VLADIMIR Putin is plotting to starve hundreds of civilians by trapping them in the catacombs of the Mariupol steelwork plant.
The Asovstal plant's sprawling underground network of tunnels and bunkers has become the focal point of resistance by brave Ukrainian marines and soldiers determined to defend the area.
It is estimated that around 1,000 resistance fighters – and possibly more than 1,000 civilians – are trapped there.
The Russian leader ordered his military to cancel plans to storm the Mariupol steel plant.
Instead, he wants it to be securely blockaded so that even “a fly” cannot pass unnoticed.
He said: “There’s no need to climb into these catacombs and crawl underground through these industrial facilities.
"Block off this industrial area so that not even a fly can get through.”
Follow our Russia-Ukraine live blog below for up-to-the-minute updates…
- Joseph Gamp
Putin orders blockade
President Vladimir Putin has ordered the Russian military to cancel plans to storm the Mariupol steel plant.
Instead, he wants it to be securely blockaded so that even “a fly” cannot pass unnoticed.
Mr Putin said Russia guarantees the lives those in the facility will be treated with respect.
He gave the above orders to Sergei Shoigu, his defence minister.
It is thought many civilians – possibly more than 1,000 – are also trapped there.
- Joseph Gamp
Biden: 'Questionable' if Mariupol has been captured
US President Joe Biden on Thursday said it was unclear if Russia had taken control of Mariupol after President Vladimir Putin claimed the "liberation" of the flattened Ukrainian city.
"It's questionable whether he does control Mariupol," Biden said.
"He should allow humanitarian corridors to let people… get out.
"There is no evidence yet that Mariupol has completely fallen."
- Joseph Gamp
Biden vows Putin 'will never take control of Ukraine'
President Joe Biden has vowed that Russian President Vladimir Putin would never take control of Ukraine, as the United States announced new military aid for Kyiv.
He said: "Our unity at home with our allies and partners, and our unity with the Ukrainian people, is sending an unmistakable message to Putin — he will never succeed in dominating and occupying all of Ukraine.
"That will not happen," he added.
- Joseph Gamp
Spain ships 200 tonnes of military equipment to Ukraine
Spain has shipped 200 tonnes of military equipment, including heavy transport vehicles and ammunition to Ukraine, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said Thursday during a visit to Kyiv.
"This is the largest shipment made until now, more than doubling what we have sent so far," he told a joint news conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen.
- Joseph Gamp
Dramatic moment Putin test-fires 16,000mph ‘Satan-2’ nuke
RUSSIA has successfully launched its ‘Satan’ missile, capable of firing up to 12 nuclear warheads at once, Vladimir Putin has claimed.
The launch of the Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile will give “food for thought for those who try to threaten Russia,” the Russian president warned.
The missile, nicknamed Satan 2, can fly 11,000 miles, carry 15 warheads and has the potential to destroy an area the size of France.
It was successfully launched from Plesetsk Cosmodrome in Arkhangelsk Oblast, northwestern Russia, according to Russian state media outlet RIA Novosti.
Video shows the enormous 115-foot missile being launched from an underground silo, triggering an enormous fireball.
It travelled almost the entire length of Russia – almost 3,600 miles – in around 15 minutes.
- Milica Cosic
Thank you for reading my coverage today. My colleague Joe Gamp will be taking over the blog until 10pm tonight.
- Milica Cosic
Ukraine on Russian troops lost during invasion
Ukraine has provided its latest update on the number of losses Russia has suffered since the start of the war, claiming 21,000 Russian troops have been killed since the beginning the invasion.
It has also claimed that 2,118 armoured personnel vehicles and 829 tanks have been destroyed.
The true figure is believed to be a lot higher.
- Milica Cosic
Ukrainian military says terror of local people continues in Kherson
Kherson, which has a population of 283,000, is one of the few Ukrainian cities to be occupied by Russian forces.
"The Russian invaders plan to organise the forced mobilisation of the population for war with Ukraine," the Ukrainian military posted on social media this morning.
In one village, Russian representatives stated that there would be no more "green corridors" for civilians, it said.
"At the same time, the Russian occupiers set a goal to completely stop the humanitarian support of the region from the Ukrainian authorities," the military added.
"The terror of the Ukrainian population by Russian occupiers continues."
- Milica Cosic
UK issues new sanctions targeting Putin's war leaders
Earlier we reported that the UK has announced a new wave of 26 sanctions targeting Russian generals "committing atrocities on the front line" – as well as individuals and businesses supporting Vladimir Putin's military.
We now have more on this story.
Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said today the new sanctions would be imposed on those with "Ukrainian blood on their hands".
She said: "The depravity of Russia's assault on the people of Ukraine is plain for all to see.
