Here are the latest updates on the war in Ukraine:
9:43 a.m. ET
Fierce fighting is raging near Kyiv as Russia appears to be regrouping
Fierce fighting erupted on the outskirts of Kiev and other areas on Thursday amid indications that the Kremlin was using the de-escalation talks as a cover-up as it regrouped and replenished its forces for an escalating offensive in eastern Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a video message early in the morning that Ukraine was seeing “an accumulation of Russian forces for new strikes in Donbas and we are preparing for that.” Meanwhile, a bus convoy headed to Mariupol in another attempt to evacuate people from the besieged port city after the Russian military agreed to a limited ceasefire in the area. And a new round of talks aimed at ending the fighting was scheduled for Friday. The Red Cross said its teams headed to Mariupol with relief and medical supplies and hoped to help evacuate civilians from the besieged city. Tens of thousands have been able to get out in recent weeks via humanitarian corridors, reducing the city’s population from 430,000 before the war to about 100,000, but other efforts have been thwarted by ongoing Russian attacks. At the same time, Russian forces bombed suburbs of the capital Ukraine that had recently regained control, a regional official said, two days after the Kremlin announced it would significantly reduce operations near Kyiv and the northern city of Chernihiv to “increase and creating the conditions for further negotiations. “ The British Ministry of Defense also confirmed “significant Russian bombings and missiles” around Chernihiv. The governor of the region, Vyacheslav Chaus, has said that Russian troops are on the move but may not withdraw. Russia’s Defense Ministry also reported new strikes on Ukrainian gas stations late Wednesday, and Ukrainian officials said artillery barricades had been fired in and around the northeastern city of Kharkiv in the past day. Despite the fighting raging in these areas, the Russian military said it had committed to a ceasefire along the route from Mariupol to the Ukrainian-controlled town of Zaporizhzhia. – The Associated Press 8:47 a.m. ET
The death toll from the strike at Mykolaiv’s government building has risen to 20
This leaflet photo released on March 30, 2022 by the State Emergency Service of Ukraine shows rescuers conducting search operations and dismantling the wreckage of a government building in Mykolaiv, which was hit by Russian missiles on Tuesday.STty / AF Images Ukrainian emergency services say the death toll from a Russian rocket attack on Tuesday at the regional headquarters of the southern city of Mykolaiv has risen to 20. Emergency services said rescuers had now found 19 bodies in the rubble of the strike that destroyed the government building on Tuesday morning. Another died at the hospital. The governor accused Russia of waiting until people arrived for work before hitting the building. Emergency services said they were still working at the scene. – Associated Press 8:11 a.m. ET
Russian troops not withdrawing but rebuilding in Ukraine, NATO says
Members of the pro-Russian military service are seen above an armored vehicle during the Ukraine-Russia conflict in the besieged southern port city of Mariupol, Ukraine, March 30, 2022. ALEXANDER ERMOCHENKO / Reuters Russian forces in Ukraine are not withdrawing but regrouping, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on Thursday, commenting on Moscow’s announcements of a reduction in military operations around Kyiv. Stoltenberg also said the alliance was not yet convinced that Russia was negotiating in good faith at the peace talks in Istanbul because Moscow’s military target has not changed since the start of its invasion of Ukraine. “According to our information, the Russian units are not withdrawn but are being replaced. “Russia is trying to regroup, resupply and intensify its attack on the Donbas region,” Stoltenberg told reporters in Brussels. Moscow says it is now focusing on “liberating” the Donbas region – two southeastern provinces controlled in part by Russia-backed separatists since 2014. “At the same time, Russia is putting pressure on Kyiv and other cities. “Therefore, we can expect additional offensive actions, which will bring even more suffering.” Russia says it has launched a “special military operation” to disarm and “demilitarize” its neighbor and that the mission is planning. Stoltenberg said: “We have no real change in the real Russian goal; they continue to seek a military result.” He also said that NATO allies would continue to supply weapons to Ukraine for as long as needed. Read the whole story –Reuters 7:41 a.m. ET
Escort heads to Mariupol, Ukraine to attempt evacuation
