Russia-Ukraine Crisis: Over a million Ukrainians return home since beginning of invasion

Ukraine has received fighter planes and aircraft parts to bolster its air force in the face of Russia's invasion, the Pentagon said Tuesday, declining to specify the number of aircraft or their origin. Meanwhile, Ukraine told the IAEA that direct communications had been restored between the Chornobyl nuclear power plant and the state atomic power regulator. Stay tuned for live updates.

Sarmat missile will make Russia foes 'think twice': Putin

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday that Russia has successfully tested the Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile, saying the weapon capable of carrying nuclear charges will make Kremlin's enemies "thinktwice."

Ukraine has not received whole aircraft from allies, only parts: Pentagon

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres seeks to meet Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelenskyy

United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres has written to Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to receive him in Moscow and Kyiv "to discuss urgent steps to bring about peace inUkraine."

Spokesperson for the Secretary General, Stephane Dujarric, told reporters Wednesday that on Tuesday afternoon two separate letters were handed over to the Permanent Missions of the Russian Federation andUkraine.

Israel authorises sale of helmets, vests to Ukrainian troops

Over a million Ukrainians returned home since Russian invasion: Border force

More than five million Ukrainians have fled war: UN

More than five million Ukrainians have now fled their country following the Russian invasion, United Nations figures showed Wednesday, in Europe's fastest-growing refugee crisis since World War II.

UNHCR, the UN refugee agency, said 5,034,439 Ukrainians had left since Russia invaded on February 24.

'History will not forget war crimes' in Ukraine: EU chief

EU chief Charles Michel said Wednesday that there must be justice for war crimes committed inUkraineas he toured the devastated town of Borodianka on a visit to the country.

"In Borodianka. Like Bucha and too many other towns inUkraine. History will not forget the war crimes that have been committed here. There can be no peace without justice," European Council head Michel wrote on Twitter.

Men's tennis world number two Daniil Medvedev is set to be barred from this year's Wimbledon Grand Slam tournament

The Times reported organisers are to ban Russian and Belarus players due to Russia's invasion ofUkraine.

Russian and Belarusian players have been able to continue to compete in ATP and WTA events under a neutral flag since Russia invadedUkraineon February 24.

It was believed this would extend to the three remaining Grand Slam events -- though the ITF banned both countries' teams from the Davis Cup and the Billie Jean King Cup.

However, The Times says sources have told them that after almost two months of talks Wimbledon organisers prefer to ban the players rather than adhere to a compromise solution offered by the British government.

That would have seen the likes of Medvedev and last year's Wimbledon women's singles semi-finalist Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus sign statements that they would not make supportive comments of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Wimbledon organisers believe signing such statements could impact negatively on the families of the players.

It is likely that this will apply to all British grass-court tournaments this summer.

The Lawn Tennis Association (LTA), which oversees key Wimbledon warm-up tournaments such as Queen's and Eastbourne, said last week they would follow Wimbledon's lead.

"We think from a public perspective and indeed a practical implementation perspective that there needs to be alignment [between the All England Club and LTA], so it is really clear and understood," said LTA chief executive Scott Lloyd. [AFP Reported]

Norway has given Ukraine around 100 French-made Mistral anti-air missiles, the government said

The Mistral launchers and missiles, which have already been delivered, had until now been mounted on Norwegian navy vessels, the defence ministry said in a statement.

Built from the end of the 1980s by defence group Matra, which later merged with European missile developer MBDA, the Mistral is a very short-range surface-to-air missile. It can be used on vehicles, ships and helicopters, or be portable.

In a video speech to the Norwegian parliament at the end of March, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had asked Oslo for anti-air missiles, albeit the more modern NASAMS type made by Norway's Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace.

"The (Mistral) missile is to be retired from the Norwegian military but it is still a modern and efficient weapon that will be of great use to Ukraine", Norway Defence Minister Bjorn Arild Gram said in the statement.

"Other countries have also donated similar weapons systems", he said.

Since the start of the Russian invasion on February 24, Norway has already provided Ukraine with some 4,000 anti-tank weapons and other smaller military equipment. [AFP Reported]

More than 140 civilians and five Ukrainian troops have been evacuated from the besieged port city of Mariupol, separatists said, as Moscow intensified its offensive in the east

"Five servicemen ofUkraine's armed forces laid down their arms and voluntarily left the territory of the Azovstal plant," separatist authorities in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic said in a post on the messaging app Telegram on Wednesday.

In a separate post late Tuesday, separatists said that more than 140 people had also been evacuated from the devastated city, which provides a crucial land bridge between Russian-controlled parts of easternUkraineand the Kremlin-annexed Crimea peninsula.

The Kremlin's forces are fighting to oust the remaining Ukrainian troops from their last holdout in the vast Azovstal iron and steel plant in Mariupol.

On Tuesday, Moscow said that Russian forces had opened a humanitarian corridor for Ukrainian troops who agreed to lay down their arms to leave Mariupol.

Coastal Mariupol is a key target of Russia's devastating attack onUkraineand widespread shelling has laid waste to swathes of the port city.

