Summary
That concludes the Guardian’s Russia-Ukraine war live blog.
Here’s what happened today:
The UN Security Council will meet tomorrow over the “humanitarian consequences” of Russia’s withdrawal from a deal that allowed the safe Black Sea export of Ukraine grain for the past year, Britain’s UN mission said.
The White House confirmed that Ukraine began firing US-made cluster bombs against Russia. Both the New York Times and the Washington Post said Russian forces on the frontlines of the invasion in south-eastern Ukraine have come under attack from the US-supplied indiscriminate weapons that can remain unexploded.
The US imposed sanctions on roughly 120 firms and people from Russia to the UAE to Kyrgyzstan in an effort to restrict Moscow’s access to products, money and financial channels that support its invasion of Ukraine.
At least three people were confirmed to have been killed during Russia’s third night of successive airstrikes on south Ukrainian port cities, according to Ukrainian officials cited by Reuters. China also confirmed that its consulate building in Odesa was damaged in the overnight strike by Russia.
Ukraine and Russia made tit-for-tat warnings that any ships travelling to Ukrainian Black Sea ports would be seen as possibly carrying military cargoes and thus potentially strike targets following the collapse of the multipolar grain deal.
Russia said it was imposing restrictions on British diplomats, requiring them to give five days’ notice of any plans to travel beyond a 120km radius, due to what it called London’s “hostile actions”.
Ukraine’s deputy economy minister held talks with China’s vice-commerce minister in Beijing in the first high-level visit by a Ukraine government official to the country since 2019.
Instructors from the mercenary group Wagner begun training the ex-Soviet country’s special forces, nearly a month after an aborted rebellion in Russia, officials in Belarus said.
The EU said it would prolong its sanctions against Russia by six months, until the end of January, over the country’s military aggression against Ukraine.
Wheat prices have been climbing on global markets, just days after Russia pulled out of an agreement that guaranteed safe passage for ships carrying cereals through the Black Sea.
A peer in the UK House of Lords has suggested that Russia could be offered the prospect of Nato membership in exchange for its withdrawal from Ukraine.
Here’s a link to this morning’s summary.
The blog is now closed. To read our latest news on Ukraine, click here.
Ukraine on Thursday warned ships coming to Russian ports in the Black Sea, as Russia has targeted Ukraine ports with drones and missiles.
Here’s more information from AFP:
Kyiv on Thursday put ships in the Black Sea headed for Russian-controlled ports on notice, as Moscow hit the Ukrainian ports of Mykolaiv and Odesa with drones and missiles in another night of “hellish” strikes.
Ukraine said it would treat the ships as potential carriers of military cargo, mirroring a move made by Russia after it withdrew from a key grain export deal.
At least three people died and more than 20 were injured in the Russian strikes on the southern Ukrainian ports, officials said, posting images of buildings in flames and partially collapsed.
Russia pounded the cities with 19 missiles and 19 drones, the Ukrainian air force said, after the Kremlin promised retribution for an attack on the bridge linking annexed Crimea to mainland Russia.
“A hellish night for our people!” said Serhiy Kruk, head of the Ukrainian State Emergency Service.
Updated
Relatives and friends of two Russians who were killed in an attack on the Kerch bridge in Crimea gathered on Thursday to pay tribute to the couple, AFP reports.
Natalya and Alexei Kulyk were killed after the bridge was attacked by a drone on Monday.
The couple’s daughter survived the incident and was taken to hospital.
“This is an irreparable loss to all of us,” said Natalya Tkachenko, a former colleague of Natalya Kulyk, to AFP. “A young beautiful family, taken away by fate.”
The family was on holiday when the attack happened.
Putin vowed on Monday to retaliate for the deadly attack, which has been attributed to Ukraine, AFP reports.
Updated
US-supplied cluster bombs have been deployed by Ukraine against Russia, confirms White House
US-supplied cluster munitions are in Ukrainian hands and being deployed in the field as part of Kyiv’s battle against Russia, the White House national security spokesman, John Kirby, has confirmed.
Both the New York Times and the Washington Post had reported today that Russian forces on the frontlines of the invasion in south-eastern Ukraine came under attack from the controversial weapons.
Col Oleksandr Bakulin of Ukraine earlier this week said that the weapons – which have already been used by both sides in the conflict – were necessary to “inflict maximum damage on enemy infantry”.
Updated
The US has imposed sanctions on roughly 120 firms and people from Russia to the UAE to Kyrgyzstan in an effort to restrict Moscow’s access to products, money and financial channels that support its invasion of Ukraine.
We reported earlier that former Russian finance minister Alexei Kudrin had been added to a US treasury list of people sanctioned. AP has combed the document that was published today and reports that the sanctions target dozens of Russian mining, technology and munitions firms and commercial banks.
A group of Kyrgyzstan-based electronics firms and its leadership were also targeted as exporters of components and other technology to Russia. Kyrgyzstan earlier denied helping its ally Moscow circumvent sanctions imposed over its invasion of Ukraine but did not rule out the involvement of private companies.
A UAE-based engineering company that sent dozens of shipments of electronics to Russia was also sanctioned.
US secretary of state Antony Blinken said:
Since Russia launched its full scale invasion of Ukraine, the United States, working with our allies and partners, has taken unprecedented steps to impose costs on Russia and promote accountability for the individuals and entities who support its illegal war. We will continue to stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes.
China has confirmed that its consulate building in Odesa was damaged in the overnight strike by Russia.
The Chinese foreign ministry press secretary said:
The explosion occurred next to the Chinese Consulate General in Odessa. The blast wave shook part of the wall covering and window panes. The consular staff had left the premises long before and no one was hurt.
The spokesperson did not say whether China had made any diplomatic overtures to Russia to complain.
Odesa’s governor said earlier:
The aggressor deliberately hits the port infrastructure. Administrative and residential buildings, as well as the consulate of the People’s Republic of China, were damaged. This suggests that the enemy does not pay attention to anything.
Updated
AFP has more details on the EU announcement that it is seeking to provide up to €5bn a year for the next four years for Ukraine’s defence needs.
After a Brussels ministerial meeting, the EU’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, said the union would “transform existing support into a long term commitment to Ukraine security and resilience”. Diplomats confirmed the military aid being discussed was €5bn a year over four years – 2024 to 2027 – but one cautioned that the talks were at the “early stages”.
EU foreign ministers were shown the plan at today’s foreign affairs council but a more detailed debate will take place on 31 August at their meeting in the Spanish city of Toledo.
Some member states, notably Hungary – Moscow’s best friend in the EU – may oppose the idea, and final political approval is not expected until European leaders meet at EU summits in October or even December.
Germany’s foreign minister, Annalena Baerbock, did not dispute the €20bn figure when asked.
