Russia has warned that there can be “no more talk of a nuclear-free Baltic” if Sweden and Finland join Nato.
Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, said today that if the two nations were to join the alliance then the “balance must be restored” and Russia would have to strengthen its land, naval and air forces in the region.
“Until today, Russia has not taken such measures and was not going to,” Mr Medvedev said. “If our hand is forced well… take note it wasn’t us who proposed this.”
It comes a day after reports indicated that Sweden had already decided to join Nato, and Finland said a decision on whether to join would likely come “within weeks”.
At a joint press conference on Wednesday in Stockholm, Sanna Marin, Finland’s Prime Minister, said that her country would make its decision “within weeks, not within months”.
Follow the latest updates below.
01:41 PM
EU payment in roubles for Russian gas would violate sanctions regime
Payment for Russian gas in roubles by European Union buyers as demanded by President Vladimir Putin would break the EU’s sanctions regime against Moscow, an internal European Commission note said.
Putin has warned Europe it risks having gas supplies cut unless it pays in the Russian currency as he seeks retaliation over Western sanctions for Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
In March, Moscow proposed that energy buyers open accounts at Gazprombank, where payments in euros or dollars would be converted to roubles.
The European Commission’s note, making clear it is technical, preliminary, and based on an unofficial translation of the Russian Presidential Decree of March 31, said the law added several new layers of obligations on EU gas buyers, taking the effective completion of the purchase out of their hands.
“This mechanism would lead to a breach of the existing EU restrictive measures adopted in respect of Russia, its government, the Central Bank of Russia, and their proxies,” the internal note, seen by Reuters, said.
01:15 PM
Strains in German coalition as junior partners turn on Scholz over Ukraine
Frustration is growing among German Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s junior coalition partners over what they say are shortcomings in his leadership on Ukraine, highlighting an internal rift that risks undermining Western unity against Russia.
After a dramatic policy pivot at the start of the crisis, when Scholz halted the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project with Russia days before its invasion of Ukraine, and then vowed a big jump in defence spending, his partners accuse him of dithering.
“I have the impression that Mr Scholz is not aware of the serious damage he is doing to Germany’s reputation in Central Europe, in Eastern Europe, basically in the whole of Europe,” Anton Hofreiter, Greens chairman of parliament’s Europe committee said.
Seven weeks into the war, the junior Greens and liberal Free Democratic (FDP) parties in Scholz’s coalition are vexed that Berlin is not meeting Ukrainian pleas to send it more heavy weapons, amid warnings from Kyiv that Russia is ramping up for a major offensive in Ukraine’s south and east.
Some in the three-way coalition with Scholz’s left-leaning Social Democratic Party (SPD) also want him to do more to reduce German energy dependence on Russia.
12:57 PM
US can’t confirm yet what damaged Russian warship, Pentagon says
The United States does not have enough information now to confirm what caused an explosion on a Russian warship that Ukraine has claimed was caused by one of its missiles, Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby said on Thursday.
“We don’t know what caused that explosion,” Mr Kirby said in an interview on MSNBC.
“We’ve seen the social media reports that this was maybe a Ukrainian coastal defense missile (that) hit it. We can’t rule that out, we just don’t have enough information right now,” he said.
12:47 PM
Accusing Russia of genocide in Ukraine could widen war, Macron says
French President Emmanuel Macron said Thursday that accusing Russia of committing genocide in Ukraine could lead to the war spreading, as he defended his decision not to use the term.
“The word genocide has a meaning” and “needs to be characterised legally, not by politicians,” Mr Macron told France Bleu radio during a trip to northern France.
“States that consider that it is genocide have an obligation under international law to intervene. Is that what people want? I don’t think so,” he explained.
It would mean becoming a “co-belligerent” in the war, he said, potentially drawing Western countries in the Nato military alliance into the conflict.
12:36 PM
Washington’s Russian Embassy used as projector screen by pro-Ukraine pranksters
The Russian embassy in Washington DC has a façade that, by and large, is large, flat and white. It is a design that, however accidentally, gives the building some resemblance to a projector screen, reports Tom Ough.
