Germany will provide training and maintenance to Ukrainian military, foreign minister says
From CNN’s Benjamin Brown in London
Germany will provide training and maintenance to the Ukrainian military, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said in Latvia Wednesday.
Baerbock said that while “other partners are now providing artillery,” Germany would “help with training and maintenance.” Baerbock said that Germany could not provide further weaponry as the country had no weapons it could “deliver quickly and without delay right now.”
Speaking at a news conference in Riga with her Latvian counterpart Edgars Rinkevics, Baerbock added that Germany had chosen not to make public all the weapons it had previously sent to Ukraine.
“We have supplied anti-tank weapons, Stingers [air defense systems] and many other weapons that we haven’t spoken about in public,” the foreign minister said.
9:38 a.m. ET, April 20, 2022
More than 5 million people have fled Ukraine, says UN refugee agency
From CNN‘s Benjamin Brown
More than five million people have fled Ukraine since the start of the Russian invasion in late February, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said on Wednesday.
In addition to the 5,012,708 registered refugees, at least seven million people have been internally displaced in Ukraine having been forced to flee their homes, according to the latest International Organization for Migration (IOM) report from early April.
The majority of those fleeing Ukraine have traveled to neighboring Poland, while others have arrived in Hungary, Slovakia, Romania, Moldova, Russia and Belarus.
According to the UNHCR, 90% are women or children.
7:28 a.m. ET, April 20, 2022
Russian billionaire slams war in Ukraine, urges West to "stop this massacre"
From CNN's Clare Sebastian and Chris Liakos
Oleg Tinkoff speaks at a conference during the Hong Kong Fintech Week event in Hong Kong, China, on October 31, 2018. (Anthony Kwan/Bloomberg/Getty Images)
Russian billionaire Oleg Tinkov has blasted Russia's war in Ukraine, calling on the West to do more to "stop this massacre."
Tinkov, who was among the 65 individuals and entities sanctioned by the UK on March 24 for “supporting Russia's illegal invasion," made the comments in an Instagram post Tuesday.
"I don't see a single beneficiary of this insane war. Generals, waking up with a hangover have realized they have a s*** army. And how could the army be good when everything else in the country is mired in nepotism, groveling and servility," Tinkov said.
The Russian tycoon, who founded Tinkoff Bank in 2006, wrote that "90% of Russians" opposed the conflict.
"The Kremlin's civil servants are in shock that not only they but also their children won't go to the Mediterranean this summer. Businessmen are trying to save what's left of their property. Of course there are idiots that write the letter Z but there are about 10% idiots in all countries. 90% of Russians are AGAINST this war," he said.
The letter "Z" became a sign of popular support for the war among some Russians after Russian military vehicles were seen marked with the symbol just ahead of the invasion.
Switching to English at the end of his post, Tinkov called on the “collective” West to “give Mr. Putin a clear exit to save his face and stop this massacre.”
“Please be more rational and humanitarian,” he added.
Other Russian business leaders call for peace: In March, Russian oil firm Lukoil called for an end to the conflict in Ukraine.
Oligarchs Mikhail Fridman and Oleg Deripaska also spoke out against the conflict in late February following Russia’s invasion.
Fridman, who was born in western Ukraine, said in a letter to staff that he wanted the “bloodshed to end." Deripaska wrote in a post on Telegram: “Peace is very important! Negotiations need to start as soon as possible!”
"Everything has been strange to us," says couple who joined Ukraine's Territorial Defense Force
Russia’s invasion has turned the life of so many Ukrainians upside down -- including that of Oleksandr Zhugan and Antonina Romanova.
The couple previously worked in theater, but when Russia launched its invasion nearly two months ago, they decided to join Ukraine’s Territorial Defense Force.
“Frankly speaking everything has been strange to us,” Zhugan told CNN's "Early Start" from the suburbs of Kyiv, where he and Romanova are currently stationed.
“The most unusual thing was holding a gun for the first time in my life. It was the same for Antonina too. We have compulsory military service, but Antonina and I didn’t go to the army due to health conditions and it was the first time here when we took guns and weapons in our hands.
“We were taught to shoot, how to disassemble it and clean it. We had some tactical training as well.”
Asked about handling weaponry for the first time, Zhugan added: “It's much more comfortable than it was at the beginning. We got the guns on the 25th [of February] and it’s been 56 days of war now. It’s much more comfortable now.”
Joining the Territorial Defense Force hasn’t been the only major change in their lives -- the couple also got engaged after Romanova proposed at a checkpoint during the war.
Same-sex marriage is not currently allowed in Ukraine, but Zhugan says they hope to get married at some point in the future.