"They are deliberately targeting hospitals, schools, and transport hubs in Mariupol and beyond – just as they did in Chechnya and Syria.
"The UK is unyielding in our support for Ukraine and in holding Putin and his regime to account. Today’s new wave of sanctions hits the generals and defence companies that have blood on their hands."
- Milica Cosic
Germany to backfill East European weapons for Ukraine
Germany has reached an agreement with eastern European partners to supply Ukraine with a new batch of heavy weapons "in the next few days", Defence Minister Christine Lambrecht said on Thursday.
"It's about tanks, armoured vehicles, or other options individual countries are able to give," Lambrecht told the NTV broadcaster.
Germany will then replenish these stocks, she said, without giving further details.
The deliveries must happen quickly because "military experts agree that the next two weeks will be decisive in Ukraine's fight against Russia", she said.
The tanks will include T-72 models from Slovenia, according to German media reports.
- Milica Cosic
'Key leaders' are being targeted as part of a new wave of sanctions
The "key leaders in Russia's army" are being targeted as part of a new wave of 26 sanctions, the FCDO said.
The UK is also taking action against individuals outside of Vladimir Putin's military, who are "actively supporting his illegal invasion of Ukraine".
These include Oleg Belozyorov, the chief executive and chairman of vital logistics company Russian Railways, and Ilya Kiva, the defecting and expelled Ukrainian MP who has publicly supported Russia's actions in Ukraine, the department said.
Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said: "The depravity of Russia's assault on the people of Ukraine is plain for all to see. They are deliberately targeting hospitals, schools, and transport hubs in Mariupol and beyond – just as they did in Chechnya and Syria.
"The UK is unyielding in our support for Ukraine and in holding Putin and his regime to account. Today's new wave of sanctions hits the generals and defence companies that have blood on their hands."
- Milica Cosic
'You cannot be safe anywhere in Ukraine'
The director of Ukraine's largest children's cancer foundation, Yuliya Nogovitsyna, who leads the charity foundation Tabletochki, told CNN that trying to transport patients towards the west of Ukraine and then onward towards bordering countries was "sort of Mission: Impossible".
She told the American broadcaster: "From the very first days of the war, we tried to evacuate children from the biggest hospitals. We took them in rather large groups and we sought for either buses, trains or cars to bring them to Lviv.
"It was very difficult and challenging because it was just near impossible to find any means of transport to move these kids."
Ms Nogovitsyna went on to say: "It just demonstrated that you cannot be safe anywhere in Ukraine."
- Milica Cosic
News you may have missed
- 'Mad' Putin is hearing 'voices inside his head', an expert has claimed
- Putin has rewarded the 'butchers of Bucha' for their 'heroism and bravery'
- Russia's military bases have been pictured on Google Maps, amid reports they are using 'fake jets' to fool the West
- While Russia's tinpot army has allegedly been using cheap cameras, gamepads and satnavs to fix up their planes and drones
- A former ally of Putin was found shot dead in his £2m apartment alongside his wife and daughter
- His death follows a number of Putin allies who have been 'purged' in the wake of the Ukraine invasion
PM: India been ‘very strong’ in condemning Russia
The UK's prime minister, Boris Johnson, is on a two day trip to India and has said the country has been "very strong" in its condemnation of Putin’s atrocities in Bucha, Ukraine.
"I think everybody understands India and Russia have, historically, had a very different relationship than perhaps Russia and the UK have had over the last couple of decades," Mr Johnson said.
"We have to reflect that reality, but clearly I'll be talking to Narenda Modi (Indian prime minister] about it".
Italy should cut off Russian gas 'soon'
Italy is ethically obliged to stop buying Russian gas "soon", the country's Ecological Transition Minister Roberto Cingolani said in an interview today.
"I think that we will have to stop supplies of gas from Russia soon for ethical reasons," he told La Stampa newspaper.
The minister is currently on a two-day trip to Angola and Congo Republic seeking energy deals as Italy scrambles to reduce its dependency on Russia, which provides about 45 percent of Italian gas.
"We are diversifying our sources with great speed," he said.
"It is clear that all of Europe is heavily dependent on Russia for gas, and this has been a major geopolitical mistake made over the past 20 years," he said.
"It is useless to think that we can solve it in a month. From a certain point of view, however, this money is a lot… we are indirectly financing the war."
Cingolani predicted the country would no longer need Russian gas within 18 months.
"By the second half of next year we will really begin to have an almost complete independence," he told La Stampa.
Italy is one of Europe's biggest guzzlers of gas, which currently represents 42 percent of its energy consumption, and it imports 95 percent of the gas it uses.
- Milica Cosic
Russia fines Google
A Moscow court today said it had found Alphabet Inc.s Google guilty of an administrative offence and fined the company for what the TASS news agency said was its distribution of video clips on YouTube produced by Ukrainian far-right groups.
Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
- Milica Cosic
Ukrainian Unit blasts Russian Z tank in bombed out town
In a video, Ukrainian troops can be seen blowing up a Russian 'Z' tank with a rocket-propelled grenade in a heavily-shelled town.
The 4th Rapid Reaction Brigade of the National Guard of Ukraine said on 20th April: "Demilitarization of the occupier in the conditions of a close city battle. Soldiers of our brigade lined up the enemy's BMP (infantry fighting vehicle) with crew with a shot from the RPG (rocket-propelled grenade)."
The Ukrainian brigade added: "Professionalism saves. Ukraine will win."
In the footage, the Russian 'Z' tank is seen stationary on a street in a bombed-out Ukrainian town.
The scene cuts and the fighting vehicle is seen in flames after apparently taking a direct hit from the rocket-propelled grenade.
- Milica Cosic
Russia & Belarus 'will respond' to the strengthening of NATO forces
Russia and Belarus will respond to the strengthening of NATO forces on the borders of their countries, TASS news agency reported today, citing a Russian diplomat.
"Together with Belarusian allies we have to respond to the military strengthening of NATO forces on the borders of the Union State (Russia and Belarus) and the CSTO (Collective Security Treaty Organisation), and to coordinate steps in the international arena," Alexey Polishchuk, a diplomat in Russia's foreign ministry told TASS in an interview.
- Milica Cosic
Ukraine deputy PM urges Russia let civilians & wounded soldiers leave Azovstal
Ukraine’s deputy prime minister Iryna Vereshchuk has demanded Russia urgently allow the evacuation of civilians and wounded soldiers from the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol to leave via a humanitarian corridor.
“There are about 1,000 civilians and 500 wounded soldiers there,” Ms Vereshchuk said in an online post.
“They all need to be pulled out of Azovstal today.”
- Milica Cosic
Kremlin: Russian troops strike more than 1,000 targets overnight
The Kremlin has claimed that Russian forces have hit more than 1,000 military targets in Ukraine overnight.
It has been reported that a total of 162 Ukrainian firing positions were reportedly struck by missiles and artillery.
- Milica Cosic
Putin orders blockade
President Vladimir Putin has ordered the Russian military to cancel plans to storm the Mariupol steel plant.
Instead, he wants it to be securely blockaded so that even "a fly" cannot pass unnoticed.
Mr Putin said Russia guarantees the lives those in the facility will be treated with respect.
He gave the above orders to Sergei Shoigu, his defence minister.
It is thought many civilians – possibly more than 1,000 – are also trapped there.
- Milica Cosic
World Bank: World faces ‘human catastrophe’ over rising food prices
The president of the World Bank has said that the world faces a “human catastrophe” as food prices rise sharply because of the Ukraine war.
Speaking to the BBC, David Malpass said: “It’s a human catastrophe, meaning nutrition goes down. But then it also becomes a political challenge for governments who can’t do anything about it, they didn’t cause it and they see the prices going up.”
The World Bank predicts a 37 per cent spike in food prices, warning people could "have less money for anything else such as schooling”.
- Milica Cosic
Spanish & Danish PMs arrive in Kyiv
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and his Danish counterpart Mette Frederiksen have arrived in Kyiv for talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, the Spanish government said.
Sanchez said on Wednesday he would convey to Zelensky the European Union and Spain's "clear engagement… for peace".
- Milica Cosic
Zelensky: Putin needs something to 'feed' his propaganda machine
In his nightly video address, Ukraine's president Volodymyr Zelensky, accused Russia's Vladimir Putin of overseeing acts of terror in his country.
"The situation in the east and south of the country remains as severe as possible," Zelensky said.
"The occupiers aren't abandoning their attempts to score at least some victory by launching a new, large-scale offensive. At least something, that they can 'feed' to their propagandists."
- Milica Cosic
More about Putin's 'Satan-2’ nuke
The missile landed at Kura Missile Test Range on the Kamchatka Peninsula in the far east of the country, according to Russian defence sources.
Most worryingly, the separate warheads in the Satan 2 missile are capable of detaching from the main 100-tonne missile before travelling towards their target at hypersonic speeds.
Russia's defence ministry has bragged today that the Sarmat ICBM is able to overcome any missile defence systems.
"Thanks to the energy-mass characteristics of the missile, the range of its combat equipment has fundamentally expanded both in terms of the number of warheads and types, including hypersonic gliders," the ministry said in a statement.
It added: "This launch is the first in the state test program. After the completion of the test program, the Sarmat missile system will go into service with the Strategic Missile Forces."
Following the launch, Dmitry Rogozin, the director of the Russian space agency Roscosmos, claimed on Twitter that the weapon was a "present to NATO and all sponsors of Ukronazism".
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