That is exactly how it has been used by pro-Ukrainian pranksters. A video uploaded to social media this morning shows Boris Nemtsov Plaza, home of the embassy, at night-time. Onto the thick foliage of the trees to the embassy’s right is projected the Ukrainian flag, vivid blue and yellow against a dark backdrop.
The flag, apparently beamed from the other side of the wide avenue, begins to tack to the left. Inexorably it moves towards the Russian embassy, arriving at the top-left corner. The embassy is already lit by large, faint spotlights in the red, white and blue of Russia’s flag – and by a second, weaker Ukrainian flag, suggesting some prankster coordination.
It is the stronger flag that prompts the interception attempt that has made this video go viral. Up sweeps a white Russian spotlight, straight to the incoming Ukrainian flag. “They’re trying to drown you out,” comments an onlooker.
The attempted military escort is thwarted. The Ukrainian flag is so bright that the white spotlight hardly shows up. Emboldened, the Ukrainian flag makes a further incursion into Russian territory, adding insult to injury by provocatively bobbing up and down.
12:32 PM
Kyiv says 30 people returned to Ukraine in Russia prisoner swap
Ukraine said Thursday that 30 prisoners of war were being returned to the country as part of the most recent exchange of captives with Russia, following an order from President Volodymyr Zelensky.
“Five officers and 17 servicemen were exchanged. Also eight civilians, including one woman, were released. In total, 30 of our citizens are going home today,” Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said in a statement on social media.
12:22 PM
Russia should diversify energy exports towards Asia, Putin says
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday called for diversification of energy exports towards Asia, warning that European countries were destabilising the market by moving to cut out Russian deliveries.
“We need to diversify exports… step by step shift the direction of our exports to the fast-growing markets of the south and east,” Putin said at a televised meeting on the energy sector. He criticised moves by European countries to stop using Russian energy, saying these “further destabilise the market and push up prices”.
11:49 AM
Russian official says Ukraine shelling hit residential buildings in Bryansk
The governor of Russia’s southern Bryansk region said on Thursday that residential buildings in the village of Klimovo had been hit after coming under fire from the Ukrainian army.
“Today, the village of Klimovo came under fire by Ukrainian armed forces. Two residential buildings were damaged as a result of the shelling and there were casualties among the residents”, governor Alexander Bogomaz said on his Telegram channel.
Ukraine’s defence ministry and military did not immediately respond to requests for comment after Russia earlier said mortars had landed near a border facility in the Bryansk region.
11:25 AM
Pictured: Anti-tank weapon provided by UK to Ukraine
11:22 AM
China rejects ‘pressure or coercion’ over Russia relations
China has said it would reject “any pressure or coercion” over its relationship with Russia, in response to a call from US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen for Beijing to use its “special relationship with Russia” to persuade Moscow to end the war in Ukraine. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian defended China’s position on the war, saying it had “made considerable efforts to de-escalate the situation, defuse the crisis and rebuild peace.”
“China is playing a constructive role in the Ukraine issue,” Mr Zhao told reporters at a daily briefing.
China has refused to condemn the invasion of Ukraine by strategic partner Russia, or even refer to the conflict as a war in deference to Moscow, which uses the term “special military operation.”
“We oppose unfounded accusations and suspicions against China, nor will we accept any pressure or coercion,” Mr Zhao said. “Time will tell that China’s claims are on the right side of history.”
11:12 AM
Russia says crippled warship to be towed back to port
Russia said the crew of its Black Sea fleet flagship were evacuated on Thursday and measures were being taken to tow the ship back to port after an explosion of ammunition on board that Ukraine said was caused by a missile strike.
Russia’s defence ministry said the fire on the Soviet-era missile cruiser Moskva had been contained, but left the ship badly damaged. It did not acknowledge the ship had been attacked and said the cause of the fire was under investigation.