Moscow has issued a series of ultimatums to Ukrainian forces in Mariupol to lay down their arms and surrender. [AFP Reported]

Ukraine received fighter jets to help resist the Russian invasion, as Moscow intensified its offensive in the east where a besieged officer in Mariupol warned

The West has responded to a renewed Russian push into the Donbas region with fresh weapons for Kyiv and a push to increase "Moscow's international isolation".

The Pentagon said thatUkrainehad recently received fighter planes and parts to bolster its air force, declining to specify the number of aircraft and their origin.

Kyiv has asked its Western partners to provide MiG-29s, which its pilots already know how to fly and a handful of Eastern European countries have.

Control of Donbas and the southern port of Mariupol would allow Moscow to create a southern corridor to the Crimean peninsula that it annexed in 2014, deprivingUkraineof much of its coastline.

In the latest ultimatum issued in its battle to capture Mariupol, Moscow made another call for the city's defenders to surrender on Wednesday by 2 pm Moscow time (1100 GMT) and announced the opening of a humanitarian corridor for any Ukrainian troops who agreed to lay down their arms.

As the deadline approached, a commander in the besieged Azovstal power plant issued a desperate plea for help, saying his marines were "maybe facing our last days, if not hours".

"The enemy is outnumbering us 10 to one," Serhiy Volyna from the 36th Separate Marine Brigade said.

"We appeal and plead to all world leaders to help us. We ask them to use the procedure of extraction and take us to the territory of a third-party state." [AFP Reported]

Ukraine said it has agreed with Russian forces to open a safe route Wednesday for civilians to flee the devastated port city of Mariupol

"We have managed to get a preliminary agreement on a humanitarian corridor for women, children, and elderly persons," said Ukraine's Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk [AFP Reported]

UK says Russian military presence on Ukraine's eastern border continues to build

Russia's military presence onUkraine's eastern border continues to build, a British military update said on Wednesday, adding that fighting in the Donbas region is intensifying as Russian forces seek to break through Ukrainian defences.

"Russian air activity in northernUkraineis likely to remain low since its withdrawal from north of Kyiv. However, there is still a risk of precision strikes against priority targets throughoutUkraine," the update, which was tweeted, said.

"Russian attacks on cities acrossUkraineshow their intent to try and disrupt the movement of Ukrainian reinforcements and weaponry to the east of the country," it added.

As part of fifth prisoner exchange, 76 Ukrainian prisoners-of-war, including 16 civilians, returned home following their release by Russian forces

Of the 60 Ukrainian military personnel released, 10 were officers, she said. However, she gave no details on how many Russian captives were exchanged during the swap.

Ukraineand Russia conducted their first prisoner exchange on March 24.[IANSReported]

Russiasays its forces have carried out dozens of air strikes in eastern Ukraine as part of a new offensive in the Donbas region that had been expected for days. (AFP)

After a month of direct communication, Chernobyl nuclear power has been restored

Russia pours in more troops and presses attack in the east

Russia assaulted cities and towns along a boomerang-shaped front, hundreds of miles long and poured more troops into Ukraine on Tuesday in a potentially pivotal battle for control of the country's eastern industrial heartland of coal mines and factories.

If successful, the Russian offensive in what is known as the Donbas would essentially slice Ukraine in two and give President Vladimir Putin a badly needed victory following the failed attempt by Moscow's forces to storm the capital, Kyiv, and heavier-than-expected casualties nearly two months into the war. (AP)

Russia rejects ceasefire for civilian evacuation

Russia’s deputy UN ambassador Dmitry Polyanskiy said that calls for Russia to establish humanitarian ceasefires "merely point to an aspiration to provide Kyiv nationalists breathing room" to regroup and to receive more weapons. (The Kyiv Independent)

Local residents carry belongings past a destroyed building in Mariupol

Photo Credit:Reuters

Marine in besieged Mariupol says 'maybe facing our last days, if not hours'

Russia tycoon denounces Kremlin's 'massacre' in Ukraine

Russian tycoon Oleg Tinkov on Tuesday denounced Moscow's "massacre" in pro-Western Ukraine and urged the West to help end "this insane war".

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IAEA says Chornobyl nuclear plant has reestablished ties with state regulator

Ukraine told the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on Tuesday that direct communications had been restored between the Chornobyl nuclear power plant and the state atomic power regulator after Russian troops left the facility, the IAEA said.

IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi said the development was "very good news," adding he would lead a team of experts to the plant later this month to carry out a series of assessments.

Russian forces occupied the defunct power station soon after invading Ukraine but left on March 31, the IAEA said. - Reuters.

Ukraine receives fighter planes, parts to bolster air force: Pentagon

Ukraine has received fighter planes and aircraft parts to bolster its air force in the face of Russia's invasion, the Pentagon said Tuesday, declining to specify the number of aircraft or their origin.

The announcement comes a week after US President Joe Biden unveiled an $800 million military aid package for Kyiv, including heavier equipment such as howitzers, as fighting escalates in eastern Ukraine. - AFP.