Russia appoints new Ukraine war commander | Highlights

The White House said President Joe Biden will press Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to take a hard line against Russia's Ukraine invasion. Press Secretary Jen Psaki says the leaders plan a virtual meeting on Monday.

India's neutral stance in the war has raised concerns in Washington and earned praise from Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, who lauded India this month for judging “the situation in its entirety, not just in a one-sided way.”

India abstained when the UN General Assembly voted on Thursday to suspend Russia from its seat on the 47-member Human Rights Council over allegations of war crimes. India continues to purchase Russian energy despite Western pressure to avoid buying Russian oil and gas. And the US has considered sanctions on India for its recent purchase of advanced Russian air defense systems.

Psaki's statement says Biden will discuss how Russia's war against Ukraine is destabilizing the global food supply and commodity markets, and the need to strengthen the global economy while ”upholding a free, open, rules-based international order to bolster security, democracy, and prosperity."

The US is taking "aggressive action" to help the Ukrainians succeed on the battlefield and help them have the best possible position at the negotiating table, a top White House national security official said on Sunday.

Speaking to CNN, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said the US will play a key role in supporting Ukraine against Russia after Moscow attacked its neighbour.

“We are taking aggressive action in an effort to both help the Ukrainians succeed on the battlefield and help the Ukrainians have the best possible position at the negotiating table,” Sullivan said.

“We will continue to do that. We will continue to rally the world in that regard. And the United States will play the key role it has played thus far in the days and weeks ahead,” he added.

Referring to the appointment of General Aleksandr Dvornikov as new Russian commander in Ukraine, the US National Security Advisor said that no appointment of any general can erase the fact that Russia has already faced a strategic failure in Ukraine.

“They thought that they were going to be able to conquer the capital city and take other major cities with little resistance, that they'd, in fact, be welcomed with open arms. And what we have learned in the first several weeks of this war is that Ukraine will never be subjugated to Russia. It doesn't matter which general President Putin tries to appoint,” he said.

The governor of the region that includes Ukraine's fourth-largest city, Dnipro, says the airport was hit twice by missile attacks on Sunday.

The Ukrainian military command said Russian forces also keep shelling Ukraine's second-largest city, Kharkiv, and have kept up their siege of Mariupol, the key southern port city that has been under attack for nearly six weeks.

The Russian Defense Ministry says it's air-launched missiles hit Ukraine's S-300 air defense missile systems in two locations, while sea-launched cruise missiles destroyed a Ukrainian unit's headquarters in the Dnipro region. Neither side's military claims could be independently verified.

The Pentagon said Russia has a clear advantage in armoured forces for its next phase in its war on Ukraine.

Press secretary John Kirby said Friday that the Russians spread themselves too thin to take the capital, but now they're more focused on a smaller region, and still have the vast majority of their combat power.

A major effort by Ukrainian defenses and more Western assistance will be needed to push them back.

"But if sitting down with the Russians will help prevent at least one massacre, like in Bucha, or attack in Kramatorsk, I have to take that opportunity," Kuleba told NBC.

The injured people were rescuers of the State Emergency Service. 

Three missiles hit the already destroyed airport in Dnipro on April 10.

Source: Mykola Lukashuk, head of the regional council in Dnipro.

Pope Francis has opened Holy Week with a call for an Easter truce in Ukraine to make room for a negotiated peace. He said leaders need to “make some sacrifices for the good of the people.”

Francis celebrated Palm Sunday Mass before crowds in St. Peter’s Square for the first time since the pandemic. He used the opportunity to call for “weapons to be laid down to begin an Easter truce, not to reload weapons and resume fighting." He said a truce should lead to “peace through real negotiations.”

Francis did not refer directly to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but the reference was clear. He has repeatedly denounced the war and the suffering brought to innocent civilians.

After its striking post-invasion setbacks, Russia has appointed a new Ukraine war commander, a U.S. official said Sunday.

Russia has turned to Gen. Alexander Dvornikov, 60, one of Russia's most experienced military officers and — according to U.S. officials — a general with a record of brutality against civilians in Syria and other war theatres.

The senior official who identified the new commander was not authorised to be identified and spoke on condition of anonymity.

But the White House national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, said “no appointment of any general can erase the fact that Russia has already faced a strategic failure in Ukraine.”

“This general will just be another author of crimes and brutality against Ukrainian civilians,” Sullivan told CNN's “State of the Union.”

“And the United States, as I said before, is determined to do all that we can to support Ukrainians as they resist him and they resist the forces that he commands.”

The decision to establish new battlefield leadership comes as Russia gears up for what is expected to be a large and more focused push to expand Russian control in the Donbas and follows a failed opening bid to conquer Kyiv, the capital.

Ukraine’s border guard agency says that about 2,200 Ukrainian men of fighting age have been detained so far while trying to leave the country in violation of martial law.

The agency said Sunday that some of them have used forged documents and others tried to bribe border guards to get out of the country.

It said some have been found dead while trying to cross the Carpathian mountains in adverse weather, without specifying the number.

Under martial law, Ukrainian men between 18 and 60 are barred from leaving the country so that they can be called up to fight.

