Closing summary
It’s just past 10pm in Kyiv. Here’s a recap of the latest developments:
Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, formally lowered the threshold for Russia’s use of its nuclear weapons following the Biden decision to allow Ukraine to strike targets inside Russian territory with US-supplied longer-range weapons.
Russia’s revised nuclear doctrine declares that a conventional attack on Russia by any nation that is supported by a nuclear power will be considered a joint attack on his country. The doctrine also states that an attack using conventional missiles, drones or other aircraft could be seen as justification for a nuclear response.
The Kremlin spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, appeared to suggest that Russia might respond with nuclear weapons if Ukraine used western-supplied missiles to strike targets inside Russia. The Kremlin said the purpose of the updated nuclear doctrine was to make potential enemies understand the inevitability of retaliation for an attack on Russia or its allies.
The US called on Russia “to stop this bellicose and the irresponsible rhetoric”, but said it has not seen any reason to adjust its nuclear posture. US state department spokesperson Matthew Miller said he was “not surprised” by comments by the Kremlin over the new revised nuclear doctrine.
The UK’s prime minister, Keir Starmer, also accused Russia of being guilty of making “irresponsible rhetoric”. “There’s irresponsible rhetoric coming from Russia, and that is not going to deter our support for Ukraine,” he told reporters at the G20 summit in Brazil. In a direct message to the Russian president, Starmer added: “On day 1,000 of Russia’s illegal war in Ukraine, I say again: ‘End the war. Get out of Ukraine’.”
Ukraine fired US-made long-range missiles into Russia for the first time since the Biden administration lifted restrictions on their use. The target appeared to be an ammunition warehouse. Ukraine’s general staff said it hit a military arsenal of the 1046th logistics centre outside the city of Karachev without confirming the use of the missiles.
Russia’s defence ministry said Ukraine launched six US-made Atacms missiles targeting the south-western Bryansk region overnight. It claimed that five of the missiles were shot down and another was damaged. It said debris from the rockets caused a fire at an unnamed military facility.
Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, did not directly confirm the missile attack targeting Bryansk but said: “We now have Atacms, Ukrainian long-range capabilities, and we will use them.”
Russia’s foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, said the Ukrainian attack was a clear signal that the west wanted to escalate the conflict. “Without the Americans, it is impossible to use these hi-tech missiles, as Putin has repeatedly said,” Lavrov said in Rio de Janeiro for the G20 summit. He said Russia would respond “accordingly” to the attack.
Britain is also expected to supply its own Storm Shadow missiles for use by Ukraine on targets inside Russia, after the US approval. Keir Starmer, the prime minister, said at the G20 summit that the UK recognised it needed to “double down” on its support for Ukraine,
The UN high commissioner for human rights, Volker Türk, marked the “grim” milestone of 1,000 days since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine by saying that it has been “1,000 days too many of senseless pain and suffering.” A statement by Türk’s spokesperson on Tuesday said the OHCHR has verified that at least 12,162 civilians have been killed since 24 February 2022, among them 659 children. At least another 26,919 civilians have been injured, it said.
President Zelenskyy said it is time for Germany to support Ukraine’s longer-range strike capabilities against Russia. “I think after statements about nuclear weapons, it is also time for Germany to support corresponding decisions,” the Ukrainian leader said during a briefing in Kyiv with Danish prime minister Mette Frederiksen. German chancellor Olaf Scholz, who held an hour-long call with Putin last week, has been hesitant to provide long-range Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine, fuelling frustration in Kyiv.
US calls on Russia to 'stop bellicose and irresponsible rhetoric', says state department
The US has not seen any reason to adjust its nuclear posture, a spokesperson for the state department said after Russia lowered the threshold for a nuclear strike.
Matthew Miller, at a briefing with reporters on Tuesday, said Moscow’s “irresponsible and bellicose” rhetoric “will not do anything to improve Russia’s security”.
He said he was “not surprised” by comments by the Kremlin over the new revised nuclear doctrine, which allows for a potential nuclear response even to a conventional attack on Russia by any nation that is supported by a nuclear power.
“Since the beginning of its war of aggression against Ukraine, it has sought to coerce and intimidate both Ukraine and other countries around the world through irresponsible nuclear rhetoric and behavior,” Miller said.
“We have not seen any reason to adjust our own nuclear posture, but we will continue to call on Russia to stop this bellicose and the irresponsible rhetoric.”
UN rights chief marks '1,000 days too many of senseless pain and suffering'
The UN high commissioner for human rights, Volker Türk, has marked the “grim” milestone of 1,000 days since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine by saying that it has been “1,000 days too many of senseless pain and suffering.”
A statement by Türk’s spokesperson Jeremy Laurence on Tuesday said the OHCHR has verified that at least 12,162 civilians have been killed since 24 February 2022, among them 659 children. At least another 26,919 civilians have been injured, it said.
Over the past two days, at least 30 civilians have reportedly been killed in a series of deadly strikes in residential areas in Sumy City, Odesa and Hlukhiv. The Hlukhiv attack late on Monday night reportedly killed nine civilians, including a child, it said.
“Violations of human rights have become the order of the day, both in the conduct of hostilities and in areas under occupation,” Laurence said.
“The violence must stop – for the sake of the people of Ukraine, the people of Russia, and the world.”
Erdoğan signals he does not support US Atacams decision
Turkey’s president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has signalled that he does not support the US’s decision to allow Ukraine to fire US-made missiles inside Russia.
Asked about Russia lowering the threshold for a nuclear strike, Erdoğan said Moscow had to take steps to protect itself, adding that Nato should review the Russian statement carefully.