An escort of buses headed to Mariupol on Thursday in another attempt to evacuate the besieged port city as Russia stepped up its attacks in several parts of Ukraine ahead of a planned new round of talks aimed at ending the fighting. After the Russian military agreed to a limited ceasefire in the area, the Red Cross said its teams were traveling to Mariupol with relief and medical supplies and hoped to help evacuate civilians from the besieged city on Friday. Previous attempts to create a similar humanitarian corridor have failed. Russian forces, meanwhile, have been bombing suburbs of the capital, which Ukraine has recently regained control of, the regional official said. New attacks in the region that Moscow had promised to escalate further undermined hopes for a solution to end the war on the eve of a new round of talks. A day earlier, Ukrainian officials said Russian bombing raids on the outskirts of Kiev and around another city where he had vowed to relax. Russia’s Defense Ministry also reported new strikes on Ukrainian gas stations late Wednesday, and Ukrainian officials said artillery barricades had been fired in and around the northeastern city of Kharkiv in the past day. Despite the fighting raging in these areas, the Russian military said it had committed to a ceasefire along the route from Mariupol to the Ukrainian-controlled town of Zaporizhzhia on Thursday morning. – The Associated Press 7:11 a.m. ET
The United Kingdom ratifies Russian media outlets for misinformation
Britain on Thursday announced new sanctions on more than a dozen Russian entities, including the state-run media agency RT.DADO RUVIC / Reuters Britain on Thursday announced sanctions against 14 other Russian entities and individuals, including state-run media outlets behind RT and Sputnik and some of their top executives, saying it was targeting those who repel its “false news and narratives”. President Vladimir Putin. Britain is acting in concert with its Western allies to try to cripple Russia’s economy as punishment for its invasion of Ukraine and has already imposed sanctions on more than 1,000 individuals and businesses. Among those sanctioned Thursday were RT CEO Alexey Nikolov, Sergey Brilev, a prominent news presenter on the state television and radio network Rossiya, and Sputnik editor-in-chief Anton Anisimov. The government also said it would immediately impose sanctions on state-run media outlets, including the Kremlin-funded RT-owned TV-Novosti and Rossiya Segodnya, which controls the Sputnik news agency. “Putin’s war in Ukraine is based on a torrent of lies,” said Foreign Minister Liz Truz in a statement. “Britain has helped lead the world in exposing the Kremlin’s misinformation, and this latest round of sanctions is cracking down on shameless propagandists who banish Putin’s fake news and narratives.” -Reuters 6:23 a.m. ET
Russia is calling in 134,500 troops but says it will not go to Ukraine
President Vladimir Putin on Thursday signed a decree ordering 134,500 new conscripts to join Russia’s annual spring army, but the Defense Ministry said the call had nothing to do with the war in Ukraine. The order came five weeks after the Russian invasion, which met with fierce Ukrainian resistance. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said on Tuesday that none of those summoned would be sent to “hot spots”. The issue of the involvement of conscripts in the war is particularly sensitive. On March 9, the Defense Ministry acknowledged that some had been sent to Ukraine after Putin had denied it on several occasions, saying only professional soldiers and officers had been sent. Putin’s spokesman said at the time that the president had instructed military prosecutors to investigate and punish officials responsible for violating his instructions to block conscription. The annual spring military operation, which runs from April 1 to July 15, will affect Russian men between the ages of 18 and 27, Putin said in a statement. Shoigu said on Tuesday that those invited would be sent to the bases they had been assigned to at the end of May. “Most of the military personnel will undergo vocational training in training centers for three to five months. “Let me stress that the recruits will not be sent to any hot spot,” he said in a statement posted on his ministry website. -Reuters 6:04 a.m. ET
The Red Cross is ready for the evacuation of Mariupol on Friday
A charred car appears in front of an apartment building destroyed during the Ukraine-Russia conflict in the besieged southern port city of Mariupol, Ukraine, March 30, 2022. ALEXANDER ERMOCHENKO / Reuters The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) says its teams are ready to facilitate the evacuation of civilians from the besieged city of Mariupol. The Red Cross said in a statement that “for logistical and safety reasons, we will be ready to operate the safe passage operation tomorrow, Friday, provided all parties agree to the exact terms, including route, start time and duration.” . The Vice President of Ukraine …
