Russia Government
Zelensky condemns 'horrific' Russian strike on boat carrying corn in Black Sea
Zelensky condemns'horrific' Russian strike on boat carrying corn in Black Sea Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has condemned a horrific Russian attack on a vessel carrying corn in the Black Sea. The ship's captain was killed in the strike involving two drones, Zelensky said, and another sailor was unaccounted for. Eleven crew members - nationals of Azerbaijan and India - have been rescued. Romania said it had mounted a rescue mission after a fire on the ship Royad Mammadov outside the country's territorial waters. It said two people had died.
Ukraine will hit Russian refineries in response to Moscow's 'new doctrine' of airstrikes
Ukraine will hit Russian refineries in response to Moscow's'new doctrine' of airstrikes Plumes of smoke rise from fires at an oil refinery following what the authorities say was a Ukrainian drone strike in Moscow on Sept. 20. Kyiv - Ukraine will double down on attacking Russian oil refineries in response to a new policy of airstrikes by Moscow designed to force people to abandon Kyiv and other cities, but will not target civilians, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. Ukraine's intelligence services have obtained documents showing that Russian leader Vladimir Putin had issued a "new doctrine" of military attacks on a much broader range of civilian targets ahead of this winter, Zelenskyy said. "We saw documents and we know that they allow them to attack infrastructure, logistics, and especially to attack in the cities, in the villages, everywhere, roads, schools, hospitals," Zelenskyy said in an interview. "To pressure people to leave the capital, leave different cities: this is the goal of the operation."
Intensified Russian strikes are tearing Kyiv apart, warns mayor
Image caption, All metro and automobile traffic is now suspended across Kyiv's Pivdennyi bridge Intensified Russian drone and missile strikes are tearing Kyiv apart, the mayor of Ukraine's capital has warned. Vitaliy Klitschko said the city was now in a very dramatic situation as Moscow was battering its critical infrastructure, logistics, housing and other key facilities. He was speaking after Kyiv's defence council held a crisis meeting, following new Russian strikes on a key bridge that caused traffic chaos. The city's data centres have also been recently hit, resulting in internet outages. President Vladimir Putin earlier said Russia was acting in response to Ukraine's strikes on Russian energy facilities, despite the fact that it was Moscow that had first launched such attacks.
Ukraine calls for tighter sanctions as Russian attacks spark Kyiv gridlock
Is the war entering a new phase? Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has called on allies to tighten sanctions against Russia after a wave of strikes triggered gridlock across Kyiv. Traffic chaos gripped the Ukrainian capital on Friday after Russian drone attacks overnight closed key bridges. Zelenskyy called for allies to act to prevent Moscow from sourcing components for its arsenal as Kyiv and other parts of Ukraine face attacks around the clock. The Metro Bridge was closed in the direction of Kyiv's right bank, the city administration said.
Putin warns West that Russia is ready to use every weapon to protect Kaliningrad
Vladimir Putin has said Russia will use all weapons at his disposal if it considers it has come under direct attack in its Baltic exclave of Kaliningrad. Addressing the Valdai foreign policy forum, Putin insisted Russia was not threatening anyone and merely responding to statements by Western leaders that Moscow was preparing for war in 2029 or 2030. Throughout this week, Russia has accused Nato of preparing to blockade its territory, which borders Lithuania and Poland, warning that it would even be prepared to use nuclear weapons if the West tried to cut off Kaliningrad from the rest of Russia. Nato has sought to calm the situation, stressing it is a defensive alliance and urging Moscow to stop its nuclear threats. Western allies have faced a surge in so-called hybrid warfare incidents blamed on Russia, particularly in Poland and the Baltics in recent months.
Putin shows no sign of stopping the war as Russia doubles down on Ukraine
To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. When Vladimir Putin arrived to address Russia's parliament on Wednesday, a warm welcome was guaranteed. The Special Election Operation, as one Russian newspaper dubbed last month's legislative vote, has produced a State Duma even more pro-Putin than anything before it. The ruling party, United Russia, now has more MPs than ever. It allows the Kremlin to claim it has been handed a huge mandate from the Russian people.
Estonia says Russia ordered August arson attack on defence company
Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna has accused Russia of "sabotage" following an August arson attack on a defence company, Milrem Robotics, a claim the Kremlin rejected. "We can conclude with certainty that the arson attack in Tallinn was an act of sabotage ordered by the special services of the Russian Federation," Tsahkna wrote on X on Tuesday. "This act of sabotage is part of Russia's broader campaign across Europe, aimed at intimidating us and weakening our support for Ukraine," he wrote. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov rejected the allegation. "Such statements are baseless, ill-considered, have absolutely no relation to reality, and lack any form of reasoning. Consequently, we cannot and will not take such statements seriously," he told reporters.
Poland says fire at Starlink station is sabotage as Denmark warns of rising Russian threat
A fire at a Starlink satellite station in central Poland was a deliberate act of sabotage, a government minister has said. Polish Deputy Prime Minister Krzysztof Gawkowski said the fire in the Masovian Voivodeship province was deliberately designed to disable the station... disrupting internet access for various institutions, including the Ukrainian army. He told Polish public broadcaster TVP Info an investigation was ongoing but many indications suggest the attack fits into a new Russian doctrine of attack. The Kremlin has not commented. Meanwhile, Denmark's intelligence service issued a new threat assessment saying it expects Russia to escalate hybrid warfare in the coming months.
Is Burnham right to blame Russia for spreading online disinformation?
Is Burnham right to blame Russia for spreading online disinformation? After Prime Minister Andy Burnham put Russia-linked disinformation campaigns under the spotlight, BBC Verify has been examining how these attempts to influence people's opinions work. We have tracked - and debunked - numerous online disinformation campaigns produced by Russia-linked groups that have attempted to shift public opinion on issues like the war with Ukraine, influence elections in the US and Germany, damage social cohesion and undermine trust in authorities or institutions. What kind of disinformation is being spread? In his UN speech, Burnham said there was an insidious campaign being carried out by the Russian government to target people in the UK .