Ukraine’s southern military command said that it hit the warship with a Ukrainian-made Neptune anti-ship missile and that it had started to sink.
Reuters was unable to verify either side’s statements.
The loss or disabling of the Moskva would be another blow for Russia – on the 50th day of its war in Ukraine – as it readies for a new assault in the eastern Donbas region that is likely to define the outcome of the conflict.
Russia’s navy has launched cruise missiles into Ukraine and its activities in the Black Sea are crucial to supporting land operations in the south of the country, where it is battling to seize full control of the port of Mariupol.
11:02 AM
Nearly one million refugees who left Ukraine have returned
Almost one million Ukrainians have returned to the country since the start of the invasion, border force officials have said.
Andriy Demchenko, the spokesman of the State Border Guard Service, said that over 870,000 Ukrainians have returned to the country since the start of the Russian, with around 25,000 to 30,000 returning each day.
Over n 4.5 million people have fled from Ukraine since the beginning of the war, according to the United Nations.
10:54 AM
Pictured: ICC prosecutor visits mass grave in Bucha
10:53 AM
Dutch government to instruct firms not to pay for Russian gas in roubles
The Netherlands’ government will instruct companies not to pay for Russian gas in roubles, as Moscow has proposed, a spokesperson said on Thursday, as doing so would violate European Union sanctions.
A spokesperson for the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs said the country had adopted the position following a decision by the European Commission on Wednesday. The position is being communicated to energy companies, they said.
10:25 AM
China defends stance on Russia after US criticism
China on Thursday defended its stance on the Ukraine conflict as being “on the right side of history”, after a US warning that Beijing’s unwillingness to sanction Russia could affect its relations with other economies.
Beijing has refused to condemn Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, treading a diplomatic tightrope between backing its close ally and maintaining ties with the West by avoiding outright violations of sanctions placed on Russia.
That has put China at odds with the United States and its allies, which have responded with fury to the seven-week-old conflict, sanctioning Russia’s financial system and other parts of its economy in an effort to get President Vladimir Putin to back down.
10:09 AM
Russia says it has contained fire on the Moskva missile cruiser
Russia’s defence ministry said on Thursday it had contained a fire on board the Moskva missile cruiser, the flagship of Russia’s Black Sea fleet, and that measures were being taken to tow it back to port.
The ministry, which said the blaze broke out after ammunition blew up on board, said the cruiser’s main weaponry had not been damaged and that its crew had been evacuated onto other ships.
The defence ministry had said on Thursday that the ship had been badly damaged by the fire, the latest setback for Russia which has suffered a series of blows since it sent troops into Ukraine on February 24 in what it called a “special military operation.”
09:58 AM
Russia says it is limiting oil data access to protect local market
Russia’s Energy Ministry is limiting access to its statistics on oil and gas production and exports, it said on Thursday.
The ministry “is limiting the distribution of information, which could be used as an additional pressure on the Russian market and its participants,” it said.
The ministry unit which compiles the data, the CDU TEK, did not publish monthly data on April 2, according to two clients, in the first such delay in years.
“The industry’s statistical data, amid the restrictions, is quite sensitive to manipulation, which endangers operations of CDU TEK’s counterparties,” the ministry said.
09:45 AM
Russian subs fire missiles in Sea of Japan amid Ukraine tension
Russian submarines in the Sea of Japan have fired cruise missiles during exercises, the defence ministry said Thursday, at a time of tension with Tokyo over its support for Ukraine.
The ministry announced two submarines off far eastern Russia, the Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky and the Volkov, fired Kalibr cruise missiles from underwater at a target.
It posted video footage of the missiles rising out of the sea as the submarine crews simulated coming under missile attack.
Japan has joined tough Western sanctions on Moscow and welcomed several hundred Ukrainians fleeing the conflict as well as sending non-lethal military aid.
09:20 AM
Kharkiv governor: four civilians killed, 10 wounded in shelling
The governor of Ukraine’s Kharkiv region, Oleh Synyegubov, said four civilians had been killed and 10 wounded during Russian shelling of the city of Kharkiv on Thursday.
