Turkey says it is working to renew Black Sea grain deal
Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Sunday that Ankara is working hard to expand a United Nations-backed initiative that has allowed Ukraine to export grain from ports blocked by Russia. BATTLE
* Ukrainian forces defending Bakhmut are facing increasingly heavy pressure from Russian forces, British military intelligence said on Saturday, with intense fighting raging in and around the eastern city. * The death toll from a Russian missile attack that hit an apartment building in the southern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia rose to 11 on Saturday after the body of a woman was found in the rubble, the state emergency services said.
* Commanders in chief of what Russia is calling its “military special operation” in Ukraine have briefed Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu on the current situation and action plans, his ministry said on Sunday. * Yevgeny Prigozhin, founder of Russia’s Wagner mercenary force, released a video on Saturday showing what he believed were coffins containing the bodies of Ukrainian soldiers being repatriated to Kiev-occupied territory.
ARMS, SANCTIONS * Two Ukrainian pilots are in Arizona to fly flight simulators and be evaluated by the US military, two US officials said Saturday, as Washington remains silent on whether it will send fighter jets or sophisticated remote-controlled drones to Kiev.
* German arms group Rheinmetall is in negotiations to build a tank factory in Ukraine, the Rheinische Post newspaper reported on Saturday, citing an interview with CEO Armin Papperger. * In addition to Leopard 2 tanks, Rheinmetall plans to buy 96 Leopard 1 tanks from Swiss arms company Ruag to send to Ukraine, Swiss newspaper Tages-Anzeiger reported on Saturday.
* Germany is making slow progress in enforcing sanctions against Russian oligarchs and institutions, according to government figures provided to Reuters on Saturday. STORIES ABOUT THE FIRST ANNIVERSARY SINCE THE BEGINNING OF WAR
* SCHEDULE – Key Developments Since the Russian Invasion * Ukraine’s Selenskyj has unexpectedly defied Putin
* Putin, in power, has created the conditions for a long war. * A year later, Ukraine and its government not only survived. You fought back
* Hardened by the scars of war, Kiev carries on * Graphs of a war year in the markets: as the dollar, energy and food prices tumbled
* Russia’s economy is holding up, but the road back to prosperity could be long. * Moscow’s decades-long gas relationship with Europe is in tatters
* Top brands pull out of Russia, but goods are easy to find * Can US support Ukraine?
* External supporters are pumping billions into Ukraine * How has China dealt with “No Limits” partner Russia?
* Life and Death in Mariupol – the story of a war survivor * The family mourns the victim of Bucha, who became a symbol of the war
PODCAST Find out more about the Ukraine War. Listen to a special episode of the Reuters World News Podcast.
(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)