US President Joe Biden on Saturday signed a financial aid bill to provide nearly $40 billion for Ukraine. (Reuters Photo)Russia Ukraine War Live, Mariupol Fall to Russia: President Biden on Saturday signed legislation to support Ukraine with another USD 40 billion in U.S. assistance as the Russian invasion approaches its fourth month. The legislation, passed by Congress with bipartisan support, deepens the U.S. commitment to Ukraine at a time of uncertainty about the war’s future.
Russia claimed to have captured Mariupol Friday in what would be its biggest victory yet in its war with Ukraine, after a nearly three-month siege that reduced much of the strategic port city to a smoking ruin, with over 20,000 civilians feared dead. Russia also launched what appeared to be a major assault to seize the last remaining Ukrainian-held territory in the province of Luhansk, part of Donbas.
Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu reported to President Vladimir Putin the “complete liberation” of the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol — the last stronghold of Ukrainian resistance — and the city as a whole, spokesman Igor Konashenkov said. There was no immediate confirmation from Ukraine. (Here’s why the loss of the Mariupol steel plant is significant)
Service members of the Ukrainian armed forces, who surrendered at the besieged Azovstal steel mill in Mariupol in the course of Ukraine-Russia conflict, sit in a bus upon their arrival under escort of the pro-Russian military in the settlement of Olenivka in the Donetsk region, Ukraine May 20, 2022. (Reuters)
Russia stopped providing gas to Finland in an escalation of a row over energy payments with the West on Saturday, and intensified an offensive in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine. After ending weeks of resistance by the last Ukrainian fighters in the strategic southeastern city of Mariupol, Russia is waging what appears to be a major offensive in Luhansk, one of two provinces in Donbas.
Russian-backed separatists already controlled swathes of territory in Luhansk and the neighbouring Donetsk province before the Feb. 24 invasion, but Moscow wants to seize the last remaining Ukrainian-held territory in Donbas. ---Reuters
Finnish President Sauli Niinisto said on Saturday he had held 'open and direct' talks with Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan to discuss Finland's bid for NATO membership.
Erdogan has publicly questioned whether Finland and Sweden should be allowed to join the military alliance. 'I stated that as NATO allies Finland and Turkey will commit to each other's security and our relationship will thus grow stronger,' Niinisto tweeted after the call. 'Finland condemns terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. Close dialogue continues.' ---Reuters
Russia said on Saturday it was banning entry to 963 Americans including U.S. President Joe Biden, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and CIA chief William Burns. The travel bans have only symbolic impact but form part of a constant downward spiral in Russia's relations with the United States and its allies since its Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine. ---Reuters
President Biden on Saturday signed legislation to support Ukraine with another USD 40 billion in U.S. assistance as the Russian invasion approaches its fourth month.
The legislation, which was passed by Congress with bipartisan support, deepens the U.S. commitment to Ukraine at a time of uncertainty about the war’s future.
Ukraine has successfully defended Kyiv, and Russia has refocused its offensive on the country’s east, but American officials warn of the potential for a prolonged conflict. The funding is intended to support Ukraine through September, and it dwarfs an earlier emergency measure that provided USD13.6 billion. Read more
The Russian military said Saturday it had destroyed a major western arms consignment in Ukraine's Zhytomyr region, west of Kyiv, using sea-launched Kalibr missiles, Interfax news agency reported. (Reuters)
Representatives of the United States and several other nations walked out of an Asia-Pacific trade ministers meeting in Bangkok on Saturday to protest Russia's invasion of Ukraine, officials said.
The walkout was "an expression of disapproval at Russia's illegal war of aggression in Ukraine and its economic impact in the APEC region," one diplomat said.
Representatives from Canada, New Zealand, Japan and Australia joined the Americans, led by Trade Representative Katherine Tai, in walking out of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting, two Thai officials and two international diplomats told Reuters.
Last week, Ukraine's Kalush Orchestra rode a wave of popular support to win the Eurovision Song Contest, giving their compatriots a much-needed morale boost. The band said that they are planning a tour of Europe to raise money for the army.
Kalush Orchestra's song "Stefania", which fused rap with traditional folk music, was lying fourth after national juries voted, but stormed into the top spot thanks to a record score during voting by viewers.
Russian forces continued attacking the cities of Lysychansk and Severodonetsk in Ukraine's eastern region of Luhansk to try to cut the area off from the rest of Ukraine, the region's governor said.
