Bakhmut remains the epicenter of the Ukraine war.
According to the Kremlin, Putin is said to have visited the front.
The news ticker on the Ukraine war.
Russian commander
wants to see
Bakhmut
"in ruins": Moscow intensifies fighting
Kremlin boss
is said to have visited the
front
: Vladimir Putin is traveling to Cherson and Luhansk
Heavy
shelling
in
Donetsk
: Russia razes Bakhmut "to the ground"
This
news ticker
on the
Ukraine war
is constantly updated.
Update for April 18, 2:10 p.m .:
The leadership in Kiev reacted with bitter mockery to Vladimir Putin’s troop visit to occupied areas of Ukraine.
Mykhailo Podoliak, a senior adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, wrote on Twitter that Putin's visit was "a 'special tour' by the author of the mass murders in the occupied and devastated territories to enjoy one last time the crimes of his henchmen."
Ukraine and the West accuse Russian troops of war crimes, which the leadership in Moscow denies.
+
This picture released by the Kremlin is supposed to show Russian President Vladimir Putin (centre) during a visit to the front in the Cherson region.
© Kremlin Pool/imago-images
War in Ukraine: Allegations of espionage – US journalist Gershkovich remains in custody
Update from April 18, 1:33 p.m .:
The American journalist Evan Gershkovich remains in custody for the time being.
This was decided by the responsible Moscow court in a hearing on Tuesday.
Gershkovich appeared in court this morning to appeal his prison conditions.
The journalist had applied to be placed under house arrest until the main hearing.
"The allegations against Evan are unfounded and we call on the Russian Federation to release him immediately," US Ambassador to Russia Lynne Tracy said after the hearing.
The journalist from the US
Wall Street Journal
has been accused by the Russian authorities of espionage.
Gershkovich denies the allegations.
Shoigu praises military partnership with China - "has a stabilizing effect on the global situation"
Update from April 18, 11:45 a.m .:
The Russian Defense Minister, Sergei Shoigu, praised the cooperation between Moscow and Beijing at a meeting with his Chinese counterpart.
"The coordination of our efforts at the international level has a stabilizing effect on the global situation and helps to reduce the potential for conflict," the news agency Reuters quoted Schoigu as saying.
Chinese Defense Minister Li Shangfu traveled to Moscow to strengthen military cooperation between China and Russia.
Ukraine War News: Russian Ambassador Warns of 'Global Conflict'
Update from April 18, 10:45 a.m .:
The Russian ambassador to the United States, Anatoly Antonov, has accused the government in Washington of taking a provocative course against Moscow.
"[Washington] has handed the Kiev regime increasingly lethal and long-range systems that are purely offensive, not defensive," the ambassador lamented, according to the Russian news agency TASS.
The ambassador was referring to a speech by US Secretary of Defense Colin Stahl.
"The official's remarks are full of shamelessness, hypocrisy and arrogance towards our country," Antonov said.
For him it is therefore clear "that Washington deliberately pursued a provocative course towards Russia throughout the conflict." Antonov also emphasized the danger of a global conflict.
"In their desire to inflict defeat on us, they literally forgot everything, and most importantly, the fate of the Ukrainian people and the risks of a global conflict," Antonov said.
War in Ukraine: Russian commander wants to see Bakhmut "in ruins".
Update from April 18, 9:25 a.m
.: Bachmut has been the epicenter of the Russian attack on Ukraine for weeks.
Russia is said to have reduced its troop levels and offensive actions around Donetsk in order to send more troops to Bakhmut instead.
This emerges from the latest update from the British secret service.
Russia is currently making “creeping progress” there.
The commander of the ground forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrskyi recently wrote via Telegram that Russia would intensify its artillery and air strikes in Bakhmut.
The city would be "turned into ruins" by the attacks.
Russia is not giving up on bringing the city under control at any cost.
"At the same time, our fighters inflict significant casualties on the enemy and significantly slow down their offensive actions," the general said.
Ukraine War News: Brazil President causes a huge stir with statements about Ukraine
Update from April 18, 8:25 a.m
.: Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva caused a stir with statements about the Ukraine war.
After Lula called for an end to US military support for Kiev last weekend, the US has now sharply rejected his allegations, according to the French news agency
AFP
.
During his visit to China, Lula accused the United States of prolonging the war.
"In this case, Brazil is parroting Russian and Chinese propaganda without even looking at the facts," US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Monday (April 17).
Ukraine War News: According to Kremlin, Putin has visited the front
April 18 update, 7:45 a.m
.: President Vladimir Putin has traveled to the Kherson and Luhansk regions for the first time since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began.
The Kremlin has now explained this without giving any information about the time of the visit.
According to the information, Putin reported there from the front line.
In Luhansk he is said to have met the commander-in-chief Alexander Lapin.
An exact time of the visit was not given.
He is said to have brought Easter wishes to the soldiers on site.
War in Ukraine: Kiev publishes new figures on Russia's losses
Update from April 18, 7.45 a.m
.: In the Ukraine war, Russia is losing more and more soldiers.