Speaking at a press conference after the G20 summit in Brazil, he said Turkey had to maintain good relations with both Russia and Ukraine.
Ankara would continue to call for peace despite Ukraine’s attack on Russia using US Atacms missiles, which he said was “not positive”.
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Denmark is making a new donation of about $138m (£109m) for development of Ukraine’s arms industry, the country’s prime minister Mette Frederiksen said on Tuesday.
“Today I’m pleased to announce a new Danish donation to Ukraine. More than 130 million euros directly to Ukraine’s defence industry because we know now what your industry is capable of,” Frederiksen said at a joint press conference with Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
“Because we know that these investments make a real difference on the battlefield. And make no mistake, our support is long-term.”
Denmark is among the biggest contributors of military aid to Ukraine relative to the size of its economy, with much of the aid directed specifically at developing Ukraine’s defence industry.
Here’s more from the UK prime minister, Keir Starmer, who was speaking to reporters during the G20 summit in Brazil today.
Starmer said Russian leader Vladimir Putin’s “irresponsible rhetoric” on nuclear weapons is “not going to deter our support for Ukraine”.
“We’re now on day 1,000 of a conflict, that’s 1000 days of Russian aggression, 1,000 days of sacrifices in Ukraine,” he said.
“We have stood with Ukraine from the start. I’ve been doubling down in my clear message that we need to ensure Ukraine has what is needed for as long as needed to win this war against Putin.”
In a direct message to the Russian president, Starmer added: “On day 1,000 of Russia’s illegal war in Ukraine, I say again: ‘End the war. Get out of Ukraine’.”
Global stock markets fell and bond prices have jumped after reports that Ukraine had fired a US-made long-range missile into Russia for the first time and Vladimir Putin approved changes to Moscow’s nuclear doctrine.
Investors dashed into safe-haven currencies such as the US dollar, the Japanese yen and the Swiss franc on Tuesday, after the RBC-Ukraine news outlet reported that Kyiv had carried out its first strike on Russian territory using western-supplied missiles…
Concerns that the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which has passed its 1,000th day, was escalating hit stock markets in Europe. The Stoxx 600 share index dropped over 1% to its lowest since August.
Britain’s FTSE 100 index was down 0.5% in afternoon trading, towards the three-month low hit last week, at 8,070 points.
New York opened in the red, with the Dow Jones industrial average of 30 large US companies dropping by 0.8%, and the broader S&P 500 losing 0.4%. Wall Street’s fear index, the Chicago Board Options Exchange’s CBOE Volatility Index, jumped by almost 10%.
You can read the full story here:
Putin guilty of 'irresponsible' rhetoric, says Starmer
The UK’s prime minister Keir Starmer has said that Russia was guilty of making “irresponsible rhetoric” after Vladimir Putin lowered the threshold for a nuclear strike.
“There’s irresponsible rhetoric coming from Russia, and that is not going to deter our support for Ukraine,” he told reporters at the G20 summit in Brazil.
Speaking about Russia in general, he said: “One nation stands apart. For the third year running, Putin did not attend this summit. He is the author of his own exile.”
He declined to say whether he was disappointed that the G20 joint communique watered down support for Ukraine (it only included a broad reference to “human suffering” caused by Russia’s full-scale invasion).
Asked whether he was disappointed, Starmer said: “The communique does be absolutely clear on the UN charter and sovereignty and territorial integrity and obviously that’s negotiated by quite a sort of diverse group.”
He insisted that he had used “every opportunity” both in the main sessions and in bilateral meetings during the summit to make clear “what we need to do to double down”.
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EU countries agree to work together to develop closer defence cooperation
Under four schemes announced by the EU’s European Defence Agency (EDA), groups of European countries have signed so-called letters of intent to develop to work together to develop missile defence, electronic warfare and other military assets as part of a drive to foster closer defence cooperation between national governments.
“National efforts, while indispensable, are not enough,” Josep Borrell, the EU’s outgoing top foreign policy chief, said.
“The geopolitical landscape makes our cooperation, alongside increased spending, essential to be ready for high-intensity warfare.”
The EDA said 18 countries ranging in size from Germany, France and Italy to Cyprus and Luxembourg signed up to cooperate on air defence. Seventeen will cooperate on loitering munitions, 14 on electronic warfare and seven on the combat vessel, Reuters reported.
Electronic warfare, used to jam signals to weapons such as drones, and loitering munitions, which hover over targets, have emerged as key technologies in Russia’s war in Ukraine. The EDA did not put a financial value on the four initiatives or name any companies that may be involved.
“The scope of these letters of intent ranges from short-term joint procurement, through medium-term modernisation and upgrades, to long-term development of future capabilities,” it said.
Zelenskyy says Germany should support Ukraine's longer-range strike capabilities
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says it is time for Germany to support Ukraine’s longer-range strike capabilities against Russia.
“I think after statements about nuclear weapons, it is also time for Germany to support corresponding decisions,” the Ukrainian leader said during a briefing in Kyiv with Danish prime minister Mette Frederiksen.
German chancellor Olaf Scholz, who held an hour-long call with Russian president Vladimir Putin last week, has been hesitant to provide long-range Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine, fuelling frustration in Kyiv.
As my colleagues Pjotr Sauer and Kate Connolly write in this report, Scholz urged Putin to withdraw troops from Ukraine and negotiate with Kyiv to achieve a just and lasting peace, in the first call between a major western leader and the isolated Russian president since December 2022.
The one-hour phone call came after Putin reportedly spoke with the US president-elect, Donald Trump, whose incoming administration has vowed to push for a swift end to the war in Ukraine.
