Russia - Ukraine War Live Update Today: Chemical weapons claim, EU & Biden Sanctions, humanitarian corridors, Putin strategy...

Estimated 20,000 civilian deaths in Mariupol

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has hit the port city of Mariupol among the hardest of any locations, with almost the entire city destroyed or damaged by constant shelling, with the civilian population trapped.

The mayor of Mariupol, in comments to Reuters, said the latest estimate is that around 21,000 civilians have been killed since the start of the invasion, adding that since street fighting had started the precise number of casualties has been hard to estimate. 

Claims that chemical weapons were used on the population are currently being monitored by the Pentagon. 

Putin talking up his war success

Mr. Putin’s defiant remarks — including a claim that atrocities documented in the Kyiv suburb of Bucha were “fake” — came as Russia pours more military vehicles, artillery and troops into eastern Ukraine. Moscow’s forces have accelerated their strikes on civilian infrastructure as they seek to undermine the Ukrainians’ ability to resupply and support their forces.

Mr. Putin was speaking in a news conference alongside President Aleksandr G. Lukashenko of Belarus at a spaceport in Russia’s Far East, an event that appeared to be aimed at reinforcing the Russian leader’s support at home. Ever since he appeared before tens of thousands at a Moscow stadium a month ago, his public appearances have been limited to brief clips showing him meeting with government officials, mostly by video link.

Russia's war on Ukraine sees US inflation hit 40-year high

Inflation in the US over the past year grew 8.5%, a 40-year high, with surging gas and rent prices due to Russia’s war on Ukraine.

The Labor Department on Tuesday released consumer price index data showing the biggest year-over-year jump since December 1981. In addition, the report showed that inflation climbed 1.2% from February to March, after increasing 0.8% from January to February.

Gas prices hiked up 48% year-over-year in March, according to the department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics, and are up 18.3% since February. Prices at the pump have started trending downward, but that was not captured in last month’s report.

Follow all the latest on the finance situation in the US, including inflation support measures.

Mayor of Bucha says 403 bodies found so far

Reuters - The mayor of the Ukrainian town Bucha says that authorities have found 403 bodies of people they believed were killed by Russian forces during their occupation of the area.

Anatoliy Fedoruk said during a news conference that the number was still growing and warned it was too early for residents to return to the town, from which Russian forces retreated late last month.

WORLD NEWS

Russia and Ukraine crisis: what is happening in Bucha?

When the Russian army announced that they would be repositioned to the east of Ukraine, opportunities arrived for the Ukrainian army to liberate numerous towns, especially around Kyiv. What celebrations could be had were short-lived, however, as soldiers found dozens of civilians executed in the streets.

The town which appears to have taken the brunt of this is Bucha, some 23 miles northwest of Kyiv. After examination by local experts, it is now estimated that more than 300 civilians had been killed by the Russian army in the town.

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Fighting expecting to intensify in eastern Ukraine over next 2-3 weeks

In its daily bulletin, the UK Ministry of Defence reported that Russian forces continue to withdraw from areas closes to the northern border with Belarus and will be redeployed in the east. Fierce fighting and shelling is taking place in Ukrainian positions in Donetsk and Luhansk.

Russian attempt to sabotage Ukrainian power grid thwarted

Russian hackers attempted to launch a destructive cyberattack on Ukraine's electricity grid last week, Ukrainian officials and cybersecurity researchers said on Tuesday. The group, dubbed 'Sandworm' by security researchers and previously tied to destructive cyberattacks attributed to Russia, deployed destructive and data-wiping malware on computers controlling high voltage substations in Ukraine, the Computer Emergency Response Team of Ukraine (CERT-UA) said in a statement on its website.

"The victim organisation suffered two waves of attacks. The initial compromise took place no later than February 2022. The disconnection of electrical substations and the decommissioning of the company's infrastructure was scheduled for Friday evening, April 8, 2022," the CERT-UA statement said.

Officials managed to prevent the attack from taking place, it added. The statement did not say which Ukrainian energy provider was targeted. Russia has consistently denied accusations it has launched cyberattacks on Ukraine. Slovakian cybersecurity firm ESET, which said it worked with CERT-UA to foil the attack, described the malware as an upgraded version of a malicious program which caused power blackouts in Kyiv in 2016. The malware was designed to take over the computer networks at the energy provider 'in order to cut power', ESET said in a blog post. A second, data-wiping, malware was deployed alongside this in order to slow attempts to get power back online, the firm added.

Putin warns the West: Russia cannot be isolated, or held back

President Vladimir Putin warned the West on Tuesday that attempts to isolate Moscow would fail, citing the success of the Soviet space programme as evidence that Russia could achieve spectacular leaps forward in tough conditions.

Russia says it will never again depend on the West after the United States and its allies imposed crippling sanctions on it to punish Putin for ordering what he called a 'special military operation' in Ukraine.

Sixty one years to the day since the Soviet Union's Yuri Gagarin blasted off into the history books by becoming the first man in space, Putin travelled to the Vostochny Cosmodrome (3,450 miles / 5550 km east of Moscow). "The sanctions were total, the isolation was complete but the Soviet Union was still first in space," Putin said, according to Russian state television. "We don't intend to be isolated. It is impossible to severely isolate anyone in the modern world - especially such a vast country as Russia".

Putin added that the had no doubts Russia would achieve all of its objectives in Ukraine - a conflict he cast as both inevitable and essential to defend Russia in the long term. "Its goals are absolutely clear and noble. It's clear that we didn't have a choice. It was the right decision," he said.