For this we need very, very large financial resources, for further support of Ukraine in the military area, in order to be able to implement its right to self-defence. It all has to go hand-in-hand. It’s not enough to just throw numbers around, it has to be logically and meaningfully interlinked and we’re going to talk about that today, but also in the coming months.
Updated
Russia has still not let the UN nuclear watchdog’s team at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine have access to the rooftops of the occupied plant’s reactors, the agency has said as it follows up on Ukrainian accusations of foul play.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said:
[IAEA] experts have carried out additional inspections and walkdowns at Ukraine‘s Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant over the past week so far without observing any heavy military equipment, explosives or mines but they are still awaiting access to the rooftops of the reactor buildings.
Earlier this month, the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, again claimed Russia may be planning to “simulate an attack” on the Zaporizhzhia plant, claiming that Russian troops had placed “objects resembling explosives” on the roofs of buildings at the site.
Updated
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) has lifted sanctions on the Russian businessman Oleg Tinkov.
The decision comes days after Sir Richard Branson urged the government to reconsider its decision to place sanctions on Tinkov, a serial entrepreneur who founded the digital bank Tinkoff.
Tinkov was sanctioned in the aftermath of the invasion of Ukraine but has criticised the “insane” war and renounced Russian citizenship over it.
An FCDO spokesperson said:
Having considered all of the factors in this case, including the actions Mr Tinkov has taken following his sanctions designation, we have revoked his designation. We keep all sanctions designations under review.
Updated
The EU has announced it is plans to provide up to €5bn a year for the next four years for Ukraine’s defence needs via the means of a “dedicated section” under the European Peace facility, Reuters reports.
The EU’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, said:
It’s still the same tool, the European Peace facility, which has been working very well and we will continue using it but with a dedicated chapter inside it, with a specific funding which can be estimated on the figures I mentioned.
Updated
The New York Times has now also reported that Ukraine has begun firing cluster munitions that were controversially provided by the US, citing two American military officials.
US military depots in Europe last week sent hundreds of thousands of the weapons to Ukraine, Pentagon officials said. It was hoped the delivery would allow Ukraine “to sustain the artillery fight for the foreseeable future.”
We reported earlier that Col Oleksandr Bakulin earlier this week said that the weapons – which have already been used by both sides in the conflict – were necessary to “inflict maximum damage on enemy infantry”. A Ukrainian official told the Washington Post that the US-made bombs have now been fired at entrenched Russian positions.
Key event
A European Commission proposal to use frozen public Russian assets to help finance Ukraine will not be published until September, a spokesperson has said. A proposal was initially expected before August.
The spokesperson said:
Discussions between member states have been going well. The last meeting of the council working party on this matter was on 12 July and the next one will take place in September. Intensive work is taking place in the G7 context and we aim to have a G7 statement before the summer break. A legal proposal we aim to have after the summer break.”
The EU, which first floated this idea in November, is focused on finding a legal way to use the tax on the interest made by these assets for Ukraine. It was said to be mindful of ensuring the method holds up in court in the event of any lawsuits.
The EU has frozen over €200bn of Russian central bank assets since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, with the bulk held in Belgium. The EU has also frozen privately held funds and legal pushback has already started.
Updated
At least three people are now confirmed to have been killed during Russia’s third night of successive airstrikes on south Ukrainian port cities, according to Ukrainian officials cited by Reuters.
Ukraine’s military said Russian forces launched 19 missiles and 19 drones overnight, and that five of the missiles and 13 of the drones were shot down. In Odesa, a security guard was killed and at least eight other people were hurt, including a child, regional governor Oleh Kiper said. A married couple was killed in the city of Mykolaiv, mayor Oleksandr Senkevych said.
Regional governor Vitaliy Kim had said earlier that 19 people were hurt in the city, and several residential buildings were damaged. Fire fighters in Mykolaiv tackled a huge blaze that left a three-storey residential building without its top floor, and adjacent buildings were gutted by the fire.
Authorities in the northeastern region of Kharkiv said separately a 61-year-old man had been killed there by Russian shelling today,
Updated
Ukraine’s Kherson region will have little or no harvest due to a shortage of water in the North Crimean and Kakhovka canals, Russian-installed governor Vladimir Saldo has warned.
The Kakhovka dam, a huge Soviet-era dam on the Dnipro River that separates Russian and Ukrainian forces in southern Ukraine, was breached in June, unleashing flood waters across the war zone.
Last month, the BBC reported that the destruction of the dam had led one of Europe’s largest reservoirs to dry up – potentially imperilling drinking water supplies for hundreds of thousands of people mostly in Russian-occupied zones.
Updated
UN security council to meet over 'humanitarian consequences' of grain deal collapse
The UN Security Council will meet tomorrow over the “humanitarian consequences” of Russia’s withdrawal from a deal that allowed the safe Black Sea export of Ukraine grain for the past year, Britain’s UN mission has said.
🚨 #BREAKING
— UK at the UN 🇬🇧🇺🇳 (@UKUN_NewYork) July 20, 2023
The UN Security Council will meet tomorrow at 10am for a briefing on Ukraine.
The Council will discuss the humanitarian consequences of Russia’s interruption of the Black Sea Grain Initiative.#UNSC 🇬🇧🇺🇳 pic.twitter.com/jKEEeV2nR0
Updated
The UK has given Ukraine 184,000 more artillery shells than it planned to a year ago, the country’s defence secretary has said.
Ben Wallace said Britain had “donated significant quantities of military equipment, ammunitions and non-lethal aid” as Kyiv’s fighters defend their territory and look to expel Russian invaders.
While in a small number of areas we have delivered less than anticipated … we have exceeded plans in critical capability areas such as artillery, responding with agility to Ukraine’s priorities and developments on the battlefield. For example, we have delivered over 15 times the quantity of artillery ammunition originally planned.”
He spoke as the US embassy in Kyiv released a tweet outlining its support for the Ukrainian war effort.
Ensuring Ukrainians have what they need on the battlefield will help them retake their territory and help secure Ukraine’s ability to determine its own future.
— U.S. Embassy Kyiv (@USEmbassyKyiv) July 20, 2023
The United States committed an additional $1.3 billion as part of the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI).…
Updated
Former Russian finance minister Alexei Kudrin has been added to a US treasury list of people sanctioned, though a reasoning was not provided, the BBC reports.
Kudrin has been a close ally of president Vladimir Putin throughout his career. At the end of last year, he became the highest profile government official to leave a post since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He took up a role at technology giant Yandex advising on corporate development.
Whoa – the US has sanctioned Alexei Kudrin, a former top Russian official who quit last year.
— max seddon (@maxseddon) July 20, 2023
Kudrin is the most liberal member of Putin's inner circle and is said to privately oppose the invasion of Ukraine. It's not clear from this why he was sanctionedhttps://t.co/0cPG1Y2yx6
Ukraine minister for infrastructure Oleksandr Kubrakov has condemned what he said was Russia’s “brutal” violation of shipping laws.