According to the Ukrainian general staff, almost 500 people have been killed or wounded in the last 24 hours alone.
The information could not initially be independently verified.
Losses by Russia (as of April 18)
Soldiers
: so far a total of about 183,130 (+470)
Drones
: 2353 (+6)
Armored Fighting Vehicles
: 7098 (+11)
Tanks
: 3661 (+1)
Source:
General Staff of Ukraine on Facebook
Update from April 18, 5:15 a.m
.: Russian troops and Wagner mercenaries are fighting together for Bachmut – and are now taking more coordinated action against the Ukrainian defenders.
Among other things, paratroopers took over two districts of Bakhmut, said a spokesman for the Ministry of Defense in Moscow.
This information could not be verified independently.
Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin confirmed the joint approach.
Accordingly, the regular troops protect the flanks of his private army.
Recently, Prigozhin had repeatedly criticized the fact that the Russian Defense Ministry was doing too little to take Bakhmut.
Above all, the confidant of Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin had complained about a lack of ammunition.
The Ukrainian side recently confirmed that Russian fighters had advanced into the center of Bakhmut.
According to Russian information, around 80 percent of the city, which had around 70,000 inhabitants before the war, has been conquered.
Despite everything, Ukraine does not want to give up Bachmut.
Tanks, drones, anti-aircraft defenses: weapons for Ukraine
Tanks, drones, anti-aircraft defenses: weapons for Ukraine
Ukraine war news: Russia razes Bakhmut to the ground
Update from April 17, 10:30 p.m.:
The Russian armed forces have increased the use of heavy artillery and airstrikes in Bakhmut in the Donetsk region.
This is reported by Hanna Maliar, Deputy Minister of Defense of Ukraine, on Telegram.
“The use of heavy artillery and air strikes on the Bakhmut front has intensified.
The enemy is simply leveling the buildings and infrastructure of Bakhmut,” Maliar wrote.
Ukraine war: East of the country remains "epicenter of hostilities"
Update from April 17, 8:50 p.m .:
According to their own statements, the Ukrainian armed forces repelled dozens of attacks by Russian troops in the east of the country on Monday.
In its daily situation report, the General Staff in Kiev named the cities of Bakhmut and Marjinka as the “epicenter of the fighting”.
In the course of the day, around 50 attacks from five different directions were repelled "with high enemy casualties".
The information could not be independently verified.
The Ukrainian Air Force reported a series of attacks on Russian positions.
Among other things, a base for electronic warfare was hit.
The exact location was not mentioned.
Russia has been waging a war of aggression against neighboring Ukraine for more than a year.
Ukraine war: Russia is now recruiting regular soldiers
Update from April 17, 7:00 p.m.:
Russia is now also recruiting contract soldiers in the annexed Crimea.
According to N-tv,
the local recruiting office has set up a stand with guns and is trying to create an image as an attractive employer.
Converted with a bonus of almost 4500 euros, voluntary fighters are remunerated.
Even if the stand attracts people interested in the military, according to n-tv, the Ukraine war remains a sensitive issue in Crimea.
Ukraine war: Navalny 'outraged' at Kara-Mursa's conviction
Update from April 17, 4:43 p.m .:
The imprisoned Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny reacted “deeply outraged” to the conviction of the opposition politician Vladimir Kara-Mursa to 25 years in prison.
According to Navalny, the verdict was "illegal, shameless and simply fascist".
He said so in a voice message published Monday by his team in online services.
"I believe that Vladimir Kara-Mursa was persecuted for political reasons," it said.
Kara-Mursa was found guilty by a Moscow court on Monday of “high treason”, “spreading misinformation” about the Russian army and working illegally for an “undesirable”.
Kara-Mursa said last week that he did not regret any of his statements, despite the long prison sentence he was threatened with.
However, he blames himself for not having been able to convince enough compatriots and politicians in democratic countries of the danger that the current Kremlin leadership poses to Russia and the world.
The well-known activist is a longtime opponent of President Vladimir Putin and was a confidante of opposition politician Boris Nemtsov, who was shot dead in 2015.
"Dozens" of videos of executions of Ukrainians in Russian POWs
Update from April 17, 4:30 p.m .:
According to its human rights officer Dmytro Lubinez, Ukraine already has “dozens” of videos of its citizens being executed in Russian captivity.
In an interview published on Monday by the
Ukrainska Pravda
Internet portal , Lubinets said: "These are decapitations, cutting off of genitals, cutting off of ears, noses, limbs and fingers".
Several perpetrators have been identified.
At least one has already been killed in fighting.
Lubinets accused the Russian side of systematically violating the Geneva Conventions for the Protection of Prisoners of War.
A video circulated on social media last week showing a man in a Russian uniform beheading a suspected Ukrainian prisoner of war.
Several similar clips showing executions and mistreatment of Russian prisoners of war had already been circulated on the Internet beforehand.