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Ukraine for the first time has used the US-supplied Atacms long range missile system to hit a target deep inside Russia (targeting the south-western Bryansk region overnight), a day after Joe Biden, the outgoing US president, signalled his permission to do so.
My colleague Oliver Holmes has written an explainer on the capabilities of Atacms missiles and why they are so important to Ukraine:
Here is an extract from the piece:
The missile system is known as Army Tactical Missile System, or Atacms (pronounced “attack ’ems”). It was developed during the cold war to destroy Soviet targets and Kyiv has been using them already, but only on targets in occupied areas of Ukraine.
Made by Lockheed Martin, the missiles can strike targets up to 190 miles (300km) away. Ballistic missiles fly much higher in the atmosphere than most rockets and can evade anti-air defences as they hit the ground at huge speeds.
Atacms are considered long-range, although they do not have the range of a cruise or intercontinental ballistic missile.
Ukraine will now be able to strike targets in Russia to help it defend the more than 1,000 sq km of territory it holds in the Russian region of Kursk. The Atacms could target Russian weapons and ammunition depots, supply lines, and military bases, which would give relief to Ukrainian troops on the frontlines.
Sweden and Lithuania 'deeply concerned' by severed Baltic Sea cable
As we have been reporting, European countries have been reaction with alarm to reports of the severing of an undersea telecom cable connecting Sweden and Lithuania, which is now being investigated as sabotage.
In a joint statement, Sweden’s defence minister Pal Jonson and his Lithuanian counterpart Laurynas Kasciunas, said:
We are deeply concerned by the severed undersea cable connecting Lithuania and Sweden in the Baltic Sea.
They added that “situations like these must be assessed with the growing threat posed by Russia in our neighbourhood as a backdrop”.
Two fibre-optic cables – one linking Finland and Germany, the other connecting Sweden to Lithuania – stopped working between Sunday and Monday, recalling previous security incidents in the busy waterway affected by Russia’s war in Ukraine.
“We have to state, without knowing specifically who it came from, that it is a ‘hybrid’ action. And we also have to assume, without knowing it yet, that it is sabotage,” Pistorius told journalists.
Regional Nato members were jointly assessing what happened, a spokesperson for the Lithuanian armed forces said, adding that naval forces had stepped up their patrols.
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Summary of the day so far...
Russia said on Tuesday that Ukraine’s use of long-range Atacms missiles against its territory marked a “new phase of the western war” against Moscow, and vowed to react “accordingly”. It came after Ukraine fired US-made long-range missiles into Russia for the first time since the Biden administration lifted restrictions on their use. Russia’s defence ministry reported that Ukraine launched six US-made Atacms missiles targeting the south-western Bryansk region overnight. The ministry claimed that five of the missiles were shot down and another was damaged. The ministry added that debris from the rockets caused a fire at an unnamed military facility (you can read a full account of what happened here).
Britain is expected to supply Storm Shadow missiles for use by Ukraine on targets inside Russia, now that the US president, Joe Biden, has agreed to do the same for the similar American long-range Atacms weapon. Keir Starmer, the UK’s prime minister, said at the G20 summit that the UK recognised it needed to “double down” on its support for Ukraine, though he refused to be drawn on specific “operational details”.
A deadly Russian attack on the northern Sumy region late on Monday (11.20pm local time) reportedly hit a dormitory of an educational facility in the small town of Hlukhiv. Authorities said 12 people, including a child, were killed and 11 others, including two children, were injured.
In an address to Ukraine’s parliament, Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he will not trade his country’s sovereignty in any negotiations to bring about an end to Russia’s war, after recently mooted peace proposals suggested that Kyiv make territorial concessions. Speaking to a special session of the European Parliament on Tuesday, the Ukrainian president urged Europe to intensify their military aid in a speech marking 1,000 days since Russia launched the full-scale invasion. Speaking by video link to the European parliament, Zelenskyy also said Vladimir Putin had brought 11,000 North Korean troops to Ukraine’s borders and “this contingent may grow to 100,000”.
European nations should be ready to send troops to Ukraine to secure any peace deal between Kyiv and Moscow orchestrated by Donald Trump, Estonia’s foreign minister, Margus Tsahkna, said.
Vladimir Putin signed a revised nuclear doctrine lowering the threshold for using nuclear weapons. In a key section of the updated nuclear doctrine, Russia has expanded the list of criteria that require a nuclear response to include “aggression by any non-nuclear state, but with the participation or support of a nuclear country”. Such actions, the doctrine says, will be considered a joint attack. Washington has downplayed the significance of this revision.
Updated
Poland’s foreign minister, Radosław Sikorski, has said the largest EU economies are ready to take on a greater burden of military and financial support for Ukraine, according to Ukrinform. Poland is spending 4% of its GDP on defence and Sikorski has said previously that other countries had catching up to do.
Speaking at a press conference in Warsaw with other European ministers, he was quoted as saying:
We are convinced that in the current geopolitical situation, cooperation between Europe and the United States remains a key factor for the security and prosperity of the Euro-Atlantic community.
Only strong transatlantic ties will allow us to effectively counter the growing threats from Russia and other countries…
Europe must take greater responsibility for its own security”, in particular through a more balanced distribution of the burden between Nato member states.
Sikorski said that together with former Estonian prime minister, Kaja Kallas, who will replace Josep Borell as the EU’s high representative for foreign affairs next month, the ministers discussed “the possibilities of increasing support for Ukraine”.
“In this context, I gratefully note readiness of the largest members of the European Union to take on a greater burden of military and financial support for Ukraine,” he said.