The Russian Federation has once again brutally violated the universal right to free navigation for the whole world and is deliberately undermining food security, condemning millions of people to starvation.
Statement of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine
— Oleksandr Kubrakov (@OlKubrakov) July 20, 2023
The Russian Federation has once again brutally violated the universal right to free navigation for the whole world and is deliberately undermining food security, condemning millions of people to starvation.
By openly threatening… pic.twitter.com/OJN1h5uBt5
Wheat prices have been climbing on global markets, just days after Russia pulled out of an agreement that guaranteed safe passage for ships carrying cereals through the Black Sea.
It reignited fears of the impact on poorer, grain-importing countries, as well as on western nations dealing with stubbornly high inflation. Russia has carried out heavy air strikes on Ukraine’s grain stores, as well as port infrastructure in the coastal city of Odesa after the Kremlin’s decision to terminate the UN-brokered Black Sea grain initiative between Russia and Ukraine.
Grain prices had fallen by more than a third (35%) under the deal, which had been in place for just under a year in an attempt to alleviate a food crisis prompted by Russia’s blockade of Ukrainian ports that had prevented the transport of millions of tonnes of vital cereals.
Eugene Shvidler, a longtime ally of the billionaire Roman Abramovich, has accused the UK government of “oppressive treatment” as he launched a legal challenge against sanctions imposed upon him after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
In a high court case that experts say could lead to a precedent for oligarchs seeking to free themselves of sanctions, lawyers for Shvidler, who is reportedly worth £1.3bn, are seeking to have his designation for sanctions declared unlawful and quashed, as well as pursuing restitution of his costs.
They are challenging the Foreign Office’s decision to sanction the USSR-born businessman, questioning whether the “hardship” he is facing as a result is proportionate and alleging that he has been discriminated against.
Ukraine will receive a $1.5bn (£1.17bn) loan from the World Bank guaranteed by the government of Japan, Reuters reports the Ukrainian prime minister, Denys Shmyhal, said on Thursday.
Updated
Both Russia and Ukraine have now declared that they will treat vessels in the Black Sea as carrying military cargo, which would make them potential strike targets.
Ukraine’s ministry of defence issued this statement on Thursday afternoon, saying:
The Russian Federation has once again brutally violated the universal right to free navigation for the whole world and is deliberately undermining food security, condemning millions of people to starvation.
By openly threatening civilian ships transporting food from Ukrainian ports, launching missile attacks and drone attacks on civilian infrastructure in peaceful cities, deliberately creating a military threat on trade routes, the Kremlin has turned the Black Sea into a danger zone, primarily for Russian ships and ships heading in the waters of the Black Sea in the direction of seaports of the Russian Federation and Ukrainian seaports located on the territory of Ukraine temporarily occupied by Russia. The responsibility for all risks lies entirely with the Russian leadership.
The fate of the cruiser “Moskva” proves that the defence forces of Ukraine have the necessary means to repel Russian aggression at sea.
The ministry of defence of Ukraine warns that from 00:00 on 21 July, 2023, all vessels heading in the waters of the Black Sea in the direction of seaports of the Russian Federation and Ukrainian seaports located on the territory of Ukraine temporarily occupied by Russia may be considered by Ukraine as such carrying military cargo with all the associated risks.
The wording of the final paragraph precisely echoes that of the earlier statement from Russia’s ministry of defence, which came after Russian withdrew from the Black Sea grain initiative and then launched three consecutive nights of attacks on the port cities of Odesa and Mykolaiv which had been part of the deal.
In its statement, the Russian defence ministry said:
In connection with the termination of the Black Sea initiative and the curtailment of the maritime humanitarian corridor, from 00.00 Moscow time on 20 July 2023, all ships proceeding to Ukrainian ports in the Black Sea waters will be considered as potential carriers of military cargo.
Accordingly, the flag countries of such ships will be considered involved in the Ukrainian conflict on the side of the Kyiv regime.
A number of sea areas in the north-western and south-eastern parts of the international waters of the Black Sea have been declared temporarily dangerous for navigation. Relevant information warnings about the withdrawal of safety guarantees for seafarers have been issued in the prescribed manner.
Updated
Russia restricts movement of British diplomatic staff over support for Ukraine
Russia said on Thursday it was imposing restrictions on British diplomats, requiring them to give five days’ notice of any plans to travel beyond a 120km (75-mile) radius, due to what it called London’s “hostile actions”.
Britain’s chargé d’affaires in Russia was summoned to the foreign ministry in Moscow to be scolded for what Moscow said was support for the “terrorist actions” of Ukraine and for obstruction of Russian diplomacy in Britain.
“The British side was also informed of the decision to introduce a notification procedure for the movement of employees of British diplomatic missions on the territory of our country as a response to London’s hostile actions,” Reuters reports the ministry said.
British diplomats, with the exception of the ambassador and three other senior diplomats, will be required to send notification of any plans to travel beyond the 120km (75-mile) “free movement zone” at least five working days ahead.
“Such a document should contain information about the timing, purpose, type of trip, planned business contacts, accompanying persons, type of transport, places of visit and accommodation, as well as the route of the trip,” the ministry said.
Updated
Russia has lifted restrictions on cargo vessels moving through the Kerch strait between the Azov and Black seas, three industry sources told Reuters on Thursday.
One of the sources said navigation was open during daylight hours only.
The movement of cargo vessels through the Kerch strait was suspended by Russian authorities on 16 July following drone attacks on the Crimean port of Sevastopol. Russia unilaterally occupied and annexed Crimea in 2014.
Updated
A peer in the UK House of Lords has suggested that Russia could be offered the prospect of Nato membership in exchange for its withdrawal from Ukraine.
The journalist, broadcaster and prominent Sikh Indarjit Singh told the House of Lords that offering Nato membership would damage Russian president Vladimir Putin’s strongman persona and help bring world peace, PA reports.
The independent crossbench peer said:
Mr Putin likes to depict himself as a strongman defending Mother Russia against the perceived threat from the Nato alliance. It would totally destroy Putin’s credibility and help end the suffering of the Ukrainian people and further the cause of world peace if the west were to openly offer Russia the bait of membership of Nato in return for its total withdrawal from Ukraine.
Foreign Office minister Tariq Ahmad responded: “I’m sure Lord Singh is well intentioned but I’m afraid I can’t agree with this proposition … There can be someone who can stop this war – that is Mr Putin and he can stop it right now.”
Singh said in October:
If we were to say that we will disband Nato it might just give Putin the escape route he so desperately requires? If that does not work, it will at least show the Russian people what sort of person Putin is.
Updated
Ukraine’s foreign ministry has condemned a warning by Russia that any ships travelling to Ukrainian Black Sea ports will be seen as possibly carrying military cargoes.
