Ukraine-Russia updates: Moscow could destroy US, Patrushev warns

Switzerland has abstained from voting at the United Nations Security Council for an independent probe into the Nord Stream pipeline blasts, as it prefers to see first the results of an ongoing investigation led by Denmark, Germany and Sweden.

“In principle, UN investigations can add value, for example in the absence of credible national investigations by competent authorities,” Swiss authorities said in a statement.

“In this specific case, investigations by Denmark, Germany and Sweden are already under way. Switzerland considers it more appropriate to await the results of these investigations, while at the same time calling for a rapid clarification of the acts of sabotage,” it added.

In September 2022, the #NordStream gas pipelines were damaged by explosions. 🇷🇺 has submitted a draft resolution to the #UNSC requesting investigations. As 🇩🇰, 🇩🇪 and 🇸🇪 are investigating,🇨🇭prefers to wait for their results.

Statement👉https://t.co/C1tB3dt2lN pic.twitter.com/LFXUVe7tg8

— SwitzerlandUN (@swiss_un) March 27, 2023

The United Nations Security Council has rejected a resolution tabled by Russia calling for an independent inquiry into explosions in September on the Nord Stream gas pipelines, connecting Russia and Germany, that spewed gas into the Baltic Sea.

Only Russia, China and Brazil voted in favour of the Russian-drafted resolution, while the remaining 12 council members abstained. A resolution needs at least nine votes in favour and no vetoes by Russia, China, France, the United States or Britain to pass.

Moscow has long been calling for an independent international investigation into the blast, which it considers an act of “international terrorism”.

Ukraine has shut the eastern town of Avdiivka to non-military personnel, describing it as a post-apocalyptic wasteland, as Kyiv tried to break the back of Russia’s flagging winter offensive before a counterassault of its own.

A Ukrainian general said Kyiv was planning its next move after Moscow appeared to shift focus from the small city of Bakhmut, which Russia has failed to capture after several months of the war’s bloodiest fighting, to Avdiivka further south.

The Ukrainian Armed Forces General Staff said in an evening update that Russian forces were still trying to storm Bakhmut and had shelled the city and surrounding towns.

Last week, the Ukrainian military warned that Avdiivka, a smaller town 90 km (55 miles) further south, could become a “second Bakhmut” as Russia turns its attention there.

Both towns have been reduced to rubble in fighting that both sides have called a “meat grinder”. Russian forces say they are fighting street by street.

“I am sad to say this, but Avdiivka is becoming more and more like a place from post-apocalyptic movies,” said Vitaliy Barabash, head of the city’s military administration. Only around 2,000 of a prewar population of 30,000 remain and he urged them to leave.

Russia has warned Armenia of “serious consequences” if it submits to the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court (ICC), which has issued an arrest warrant for President Vladimir Putin, the state-owned RIA news agency has reported.

The ICC issued the warrant this month, accusing Putin of the war crime of illegally deporting hundreds of children from Ukraine, a move condemned by the Kremlin as a meaningless and outrageously partisan decision.

Armenia, a traditional Russian ally whose ties with Moscow have frayed badly since Putin gave the order to invade Ukraine in what he called a “special military operation”, is moving towards becoming a state party to the Rome Statute, a move that would bring it under the jurisdiction of the ICC.

RIA cited a source in the Russian Foreign Ministry as saying that Moscow regarded Armenia’s ICC plans as “unacceptable”.

It said Russia had warned Yerevan of “extremely negative consequences” for bilateral relations if it went ahead with the plan.

The Hungarian parliament, dominated by Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s right-wing Fidesz party, ratified Finland’s NATO membership after months of diplomatically charged delay.

A large majority of legislators approved the accession of the Nordic country into the military alliance.

The vote means that 29 out of 30 NATO member state parliaments have ratified Finland’s accession, with the last — Turkey’s assembly — expected to also give Helsinki the nod next month.

“Thank you for the decision with clear numbers!” said Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin on Twitter after the vote.

Unkari on ratifioinut Suomen Nato-jäsenyyden. Kiitos selvin luvuin tehdystä päätöksestä! Suomen ja Ruotsin Nato-jäsenyydet vahvistavat koko liittokunnan turvallisuutta. On kaikkien etu, että myös Ruotsi on Naton jäsen ennen Vilnan huippukokousta.