Luhansk Gov. Serhiy Haidai told The Associated Press Russian forces were focused on the Lysychansk-Bakhmut highway, which he said is the only road for evacuating people and delivering humanitarian supplies.
“The road is extremely important because it's the only connection to other regions of the country,” he said via email. “The Russians are trying to cut us off from it, to encircle the Luhansk region.” Russian forces are constantly shelling the road from multiple directions, but Ukrainian armoured transports are still able to get through, Haidai added.
The Russian Justice Ministry added ex-world chess champion Garry Kasparov and former oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky, both prominent critics of the government, to the list of individuals acting as foreign agents, according to the ministry's website.
The term "foreign agent" carries negative Soviet-era connotations.
According to the website, Ukraine was mentioned as a source of financing for Khodorkovsky, a critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin. It said Kasparov's funds have been sourced from Ukraine and the Human Rights Foundation. (Reuters)
➡️ Russia's defence ministry said the last group of Ukrainian forces holed up in Mariupol's Azovstal steel works had surrendered, marking an end to a weeks-long attack that left the city in ruins.
➡️ The commander of Ukraine's Azov Regiment said in a video that civilians and heavily wounded fighters had been evacuated from Mariupol's Azovstal steelworks, giving no further clue about the fate of the rest of its defenders.
➡️ The Pentagon said there were no indications Russia had used laser weaponry in Ukraine, following claims by Moscow that it was fielding a new generation of powerful lasers there to strike enemy drones.
➡️ Russia's President Putin said the number of cyber attacks on Russia by foreign 'state structures' had increased several times over and Russia must bolster its cyber defences.
A woman who stripped off her clothes to reveal a message against rape written on her body crashed the Cannes Film Festival red carpet premiere of George Miller's Three Thousand Years of Longing on Friday.
The unidentified woman tore off her clothes during the film's red carpet procession to reveal the message “Stop raping us” written across her torso next to the blue and yellow colours of the Ukraine flag. Red was also painted on her legs and groin. While she yelled “Don't rape us!” security quickly encircled her and took her off the red carpet. (AP)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy proposed a formal deal with the country's allies to secure Russian compensation for the damage its forces have caused during the war. Zelenskyy, who says Russia is trying to destroy as much of Ukraine's infrastructure as it can, said such a deal would show nations planning aggressive acts that they would have to pay for their actions.
"We invite partner countries to sign a multilateral agreement and create a mechanism ensuring that everybody who suffered from Russian actions can receive compensation for all losses incurred," he said in a video address. Zelenskyy said that under such a deal, Russian funds and property in signatory nations would be confiscated. They would then be directed to a special compensation fund.
"That would be fair. And Russia will feel the weight of every missile, every bomb, every shell which it has fired at us," he said. (Reuters)
Is the war in Ukraine entering a new and, perhaps, even more dangerous phase? The answer to this question depends on seeing Ukraine as a two-front war. There is the battle being fought in Ukraine, where the country has admirably held back Russian power, and cut it to size. But it is still not clear what the endgame of this struggle is going to be. It is not very likely that Ukraine will be able to enforce all its territorial claims. Nor is it likely that Russia will want to simply walk away from this war under a narrative of total defeat. How much territory in Ukraine will Russia want to hold on to so that the war does not count as a complete political disaster for Vladimir Putin is an open question. What means it is willing to deploy to devastate Ukraine is also an open question.
In many ways, Ukraine has suffered immense devastation already, with more than 10 million people displaced and the country’s infrastructure destroyed. It has found immense reservoirs of national resolve, and support from the West. But whether that will be enough to achieve its objectives is not clear. The risk of Ukraine overplaying its immense success is real. There could be a protracted stalemate, but one that will continue to impose immense humanitarian costs on Ukraine. Putin could escalate, not for purposes of winning but to inflict punishment.
Wimbledon had its ranking points stripped by the ATP and WTA Tours Friday over its decision to exclude players from Russia and Belarus at the 2022 Championships due to Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.
Tennis' governing bodies have banned Russia and Belarus from international team competitions following the invasion, which Moscow calls a 'special operation', but allowed players from the two countries to continue competing as neutrals.
"The ability for players of any nationality to enter tournaments based on merit, and without discrimination, is fundamental to our Tour," the ATP said in a statement. (Reuters)