Updated
Jessica Elgot is in Rio de Janeiro for the Guardian
Keir Starmer has told reporters at the G20 summit in Brazil that he was determined Ukraine would get the right weapons to defeat Putin, while refusing to be drawn on the operational specifics.
In comments after the G20 communique significantly watered down support for Ukraine since last year, the UK’s prime minister said he would keep making the case. Asked if the US had finally paved the way for the UK supply Storm Shadow missiles for use by Ukraine on targets inside Russia, Starmer said: “My position has always been that Ukraine must have what it needs for as long as it needs. Putin must not win this war.
“But look, forgive me, I’m not going to go into operational matters, because there’s only one winner if I do that, and that is Putin and it would undermine Ukrainian efforts.”
Starmer, who has met China’s Xi Jinping and India’s Narendra Modi at the summit as well as US president Joe Biden on the sidelines, said he had continued to urge more support.
“Here at the G20 and for many, many weeks, I’ve been making the case that Ukraine must have what it needs for as long as it needs, that we must put Ukraine in the strongest possible position to win this war. It impacts Ukraine, but it impacts all of us, and Russia cannot be allowed to win this war,” he told the BBC.
The EU’s outgoing top diplomat Josep Borrell has described Russia’s nuclear rhetoric as “completely irresponsible.”
Reuters quotes him saying “It is not the first time that they threatened with nuclear escalation, which is completely irresponsible. Russia has subscribed to the principle that a nuclear war cannot be won, and so it must never be fought.”
Borrell is due to be succeeded by former Estonia prime minister Kaja Kallas at the beginning of December.
White House sees no need to respond to change in Russian nuclear doctrine
Reuters has a quick snap that the White House National Security Council spokesperson has said Washington is not surprised by the Russian announcement of an updated nuclear doctrine.
They continued by saying that the US saw no reason to change its own nuclear doctrine or posture in response to the statements from Russia today.
Lavrov: use of US-made missiles directly against Russia 'a signal' the west wishes to escalate conflict
Sergey Lavrov, Russia’s foreign minister, speaking in Rio de Janeiro, has said the use of US-made Atacms in a Ukrainian attack on Bryansk was “a signal” that the west wants to escalate the conflict.
Tass reports him saying “without the Americans, it is impossible to use these high-tech missiles. Putin has spoken about this several times.”
In September Russia’s president had said that the use of the weapons on targets inside Russia would amount to “the direct involvement of Nato countries, the US and European countries in the war in Ukraine.”
In a slight dampening down of the rhetoric today around nuclear weapons, Lavrov said Russia is strictly committed to a position of avoiding nuclear war, and that the weapons act as a deterrent.
He suggested that nothing in the updated nuclear doctrine published by Russia today differs from anything in US doctrinal documents, which also include broad terms such as permitting the US use of nuclear weapons to “stop potentially overwhelming conventional enemy forces”, ensure the success of an operation, or to end a war on terms favourable to the US.
US and Ukrainian officials confirm US-made Atacms missiles used in attack on Russia
Senior US and Ukrainian officials have confirmed that US-made Atacms missiles have been fired into Russian territory for the first time during the Ukraine war.
The attack came two days after Joe Biden’s administration permitted their use, and on the 1,000th day of the war since Russia’s full-scale invasions was launched.
The senior officials confirmed the early morning launches to the New York Times.
Russia’s ministry of defence claimed it had shot down five of six missiles fired at Bryansk, in an attack with took place at 3.20am Moscow time (0.20am GMT).
Russia today announced that it had lowered its threshold for what could potentially trigger the use of its nuclear weapons, including considering it a joint attack if it consisted of “aggression by any non-nuclear state, but with the participation or support of a nuclear country.”
The Guardian’s defence and security editor, Dan Sabbagh, has weighed up the potential significance of Joe Biden’s decision to permit Kyiv to use US-made long-range missiles for strikes inside Russia. Here is an extract from his analysis piece, which you can read in full here:
Kyiv did not have a significant long-range missile programme before the full-scale Russian invasion and has been hamstrung by its western backers ever since.
The US, UK and France may have donated long-range missiles but they have only allowed them to be used against targets inside Ukraine’s internationally recognised borders – meaning that key airfields, fuel depots, logistics sites and barracks in Russia had remained beyond the reach of Ukraine, except through drone attacks.
White House leaks to US media on Sunday night indicate that Biden, with two months of his presidency left to run, has given permission for Atacms missiles, which have a range of 190 miles (300km), to be used inside Russia.
However, there is an apparent qualification: they must be used in relation to the battle in Kursk oblast. There, Russia, with the help of North Korea, has massed about 50,000 troops and is aiming to snuff out Ukraine’s three-month incursion.
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David Lammy makes statement reaffirming British government's support for Ukraine
The UK’s foreign secretary, David Lammy, has reaffirmed the British government’s support for Ukraine on the 1,000th day of the war.
Speaking in the House of Commons, Lammy said he is urging European countries who are not spending 2% of their GDP on defence to do so.
Speaking to the shadow foreign secretary, Priti Patel, Lammy said: “Successive US governments – long before Donald Trump – has been raising that as an issue. And, of course, it is our intention to get back to 2.5% of GDP. That is what it was when we left office and we want to get back there.”
Lammy says Britain has committed £7.8bn to military support and that the prime minister, Keir Starmer, has committed to provide £3bn a year in military support for “as long as it takes”.