Reuters could not immediately verify Mr Synyegubov’s remarks.
In a statement, the Kharkiv region governor also urged residents of some towns to evacuate since he said military operations were expected to take place in the area.
09:19 AM
Watch: Archive footage of Moskva in action during a training exercise
[embedded content]
09:06 AM
Ukraine’s foreign minister adopts puppy from Mariupol
Ukraine’s foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba has adopted a puppy from the besieged port city of Mariupol, and named it Marik after the city’s nickname.
The puppy was born to a dog whose owners went missing, he said in an Instagram post, adding: “I couldn’t resist giving him a chance at a happy dog life”.
“So now my other two dogs Gustav and Benji have a friend,” he added.
08:59 AM
Around 16,400 people have arrived in UK under Ukraine visa schemes
Around 16,400 people had arrived in the UK under Ukraine visa schemes as of Monday, according to Government figures.
08:32 AM
Russian threat to increase military in the Baltic region is “nothing new” – Lithuanian PM
Russian threat to increase military in the Baltic region, including nuclear, is “nothing new”, Lithuania’s prime minister Ingrida Simonyte said on Thursday.
“That Russia threatens, it is nothing new,” she told reporters. “Kaliningrad is a very militarized zone, has been for many years, and it is in the Baltic region”.
Russia’s Kaliningrad exclave, on the shore of the Baltic Sea, is sandwiched between NATO members Lithuania and Poland.
One of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s closest allies warned Nato on Thursday that if Sweden and Finland joined the US-led military alliance then Russia would have to bolster its defences in the region, including by deploying nuclear weapons.
08:20 AM
Russia opens criminal cases into alleged torture of its soldiers by Ukraine
Russia’s Investigative Committee said on Thursday it was opening criminal cases into Ukrainian servicemen’s alleged torture of their Russian counterparts as Moscow continues its military campaign in Ukraine.
The committee, which probes major crimes, said some Russian soldiers had been captured by Ukrainian forces in the Zaporizhzhia and Mykolaiv regions and held illegally by Ukraine’s security service.
“Russians were subjected to physical violence and torture in order to force them to give false explanations about the actual conditions of their illegal detention on the premises of the Security Service of Ukraine, as well as on (Russia’s) special military operation,” it said in a statement.
Reuters could not independently verify the committee’s allegations.
Ukraine has said it checks all information regarding the treatment of prisoners of war and will investigate any violations and take appropriate legal action.
08:19 AM
Russian rouble falls with capital control measures in focus
The Russian rouble weakened on Thursday, driven by expectations that Russia may relax its temporary capital control measures further, while stocks fell as the country continued what it calls “a special military operation” in Ukraine.
The Russian central bank is considering easing requirements for mandatory foreign currency revenue sales by export-focused companies, business daily Vedomosti reported, citing a central bank official.
Currently, Russian exporters are obliged to sell 80 per cent of their forex revenues in the first three days after receiving it under a rule established by President Vladimir Putin in late-February to limit rouble’s volatility amid western sanctions.
At 07:39 GMT, the rouble fell 2 per cent to 81.50, heading away from its strongest level since Nov. 11 of 71 it hit last week.
07:51 AM
Russian finance minister to attend G20 meeting virtually
G20 host Indonesia said on Thursday that Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov has confirmed he planned to attend next week’s meeting of finance ministers and central bank governors from the Group of 20 major economies virtually.
Indonesian finance ministry official Wempi Saputra also told a briefing that Jakarta was considering whether to invite Ukraine to the meeting, which will be held on April 20 in Washington, to discuss the impact of the war in Ukraine.
07:36 AM
Russia warns Nato over Sweden and Finland membership
Russia on Thursday warned Nato that if Sweden and Finland joined the military alliance then Russia would have to bolster its defences and that there could be no more talk of a “nuclear free” Baltic.
“There can be no more talk of any nuclear–free status for the Baltic – the balance must be restored,” said Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council.
