Live blog: Russia to respond to drone attack with concrete actions: Lavrov

Friday, May 5, 2023

Russia will respond with "concrete actions" to an attempted drone attack on the Kremlin, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said.

Talking to reporters following a meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in Goa, India, which was broadcast live by several broadcasters, Lavrov called the recent drone attack, which the Kremlin claimed was carried out by Ukraine, a "hostile act".

"It is absolutely clear that without the knowledge of the 'masters', the Kiev terrorists could not have committed it," he claimed, threatening that Moscow "will respond not by talking about whether it is 'casus belli' (an act or an event that either provokes or is used to justify war) or not. We will respond with concrete actions."

Follow more updates 👇

1509 GMT — Moscow deploying Wagner fighters to Bakhmut from elsewhere: Kiev

Ukraine said Russia was bringing Wagner mercenary fighters from other parts of the front line to fight in Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine, and that Moscow wanted to capture the city in time for Victory Day celebrations next week.

Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin said his mercenary forces would pull out of Bakhmut on May 10 because of heavy losses and inadequate ammunition supplies.

That is one day after Russia celebrates the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two, an important day in the Russian calendar.

1431 GMT — Russia warns about risks of Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant flooding

Russia has issued a warning regarding potential risks in the event of flooding at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine.

According to Renat Karchaa, deputy head of Rosenergoatom, a management company for all nuclear power plants in Russia, a record-high water level in the Kakhovsky reservoir could lead to a dam break and partial flooding of the station, creating risks for nuclear security.

In a separate statement, Vladimir Rogov, the head of the "We are together" movement, claimed that the uncontrolled discharge of water by the Ukrainian side is one of the reasons behind the rise in water levels.

1340 GMT — Russia orders partial evacuation near Ukraine front line

Russia has ordered the evacuation of families with children and of the elderly from Russian-held frontline areas in southern Ukraine because of an increase in shelling from the Ukrainian side.

"In the past few days, the enemy has stepped up shelling of settlements close to the front line," the Russian-installed head of the Zaporizhzhia region, Yevgeny Balitsky, wrote on social media.

"I have therefore made a decision to evacuate first of all children and parents, elderly people, disabled people and hospital patients," he wrote.

1146 GMT — Kremlin avoids commenting on Wagner's threat to withdraw

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has avoided commenting on the statement by the head of the private military company Wagner threatening to withdraw from the battlefield in the Ukrainian town of Bakhmut, saying the matter is related to a "special military operation" of Russia.

"We have seen it in the media, but I cannot comment on it because it concerns the course of a special military operation," Peskov told reporters at a press briefing in Moscow.

When asked if Russian President Vladimir Putin plans to discuss the recent drone attack on the Kremlin during a meeting with the Russian Security Council on Friday, the spokesman said "one way or another" it will be on the agenda.

0929 GMT — 'Kiev does everything so that no one wants to deal with it': Lavrov

Commenting on a skirmish between delegations of Moscow and Kiev in a meeting in Ankara, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said Ukraine "does everything so that no one wants to deal with it".

"Zelenskyy and his team are doing everything both in the media space and in their practical steps so that any self-respecting country does not want to communicate with them," Lavrov said.

"This is indeed the case, and we understand that awareness of this is maturing," he added.

0845 GMT — Drone attack on Kremlin impossible without US knowledge: Lavrov

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said that the alleged drone attack on the Kremlin could not have happened without Washington's awareness and warned Russia would respond with "concrete actions".

"It's clear that without the knowledge of their minders, the terrorists from Kiev could not have carried out (the attack)," Lavrov said during a visit to India, referring to Washington.

On Wednesday Russia said it had thwarted a drone attack on the Kremlin, in what it said was a Ukrainian assassination attempt on Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"We will respond with concrete actions," Lavrov said.

0655 GMT — New drone attack causes fire at Russia's Ilsky oil refinery

A drone attack on the Ilsky oil refinery in southern Russia, the second in as many days, has caused a fire, TASS news agency reported, citing emergency services.

Russia's RIA Novosti news agency also reported that there were no casualties following the incident, while the fire had been put out.

It was not immediately clear, who was behind the incident. Ukrainian officials do not usually claim responsibility for such attacks inside Russia's territory.

0237 GMT — Turkish, Russian, Ukrainian, UN technical personnel to discuss grain deal

Technical personnel from Türkiye, Russia, Ukraine and the UN will meet in Istanbul to discuss the Black Sea grain deal, which is set to expire later this month, said the Turkish defence minister.

"Before the meeting of the deputy (defence) ministers, it became necessary to hold a meeting with technical personnel from the UN, Türkiye, Russia and Ukraine," Hulusi Akar said.

"This meeting will be held tomorrow. After this meeting, there will be a meeting of the deputy ministers next week," Akar said in the province of Kayseri in central Türkiye.

2345 GMT — China will promote peace talks on Ukraine crisis: FM Qin Gang

China's Foreign Minister Qin Gang has said Beijing will persist in promoting peace talks for the Ukraine crisis and is "willing to maintain communication and coordination with Russia to make tangible contributions to the political settlement of the crisis", a Foreign Ministry statement said.

The statement referred to Qin's meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Foreign Ministers' meeting in Goa, India.

2200 GMT — Zelenskyy vows to defeat 'Russian evil' in Netherlands tour

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has visited the Dutch Royal Air Force base in the Netherlands and thanked both Prime Minister Mark Rutte and Minister of Defence Kajsa Ollongren for their support for Kiev.

"Here and now, we see what help is and what life protection is. This is the most honourable mission — to do everything for life to prevail," Zelenskyy said.

"All this brings victory closer, our common victory. We will defeat the Russian evil and protect our freedom, our common European way of life."

Ollongren emphasised that the Netherlands will continue to help the Ukrainian people in their efforts to repel Russian aggression.

"We will continue to make a significant contribution to strengthening Ukraine's military capabilities. Now and in the future, for as long as it takes," she said.

2054 GMT — Ukraine downs its own drone in Kiev

The Ukrainian air force has said it downed its own drone that lost control over Kiev, after a series of explosions shook the capital.

At the time of the explosions, the AFP news agency journalists saw a drone that air defence was attempting to shoot down, while the Kiev city military administration said "air defence is at work."

Journalists saw a cloud of black smoke in the air, just as the Kiev city military administration announced the air raid alert was over.

Kiev mayor Vitali Klitschko said, "firefighters put out a fire on the ground floor of a four-storey shopping centre" in the Solomyansky district.

The fire spread over 50 square metres and caused some superficial damage, but no victims were reported, Klitschko said.

For our live updates from Thursday (May 4), click here