He expressed “huge concerns” about Pyongyang’s deployment of troops in Moscow’s war with Ukraine, describing it as a “major escalation” in the conflict. According to US, South Korean and Ukrainian intelligence assessments, up to 12,000 North Korean troops have been sent to Russia as part of a major defence treaty between the countries. You can hear more of Lammy’s comments in this video:
Updated
Child among 12 people killed in Russian drone attack on Sumy region - officials
The death toll from a Russian drone attack on the small town of Hlukhiv in Sumy region has risen to at least 12 (previous reports said 7 people had been killed).
The strike by a Shahed drone in the northern Sumy region late on Monday (11.20pm local time) reportedly hit a dormitory of an educational facility in Hlukhiv.
Authorities said 12 people, including a child, were killed and 11 others, including two children, were injured. More people are likely trapped under the rubble.
Zelenskyy: 'We will not trade our sovereignty, security or the future of Ukraine'
As well as speaking to the European parliament to mark 1,000 days since Russia invaded Ukraine, president Volodymyr Zelenskyy also addressed Ukraine’s Verkhovna Rada on Tuesday.
Reuters is carrying these quotes from the speech, where Zelenskyy told the Ukrainian people that “In the decisive moments - and they will come next year - we should not allow anyone in the world to doubt Ukraine’s resilience.”
He continued:
At this stage of the war, it is being decided who will prevail. Whether us over the enemy, or the enemy over us Ukrainians … and Europeans. And everyone in the world who wants to live freely and not be subject to a dictator.
We have achieved the highest level of closeness with the EU and Nato since our independence. All necessary architecture for the negotiation process with the EU has been formed. Ukraine’s right to Nato membership is vitally important for all of us.
Recently mooted peace proposals, including one by Turkey’s president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, have suggested that Ukraine make concessions on territory or that the frontline of the conflict could be frozen as is. Zelenskyy rejected this kind of talk, telling Ukraine’s parliament:
We will not trade our sovereignty, security or the future of Ukraine. We will not give up Ukraine’s rights to its territory. And we will not abandon a rational approach to guarantee the rights of our state. We should act wisely. Maybe Ukraine will have to outlive someone in Moscow in order to achieve all its goals.
Leading European foreign ministers publish joint statement on 1,000 days of Russian invasion
The foreign ministers of Germany, France, Poland, Italy, Spain and the UK have issued a joint declaration of support for Ukraine after several of them met in Warsaw.
In it, the six ministers say:
Russia is systematically attacking European security architecture.
Russia’s reckless revisionism and constant refusal to stop the aggression and engage in meaningful talks challenges peace, freedom and prosperity on the European continent and in the transatlantic area.
Russia is increasingly reliant on partners such as Iran and North Korea in order to sustain its illegal warfare.
Moscow’s escalating hybrid activities against Nato and EU countries are also unprecedented in their variety and scale, creating significant security risks.
Pledging support for Ukraine, the statement adds that the six countries will:
reaffirm the enduring role of a strong and united Nato as a bedrock of European defence and security
strengthen Nato by stepping up security and defence expenditure
strengthen Europe’s security and defence, using all levers available, including the economic and financing power of the EU and by reinforcing Europe’s industrial base
invest in critical military capabilities
enhance resilience to cognitive warfare and hybrid threats in Europe
further step up military, economic and financial support for Ukraine
UK prime minister's office: new Russian nuclear doctrine product of a 'depraved government'
UK prime minister Keir Starmer’s official spokesperson has described president Vladimir Putin’s regime as a “depraved Russian government” after the Russian president signed a new nuclear doctrine for the Russian Federation on Tuesday.
In the doctrine, Russia says it will treat “aggression by any non-nuclear state, but with the participation or support of a nuclear country” as an attack that could merit a nuclear response. [See 8.45 GMT]
The Downing Street spokesperson, who traditionally remains anonymous but speaks on the record on behalf of the prime minister, said:
It would be fair to say it’s the latest example of irresponsibility that we’ve seen from the depraved Russian government.
We remain steadfast in our support for Ukraine and the defence of an illegal invasion, and we’ve always said that the defence of the UK starts in Ukraine.
We’re very clear that Vladimir Putin could end this war tomorrow. He could remove his troops, roll back his tanks and end the onslaught and needless bloodshed in both Ukraine and Russia. That is entirely within his gift. We would urge him to do so.
Putin ordered changes to the nuclear doctrine in the weeks leading up to the US election.
On Tuesday morning Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the use of western non-nuclear missiles by the Ukrainian armed forces against the Russian Federation under the new doctrine could lead to a nuclear response, urging that the new nuclear doctrine should become the subject of deep analysis abroad.
Peskov said updating the doctrine was needed to bring the document into line with the current political situation. [See 8.54 GMT]
In effect it lowers the threshold for what might merit a nuclear attack from Russia, including factors such as “a critical threat to [the Russian Federation’s] sovereignty, even with conventional weapons”, an attack on Belarus, or “the event of a massive launch of military aircraft, cruise missiles, drones, other aircraft and their crossing the Russian border.”
Russia has claimed debris from US-made Atacms missile landed in Bryansk region
Russia has claimed that debris from a US-made Atacms missile has landed in the Bryansk region.
Russia’s state-owned news agency Tass, citing Russia’s ministry of defence, has reported that the debris fell on a military facility in the Bryansk region. It said there was a small fire.
The ministry said it had shot down five of the missiles over the Bryansk region. The attack resulted in no casualties or damage, it said.
The claims have not been independently verified. Ukraine has not commented on the Russian reports, and there has been no confirmation from US or other allied powers.
The Joe Biden administration had given Ukraine long sought after permission to use the longer-range missiles at targets in the neighbouring Kursk region, where Ukrainian forces have staged an incursion and where Russia has deployed allied North Korean troops.
