Ukraine-Russia war – live: 3 civilians killed in Donetsk blast as Putin makes ‘absurd attempt to seduce West’

Russian forces storm a detention facility to rescue staff taken hostage, killing hostage takers

Russian security forces stormed a detention center in southern Russia, ending a hostage standoff, Russian state news agency RIA Novosti reported Sunday. The hostages at the facility in Rostov-on-Don were uninjured, said RIA Novosti, citing Russia’s Federal Penitentiary Service. It said that the hostage takers had been “liquidated,” with other local news outlets reporting that at least some of the prisoners had been killed.

It came as inmates took two employees hostage, Russia’s Federal Penitentiary Service said on Sunday.

Russian state news agency Tass, citing unnamed sources in law enforcement, said that six hostage takers were in the central courtyard of the Rostov region’s Detention Center No. 1, armed with a penknife, a rubber baton and a fire ax. The prisoners include men accused of links to the Islamic State group, it said.

Barney Davis16 June 2024 10:45

Three civilians killed by Russian army in Donetsk region - Ukraine claims

The Russian army allegedly killed three residents of the Donetsk region and injured five others in the past 24 hours, a military chief has said.

The head of the Donetsk Regional Military Administration, Vadym Filashkin wrote in Telegram: “On June 15, Russians killed three residents of the Donetsk region in Ulakly. Another five people were injured in the region during the day.”

He added: “Total number of victims of Russia in Donetsk oblast doesn’t include killed and injured in Mariupol and Volnovakha. #StopRussia #RussiaKillsCivilians.”

According to Filashkin, since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Russia has killed 1,999 civilians in the region, and another 5,029 have been injured.

The head of the Kharkiv Regional State Administration, Oleh Syniehubov, added that another civilian was injured when a private house was destroyed in the village of Petropavlivka, Kupiansk district, as a result of Russian mortar shelling.

Barney Davis16 June 2024 09:46

Putin's 'absurd' peace proposal a 'hollow attempt to seduce the West'

Vladimir Putin’s interest in peace negotiations is merely a hollow attempt to “seduce” the West and undermine Swiss peace conference, military analysts say.

“The Kremlin is not interested in good faith negotiations with Ukraine and only feigns its interest in negotiations as part of a wider informational effort intended to convince the West to pre-emptively make concessions that violate Ukraine’s sovereignty,” said the Institute for the Study of War.

Mr Putin’s demands would “irrevocably damage the principle of state sovereignty and the inviolability of international borders”.

The ISW called Putin’s promise to respect a ceasefire “particularly hollow following months of Russian war crimes against Ukrainian civilians and prisoners of war”.

“Putin’s demands continue to reflect his long-demanded ultimatums that are based on presuppositions that deny the existence of an independent and sovereign Ukraine and that seek to seduce the West to pre-emptively compromise on Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” said the ISW.

Barney Davis16 June 2024 09:42

Italian Premier Meloni describes Putin's cease-fire offer for Ukraine as 'propaganda'

Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni dismissed a ceasefire offer for Ukraine by Russian president Vladimir Putin as “propaganda,” as she wrapped up a Group of Seven summit that saw a deal reached for a $50bn loan to Ukraine.

Asked about Putin’s cease-fire proposal, Meloni said it “seems to me more like a propaganda move than a real one.”

The Russian president said Friday he would “immediately” order a cease-fire in Ukraine and start negotiations if Kyiv begins withdrawing troops from the four regions Moscow annexed in 2022 and renounces plans to join Nato.

“If president Putin’s proposal is: We are willing to have a peace negotiation if Ukraine recognises the invasion of Ukraine and gives up the occupied parts... doesn’t seem particularly effective to me as a proposal,” Meloni said.

Arpan Rai16 June 2024 07:40

Ukraine's Western allies lay out three-point agenda to end war

Ukraine’s allies in the West that are gathered for the peace summit in Switzerland this weekend have released the draft text of an agenda to end the war, which is now in its third year.

Titled “Joint Communique on a Peace Framework Switzerland”, the text states: “This Summit was built on the previous discussions that have taken place based on Ukraine’s Peace Formula and other peace proposals which are in line with international law, including the United Nations Charter.”

It asks for nuclear safety, global food security and release of prisoners of war as a common vision to bring peace and stability in Ukraine.

Here are the main points:

“Firstly, any use of nuclear energy and nuclear installations must be safe, secured, safe-guarded and environmentally sound. Ukrainian nuclear power plants and installations, including Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, must operate safely and securely under full sovereign control of Ukraine and in line with IAEA principles and under its supervision.

“Any threat or use of nuclear weapons in the context of the ongoing war against Ukraine is inadmissible.

“Secondly, global food security depends on uninterrupted manufacturing and supply of food products. In this regard, free, full and safe commercial navigation, as well as access to seaports in the Black and Azov Seas, are critical. Attacks on merchant ships in ports and along the entire route, as well as against civilian ports and civilian port infrastructure, are unacceptable.

“Food security must not be weaponised in any way. Ukrainian agricultural products should be securely and freely provided to interested third countries.