“The ministry of foreign affairs of Ukraine strongly condemns any threats to use force against civilian ships, regardless of their flag,” it said.
It came as Ukraine’s defence ministry said it would consider all ships travelling to Russian ports and Ukrainian ports on the Black Sea occupied by Moscow as potential carriers of military cargo from 21 July, Reuters reports. The ministry said the Ukrainian armed forces had the means to repel what it called Russian aggression at sea.
Updated
Ukraine’s deputy economy minister held talks with China’s vice-commerce minister in Beijing today in the first high-level visit by a Ukraine government official to the country since 2019.
A source told Reuters that a meeting between Ukraine’s Taras Kachka and China’s Ling Ji took place in Beijing. It came around the time that China’s consulate general building in Odesa was damaged in a Russian attack on the city late last night Kyiv time.
China has a “no limits” partnership with Moscow. But Ling said China was willing to work with Ukraine to develop mutually beneficial bilateral economic and trade cooperation between the two countries, according to a Chinese commerce ministry account of the meeting.
Kachka, according to the Chinese commerce ministry, said:
The Ukrainian side will step up efforts to protect the safety of Chinese-funded enterprises in Ukraine. We are willing to work together with China to promote the healthy and sustainable development of economic and trade relations between the two countries.”
The meeting came on a day of high diplomacy in Beijing. Veteran US diplomat Henry Kissinger also met with Xi Jinping in Beijing’s park-like Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, with Chinese senior diplomat Wang Yi also in attendance, the Associated Press reports.
Updated
Russia says attacks on Odesa and Mykolaiv ports were 'retaliatory'
Russia’s defence ministry has characterised its overnight attacks in the Black Sea ports of Odesa and Mykolaiv as “retaliatory strikes”.
Moscow had promised retaliation for an attack on Monday with seaborne drones that damaged the bridge linking Crimea, seized from Ukraine in 2014, with southern Russia.
The attack coincided with Moscow’s decision not to extend the grain deal after accusing the west of failing to honour a parallel memorandum intended to facilitate Russia’s agricultural and fertiliser exports.
Since then, Russia has directed nightly bombardments at Ukraine’s port facilities and fuel and grain stores, Reuters reports.
The defence ministry said:
[It had] continued to deliver retaliatory strikes with high-precision sea and air-based weapons at workshops and storage sites for unmanned boats in the regions of Odesa and Chornomorsk. In the area of the city of Mykolaiv, fuel infrastructure facilities and ammunition depots of the armed forces of Ukraine were destroyed.
Updated
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy has sent his condolences to the families of the two people who were killed in Russian attacks on Odesa and Mykolaiv overnight.
Russian terrorists continue their attempts to destroy the life of our country. Unfortunately, there are wounded and dead... My condolences to the families and friends! But the evil state has no missiles that are more powerful than our will to save lives, support each other and win.
I thank everyone who defends our cities, our people, our sky! I am grateful to all our warriors, rescuers, doctors, local authorities, volunteers... to everyone involved in eliminating the consequences of Russian terror!
There are conflicting reports over how many people were killed, though reports so far have not exceeded two. At least 27 were also injured in Russia’s overnight attacks, which targeted Odesa and Mykolaiv for a third successive night.
Horrifying consequences of russian air attack on Mykolaiv last night. At least 1 civilian has been killed, and 18 civilians have been injured. pic.twitter.com/GZ21NrykrW
— Defense of Ukraine (@DefenceU) July 20, 2023
Odesa. Mykolaiv. Russian terrorists continue their attempts to destroy the life of our country.
— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) July 20, 2023
Unfortunately, there are wounded and dead... My condolences to the families and friends!
But the evil state has no missiles that are more powerful than our will to save lives, support… pic.twitter.com/CPcq8AmFoh
The UK Foreign Office has announced sanctions against 13 individuals and businesses linked to the actions of the Wagner group in Mali, Sudan and the Central African Republic.
Wagner’s leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, who led a mutiny against Moscow last month, has already had sanctions place on him by Britain, along with several of his key commanders, for their part in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Andrew Mitchell, minister for development and Africa, said:
The Wagner group is committing atrocities in Ukraine, as well as acting with impunity in countries like Mali, Central African Republic and Sudan. Wherever Wagner operates, it has a catastrophic effect on communities, worsens existing conflicts and damages the reputations of countries that host them.
Updated
Instructors from the mercenary group Wagner have begun training the ex-Soviet country’s special forces, nearly a month after an aborted rebellion in Russia, officials in Belarus have said.
Wagner fighters and their leader were due to move to Belarus as part of a deal to defuse their revolt, AFP reports. “Over the course of a week, special forces units and representatives of the company will practise combat tasks at the Brestsky training ground,” the Belarusian defence ministry said.
Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko offered Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin refuge in Belarus and said his army would benefit from the combat experience of Wagner commanders.
Last night, a video emerged purporting to show Prigozhin addressing his fighters in Belarus, in what was the first footage of the mercenary chief since the aborted rebellion. He was seen telling his troops they will spend some time in Belarus training its military to help “make the Belarusian army the second strongest army in the world” before deploying to Africa.
The Polish defence ministry said it would strengthen security at the border following the arrival of Wagner mercenaries in Belarus. The Kremlin today said it was “concerned” by the move, pointing to Warsaw’s “hostile attitude” towards both Belarus and Russia.
EU extends sanctions against Russia for another six months
The EU has said it has decided to prolong its sanctions against Russia by six months, until the end of January, over the country’s military aggression against Ukraine.
The Council of the EU said:
These sanctions, first introduced in 2014 in response to Russia’s actions destabilising the situation in Ukraine, were significantly expanded since February 2022, in response to Russia’s unprovoked and unjustified military aggression against Ukraine.
Ukraine begins firing US-provided cluster bombs against Russia – report
The Washington Post reports that Ukraine has begun firing cluster munitions that were controversially provided by the US.
Russian forces on the frontlines of the invasion in south-eastern Ukraine have come under attack from the indiscriminate weapons that can remain unexploded. The UN has said Russia has used the widely prohibited weapons in populated areas of Ukraine at least 24 times since the beginning of hostilities.
Col Oleksandr Bakulin told the BBC earlier this week that the weapons were necessary to “inflict maximum damage on enemy infantry”. A Ukrainian official told the Washington Post that they have been fired at entrenched Russian positions.
Scoop: Ukraine has started firing US-provided cluster munitions at Russian troops in southeast Ukraine in a push to break up their fortified positions. The controversial munitions, banned in 120+ countries, arrived in Ukraine last week. W/ @ikhurshudyan https://t.co/eLSea5lz5q
— John Hudson (@John_Hudson) July 20, 2023
Updated
Gen Oleksandr Syrskyi, commander of the Ukrainian army’s ground forces, appears confident that Bakhmut, which sits about 55 miles north of Donetsk, can be retaken.
