Live blog: Ukraine vows 'fair response' to Russia over deadly Odessa attack

Friday, March 15, 2024

1651 GMT — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said that Russia would receive a "fair response" from Kiev's forces for a twin ballistic missile strike on the Black Sea port city of Odessa that killed at least 20 people.

"Our Defence Forces will certainly do everything to ensure that the Russian killers feel our fair response," he said in an evening address posted on the Telegram messaging app.

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1741 GMT — Russian strikes kill 20, including rescuers, in 'vile' Odessa attack

Russian missiles pounded Ukraine's Black Sea port city of Odessa, killing more than a dozen people including rescue workers in an attack President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described as "vile".

Local authorities said Russian aerial bombardments struck residential buildings, ambulances and a gas pipeline, leaving at least 20 people dead and wounding another 73 people, including rescuers.


Maria Slyzovska, who witnessed the attack, said the first strike rocked her mother's home leaving "everything broken" before the second missile hit. "There were a lot of people there. There was blood and ambulances. We all live in the realities of this Russian roulette," she told AFP.

1707 GMT — Ukrainian President decries 'scum' responsible for Odessa attack

Ukrainian President Zelenskyy condemned a Russian strike on the southern port city of Odessa.

"Rescue and relief operations are ongoing in Odesa after the Russian missile attack. A very vile strike by these scum," Zelenskyy said in a statement online. "Two missiles, and the second one when rescuers and doctors arrived at the site of the strike."

1704 GMT — UN chief condemns Russia for holding a vote in occupied Ukraine

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres slammed Russia for holding presidential elections in parts of Ukraine held by Moscow's invading forces.

Guterres "condemns the efforts of the Russian Federation to hold its presidential elections in areas of Ukraine occupied by the Russian Federation," spokesman Stephane Dujarric said, adding that the "attempted illegal annexation" of those regions has "no validity" under international law.

1538 GMT — Allies to establish a coalition for long-range weapons support in Ukraine: Scholz

Ukraine's Western allies will work together to supply Kiev with long-range weapons, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said.

"We are establishing a new capability coalition for long-range rocket artillery," Scholz told journalists, speaking alongside French President Emmanuel Macron and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.

1528 GMT — Poland, France and Germany are united on security: Tusk

Poland, Germany and France speak with one voice on security issues and there is no division between them, the Polish prime minister said during a visit to Berlin.

"Today's meeting... clearly shows that some malicious rumours that there are differences between European capitals are very exaggerated," Donald Tusk said after a meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron. "Today we spoke with one voice, above all, about the security of our continent."

0818 GMT — German, French and Polish leaders meet to discuss support for Ukraine

The leaders of Germany, France and Poland plan to meet in Berlin to discuss support for Ukraine, seeking to send a signal of unity and solidarity as Kiev grapples with a shortage of military resources and Russia votes in an election all but certain to extend President Vladimir Putin's reign.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is welcoming French President Emmanuel Macron and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk for a summit of the so-called “Weimar Triangle” of the three major European powers, a format that they are trying to revitalise after relations were strained under Poland's previous nationalist government.

Kiev’s forces are hoping for more military supplies from Ukraine’s Western partners, but in the meantime, they are struggling against a bigger and better-provisioned Russian army that is pressing hard at some front-line points in Ukraine.

The European Union's plans to produce 1 million artillery rounds for Ukraine have fallen well short, while aid for Ukraine is being held up in the United States by political differences.

0842 GMT — Russia says foiled all border incursions since Tuesday

Moscow said it had repelled all attempts by the Ukrainian offensive to capture territory in Russian border regions, following an increase in attacks this week ahead of Russia's presidential elections.

"Over the past three days, from March 12 to 14, troops of the Russian Armed Forces ... foiled all attempts by Ukrainian militants to break through into the territory of the Belgorod and Kursk regions of the Russian Federation," the defence ministry has said.

Pro-Ukrainian fighters — made up of Russians who oppose the Kremlin and have taken up arms for Kiev — launched a wave of guerilla-style attacks on border areas this week, claiming to have seized the village of Tyotkino in the Kursk region in Russia.

0745 GMT — 'Crazy and paranoid': Russia on Macron's NATO troops deployment

Sergei Naryshkin, chief of Russia's foreign intelligence service, said on Friday that French President Emmanuel Macron's remarks about the possibility of sending soldiers from NATO countries to Ukraine were "crazy and paranoid dreams".

0733 GMT — Russian drone strike kills two in central Ukraine: Kiev

Ukraine said two people were killed in an overnight Russian drone strike on the central region of Vinnytsia.

"Russian troops attacked the Vinnytsia region with drones, there are dead and wounded ... As a result of the enemy attack, a 52-year-old man was killed and his 53-year-old wife died in hospital," the national police said in a statement on Telegram.

0546 GMT — Ukrainian shelling kills three children in Donetsk — Russia

A Moscow-affiliated official has said Ukrainian shelling of the Russian-held city of Donetsk killed three children.

Russia claims to have annexed the Donetsk region, even though it does not have full control of it and the frontline regional capital comes under frequent shelling attacks.

"As a result of barbaric overnight shelling ... a direct hit was recorded on a house in the residential sector," Alexey Kulemzin, the Russian-appointed mayor of Donetsk, said in a post on Telegram.

"Three children died. A girl born in 2007, a girl born in 2021, and a boy born in 2014," he added.

0546 GMT — Russia downs Ukraine drones drifting over Belgorod

Russian air defence systems shot down seven Vampire missiles launched by Ukraine at Russia's Belgorod region, the Russian Defence Ministry has said in a statement.

0147 GMT — Russia blames Poland for being 'leader' of mercenaries in Ukraine

Russia’s Defence Ministry has said that Poland is “the undisputed leader" in terms of the number of mercenaries fighting on Ukraine's side.

The ministry said in a statement that since Russia launched its military campaign in Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, the total number of foreign mercenaries who have arrived in Ukraine has reached 13,387.

"The Russian Ministry of Defence continues to track and personally record all foreign mercenaries who have arrived in Ukraine to participate in combat action," the statement said.

The ministry noted that 2,960 mercenaries arrived in Ukraine from Poland. The US was second with 1,113 "soldiers of fortune" and Georgia was third with 1,042.

A lot of mercenaries also come from Canada, the UK, Romania, France and Germany, the ministry said.

2200 GMT — Two Russian border regions now active combat zones: Ukraine

A senior Ukrainian intelligence official has claimed that armed groups purporting to be made up of Russians opposed to the Kremlin were pressing an incursion into Russian territory and had turned two border regions into "active combat zones".

Three Ukraine-based groups issued statements saying they were pursuing armed operations in Belgorod and Kursk regions and asking residents to evacuate towns and villages for their own safety.

"Kursk and Belgorod regions are now areas of active combat actions. This is what we confirm," Andriy Yusov, a spokesperson for the GUR intelligence directorate, told national television.

"And as stated by the volunteers and rebels, we are talking about Russian citizens who, having no other options, are defending their civil rights with arms against the Putin regime."

2151 GMT — Russia 'will not stop' at Ukraine if it wins war: Macron

French President Emmanuel Macron said that Russia would not halt its territorial ambitions if it wins its war in Ukraine, posing a threat to the neighbouring countries of Moldova, Romania and Poland.

"Russia has become a power that wants to expand, and it's clear that it will not stop there," Macron posted on X after an interview on French TV.

"If we abandon Ukraine, if we let Ukraine lose this war, Russia will surely threaten Moldova, Romania, Poland."

For our live updates from Thursday, March 14, click here.