Live blog: Ukraine war must end Russian 'cycle of aggression' - Stoltenberg

Thursday, February 23, 2023

The war in Ukraine must bring an end to "a cycle of Russian aggression" that goes back much further than Moscow's military aggression that has been launched a year ago, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has said.

In an interview with Reuters on the eve of the first anniversary of Moscow's attack, Stoltenberg said the war was part of a pattern that included Russian military action in Georgia in 2008 and Donbass and Crimea in Ukraine in 2014.

"We don't know when the war will end. But what we do know is that when the war ends, we need to ensure that history doesn't repeat itself," Stoltenberg said.

"We need to ensure that we break the cycle of Russian aggression. We need to prevent Russia from chipping away at European security," he told Reuters at NATO's glass-walled headquarters on the outskirts of Brussels.

Following are the latest updates:

1654 GMT — UN to vote on demand for Russia to withdraw from Ukraine

The United Nations is expected to vote on a resolution demanding Russia withdraw troops from Ukraine one year after attacking the country.

While non-binding, the vote will lay out the extent of support for Kiev around the world as the war grinds on with Russia attacking large chunks of Ukraine and both sides gearing up for intensified fighting in the spring.

"Russia can and must stop, tomorrow," French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna said on the second day of debate, endorsing the resolution on Thursday.

"This war waged by Russia is everybody's business because it threatens the existence of a state, because it represents a domineering and imperialist plan, and because it denies the existence of borders," she said.

1637 GMT — EU countries ship many weapons, ammunition to Ukraine in a year

EU countries have shipped many weapons and ammunition to Ukraine during the first year of the Moscow-Kiev war.

For the first time in its history, the EU financed the shipment of arms to a third country for its military operations.

According to EU laws, the bloc cannot use its normal budget to finance military operations, but the European Peace Facility - the off-bud get funding mechanism for EU actions.

The first aid package worth €500 million ($530 million) was sent on February 26, 2022. European military support to Ukraine has surpassed €3.6 billion so far.

The EU also launched a mission to train 15,000 Ukrainian soldiers in November last year. 

1609 GMT — EU fails again to agree new Russia sanctions - sources

European Union countries have failed to agree on a new set of sanctions against Russia that they had planned to have in place for the one-year anniversary of Moscow's military offensive against Ukraine, diplomatic sources said.

The 27 EU countries need to agree unanimously to introduce sanctions. The sources said Poland was blocking the package over proposed exemptions to a ban on EU imports of Russian synthetic rubber.

Polish diplomats on Thursday said the exemptions were so big they would render the sanctions ineffective. Other sources said the exemptions were proposed to accommodate Italy, backed by Germany.

Representatives of the member states were due to meet again at 0900 GMT on Friday - the day the Russia-Ukraine conflict started last year - to try to seal a deal, according to the sources.

1552 GMT — Zelenskyy wants to meet China over its Ukraine peace plan

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said he had not seen a peace plan promised by China but wanted to meet with Beijing over their proposal before assessing it.

Beijing has promised to publish its "political solution" to the Ukraine conflict this week, in time for the first anniversary of Russia's February 24 attack of its neighbour.

"China have told us they have such an initiative. But I have not seen the document yet," Zelenskyy said during a news conference with visiting Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez in Kiev.

Beijing has sought to position itself as a neutral party in the conflict, while maintaining close ties with strategic ally Russia. 

1535 GMT — G7 presses IMF for Ukraine aid as Yellen says Russia hurting

G7 finance chiefs have pressed the IMF to urgently provide more aid to war-stricken Ukraine on the eve of the first anniversary of Russia's attack.

"On February 24 last year, Russia launched its illegal, unjustifiable, and unprovoked war of aggression against Ukraine, which is also an attack on the rule of law and the principles of the UN Charter," the G7 said in a statement issued by current chair Japan.

After talks in India, the group urged the International Monetary Fund "to deliver a credible, ambitious, fully financed and appropriately conditioned IMF programme by the end of March 2023".

French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire previously said he wanted the IMF to provide $15 billion over four years. 

"We need additional support for Ukraine not only militarily but also when it comes to upholding the functioning of the Ukrainian state," German counterpart Christian Lindner told reporters.

1454 GMT — West is using Ukraine to try to break up Russia: Shoigu

Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu has accused the West of using Ukraine to try to break up Russia, the world's largest country by territory, but he said any such attempt would fail.

Shoigu, a close ally of President Vladimir Putin, made the comments in a congratulatory message to the armed forces at a concert in central Moscow to mark Russia's "Defender of the Fatherland" public holiday.

"Using Ukraine, the collective West is seeking to dismember Russia, to deprive it of its independence. These attempts are doomed to fail," Shoigu said in remarks carried by Russian news agencies.

1428 GMT — Russia turns to spam tactics in online war on Ukraine: Meta

Russia is resorting to spammer tactics to spread Ukraine war propaganda after more sophisticated influence operations at Facebook and Instagram have been thwarted, Meta said.

