Live blog: US mulls providing long-range missiles to Ukraine

1945 GMT — The Biden administration is close to approving the shipment of longer-range missiles packed with cluster bombs to Ukraine, giving Kiev the ability to cause significant damage deeper within Russian-controlled territory, according to four US officials.

After seeing the success of cluster munitions delivered in 155 mm artillery rounds in recent months, the US is considering shipping either or both Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) that can fly up to 190 miles (306 km), or Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS) missiles with a 45-mile range packed with cluster bombs, three US officials said.

If approved, either option would be available for rapid shipment to Kiev.

Ukraine is currently equipped with 155 mm artillery with a maximum range of 18 miles carrying up to 48 bomblets. The ATACMS under consideration would propel around 300 or more bomblets.

The GMLRS rocket system, a version of which Ukraine has had in its arsenal for months, would be able to disperse up to 404 cluster munitions.

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22:46 GMT — Ukraine's Zelenskyy, allies urge focus on conflict

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his allies urged Ukrainians to keep their focus squarely on the war effort 18 months into Russia's attacks, an indication that authorities in Kiev were steeling for a long campaign.

Zelenskyy has long called for greater focus on the war effort and pledged to intensify a crackdown on corruption as part of Ukraine's bid to join the European Union.

"Although today is the 565th day of this war, each and every one must be focused on the defence of the state, as in the early days," Zelenskyy said in his nightly video message.

"Russia does not hope to win. The enemy hopes only that we will not withstand it all. Ukraine must stand firm. Everything that strengthens us is a priority, the sole priority. There can be no weakening. We will allow no one to weaken Ukraine."

1800 GMT — Germany not to follow US on Ukraine missile supply

German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius has said that Berlin will not necessarily supply Kiev with Taurus cruise missiles simply because the US may decide to send ATACMS long-range missiles to the war-torn country.

"There is no automatism in this war," Pistorius told reporters on the sidelines of a visit to Cologne, adding that Germany was not yet in a position to decide on whether or not to provide Ukraine with Taurus missiles.

Kiev has been pushing Berlin to supply it with the missiles, which have a range of more than 500 km (311 miles) and are launched by fighter jets.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has repeatedly made clear that Berlin will only act in concert with Washington on arms deliveries.

1358 GMT — Ukraine claims to recapture Black Sea oil platforms near occupied Crimea

The Ukrainian military has said that it recaptured strategic gas and oil drilling platforms from Russia in the Black Sea and claimed gains in occupied areas near Bakhmut, a city in eastern Ukraine left in ruins after the war's longest and deadliest fighting.

The recapture of the platforms provides an energy source and takes back an asset that Russia seized in 2015 and used to launch helicopters, Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense said.

"Russia has been deprived of the ability to fully control the waters of the Black Sea, and this makes Ukraine many steps closer to regaining Crimea," the Main Intelligence Directorate said.

1239 GMT — UK's Sunak says Russia targeted civilian cargo ship in Black Sea

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has said that the Russian military had targeted a civilian cargo ship in the Black Sea with "multiple missiles" on Aug. 24, citing declassified intelligence.

"Thanks to declassified intelligence, we know the Russian military targeted a civilian cargo ship in the Black Sea with multiple missiles on the 24th of August," Sunak told parliament.

1043 GMT — Germany 'wasting time' on missile decision: Ukraine

Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has urged Berlin to supply Ukraine with long-range Taurus missiles during a surprise visit to Kiev by German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock.

She promised unwavering support and praised Ukraine's progress towards EU membership, but Kuleba said Germany should speed up a decision on missile deliveries.

"I don't understand why we're wasting time," Kuleba told a press conference with Baerbock.

"And we could have achieved more, and saved more lives of Ukrainian soldiers and civilians if we already had Taurus," he added.

"We respect your procedures but from everything we know about Taurus there is not a single objective argument against not doing it," Kuleba said, referring to Berlin's decision on delivering the weapons.

Germany, a key political and military backer of Ukraine, has handed over Leopard 2 tanks and air defence systems.

On Tauras, Baerbock said: "As with previous deliveries we have made, all these issues must be resolved."