Overnight Ukrainian forces claimed to have successfully targeted a Russian logistics centre near the city of Karachev in Russia’s Bryansk region, causing multiple explosions.
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International Monetary Fund staff and Ukrainian authorities have reached an agreement that would give Ukraine access to about $1.1bn, Reuters reports the IMF said in a statement on Tuesday.
The IMF’s executive board must still approve the deal, which would bring the total amount dispersed to Ukraine under the programme to $9.8bn, it added.
Local Ukrainian media reports seven people have been injured by shelling in Kharkiv, citing the city’s mayor Ihor Terekhov.
German foreign minister Annalena Baerbock has said that a range of sabotage attacks across Europe “can’t all just be coincidences.”
Referring to the severing of two undersea fibre-optic cables in the Baltic, Reuters quotes her saying:
We are now also experiencing this in Germany … with cyber attacks, with the surveillance of critical infrastructure, parcels suddenly exploding when transported on planes and yesterday ... a data cable between Finland and Germany which probably also affected Sweden. These can’t all just be coincidences.
She went on to say Europe would remain united in light of the hybrid threats.
Poland threatens to close all Russian consulates over 'sabotage'
If Russia does not stop committing acts of sabotage in Europe, Warsaw will close the rest of its consulates in Poland, Polish foreign minister Radosław Sikorski said on Tuesday.
“I have closed the consulate in Poznań. If they do not stop, we will close the rest,” Reuters reports he told a news conference.
Far-right MEP group avoids parliament during Zelenskyy address
Volodymyr Zelenskyy received two standing ovations from MEPs, as he spoke to mark 1,000 days of Russia’s full-scale war on Ukraine.
But not all MEPs were there. The 25 MEPs who make up the far-right Europe of Sovereign Nations group were absent because they had scheduled an “external group meeting” a spokesperson said.
The group’s largest continent is Germany’s Alternative für Deutschland party, which wants to end military aid for Ukraine and whose senior leaders have spoken approvingly of Russian president Vladimir Putin.
Zelenskyy offers veiled criticism of Scholz in European parliament address
Jennifer Rankin is the Guardian’s Brussels correspondent. Here is her report on Ukraine’s president addressing the European parliament:
Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said his country could face 100,000 North Korean troops, as he urged European nations to intensify their military aid and appeared to make a dig at Olaf Scholz.
Speaking by video link to the European parliament, Zelenskyy said Putin had brought 11,000 North Korean troops to Ukraine’s borders and “this contingent may grow to 100,000”.
Zelenskyy did not elaborate further, but his remarks appear to endorse a Bloomberg report citing unnamed sources saying that North Korea could deploy 100,000 troops to assist Russia against Ukraine.
The short speech marked 1,000 days since Russia’s full-scale invasion and was intended as a rallying call to EU nations. Zelenskyy told lawmakers that even with North Korea Russian president Vladimir Putin remained smaller than “the united states of Europe”.
Zelenskyy also appeared to make a dig at the German chancellor Olaf Scholz, who recently triggered snap elections, and has long frustrated Kyiv with Germany’s slow pace of military support and its refusal to supply German-made long-range Taurus missiles.
“While some European leaders think about some elections or something like this … Putin is focused on winning this war. He will not stop on his own. The more time he has, the worse the conditions become,” Zelenskyy said.
Ukraine’s president appeared to make a veiled appeal for long-range weapons, saying that without “certain key factors, Russia will lack real motivation to engage in meaningful negotiations”. Zelenskyy enumerated those factors as fires in ammunition depots on Russian territory, disrupting military logistics and destroying Russian airbases.
In the lame duck days of his presidency Joe Biden has allowed Ukraine to use US-made long-range missiles, but Scholz continues to rule that out and is not expected to change his mind.
Updated
There has been considerable reporting over the last couple of days of the apparent decision by the Joe Biden administration to allow Ukraine to use US-made Atacms ballistic missiles against Russian and North Korean forces inside Russian territory.
But what are they? If you missed it yesterday, my colleague Oliver Holmes has this explainer …
Manfred Weber, president of the European People’s Party (EPP) group, spoke next in the European parliament.
He said “Russia will not change. Russia will continue to be an imperialistic power, a security threat to all Europeans. That is why we need a long, lasting security architecture.”
He told MEPs:
The war in Ukraine is not a simple regional dispute. The war in Ukraine is our battle line between the free world and brutal dictatorship. Drones produced in Iran. North Korean soldiers fighting against Europeans on European soil. What else do you need as a proof for this geopolitical reality?
Zelenskyy addresses European parliament
Volodymr Zelenskyy has said that even with Kim Jong-un by his side, Putin “remains smaller” than the combined states of Europe, and warned that the number of North Korean troops deployed on Ukraine’s border could increase.
Zelenskyy claimed that at present there are 11,000 North Koreans troops deployed, but this contingent, he said, could increase to 100,000.
The Ukrainian president, speaking at the European parliament via video link, said that during the course of the war it has been proved that “our shared European values” are “not just words, not something abstract.”
He said “European values and the European way of life, when transformed into action, protect the lives of real people.”
Zelenskyy continued “Putin does not value people or rules. He values only money and power. These are the things we must take away from him to restore peace.”
He told MEPs “no one can enjoy calm waters during a storm, and we must do everything to end this war fairly and justly.”
He made his regular appeal for more sanctions and the release of funds and assets confiscated by European countries from Russia.
In what appeared to be a reference to US permission to use longer-range missiles at targets inside Russia, Zelenskyy said:
Russia will lack real motivation to engage in meaningful [peace] negotiations without fires in its ammunition depots on Russian territory, without disruption to its military logistics, without destroying Russian airbases, without it losing capabilities to produce missiles and drones, and without its assets being confiscated.
