Live blog: Zelenskyy says counteroffensive won't target Russian territory

Sunday, May 14, 2023

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has vowed that his country is preparing a counteroffensive designed to liberate areas occupied by Russia, not to attack Russian territory.

Speaking during a news conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin on Sunday, Zelenskyy said Ukraine’s goal is to free the territories within its internationally recognized borders.

The Washington Post cited previously undisclosed documents from a trove of US intelligence leaks suggesting that Zelenskyy has considered trying to capture areas in Russia proper for possible use as bargaining chips in peace negotiations to end the war launched by Moscow in February 2022. This would put him at odds with Western governments that have insisted that weapons they provide must not be used to attack targets in Russia.

Asked about the report, Zelenskyy said: “We don't attack Russian territory, we liberate our own legitimate territory.”

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French President Emmanuel Macron will have a dinner meeting later on Sunday in Paris with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, during which France will reaffirm its military and humanitarian support for Ukraine, the French president's office announced.

1321 GMT - Civilians killed in unexploded ordinance blast in southern Ukraine

At least five civilians in Ukraine have been reported killed when an undetonated shell exploded in the southern Kherson region.

"In the Kherson region, explosives left by the Russian army killed five civilians. The tragedy happened at one of the agricultural enterprises in the village of Myroliubivka, Novovorontsovka community," Andriy Yermak, head of the Ukrainian Presidential Office, said on Telegram.

Yermak further said the youngest victim of the blast was 27 years old, while the oldest was 68.

The Russia-Ukraine war, now in its 14th month, has killed more than 8,790 civilians and wounded over 14,810, according to the latest UN figures, Anadolu Agency reported.

1119 GMT - Russia says Ukraine made 'mass attempts' to break through Bakhmut defences

Russia's Defence Ministry said on Sunday that Ukrainian forces made "mass attempts" to break through its defences in the eastern city of Bakhmut over the past 24 hours, as pressure on its troops continued to mount.

It said in a briefing that Ukraine had waged attacks in the north and south of the city, but that they had not broken through Russian defences. "All attacks by units of Ukraine's armed forces have been repelled," it said.

Reuters was not able to independently verify Russia's account.

Neither side has been able to take full control of Bakhmut, despite months of grinding warfare that has inflicted heavy losses on both sides.

0540 GMT - Ukraine's Zelenskyy in Berlin to discuss arms deliveries

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier has welcomed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to Berlin on his first visit to the country since Russia's offensive in Ukraine began.

Zelenskyy's visit comes as he seeks further arms deliveries to help his country fend off the Russian offensive and funds to rebuild what's been destroyed by more than a year of devastating conflict.

A Luftwaffe jet flew Zelenskyy to the German capital from Rome, where he had met Saturday with Pope Francis and Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni.

On the eve of his arrival — which is taking place amid tight security — the German government announced a new package of military aid for Ukraine worth more than $3 billion (2.7 billion euros), including tanks, anti-aircraft systems and ammunition.

“Already in Berlin. Weapons. Powerful package. Air defense. Reconstruction. EU. NATO. Security,” Zelenskyy tweeted Sunday, in an apparent reference to the key priorities of his trip.

Following his meeting with meeting with Chancellor Olaf Scholz, he thanked Germany's "powerful support" in the form of the armaments package, saying "everything in this security package will significantly strengthen our defence".

"Now is the time for us to determine the end of this war this year. This year, we can make the aggressor's defeat irreversible," he said.

2246 GMT – Russian missiles hit home town of Ukraine's Eurovision contestants

Russian missiles hit the western Ukrainian city of Ternopil, which is home to the electro-pop duo Tvorchi, this year's Eurovision contestants from Ukraine.

Local authorities, writing on Telegram, said the strike had hit warehouses owned by commercial enterprises and a religious organisation, injuring two people.

Russia has launched hundreds of rocket and missile attacks against Ukrainian targets since last October.

2132 GMT - Reports of four Russian military aircraft shot down near Ukraine border

Russian news outlet Kommersant said two Russian fighter jets and two military helicopters had been shot down on Saturday close to the Ukrainian border, in what would be a spectacular military operation for Kiev if confirmed.

Kommersant said on its website that the Su-34 fighter-bomber, Su-35 fighter and two Mi-8 helicopters had made up a raiding party and had been "shot down almost simultaneously" in an ambush in the Bryansk region, adjoining northeast Ukraine.

"According to preliminary data... the fighters were supposed to deliver a missile and bomb attack on targets in the Chernihiv region of Ukraine and the helicopters were there to back them up - among other things to pick up the 'Su' crews if they were shot down," the media outlet reported.

Kommersant provided no evidence for its report that four aircraft had been downed, but the same assertion was also made by several heavily followed pro-war military bloggers.

2114 GMT – South Africa is 'actively non-aligned' on Ukraine war: government

South Africa's presidential security advisor said the country was "actively non-aligned" in Russia's war against Ukraine, after US allegations it had supplied weapons to Moscow led to a diplomatic crisis this week.

"We need to explain that we indeed are actively non-aligned as far as the conflict is concerned," Mufamadi told an online briefing.

"We will make absolutely sure that should wars break out, our contribution will always be calculated at helping the parties and everybody else to bring such conflicts to an end."

Later in the day, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he had spoken to Ramaphosa and urged him to help implement Kiev's peace plan to end the war.

For our live updates from Saturday (May 13), click here.