The UN has documented violations of international conventions on both sides.
Ukraine war: Kremlin critic Kara-Mursa sentenced to 25 years in prison
Update from April 17, 10:52 a.m .
: The Kremlin critic Kara-Mursa has been sentenced to 25 years in prison in Moscow.
This was reported by the AFP news agency.
The public prosecutor's office had accused the 41-year-old of "high treason" and the dissemination of "false information" about the Russian army.
As recently as last Tuesday (April 11), Kara-Mursa said he had no regrets about what he had said.
However, he blames himself for not having been able to convince enough compatriots and politicians in democratic countries of the danger that the current Kremlin leadership poses to Russia and the world.
The well-known activist is a longtime opponent of President Vladimir Putin and was a confidant of opposition leader Boris Nemtsov, who was shot dead in 2015.
Ukraine-News: Great Britain warns of increasing risks from mines
Update from April 17, 10:26 a.m
.: In view of milder temperatures and more agricultural work in Ukraine, Great Britain warns of risks from mines for the civilian population.
Incidents are reported daily, the Ministry of Defense in London said.
The areas of Cherson in the south and Kharkiv in the east, which were temporarily occupied by Russian troops, were particularly affected.
Since the war began in February 2022, more than 750 civilians have been killed or injured by mines.
In every eighth case, a child is the victim.
"It will probably take at least a decade to clear Ukraine of mines," it said.
Ukraine-News: Kiev talks about Russia's losses in Bakhmut
Update from April 17, 6:48 a.m
.: The Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Resnikov has commented on the "Ukraine Leaks" and the war losses.
There are no exact figures – neither side wants to lose face.
But Resnikov's hints suggest something bad.
"Our main goal is to save the lives of our soldiers while Russia uses them as cannon fodder.
It's the meat grinder tactic," he told Spanish newspaper
La Razón
.
"In Bakhmut alone, Russia loses 500 men every day - either dead or wounded."
Reznikov said of the “Ukraine leaks”: “This leak is interesting because it is a mixture of truth and lies.” The main goal is to undermine trust between the allies, he surmised.
"For example, they use false casualty figures and imply that Washington does not trust our counter-offensive capabilities." It is not true that there are currently NATO soldiers in Ukraine, the politician insisted: "Of course there are military attachés from countries in the alliance, but they are in their embassies in Kiev.
Not on the battlefield.”
Ukraine-News: Satellite images suggest a new cemetery
Update from April 16, 6:03 p.m .:
In a Russian-occupied village near the eastern Ukrainian cities of Soledar and Bahmut, a large cemetery has apparently emerged within a month.
This is reported by the
editorial network Germany (RND),
citing satellite images.
According to the recordings, around 200 graves in Volodymyrivka, which had 675 inhabitants before the war, were dug between February 23 and April 1, 2023.
Drone footage taken by the Ukrainian army on April 10 shows that around 70 of the graves were prepared for burial by that time, while people had already been buried in the remaining 130 graves.
According to the recordings, the graves were dug individually.
"Most likely it is about the killed fighters of the Wagner group, as they often no longer have any relatives at home, have broken with their families and therefore remain in Ukraine," said Colonel Markus Reisner, military expert of the Austrian Armed Forces, the
RND
.
Ukraine News: Kremlin chief Putin celebrates Easter with Patriarch Kirill
Update from April 16, 11:09 a.m
.: Vladimir Putin celebrated Orthodox Easter in Moscow’s Christ the Savior Cathedral.
Together with Mayor Sergey Sobyanin, the head of the Kremlin attended a service of the Russian Orthodox Church leader, Patriarch Kirill, on Sunday night (April 16).
The Kremlin released Putin's Easter message this year.
Accordingly, the Russian President, against whom an international arrest warrant has now been issued for alleged war crimes, said: “The wonderful, beloved Easter gives hope to believers, inspires good thoughts and deeds and serves to affirm high moral ideals and values in society. "
Internationally, however, Kirill is above all a fervent supporter of Putin's attack on Ukraine - and has repeatedly defended it in the past, among other things in sermons.
Ukraine-News: Ex-Kremlin boss Medvedev threatens Poland
First report from April 16
: Kiev/Moscow – Dmitri Medvedev rumbles again.
The ex-Kremlin boss often attracts attention with his hate speech against the West.
On the one hand, he wrote on Twitter about how “young Ukrainian bloodsuckers would sit and parasitize on the crooked neck of the weakening EU”.
Another tweet is now against Poland.
Medvedev, who is considered a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, wrote the entry from Friday (April 14) in English and Polish.
"Some fool named Mateusz Morawiecki claimed that Ukraine had the right to attack Russia - and that he wouldn't worry about a NATO war against Russia because Moscow would soon lose such a war," it said.
"I don't know who will win or lose such a war, but given Poland's role as a NATO outpost in Europe, this country will surely disappear, along with its stupid prime minister," he continued.
(AFP/dpa/frs)
List of rubrics: © Kremlin Pool/imago-images
