Live blog: 'Evidence' links Ukraine to Moscow massacre — Russia

Thursday, March 28, 2024

1620 GMT –– Russia has said it had evidence the perpetrators of last week's massacre at a concert hall outside Moscow were linked to "Ukrainian nationalists", a claim that the United States called "nonsense".

President Vladimir Putin and his security services continue to allege Kiev and the West were involved somehow in last Friday's attack, despite a Daesh affiliate having claimed responsibility.

Putin said Saturday that 11 people had been detained after gunmen stormed the Crocus City Hall, setting the building alight and killing at least 143 people.

"As a result of work with the detained terrorists, examination of the technical devices seized from them and analysis of information on financial transactions, evidence of their links with Ukrainian nationalists has been obtained," Russia's Investigative Committee said.

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1723 GMT –– France blocks fake Ukraine war recruitment website

French authorities have uncovered a website for a fake recruitment drive purportedly seeking French volunteers to fight for Ukraine against the Russian invasion, the defence ministry said.

The site has now been taken down by French services, a government source, who asked not to be named, told AFP without elaborating.

The site had said that 200,000 French people were invited to "enlist in Ukraine", with immigrants given priority.

A link to the site that resembled the French army's genuine recruitment portal had been posted on X, formerly Twitter, the French defence ministry said.

1720 GMT –– Kiev asks NATO allies for air defences after Russia strikes

Ukraine's defence minister has asked allies for more air defences at an extraordinary meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Council and said nearly all the impact from Russian strikes this year had been on civilian infrastructure.

Last Friday, Russia carried out its largest air strike on Ukraine's energy system since its invasion in February 2022, damaging power units at a dam and causing blackouts for more than a million people.

Moscow has described its recent attacks as part of a series of "revenge" strikes in response to Ukrainian attacks on Russian regions.

1626 GMT –– Zelenskyy speaks to US House speaker about Ukraine aid

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said he had a phone call with the US speaker of the House of Representatives, Mike Johnson, in which he urged him to hold a vote approving US military aid for Ukraine.

"Quick passage of US aid to Ukraine by Congress is vital. We recognize that there are differing views in the House of Representatives on how to proceed, but the key is to keep the issue of aid to Ukraine as a unifying factor," he said on X.

1623 GMT –– Western bases hosting Ukraine F-16s legitimate targets: Putin

Russian President Putin has scoffed at the possibility of his country launching an attack on a NATO member, calling it “sheer nonsense,” but warned that any Western air base hosting US-made F-16 fighter jets that are slated for deployment in Ukraine would be a “legitimate target” for the Kremlin’s forces.

"Their statements about our alleged intention to attack Europe after Ukraine is sheer nonsense," Putin said, referring to warnings in the US and Western Europe that Russia could turn its sights on other countries unless it's stopped.

He noted that the US defence budget is more than 10 times higher than Russia’s.

1529 GMT –– Russian shelling kills three in Ukraine: officials

Russian aerial attacks have killed three people in frontline Ukrainian regions local officials said, while Kiev arrested two people it claimed were collaborating with Russia's intelligence services.

In the northeastern Kharkiv region, a 57-year-old woman was killed when a Russian shell landed near her car, the Kharkiv police force and regional governor said. Her husband was injured in the attack.

In the southern city of Kherson, a Russian strike hit a taxi carrying passengers.

0623 GMT –– Ukraine downs 26 drones overnight

Ukraine downed 26 drones overnight as Russia launched its latest salvo of aerial attacks, a senior Ukrainian military official said.

"On the night of March 28, 2024, the enemy launched a missile air strike against Ukraine using three Kh-22 cruise missiles and an Kh-31P anti-radar missile (from the Black Sea), an S-300 anti-aircraft guided missile (Donetsk) and 28 attack UAVs of the 'Shahed-136/131' type", Mykola Oleshchuk, the head of Ukraine's air force, wrote on Telegram.

"Twenty-six attack UAVs of the 'Shahed-136/131' type were destroyed within Odesa, Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk and Zaporizhzhia regions", he said, without providing details on the missile strikes.

0455 GMT –– Ukraine top diplomat in New Delhi to boost ties with India

Ukraine's foreign minister arrived in New Delhi for a two-day visit to boost bilateral ties and cooperation with India, which considers Russia a time-tested ally from the Cold War era.

Dmytro Kuleba will meet with his Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar on Friday, as well as the deputy national security advisor, according to India's Foreign Ministry. On Thursday, Kuleba will pay his respects to Indian independence leader Mahatma Gandhi at the Rajghat memorial site.

His visit comes a week after Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladmir Putin, whom India has so far avoided criticizing over the war in Ukraine. Instead, New Delhi has stressed the need for diplomacy and dialogue on ending the war and has expressed its willingness to contribute to peace efforts.

This came after Modi spoke to Putin to congratulate him on his re-election as president. According to a statement from India's Foreign Ministry, the two leaders agreed to further strengthen their relationship, while Modi reiterated that dialogue and peace was the best way forward for the Russia-Ukraine war.

0227 GMT –– G7 foreign ministers to discuss Ukraine, Middle East, terrorism next month

Italy's deputy prime minister and foreign minister said Wednesday that the main agenda items for the G7 foreign ministers meeting which his country will host on the island of Capri next month will be the Middle East, Ukraine and terrorism.

Antonio Tajani held a press conference in Naples prefecture ahead of the meeting on April 17-19 under Italy's presidency.

The G7 countries consist of the US, Canada, France, Italy, Japan, the UK and Germany.

Tajani emphasized that the meeting will particularly focus on delivering a peace message for Gaza.

2248 GMT — F16s won't change anything in Ukraine battlefield: Putin

If Western countries supply Ukraine with F16 fighters, the aircraft will not alter the situation on the battlefield, Russian news agencies have quoted President Vladimir Putin as telling military pilots.

But the fighters, he was quoted as saying, can carry nuclear weapons and Moscow would have to take account of that in its military planning.

"If they supply F-16s, and they are talking about this and are apparently training pilots, this will not change the situation on the battlefield," Tass quoted Putin as telling pilots at a gathering northwest of Moscow.

"And we will destroy the aircraft just as we destroy today's tanks, armoured vehicles and other equipment, including multiple rocket launchers."

Putin's remarks to pilots at a meeting north of Moscow followed comments earlier in the day by Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba that the aircraft should arrive in Ukraine in the coming months.

2214 GMT — Ukraine calls for air defence support after Russian strikes

Russian attacks on eastern and southern Ukraine killed at least three people, local officials said, as Kiev called for more Patriot air defence systems to battle a surge in missile strikes.

In Ukraine's second-largest city, Kharkiv, which has been reeling from power outages due to the strikes, aerial bombing and shelling killed at least one person and injured 19 others, including four children, officials said.

A 12-year-old boy was killed in a strike in the village of Borova in the Kharkiv region, according to prosecutors.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged Ukraine's allies to speed up deliveries of warplanes and air defence systems following the strike. "Bolstering Ukraine's air defence and expediting the delivery of F-16s to Ukraine are vital tasks," he said in a statement on social media.

"There are no rational explanations for why Patriots, which are plentiful around the world, are still not covering the skies of Kharkiv and other cities," he added.

For our live updates from Wednesday, March 27, click here.