In an interview with the BBC, he explained the strategic importance of the city:
Bakhmut is the centre of concentration of the main directions and roads. Well, for example, a road from Debaltsevo, a road from Seversk, a road from Gorlovka, a road from Konstantinovka and a road from Slavyansk go through Bakhmut. That is, this is the centre where all these paths converge.
Literally three kilometres beyond Bakhmut, the next city of Chasov Yar begins. And here it is very important for us to stop the enemy in Bakhmut, which is located in the lowland there.
He said yesterday that Ukraine was preparing to fire cluster bombs, a controversial and widely banned indiscriminate form of munitions, at Russia’s “fragile” defences within days.
Updated
Kyrgyzstan has denied helping its ally Moscow circumvent sanctions imposed over its invasion of Ukraine but did not rule out the involvement of private companies.
The Washington Post reported on Tuesday that US officials were particularly concerned about the role played by Kyrgyzstan in Russian schemes to evade sanctions over its invasion of Ukraine, and to acquire hi-tech items such as Chinese drones, according to Reuters.
The newspaper stated that the Biden administration is preparing new economic measures to pressure the country to halt sanctions busting.
“We would regret it if among the many dozens of countries seeing a much greater trade volume of the banned supplies, some people in Washington decided to pick on Kyrgyzstan,” said the Kyrgyz official who spoke on condition of anonymity.
“Kyrgyzstan is a free market economy with very limited government resources. We cannot be reasonably expected to police every entrepreneur and approve every transaction.”
The official added that “neither the Kyrgyz state itself nor any state structures and companies are involved in the violation of the regime of compliance with sanctions imposed by the United States and Western countries on Russia”.
The Kremlin said yesterday that Kyrgyzstan was a close partner that benefited from integration with Russia. “We intend to further develop bilateral relations with Kyrgyzstan, which we value very highly, as well as all formats of our joint integration,” spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said.
Updated
China’s ambassador to the US, Xie Feng, has told a security forum in Colorado, on the issue of the Ukraine war, that Beijing respects countries’ sovereignty and territorial integrity but also acknowledges “legitimate and reasonable security concerns”.
As noted below, China says it is neutral in the conflict, but in practice has shown Russia support by organising frequent state visits and joint military drills with Moscow.
Updated
In a rare public address in Prague, the head of MI6 accused China of being “absolutely complicit” in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
My colleague Helen Davidson reports that the Chinese leader, Xi Jinping, and Vladimir Putin signed a “no limits” partnership between their countries shortly before the Russian invasion. After the war began, China refused to publicly censure or discourage Russia, and senior officials often expressed direct support.
The intervention by Sir Richard Moore, who has been chief of the British Secret Intelligence Service since 2020, came as veteran US diplomat Henry Kissinger met today with Xi in Beijing’s park-like Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, with Chinese senior diplomat Wang Yi also in attendance, the Associated Press reports.
“The US policy toward China requires the diplomatic wisdom like that of Kissinger and political courage like Nixon’s,” Wang said, according to the foreign ministry.
The ministry said the two sides also discussed the war in Ukraine, as well as artificial intelligence and other economic issues. Wang told Kissinger that it was “impossible” to transform, encircle or contain China.
Kissinger also held talks with the defence minister, Li Shangfu, who is barred from visiting the US over arms sales he oversaw with Russia.
It’s Mattha Busby here, taking over the blog from Martin Belam. I’m on Twitter here or email mattha.busby@theguardian.com
Updated
Summary of the day so far …
Ukrainian sources have confirmed that two people have been killed and at least 27 injured in Russia’s overnight attacks, which have targeted Odesa and Mykolaiv for a third successive night. Ukraine’s military claimed to shoot down five cruise missiles and 13 attack drones out of 19 cruise missiles and 19 drones launched by Russia in total.
Suspilne reported that in Mykolaiv a three-storey building was struck, and residential buildings and about 15 garages were damaged in the city. 19 victims are known, with two of them hospitalised, including a child. In Odesa, due to the attack four people were injured and a security guard was killed. An administrative building was destroyed, and houses were damaged by the blast wave. Warehouses were hit in the region. Odesa’s governor has reported that the Chinese consulate in the city was damaged. Another person was killed in an attack in Kharkiv region.
Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskiy offered condolences to the victims, saying “Odesa. Mykolaiv. Russian terrorists continue their attempts to destroy the life of our country. But the evil state has no missiles that are more powerful than our will to save lives, support each other and win.”
After the attacks, Ukrainian presidential adviser Andriy Yermak made another appeal for tougher sanctions against Russia and more air defence supplies for Ukraine, tweeting: “We must unite against Russian evil. Russia’s economy should suffer a devastating sanctions blow, the military-industrial complex should be limited in its ability to produce weapons, and Ukraine should receive more weapons for defence of the sky and offensive actions.”
A teenage girl has died in a Ukrainian drone attack on north-west Crimea, the Moscow-back governor of the occupied peninsula has said. Authorities in Crimea, which Russia unilaterally annexed from Ukraine in 2014, have declared a municipal state of emergency in the area.
Russia likely made the decision to quit the Black Sea grain deal “some time ago because it decided that the deal was no longer serving its interests”, the UK’s Ministry of Defence has said in its latest intelligence update on the war.
Russia is responsible for a major global food supply crisis, the European Union’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, said on Thursday, some days after the Kremlin announced it would suspend an agreement for Ukrainian grain exports through the Black Sea.
Grain prices have jumped after Russia’s attacks on Ukrainian ports. On Wednesday Ukrainian officials said Russian strikes had destroyed 60,000 tonnes of grain awaiting export.
Germany is working with allies to ensure that Ukrainian grain is not left to rot in silos, and will intensify work on getting the grain out by rail, foreign minister Annalena Baerbock said on Thursday.
The US warned that Russia may attack civilian ships on the Black Sea and then blame Ukrainian forces. Russia says all ships travelling to Ukrainian ports on Black Sea will be considered carriers of military equipment from Thursday. Russia’s defence ministry said it would “flag countries of such ships … considered parties to the Ukrainian conflict”. The ministry did not say what actions it might take.
Yevgeny Balitsky, head of the Russian-imposed administration of the occupied Zaporizhzhia region of Ukraine has described the situation on the frontline there as “stabilized”, claiming “the enemy is not taking active actions. Our command understands that this lull is just an attempt by the enemy to recuperate after significant losses of equipment and manpower.”
The Belarus Red Cross has sparked international outrage after its chief told Belarusian state television that the organisation is actively involved in bringing Ukrainian children from Russian-occupied areas to Belarus. Both Ukraine and the Belarusian opposition have labelled the transfers unlawful deportations, and there have been calls for international war crimes charges for the authoritarian Belarus leader, similar to the charges against Russian president Vladimir Putin.
