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       UK failing to set out mission success in Ukraine, Tobias Ellwood warns

       The level of safety at Europe’s largest nuclear plant in Ukraine is like a “red light blinking” under Russian occupation, the International Atomic Energy Agency‘s director-general has said.

       Rafael Grossi said that the IAEA needs access to the Zaporizhzhia plant in southern Ukraine so its inspectors can, among other things, reestablish connections with the Vienna-based headquarters of the U.N. agency.

       For that, both Russia and Ukraine need to help.

       The plant also requires repairs, “and all of this is not happening. So the situation as I have described it, and I would repeat it today, is not sustainable as it is,” Mr Grossi said. “So this is a pending issue. This is a red light blinking.”

       Meanwhile, Russia’s foreign ministry has imposed sanctions on 287 members of the House of Commons in retaliation for UK measures over the Ukraine invasion.

       “In response to the decision taken by the British government on March 11 to add 386 State Duma deputies to a sanctions list, in a reciprocal move, personal restrictions are being placed on 287 members of the House of Commons,” the ministry said in a statement.

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       Key points UN nuke chief wants Ukraine plant access Russia imposes sanctions on 287 MPs in retaliation for UK measures Russian energy company Gazprom cuts off supplies to Poland and Bulgaria Blasts heard in Russian province Belgorod

       Show latest update 1651072160 Russian forces use tear gas and stun grenades to break up pro-Ukraine rally in Kherson

       Russian forces used tear gas and stun grenades to disperse a pro-Ukraine rally in the occupied city of Kherson today, Ukraine‘s Prosecutor General said, as Moscow tightened its grip over the southern Ukrainian region.

       Local authorities say Russia appointed its own mayor of Kherson on Tuesday after its troops took over the administration headquarters in the regional capital, which was the first big urban centre to be seized after the Feb. 24 invasion.

       Some residents have staged occasional anti-occupation rallies in Kherson and crowds gathered in the city centre again on Wednesday, the date Kyiv had said Russia planned to stage a referendum to create a breakaway region like those in eastern Ukraine.

       “During a peaceful pro-Ukrainian rally on Freedom Square in the city of Kherson, servicemen of the Russian armed forces used tear gas and stun grenades against the civilian population,” the office of Ukraine‘s Prosecutor General said in a statement.

       It said it was investigating the incident, and that at least four people were wounded.

       Maryam Zakir-Hussain 27 April 2022 16:09

       1651071308 Vladimir Putin’s health under fresh scrutiny as video shows him ‘shaking uncontrollably’

       A resurfaced video showning Vladimir Putin shaking uncontrollably has sparking fresh concerns about the Russian president’s health.

       The footage shows him seemingly suffering hand and leg tremors as he welcomed Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko to a meeting in mid-February, just days before he launched his invasion of Ukraine. Mr Putin is seen holding one hand to his chest while the other is in a fist, sparking speculation online that he may have Parkinson’s disease.

       My colleague Thomas Kingsley has more.

       Putin’s health under fresh scrutiny as video shows him ‘shaking uncontrollably’ Speculation is growing over the condition of the 69-year-old president but Kremlin denies he is in bad health

       Maryam Zakir-Hussain 27 April 2022 15:55

       1651071054 Greece’s energy supplies secured as Gazprom cuts supplies to several EU countries

       Greece’s energy supplies are secured and the country will make the next payment to Russian gas producer Gazprom at the end of May, the office of Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on Wednesday.

       The next payment to Gazprom will take place “in the last ten days of May”, Mr Mitsotakis’ office said in a statement.

       Maryam Zakir-Hussain 27 April 2022 15:50

       1651069906 Putin vows that Russia’s ‘special military operation’ in Ukraine will be achieved

       Russian President Vladimir Putin has vowed to Russia‘s parliament that the goals of the country’s military operation in Ukraine will be achieved.

       Putin said in an address on Wednesday to both houses of parliament: “I want to emphasize again that all the tasks of the special military operation we are conducting in the Donbas and Ukraine, launched on Feb. 24, will be unconditionally fulfilled.”

       That, he said, will “guarantee the security of the residents” of separatist regions in eastern Ukraine that Russia recognized as independent shortly before launching its military action in Ukraine, as well as Crimea - which Russia annexed in 2014 - “and our entire country in the historical perspective.”

       Maryam Zakir-Hussain 27 April 2022 15:31

       1651068944 Which countries are most dependent on Russian gas imports?

       Russia has announced that it is suspending gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria, branding the countries “unfriendly” for refusing to comply with its abrupt order that they pay in roubles, despite the contract the countries signed stipulating that payment be made in euros or dollars.