“Until today, Russia has not taken such measures and was not going to,” Mr Medvedev said.
07:27 AM
Read the MoD’s latest intelligent update on Ukraine
07:23 AM
Ukrainian towns Kramatorsk and Kostiantynivka likely to be Russian targets, UK says
The Ukrainian towns of Kramatorsk and Kostiantynivka are likely to be targeted by Russia for levels of violence seen in other urban centres since Moscow invaded Ukraine in late February, British military intelligence said on Thursday.
In an update on the war, Britain’s Ministry of Defence (MoD) said that “widespread missile and artillery strikes and efforts to concentrate forces for an offensive” showed a reversion to traditional Russian military doctrine.
The MoD added that Ukraine’s continued defence of Mariupol was currently tying down significant numbers of Russian troops and equipment.
07:08 AM
Nine humanitarian corridors agreed for Thursday
Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said nine humanitarian corridors had been agreed for Thursday to evacuate civilians, including by private car from the besieged city of Mariupol.
Other evacuation routes are from Berdiansk, Tokmak and Enerhodar, and ones in the eastern Luhansk region will operate if occupying Russian forces stop their shelling, Vereshchuk added in a statement.
07:02 AM
Ukraine says it is restarting evacuations
Ukraine said Thursday it was reopening humanitarian corridors allowing for the evacuation of civilians from war-scarred regions of the country after a day-long pause that Kyiv attributed to Russian violations.
Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said in a statement on social media that nine routes in the east and south of the country would be operating a day after they were shut because routes, she had said, were “too dangerous”.
06:43 AM
The latest pictures from Mariupol
06:36 AM
Putin assured me gas supply is safe, Austrian leader tells APA
Russian President Vladimir Putin told Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer when they met this week that Austria’s supply of gas from Russia is safe and the country can continue to pay for it in euros, Mr Nehammer told national news agency APA.
Mr Nehammer met Putin near Moscow on Monday and had until now not publicly mentioned their discussion on Austria’s security of gas supply.
The country obtains 80 per cent of its natural gas from Russia and opposes an immediate European Union gas embargo on Russia, arguing it is not possible for the time being.
Putin said “that the gas supply is secured, that Russia will deliver the contractually agreed quantities and that payments can continue to be made in euros”, APA on Thursday quoted Mr Nehammer as saying in an interview carried out on Wednesday.
06:25 AM
Ireland’s foreign minister visits Kyiv
Ireland’s Foreign Minister Simon Coveney is visiting Kyiv on Thursday.
Mr Coveney will visit areas in the Ukrainian capital directly affected by the Russian invasion and meet Ukraine’s foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba and defence minister Oleksii Reznikov.
He is the first foreign minister on the UN Security Council to visit Kyiv since the war began.
A statement from the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said: “His discussions with the Ukrainian government will focus on how Ireland can continue to provide political, security and humanitarian support to Ukraine, assist Ukraine in its application for EU candidate status, take forward further EU sanctions on Russia and hold Russia to account for its brutal and unjustified invasion.”
Ireland has provided 20 million euro in humanitarian aid to the country and Ukrainian refugees in neighbouring counties, and 33 million euro in non-lethal assistance for the Ukrainian military through the European Peace Facility.
05:55 AM
Moskva fire: ‘We don’t understand what happened’
Ukrainian presidential adviser Oleksiy Arestovych said that “a surprise happened” with the Moskva, the Russian navy’s Black Sea flagship.
Russian state media said on Thursday that the Russian warship had been “seriously damaged” by an ammunition explosion.
The warship became notorious after Ukrainian border guards cursed its Russian crew just weeks earlier, when the ship fired on 13 Ukrainian defenders on Snake Island.
Mr Arestovych said: “It burns strongly. Right now. And with this stormy sea, it is unknown whether they will be able to receive help.
“We don’t understand what happened.”
[embedded content]
05:46 AM
Trafficking fears for children in care home
Left in care homes and now threatened by war, thousands of already vulnerable Ukrainian refugees are at risk of being trafficked as they are uprooted by fighting across the country.
