Russia-Ukraine war live: drone strikes ‘key threat’ to Russian energy infrastructure; Ukraine’s main Bakhmut task to ‘wear down’ enemy (2023)

Ukrainian Defence Minister Oleksii Reznikov gave Britain the thumbs up as he took a ride in what he said was the first British Challenger 2 main battle tank to arrive in Ukraine.

Britain said in January it would send 14 of the tanks to Ukraine, which is preparing for a possible counter-offensive against Russian forces that invaded 13 months ago.

Reuters reports Reznikov wrote on Twitter that the tanks had “recently arrived in our country” and posted a video that showed him sitting in one of a long line of tanks in an open field, all of them flying Ukraine’s yellow and blue flag.

“It was a pleasure to take the first Ukrainian Challenger 2 MBT (main battle tank) for a spin,” Reznikov wrote. “These fantastic machines will soon begin their combat missions.”

In the video, he gave the thumbs up sign and thanked British defence secretary Ben Wallace for the tanks.

“Marvellous, Ben,” he said in English. “It’s … very good stuff. Thank you very much from Ukraine to the United Kingdom.”

Possible drone attacks against key energy infrastructure are a serious threat to Russia’s energy security, energy minister Nikolai Shulginov said on Tuesday.

Reuters reports Shulginov did not mention Ukraine by name, but Russia says it has foiled a number of attempted Ukrainian drone attacks in recent months.

Ukraine has not publicly acknowledged launching attacks against targets inside Russia, but senior officials in Kyiv have on occasion appeared to welcome the news of successful drone attacks on Russian soil.

“The key threat now is acts of illegal interference through the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs),” Shulginov said during a roundtable discussion where he addressed the security of Russia’s energy facilities.

He said he was cooperating with Russia’s defence ministry and FSB security service on the issue.

Ukraine is aiming to exhaust and inflict heavy losses on Russian forces trying to capture the small eastern city of Bakhmut, the commander of Ukrainian ground forces said in a video posted on Tuesday.

In a video showing him addressing soldiers in what appeared to be a large industrial warehouse, Col Gen Oleksandr Syrskyi said Russia was continuing to focus on the Bakhmut area after months of battle.

Moscow sees capturing Bakhmut as vital in its efforts to establish complete control over the Donbas industrial region in eastern Ukraine.

“They do not stop trying to surround and capture the city,” Reuters report Syrskyi said in the video posted on the Telegram messaging app.

“As of today, our main task is to wear down the overwhelming forces of the enemy and inflict heavy losses on them. It will create the necessary conditions to help liberate Ukrainian land and speed up our victory.”

Bakhmut had a prewar population of about 70,000 people but the city has been virtually destroyed in about eight months of intense fighting, often at close quarters.

Syrskyi has been meeting troops near the frontline as Ukraine prepares for a possible counteroffensive after 13 months of war. He said on Monday the defence of Bakhmut was a military necessity.

Syrskyi said his visits to meet troops near the frontline were needed for him and his commanders to agree on plans that would have “real results on the battlefield but not on the maps”.

Alexander Novak, the Russian deputy prime minister, said on Tuesday that Russia needed to focus on boosting energy exports to so-called “friendly” countries, as he said Russian oil supplies to India jumped 22-fold last year.

Reuters reports Novak said energy revenues accounted for 42% of Russia’s federal budget in 2022 and said the country’s energy industry was sustainable, despite the challenges faced by western sanctions.

Suspilne, Ukraine’s state broadcaster, reports on its official Telegram channel that a hospital in Kherson has been struck overnight. Citing officials from the local administration, it writes:

Around 4 o’clock in the morning, Russian troops shelled a hospital in the Dnipro district of Kherson. There were at least five explosions. One of the shells hit the fifth floor of the building. The blast wave knocked out almost all the windows in the main building on one side.

The claims have not been independently verified.

Belarus’s foreign ministry said on Tuesday that it had been forced to house Russian nuclear weapons on its territory by the aggressive actions of Nato countries that were threatening Belarus’s own security, Reuters reports, citing Russian news agency Tass.

Minsk also said the plans – announced over the weekend by Vladimir Putin – to station Russian tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, would not contravene international non-proliferation agreements as Belarus would not have control over the weapons.

Tass quotes the ministry saying:

Military cooperation between Belarus and Russia is carried out in strict accordance with international law. The training of Belarusian pilots capable of flying aircraft with specific ammunition, the modernisation of such aircraft, as well as the deployment of nuclear warheads on the territory of Belarus without transferring control over them to Minsk, as well as access to appropriate technology, do not in any way contradict the provisions of articles I and II of the non-proliferation treaty.

