Live blog: Russian shelling kills three, wounds infant in Ukraine — Kiev

Monday, November 13, 2023

1606 GMT — Russian shelling has damaged a hospital and homes in the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson, killing three people and injuring at least 12, including a 2-month-old infant, local governor Oleksandr Prokudin said.

Two people were killed and 10 more injured in an afternoon combined attack in the central part of the city, Prokudin said.

"Eight vehicles, including one ambulance, an administrative building, a hospital, and at least fifteen houses were destroyed or damaged," he added.

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1732 GMT — EU plan for new Russia sanctions to go to members this week - Borrell

European Union officials are finalising the "last details" of a proposed 12th package of sanctions on Russia that will include a diamond ban, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said.

Borrell said the European Commission, the EU executive, could approve the proposed package on Wednesday. It would then go to the Council of the EU, comprising the bloc's 27 member countries, for discussion and approval.

"This twelfth package will include more listings, new export bans, among them diamonds, actions to tighten the oil price cap in order to decrease the revenue Russia is getting," the EU's top diplomat Josep Borrell said.

1403 GMT — Hungary keeps block on disbursing military aid tranche to Ukraine: Minister

Hungary will block the disbursement of the next tranche of military aid to Ukraine under the European Peace Facility (EPF) until Kiev provides "guarantees" that OTP bank or other Hungarian firms will not be blacklisted as "international sponsors of war", the country's foreign minister said.

The EPF, created in 2021, is meant to finance actions that prevent conflicts, build peace and strengthen international security.

Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said in a video clip from Brussels that Hungary had faced "pressure" at a meeting to support the payout of 500 million euros, but he said Budapest could not give its backing without such guarantees.

0931 GMT — EU's $21B plan for Ukraine military aid hits resistance

A European Union plan to spend up to $21.4 billion on military aid for Ukraine is meeting resistance from EU countries and may not survive in its current form, diplomats say.

Josep Borrell, the EU's foreign policy chief, proposed in July that the bloc create a fund with up to 5 billion euros a year over four years as part of broader Western security commitments to bolster Ukraine as it fights Russia's invasion.

But as EU defence ministers prepare to discuss the plan in Brussels on Tuesday, diplomats say multiple countries - including EU heavyweight Germany - have voiced reservations about committing such large sums years in advance.

0915 GMT — Kremlin: More signs appear of Ukrainian involvement in Nord Stream blasts

The Kremlin said that more signs were appearing of Ukrainian involvement in the blasts that ruptured Russia's Nord Stream gas pipelines last year, following a Washington Post report that a Ukrainian military officer coordinated the attack.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov also told reporters in a call that it was "alarming" that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who has denied that Kiev was involved in the blasts on the Baltic seabed, was reported to have been unaware of the operation.

0915 GMT — Kremlin: No comment on news agencies' withdrawal of troop regrouping reports

The Kremlin declined to comment on state news agencies' withdrawal of reports on the regrouping of Russian troops in southern Ukraine.

Two Russian state news agencies published alerts on Monday saying Moscow was moving troops to "more favourable positions" east of the Dnipro River, only to withdraw the information minutes later.

0806 GMT — Russian state media withdraw alerts on troop 'regrouping' in southern Ukraine

Two Russian state news agencies published alerts saying Moscow was moving troops to "more favourable positions" east of the Dnipro River in Ukraine, only to withdraw the information minutes later.

The highly unusual incident suggested disarray in Russia's military establishment and state media over how to report the battlefield situation in southern Ukraine.

The RBC news outlet quoted the defence ministry as saying: "The sending of a false report about the 'regrouping' of troops in the Dnepr (Dnipro) region, allegedly on behalf of the press centre of the Russian Ministry of Defence, is a provocation."

The Kremlin declined to comment, saying it was a matter for the military.

0615 GMT — Poland's tank deployment near Belarus escalates tensions — Russia

The Kremlin said Poland deploying tanks closer to its border with Belarus would escalate tensions, but that Moscow's allies in Minsk would do everything needed to ensure security.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was responding to a question about reported plans by Poland to deploy a new tank battalion near the Belarusian border.

For our live updates from Sunday (November 12), click here.