— Sanna Marin (@MarinSanna) March 27, 2023

Translation: Hungary has ratified Finland’s NATO membership. Thank you for the clear decision! The NATO memberships of Finland and Sweden strengthen the security of the entire alliance. It is in everyone’s interest that Sweden is also a NATO member before the Vilnius summit.

Germany has delivered promised Leopard battle tanks to Ukraine, Chancellor Olaf Scholz has said, providing Kyiv with much-needed heavy weaponry against Russia.

“Yes, we delivered Leopard tanks as we announced,” Scholz told a press conference in Rotterdam, Netherlands when asked to confirm a report in news outlet Spiegel that Germany had delivered 18 of the advanced Leopards.

Poland and the European Union discussed artillery munitions manufacturing as part of a new 2 billion euro ($2.2bn) program to supply Ukraine and replenish Europe’s stocks.

EU Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton visited the Dezamet SA munition plant in Nowa Deba, in southeast Poland, joined by Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and Defence Minister Mariusz Blaszczak.

Breton said the EU is “determined” to quickly do what is needed in light of a conflict that is expected to drag on.

Morawiecki said munitions are what is most urgently needed by Kyiv’s forces.

He said Ukraine uses up to 6,000 artillery shells daily as opposed to Russian forces, which use 50,000 rounds of various types of ammunition per day.

The visit came just days after Brussels announced a programme to reimburse countries offering artillery ammunition to Ukraine from a 1 billion euro ($1.1bn) fund.

A police chief in the Russian-controlled Ukrainian port city of Mariupol has survived an alleged assassination attempt when his car was blown up, Russian state media reported.

The TASS news agency reported that police chief Mikhail Moskvin’s car was blown up but that he was alive.

“In the morning the car of police chief Moskvin was blow up. He is alive, everything is fine,” the anonymous source said, adding that he sustained a “light injury”.

The state-owned RIA Novosti agency reported that the explosive device placed underneath Moskvin’s car went off as he stood close to it and that he did not need to be hospitalised.

The 18 Leopard 2 battle tanks pledged by Germany to support Ukraine have arrived, a security source told the Reuters news agency, confirming a report by Spiegel news magazine.

Besides the 18 main battle tanks, 40 German Marder infantry fighting vehicles and two armoured recovery vehicles have also reached Ukraine, the security source said.

The German army trained the Ukrainian tank crews and the soldiers assigned to operate the Marder vehicles for several weeks.

Beyond the German vehicles, three Leopard tanks donated by Portugal have also reached Ukraine, according to the security source.

Zelenskyy has met with Rafael Grossi, the head of the UN’s nuclear watchdog, in Zaporizhzhia, where they discussed the precarious situation at Europe’s largest nuclear power station.

In the meeting, covered by The Associated Press, Grossi expressed his concern that the situation at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant “isn’t getting any better.”

He said the situation remains tense because of the militarisation of the area around it, the recent blackout at the plant and, on multiple occasions, the switch to emergency diesel generators.

Grossi, who is director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, plans to visit the plant, which is held by Russian forces, this week.

Ukraine fears the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant will face a water shortage to cool reactors by late summer because Russian forces have let water out of a reservoir.

Ihor Syrota, director general of the state-run Ukrhydroenergo hydropower-generating company, told the Reuters news agency there was no immediate danger to Europe’s largest nuclear plant.

He said the water level has fallen because Russian troops who control the reservoir and the Kakhovka hydroelectric power station and dam have let some water out through the dam’s gates.

“An issue [with the lack of water for cooling] could arise in the summer, in late summer,” Syrota said in an interview, adding that the reservoir could be drained in days if all sluice gates were open.

“I hope we don’t get to that situation. I hope we de-occupy faster,” he said.

Ukraine, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland have issued a joint statement calling for the International Olympics Committee (IOC) to refrain from allowing Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete in the 2024 Games in Paris.

“There exists not a single reason to move away from the exclusion regime for Russian and Belarusian athletes set by the IOC more than a year ago, immediately after the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion into Ukraine,” the statement said.

“We strongly believe that now is not the time to consider the opening up of a pathway for Russian and Belarusian athletes to return to the Olympic Games in any status,” the six countries said.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba also posted on Twitter: “Russian and Belarusian athletes should not participate in international sports competitions. I urge all states to back this call. Keep the doors of sports shut for Russia’s war and propaganda.”