Russian media sources are reporting that Russian president Vladimir Putin will address the Brics summit in South Africa remotely on 23 August. Earlier this week it was announced that by “mutual consent” between South Africa and Russia, Putin would not travel to the summit, as South Africa might be obliged to act on the ICC warrant for the Russian leader’s arrest.
Britain has added individuals and groups with links to Russia’s Wagner group and operating in Central African Republic and Mali to its sanctions list. Britain named Vitalii Viktorovitch Perfilev as head of the Wagner group in the CAR and said he would be subject to an asset freeze and travel ban. Russia’s foreign ministry has summoned the British interim charge d’affaires in Moscow.
Updated
Odesa governor: Chinese consulate in port city damaged after Russian attack
Odesa’s governor has reported that the Chinese consulate in the city was damaged in the overnight strike by Russia.
On Telegram, Oleh Kiper posted:
As a result of the Russian night attack, the building of the consulate general of the People’s Republic of China in Odesa was damaged.
The aggressor deliberately hits the port infrastructure. Administrative and residential buildings, as well as the consulate of the People’s Republic of China, were damaged. This suggests that the enemy does not pay attention to anything.
Britain has added individuals and groups with links to Russia’s Wagner group and operating in Central African Republic and Mali to its sanctions list.
Reuters reports that in its statement on Thursday, Britain named Vitalii Viktorovitch Perfilev as head of the Wagner group in the CAR and said he would be subject to an asset freeze and travel ban.
Reuters also reports that Russia’s foreign ministry has summoned the British interim charge d’affaires in Moscow.
More details soon …
Updated
Two dead and at least 27 injured after night of Russian attacks on Odesa, Mykolaiv and in Kharkiv
Ukrainian sources have confirmed that two people have been killed and at least 27 injured in Russia’s overnight attacks, which have targeted Odesa and Mykolaiv for a third successive night.
Nineteen people were wounded in the city of Mykolaiv, and a security guard was killed and at least eight others were hurt in Odesa, including a child.
Ukraine claims it shot down five missiles and 13 drones after Russia launched 19 of each.
Reuters reports one of the people was killed in Russian shelling in the north-eastern region of Kharkiv, regional authorities said.
Earlier this week Moscow said the attacks on Ukrainian port cities on Tuesday were meant as retaliation for blasts on a bridge used to transport Russian military supplies, which it blamed on Kyiv.
Updated
Ukraine’s president has used his social media channels to comment on the overnight attacks on Ukraine. On his Telegram channel, Volodymyr Zelenskiy wrote:
Odesa. Mykolaiv. Russian terrorists continue their attempts to destroy the life of our country. Unfortunately, there are wounded and dead. My condolences to the families and friends.
But the evil state has no missiles that are more powerful than our will to save lives, support each other and win.
I thank everyone who defends our cities, our people, our sky. I am grateful to all our warriors, rescuers, doctors, local authorities, volunteers … to everyone involved in eliminating the consequences of Russian terror.
I am grateful to the port workers who do their best to preserve our infrastructure. To the builders and repair teams who help people restore normal living conditions.
Together we will make it through this terrible time. And we will withstand the attacks of Russian evil.
Germany is working with allies to ensure that Ukrainian grain is not left to rot in silos after Russia pulled out of an export deal, and will intensify work on getting the grain out by rail, the foreign minister, Annalena Baerbock, said on Thursday.
Speaking on the sidelines of a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels, Baerbock accused Russia of blackmail and trying to use the grain as a weapon at the expense of the world’s poorest.
“Hundreds of thousands of people, not to say millions, urgently need the grain from Ukraine, which is why we are working with all our international partners so that the grain in Ukraine does not rot in silos in the next few weeks, but reaches the people of the world who urgently need it,” Reuters reports Baerbock said.
Updated
Russian media sources are reporting that the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, will address the Brics summit in South Africa remotely on 23 August.
Earlier this week it was announced that by “mutual consent” between South Africa and Russia, Putin would not travel to the summit, as South Africa could be obliged to act on the ICC warrant for the Russian leader’s arrest.
Updated
Yevgeny Balitsky, head of the Russian-imposed administration of the occupied Zaporizhzhia region of Ukraine, has posted on Telegram about the status of the frontline in the region, which Russia partially occupies. He wrote:
The situation has stabilized … the enemy is not taking active actions. However, our command understands that this lull is just an attempt by the enemy to recuperate after significant losses of equipment and manpower.
The message was accompanied by an image that purports to be from Vasylivka. Balitsky claimed:
Evidence of [Ukrainian armed forces’] difficulty and anger was yesterday’s chaotic shelling of peaceful Vasylivka by artillery pieces – three shells of cannon artillery, aiming at civilian infrastructure. The House of Culture was destroyed, residential buildings, roads were damaged, a gas pipe was broken, the glazing of apartments in an apartment building was damaged by a shock wave. One woman born in 1954 was injured, she received medical assistance, her life and health are not in danger.
The claims have not been independently verified.
Russia announced it would annex Zaporizhzhia in September 2022.
Updated
Here are a couple more images from Mykolaiv, which Russia struck overnight.
Updated
Authorities in Crimea, which Russia unilaterally annexed from Ukraine in 2014, have declared a municipal state of emergency in the area where a drone struck earlier. [See 4.25 BST]
Suspilne, Ukraine’s state broadcaster, offers this round-up of overnight news from Ukraine. It reports:
At night, the Russian Federation launched over Ukraine seven Onyx cruise missiles, four Kh-22 cruise missiles, three Kalibr cruise missiles, five Iskander-K cruise missiles and 19 Shahed drones. Air defence forces shot down two Kalibrs, three Iskanders and 13 drones.
In Mykolaiv, they hit a three-storey building, part of the building was destroyed, and they continue to clear the debris there. Residential buildings and about 15 garages were damaged in the city. Currently, 19 victims are known, two of them are hospitalised, including a child.
In Odesa, due to a rocket attack, four people were injured, one more person may be under the rubble, mayor Trukhanov said. In the city, the administrative building was destroyed, and houses were damaged by the blast wave. Warehouses were hit in the region.
In Sumy, a drone hit the building of a children’s camp on the outskirts of the city, an injured woman was treated on the spot. In Chernihiv region drones hit residential buildings, the number of victims is being specified.
Kherson and Dnipropetrovsk regions were also under fire at night. Residential buildings and an infrastructure object were damaged. There are no casualties.
The claims have not been independently verified.
Updated
Russia is responsible for a major global food supply crisis, the European Union’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, said on Thursday, some days after the Kremlin announced it would suspend an agreement for Ukrainian grain exports through the Black Sea.
“What we already know is that this is going to create a big and huge food crisis in the world,” Reuters reports Borrell told journalists before heading into a EU foreign ministers’ meeting.
Borrell also accused Russia of deliberately attacking grain storage facilities in the southern port city of Odesa, which he said would further deepen the food crisis.