Watch the full interview here:
9:32 a.m. ET, April 20, 2022
"History will not forget the war crimes" committed in Ukraine, says European Council President
From CNN's Sharon Braithwaite
European Council President Charles Michel walks near damaged buildings in Borodyanka, Ukraine, on April 20. (Dario Pignatelli/European Union/Reuters)
"History will not forget the war crimes" committed in Ukraine, President of the European Council Charles Michel said Wednesday.
Pictures posted to Michel's social media account showed the former Belgian Prime Minister visiting Ukraine, with one titled "In Borodyanka."
"Like Bucha and too many other towns in Ukraine. History will not forget the war crimes that have been committed here. There can be no peace without justice," Michel tweeted.
Russia has denied allegations of war crimes and claims its forces do not target civilians, but CNN journalists on the ground in Ukraine have seen firsthand evidence of atrocities at multiple locations across the country.
Earlier on Wednesday, Michel shared a picture of his arrival at a train station in the capital of Kyiv. "In the heart of a free and democratic Europe," he said.
He added that it was “heart-breaking to see that something like this can still happen in Europe" and that "that there can be no impunity for war crimes."
Russian forces attempting advance toward southeastern Zaporizhzhia, say regional officials
From CNN's Nathan Hodge in Lviv
A Ukrainian tank on the road between Pokrovske and Zaporizhzhia on April 12 in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine. (Wojciech Grzedzinski/The Washington Post/Getty Images)
Russian forces are attempting an advance toward the southeastern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia, said the city's Regional Council on Wednesday, as fighting escalates across the east of the country.
"The situation at the frontline suggests that the enemy is trying to advance in direction of Zaporizhzhia, but suffers losses and focuses its main efforts on maintaining the occupied frontiers," the council said in a statement.
"Russian troops continue to shell the positions of our troops and conduct offensive operations in the direction of Pokrovske - Huliaipole," the council added.
Zaporizhzhia lies north of the besieged city of Mariupol, and is set to form part of an evacuation corridor reportedly agreed on with Russia for Wednesday.
Women, children, and the elderly would be evacuated from the southeastern port city toward Manhush, onward through the Russian held-city of Berdyansk and then toward Zaporizhzhia, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said.
Russian forces occupy the southern part of the region, and according to the council they have established a base in the city of Melitopol, near residential areas.
Sham referendums: The council claims Russian forces are planning to hold sham referendums in occupied territory, similar to those carried out in the separatist-held parts of Donetsk and Luhansk regions in 2014.
Earlier this week, Russian-backed separatist leader Denis Pushilin said that the separatist Donetsk People's Republic would support a Russian-occupied district in the Zaporizhzhia region.
Pushilin alleged that Zaporizhzhia had made "an appeal" to secede from Ukraine and join the breakaway republic.
Ukrainian officials have said Russian forces appear to be preparing for a similar sham referendum in southern Kherson region.
5:39 a.m. ET, April 20, 2022
Conflict in Ukraine comparable to "darkest pages" of European history, says Belgian Prime Minister
From CNN’s James Frater in Ghent, Belgium
Belgium's Prime Minister Alexander De Croo addresses the media in Ghent, Belgium, on April 19. (Geert Vanden Wijngaert/AP)
Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo has said that Russia’s aggression in Ukraine is “comparable to the darkest pages in our European history” and that it is “heart-breaking to see that something like this can still happen in Europe.”
Speaking Tuesday evening in the Belgian town of Ghent, following a rare joint meeting of the Dutch and Belgian cabinets, De Croo added “that there can be no impunity for war crimes.”
He said that both Belgium and the Netherlands are “going to make efforts to ensure that everything is documented,” in the hope that “prosecutions can take place for the terrible stories we hear of rapes of women, rapes of girls.”
Russia has denied allegations of war crimes and claims its forces do not target civilians, but CNN journalists on the ground in Ukraine have seen firsthand evidence of atrocities at multiple locations across the country.
Iryna Venediktova, Ukraine's prosecutor general, said last week that her office was investigating 5,800 cases of alleged Russian war crimes, with "more and more" proceedings opening every day.
De Croo said that the Belgian Government was supporting the International Criminal Court and the Commission of Inquiry set up by the UN Human Rights Council and was “looking to be able to send forensic experts” to Ukraine.
“It is the first step to ensure that the barbarians who did this will be prosecuted,” he added.