Updated
Roberta Metsola, president of the European parliament, has said that Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the Ukrainian people have been an inspiration during the 1,000 days of the Russian invasion.
She said:
Today we mark 1,000 days since Russia unleashed its brutal invasion of Ukraine. 1,000 Days of terror, suffering and unimaginable loss. 1,000 days of courage, resilience and unbreakable spirit. For 1,000 days the people of Ukraine and you, president Zelenskyy, have shown the world what true bravery looks like.
You are an inspiration to all who value freedom around the world.
And for 1,000 days, this European parliament has stood shoulder to shoulder with the people of Ukraine, united and unwavering, and we will continue to stand with Ukraine today, tomorrow and every day for as long as it takes.
This is an assault not only on Ukraine, but on the rules based order, an assault on our values and on our way of life, peace, democracy and freedom. This is what is at stake here, and we know the sacrifices the Ukrainian people are enduring, not just for themselves, but for all of us.
Zelenskyy has begun speaking now.
Roberta Metsola is introducing Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy before his address to the European parliament. She has started by saying “this European parliament has stood with Ukraine for 1,000 days, and we will continue to do so for as long as it takes”. She has then shown a short video about the last 1,000 days of war. Zelenskyy is about to speak, but is receiving a standing ovation from MEPs first.
UK imposes new sanctions on Russia over forced deportation of Ukrainian children
The UK has announced ten new designations under its Russian sanctions regime.
In a statement, the government says it is targeting “those supporting Vladimir Putin’s attempts to forcibly deport and indoctrinate Ukraine’s children and erase their Ukrainian cultural heritage.”
Foreign secretary David Lammy is quoted saying:
No child should ever be used as a pawn in war, yet President Putin’s targeting of Ukrainian children shows the depths he will go to in his mission to erase Ukraine and its people from the map.
As Ukraine reaches the grim milestone of 1000 days of bravely defending against Putin’s illegal invasion, the UK’s support is iron-clad. With our international partners, we stand with Ukraine to confront Russian aggression and fight for freedom, liberty and victory.
The UK government claims “more than 19,500 Ukrainian children have been forcibly transferred or deported” and that “an estimated 6,000 Ukrainian children have been relocated to a network of re-education camps.”
In March last year the international criminal court issued arrest warrants for the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, and Russia’s commissioner for children’s rights, Maria Alekseyevna Lvova-Belova, in relation to the forced deportation of children.
European troops could be needed for Ukraine peace says Estonia
Jennifer Rankin is the Guardian’s Brussels correspondent
European nations should be ready to send troops to Ukraine to secure any peace deal between Kyiv and Moscow orchestrated by Donald Trump, Estonia’s foreign minister has said.
In an interview with the Financial Times, Margus Tsahkna said the best security guarantee for Ukraine was Nato membership, but if the US opposed Kyiv joining the military alliance, then Europe would have to put “boots on the ground”.
He said:
If we are talking about real security guarantees, it means that there will be a just peace. Then we are talking about Nato membership. But without the US it is impossible. And then we are talking about any form [of guarantee] in the meaning of boots on the ground.
The minister also said it would be “really, really, really complicated” for Europeans to provide security guarantees to Ukraine without US backing, not least because Nato could ultimately be dragged into any clash with Russian forces.
The FT reports the view of some analysts, who suggest a coalition of the willing to support Ukraine could include Poland and the UK-led Joint Expeditionary Force, a defence group that includes the Nordic and Baltic states and the Netherlands. These countries are meeting in Tallinn next month.
French president Emmanuel Macron has previously said European troops on the ground could not be ruled out and that Europe should not wait on the results of the US elections to decide on its future.
Local media reports that multiple explosions have been heard in Kherson.
Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy is expected to address the European parliament virtually later this morning. We will bring you the key lines when he speaks.
Russia: use of western non-nuclear missiles by Ukraine against Russia could lead to nuclear response
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov has said the use of western non-nuclear missiles by the Ukrainian armed forces against the Russian Federation under the new doctrine could lead to a nuclear response, after president Vladimir Putin approved an updated Russian nuclear doctrine on Tuesday.
Speaking at his regular daily press briefing, Tass reports Peskov said that the new nuclear doctrine should become the subject of deep analysis both in the country and abroad.
Peskov said that the Russian Federation considers the use of nuclear weapons to be an extreme measure, but that updating the doctrine was needed to bring the document into line with the current political situation.
Peskov said the “special operation” – Moscow’s preferred term for its full-scale invasion of Ukraine – was being conducted in the context of a war unleashed by the west against the Russian Federation, and that the Russian military is closely monitoring the reports about plans to use longer-range US missiles in the Kursk region of Russia.
Putin approves updated Russian nuclear doctrine
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday approved an updated nuclear doctrine, Reuters reports the document posted on the government’s website showed.
In a key section of the document, Russia has expanded the list of criteria that require a nuclear response to include “aggression by any non-nuclear state, but with the participation or support of a nuclear country”. Such actions, the doctrine says, will be considered a joint attack.
In another passage the document states:
In addition, a nuclear response from Russia is possible in the event of a critical threat to its sovereignty, even with conventional weapons, in the event of an attack on Belarus as a member of the Union State, [or] in the event of a massive launch of military aircraft, cruise missiles, drones, other aircraft and their crossing the Russian border.
Putin ordered changes to the nuclear doctrine in the weeks leading up to the US election.
In today’s First Edition newsletter, Nimo Omer has spoken to the Guardian’s defence and security editor Dan Sabbagh about the reported decision by the US to allow Ukraine to use longer-range missiles to strike inside Russia.