The Ukrainian presidential adviser Andriy Yermak has made another appeal for tougher sanctions against Russia and more air defence supplies for Ukraine, tweeting:
We must unite against Russian evil. Russia’s economy should suffer a devastating sanctions blow, the military-industrial complex should be limited in its ability to produce weapons, and Ukraine should receive more weapons for defence of the sky and offensive actions.
Updated
Here is a reminder that earlier the Russian ministry of defence said that it would now be treating all ships heading to Ukrainian ports as potential carriers of military cargo. In a statement, the ministry said:
In connection with the termination of the Black Sea initiative and the curtailment of the maritime humanitarian corridor, from midnight Moscow time on 20 July 2023, all ships proceeding to Ukrainian ports in the Black Sea waters will be considered as potential carriers of military cargo.
Accordingly, the flag countries of such ships will be considered involved in the Ukrainian conflict on the side of the Kyiv regime.
A number of sea areas in the north-western and south-eastern parts of the international waters of the Black Sea have been declared temporarily dangerous for navigation. Relevant information warnings about the withdrawal of safety guarantees for seafarers have been issued in the prescribed manner.
Updated
Police in Odesa have announced some road closures as they deal with the consequences of the overnight attack on the city, Suspilne reports.
This is Martin Belam taking over the live blog in London. You can contact me at martin.belam@theguardian.com.
The wires have sent through some pictures from Mykolaiv, where the governor said earlier that 18 people had been injured in Russian missile strikes overnight.
Updated
Ukraine’s military shot down five cruise missiles and 13 attack drones launched by Russian forces overnight at the southern Mykolaiv and Odesa regions, Reuters has reported citing Kyiv’s air force.
It said Russia fired 19 cruise missiles and 19 drones in total, but did not specify exactly where the others struck.
Later today the lawfulness of the UK sanctions regime set up in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will face its biggest legal test, when a Soviet-era oligarch and ally of Roman Abramovich seeks a court order to release his assets, which include two private jets.
The case being brought by Eugene Shvidler, a billionaire oil businessman, follows similar challenges by oligarchs now entering the courts in Europe where a separate but similar sanction regime operates.
At stake is billions of pounds worth of assets, some of which the west wants to siphon off to help fund Ukraine’s reconstruction.
Shvidler’s request for the release of his assets is the first case to reach the UK high court involving an individual. A number of other cases are waiting to be heard if he succeeds.
Russia likely made the decision to quit the Black Sea grain deal “some time ago because it decided that the deal was no longer serving its interests”, the UK’s Ministry of Defence has said in its latest intelligence update on the war.
Russia has masked this with disinformation, claiming its withdrawal is instead due to concerns that civilian ships are at risk from Ukrainian mines and that Ukraine was making military use of the grain corridor without providing evidence for these claims.
It added that Russia’s Black Sea fleet (BSF) would now likely take a more active role in disrupting any trade that continues.
However BSF blockade operations will be at risk from Ukrainian uncrewed surface vehicles and coastal defence cruise missiles.
Latest Defence Intelligence update on the situation in Ukraine - 20 July 2023.
— Ministry of Defence 🇬🇧 (@DefenceHQ) July 20, 2023
Find out more about Defence Intelligence's use of language: https://t.co/MoP1pB2Npx
🇺🇦 #StandWithUkraine 🇺🇦 pic.twitter.com/Vmve0bMlM4
Updated
The Belarus Red Cross has sparked international outrage after its chief told Belarusian state television that the organisation is actively involved in bringing Ukrainian children from Russian-occupied areas to Belarus.
A report that aired on Wednesday on Belarus state TV showed Dzmitry Shautsou, the head of the Belarus Red Cross, visiting the Russian-occupied Ukrainian city of Lysychansk in the Luhansk region.
In the footage, he says the organisation was actively involved in bringing Ukrainian children to Belarus for “health improvement” purposes.
“The Belarus Red Cross has taken – and is taking, and will be taking – an active part in it,” Shautsou said.
Both Ukraine and the Belarusian opposition have labelled the transfers unlawful deportations, and there have been calls for Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko to be charged with international war crimes over them, like Russian president Vladimir Putin.
Russia launched a series of missile and drone attacks on port and grain infrastruture in southern Ukraine on Wednesday in a likely bid to “further emphasize Russia’s objections to the renewal of the Black Sea grain deal and hinder Ukraine’s ability to export grain,” the Institute for the Study of War has written in its latest analysis.
The US-based thinktank writes:
Spokesperson of the Ukrainian southern operational command Captain of the First Rank Nataliya Humenyuk stated that the Russian July 19 strikes “happened virtually simultaneously,” and that Russian forces likely attempted to overwhelm the Ukrainian air defense systems.
Ukrainian Air Forces spokesperson Colonel Yuriy Ihnat stated that this attack was the most intense missile and drone attack on Odesa Oblast since the start of the full-scale invasion in February 2022.
The wires have sent through a series of images from the village of New York (yes that’s correct), near the frontlines in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, by photographer Genya Savilov.
Updated
Grain prices have jumped after Russia’s attacks on Ukrainian ports, which follow its decision to pull out of a year-long deal that allowed Kyiv to export grain to world markets via its Black Sea ports.
On Wednesday Ukrainian officials said Russian strikes had destroyed 60,000 tonnes of grain awaiting export.
Reuters reports:
Chicago wheat futures rose 1.6% to hit a three-week high on Thursday, buoyed up by growing expectations that an attack on Ukrainian ports after Russia’s withdrawal from a Black Sea export deal will have longer-term impact on global supplies.
Corn gained more than 1%, while soya beans were little changed on forecasts of hot and dry weather in the US midwest.
“Russia’s overnight attack on infrastructures at the port of Odesa will have served to remind participants and observers as to the risks involved in maintaining Black Sea trade flows without a guarantee of safety,” BMI Research, a unit of Fitch Group, said in a note.
The most-active wheat contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) added 1.6% to $7.39-1/4 a bushel, as of 0203 GMT, after climbing more than 8% on Wednesday. The market hit its highest since 27 June at $7.39-3/4 a bushel.
Corn rose 1.1% to $5.59-1/4 a bushel and soya beans were unmoved at $14.08-3/4 a bushel.
The “terrorists’ attack on Odesa” shows that Russia is not just targeting Ukraine but also other countries, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in his daily evening address late Wednesday.
“About a million tons of food is stored in the ports that were attacked today. This is the volume that should have been delivered to consumer countries in Africa and Asia long ago,” he said. “Everyone is affected by this Russian terror.”
Today's 🇷🇺 terrorists' attack on Odesa proves that their target is not only 🇺🇦, and not only the lives of our people. About a million tons of food is stored in the ports that were attacked today. This is the volume that should have been delivered to consumer countries in Africa… pic.twitter.com/7jbz9TaqKg
— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) July 19, 2023
Russia may attack civilian ships on Black Sea and blame Ukraine, US warns
This third night of Russian attacks targeting southern coastal cities comes as the US warned that Russia may attack civilian ships on the Black Sea and then blame Ukrainian forces.
