Live Updates On Ukraine War: Kiev Says It Has Evidence Russia Blew Up Kakhovka Dam; A Counteroffensive Begins In Eastern Ukraine

23 minutes ago

Contents

NATO condemns Russia’s withdrawal from the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg speaks during a news conference to unveil the next North Atlantic Council (NAC) Foreign Ministers Meeting, April 3, 2023 at NATO Headquarters in Brussels.

Kenzo Tribouillard | AFP | Getty Images

NATO allies condemned Russia for its decision to withdraw from a key arms treaty signed at the end of the Cold War, aimed at creating a military balance between NATO and Warsaw Pact countries and reducing arms stocks.

In its statement, NATO called the landmark Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (CFE) “a cornerstone of the European security architecture” and described the role of the treaty in setting “legally binding and verifiable limits on key categories of conventional military equipment” for the countries involved.

“Russia has failed to meet its CFE commitments for many years, notably by halting implementation of the CFE Treaty in 2007 without a legal basis. Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and Belarus’ complicity contradict the objectives of the CFE treaty,” NATO said.

Russia’s exit from the treaty was “the latest in a series of moves that are systematically undermining Euro-Atlantic security” and “further evidence that Moscow continues to disregard arms control, including reciprocity, transparency, compliance and verification.”

— Natasha Turak

38 minutes ago

Reports of drone attack on Russian city, people injured

A drone attack hit the southern Russian city of Voronezh and injured three people, regional governor Alexander Gusev said.

Voronezh is about 110 miles from the Ukrainian border, bordering Russia’s Kursk and Belgorod regions, both of which have fallen victim to shelling and drone strikes by pro-Ukrainian forces.

Gusev said ten apartments were damaged when the alleged drone strike hit a residential building. NBC has not independently verified the reports.

— Natasha Turak

2 hours ago

Japan offers humanitarian aid to Ukraine after floods

Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks to reporters after North Korea’s missile launch on April 13, 2023.

JIJI Press | AFP | Getty Images

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy that Japan is ready to offer emergency humanitarian aid to Ukraine after the Kakhovka Dam explosion and the massive flooding and damage it caused.

According to Portal, Hirokazu Matsuno, Japan’s top cabinet secretary, said his country will send about $5 million in relief supplies to be distributed through humanitarian organizations.

Zelenskyy also posted the transcript of his phone conversation with Kishida and tweeted: “I spoke about the consequences of the Russian detonation of HPP Kakhovka. This is a premeditated act of terrorism and another war crime by Russia, particularly endangering the security of the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant.”

Zelenskyi said the two discussed “Japan’s continued involvement in security assistance, particularly in the area of humanitarian demining, and steps to implement Ukraine’s peace formula and prepare for the global peace summit.”

— Natasha Turak

2 hours ago

Ukraine’s Security Service says it has evidence Russia blew up the Kakhovka Dam

Ukraine’s internal intelligence service said it intercepted a phone call proving that a Russian “sabotage group” blew up the Kakhovka hydroelectric power station and dam in southern Ukraine.

It published a recording of an allegedly bugged phone call on its official Telegram channel. The recording is shown to have taken place between two unidentified Russian soldiers or officials, without specifying where or when the conversation allegedly took place.

Although one of the men appears to claim that a Russian sabotage group was responsible for the attack on the dam, he offers no evidence. The recording has not been verified by CNBC.

The audio of the recording, according to a translation by NBC, is as follows:

-Yesterday there was a video on Telegram: a soldier is standing with his face covered and he is fully equipped. And says that there are no floods and that people lead normal lives. But behind him is a window and you can see that the sea is knee-deep [means lots of water].

-Ah-ha… cool. Is it HPP? WKW that was destroyed?

-Yes / Yes.

-Ah I see.

– The main problem is that this hydroelectric power station, it turned out, cools a reactor, their one, a nuclear reactor.

-Great, screw yourself up. It will explode and that’s it!

-This is ours [Russian] to blow it up. It’s not theirs [Ukrainians]it is ours.

– No way, with us? It has been said that khokhols [derogatory term for Ukrainians] blew it up.

-There was no explosion. That was our sabotage group. They kind of wanted to scare [blackmail] at the dam, but it was more unplanned, more than planned.

-Of course it will cover [affect] like in Chernobyl, right?

-The construction dates back to the 50th century [1950th]. Broke down quickly. There was a safari park down there, thousands of animals died.

-Got it.

The head of the Security Service of Ukraine Vasyl Malyuk was quoted separately in the Telegram post as saying: “We remind you that the Security Service of Ukraine has opened a criminal case into a war crime committed by the Russian Federation.” With the Kakhovka HPP dam, the Russian Federation has finally proved that it poses a threat to the entire civilized world. Because only a genuine terror state can orchestrate a man-made and ecological catastrophe of this magnitude.”

— Natasha Turak

4 hours ago

The governor of Zaporizhia, appointed by Russia, announces the formation of a militia

The Russian-installed governor of Zaporizhia, an area in south-eastern Ukraine occupied by Russian forces, announced the formation of a militia via his Telegram account.

Yevgeny Balitsky, Russian-installed acting governor of Moscow-controlled parts of Ukraine’s Zaporizhia region, awarded the Order For Merit to the Fatherland, third class, attends a ceremony at the Kremlin December 20, 2022 in Moscow, Russia.

Valery Sharifulin | Sputnik | Portal

In a translation provided by the Guardian, Governor Evgeny Balitsky wrote: “A people’s militia has been created in the Zaporizhia region, which, together with the police and the military command, will carry out patrol and law enforcement activities in the settlements of the Zaporizhia region.”

“Today the first militias of the Zaporizhia region and the residents of our region swore allegiance,” he added. “I trust in the open hearts of our compatriots, their steadfastness and their willingness to help.”

— Natasha Turak

4 hours ago

Ukraine’s security service says it has evidence Russia blew up the Kakhovka Dam

Ukraine’s security service SBU said it intercepted a phone call proving Russian forces had blown up the Kakhovka Dam in south-eastern Ukraine, causing massive flooding and destruction in the area.

Satellite images of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power station in Kherson on June 6, 2023.

Maxar Technologies

Kiev and Moscow exchanged blame for the explosion. The dam on the Dnipro River was located on Russian-occupied territory. It was built in 1956 and supplied water for the Kakhovka hydroelectric power station and irrigation, as well as water for cooling the reactors at the Zaporizhia nuclear power station in Ukraine. The power plant and dam were both seized by Russian forces shortly after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

— Natasha Turak

17 hours ago

Photos show rescue efforts in Kherson as floodwaters strand civilians

The Kakhovka Dam and hydroelectric power station on the Dnipro River in the southern Kherson region collapsed on Tuesday, forcing downstream communities to evacuate due to the risk of flooding. The cause of the collapse of the dam has not yet been clarified, Russia and Ukraine blame each other for the destruction of the dam.

The Dnipro River served as a front line between the warring armies after Russia’s withdrawal from Kherson and the surrounding areas last fall. The dam and power station were under the control of Russia, which occupied a tract of land south and south-east of the river.

Soldiers of Ukraine’s National Guard deliver food to residents of a flooded area in Kherson June 8, 2023 after damage occurred at the dam of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power station.