Russia invades Ukraine: Moscow announces ceasefire around Mariupol steel plant

The New Arab's live coverage of the latest from the Russian invasion of Ukraine concludes for today.

Here were the key developments on Monday:

Five killed in rail strikes

At least five people have been killed and 18 injured in Russian rocket strikes on railway stations in the central Ukraine region of Vinnytsia, the Ukrainian prosecutor general's office says.

The head of Ukraine railways said five stations in the centre and west of the country came under fire in the space of an hour.

At least 57 people were killed earlier this month in Russian strikes on a train station used for evacuations in the eastern city of Kramatorsk.

US wants 'weakened' Russia

US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin said he hopes that the war in Ukraine will hobble the Russian military.

"We want to see Russia weakened to the degree that it can't do the kinds of things that it has done in invading Ukraine," he said after a visit to Kyiv with Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

Ukraine can win the war if it has the "right equipment", he added. Austin and Blinken pledge $700 million (653 million euros) in additional military aid during their visit.

US diplomats to return

Blinken confirmed that US diplomats, withdrawn at the start of Russia's invasion, will gradually return to Kyiv. US President Joe Biden nominated career foreign service officer Bridget Brink to be the next US ambassador.

Several European countries have also reopened their embassies in Kyiv since Russia withdrew its forces from the region.

No deal on Mariupol

Russia's defence ministry announced a unilateral ceasefire at the Azovstal steel plant in the besieged port city of Mariupol, where Ukrainian forces have been holding out and a large group of civilians are sheltering.

But Ukraine disputed that, saying Moscow did not agree to its request for the evacuation of wounded soldiers and civilians.

Putin congratulates Macron

Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulates French President Emmanuel Macron on his re-election following a run-off with far-right candidate Marine Le Pen, seen as closer to Moscow.

"I sincerely wish you success in your state activities, as well as good health and well-being," says Putin.

German diplomats expelled

Moscow said it is expelling 40 German diplomats after Berlin sent 40 Russian diplomats packing earlier this month.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock reacted indignantly, saying Berlin's diplomats had "not done anything wrong" while the expelled Russian representatives "did not serve diplomacy for a single day".

5.2 million refugees

More than 5.2 million Ukrainians have fled the country since Russia launched its invasion two months ago, with over 45,000 having left in the past 24 hours, the UN said.

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Russian diplomat says no point in Ukraine ceasefire at the moment: RIA

A senior Russian diplomat said on Monday that there was no point in having a ceasefire in Ukraine at this stage because Kyiv was likely to use it as an opportunity to try to discredit Russia, after Kyiv denied reaching an agreement with Moscow over a humanitarian corridor.

"Ukraine is undermining our efforts to open humanitarian corridors so we don't think a ceasefire is a good option now," RIA quoted Dmitry Polyanskiy, Russia's first deputy permanent representative to the United Nations, as saying.

Ukraine earlier denied reaching a deal with Russia on evacuating civilians from a steel plant in the southern city of Mariupol, and said the United Nations should be the "initiator and guarantor" of any such deal.

Polyanskiy said a ceasefire would only "be an opportunity for Ukrainian forces to regroup and stage more provocations."

(Reuters)

Russia strikes on Ukraine rail infrastructure kill 5, wound 18

At least five people were killed and another 18 injured on Monday in Russian strikes on railway infrastructure in the central Ukraine region of Vinnytsia, Kyiv said.

"Preliminary information shows that five people died and 18 were injured. Rescue operations are under way, investigators, prosecutors and other services are working at the scene," the Ukrainian prosecutor general's office said in a statement on social media.

Russian forces have been widely accused of targeting civilian infrastructure throughout the Kremlin's two-month military assault on its pro-democratic neighbour, allegations Moscow denies.

The prosecutor's office said Russian forces had used rockets to strike "transport infrastructure" near the town of Zhmerynka and Kozyatyn.

The head of Ukraine railways, Alexander Kamyshin, had earlier announced the attacks, accusing Moscow's army of "systematically" destroying railway infrastructure.

"This morning, within an hour, five railway stations in central and western Ukraine came under fire. At least 16 passenger trains will be delayed," he said in a statement published on Telegram.

Dozens of people were killed earlier this month in Russian strikes on a train station used for evacuations in the eastern city of Kramatorsk.

Russia's expulsion of German diplomats not 'justified': Berlin

Germany on Monday reacted with defiance to Russia's announcement that it would expel 40 German diplomats in response to a similar move by Berlin over the conflict in Ukraine.

"We expected today's step, but it is in no way justified," Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said in a statement.

She added that the 40 Russian diplomats expelled by Berlin "did not serve diplomacy for a single day" while those expelled by Russia had "not done anything wrong".

Ukraine wants UN to be guarantor of safe corridor from Mariupol steel plant

Ukraine denied on Monday reaching an agreement with Russia on evacuating civilians from a steel plant in the southern city of Mariupol, and said the United Nations should be the "initiator and guarantor" of any such deal.

Russia had said earlier on Monday that it would open a humanitarian corridor for civilians to leave the huge Azovstal steel plant where they are holed up with Ukrainian fighters and have come under heavy fire.

