Ukraine Russia war – latest news: Battle for Bakhmut ‘stabilising’ due to Kyiv’s ‘tremendous efforts’

The battle in the besieged city of Bakhmut is “stabilizing” due to the strong recoil of Ukrainian soldiers, Ukrainian commander-in-chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi said.

Lieutenant-General Zaluzhnyi said in a Facebook post that he had spoken to British Defense Staff, Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, and told him the situation on the Ukrainian front was “the most difficult towards Bakhmut”.

“Thanks to the enormous efforts of the defense forces, we are able to stabilize the situation.”

Xi Jinping delivered a farewell speech on China to his “dear friend” Vladimir Putin at the end of his two-day trip to Moscow.

On Tuesday evening, Mr Xi shook hands with Mr Putin and spoke of unprecedented changes.

“I agree,” Mr Putin replied, to which the Chinese leader replied, “Take care, dear friend, please,” and waved goodbye to the Russian president, who wished him a “safe journey.”

Mr Xi’s ominous farewell message comes just hours after it was reported that the Russian president condemned Britain’s plans to send depleted uranium tank ammunition to Ukraine and said Moscow was forced to respond accordingly.

Maroosha Muzaffar Reports:

Russia’s parliamentary speaker on Saturday proposed banning the activities of the International Criminal Court (ICC) after the court issued an arrest warrant for President Vladimir Putin and accused him of war crimes.

Vyacheslav Volodin, a Putin ally, said Russian legislation should be changed to ban all ICC activity in Russia and punish anyone who provides “aid and assistance” to the ICC.

“It is necessary to work out amendments to the law that will ban any activity of the ICC on the territory of our country,” Volodin said in a Telegram post.

Volodin said that the United States had enacted laws to prevent its citizens from ever being tried in The Hague court and that Russia should continue this work.

Any assistance or support to the ICC in Russia, he said, should be punishable by law.

The ICC issued an arrest warrant earlier this month charging Putin with the war crime of illegally deporting hundreds of children from Ukraine. There is reason to believe that Putin bears individual criminal responsibility.

Russian officials have warned that any attempt to arrest Putin, Russia’s supreme leader since the last day of 1999, would amount to a declaration of war on the world’s largest nuclear power.

Dmitry Medvedev said any attempt to arrest Vladimir Putin would amount to a declaration of war on Moscow.

The former Russian president and prime minister also warned that the threat of a “nuclear apocalypse” is not over.

He has often spoken in the past about the use of nuclear weapons in connection with last year’s invasion of Ukraine and has emerged as one of Putin’s most combative and outspoken proxies.

His new comments come just days after he speculated that a hypersonic missile could be fired at the International Criminal Court (ICC) headquarters in The Hague after the tribunal issued an arrest warrant for Mr Putin.

“Is the threat of nuclear conflict over? No, it’s not gone. It has increased. Every day that foreign arms are delivered to Ukraine ultimately brings the same nuclear apocalypse closer…” said the Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council.

The US yesterday imposed sanctions on seven Belarusian election officials, two state-owned automakers and President Alexander Lukashenko’s plane.

Mr Lukashenko, who has ruled Belarus since 1994, stepped up his repression after a wave of protests in 2020 following a presidential election denounced as a hoax by the West and the Belarusian opposition.

The President also has close ties with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin and has allowed him to station troops and weapons there to support his war in Ukraine.

Three Soviet-era attack helicopters glide over the treetops and land in a field after an early morning deployment to the front lines fighting the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

They could fly three or four missions a day, says the commander, whose two-person Mi-24 helicopter, built some 40 years ago, predates him.

“We carry out combat tasks to destroy enemy vehicles, enemy personnel, we work with pitch-up attacks from afar, where the enemy cannot reach us with his air defense system,” said the commander, who spoke on condition of anonymity for reasons of operational safety in accordance with military regulations.

According to Ukraine’s Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources, almost five million Ukrainians have no access to drinking water due to years of war in Russia.

Ruslan Strilets told a UN conference in New York that almost 70 percent of Ukraine’s population is at risk of being without water because infrastructure has been damaged by Russia’s incessant attacks, the Kyiv Independent reported.

The minister also warned of a possible nuclear catastrophe, as the release of water from the Kakhkovka reservoir threatens to disrupt the cooling systems at the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant.

The nuclear power plant has been occupied by Vladimir Putin’s troops since last March.

“Because of Russia, that would mean a possible Fukushima scenario in the middle of the European continent,” said the minister.

Ukrainian children who have returned from Russia after months of deportation have told of the political indoctrination and psychological trauma they suffered during their detention.

At least 17 children from besieged Kharkiv and Kherson returned to Ukraine this week, non-profit organization Save Ukraine said in a press release on Thursday.

Emotional video of their return to Ukraine from Crimea showed at least eight children, including teenagers, reunited with their families after disembarking from a minivan.

US President Joe Biden and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau yesterday vowed that the two nations would remain committed to defending Ukraine as it tries to repel a Russian invasion with no end in sight.

Mr. Biden and Mr. Trudeau met just days after Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks for the first time since the war began.

But Biden argued that Western resolve remains stronger, warning Russia that the US, Canada and their allies would defend “every inch of NATO territory.”

“We have expanded our alliances significantly,” Mr. Biden said with Mr. Trudeau at his side during a joint news conference. “Tell me, how do you actually view a circumstance in which China has made a significant commitment to Russia? What commitment can they make?”

In a previous appearance with Biden before Canada’s Parliament, Mr Trudeau said his country – which has supplied Kiev with artillery, ammunition, armor and tanks – remains committed to the cause of Ukraine.

“As you know, Mr. President, Canada will continue to stand strong with Ukraine, with whatever it takes,” Mr. Trudeau said.