NATO official says up to Sweden, Finland if they want to join

NATO has not ruled out any possible new members and it is up to countries such as Sweden and Finland to decide if they want to join, the head of the alliance's military committee said on Tuesday. "It is a sovereign decision of any nation that wants to join NATO to apply for membership, which they so far have not done," Dutch Admiral Rob Bauer told reporters during a visit to Seoul. "We are forcing no one into NATO".

The alliance also had not pressured any countries to provide weapons to Ukraine, he said. During his visit to the South Korean capital this week, Bauer discussed the Ukraine war, as well as military cooperation between Seoul and NATO. The visit coincided with a video speech by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to South Korea's parliament on Monday, in which he asked Seoul for any military aid it could provide, including armoured vehicles and anti-aircraft missiles.

Bauer said he discussed Zelenskyy's request with South Korean officials, but confirmed their stance that they would only provide non-lethal aid for now. "If President Zelenskyy asks for those systems, it means he needs them," Bauer said. However, it was up to the South Korean government if they will and can send weapons, he added, noting that NATO had not asked South Korea to provide weapons, and was not providing direct military itself, though some member states are.

Bauer said the non-lethal aid, including bulletproof helmets and medical kits, that South Korea had sent was also important. He declined to comment on reports that Russian forces may have used chemical agents in an attack on the southeastern Ukrainian city of Mariupol.

NATO assessed that Russia will focus on eastern Ukraine, after having started the war on too many fronts, he said. NATO and its members will continue to supply 'everything possible' to ensure Ukraine's survival, but it would not be deploying its own aircraft or troops to the country, Bauer said

60 Minutes interviews Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy

Inching closer to the two month mark of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy sat down with 60 Minutes to discuss the war and how his forces have been able to push back against Russian troops.

Scott Pelley also spoke with the Ukrainian leader about possible war crimes perpetatred by Russian troops against civilians in various cities across the country.

Putin says Russian forces acting bravely and efficiently in Ukraine - TASS

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that Russian forces carrying out Moscow's military campaign in Ukraine were acting bravely and efficiently and using the most modern weapons, TASS news agency reported. Putin said that Moscow "could no longer tolerate genocide in Donbas" and that he was in doubt that Russia "will reach its objective" with their "military operation".

Latest News

Sniper Wali makes a reappearance in Russian invasion of Ukraine

Wali, the Canadian sniper fighting for Ukraine as they battle the invading Russian forces, has made a reappearance in the media, speaking to our sister newspaper El País. 

Although he has been cautious not to reveal his real identity nor his exact whereabouts in Ukraine, he wanted to set the record straight after new false rumors spread about hims by the Kremlin, this time that he was in Mariupol.

Full details

Putin flies into Russian far east for Ukraine talks with Belarusian leader

President Vladimir Putin flew into Russia's far east Amur region on Tuesday for talks with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko expected to focus on Ukraine and Russian-Belarusian integration.

The two leaders were due to head to the Vostochny Cosmodrome to mark Russia's annual Cosmonautics Day, commemorating the first manned space flight made in 1961 by the Russian Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin. They were also expected to inspect the spaceport and meet staff, and to give a joint news conference at around 1100 GMT.

Lukashenko, who has a track record of sometimes saying things that appear to jar with his closest ally's stated positions on a range of issues, has insisted that Belarus must be involved in negotiations to resolve the conflict in Ukraine and has said that Belarus had been unfairly labelled 'an accomplice of the aggressor'.

Ukraine says checking unverified information that Russia used chemical weapons in Mariupol

Ukraine is checking unverified information that Russia may have used chemical weapons while besieging the southern Ukrainian port city of Mariupol, Ukraine's Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Malyar said on Tuesday.

"There is a theory that these could be phosphorous munitions," Malyar said in televised comments, adding: "Official information will come later."

Russia's defence ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned on Monday that Russia could use chemical weapons in Ukraine. Britain and the United States have said they are aware of reports that Russia may have already used chemical agents in Mariupol. Britain said it was working with partners to verify the reports.

Russia has previously accused Ukraine of preparing to use chemical weapons, without providing evidence.

Gazprom continues gas exports to Europe via Ukraine

Russian state-owned gas producer Gazprom continued to supply natural gas to Europe via Ukraine on Tuesday at the pace of 74.6 million cubic metres per day, in accordance with requests from European consumers, the company said. This was in line with the 74.5 mcm reported earlier by Interfax news agency, which cited Ukraine's gas pipeline operator.

All options on table if Russia uses chemical weapons in Ukraine

All options would be on table in response to any use of chemical weapons in Ukraine by Russia, British armed forces minister James Heappey said on Tuesday. British foreign minister Liz Truss on Monday said Britain was working with its partners to verify the details of reports Russian forces may have used chemical agents in an attack on Mariupol. "There are some things that are beyond the pale, and the use of chemical weapons will get a response and all options are on the table for what that response could be," Heappey told Sky News.

Ukraine deputy PM says nine humanitarian corridors agreed for Tuesday

Ukraine Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said nine humanitarian corridors had been agreed for Tuesday to evacuate civilians, including from the besieged city of Mariupol by private cars. Vereshchuk said in a statement that five of the nine evacuation corridors were from Ukraine's Luhansk region in the east of the country, which Ukrainian officials have said is under heavy shelling.

Good morning and welcome to AS USA's daily live blog on the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which is now into day 48.

As Putin's troops prepare for a new offensive on the eastern parts of the country, there have been reports that Russian forces deployed chemical weapons during the seige of Mariupol. In other developments, Vladimir Putin flew to Russia's eastern Amur region on Tuesday for talks with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.