"Today, the Russian side once again announced the existence of a corridor for civilians to leave Azovstal. This could be believed if the Russians had not destroyed humanitarian corridors many times before," Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk wrote on the Telegram messaging app.

"It is important to understand that a humanitarian corridor opens by the agreement of both sides. A corridor announced unilaterally does not provide security, and therefore is not a humanitarian corridor."

She said Ukraine had "appealed to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to be the initiator and guarantor of the humanitarian corridor from Azovstal for civilians."

Representatives of the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross should be present when any humanitarian corridor was established, she said.

(Reuters)

Russia expels 40 German diplomats over 'unfriendly decision' by Berlin to kick out Russian representatives

Russia says it is expelling 40 German diplomats in response to the "unfriendly decision" by Berlin to kick out Russian diplomats over Moscow's vicious invasion of Ukraine.

Russia's foreign ministry in a statement says it summoned Germany's ambassador in Moscow and handed him a note "declaring persona non grata forty employees of German diplomatic institutions in Russia as part of a symmetrical response".

"A strong protest was made to the head of the German diplomatic mission in Moscow in connection with the openly unfriendly decision of the German government" to expel Russian diplomats, the ministry says.

Earlier in April, Germany said it was expelling a "significant number" of Russian diplomats, amid similar moves by other European states, over Ukraine.

Russia yet to agree to Mariupol plant humanitarian corridor: Ukraine deputy PM 

Ukraine's deputy prime minister said Moscow had not yet agreed to its request for a humanitarian corridor to let wounded soldiers and civilians leave the plant.

"Unfortunately, there are no agreements on humanitarian corridors from Azovstal today," deputy PM Iryna Vershchuk said on Telegram.

Biden names Brink as US ambassador to Ukraine

President Joe Biden on Monday named Bridget Brink, who currently represents the United States in Slovakia, as the new US ambassador to Ukraine, the White House said in a statement.

The position must be confirmed by the US Senate.

(Reuters)

Russia announces ceasefire around Azovstal steel plant

Russia's defence ministry said its troops would halt hostilities to allow civilians to leave the besieged steel plant Azovstal in Ukraine's port city of Mariupol from 1400 Moscow time (1100 GMT) on Monday.

The ministry said any civilians trapped at the facility could leave in whichever direction they chose.

Russia warns United States against sending more arms to Ukraine

Russia has warned the United States against sending more arms to Ukraine, Moscow's ambassador to Washington told Russian state television.

"We stressed the unacceptability of this situation when the United States of America pours weapons into Ukraine, and we demanded an end to this practice," Anatoly Antonov said in an interview with the Rossiya 24 TV channel.

Antonov said an official diplomatic note had been sent to Washington expressing Russia's concerns.

Washington's top diplomat and its defence secretary met Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelensky in Kyiv late on Sunday, pledging new assistance worth $713 million for Zelensky's government and other countries in the region fearing Russian aggression.

Putin congratulates Macron, wishes him 'success': Kremlin

Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated French President Emmanuel Macron on his re-election and defeat of far-right candidate Marine Le Pen, the Kremlin said Monday, as tensions remain over the Ukraine conflict.

"I sincerely wish you success in your state activities, as well as good health and well-being," Putin said in a telegram to Macron, according to a statement from the Kremlin.

Macron was one of the few Western leaders to contact Putin since Moscow moved troops into Ukraine, spending hours on telephone calls trying to negotiate a resolution to the conflict.

But while keeping its diplomatic channels to Moscow open, France under Macron has joined the barrage of international sanctions on Russia imposed over the military campaign.

Macron secured a victory over Le Pen in a second round of voting over the weekend, defeating his far-right rival who was accused of links to Russia.

Ukraine's Zelensky congratulates 'true friend' Macron on re-election

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky congratulated Emmanuel Macron on his re-election, calling the French president a "true friend".

"I wish Emmanuel Macron new successes for the benefit of the French people," Zelensky said in a tweet written in French.

"I appreciate his support and I am convinced that we are moving forward together towards new common victories. Towards a strong and united Europe!"

Blaze at Russian fuel depot near Ukraine border

A large fuel depot in a Russian town near the border with Ukraine was on fire Monday, the emergency situations ministry was quoted as saying by Russian news agencies.

"A fire has been reported at the Transneft Bryansk-Druzhba fuel depot in Bryansk," around 150 kilometres (93 miles) from the Ukraine border, which serves as a logistics base for Moscow's military operation in its pro-Western neighbour, the agencies quoted the ministry as saying.

"According to preliminary information, there are no injuries," the ministry added.

The cause of the blaze is not yet known. But it broke out at 2:00 am (2300 GMT) in the Fokinsky district of Bryansk, the local branch of the emergency situations ministry said.

Russia has repeatedly accused the Ukrainian forces of launching strikes against on its soil, notably in the Bryansk region in mid-April.

At the beginning of April, the governor of the Belgorod region, which is also close to the Ukraine border, said that Kyiv helicopters had fired at a fuel depot there.

Five railway stations come under fire in Ukraine, casualties reported: state rail company

Five railway stations came under fire in western and central Ukraine on Monday, causing an unspecified number of casualties, Ukrainian television quoted state-run Ukrainian Railways as saying.

Oleksander Kamyshin, the company's chief, said the attacks took place in the space of an hour and details were being checked.

(Reuters)