Ukraine, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland jointly insist: Russian and Belarusian athletes should not participate in international sports competitions. I urge all states to back this call. Keep the doors of sports shut for Russia’s war and propaganda. https://t.co/z6efBwwKtc

— Dmytro Kuleba (@DmytroKuleba) March 27, 2023

Belarus accuses Poland of causing long delays at its border with the European Union by slowing the movement of trucks.

“Since Friday, a queue in front of the only accessible border crossing point on the Belarusian-Polish border, Kukuryki (Kozłowiczy), has doubled in size and now totals 1,000 vehicles,” the Belarusian border committee said in a statement.

“The main reason is the failure of the Polish side to implement bilateral agreements on the passage of trucks,” it said, accusing Poland of only processing 61 percent of the typical number of trucks crossing the border over the weekend.

Ties between the two countries have deteriorated sharply since Russia invaded Ukraine and used Belarusian territory as a launch pad for the attack.

The West should respond calmly to Russia’s decision to station tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, Poland’s European Union affairs minister says.

“This is an element of escalation,” Szymon Szynkowski vel Sek told reporters.

“The reaction should be calm but firm,” he said. “We cannot be intimidated by Russian propagandists.”

Click here for a roundup of the key events from day 397 of the war.

Keep reading:

• Russia may demand compensation over Nord Stream blasts: Diplomat
• NATO condemns Putin for ‘dangerous’ nuclear rhetoric
• ‘Dance like there is no tomorrow’: Inside Ukraine’s underground wartime music scene
• Russia’s nuclear arsenal: How big is it and who controls it?

The secretary of Russia’s Security Council warned that his country has the weapons to destroy any enemy, including the United States, if its own existence is threatened.

“American politicians trapped by their own propaganda remain confident that in the event of a direct conflict with Russia, the United States is capable of launching a preventive missile strike, after which Russia will no longer be able to respond,” Nikolai Patrushev told the government-published Rossiyskaya Gazeta newspaper. “This is short-sighted stupidity and very dangerous.”

“Russia is patient and does not intimidate anyone with its military advantage, but it has modern, unique weapons capable of destroying any adversary, including the United States, in the event of a threat to its existence,” he said.

Ukrainian crews that have been training to use Challenger 2 tanks are now ready to be deployed to the front line, the British government says.

“Ukrainian tank crews have completed training on Challenger 2 tanks in the UK and have returned home to continue their fight against Russia’s illegal and unprovoked invasion,” the UK Ministry of Defence said in a statement.

The crews learned how to command, drive and “effectively identify and engage targets”, the ministry said.

“It is truly inspiring to witness the determination of Ukrainian soldiers having completed their training on British Challenger 2 tanks on British soil,” Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said.

📹 We went behind the scenes to show you how the British Army spent several weeks training Ukrainian tank crews to operate and fight with the mighty Challenger 2.

👉 Watch the full video on YouTube here: https://t.co/GPwP2JTWZD

🇺🇦 #StandWithUkraine 🇺🇦 pic.twitter.com/mrYiVM0RnI

— Ministry of Defence 🇬🇧 (@DefenceHQ) March 27, 2023

Russian shelling of the eastern Ukrainian city of Sloviansk has killed at least two people and injured 29, the regional governor says.

“Administrative and office buildings, five high-rise buildings and seven private houses were damaged,” Donetsk Governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said on Facebook.

“[Russian forces] struck the city centre around 10:30 (07:30 GMT) with two S-300 missiles,” he said.

Western criticism will not change plans announced by Putin to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in neighbouring Belarus, the Kremlin says.

“Such a reaction, of course, cannot influence Russian plans,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

Putin announced the decision on Saturday, saying it would not violate Russia’s agreements on nuclear nonproliferation.

He said this was “nothing unusual”.

“The United States has been doing this for decades. They have long placed their tactical nuclear weapons on the territory of their allies,” Putin said.

Western countries condemned Putin’s announcement. NATO called it “dangerous and irresponsible“.

Prosecutors say Poland has detained a foreign citizen on charges of spying for Russia.

Prosecutors in the northern city of Gdansk said in a statement that the suspect had been detained on Tuesday.

“The findings made in the case show that the suspect acted for the benefit of Russian intelligence by obtaining and collecting information … on critical infrastructure in the Pomeranian and Kuyavian-Pomeranian Regions and on the activities of services and bodies responsible for security,” the statement said.

“The information obtained was passed on to the Russian intelligence service,” it added.

The arrest was made after Poland reportedly dismantled a Russian spy network that had been preparing acts of sabotage and monitoring rail routes to Ukraine.