“Thirdly, all prisoners of war must be released by complete exchange. All deported and unlawfully displaced Ukrainian children, and all other Ukrainian civilians who were unlawfully detained, must be returned to Ukraine.

“We believe that reaching peace requires the involvement of and dialogue between all parties. We, therefore, decided to undertake concrete steps in the future in the above-mentioned areas with further engagement of the representatives of all parties.”

Arpan Rai16 June 2024 07:02

Ukraine summit strives for broad consensus to lean on Russia to end war

Western powers and countries from the rest of the world will use the second day of a major summit in Switzerland today to pursue a consensus on condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and underscoring concerns about the war’s human cost.

A draft of the final summit declaration seen by Reuters refers to Russia’s invasion as a “war” - a label Moscow rejects - and calls for Ukraine’s control over the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant and its Azov Sea ports to be restored.

Moscow casts what it calls its special military operation in Ukraine as part of a broader struggle with the West, which it says wants to bring Russia to its knees. Kyiv and the West say Russia is waging an illegal war of conquest.

World leaders including US vice president Kamala Harris, German chancellor Olaf Scholz and French president Emmanuel Macron gathered this weekend at a mountaintop resort in a bid to bolster international support for ending the war.

Many Western leaders voiced forceful condemnation of the invasion, invoking the UN Charter in defence of Ukrainian territorial integrity, and rejecting Russian President Vladimir Putin’s demands for parts of Ukraine as a condition for peace.

“One thing is clear in this conflict: there is an aggressor, which is Putin, and there is a victim, which is the Ukrainian people,” Spanish prime minister Pedro Sanchez said.

Some leaders are expected to depart early, and talks on Sunday will turn towards pursuing a joint position on the need for nuclear and food security, and the return of prisoners of war and children removed from Ukraine during the conflict.

White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters Qatar had helped to mediate the return from Russia of 30 or more Ukrainian children to their families.

Kyiv says about 20,000 children have been taken to Russia or Russian-occupied territory without the consent of family or guardians since the war began. Moscow rejects this, saying it has protected vulnerable children from the war zone.

The draft communique, dated 13 June, calls for all illegally deported children to be returned.

Arpan Rai16 June 2024 06:35

Ukraine employs a flexible defense while waiting for new Western ammo to get to the front

Ukrainian firepower has been improving since U.S. lawmakers approved a much-needed military aid package this spring, though not quickly enough to halt the Russian offensive in eastern Ukraine.

Although the influx of Western munitions has shrunk Kyiv‘s glaring artillery disadvantage, Moscow’s forces are still gaining ground along the snaking front line and will likely continue to do so through the summer, when the drier ground and longer days will only aid their push.

Ukraine is still on the defensive in the Donetsk region, enabling Moscow’s forces to inflict heavy losses during Ukrainian troop rotations and bringing them closer to crucial Ukrainian supply routes.

Maryam Zakir-Hussain16 June 2024 06:00

Zelensky slams Putin and Russia in inaugural speech at peace talks

Calling for peace in war-hit Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky condemned Russian president Vladimir Putin’s military onslaught and invasion in his inaugural speech at the ongoing peace talks in Switzerland.

“Putin has taken the lives of thousands of our people to take over a neighboring country. I wish this to no one. I wish all the peoples of the world, every child, and family to live without war. I want this for all Ukrainians. Ukraine has the right to peace. Just like all of you,” he said last night.

The Ukrainian leader also explained Russia’s absence from the table, where it was not invited. “Now there is no Russia here. Why? Because if Russia was interested in peace, there would be no war. We must decide together what a just peace means for the world and how it can be achieved in a truly lasting way. The UN Charter is the basis for us,” Mr Zelensky said.

“No one has the right to kidnap the children of another nation. No one has the right to undermine peace. We are able to ensure the effectiveness of such principles. They are globally important,” he said.

Arpan Rai16 June 2024 05:07

Putin offers truce if Ukraine exits Russian-claimed areas and drops NATO bid. Kyiv rejects it

Russian President Vladimir Putin promised Friday to “immediately” order a cease-fire in Ukraine and start negotiations if Kyiv began withdrawing troops from the four regions annexed by Moscow in 2022 and renounced plans to join NATO. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy rejected what he called an ultimatum by Putin to surrender more territory.

Putin’s remarks came as Switzerland prepared to host scores of world leaders -- but not from Moscow -- this weekend to try to map out first steps toward peace in Ukraine.

Maryam Zakir-Hussain16 June 2024 05:00

Putin treats international law like ‘toilet paper’, says Ukrainian official

Almost 20,000 children are known to have been forcibly abducted from the occupied territories of Ukraine, though the true figure is believed to be much higher.

The move prompted the international criminal court to issue arrest warrants for both Putin and his children’s right’s commissioner, Maria Lvova-Belova.

The horrific practice will be raised at the summit, which will also discuss food and nuclear security, which is taking place in Switzerland.

Tom Watling reports:

Arpan Rai16 June 2024 04:42