5:19 a.m. ET, April 20, 2022
What we know about Mariupol’s Azovstal plant
The giant Azovstal Iron and Steel Works fills the skyline in the southern port city of Mariupol, Ukraine, on April 19. (Alexander Ermochenko/Reuters)
The fate of the Ukrainian city of Mariupol rests on the Azovstal iron and steel plant -- a huge compound spanning four square miles in the southeastern corner of the port city.
Ukrainian forces have consolidated around the factory and continue to resist Russian attacks, but a Ukrainian commander has called the situation “critical.”
According to Maj. Serhii Volyna, commander of Ukraine's 36th Separate Marine Brigade, the steel plant is “completely surrounded.”
“There are about 500 wounded military, it is very difficult to provide them with medical care. They literally rot,” he told CNN on Tuesday.
“There are civilians on the territory. They are also suffering from explosions, blasts on them, next to them. They [the Russians] use heavy aircraft bombs against us and strike with artillery."
Officials say hundreds of civilians are sheltering in the basements of the plant -- which previously employed 10,000 people -- and a Mariupol police official told CNN that food and water supplies were dwindling amid the heavy bombardment.
A video shared by the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs appears to show dozens of children and families who have been sheltering there for weeks. CNN cannot verify the authenticity of the video or when it was taken. However, after reviewing thousands of photos and videos of the steel plant, the walls of the shelter appear to match the lime-green painted walls of the steel plant's basements.
Volyna called for assistance from a third country to provide an evacuation route -- such as by boat or helicopter -- to take troops and civilians to safety.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a video address on Tuesday that Russian forces are blocking evacuation routes from Mariupol.
Meanwhile, the Security Service of Ukraine released a purported communications intercept of a Russian ground unit commander, who said Russian aircraft were planning to “level everything to the ground” around the factory.
Mariupol, situated in the southeast of Ukraine, has been heavily targeted by Russian forces during the war due to its strategic position on the coast of the Sea of Azov.
Taking it would allow Russia to create a continuous land bridge from Donbas to Crimea, the peninsula it illegally annexed from Ukraine in 2014.
Speaking to CNN last week, Zelensky said nobody knows how many civilians have died in Mariupol.
"Several thousand, tens of thousands, were forced to evacuate in the direction of the Russia Federation and we don't know where they are, they've left no document trail," he said.
It's 12:30 p.m. in Kyiv. Here's what you need to know
Fighting in the Donbas region continues to escalate, with Ukrainian forces repelling "numerous attempted advances" by Russia, according to UK defense intelligence.
The battle for the Donbas represents a new and potentially decisive phase in the conflict, with the besieged southeastern port city of Mariupol a key battleground.
Referenced as a "critical logistics hub" for Ukrainian forces, Mariupol continues to be in Ukrainian control despite weeks of Russian bombardment, but Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said the situation remains "brutal and unchanged."
With tens of thousands of civilians remaining in Mariupol, the Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister said Wednesday that a corridor had been agreed on with Russia for the evacuation of women, children and the elderly from the city.
Here are the latest developments in the Russia-Ukraine conflict:
Besieged Mariupol under heavy bombardment: Ukrainians continue to defend Mariupol despite heavy attacks as Russia seeks to "close the circle" around the city. Mariupol's strategic position on the coast of the Sea of Azov makes it a key target, said Retired Lt. General and CNN military analyst Mark Hertling, as taking it would allow Russia to create a continuous land bridge from Donbas to Crimea.
Last stand for those trapped at steel plant: Ukrainian troops and civilians remain trapped in Mariupol's Azovstal steel plant under heavy Russian bombardment. It's not clear how many troops are holding out. An estimated 1,000 civilians, including women, children and the elderly were sheltering inside the plant, Myhailo Vershynin, chief of the Mariupol patrol police, told CNN earlier this week.
Humanitarian corridor agreed for Mariupol: Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said Wednesday that a humanitarian corridor had been agreed on with Russia for the evacuation of women, children and the elderly from Mariupol. She said the convoy is set to move from the besieged city toward Manhush and then onward through the Russian-held city of Berdyansk, then north toward the Ukrainian-held city of Zaporizhzhia.
Zoo employees who stayed behind to care for animals found dead: Two employees of a zoo in Kharkiv who stayed behind last month to take care of animals amid heavy shelling from Russian forces were found dead, the zoo said in a statement Tuesday. Feldman Ecopark zoo said it had received confirmation that the employees had been shot and killed by Russian soldiers and found barricaded in a room.
Major German manufacturer to quit Russia: German manufacturer Henkel will cease operations in Russia, the company announced on Tuesday. Producer of various consumer goods, such as laundry and cleaning products, Henkel said its 2,500 employees in Russia will continue to be employed and paid.
