Ukraine conflict: Russia halts gas to Poland, Bulgaria— live updates

The supply of Russian gas to Poland and Bulgaria has been halted, Russia's Gazprom announced on Wednesday morning.

In a statement carried by Russian news agencies, the firm said the supplies would be suspended as the countries had not made payments in rubles for the fuel delivery as demanded by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

It said the supplies would be stopped until the payments are made.

Poland had earlier said it expected gas flows from Russia via Ukraine and Belarus to be cut at 8 a.m. (0600 GMT/UTC).

Bulgaria's Energy Ministry had also announced that Russia's Gazprom had said it would halt gas supplies as of Wednesday. The energy minister has said that halting its gas supply would breach the current contract, as gas deliveries for April had already been paid.

The ministry will give a news briefing on the situation later on Wednesday morning.

Austria meanwhile says Russian natural gas deliveries are continuing unrestricted, with no indication that this would change. Austria obtains 80% of its gas from Russia.

Ukraine has accused Russia of blackmailing Europe over energy to try and damage Kyiv's allies and undermine their solidarity in taking action against Russia's invasion of its neighbor.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has called on "unfriendly" countries to pay for gas imports in rubles, but most buyers have so far rejected the demand.

Ukraine still has control over most of its airspace — UK military intelligence

Russia has so far failed to gain supremacy in the skies over Ukraine, the UK Ministry of Defense has said in its latest report.

It said the Russian air force had little air access in northern and western Ukraine, with Russian attacks there being carried out from a distance using so-called stand-off weapons. The report said Russian aircraft were concentrating their operations on the south and east of the country, giving support to ground forces.

According to the report, most Russian aerial attacks in the key strategic port city of Mariupol were being carried out using unguided free-falling bombs, meaning that civilian casualties could not be prevented.

China's DJI suspends the sale of drones in Russia and Ukraine

DJI, the world's largest drone maker, said it would suspend business in Russia and Ukraine to ensure its products weren't used in combat.

"DJI abhors any use of our drones to cause harm, and we are temporarily suspending sales in these countries in order to help ensure no one uses our drones in combat," a spokesman for the company told Reuters news agency.

It is the first major Chinese firm to halt sales to Russia since Moscow invaded Ukraine in February.

The company said that it was "not to make a statement about any country, but to make a statement about our principles."

Russian and Ukrainian forces have reportedly used DJI drones primarily for reconnaissance purposes.

Blasts heard in Russia's Belgorod

A series of blasts were heard in the Russian city Belgorod near the Ukrainian border early Wednesday, regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said in a message on Telegram.

The cause of the blasts was not immediately apparent.

At the start of April, Russia claimed Ukrainian military helicopters flew across the border and bombed a fuel depot in the city. Ukraine has denied it carried out the attack.

UK warns of 'terrible consequences' if Russia wins in Ukraine

In a keynote foreign policy speech planned for Wednesday at London's Mansion House, UK Foreign Minister Liz Truss is expected to call for more countries to support Ukraine's war effort.

A pre-print of the speech said countries need to "double down" on their support for Ukraine and "ramp up" military production, including tanks and warplanes.

Kyiv's victory is a "strategic imperative for us all," it said. "If Putin succeeds, there will be untold further misery across Europe and terrible consequences across the globe. We would never feel safe again," it added.

Truss is expected to say it will be an imperative to stop Russian President Vladimir Putin from claiming victory and to use the war as a catalyst for a new world security order.

Zelenskyy says Russia's goals go beyond Ukraine

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said it must be clear to everyone that Russia's war against Ukraine is just the beginning.

"The ultimate goal of Russia's leadership is not just to seize the territory of Ukraine, but to dismember the entire center and east of Europe and deliver a global blow to democracy," he said.

In his nightly video address, Zelenskyy also claimed a "global strike against democracy" is one of Moscow's goals.

Russian President Putin claims to want negotiated settlement to war

Speaking after meeting UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in Moscow, the Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed "hope" that diplomatic negotiations can end the war in Ukraine.

"Despite the fact that the military operation is ongoing, we still hope that we will be able to reach agreements on the diplomatic track. We are negotiating, we do not reject [talks]," Putin said.

He, however, added Russia could not give Ukraine security guarantees without resolving territorial issues in Crimea and separatist territories in eastern Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has previously said that a future nationwide referendum would be held to decide those issues.

Guterres called for a cease-fire, and urged Russia to allow the evacuation of civilians trapped at a giant steel mill in Mariupol surrounded by the Russian forces.

Putin said he was open to the UN and Red Cross evacuating civilians from the plant, but claimed Ukrainian forces were using civilians as shields and not allowing them to leave.

Guterres is expected to visit Kyiv on Thursday to meet with Zelenskyy and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba.

Kyiv pulls down Soviet-era monument of brotherhood

Authorities in Kyiv dismantled a Soviet-era monument, which symbolized friendship between Russia and Ukraine.

"It took some effort but the Soviet sculpture of the two workers, symbolizing the reunification of Ukraine and Russia, was dismantled this evening," Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko says in a statement on social media.

The statue depicted a Ukrainian and Russian worker on a plinth, holding aloft together a Soviet order of friendship. It was erected in 1982 to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Soviet Union.

"This monument ... symbolized friendship between Ukrainian and Russian nations. We now see what this 'friendship' is destruction of Ukrainian cities, ruining the lives of Ukrainians, killing tens of thousands of peaceful people. I am convinced such a monument has an entirely different meaning now," Klitschko said.

Summary of Tuesday's events in the Ukraine-Russia crisis

After weeks of mounting pressure, the German government said it would send heavy weapons to Ukraine. German Defense Minister Christina Lambrecht pledged to provide Gepard self-propelled anti-aircraft guns during a speech at the US defense conference on Ukraine.

Polish and Bulgarian officials have said that Russia's Gazprom has threatened to cut gas supplies starting Wednesday. The suspensions would be the first since Russia insisted foreign buyers pay for gas in rubles. Meanwhile, German Economy and Climate Protection Minister Robert Habeck said his country hopes to find an alternative to Russian oil imports in the "coming days."

Russian President Vladimir Putin has agreed "in principle" to allow international groups to help evacuate civilians from Mariupol, the United Nations said. The UN said Putin made the concession to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres during their meeting in Moscow.

The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, the UN atomic watchdog Rafael Grossi decried as "very, very dangerous" Russia's temporary occupation of the Chornobyl nuclear plant. The IAEA offered to help Ukraine repair damage caused to the stricken plant.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin says the war in Ukraine has already weakened Russia's military capability. Speaking after meeting allies and partners at Ramstein Air Base in Germany, he said since the invasion started, Russia's land forces have sustained "pretty substantial'' casualties, as well as lost a lot of equipment and used a lot of precision-guided munitions.