3 years ago
New Delhi:
Russian troops who seized the Chernobyl nuclear power plant on February 24 began leaving the station and other exclusion zones on Thursday, Ukraine's state nuclear company Energoatom said.
"This morning, the invaders announced their intentions to leave the Chernobyl nuclear power plant," Energoatom said on Telegram.
Russian troops "marched in two columns towards the Ukrainian border with Belarus" and a "small number" of Russian forces remain in the station, it said.
"There is also evidence that a column of Russian soldiers who are besieging the town of Slavutych is currently being formed to move towards Belarus," it said.
Slavutych houses the workers of the Chernobyl nuclear plant.
Since the Russian invasion, there have been fears of increased radiological risks in Chernobyl.
Chernobyl's number four reactor exploded on April 26, 1986, causing the world's worst nuclear accident which killed hundreds and spread radioactive contamination west across Europe.
Here are the Highlights on the Ukraine-Russia War:
Apr 01, 2022 05:19 (IST)
EU to push China at summit to not help Russia in Ukraine war
EU and Chinese leaders meet for a first summit in two years on Friday with Brussels keen for assurances from Beijing that it will neither supply Russia with arms nor help Moscow circumvent Western sanctions imposed over the invasion of Ukraine.
In uncommonly open language, EU officials close to the preparations of the summit said any help given to Russia would damage China's international reputation and jeopardise relations with its biggest trade partners -- Europe and the United States.
EU and Chinese leaders meet for a first summit in two years on Friday with Brussels keen for assurances from Beijing that it will neither supply Russia with arms nor help Moscow circumvent Western sanctions imposed over the invasion of Ukraine.
In uncommonly open language, EU officials close to the preparations of the summit said any help given to Russia would damage China's international reputation and jeopardise relations with its biggest trade partners -- Europe and the United States.
Apr 01, 2022 03:38 (IST)
Russia Says It Will Open Humanitarian Corridor From Mariupol Today
Russia said a humanitarian corridor would be opened Friday morning to allow civilians out of the besieged port city of Mariupol in southeastern Ukraine.
"The Russian armed forces will reopen a humanitarian corridor from Mariupol to Zaporizhzhia on April 1 from 10:00 am," or 0700 GMT, the Russian defence ministry said.
Russia said a humanitarian corridor would be opened Friday morning to allow civilians out of the besieged port city of Mariupol in southeastern Ukraine.
"The Russian armed forces will reopen a humanitarian corridor from Mariupol to Zaporizhzhia on April 1 from 10:00 am," or 0700 GMT, the Russian defence ministry said.
Apr 01, 2022 02:56 (IST)
Putin's gas threat as Ukraine, West dismiss de-escalation claim
Russia threatened Thursday to turn off its gas taps to Europe, opening up a new front in its war in Ukraine amid growing scepticism over Moscow's claim it is scaling back its onslaught.
Over a month into Russia's invasion of its neighbour, Vladimir Putin's troops have devastated cities like Mariupol with shelling, killing at least 5,000 people in the port city alone.
Russia threatened Thursday to turn off its gas taps to Europe, opening up a new front in its war in Ukraine amid growing scepticism over Moscow's claim it is scaling back its onslaught.
Over a month into Russia's invasion of its neighbour, Vladimir Putin's troops have devastated cities like Mariupol with shelling, killing at least 5,000 people in the port city alone.
Apr 01, 2022 02:39 (IST)
Russian troops have left Chernobyl: Ukrainian officials
Russian troops on Tuesday left Ukraine's Chernobyl nuclear power plant after weeks of occupation, officials in Kyiv said Thursday.
"There are no longer any outsiders on the territory of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant," Ukraine's state agency in charge of the Chernobyl exclusion zone said on Facebook.
Earlier in the day, the state nuclear company Energoatom said Russian troops began leaving the station and other exclusion zones, which they had occupied since the start of the Russian invasion on Feb 24.
Russian troops on Tuesday left Ukraine's Chernobyl nuclear power plant after weeks of occupation, officials in Kyiv said Thursday.
"There are no longer any outsiders on the territory of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant," Ukraine's state agency in charge of the Chernobyl exclusion zone said on Facebook.
Earlier in the day, the state nuclear company Energoatom said Russian troops began leaving the station and other exclusion zones, which they had occupied since the start of the Russian invasion on Feb 24.
Apr 01, 2022 01:32 (IST)
Not clear Russian convoy to Kyiv exists anymore, Pentagon says
The Pentagon said on Thursday it was not clear that Russia's convoy of military vehicles to Kyiv, which once stretched some 40 miles, even exists anymore after failing to accomplish its mission.
