Ukraine Russia conflict newest information: Putin’s cluster bomb menace to Kyiv as drones ‘shot down over Crimea’

Writing as China and Russia participate in joint army drills within the Sea of Japan, former Lib Dem chief Vince Cable writes for Impartial Voices that, whereas Beijing’s “friendship with out limits” with Vladimir Putin jars badly in Europe, it “is severely restricted”.

You’ll be able to learn his ideas on the UK’s future relationship with China right here:

The final ship to journey underneath the Black Sea grain export deal has left the port of Odesa forward of a deadline to increase the settlement, in keeping with a Reuters witness and MarineTraffic.com.

Russia has not agreed to register any new ships since 27 June, and the initiative will expire on Monday except Moscow agrees to increase it.

United Nations chief Antonio Guterres was ready for a response from Vladimir Putin on a proposal to increase the deal, a UN spokesperson stated on Friday.

The Russian president informed his South African counterpart Cyril Ramaphosa in a telephone name on Saturday that commitments to take away obstacles to Russian meals and fertiliser exports had but to be fulfilled, the Kremlin stated.

Ukrainian officers didn’t instantly touch upon whether or not the ship, the Turkish-flagged TQ Samsun, had left Odesa.

Vladimir Putin has claimed Ukraine’s counter-offensive is “not succeeding” and that makes an attempt to interrupt by Russian defences have failed – regardless of Kyiv’s forces having recaptured a number of villages and made advances in a number of areas, in keeping with analysts.

But talking to Russian state TV, the president claimed: “All makes an attempt by the enemy to interrupt by our defence … haven’t been profitable all through your complete offensive.”

Russia’s naval and air forces are collaborating in army drills alongside China within the Sea of Japan for the primary time, in keeping with army observers cited by Chinese language state newspaper World Occasions.

A Chinese language naval flotilla comprised of 5 warships and 4 ship-borne helicopters set off from Qingdao on Sunday to hitch the Russian forces at a “predetermined space” in an train aimed toward “safeguarding the safety of strategic waterways”, China’s defence ministry stated.

Codenamed “Northern/Interplay-2023”, the drill marks enhanced army cooperation between China and Russia since Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

Gromkiy and Sovershenniy, two Russian warships collaborating within the Sea of Japan drill, had earlier this month performed separate coaching with the Chinese language navy in Shanghai on formation actions, communication and sea rescues.

Earlier than making port on the monetary hub of Shanghai, the identical ships had sailed handed Taiwan and Japan, prompting each Taipei and Tokyo to watch the Russian warships.

Vladimir Putin has warned that Russia has a “ample stockpile” of cluster bombs and that Moscow reserves the precise to make use of them if such munitions are used in opposition to Russian forces in Ukraine.

Ukraine has obtained cluster bombs from the USA, regardless of the weapons being banned in additional than 100 international locations. Kyiv has pledged to solely use them to dislodge concentrations of enemy troopers, because it continues its long-awaited counteroffensive.

“In fact, if they’re used in opposition to us, we reserve the precise to take reciprocal motion,” the Russian president stated in a state TV interview, excerpts of which had been printed on Sunday.

Ben Wallace has revealed that he’ll resign his submit as defence secretary on the subsequent cupboard reshuffle, and won’t search re-election as an MP on the subsequent election.

“I went into politics within the Scottish Parliament in 1999. That’s 24 years. I’ve spent effectively over seven years with three telephones by my mattress,” he informed the Sunday Occasions on his want to go away Westminster.

Mr Wallace shouldn’t be going quietly, nevertheless, having turn into concerned in a turf conflict with dwelling secretary Suella Braverman about British troopers being requested to cowl for any gaps in Border Drive employees this summer season.

The defence secretary has refused Ms Braverman’s request for 750 troops to fill in for any immigration officers who strike or are absent, in keeping with the Mail on Sunday – claiming that the Residence Workplace ought to have made contingency plans.

Our political correspondent Adam Forrest has extra particulars right here:

South Korea will present extra demining tools to Ukraine, an aide to Yoon Suk Yeol has stated following the president’s go to to Kyiv, the place he pledged extra army and humanitarian help within the combat in opposition to Russia.

“We’re considering to broaden assist on mine detectors and demining tools as Ukraine’s demand for them was assessed to be desperately big,” his deputy nationwide safety adviser, Kim Tae-hyo, informed reporters.

Mr Yoon pledged extra help in talks with Volodymyr Zelensky throughout a shock go to to Kyiv after attending the Nato summit in Vilnius, regardless of beforehand resisting Western stress to assist arm Ukraine straight, citing enterprise ties with Russia and Moscow’s affect over North Korea.

In a press convention after the assembly on Saturday, Mr Yoon stated South Korea would supply “a bigger scale of army provides” to Ukraine this 12 months, following final 12 months’s provision of non-lethal provides similar to physique armour and helmets.

A civilian was killed and one other wounded in Russian shelling in Ukraine’s Kharkiv area, whereas seven had been injured in a village in Zaporizhzhia, Ukrainian officers have claimed.

A 33-year-old man died and one other was wounded in a single day in Russian firing at residential buildings within the village of Kolodiazne, Kharkiv’s governor Oleh Sinehubov stated on Telegram, accusing Moscow of launching 4 S-400 surface-to-air missiles on the metropolis of Kharkiv, damaging a residential constructing.

Zaporizhzhia governor Yuriy Malashko alleged that three ladies and 4 males had been injured and a lot of homes broken in heavy Russian shelling from a number of rocket launchers on the village of Stepnohirske on Saturday afternoon.

Over the previous day, there had been 48 cases of Russian artillery firing on a lot of cities and villages within the area, the governor stated. Russia additionally shelled town of Zaporizhzhia, damaging a minimum of 16 buildings, secretary of town council Anatoliy Kurtiev claimed, including that one district was with out electrical energy on Sunday morning.

In the meantime, a Russian-installed official in components of Zaporizhzhia managed by Moscow, Vladimir Rogov, claimed on Saturday that Ukrainian forces had destroyed a faculty within the village of Stulneve, whereas air defence forces intercepted a drone over town of Tokmak.

Russia’s defence ministry stated on Saturday it had destroyed a lot of Ukrainian weapons depots in Zaporizhzhia area over the previous day. Ukraine’s prime army command stated Russia was attempting to cease Ukraine’s advance there, closely shelling the realm. It was not doable to independently confirm the claims.

Passenger ferries and different maritime transport had been halted for a number of hours close to town of Sevastopol, Moscow backed authorities have stated, as Russia’s defence ministry claimed its forces had prevented Ukraine from attacking the Black Sea port on Sunday.

There have been no casualties and no harm, the ministry insisted, claiming it had shot down two aerial drones over the Black Sea at an important distance from the shoreline, whereas 5 had been intercepted by Russia’s digital warfare forces.

Two unmanned underwater automobiles (UUV), often called underwater drones had been found within the northern a part of the Black Sea, and had been destroyed by fireplace, the ministry claimed. There was no fast remark from Ukraine.

Russia’s defence ministry stated on Sunday that it had thwarted a Ukrainian drone assault try close to the port of Sevastopol in Crimea.

“This morning, an try by the Kyiv regime to hold out a terrorist assault by seven unmanned aerial automobiles and two unmanned semi-submersible boats on objects on the territory of the Crimean peninsula close to town of Sevastopol was thwarted,” the ministry stated on the Telegram messaging app.

The declare couldn’t instantly be independently verified.