He told her:
Each time these discussions about an individual weapon type are considered, freighted with great significance, the reality has been they’ve only made an incremental difference in the battlefield. From Ukraine’s perspective, it is better to have them than not, but ultimately, no single weapon type is decisive in a complex war like this.
Each of these weapons comes along months, maybe years, after Ukrainians asked for them. It’s quite an agonising process. They are clearly military useful, they have a psychological and deterrent effect but in terms of an actual destructive effect, not so much.
Ukraine’s state emergency service now says that nine people have been killed by the Russian drone strike on Hlukhiv. Some media sources are reporting that people are still believed trapped under rubble.
Ukrainian media is reporting that overnight Ukraine’s air defence shot down 51 out of 87 drones aimed at the country by Russia.
Citing the air force, Suspilne writes that 30 drones evaded tracking.
The death toll from a Russian drone attack on the small town of Hlukhiv in Sumy region has risen to seven. One child is reported among the dead.
Posting pictures of rescue workers at the scene, Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said “Every new Russian strike only confirms Putin’s true intentions. He wants the war to continue, he is not interested in talking about peace.”
Denis Pushilin, the Russian-installed governor of Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, has reported on his official Telegram channel that two people have been injured in the occupied city of Horlivka.
In the post, he said “The Ukrainian armed forces continue attacks on the energy infrastructure of Horlivka. As a result, the situation has become more complicated.”
He reported that 80,000 people were without power.
Overnight Ukraine claims its forces struck a logistics centre near the city of Karachev in Russia’s Bryansk region.
Russia’s ministry of defence claims to have shot down four Ukrainian “aircraft-type” drones over the Bryansk region on Tuesday morning.
The claims have not been independently verified.
Russian security services make arrests over car bomb killing of senior naval officer
Russian media reports that two arrests have been made after the death of navy officer Valery Trankovsky in Sevastopol. The senior officer was killed by a car bomb last week.
An official in Ukraine’s security services told the Ukrainian Pravda outlet last week that the agency had orchestrated the car bomb attack in the Russian-controlled port city that killed the chief of staff of the 41st Missile Brigade of the Russian navy’s Black Sea fleet, accusing Trankovsky of being “a war criminal” who had ordered missile strikes from the Black Sea at civilian targets.
Tass reports today that a 38-year-old resident of Sevastopol and a 47-year-old resident of Yalta have been detained, with Russia’s security service, the FSB, saying they have confessed. “The defendants are cooperating with law enforcement agencies and giving confessions,” it quoted the agency saying.
One of those arrested was accused of conducting surveillance on the Russian officer, while the other is accused of making the improvised explosive device that killed him.
At least six killed, including a child, in Russian drone attack on Sumy region
At least six people were killed, including a child, in a Russian drone attack on Ukraine’s northeastern region of Sumy, regional officials said on Tuesday.
Reuters reports twelve people were injured in the drone attack on a residential dormitory in the small town of Hlukhiv, the military administration of the Sumy region, which borders Russia, said on the Telegram messaging app.
Moscow promises ‘palpable’ response if US missiles used in Russia as Ukraine marks 1,000 days of war
Hello and welcome to the Guardian’s live coverage of the war in Ukraine.
Ukraine marks 1,000 days on Tuesday since Russia’s full-scale invasion – with weary troops battling on numerous fronts, Kyiv besieged by frequent drone and missile strikes, and officials preparing for Donald Trump’s return to the White House in January.
However, Joe Biden’s decision to give the green light for long-range Atacms missiles to be used against targets deeper inside Russia is seen as something of a boost, potentially constraining Moscow’s options to launch attacks and supply the front.
“The longer Ukraine can strike, the shorter the war will be,” Ukrainian foreign minister Andriy Sybiga said before a UN security council meeting to mark the 1,000-day milestone.
The shift in policy, however, may be reversed when Trump returns to the White House in January, and military experts cautioned that it would not be enough on its own to change the course of the war.
Russia accused Biden of fuelling tensions with the move, and promised an “appropriate and palpable” response if Ukraine attacked Russia with American long-range missiles.
In other headlines:
At least six people have been killed by a Russian drone strike in Sumy region. A child is reported to be among the victims.
Russian security services have made two arrests after last week’s car bomb killing of a senior naval officer. Valery Trankovsky was killed in the Russian-occupied port city of Sevastopol.
Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, visited the eastern frontline towns of Pokrovsk and Kupiansk on Monday. “We are holding our positions,” Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address.
North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un met on Monday with Russia’s natural resources minister in Pyongyang, state media reported, as visiting delegations from Moscow highlighted deepening ties.
UN undersecretary general for political affairs Rosemary DiCarlo denounced the rise in civilian casualties in Russia’s attack on Ukraine over the weekend, which involved 120 missiles and 90 drones, and caused significant damage to Ukraine’s power grid. “The targeted devastation of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure may make the coming winter the harshest since the start of the war,” she warned.
Britain is expected to clear Storm Shadow missiles for use by Ukraine on targets inside Russia, the Guardian reports, now that Joe Biden has agreed to do the same for the American long-range Atacms missiles.
The German tabloid Bild has reported on what it calls a “top secret” delivery to Ukraine of 4,000 strike drones, developed by the German artificial intelligence firm Helsing.
The Kremlin rejected a reported peace proposal from the Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, to be put forward at the G20 summit in Brazil, to freeze hostilities at the current positions of both parties.
G20 leaders meeting in Rio de Janeiro on Monday said in a joint statement that they “welcome all relevant and constructive initiatives that support a comprehensive, just, and durable peace” in Ukraine.