“The Russian military may expand their targeting of Ukrainian grain facilities to include attacks against civilian shipping,” national security council spokesperson Adam Hodge told AFP on Wednesday.
He said the allegation was based on newly declassified intelligence. The warning came hours after Moscow said it would consider all ships sailing on the Black Sea to Ukrainian ports as potential military targets.
The Kremlin pulled out of an international deal allowing safe passage of massive Ukrainian grain exports across the Black Sea to world markets earlier this week.
Read the full story:
A total of 18 people have been wounded in the strikes on Mykolaiv, the governor Vitaliy Kim has said. Nine were taken to hospital, including five children. Two people were rescued from the rubble, he said on Telegram. “It is a miracle they were saved,” he said.
He gave no further information on the deaths he had reported earlier.
Updated
One person killed in drone attack on occupied Crimea, governor says
A teenage girl has died in a Ukrainian drone attack on north-west Crimea, the Moscow-back governor of the occupied peninsula has said.
“As a result of an enemy UAV [drone] strike on one of the settlements in the north-west of Crimea, four administrative buildings were damaged. [Emergency] services are on site,” Sergei Aksyonov said in a Telegram post.
Deaths reported after Russian strike on Mykolaiv, military says
Deaths have been reported in Mykolaiv after Russia launched strikes on the southern port city, the Ukrainian military and the local governor have said.
The city centre was hit in the attack and a garage and three-storey residential building were set on fire, governor Vitaliy Kim said on Telegram. Nine people were wounded, including five children, Kim said, later adding “there are also dead”.
Two people were also hospitalised after strikes on Odesa, the military said. The Black Sea port has already endured two nights of Russian bombardment after Moscow said it was pulling out a deal that allowed Ukrainian grain to be exported via Ukraine’s Black Sea ports.
Earlier the military had warned that both cities were being targeted by Kh-22 anti-ship missiles.
Opening summary
Hello and welcome to the Guardian’s live coverage of the war in Ukraine with me, Helen Livingstone.
An unconfirmed number of people have been killed and nine injured, including five children, in a Russian missile strike on the southern port city of Mykolaiv, the Ukrainian military has said.
In a series of Telegram posts, the military warned the city was being targeted by Kh-22 anti-ship missiles and later said a garage and a three-storey building in the city centre had been hit.
It also said Odesa, which has already endured two nights of strikes, was being targeted and reported “strong explosions”. Two people were in hospital.
The bombardments come after Russia said its decision to withdraw from a year-long deal that allowed Ukrainian grain to be exported via Black Sea ports was final.
In other developments:
Russia says all ships travelling to Ukrainian ports on Black Sea will be considered carriers of military equipment from Thursday, days after quitting the Black Sea grain deal. Russia’s defence ministry said it would “flag countries of such ships … considered parties to the Ukrainian conflict”. The ministry did not say what actions it might take.
US officials have information indicating Russia has laid additional sea mines in the approaches to Ukrainian ports, said Adam Hodge, White House national security council spokesperson. “We believe that this is a coordinated effort to justify any attacks against civilian ships in the Black Sea and lay blame on Ukraine for these attacks,” he said.
The developments came after the Black Sea port Odesa endured a second “hellish night” of attacks, with Russia targeting grain facilities and port infrastructure. The strikes were an effort to stop Ukrainian grain reaching world markets, said Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
A video has appeared purporting to show the Wagner mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin addressing his fighters in Belarus and calling the Russian war effort in Ukraine a “disgrace”, in the first footage of the Russian warlord to emerge since his mutiny last month.
In it, Prigozhin says Wagner will no longer fight in Ukraine and will head to Africa. “What is happening at the front [in Ukraine] now is a disgrace in which we do not need to participate,” he said. “[We will] wait for the moment when we can prove ourselves in full.”
Vladimir Putin will attend a Brics summit in South Africa next month via video conference amid speculation that he could be detained under an international criminal court warrant for his arrest for war crimes in Ukraine if he appeared in person. South Africa is an ICC member, meaning they would have been obliged to arrest Putin if he entered the country.
The Belarus Red Cross has sparked international outrage after its chief told Belarusian state television that the organisation is actively involved in bringing Ukrainian children from Russian-occupied areas to Belarus. “The Belarus Red Cross has taken – and is taking, and will be taking – an active part in it, [the deportations]” Dzmitry Shautsou told state-run Belarus 1 TV channel.
Talks being mediated by Saudi Arabia and Turkey on the repatriation of Ukrainian thousands of children taken to Russia since Moscow’s invasion have been under way since at least April, a source with knowledge of the discussions said on Wednesday according to Reuters. The source expressed doubt that a deal would be reached because it would depend on the Russian president, Vladimir Putin. “For him to give (the children) back would mean that he agrees that he’s a war criminal,” the source said.
The US has announced $1.3bn in additional security assistance for Ukraine. The package is set to include air defence capabilities and munitions. “This announcement represents the beginning of a contracting process to provide additional priority capabilities to Ukraine,” the Pentagon said in a statement on Wednesday.
EU foreign ministers are expected to discuss a proposal on Thursday to spend up to €20bn ($22.4bn) on weapons, ammunition and other military aid for Ukraine over four years. The proposal is part of an effort to put the bloc’s support for Kyiv on a longer-term footing.
A fire broke out at the military training grounds in the Kirovske district on the Crimean Peninsula, the Moscow-backed governor of Crimea said on Wednesday. The fire forced the closure of the nearby Tavrida highway and the evacuation of 2,000 people, Sergei Aksyonov said on Telegram. Messaging channels linked to Russian security services and Ukrainian media said an ammunition depot was on fire at the base after a Ukrainian overnight air attack.
The Wagner group’s mutiny attempt in June showed Putin was under pressure, the head of Britain’s MI6 foreign spy service, Richard Moore, said in a rare public address. Moore said he was optimistic about the Ukrainian counteroffensive appealed to Russians appalled by the war in Ukraine to spy for Britain. “Our door is always open … Their secrets will be safe with us.”
The lawfulness of the UK sanctions regime set up in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will face its biggest legal test on Thursday when a Soviet-era oligarch and ally of Roman Abramovich seeks a court order to release his assets. At stake in the case brought by Eugene Shvidler, a billionaire oil businessman, is billions of pounds worth of assets, some of which the west wants to siphon off to help fund Ukraine’s reconstruction.
An Australian photographer has spoken of her pain and upset at what she has described as the unauthorised use of an image of her daughter as the basis for a pro-Russia mural on a bombed-out building in Mariupol. Helen Whittle said she was “very saddened” by the way her daughter’s portrait had been used by Italian street artist Ciro Cerullo.
