Ukraine’s military is warning that there is a “high probability of missile strikes” to mark Russia’s planned Victory Day parade in Moscow.
“We are preparing for rocket attacks today – please, take air alerts very responsibly today,” Viktor Andrusiv, an adviser to the interior minister, said.
Vladimir Putin will preside over a parade in Moscow’s Red Square of troops, tanks, rockets and intercontinental ballistic missiles, making a speech that could offer clues to the future of the war.
Prior to Monday’s highly-anticipated show of strength, leaders of the G7 industrial nations vowed on Sunday to deepen Russia’s economic isolation and “elevate” a campaign against Kremlin-linked elites.
Hailing the G7 response, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenski said in his nightly video address: “The main thing I felt today was the world’s even greater willingness to help us … it is clear to the whole free world that Ukraine is the party of good in this war.”
“And Russia will lose, because evil always loses.”
Follow the latest updates below.
06:12 AM
Russia’s stores of precision missiles ‘heavily depleted’
05:48 AM
Russian missile strikes ‘highly probable’ on Victory Day
Ukraine’s military is warning that there is a “high probability of missile strikes” on Monday even as Russia holds its Victory Day parade in Moscow.
The Ukrainian military’s general staff also said that in Russian-controlled areas of Zaporizhzhia, Russian troops had begun the “seizure of personal documents from the local population without good reason.”
Ukraine said Russian troops seized the documents to force the local people to take part in Victory Day commemorations there.
Ukraine’s military also warned that Russia had located some 19 battalion tactical groups in Russia’s Belgorod region, just across the border. Those groups likely consist of some 15,200 troops with tanks, missile batteries and other weaponry.
04:51 AM
Canada to help Ukraine find options to export grain
Canada will help Ukraine work out options on how to export stored grain to uphold global food security that has been shaken by Russia’s invasion of the country.
Nearly 25 million tonnes of grains are stuck in Ukraine, unable to leave the country, due to infrastructure challenges and blocked Black Sea ports including Mariupol, a UN food agency official said last week.
“We know people around the world are going to be starving because of the actions of Russia,” Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in an interview late on Sunday.
“There is grain waiting to be shipped in Ukraine. We have to make sure that Russia doesn’t prevent the grain that the world needs from getting out to the world.”
03:59 AM
Japan will take time to phase out Russian oil, says Kishida
Japan will take time to phase out Russian oil imports after agreeing on a ban with other G7 nations to counter Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, Fumio Kishida said on Monday.
The G7 nations committed to the move “in a timely and orderly fashion” at an online meeting on Sunday to put further pressure on Vladimir Putin, although members such as resource-poor Japan depend heavily on Russian fuel.
“For a country heavily dependent on energy imports, it’s a very difficult decision. But G7 coordination is most important at a time like now,” Japan’s prime minister told reporters, repeating comments he made at the G7 meeting.
“As for the timing of the reduction or stoppage of oil imports, we will consider it while gauging the actual situation,” he said.
“We will take our time to take steps towards a phase-out.” He did not elaborate.
03:29 AM
UN ‘appalled’ by attack on school
The United Nations chief said he is “appalled” at the reported attack on a school in the Ukrainian town of Bilohorivka, where many people were apparently seeking shelter from fighting.
At least 60 people are believed to be have been killed by the Russian strike in eastern Ukraine.
A UN spokesman said on Sunday that Secretary-General Antonio Guterres reiterates that civilians and civilian infrastructure must be spared under international law.
Spokesman Stephane Dujarric said: “This war must end, and peace must be established in line with the Charter of the United Nations and international law. The United Nations and its humanitarian partners in Ukraine will continue supporting those whose lives have been shattered by war.”
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03:05 AM
G7 to step up pressure on Putin, says PM
G7 leaders agreed that the world must intensify economic pressure on Vladimir Putin in any way possible, Downing Street said on Sunday after the Prime Minister addressed the group.
Boris Johnson said “the world must go further and faster to support Ukraine,” No 10 said after the call, which also included Volodymyr Zelensky.
“Ukraine needed to receive military equipment that allowed them to not just hold ground in Ukraine, but recapture it,” Mr Johnson told the leaders. It comes after the UK pledged another £1.3 billion in military support for Ukraine.
02:14 AM
In pictures: Last civilians leave Azovstal steel mill
02:06 AM
Evacuee describes Azovstal horror
A 69-year-old woman who had been holed up in the Azovstal steelworks since March 10 has described the terror of sheltering beneath the plant.
“It was terrible in the bunkers,” evacuee Lyubov Andropova said.
“Water would run down from the ceilings. There was mould everywhere. We were worried for the children, for their lungs.”
She feared the “bunker would collapse” as the shelling was constant.
“Everything shook, we didn’t go out.”
12:30 AM
Evacuees escape battle for Azovstal
Buses carrying some of the last weary civilian evacuees from the besieged Azovstal steelworks reached Ukrainian-controlled territory on Sunday – the culmination of an international effort to extricate people trapped in bunkers under the Mariupol plant.
The convoy arrived in the southeastern city of Zaporizhzhia after dark, carrying around 175 evacuees. They included some 40 people who had been holed up for weeks alongside Ukrainian forces under heavy bombardment in Azovstal’s vast network of underground shelters.
Many children and elderly people were among the exhausted-looking arrivals, who were shepherded off the buses and into a large tent where they were offered tea and a hot meal.
“I just want to live and start again… Everything I have is here,” said Yegor Chekhonadsky, pointing to a cluster of bags at his feet.
12:03 AM
Mine-sniffing dog presented with award
Volodymyr Zelensky presented Ukraine’s famous mine-sniffing dog Patron and his owner with a medal on Sunday to recognise their dedicated service since Russia’s invasion.
The Jack Russell terrier has been credited with detecting more than 200 explosives and preventing their detonation since the start of the war, quickly becoming a canine symbol of Ukrainian patriotism.
Ukraine’s president made the award at a news conference in Kyiv with Justin Trudeau, the Canadian Prime Minister. Patron barked and wagged his tail, prompting laughter from the audience. Mr Trudeau patted his pockets as though looking for a dog treat.
“Today, I want to award those Ukrainian heroes who are already clearing our land of mines. And together with our heroes, a wonderful little sapper – Patron – who helps not only to neutralise explosives, but also to teach our children the necessary safety rules in areas where there is a mine threat,” Mr Zelensky said.
11:25 PM
Today’s top stories
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Vladimir Putin is “mirroring” the fascism of Nazi Germany, Ben Wallace will say on Monday – as the Russian president holds a massive military parade to galvanise his war effort
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Russia’s “doomsday plane” designed to protect Vladimir Putin in the event of a nuclear attack will make its first appearance in a decade at Moscow’s Victory Day parade
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Western officials say Putin could use his speech on Victory Day to expand the offensive in Ukraine and refer to it for the first time as a “war”, instead of the widely-ridiculed “special military operation”
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On Sunday, Putin sought to compare the illegal invasion of Ukraine to Russia’s triumph in the Second World War, as he referred to Ukrainians as “Nazi filth”
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German authorities banned the display of Ukrainian flags near memorials in Berlin over the weekend as police said they did not want sentiment at Vladimir Putin’s war to “spill over” into Second World War commemorations
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At least 60 people are feared dead in eastern Ukraine after a Russian airstrike on a village school on Saturday evening
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Several Western leaders travelled to the Ukraine over the weekend, including Justin Trudeau, the Canadian president, and Jill Biden, the US First Lady. Bono and the Edge, from U2, also visited Kyiv, where they performed a gig in a subway station