The ministry said it was forced to respond because “unilateral coercive measures in politics and the economy are accompanied by the buildup of military potential in the territory of neighboring countries – Nato members in close proximity to our borders. Considering these circumstances and the legitimate concerns and risks in the field of national security arising from them, Belarus is taking forced response actions to strengthen its own security and defence capability.”

It also noted that Belarus regards the actions of the west as “direct and gross interference in the internal affairs of an independent state, aimed at changing the geopolitical course and changing the internal political system of Belarus”.

State-owned Russian news agency Tass is reporting this morning some words from Denis Pushilin, the Russian-installed head of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic, about the situation in Bakhmut. Tass quotes Pushilin on the Soloviev Live TV channel on Tuesday saying:

Now [Wagner mercenary group troops] have created unbearable conditions for the enemy to even carefully try to bring up combat kits, bring up reserves, take out even the wounded – all this is extremely difficult for the enemy, because all the roads are already being shot through by [Wagner mercenary troops].

As for the city itself, here it was important to clean up the industrial zone at the Azom plant itself. Pretty much we can already talk about this, the guys there are finishing off the militants, but those are single groups.

The claims have not been independently verified. Russian state media has previously reported that Wagner forces were in full control of the Azom metallurgical plant in the north of the city.

Suspilne, Ukraine’s state broadcaster, reports on its official Telegram channel that this morning the border village of Chernatske in Sumy oblast has been struck. It writes: “Twenty hits were recorded, probably from barrel artillery. The infrastructure of the village was damaged – a cultural centre and a children’s playground, as well as five private houses.”

The UK Ministry of Defence says Russia’s 10th tank regiment has borne the brunt of the assault of Avdiivka and has likely lost a “large portion of its tanks” while attempting to surround the town from the south.

It said the regiment belonged to the 3rd Army Corps, the first major new formation Russia stood up to support its invasion since August 2022 and despite a period of training in Belarus, the formation “appears to display limited combat effectiveness”.

The claims have not been independently verified.

Russian forces launched 24 airstrikes, 12 missile strikes and carried out 55 attacks from rocket salvo systems in the last 24 hours, according the latest update from the general staff of the armed forces of Ukraine.

A missile strike in the city of Slovyansk damaged high-rise buildings and private houses, causing deaths and injuries among civilians – although numbers were not immediately available. A separate airstrike in the city of Bersyslav also caused damaged to civilian infrastructure.

According to the update, Russian forces also carried out attacks with 15 Shahed-136 type strike UAVs. 14 of them were destroyed by our defenders.

In the same period, the Ukrainian air force carried out nine strikes against Russian forces and one attack on an anti-aircraft missile complex. Ukrainian solders also shot down five reconnaissance drones of various types.

Rocket forces and artillery also struck three control points and areas of concentration, an artillery unit in firing position, an ammunition warehouse, a fuel warehouse and “two more important targets”.

The claims have not been independently verified.

The German defence minister, Boris Pistorius, confirmed the arrival of 18 Leopard 2 battle tanks in Ukraine on Monday.

In a post to Twitter, Pistorius said he believed the tanks would make a “crucial difference at the front”.

The arrival of the tanks follow the delivery of 18 Leopard 2 battle tanks provided by Germany on Monday along with 40 Marder infantry fighting vehicles.

Britain’s Challenger tanks have arrived in Ukraine, a spokesperson for the defence ministry in Kyiv said on Monday.

Spokesperson for the Ukrainian ministry of defence, Iryna Zolotar, told the AFP that the tanks had been received.

They are in Ukraine already.

No further details were provided.

The tanks are expected to be involved in any spring counter-offensive launched by Ukraine.

Ukraine’s defence minister, Oleksiy Reznikov, said earlier on Monday he inspected a “new addition” to the country’s forces – Challenger tanks as well as Germany’s Marder infantry fighting vehicles, plus Cougar armoured trucks and Stryker armoured personnel carriers from the US.

A year ago, no one would have thought that our partners’ support would be so strong.

The ISW also said higher quality Wagner units have likely been committed to fighting around Avdiivka “potentially to reinforce recent limited tactical successes in the area”.

The ISW said the deployments appear intended to help support weaker units from the Donetsk People’s Republic and that if confirmed, their involvement may help “explain the limited tactical gains made in the area over the past week”.

The Institute for Study of War (ISW) says it has been monitoring chattering among Russian military bloggers about the dismissal of Russian military commanders overseeing troops in combat zones.

Rumours have been circulating that Rusam Muradov has been dismissed as Eastern Military District Commander, and Yevgeny Nikiforov has been replaced as Western Military District Commander.

The ISW could not confirm either change in leadership but said it was, “noteworthy that Russian millbloggers are discussing potential dismissals of commanders associated with areas of operation in which Russian forces have been largelyunable to secure substantial gains or have suffered major losses”.

The UN security council on Monday declined a Russian request to investigate the blasts on the pipelines that move natural gas from Russia to Europe under the Baltic Sea.