Tactics have included deploying thousands of fake accounts to hijack online conversations about the war and setting up bogus versions of legitimate news outlet websites at similar online addresses, Meta said in a threat report.

"This activity bears a closer resemblance to what you might see from a spammer's playbook rather than the more stealthy and sophisticated Russian influence operations we have disrupted in the past," Meta head of security policy Nathaniel Gleicher said in a briefing.

1143 GMT — Allies rally behind Ukraine as UN prepares for vote

US President Joe Biden and European leaders in Warsaw have vowed to strengthen defences "from the Baltic to the Black Sea", as the UN General Assembly prepares to vote for "lasting" peace.

The declaration of support comes as Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez travelled to Kiev in a show of solidarity a day before the one-year anniversary of the war.

Nearly a year after Russian forces rolled into Ukraine, Biden attended on Wednesday meeting with NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg and the heads of Eastern European countries to shore up support for Kiev.

The leaders of Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Slovakia joined the talks amid widespread concern in their countries that the conflict could spill over.

In New York, the UN General Assembly is meeting for a special session that was to debate a motion backed by Kiev and its allies calling for a "just and lasting peace" — which will be brought to a vote today.

1100 GMT —  UK government extends tariff relief for Ukraine until early 2024

Britain has said it would extend temporary tariff liberalisation for Ukraine until early 2024.

"The liberalisation of all tariffs for imports from Ukraine will continue to be applied to the whole of the United Kingdom and the Crown Dependencies," International Trade Minister Nigel Huddleston said in a statement to parliament.

1019 GMT — Finland to send three Leopard tanks to Ukraine

Finland will send three Leopard 2 battle tanks to Ukraine, the Finnish defence ministry has said.

Earlier this year, Kiev secured pledges from Western supporters of modern battlefield tanks to help fend off Russian troops who are trying to make incremental advances in eastern Ukraine.

Finnish president Sauli Niinisto in January said Finland would participate in a European donation of battle tanks, adding that Finland's contribution would "not be very numerous".

Finland, which shares a 1,300-kilometre border with Russia, has slightly fewer than 200 Leopard 2 tanks.

1011 GMT — Ukraine shuns OSCE gathering over Russian presence

A meeting of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe's parliamentary assembly has gotten underway without the Ukrainian delegation, which described the planned presence of Russian lawmakers as “an affront.”

Austria said, as host nation, they were obliged to grant visas to representatives from all OSCE member states. Ukraine said it wouldn't attend if Russia was present, as did Lithuania.

Austria's parliament speaker, Wolfgang Sobotka, said that it is “our duty not to slam the door on diplomacy” and that “the OSCE, with its inclusive approach and comprehensive security concept, can and above all should be part of a solution to this conflict.”

0934 GMT — Russia's army guarantor of stability: Putin

President Vladimir Putin has called Russia's army a guarantor of national stability, promising to boost arms production.

"A modern, efficient army and navy are a guarantee of the country's security and sovereignty, a guarantee of its stable development and its future," Putin said in a video address on the occasion of the annual "Defender of the Fatherland Day" holiday in Russia.

"That's why, as before, we will pay priority attention to strengthening our defence capabilities," he added.

0931 GMT —  Russian fighter jet crashes in Belgorod region, near Ukraine

A Russian SU-25 fighter plane has crashed in Russia's Belgorod region near the border with Ukraine and the pilot was killed, the Russian defence ministry said.

The cause of the crash was a "technical malfunction", according to preliminary information, the TASS news agency cited the ministry as saying. The plane crashed in an uninhabited area and there were no reports of other damage, it said.

Earlier, in a post on the Telegram messenger app, Belgorod's governor, Vyacheslav Gladkov, said that emergency services and investigators were on the scene of the crash near the town of Valyuki, and that the cause was being investigated.

0923 GMT — US's Yellen seeking stronger sanctions against Russia, pledges further support for Ukraine

Sanctions imposed on Russia are having a "very significant effect", US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said, calling the war in Ukraine a "strategic failure" by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"The way I see it, our sanctions have had a very significant negative effect on Russia so far. While by some measures the Russian economy has held up better than might initially have been expected, Russia is now running a significant budget deficit," Yellen said ahead of a Group of 20 meeting in India.

Yellen said the US is seeking stronger sanctions against Russia and pledged further support for Ukraine.

0833 GMT —  Moldova dismisses Russian report of Ukraine plot over Transdniestria

Moldova has dismissed an accusation by Russia's defence ministry that Ukraine planned to invade the breakaway Moldovan region of Transdniestria after staging a false flag operation.

The Moldovan government issued a statement on the Telegram messaging app saying state authorities "do not confirm" the Russian defence ministry's allegations.

"We call for calm and for information to be received (by the public) from official and credible sources of the Republic of Moldova," it said. "Our institutions cooperate with foreign partners and in the case of threats to the country, the public will be promptly informed."

