Russia said that its month-old invasion of Ukraine which led to the biggest European conflict since World War Two has been halted "in order to increase mutual trust and create the necessary conditions for further negotiations and achieving the ultimate goal of agreeing and signing (an) agreement". Moscow said after face-to-face peace talks with Ukraine in Turkey that it had made the decision to radically reduce military activity in the Kyiv and Chernihiv directions.
Ukraine reacted with skepticism to Russia's promise in negotiations to scale down military operations while some Western countries expected Moscow to intensify its offensive in other parts of the country.
Russia's onslaught has been met by stiff resistance from Ukrainian forces who have recaptured besieged cities.
Russia's invasion of Ukraine has seen nearly 4 million Ukrainians flee abroad and has left thousands dead or injured.
Here are the LIVE updates on the Ukraine-Russia War:
Ukrainian forces are preparing for new Russian attacks in the east of the country as Moscow builds up its troops there after suffering setbacks near the capital Kyiv, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Thursday.
Russia's invasion of its neighbour, now in its fifth week, has driven around a quarter of Ukrainians from their homes and brought Russian-Western tensions to their worst point since the Cold War.
Fighting raged Wednesday in Ukraine despite Russia's indication that it planned to deescalate, and US intelligence claimed Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin is angry after being mislead by his own military.
Hopes that negotiations in Istanbul could open the door to relative calm in pro-Western Ukraine evaporated in a series of battles, including more Russian bombing of civilian areas and advances by Ukrainian fighters.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Wednesday he didn't trust Russian vows to scale back military activity and that his army was getting ready for further fighting in the east.
"We don't believe anyone, not a single beautiful phrase," Zelensky said in a video address to the nation, adding that Russian troops were regrouping to strike the eastern Donbass region. "We will not give anything away. We will fight for every meter of our territory."
The Russian defence ministry announced a local ceasefire Thursday to allow civilians to be evacuated from Ukraine's besieged port city of Mariupol.
A humanitarian corridor from Mariupol to Zaporizhzhia, via the Russian-controlled port of Berdiansk, would be opened from 10 am (0700 GMT), the ministry said Wednesday.
Russian forces have begun to pull out of the defunct Chernobyl nuclear power site after seizing control of the facility on February 24, a senior US defense official said Wednesday.
"Chernobyl is (an) area where they are beginning to reposition some of their troops -- leaving, walking away from the Chernobyl facility and moving into Belarus," the official said.US Secretary of State Tony Blinken on Wednesday spoke with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar to review regional priorities, worsening humanitarian situation in Ukraine and to promote free and open Indo-Pacific, his spokesperson said.
As Putin Batters Ukraine, Trump Wants His Help To Take Down Biden's SonDonald Trump has called on Russian President Vladimir Putin, who launched an invasion of Ukraine last month, to reveal any compromising information he might have on US President Joe Biden's son, Hunter.
The number of Ukrainians fleeing abroad is now 4,019,287, the United Nations' Refugee Agency (UNHCR) said on Wednesday.
Authorities in the war-scarred northern Ukrainian city of Chernigiv say the area was 'shelled all night' despite Russia's pledge to scale back attacks on the area as well as near the capital Kyiv following what it called "meaningful" progress at peace talks.
"The enemy has demonstrated its 'decrease in activity' in the Chernigiv region with strikes on Nizhyn (a town 90 km southeast of Chernigiv), including air strikes. Chernigiv was shelled all night," regional governor Vyacheslav Chaus wrote on social media.
Air-raid sirens were also heard through the night in Kyiv.
World Food Program boss David Beasley says the conflict has caused food shortages and price spikes "beyond anything we've seen since World War II".
Russian President Vladimir Putin says "nationalists" in the besieged port city of Mariupol must surrender before the "difficult humanitarian situation" is resolved, effectively scuppering a proposed international relief mission.
Mariupol military officials say "more than 70" staff and patients are forcibly taken from a maternity hospital in the city.
President Volodymyr Zelensky cautiously welcomes the "positive" signals from Moscow, saying Ukrainian forces "will not decrease" defensive efforts.
The Pentagon warns Russia is "repositioning" troops not withdrawing. "Russia has failed in its objective of capturing Kyiv," a spokesman says, but "it does not mean that the threat to Kyiv is over."
Ukrainian Missile Hits Military Camp Inside Russia: ReportThe missile strike took place at a Russian arms depot in Belgorod. The blast was seen from across the border in Ukraine.
Russia-Ukraine War: Is Russia-Ukraine Peace Deal Close? Moscow's Troop Pullback Has AnswersRussia's offer to "fundamentally cut back" its military operations in northern Ukraine sparked optimism around the potential for a peace deal Tuesday, easing oil prices and boosting equity markets. Yet there's strong reason for caution.
Ukraine Russia Conflict: Ukraine Sees Peace Signs In Russia Talks, But Won't Ease DefencesUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday said the signals from peace talks with Russia could be called positive but added that they did not drown out the explosions from Russian shells.
The US State Department issued a travel advisory on Tuesday warning that Moscow "may single out and detain US citizens in Russia" and repeating earlier warnings for Americans not to travel to the country.
The warning was "due to the unprovoked and unjustified invasion of Ukraine by Russian military forces" as well as the potential for harassment of US citizens by Russian authorities, the travel advisory said, repeating calls for Americans traveling or living in Russia to leave "immediately."
It comes days after a US diplomat was able to visit detained basketball star Brittney Griner, who has been held in Russian custody for more than a month.
"Ukraine Isn't Naive": Zelensky Says After Russia Pledges To Scale Down AttacksUkraine reacted with skepticism to Russia's promise in negotiations to scale down military operations around Kyiv and another city as some Western countries expected Moscow to intensify its offensive in other parts of the country.
India on Tuesday (local time) reiterated its call for unimpeded humanitarian access to areas of armed conflict in Ukraine.
"India remains deeply concerned at the ongoing situation, which continues to deteriorate since the beginning of the hostilities. We reiterate our call for unimpeded humanitarian access to areas of armed conflict in Ukraine," India's Permanent Representative to the United Nations TS Tirumurti said at the UNSC briefing on the humanitarian situation in Ukraine.
Joe Biden's Point Person On Russia Sanctions Daleep Singh To Visit IndiaUS President Joe Biden is sending his top advisor and key person leading his administration's economic sanctions on Russia to India, which so far has refused to toe the American line and maintained its own independent strategic position.
Russia is "repositioning" a small number of its forces near Kyiv but is not withdrawing and the Ukrainian capital remains under threat, the Pentagon said Tuesday.
"We're seeing a small number now that appears to be moving away from Kyiv, this on the same day that the Russians say they're withdrawing," Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said.
"But we're not prepared to call this a retreat or even a withdrawal," he said. "We think that what they probably have in mind is a repositioning to prioritize elsewhere."
Russia's promise to scale down military operations around Kyiv and northern Ukraine does not represent a ceasefire and talks on a formal agreement with Kyiv have a long way to go, Moscow's lead negotiator in peace talks said on Tuesday.
Russian negotiators earlier on Tuesday gave an undertaking to sharply scale back military activity around Ukraine's capital Kyiv and the northern city of Chernihiv, in the most tangible sign yet of progress towards a peace deal.