Russia, China and Brazil voted in favour of the Russian request, but other security council members abstained or said another investigation was unnecessary.

For a resolution to be adopted by the security council, it needs a minimum of nine “yes” votes in the 15-member council, and no veto by one of the permanent members – the US, Russia, China, Britain and France.

The US deputy ambassador, Robert Wood, said there was no need for a UN investigation when inquiries by Sweden, Denmark and Germany “are proceeding in a comprehensive, transparent and impartial manner”.

It was an attempt to discredit the work of ongoing national investigations and prejudice any conclusions they reached that do not comport to Russia’s predetermined and political narrative. It was not an attempt to seek the truth.

The pipelines, known as Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2, are majority-owned by Russia’s state-run energy giant Gazprom.

Nord Stream 1 carried Russian gas to Germany until Moscow cut off supplies at the end of August 2022. Nord Stream 2 never entered service as Germany suspended its certification process shortly before Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February 2022. The explosions on both occurred on 26 September.

The investigations by European nations have yet to yield conclusive results, at least none made public.

AP

Hello and welcome back to our live coverage of Russia’s war in Ukraine – this is Royce Kurmelovs bringing you the latest developments.

Multiple explosions were reported in Kyiv on Monday night following a drone attack, according to the mayor, Vitaliy Klitschko. Klitschko said a shop caught fire in the west but there were no immediate reports of casualties with Kyiv air defence reporting it had shot down all 13 Russian drones involved in the attack.

Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Ukraine’s president has told IAEA head, Rafael Grossi, that safety at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear facility could not be guaranteed until Russian troops left. Zelenskiy also “visited advanced positions” in the Zaporizhzhia region on Monday. The pair met to discuss the management of Europe’s largest nuclear power plant where Zelenskiy told him he could not guarantee the security of the facility so long as the area remained occupied by Russian troops.

British challenger tanks are “in Ukraine already” according to Ukrainian defence minister Iryna Zolotar, no further details provided AFP reports. The arrival of the tanks follow the delivery of 18 Leopard 2 battle tanks provided by Germany on Monday along with 40 Marder infantry fighting vehicles.

In other developments:

• Zelenskiy also spoke with the President of Poland, Andrzej Duda to discuss the ongoing war and “current defense needs of Ukraine and joint diplomatic efforts for the near future”.

• Russian navy vessels have fired supersonic anti-ship missiles at a mock target in the Sea of Japan. The Russian defence ministry reported the exercises on Tuesday, saying “the target, located at a distance of about 100 kilometres, was successfully hit by a direct hit from two Moskit cruise missiles.”

• Ukraine’s ground forces commander said his troops were continuing to repel heavy Russian attacks on the eastern city of Bakhmut and that defending it was a “military necessity”. Col Gen Oleksandr Syrskyi’s signalled again Ukraine’s intention to keep fighting in Bakhmut despite the heavy death toll.

• At least two people were killed in a Russian missile strike in the eastern city of Sloviansk on Monday, according to the regional governor. The attack left 29 others wounded, Pavlo Kyrylenko said, adding that a number of high-rise buildings and offices were damaged or destroyed. Volodymyr Zelenskiy posted a video clip that showed vehicles on fire and debris strewn across the road.

• Western companies selling their Russian businesses and leaving face a compulsory 10% direct donation to the government, the Financial Times has reported, after a ruling by Russia’s foreign investments commission.

• The chair of Ukraine’s parliament, Ruslan Stefanchuk, has told British lawmakers that Kyiv is ready to send its pilots to be trained in the use of western fighter jets. Stefanchuk, speaking during a visit to the UK, said Kyiv could bring “joint victory for Ukraine and the world” once it “gets the wings”, in language echoing that of Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s speech to the British parliament in February.

• A leaked phone conversation allegedly between prominent Russian music producer Iosif Prigozhin and billionaire Farkhad Akhmedov, in which the two men give a far-ranging criticism of the war in Ukraine and Russia’s leadership, has been published by Ukrainian media. If genuine, the audio would provide a rare insight into the mood within the Russian elites.

• Russian and Belarusian athletes should be banned from the 2024 Olympics in Paris unless Moscow pulls its forces out of Ukraine, Poland has said, after the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said it planned to let them compete as neutrals.

• Poland has detained a foreign citizen on charges of spying for Russia, prosecutors have said. The arrest comes after Poland dismantled a Russian espionage network that had been preparing acts of sabotage and monitoring rail routes to Ukraine. If found guilty, the suspect could face up to 10 years in prison.

• Hungary’s parliament has approved a bill to allow Finland to join Nato, bringing it one step closer to becoming a full member of the alliance. Hungarian lawmakers voted 182 for and six against with no abstentions. Turkey is the only one of Nato’s 30 members not to have ratified Finland’s accession.