Ukraine war: Russia abandons positions in Bakhmut after counterattack

Ukrainian counterattacks have ousted Russian forces from some positions in the city of Bakhmut, a senior Ukrainian general has said.

Colonel General Oleksandr Syskyi, the commander of ground forces, said while visiting front line troops that "the situation is quite difficult” around the city, which Ukraine has defended for months.

"At the same time, in certain parts of the city, the enemy was counterattacked by our units and left some positions," he added.

He said that new Russia units, including Wagner mercenaries, were being ”constantly thrown into battle” despite suffering heavy losses.

"But the enemy is unable to take control of the city," Colonel Syrskyi said.

The head of Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, issued a renewed call to Russia’s defence ministry on Monday to increase ammunition shipments to his fighters in Bakhmut in order to seize the city.

Wagner fighters have said that they are capturing ground each day during intense street fighting, but admit they are suffering high casualty numbers which its leader has blamed on a withholding of supplies by the Russian ministry of defence.

Mr Prigozhin said in a video posted to his Telegram channel, while inspecting boxes of rifles in a warehouse he said was in the town of Soledar: "Three hundred tonnes a day is 10 cargo containers - not a lot at all ... But we are being given no more than a third of that.”

05:01 PM

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Thank you for following today's liveblog. Here is a summary of today's stories.

• Ukrainian counterattacks have ousted Russian forces from some positions in the city of Bakhmut, a senior Ukrainian general has said. Colonel General Oleksandr Syskyi said while visiting front line troops that "the situation is quite difficult” around the city, which Ukraine has defended for months. "At the same time, in certain parts of the city, the enemy was counterattacked by our units and left some positions," he added.

• A freight train has derailed in Bryansk, a western region of Russia which borders Ukraine, after an "explosive device" detonated on the rail tracks, the local governor said. "An unidentified explosive device went off, as a result of which a locomotive of a freight train derailed," Bryansk governor Alexander Bogomaz wrote on Telegram.

• Russian missile strikes on the town of Pavlohrad, Dnipropetrovsk, on Monday morning left 34 injured, the region’s governor said. The strikes overnight mark the second wave of large-scale air attacks by Russia in three days. Warehouses reportedly storing Ukrainian ammunition were among buildings hit. Russia’s defence ministry claimed it carried out strikes against military targets.

• Pope Francis has said that the Vatican is involved in a peace mission to try and end the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. “I am willing to do everything that has to be done. There is a mission in course now but it is not yet public. When it is public, I will reveal it.”

Please follow along tomorrow for all the latest updates on Ukraine.

04:24 PM

Pictured: 'Join your comrades' Russian forces recruitment billboard in St Petersburg

03:57 PM

Volodymyr Zelensky calls on Canada to impose tougher sanctions on Russia

03:42 PM

Ukraine's defence minister confident allies will supply fighter jets

Ukraine’s defence minister has publicly expressed confidence that Ukraine would receive fighter jets from allies, The Kyiv Independent has reported.

In a television interview on Monday, Mr Reznikov said that he had gone through the experience of being told that it would be impossible to receive certain weapons and then seeing it happen “several times”, according to the paper, citing Stringer air defence systems, HIMARS and other weaponry.

Mr Reznikov said that Ukraine’s allies have been “very practical in making their decisions” and there is “a certain understandable meaning in this pragmatism”.

"(Our allies) consciously and responsibly want to reach the finish line of this marathon, that is, the victory of Ukraine," Mr Reznikov added.

In late February, President Volodymyr Zelensky renewed his calls for Britain to send fighter jets to Ukraine, telling a press conference in Kyiv: “Where are our Typhoon aircraft?”.

03:26 PM

Pope reveals he is involved in peace mission after meeting Hungarian prime minister

The Vatican is involved in a peace mission to try to end the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, Pope Francis has revealed, adding it was also ready to help repatriate Ukrainian children taken to Russia or Russian-occupied land.

"There is a mission in course now but it is not yet public. When it is public, I will reveal it," the Pope told reporters during a flight home after a three-day visit to Hungary.

"I think that peace is always made by opening channels. You can never achieve peace through closure... This is not easy."

Read more on Pope Francis' comments and his visit to Hungary here.  

03:08 PM

Child allegedly killed in afternoon strike on Chernihiv, says regional governor

Governor of the Chernihiv region, Vyacheslav Chaus, has said that there has been an strike in the area of Novhorod-Siverskyi on Monday afternoon, with some reporting that a child has been killed.

Writing on Telegram, Mr Chaus said: "The enemy continues to hit civilian infrastructure. At about 15: 37, a hit was recorded in an educational institution (not operating) of the Novgorod-Seversky district. There are reports of the death of a child who was nearby. Information about the victims is being updated.

