World

It is bitterly cold on the beach and the wind is howling. But they keep digging. One man holds open a white bag while another fills it up with sand. Then the choir begins to sing. It is a wartime serenade to give the volunteers some push to keep going, because on the beaches of

The United States has hit back at Russian claims after Moscow said it has evidence of a Ukrainian network of 30 biological laboratories which were supported by America in a suspected military programme. The Biden administration accused Russia of using the UN Security Council to promote disinformation. The Russian ambassador to the UN said the

The United Nations Security Council will meet later today to talk about Russia’s claims that the US and Ukraine are developing biological weapons. The allegations have been made a number of times, most recently on Wednesday by Russia’s foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova, and Dmitry Chumakov, a Russian deputy UN ambassador. Mr Chumakov urged Western

President Vladimir Putin is “deliberately targeting” civilians in his war in Ukraine, Britain’s ambassador to the country has said. Melinda Simmons said Russian forces are ramping up the level of violence they unleash every time the Ukrainian military successfully resists, calling the situation “incredibly worrying”. She told Sky News in an interview on Thursday it

Ukraine’s president has told Sky News that his country cannot stop the war against Russia on its own and said nations must act now before it is “too late”. Speaking to Sky News’ Alex Crawford inside the leader’s office in Ukraine’s capital city, Volodymyr Zelenskyy reiterated his call for the West to impose a no-fly

Western officials have warned of their “serious concern” that Vladimir Putin could order chemical weapons to be used on Ukraine’s capital. In an assessment, they say an “utterly horrific” attack on Kyiv could be unleashed as Russian forces attempt to overcome the logistical issues that have apparently plagued the convoy heading for the city. Please

Children have been buried under rubble after a Russian airstrike hit a hospital in Mariupol, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said. The president tweeted that children were among people “under the wreckage”, calling the strike an “atrocity”. Mariupol’s city council said the maternity and children’s hospital had been destroyed, adding that it did not know

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said he is “not hiding” and “not afraid of anyone” as he revealed his location in Kyiv. In a defiant video message from his office on Bankova Street, he said he is staying there “as long as necessary” and his team is with him. Mr Zelenskyy was previously reported to

Russia has said military action in Ukraine would stop “in a moment” if the country meets its conditions for a ceasefire. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Russia is demanding Ukraine cease military action, change its constitution to enshrine neutrality, acknowledge Crimea as Russian territory and recognise the separatist republics of Donetsk and Luhansk as independent

The Russian military will hold fire and open humanitarian corridors in several Ukrainian cities, including Kyiv and Mariupol, at 10am Moscow time (7am UK) today, according to reports. The corridors, which will also be opened from the cities of Kharkiv and Sumy, are being set up at the personal request of French President Emmanuel Macron, the

Ukraine’s leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy has appealed directly to the Russian people to protest against the Kremlin saying evidence from captured troops shows the invasion was planned. Urging them not to stay silent, he said it was time to “overcome evil” and insisted it was not just a fight for peace in his country, but their

A second attempt at a civil evacuation will begin in Mariupol later today along with a temporary ceasefire as people are allowed to flee the city along a humanitarian “green” corridor, the city council has said. The operation will begin at midday local time from three locations in the city, with people being taken by

The Kremlin has accused the West of behaving like bandits and claims the world is “too big” for the US and Europe to isolate a country as big as Russia. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the West was engaged in “economic banditry” against Russia and that Moscow would respond. He did not specify what response

Volodymyr Zelenskyy has criticised NATO for failing to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine. In a strongly worded, emotional speech, the president told the alliance: “Starting from today everyone who dies will die because of you as well, because of your weakness, because of your disunity.” Mr Zelenskyy also claimed that the absence of a

A fire has broken out at Europe’s biggest nuclear power plant after the Russian army targeted it “from all sides” in the Ukrainian city of Energodar. Ukraine’s foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba has urged troops to immediately stop shooting at Zaporizhzhia power station so firefighters can take action. Officials have warned there is a “real threat

Russian troops have seized Europe’s largest nuclear power plant after it was shelled overnight, sparking a fire but no release of radioactive material, the UN’s atomic watchdog has said. The attack on the southeastern city of Enerhodar and its Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant had led to fears of a nuclear disaster, with immediate condemnation from world

Russia has reportedly taken control of Kherson in what would be its first seizure of a major Ukrainian city, while leaders in the south of the country have warned “we are being destroyed” after attacks wiped out water and power supplies. The southern port city of Mariupol said critical infrastructure was being targeted and that

Ukraine’s president has claimed nearly 9,000 Russian soldiers have been killed since the invasion of his country began a week ago. Volodymyr Zelenskyy was speaking in a video message in the early hours of Thursday, in which he told the invading forces to “go home”. He warned: “Wherever they go, they will be destroyed. “They

Russia’s ministry of defence has claimed 498 of its troops have been killed in Ukraine and a further 1,597 wounded – the first time it has admitted any casualties from its invasion of Ukraine. Major General Igor Konashenkov rejected reports about “incalculable losses” as “disinformation”, as he revealed Russia’s own count of military casualties in

Russian paratroopers stormed a military hospital in Kharkiv overnight – as forces close in on the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv. Fighting was ongoing overnight in Kharkiv and Kherson, while a long convoy of Russian military vehicles is now about 20 miles northwest of the capital, Kyiv. In Kharkiv, Russian paratroopers launched an airborne assault on