 The Ukrainian military says Russia has been beefing up its forces and trying to probe Ukrainian defenses.

The Ukrainian military command said Sunday that the Russian troops have continued attempts to break Ukrainian defenses near Izyum, southeast of Kharkiv. It reported that Russia was sending reinforcements to Izyum while continuing the shelling of Kharkiv.

The military added that the Russians also continued their attempts to take control of Mariupol, the Sea of Azov port that has been besieged by Russian forces for nearly 1 ½ months.

After Russia’s attempt to capture Kyiv and other big cities in northeastern Ukraine quickly failed, Ukrainian and Western officials expect Moscow to launch a new offensive in eastern Ukraine, where Russia-backed separatists have fought Ukrainian forces for eight years.

Days before Poland's Independence Day in November, vandals painted the blue-and-yellow colours of the Ukrainian flag on monuments in Krakow. The vandalism, which took place as Russia massed troops near Ukraine's border, looked as if Ukrainians were defacing memorials to Polish national heroes.

Yet some clues suggested otherwise.

The flag's colours were reversed, with the yellow on top of the blue and one offensive message was in an unnatural mix of Russian and Ukrainian. Though prosecutors are still investigating, Polish and Ukrainian authorities believe it was most likely a Russian-inspired attempt to trigger ethnic hostility between Ukrainians and Poles.

Polish and Ukrainian authorities have for years accused Russia of trying to provoke hostility between their neighbouring nations as part of a broader effort to divide and destabilise the West — and the concerns have gained greater urgency since Russia invaded Ukraine.

Poland and Ukraine are neighbours and allies but they share a difficult history of oppression and bloodshed, and those historical traumas sometimes rise to the surface.

The UN refugee agency says the number of people who have left Ukraine since the beginning of the war has reached 4.5 million.

A regular update Sunday of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees' online portal on numbers of refugees fleeing Ukraine since Feb 24 brought the total to some 4.504 million.

About 2.6 million of those fled at least initially to Poland and more than 686,000 to Romania.

However, UNHCR notes that there are very few border controls within the European Union and it believes “a large number of people” have moved on from the first country they arrived in.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has travelled to the conflict-torn Ukrainian capital of Kyiv to demonstrate that the UK stands “unwaveringly” with Ukraine and offered fresh financial and military support to the country.

During his visit on Saturday, he held in-depth discussions with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on military and economic assistance and set out new military assistance of 120 armoured vehicles and new anti-ship missile systems, to support Ukraine in the ongoing conflict with Russia.

“Ukraine has defied the odds and pushed back Russian forces from the gates of Kyiv, achieving the greatest feat of arms of the 21st century,” said Johnson.

“It is because of President Zelenskyy’s resolute leadership and the invincible heroism and courage of the Ukrainian people that Putin’s monstrous aims are being thwarted. I made clear today that the United Kingdom stands unwaveringly with them in this ongoing fight, and we are in it for the long run,” he said.

“We are stepping up our own military and economic support and convening a global alliance to bring this tragedy to an end, and ensure Ukraine survives and thrives as a free and sovereign nation,” he added.

The latest supply of military equipment to Ukraine is in addition to 100 million pounds worth of high-grade military equipment announced on Friday, including more Starstreak anti-aircraft missiles, another 800 anti-tank missiles, and high-tech loitering munitions for precision strikes.

The UK Prime Minister also confirmed further economic support, guaranteeing an additional USD 500 million in World Bank lending to Ukraine, taking our total loan guarantee to up to USD 1 billion.

This comes alongside the 394 million pounds the UK said it has provided in grant aid and will help ensure the continued running of vital humanitarian services for Ukrainians.

Days before Poland's Independence Day in November, vandals painted the blue-and-yellow colours of the Ukrainian flag on monuments in Krakow. The vandalism, which took place as Russia massed troops near Ukraine's border, looked as if Ukrainians were defacing memorials to Polish national heroes.
Yet some clues suggested otherwise.

The flag's colours were reversed, with the yellow on top of the blue and one offensive message was in an unnatural mix of Russian and Ukrainian. Though prosecutors are still investigating, Polish and Ukrainian authorities believe it was most likely a Russian-inspired attempt to trigger ethnic hostility between Ukrainians and Poles.

A top Ukrainian official said that President Volodymyr Zelensky will only meet his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin after the country's victory in major battles, especially in the separatist eastern region of Donbas.

In a televised address, presidential adviser Mykhailo Podoliak said: "Ukraine is ready for major battles, Ukraine must win these battles, including the battle over Donbas. After that Ukraine will have a more substantial negotiating position to dictate certain terms.

Ukraine's Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk announced that a third prisoner exchange took place between her country and Russia amidst the ongoing war.

In a Facebook post, Vereshchuk said the exchange took place on Saturday on the order of President Volodymyr Zelensky, reports Ukrayinska Pravda.

She said in the latest exchange, 26 Ukrainians have returned home, of which 12 are military personnel and 14 civilians.

Dozens of protesters gathered in front of the Russian embassy in Chile's capital of Santiago on Saturday to denounce the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Protesters unfurled a large banner featuring the colours of the Ukrainian flag. The group included Ukrainians living in Chile.