"Russia is a terrorist. Terrorists must be destroyed."

The claims have not yet been independently verified

02:39 PM

United States will 'work hard and fast' to support those who protect Ukraine's skies, says ambassador

Following the latest wave of airstrikes across Ukraine, in which at least 34 were injured, the US ambassador to Ukraine has said the United States "will continue to work hard and fast" to support "those who protect Ukraine's skies".

Bridget Brink said on Twitter: "Russia again launched missiles in the deep of night at Ukrainian cities where civilians, including children, should be able to sleep safely and peacefully.

"I am grateful for those who protect Ukraine’s skies, and the United States will continue to work hard and fast to support them and their ability to defeat Russia’s barbaric attacks on the people of Ukraine."

02:01 PM

Pictured: Train derailed in Bryansk

01:39 PM

Sevastopol fuel depot blast was preparatory to Ukrainian counter-offensive

A Ukrainian drone strike that destroyed an oil depot in occupied Crimea was part of Ukraine’s preparations for its counter-offensive, a military spokesman has said.

Natalia Gumenyuk, a Ukrainian military spokesman, said Russian logistics were being targeted to undermine morale and spread panic, James Kilner reports. 

“This work is preparatory to the large-scale full-scale offensive that everyone expects,” she told Ukrainian media on Sunday.

Read more about Saturday's drone strike on Sevastopol here.

01:14 PM

'Had we been outside, we would have been killed': Devastation in Pavlohrad

An overnight missile attack on the city of Pavlohrad, a rail hub in eastern Ukraine, has damaged 19 apartment blocks, 25 houses, three schools, three kindergartens and several shops, the head of the regional council has said.

34 people were wounded, according to the Dnipropetrovsk governor, among whom were five children.

Resident Olha Lytvynenko, 61, said: "I ran outside and saw the garage was destroyed. Everything was on fire, glass shards were everywhere. Had we been outside, we would have been killed."

Viktoriia Suprun, 41, said she had taken cover with her daughter in the hallway of the dormitory.

"We rushed to the hallway, laid on the floor. And then the explosion wave twisted the door. Had we stayed for five more seconds, we would have been trapped here," she said.

"We didn't sleep at night and in the morning. My child will need psychological help, it is horrible," she said.

12:56 PM

Ukraine withdraws from World Judo Championships as it says 'majority' of Russian athletes are active soldiers

Ukraine has pulled out of the World Judo Championships as it said the majority of the Russian team are active soldiers.

The International Judo Federation gave Russian and Belarusian athletes the green light to compete in the world championships in Qatar next week, on condition that they compete as individual neutral athletes.

However, the Ukrainian judo federation said in a statement: “the majority of the (Russian) team are athletes who are active servicemen of the armed forces of the Russian Federation, part of the army that attacked Ukraine on February 24, 2022".

A Russian army, the federation said, that "is still waging a brutal full-scale war on our territory, shelling Ukrainian cities, civilian homes every day, killing civilians and children".

"Instead, more than 250 Ukrainian athletes have given their lives defending the country. Among them are representatives of judo."

They added that they considered the decision by the body in contradiction to the latest recommendations from the International Olympic Committee “where the IOC says that the status of neutral athletes can only be granted to those athletes who are not military personnel."

12:27 PM

Russia says 'all designated targets hit' in overnight airstrikes

The Russian defence ministry has said that forces had carried out missile strikes against military targets, including weapons depots and ammunition factories, overnight.

Russian state news agencies have reported that the ministry said all designated targets had been hit.

In the area of Pavlohrad, 34 people have been injured following Monday morning's strikes, the second wave of airborne attacks in three days.

It also said that Russian forces had continued their advance in the city of Bakhmut.

12:10 PM

Pictured: Volodymyr Zelensky participates in the Day of the Border Guard of Ukraine

11:55 AM

Ukraine's human rights commissioner advises citizens in occupied territories to accept Russian passports 'to survive'

Ukraine’s human rights commissioner has advised people in territories currently occupied by Russia to accept Russian passports in order to survive, after a new decree signed by Vladimir Putin on Thursday stated that Ukrainians living in occupied territory who refuse Russian passports could be forced out of their homes.

“I think that all Ukrainian citizens who refuse a Russian passport will simply be arrested. And this will form a separate category of civilian hostages that the Russian Federation will hold captive, either imprisoned on its territory or in the temporarily occupied territory of Ukraine,” Dmytro Lubinets said during a television interview on Sunday evening.

“I would advise you to accept a Russian passport and make the decision for yourself to survive. This is the most important thing.