Some have come under Russian fire in their care homes. Others fled amid the sound of explosions and gunfire. Many remain unaccounted for, lost in the chaos of Ukraine’s sprawling and often disorganised social service system.
“There was a big problem of forced labour in the orphanages before the war (and) trafficking for the sex industry,” said Eric Rosenthal, director of Disability Rights International in Washington.
Now there is an even greater danger “of children being targeted, children being left behind, children being abandoned”.
There are more than 100,000 children in orphanages, boarding schools, or homes for the disabled in Ukraine, the highest number in all of Europe, according to the UN’s refugee agency.
04:59 AM
Grateful Estonia: ‘Britain has definitely done a lot’
A high-ranking Estonian defence chief has praised the UK for its support deterring Russian aggression in Ukraine, but called on Western allies to double the number of troops being sent to the country’s eastern border.
Kusti Salm, permanent secretary for the Estonian Ministry of Defence, said Nato forces needed to ramp up their presence in the Baltic States to warn Russian president Vladimir Putin against further invading Europe.
Calling Russia “a historic-level murderer”, Mr Salm told journalists at a press conference in Tallinn, the country’s capital, that the threat from the Russian Federation was now “as clear as anything can be”.
“There’s not enough words of thank you for Britain. Britain has definitely done a lot, so we are extremely grateful,” he said.
“There has been no hesitation in its commitment to the allied principles. But everyone can always do more.
“We need to make sure that the deterrent message the allied forces are sending to Russia is that they shouldn’t even have a thought about invading Nato or attacking Nato.”
Since the war in Ukraine began, Britain has doubled the number of soldiers it has based in Estonia as part of the Nato Enhanced Forward Presence (eFP) in the country, bringing the total to 1,650.
04:13 AM
Space agency cuts Moon mission with Russia
The European Space Agency has ended cooperation with Russia on three missions to the Moon.
ESA said it would “discontinue cooperative activities” on Luna-25, 26 and 27, a series of Russian lunar missions on which the European agency had aimed to test new equipment and technology.
In late March, collaboration on ExoMars, a plan to land a rover on Mars to drill into the soil and search for signs of life, also was suspended.
“As with ExoMars, the Russian aggression against Ukraine and the resulting sanctions put in place represent a fundamental change of circumstances and make it impossible for ESA to implement the planned lunar cooperation,” ESA said.
03:24 AM
Russia claims more than 1,000 Ukrainian marines surrendered
Ukrainian fighters defending Mariupol have managed to regroup for a last stand to keep the city from falling to Russia, commanders have said.
The defiant message came as Russia claimed more than 1,000 Ukrainian marines fighting in the besieged city had surrendered, with those remaining urged to end their “pointless resistance”.
Ramzan Kadyrov, the pro-Kremlin leader of Chechnya, has urged the remaining resistance fighters in the Azovstal industrial district to give up, which would all but pave the way for a Russian victory in Mariupol.
READ MORE: ‘Heroic defenders’ of besieged Mariupol regroup for last stand after 1,000 surrender
[embedded content]
02:54 AM
Russian billionaire’s superyacht docks without clearance
The US embassy is cooperating with Fijian authorities after a Russian oligarch’s yacht docked in Fiji’s Lautoka port.
“The United States is committed to finding and seizing the assets of the oligarchs who have supported the Russian Federation’s brutal, unprovoked war of choice against Ukraine,” the embassy said of the superyacht Amadea, owned by Russian billionaire Suleiman Kerimov, which docked without customs clearance.
“We and several of our EU partners have already frozen or seized many assets of these oligarchs.
“We are working closely with governments and private sector partners in Europe, and the entire world, including Fiji, on this issue.”
02:46 AM
Crew detained after oligarch’s yacht arrives in Fiji
Fiji police are today investigating the arrival of a luxury vessel owned by a Russian oligarch, questioning its captain about how he brought the boat to the Pacific island nation without customs clearance.