Some protesters lay down on the ground and clutched stuffed animals to honour child victims of the war. A large banner read, “Stand with Ukraine.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin appointed a new Army General Alexander Dvornikov, commander of Russia's Southern Military District, to lead the war in Ukraine as Moscow's military failed to capture Kyiv.

Dvornikov has been named theater commander of Russia's military campaign in Ukraine. There is speculation that Russia's general has a goal of representing Putin with some battlefield progress ahead of the 'Victory Day' on May 9, CNN reported on Sunday citing Military analysts and US officials familiar with intelligence assessments.

May 9 'Victory Day' is the most significant day in Russia as it marks the anniversary of the Soviet Union's triumph over Germany in the Second World War.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said late Saturday that democratic countries are united in working to stop the Russian invasion as civilians continued to flee eastern parts of the country before an expected onslaught and firefighters searched for survivors in a northern town no longer occupied by Russian forces.

In his daily late-night video address to Ukrainians, Zelenskyy said that “Russian aggression was not intended to be limited to Ukraine alone" and the "entire European project is a target for Russia.”

Several European leaders have made efforts to show solidarity with the battle-scarred nation. Zelenskyy thanked the leaders of Britain and Austria for their visits Saturday to Kyiv, Ukraine's capital, and pledges of further support. He also thanked the European Commission president and Canada's prime minister for a global fundraising event that brought in more than 10 billion euros (USD 11 billion) for Ukrainians who have fled their homes.

Wearing the names of heavily bombarded cities on its jerseys, Ukrainian soccer club Shakhtar Donetsk opened a series of charity games on a government-backed “Global Tour for Peace” with a 1-0 loss at Greek league leader Olympiakos. The tour aims to raise money for Ukraine's military in the war against Russia, and also help Ukrainian refugees displaced by the war.

Shakhtar is also set to play Fenerbahce, Hajduk Split and Lechia Gdansk, with other opponents still to be confirmed. Soccer clubs around Europe have been offering to play games against Ukrainian clubs and host youth players after soccer in the country was shut down when Russia invaded in February.

Shakhtar was already displaced from its original home of Donetsk in 2014.

Shelling by Russian forces of Ukraine's key port of Mariupol on the Sea of Azov has collapsed several humanitarian corridors, making it more difficult for people to leave.

It was not clear Saturday how many people remained trapped in the city, which had a prewar population of 430,000.

Ukrainian officials have put the number at about 100,000, but earlier this week, British defense officials said 160,000 people remained trapped in the city.

Ukrainian troops have refused to surrender the city, though much of it has been razed.

Payment in rubles for Russian gas is not a violation of European Union sanctions, Hungarian government spokesperson Zoltan Kovacs has said.

"The EU so far has no common procurement of gas and oil for European countries. So as we speak, we still go by alongside those contracts we have with Russians regarding gas and oil, and according to those contracts, it is a technical issue, in what currency we have to pay," Kovacs said in an interview with CNN, which was posted on his Twitter page.

Anxious about the wellbeing of their Ukrainian refugees, city mayors across Poland are refusing the government's instructions to sound air raid alarm sirens Sunday as part of memorial observances for Poland's 2010 presidential plane crash. The right-wing central government wants the sirens to go off at 0641 GMT Sunday, the exact time the plane crashed in Russia 12 years ago, killing President Lech Kaczynski and 95 other prominent Poles.

Kaczynski was the twin of Jaroslaw Kaczynski, who is the ruling Law and Justice party's leader and Poland's key politician.

But city mayors, who represent local governments, are refusing to do that, saying it will be an unnecessary trauma for people — especially children — who recently fled their homes at the sound of air raid sirens and headed to shelters to avoid Russian bombings since it attacked Ukraine on February 24.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Saturday that he is committed to pressing for peace despite Russian attacks on civilians that have stunned the world, and he renewed his plea for countries to send more weapons ahead of an expected surge in fighting in the country's east. He made the comments in an interview with The Associated Press a day after at least 52 people were killed in a strike on a train station in the eastern city of Kramatorsk, and as evidence of civilian killings came to light after Russian troops failed to seize the capital where he has hunkered down, Kyiv.

“No one wants to negotiate with a person or people who tortured this nation. It's all understandable. And as a man, as a father, I understand this very well,” Zelenskyy said.

Eyewitness descriptions are coming from Kramatorsk, the town in eastern Ukraine where a missile hit a train station packed with evacuees on Friday. The Sydorneko family could have been among the 52 dead and more than 100 wounded, but their taxi didn't show and they had to wait for another one. They finally arrived for the 11 am evacuation train just three minutes after the explosion.

Ivan Sydorneko says there were around 2,000 people inside the station and on the platforms when the missile hit. He says they got out of their taxi in a scene of burning cars, burning pieces of the missile and people fleeing for their lives.

Ivan managed to escape by bus and then train with his wife and daughter, eventually reaching the relative safety of Lviv in western Ukraine. The Sydornekos are just one of thousands of families clamouring to leave eastern Ukraine ahead of an expected Russian onslaught there.