1028 GMT — IAEA chief voices concern over Ukraine nuclear power plant shelling

The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi has said he was "very concerned" over the latest explosions at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine.

"I am very concerned about that. The artillery activity is almost constant at the moment. As we have been pointing out in our report, we are following very closely the situation," Grossi said at a press briefing in Vienna on the sidelines of the IAEA Board of Governors meeting.

"There are a number of technical issues that are starting to arise like the long-term shutdown of the plant. Many issues that have nuclear safety implications as well," he added.

He expressed hopes for "high-level" talks with the Russian and Ukrainian sides on the issue in the near future.

0957 GMT — Moscow, Pyongyang confirm North Korean leader will visit Russia

Moscow and Pyongyang have confirmed that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un will be visiting Russia to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The confirmation came days after the White House claimed that secretive talks between Russia and North Korea to supply the Kremlin with munitions for its war effort in Ukraine are "actively advancing."

Last week, The New York Times reported that Kim would travel by rail to the Russian Far East city of Vladivostok to discuss a possible weapons deal.


Earlier Monday, an unnamed South Korean official told Seoul-based Yonhap News Agency that a special North Korean train “believed to be carrying” Kim has departed for Russia.

Heightened security measures were put in place around a train station in Vladivostok on Monday after the South Korean official claimed that Kim was "believed" to be travelling to Russia, according to the news agency.

Kim is believed to be attending the 2023 Eastern Economic Forum, which is currently taking place in Vladivostok and will last through Wednesday.

The North Korean leader last visited Russia in 2019.

0945 GMT — Russia could launch a big mobilisation campaign soon - Ukraine

Ukraine's military has said Russia could launch a big mobilisation campaign soon to try to recruit hundreds of thousands of soldiers from inside Russia and occupied Ukraine.

The Ukrainian General Staff provided no evidence in a statement to support its assertion. Russian officials have said there are no current plans for a new wave of mobilisation and that Moscow is focused on recruiting professional soldiers.

"A mass forced mobilisation of the population is expected soon in the Russian Federation and temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine due to the occupiers' catastrophic losses," the General Staff said in a battlefield roundup.

The mobilisation campaign could target between 400,000 and 700,000 recruits, it said, citing different estimates.

It said the number of Russians recruited in Moscow and St. Petersburg would remain "minimal" while Russians would be drawn heavily from the regions outside the two big Russian cities.

0856 GMT — Russia’s withdrawal from grain deal, attacks on ports push commodity prices sky-high: UN rights chief

Russia's withdrawal from the grain deal, as well as its forces' attacks on port facilities and silos, have caused a sharp increase in commodity prices in developing countries, the UN rights chief.

"The Russian Federation's withdrawal from the Black Sea Grain Initiative in July, and attacks on grain facilities in Odesa and elsewhere, have again forced prices sky-high in many developing countries – taking the right to food far out of reach for many people," Volker Turk said.

"The world is betraying our promise to end hunger by 2030," he said, warning that the world has returned to hunger levels not seen since 2005, with their toll of stunted children and painfully abbreviated lives.

Citing a UN Food and Agriculture Organization's latest report, he said 600 million people will be chronically undernourished by the end of this decade due to "climate change, the consequences of the pandemic, and Russia’s war on Ukraine."

0856 GMT — Germany to provide Ukraine additional $21.44M in aid

Germany will provide an additional $21.44M in humanitarian aid to Ukraine, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has said during a visit to Kiev.

The additional aid will bring Germany's total to 380M euros this year, the minister said.

Baerbock also warned that Russia would again target Ukraine's energy facilities this autumn and winter: "Russia's perfidious goal is to starve the people again this winter and to let them freeze to death."

0845 GMT — Ukraine needs more air defences to protect ports

Ukraine's foreign minister said he has discussed air defence supplies with his German counterpart in Kiev and that Ukraine needed more systems to protect its ports from Russian air strikes to ensure grain could be exported.

Dmytro Kuleba also urged Berlin to send Taurus missiles to Ukraine as soon as possible. "You will do it anyway, it's just a matter of time, and I don't understand why we are wasting time," he said in response to a question at a news conference in Kiev.

