War in Ukraine: Latest developments
FILE PHOTO: Service members of the 92nd Separate Mechanized Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces hold artillery drills at a shooting range in an unknown location in eastern Ukraine, in this handout picture released December 17, 2021. Picture released December 17, 2021. Press Service of the 92nd Separate Mechanized Brigade/Handout via REUTERS
KYIV—Here are the latest developments in the war in Ukraine:
War crimes trial sought
The discovery of bodies scattered on the streets of the Ukrainian town of Bucha after the withdrawal of Russian forces sparks global outrage.
US President Joe Biden calls for a war crimes trial and more sanctions on Russia.
European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen says the EU is ready to send a team of investigators to gather evidence of possible war crimes after the discovery.
On a visit to the town, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky labels the killings “genocide”, a term echoed by the prime minister of Poland.
Hundreds of bodies
AFP saw at least 20 bodies strewn along a single street in Bucha.
Ukrainian prosecutor general Iryna Venediktova says 410 civilian bodies were recovered from areas around Kyiv recently retaken from Russian forces.
Bucha’s mayor Anatoly Fedoruk says 280 bodies were buried in mass graves during the fighting.
The bodies of another five men were found in a basement of a children’s health resort in Bucha, the Prosecutor General’s office says.
Russian denial
The Kremlin denies Russian forces killed civilians, claiming that the images of dead bodies in Bucha are “fakes” produced by “Ukrainian radicals.”
“We categorically reject all allegations,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov says.
Moscow has called for a special UN Security Council meeting to discuss the situation.
‘Big attack’ coming in East
Russian troops are preparing for a big attack in the Lugansk region of eastern Ukraine, the local governor Sergiy Gaiday says on Telegram.
“We see that equipment is coming from different directions, they are bringing manpower, they are bringing fuel,” he says, adding that Russia is “preparing for a full-scale big breakthrough”.
A senior Pentagon official says Russia has removed about two-thirds of the troops it had around Kyiv, mostly sent back to Belarus with plans to redeploy elsewhere in Ukraine.
Mariupol destroyed
The south-eastern port city of Mariupol has been “90 percent” destroyed after being besieged by Russian forces, its mayor Vadym Boichenko says, adding 40 percent is “unrecoverable”.
Around 130,000 people remain trapped in the city, which continues to be pounded by Russian bombardments, he says.
More EU sanctions
The EU’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell says the bloc is urgently discussing a new round of sanctions on Russia over the “atrocities” reported in Bucha and other Ukrainian towns that were occupied by Russian forces.
French President Emmanuel Macron says that they could target Russia’s oil and coal sectors, while Germany warns that cutting off the supply of Russian gas to Europe was not yet possible, despite calls to do so.
Diplomats kicked out
Germany and France each expel dozens of Russian diplomats after Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
And the former Soviet republic of Lithuania expels the Russian ambassador to Vilnius over what it calls the “horrific massacre” in Bucha and atrocities in other occupied Ukrainian cities. Moscow vows to retaliate.
Germany controls Gazprom firm
Germany takes control of Gazprom’s German subsidiary after the Russian gas giant said it is withdrawing from Gazprom Germania.
Berlin says it is “doing what is necessary to ensure security of supplies in Germany.”
Over 4.2 million refugees
More than 4.2 million Ukrainian refugees have fled the country since the Russian invasion, the UN says.
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