"I don't even know if it still exists at this point... They never really accomplished their mission," said Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby.
The Pentagon said on Thursday it was not clear that Russia's convoy of military vehicles to Kyiv, which once stretched some 40 miles, even exists anymore after failing to accomplish its mission.
"I don't even know if it still exists at this point... They never really accomplished their mission," said Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby.
Mar 31, 2022 23:31 (IST)
'Russian soldiers go home!' says defiant Kharkiv commander
"Russian soldiers, go home, while you're still alive!" The commander-in-chief of the 92nd Brigade of the Ukrainian army and defender of Kharkiv is defiant despite five weeks of war.
General Pavlo "Maestro", believes the military situation is "stable" in his northeastern region but warns of a new Russian offensive in the east of the country.
"They (the Russians) believed that they would cross into Ukraine like they did in Crimea" in 2014, he tells AFP in an exclusive interview.
"But it didn't work, that's why the enemy retreated and is regrouping. They are regrouping to attack and put maximum forces in the region or the direction of Slobozhanshchyna in northeastern Ukraine.
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Mar 31, 2022 22:44 (IST)
Russia trades accusations with Ukraine on drifting Black Sea mines
Russia accused Ukraine on Thursday of laying hundreds of mines near its coast and said some were drifting into open waters of the Black Sea and creating dangers for merchant shipping, a day after Kyiv said Moscow was responsible for planting mines.
The Black Sea is a major shipping route for grain, oil and oil products. Its waters are shared by Bulgaria, Romania, Georgia and Turkey as well as Ukraine and Russia, which have been at war since President Vladimir Putin invaded his southern neighbour on Feb. 24.
Mar 31, 2022 21:40 (IST)
Russia bans EU leadership after sanctions
Russia on Thursday said it will expand the list of EU figures banned from entering the country following Western sanctions over Moscow's military actions in Ukraine.
Russia has been hit with a barrage of sanctions after it launched a military operation in Ukraine on February 24.
"The restrictions apply to the top leadership of the European Union including a number of European commissioners and heads of EU military structures as well as the vast majority of members of the European Parliament promoting anti-Russian policies," the foreign ministry said in a statement.
Others include "high-ranking officials... as well as public figures and media workers who are personally responsible for promoting illegal anti-Russian sanctions, inciting Russophobic sentiment and infringing the rights and freedoms of the Russian-speaking population," the statement added.
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Mar 31, 2022 20:23 (IST)
US slaps sanctions on Russian tech firms, including largest chip maker
The United States hit a series of Russian tech firms with sanctions Thursday, including the nation's largest chip maker, in the latest economic punishment for Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.
The US Treasury said the sanctions are "part of its crackdown on the Kremlin's sanctions evasion networks and technology companies, which are instrumental to the Russian Federation's war machine."
Mar 31, 2022 19:44 (IST)
Putin says EU gas buyers need ruble accounts from April
Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that "unfriendly" countries, including all EU members, will need to set up ruble accounts to pay for gas deliveries from April.
"They must open ruble accounts in Russian banks. It is from these accounts that payments will be made for gas delivered starting tomorrow, April 1," Putin said in televised remarks, adding that missing payments will lead to "existing contracts being stopped".
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Mar 31, 2022 19:18 (IST)
NATO Sees No Russian Pull-Back In Ukraine, Expects More Offensives
NATO is not seeing a pull-back of Russian forces in Ukraine and expects "additional offensive actions," the alliance's chief Jens Stoltenberg said on Thursday.
"According to our intelligence, Russian units are not withdrawing but repositioning. Russia is trying to regroup, resupply and reinforce its offensive in the Donbas region" in eastern Ukraine, Stoltenberg told a media conference.
Mar 31, 2022 17:05 (IST)
French Military Spy Chief Quits Over Ukraine: Report
France's military intelligence chief is leaving his post after Paris failed to accurately predict in contrast to other Western allies that Russia would launch a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, several sources with knowledge of his exit said.
General Eric Vidaud, who has led the Direction of Military Intelligence (DRM) since only last summer, is to immediately step down from his post, a military source, who asked not to be named, told AFP.
The source confirmed a report on the l'Opinion website citing an internal defence ministry investigation that criticised "insufficient briefings" and "failure to master the issues."
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Mar 31, 2022 15:56 (IST)
UK sanctions Russian 'propagandists and state media'
The UK announced Thursday new sanctions against "Russian propagandists and state media", targeting the Kremlin-funded owners of two television stations and a well-known presenter, over the invasion of Ukraine.