0804 GMT — Sweden open to sending Leopards to Ukraine, defence minister says: TT news agency

Sweden is open to sending some of its Leopard battle tanks to Ukraine as the Nordic country prepares to present another package of aid to help the country fight off Russia, its defence minister told local news agency TT.

Sweden is preparing to send Ukraine the advanced Archer artillery system to Ukraine, but support in the Swedish parliament has been growing to additionally contribute some of the country's around 120 Leopard tanks.

"We are open to that and we are in close dialogue with above all Germany about it," Jonson was quoted by TT as saying.

0804 GMT — North Korean media blames US, allies for Ukraine war 

North Korean state media has marked the first anniversary of the war in Ukraine by blaming the crisis on NATO and calling America's involvement a "trail to self-destruction."

In a commentary carried by state news agency KCNA, international affairs critic Kim Yoo-chul said the conflict in Ukraine is the "inevitable product of coercion and hegemony" by the United States and its allies.

"If Ukraine had not blindly taken part in the US policy of anti-Russian confrontation, if it had abandoned the dirty demons of the US and promoted reconciliation and unity with its neighbours, the situation would not have reached the point where it is as bad as it is now," Kim wrote.

0753 GMT —  US intelligence on giving weapons to Russia is speculation: China

China's Foreign Ministry has said any potential intelligence on arms transfer by China to Russia that the United States plans to release is just speculation.

"As for the so-called intel, this is just speculation and smearing against China," spokesperson Wang Wenbin said at a regular briefing.

The Wall Street Journal earlier reported that the US government is considering releasing intelligence on China considering supplying weapons to Russia to support war in Ukraine. 

0713 GMT — Prigozhin says Wagner is now receiving ammunition for Ukraine war

Yevgeny Prigozhin, founder of Russia's Wagner mercenary force, has said his troops begun receiving additional supplies of ammunition after a public row with Russia's top army brass.

"Today at 6 am, it was announced that the shipment of ammunition has started," Prigozhin said in a statement on Telegram.

"Most likely, the ball is now rolling. So far, it's all on paper, but, as we were told, the principal documents have already been signed."

READ MORE: Wagner chief escalates row with Russian army, leaks image of dead bodies

0711 GMT — Russia possibly preparing for offensive in eastern Ukraine's Vuhledar: UK 

Russian forces are possibly preparing for another offensive around the town of Vuhledar in the eastern Donbass region, with the town experiencing heavy shelling, Britain has said.

In an intelligence bulletin, Britain added that fighting has also continued in the eastern city of Bakhmut over the last two days.

0711 GMT — Spain's premier in Kiev ahead of Ukraine war anniversary

Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has travelled to Kiev in a show of support.

"Returning to Kyiv today, one year since the start of the war," Sanchez tweeted along with a video of him stepping off the train in the Ukrainian capital.

"We will stand with Ukraine and its people until peace returns to Europe," he tweeted in Spanish and Ukrainian.

0643 GMT — G7 finance ministers to discuss more sanctions on Russia

Group of Seven finance ministers were due to discuss possible fresh sanctions against Moscow and more support for Ukraine.

The measures imposed have so far succeeded in practically halving Russia's oil revenues, French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said ahead of the talks in Bengaluru, India.

They have "totally disorganised value chains in Russia, notably in industries as strategic as aeronautics and automobiles", Le Maire told reporters.

0546 GMT — Ukraine first lady cites rights violations, urges tribunal

Ukraine’s first lady Olena Zelenska has given a video tour of human rights violations in the country, telling a UN meeting: “We have the right to live free, not to be killed or tortured.”

She showed destruction in the eastern frontline city of Bakhmut, which Russia is trying to capture, where shelling is killing civilians and water is scarce.

She also showed the mass graves of Ukrainians left behind after Russian forces left the city of Izium; the Kramatorsk train station, which was hit by a missile killing 50 people and wounding dozens more trying to flee the war; and many other examples.

0530 GMT — Ukraine seeks South Korean support

Ukraine Ambassador to South Korea Dmytro Ponomarenko while addressing an event in the capital Seoul has said Kiev expected more support from South Korea to bring permanent peace in his country, Yonhap News Agency reported.

The Foreign Ministry organised the event to commemorate the first anniversary of the war, which was attended by Foreign Minister Park Jin and other senior ministry officials.

In response to the envoy's request, Park did not openly support Kiev against Moscow, but expressed hope that the war would end soon.

"I extend my heartfelt condolences to the Ukrainian community in Korea inflicted by the war in their home country," Park was quoted as saying by the agency.

0348 GMT — Russia accuses Ukraine of planning to invade Moldova's breakaway region: RIA

Russia's defence ministry has accused Ukraine of planning to invade Moldova's breakaway Transnistria region after a false flag operation, the RIA news agency reported.

The ministry said Ukraine planned to stage an attack by purportedly Russian forces from Transnistria as a pretext for the invasion, according to RIA.

Separately, the TASS news agency quoted Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin as saying the West had instructed the Chisinau government to stop all interaction with the Moscow-backed Transnistrian administration.

For our live updates from Wednesday (February 22), click here