Hungary's president signed the law on Sweden's bid to join NATO, a final technical step before the Nordic country becomes the alliance's 32rd member.

Hungary's parliament ratified Sweden's bid on February 26, ending more than a year of delays that frustrated other alliance members in the face of Russia's offensive on Ukraine.

"Tamas Sulyok, the president of the republic, today signed the decision taken by the National Assembly on February 26, 2024, regarding Sweden's membership in NATO," a statement on the presidential website read.

1519 GMT — Zelenskyy hails ICC arrest warrants over Russian strikes on Ukraine

Zelenskyy has welcomed two arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court for two senior Russian officers over the Ukraine war.

"Every Russian commander who orders strikes against Ukrainian civilians and critical infrastructure must know that justice will be served," Zelenskyy said in a post on social media.

"Every perpetrator of such crimes must know that they will be held accountable."

1414 GMT — ICC issues warrants over Russian strikes on Ukraine

The International Criminal Court said it has issued arrest warrants for two senior Russian officers over the Ukraine war, including strikes targeting Ukrainian power infrastructure.

It named the two as Sergei Ivanovich Kobylash and Viktor Nikolayevich Sokolov, an army lieutenant general and a navy admiral, and said the suspected crimes were committed between October 2022 and March 2023.

The two men "are each allegedly responsible for the war crime of directing attacks at civilian" targets and are also accused of the "crime against humanity of inhumane acts," the court said.

1345 GMT — UK urges more military aid after Ukrainian drone attack sinks Russian Black Sea fleet ship

The British defence chief hailed the sinking of the Russian Black Sea fleet ship, "Sergei Kotov," by a Ukrainian drone attack, calling for more military support for Kiev.

Quoting a Ukrainian Defence Ministry post on X, showing the sinking of a Russian warship from its Black Sea fleet — believed to be Sergei Kotov — Grant Shapps said the Black Sea is "not safe" for the Russian Navy.

He said it would have been "unimaginable" until recently, but it is now "undeniable," due to Western support for Ukraine.

1304 GMT — IAEA chief to hold talks with Putin about Ukraine nuclear plant

UN atomic watchdog chief Rafael Grossi will head to Russia for a fresh round of talks with President Vladimir Putin to discuss "the future operational status" of Ukraine's Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant.

Europe's largest nuclear plant has been at the centre of fighting since it was captured by Russian forces in March 2022, with both Moscow and Kiev frequently accusing each other of compromising its safety.

Grossi last met Putin in Saint Petersburg in October 2022 to discuss safety issues involving the Zaporizhzhia facility.

0940 GMT — 'Individual' error led to leak of German military Ukraine talk

An individual error was behind the audio leak of a meeting of high-level German military personnel discussing the war in Ukraine, German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius has said.

Pistorius added that one of the participants on the military call on Ukraine intercepted by Russia had dialled in via a non-secure line and disciplinary measures were being looked into.

Russia had likely intercepted the military call via widespread surveillance, not a spy or targeted surveillance, Pistorius said. The use of WebEx for the call was authorised.

Germany would take technical and organisational measures to ensure such an incident would not happen again, he said.

0935 GMT — Ukraine attacks oil depot in Russian border region

Ukraine carried out an attack on an oil depot in a Russian border region, a military intelligence source in Kiev told AFP, the latest in a string of such attacks.

The source confirmed reports in local media that a Ukrainian drone had struck an oil facility in the Russian village of Dolgoye in the Belgorod border region, setting storage tanks ablaze.

Belgorod governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said emergency services were dealing with a fire at an "infrastructure facility", but did not mention a drone. "There were no casualties. Operational and emergency services are working on the site. All circumstances of the incident are being established," he said.

0645 GMT — Ukraine claims it has sunk another Russian warship in the Black Sea

Ukraine claimed it has sunk another Russian warship in the Black Sea using high-tech sea drones as Kiev’s forces continue to take aim at targets deep behind the war’s front line.

Russian authorities did not confirm the claim.

The Ukrainian military intelligence agency said a special operations unit destroyed the large patrol ship Sergey Kotov overnight with Magura V5 uncrewed vessels that are designed and built in Ukraine and laden with explosives.

The Ukrainian claim could not immediately be independently verified.

0318 GMT — Ukraine says it downed 18 Russia-launched drones over Odessa

Russia launched 22 attack drones against Ukraine, with Kiev's air defence systems destroying 18 of the weapons over the Odessa region, Ukraine's air force has said.

0318 GMT — US, Ukrainian defence chiefs discuss latest developments in Ukraine war

US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin and his Ukrainian counterpart Rustem Umerov have discussed the latest developments in the Russia-Ukraine war in a phone call.

"Secretary Austin reiterated that the United States and our coalition of some 50 Allies and partners will continue to support Ukraine in its ongoing fight against Russian aggression," the Pentagon said in a statement.

They agreed on the urgent need to pass President Joe Biden's bipartisan national security supplemental bill and pledged to remain in close contact, it added.

0115 GMT — Macron heads to Prague for talks on arms for Ukraine

French President Emmanuel Macron will visit Prague to clarify his country's standpoint on a Czech plan to buy weapons outside Europe for war-stricken Ukraine.

Macron is due to meet Czech President Petr Pavel and Prime Minister Petr Fiala, and address a nuclear forum during his one-day visit.

At a security conference in Munich last month, Pavel said the Czech Republic — an EU and NATO member of 10.8 million people — was able to collect a substantial amount of weaponry for Ukraine outside the continent.

0110 GMT — UN atomic body chief to visit Russia for nuclear safety talks

The director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has said that he will travel to Russia to hold high-level consultations as part of his ongoing efforts to ensure nuclear safety and security in the region.

Rafael Grossi's remarks came during the agency's board of governors meeting in Vienna, where he discussed various issues including "current challenges" facing the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant.

The plant, the biggest in Europe and among the 10 largest in the world, has been under Russian control since early 2022.

0159 GMT — Accused Pentagon leaker pleads guilty, faces almost 17 years jail

The US airman accused of leaking a trove of top secret Pentagon documents pleaded guilty under a deal that saw him sentenced to some 17 years in prison in return for prosecutors dropping more serious espionage charges.

Jack Teixeira, once a low-level Massachusetts Air National Guard IT specialist, was accused of orchestrating the most damaging leak of US classified documents in a decade, some of which concerned the war in Ukraine.

Teixeira was detained in April 2023 in a dramatic arrest broadcast live on TV networks. He was accused of posting the documents — some dated as recently as March 2023 — to a private chat group on the social media platform Discord.

2135 GMT — Russia contained near Avdiivka, but reinforcing elsewhere: Kiev

Ukraine's military said its forces had contained a Russian advance outside the eastern Ukrainian town of Avdiivka, captured last month, but Moscow's troops were regrouping in an area further south.

Ukrainian military spokesperson Dmytro Lykhoviy, speaking on national television, acknowledged that Russian forces were in partial control of two more villages — but their advance had been halted.

"At the same time, we are saying that in this hottest sector of the direct Russian assault, we are managing to stabilise the situation, and the enemy's advance has been halted," he said.

Speaking to US-funded Radio Liberty, Lykhoviy said Russian forces were focusing on an area further south, around the village of Novomykhailivka, where they were "transferring rein forcements from the depths of Russia."

For our live updates from Monday, March 4, click here.