"Britain has helped lead the world in exposing Kremlin disinformation, and this latest batch of sanctions hits the shameless propagandists who push out (Vladimir) Putin's fake news and narratives," Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said in a statement.
Mar 31, 2022 14:56 (IST)
Ukrainian president urges Dutch parliament to stop all trade with Russia
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday asked the Dutch parliament for weapons, reconstruction aid and to halt all business with Russia in response to the invasion of his country. "Stronger sanctions are needed so that Russia doesn't have a chance to pursue this war further in Europe," he told lawmakers via video link. "Stop all trade with Russia."
Mar 31, 2022 14:43 (IST)
Turkey says oligarch Abramovich 'sincerely' working to end war
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Thursday that Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich, who is sanctioned by European nations over Russia's invasion of Ukraine, was "sincerely" working to end the war.
He has been liaising between Kyiv and Moscow since the invasion began on Feb. 24, Cavusoglu said.
Mar 31, 2022 14:15 (IST)
Turkey working to bring together Ukraine, Russia foreign ministers again
Turkey is working to bring together the Ukrainian and Russian foreign ministers for talks after hosting peace negotiations in Istanbul this week, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Thursday, adding the meeting could happen within two weeks.
Negotiators from Ukraine and Russia held the first face-to-face talks in more than two weeks in Istanbul this week, during which Ukraine presented written proposals to stop the Russian invasion.
Mar 31, 2022 13:45 (IST)
Amid the burnt-out frames of shelled buildings and bare branches of trees, only a children's playground set, now abandoned, lends colour to this neighbourhood in the Ukrainian city of Mariupol.
Mar 31, 2022 13:14 (IST)
Kyiv sends 45 buses to evacuate civilians from Mariupol
The Ukrainian government is sending 45 buses on Thursday to evacuate civilians from the besieged city of Mariupol, where the Russian defence ministry has announced a local ceasefire, Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said.
Mar 31, 2022 13:03 (IST)
Russia, Ukraine foreign ministers could meet within two weeks
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba could meet within two weeks for talks, Turkey said Thursday after hosting negotiators from both sides earlier this week.
"There could be a higher-level meeting, at least at the level of foreign ministers, within about a week or two weeks," Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told a televised interview.
Mar 31, 2022 11:30 (IST)
UK military intelligence says Russian shelling, missile strikes continue in Chernihiv
Russian shelling and missile strikes have continued in Chernihiv despite Russian statements indicating an intended reduction of military activity around the area, British military intelligence said on Thursday.
Russian forces continue to hold positions to the east and west of Kyiv despite the withdrawal of a limited number of units, the Ministry of Defence said in a statement. "Heavy fighting will likely take place in the suburbs of the city in coming days."
Mar 31, 2022 10:52 (IST)
War to hammer Russia, Ukraine economies this year: EBRD
The economies of Russia and Ukraine will contract by 10 percent and 20 percent respectively this year as the war between the two countries causes "the greatest supply shock" for 50 years, the European development bank, EBRD, said on Thursday.
Before Russia invaded its pro-Western neighbour on February 24, the London-based European Bank for Reconstruction and Development had been pencilling in growth of 3.5 percent for Ukraine and 3.0 percent for Russia.
Mar 31, 2022 10:36 (IST)
The United States is looking at options to expand sanctions to impose on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine and will have more to say about it in the coming days, White House spokesperson Kate Bedingfield said on Wednesday.
Mar 31, 2022 09:37 (IST)
Russian President Vladimir Putin's advisors fear telling him the truth about his "failing" Ukraine war strategy, the head of Britain's top communications spying agency said Thursday.
Mar 31, 2022 07:40 (IST)
Nearly Half Of Ukraine "Polluted" By Russian Explosives: Kyiv
Nearly half of Ukraine's territory has been contaminated by explosives as part of Russia's war against its neighbour, a senior Kyiv official said Wednesday, according to a local media report.
Deputy Interior Minister Yevgen Yenin said that some 300,000 square metres of Ukrainian territory have been "polluted" by explosive devices "as a result of Russian aggression", the Interfax-Ukraine news agency reporter.
Mar 31, 2022 06:53 (IST)
"We Will Fight For Every Meter Of Our Territory": Ukraine's Zelensky
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday dismissed Russia's vows to de-escalate fighting against its neighbour, saying 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.
Mar 31, 2022 06:42 (IST)
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.