Fiji newspapers reported that police seized the superyacht Amadea, owned by Russian billionaire Suleiman Kerimov – who has been sanctioned by the UK, US and EU – and detained its crew.
An official at the National Police Command and Control Centre confirmed to Reuters that the captain of the vessel, which arrived on Tuesday, was being questioned.
Commissioner of Police, Brigadier General Sitivini Qiliho, told the Fiji Sun newspaper that the Attorney General’s office had been contacted by a foreign government requesting assistance in a criminal matter, and Fiji had agreements with other countries to enforce sanctions on Russian oligarchs.
Fiji had been alerted about the approach of the Amadea before it moored at Lautoka Wharf.
The Marine Traffic website showed Amadea left Mexico 18 days ago.
02:37 AM
In pictures: More war horrors for Ukrainian civilians
02:31 AM
Ukrainian governor says missiles hit Russian ship
Russia said on Thursday that the flagship of its Black Sea fleet was seriously damaged and its crew evacuated following an explosion that a Ukrainian official said was the result of a missile strike.
Russia’s defence ministry said a fire on the Moskva missile cruiser caused ammunition to blow up, Interfax news agency reported.
It did not say what caused the fire but Maksym Marchenko, the Ukrainian governor of the region around the Black Sea port of Odesa, said the Moskva had been hit by two Ukrainian-made Neptune anti-ship cruise missiles.
“Neptune missiles guarding the Black Sea caused very serious damage,” he said.
Russian news agencies said the Moskva, commissioned in 1983, was armed with 16 anti-ship “Vulkan” cruise missiles with a range of at least 700 km (440 miles).
The Moskva is the second major ship known to have suffered serious damage since the start of the war.
02:11 AM
Australia increases sanctions on Russian businesses
Australia imposed targeted financial sanctions on 14 Russian state-owned enterprises on Thursday, including defence-related entities such as a truckmaker and shipping companies.
Sanctions will also extend to electronic company Ruselectronics, responsible for the production of around 80pc of all Russian electronics components, and Russian Railways, Foreign Minister Marise Payne said.
Australia has now sanctioned about 600 individuals and entities, including most of Russia’s banking sector and all organisations responsible for the country’s sovereign debt.
It has also supplied defence equipment and humanitarian supplies to Ukraine, while banning mining exports to Russia.
01:55 AM
Ammunition blows up on flagship of Russian fleet
The flagship of Russia’s Black Sea fleet, the Moskva missile cruiser, was badly damaged when ammunition on board blew up, Interfax news agency quoted the defence ministry as saying on Thursday.
The blast is yet another military setback for Russia, which has suffered a series of blows since invading Ukraine.
Interfax said all the crew had been evacuated. It cited the ministry as blaming the blast on a fire and said the cause was being investigated.
A Ukrainian official earlier said that the Moskva had been hit by two anti-ship missiles but did not give any evidence. The 12,500 tonne ship usually has a crew of around 500.
“As the result of a fire on the Moskva missile cruiser, ammunition detonated. The ship was seriously damaged,” the Russian Defence Ministry said.
“The crew was completely evacuated.”
01:40 AM
War threatens to devastate struggling countries’ economies
A UN task force is warning in a new report that Russia’s war against Ukraine threatens to devastate the economies of many developing countries that are now facing even higher food and energy costs and increasingly difficult financial conditions.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has launched the report, stressing that the war is “supercharging” a crisis in food, energy and finance in poorer countries that were already struggling to deal with the Covid pandemic, climate change and a lack of access to adequate funding for their economic recovery.
Rebeca Grynspan, secretary-general of the UN agency promoting trade and development who coordinated the task force, said 107 countries have “severe exposure” to at least one dimension of the food, energy and finance crisis and 69 countries are severely exposed to all three and face “very difficult financial conditions with no fiscal space, and with no external financing to cushion the blow”.
The report urges countries to ensure a steady flow of food and energy through open markets, and calls on international financial institutions to do everything possible to ensure more liquidity immediately.