       Poland currently receives about 40 per cent of its natural gas from Russian imports but insists it was prepared for this eventuality, whereas Bulgaria is even more exposed, relying on Russia for 77 per cent of its gas, although it says it has been actively seeking alternative suppliers in light of the war.

       As for the rest of Europe, the countries most heavily dependent on Russia for gas are Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia and Moldova, which receive 100 per cent of their supply from Russian imports, writes Joe Sommerlad.

       Which countries are most dependent on Russian gas imports? Gazprom decision to stop supplying gas to ‘unfriendly’ Poland and Bulgaria denounced as ‘blackmail’

       Maryam Zakir-Hussain 27 April 2022 15:15

       1651068344 Poland’s prime minister says they will ‘do everything’ to impose contractual fines on Russia following gas suspension

       Poland will do everything to impose contractual fines on Russia after it stopped gas flows to the country, the country’s prime minister has said.

       “We will do everything to charge Russia with contractual penalties, because this action in not legal and not contractual,” Mateusz Morawiecki told a news conference.

       Maryam Zakir-Hussain 27 April 2022 15:05

       1651067622 Canada places sanctions on 203 individuals complicit in Russia’s attempt to annex Donbas

       Canada is imposing sanctions on 203 individuals that it says are complicit in Russia‘s attempted annexation of certain areas of Donbas in eastern Ukraine.

       Canada has now imposed sanctions on nearly 1,000 individuals and entities from Russia, Ukraine and Belarus since the invasion of Ukraine in late February, the government said in a statement.

       Maryam Zakir-Hussain 27 April 2022 14:53

       1651066570 Ursula von der Leyen says energy companies that pay for Russian gas in roubles will breaching Moscow sanctions

       The head of the European Union’s executive commission has said energy companies in the 27-nation bloc that agree to Moscow’s demands to pay for gas deliveries in Russian roubles will be breaching the sanctions imposed over Russia‘s invasion of Ukraine.

       Ursula von der Leyen spoke after Polish and Bulgarian officials said Moscow was cutting off natural gas deliveries to their countries due to their refusal to pay in roubles, a demand made by President Vladimir Putin after sanctions were levied against his nation.

       Ms Von der Leyen said “our guidance here is very clear”.

       She said that “to pay in roubles, if this is not foreseen in the contract, is a breach of our sanctions. We have round about 97% of all contracts that explicitly stipulate payments in euros or dollars, so it’s very clear. And the request from the Russian side to pay in roubles is a unilateral decision and not according to the contracts”.

       Ms Von der Leyen said Russia‘s decision to cut off supplies to Poland and Bulgaria is another “provocation from the Kremlin” and an attempt to “blackmail” the EU.

       She said that, following an urgent meeting of member states, both Poland and Bulgaria are now receiving gas from their EU neighbours.

       Maryam Zakir-Hussain 27 April 2022 14:36

       1651065425 Downing Street says they would ‘not rule out’ sending British jets to eastern Europe

       Downing Street would not rule out training Ukrainian pilots or sending British jets to eastern Europe to “backfill” for allies who supply jets to Kyiv.

       “Whilst there are no plans to send things like planes from the UK, certainly we want to work with other countries to ensure that Ukraine has the equipment that it needs,” the Prime Minister’s official spokesman said.

       The Government was “not ruling anything out” but there were “specific challenges” with the type of equipment operated by the UK, the Ukrainian air force predominantly relies on jets from the Soviet era.

       Maryam Zakir-Hussain 27 April 2022 14:17

       1651064268 UN nuke chief wants Ukraine plant access

       The International Atomic Energy Agency‘s director-general has said the level of safety at Europe’s largest nuclear plant, currently under Russian occupation in Ukraine, is like a “red light blinking”.

       Rafael Grossi said that the IAEA needs access to the Zaporizhzhia plant in southern Ukraine so its inspectors can, among other things, reestablish connections with the Vienna-based headquarters of the U.N. agency. And for that, both Russia and Ukraine need to help.

       The plant requires repairs, “and all of this is not happening. So the situation as I have described it, and I would repeat it today, is not sustainable as it is,” Grossi said. “So this is a pending issue. This is a red light blinking.”

       Read more here:

       The AP Interview: UN nuke chief wants Ukraine plant access The International Atomic Energy Agency chief says the safety of Europe’s largest nuclear plant which is currently under Russian occupation in Ukraine is a “red light blinking” as the IAEA tries in vain to get access for work including repairs

       Maryam Zakir-Hussain 27 April 2022 13:57

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