"We understand that this is happening under pressure, under physical pressure. So take your passport, survive, and wait for us to liberate this territory,” he added.

“Or make a decision for yourself and leave your territory in any way possible, through Ukrainian territory or that of other countries, but just leave. We understand that it has become a matter of survival in your territory."

11:42 AM

Russian freight train derails following 'explosive device' on track

A freight train has derailed in Bryansk, a western region of Russia which borders Ukraine, after an "explosive device" detonated on the rail tracks, the local governor said.

"An unidentified explosive device went off, as a result of which a locomotive of a freight train derailed," Bryansk governor Alexander Bogomaz wrote on Telegram.

Mr Bogomaz said that the device detonated on the 136th kilometre of the railway between Bryansk and Unecha. He added that there were no casualties. The site is around 37 miles north of the border with Ukraine.

Russian railways, the nation’s rail operator, said the incident occurred at 10:17am Moscow time, and that seven freight wagons were derailed and the locomotive caught fire.

On the same day, power lines were blown up in northern Russia, according to officials, which the FSB security service has described as an "act of sabotage".

11:29 AM

Kyiv says it retains Bakhmut 'road of life' despite Kremlin assertions

Ukraine has said that it still controls the critical “road of life” resupply route that runs west out of besieged Bakhmut.

The city is the focus of fighting in Ukraine and although the Kremlin’s Wagner mercenary group is making steady progress towards capturing the whole city, Ukrainian officials have insisted that their forces were not cut off, James Kilner reports.

“The Russians have been talking for weeks about taking control of the ‘road of life’,” said Serhiy Cherevaty, a spokesman for the Ukrainian military’s eastern sector. “But thanks to the military special forces and artillerymen, the defence forces have not allowed the Russians to cut our logistics.”

Read more on this story and the ongoing fight for Bakhmut here. 

11:01 AM

Watch: Russia strikes Ukrainian arms depot to thwart counter attack

10:41 AM

Latest MoD update: Russia constructs defences deep inside areas it currently controls

The latest daily intelligence update from the UK Ministry of Defence has said that Russia has constructed "some of the most extensive systems of military defensive works seen anywhere in the world for many decades", not only near current front lines but "deep inside areas Russia currently controls".

"The defences highlight Russian leaders' deep concern that Ukraine could achieve a major breakthrough," the ministry said but cautioned that "some works have likely been ordered... in attempts to promote the official narrative that Russia is 'threatened' by Ukraine and NATO".

10:20 AM

Ukrainian forces oust Russian troops from some positions in Bakhmut

Ukrainian counterattacks have ousted Russian forces from some positions in the city of Bakhmut, but the situation is still “difficult”, a senior Ukrainian general has said.

Colonel General Oleksandr Syskyi, the commander of ground forces, said on Telegram on Monday: “The situation is quite difficult”.

"At the same time, in certain parts of the city, the enemy was counterattacked by our units and left some positions."

He added that new Russia units, including Wagner mercenaries, were being ”constantly thrown into battle” despite suffering heavy losses.

“But the enemy is unable to take control of the city,” he said.

On Sunday, Ukraine said that forces still controlled the critical “road of life” supply route which runs west out of the city, despite continued gains by Russian troops.

10:02 AM

In pictures: Aftermath of missile strikes in Pavlohrad

Russian missile strikes on the town of Pavlohrad, Dnipropetrovsk, on Monday morning have left 34 injured, hitting an industrial zone, 19 apartment buildings and 25 homes damaged or destroyed.

"There are already 34 wounded due to a missile attack on the Pavlograd district," Sergiy Lysak, the head of the Dnipropetrovsk region, said on social media.

"Five of them are children. The youngest is a girl and only eight years old," Mr Lysak said.

09:46 AM

The Vatican involved in Ukraine-Russia peace mission, says Pope Francis

Pope Francis has said that the Vatican is involved in a peace mission to try and end the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

“I am willing to do everything that has to be done. There is a mission in course now but it is not yet public. When it is public, I will reveal it,” the pontiff told reporters on Sunday on a flight home from a three-day visit to Hungary. The pope declined to give further details.

“I think that peace is always made by opening channels. You can never achieve peace through closure … This is not easy,” he added.

The pontiff said that he had spoken about the situation in Ukraine with the Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and with a bishop representing the Russian Orthodox Church in Budapest, Metropolitan Hilarion.

“In these meetings, we did not just talk about Little Red Riding Hood. We spoke of all these things. Everyone is interested in the road to peace,” he said.

09:32 AM

Watch: Massive fire at fuel site in Russian-occupied Crimea after suspected drone strike

09:31 AM

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