0828 GMT — EU warns Russia after 'illegal' vote in occupied Ukraine

The European Union has warned Russia that there would be "consequences" for those involved in staging elections in Ukrainian regions seized by the Kremlin.

Moscow claimed on Sunday that the United Russia party, which staunchly backs President Vladimir Putin, had won local ballots in areas occupied by Russia.

"We strongly reject this further futile attempt by Russia to legitimise or normalise its illegal military control and attempted annexation of parts of Ukrainian territories," the 27-nation bloc said.

"Russia's political leadership and those involved in organising them will face the consequences of these illegal actions."

Voting also took place in Crimea, annexed by Russia in 2014.

The elections have been dismissed by Ukraine and its allies as a sham, and Kiev's forces are fighting to claw back the territory seized.

The ballots were part of local polls held in Russia, which came ahead of presidential elections next year expected to prolong Putin's rule until at least 2030.

His opponents are in exile or jail and Moscow has criminalised criticism of its conflict in Ukraine and detained thousands for speaking out.

0736 GMT — Ukraine collects Russian bodies on 'road of death' in retaken southeast

Wearing face masks, the Ukrainian soldiers poked sticks into the undergrowth along a deserted country road, searching for the bodies of Russian soldiers they hoped to exchange for their own comrades, living and dead.

They called it the "road of death" after the number of Russian soldiers killed there when Ukrainian forces retook the southeastern village of Blahodatne at the start of their counteroffensive in June.

Three months on, the frontline had shifted south and it was finally safe enough for the three-man team of Ukrainian soldiers to start their operation in this liberated part of Donetsk region.

"Here's what we do. We gather up their bodies. We arrange exchanges for our prisoners who are alive. And for bodies. Our boys," Vasylii, a 53-year-old volunteer, said. "You know, so that a mother can go and visit the cemetery."

Russia and Ukraine have conducted regular exchanges of prisoners of war, as well as the bodies of dead soldiers, since the Kremlin launched its full-scale military offensive in February 2022.

0620 GMT — Ukraine has reported its troops had regained more territory

Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar said Kiev's forces had retaken close to 2 square kilometres of land in the past week around the shattered eastern city of Bakhmut, which was captured by Russian troops in May.

Maliar told Ukrainian television that Ukrainian forces captured part of the village of Opytne south of the city of Avdiivka and had "partial success" near the village of Novomaiorske in the eastern Donetsk region.

She also reported "some success" near Andriivka and Klishchiivka, a village on heights south of Bakhmut seen as critical to securing control of the city.

0609 GMT — German foreign minister in a surprise visit to Kiev

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has made a surprise visit to Kiev, promising support for Ukraine and praising its progress on the path towards EU membership.

"With enormous courage and determination, Ukraine is also defending the freedom of all of us," Baerbock said in a statement released by the foreign ministry upon her arrival.

0620 GMT — Ukraine has reported its troops had regained more territory on the eastern and southern fronts in its military counteroffensive against Russian forces.

Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar said Kiev's forces had retaken close to 2 square kilometres of land in the past week around the shattered eastern city of Bakhmut, which was captured by Russian troops in May.

Maliar told Ukrainian television that Ukrainian forces captured part of the village of Opytne south of the city of Avdiivka and had "partial success" near the village of Novomaiorske in the eastern Donetsk region.

She also reported "some success" near Andriivka and Klishchiivka, a village on heights south of Bakhmut seen as critical to securing control of the city.

0532 GMT — Brazil's Lula backtracks on Putin's safety at Rio G20

Brazil's leader has withdrawn his personal assurance that Russia President Vladimir Putin would not be arrested if he attends next year's G20 summit in Rio de Janeiro, saying it would be up to the judiciary to decide.

Putin missed this year's gathering in the Indian capital New Delhi, avoiding possible political opprobrium and any risk of criminal detention under an International Criminal Court (ICC) warrant.

Brazil is an ICC member but President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva raised eyebrows at the weekend when he told Indian news network Firstpost: "If I'm the president of Brazil and if he comes to Brazil, there's no way that he will be arrested."

He changed tack on Monday, telling reporters: "I don't know if Brazil's justice will detain him. It's the judiciary that decides, it's not the government."

For our live updates from Sunday (September 10), click here.