Closing summary
We’re wrapping up our coverage of the war in Ukraine for the day. In case you missed anything, here’s a quick round-up of all the latest developments.
Ukraine has said it has carried out “successful actions” on the eastern bank of the Dnipro River. It comes after both Ukraine and Russia acknowledged earlier this week that Ukraine had established positions on the eastern side of the river, which marks part of the frontline in south-east Ukraine.
Celebrating the development, President Zelenskiy published pictures showing Ukrainian soldiers on the eastern bank of the river. “Left bank of Kherson. Our warriors. Thank you for your strength and for moving forward! Glory to each and everyone who is returning freedom and justice to Ukraine!” he said.
Thousands of people living near the frontlines in southern and eastern Ukraine have been left without power after Russian strikes on energy facilities, the Ukrainian government has said. Last winter, systematic targeting of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure by Russia left millions without light or heating. Zelenskiy said this week that western support had allowed Ukraine to improve its air defences ahead of the coming winter months.
At least nine people were killed in Russian shelling of the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson, according to local officials. Oleksandr Prokudin, head of the Kherson regional military administration, said shelling on Thursday had targeted residential areas, shopping districts, and administrative buildings. Another two people were killed in the eastern region of Donetsk, according to the acting head of its military administration.
Russian casualties since the start of the war now stand at 316,760, according to the Ukrainian military.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov has said he has “no doubt” Vladimir Putin will still be Russian president after the election in March. Putin has not yet announced his intention to run but is widely expected to stand for another six-year term. Asked what the next president should be like in an interview with student journalists, Peskov said: “The same.”
A total of 4.4m tonnes of cargo, including 3.2m tons of grain, has been shipped via Ukraine’s new Black Sea shipping corridor since it was established in August, according to a report by the Interfax-Ukraine agency. A UN-brokered deal that had allowed Ukrainian exports to pass through the Black Sea fell through in July after Russia withdrew, prompting Ukraine to announce a “humanitarian corridor” hugging the sea’s western coast.
The British foreign secretary, David Cameron, followed his trip to Ukraine on Thursday with a visit to neighbouring Moldova. Moldovan president, Maia Sandu, posted a photo of her and Cameron together to social media and said the two had met on Thursday night to discuss “Black Sea security, bilateral cooperation and our united stance against corruption”.
The Dutch government has announced that it has earmarked an additional €2bn in military aid for Ukraine in 2024. It is part of a wider package that includes an initial €102m (£89m) for reconstruction and humanitarian aid that will be increased during the year if needed.
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Finland’s government has announced a new package of defence equipment for Ukraine worth €100m (£88m).
It said the package would be the 20th provided by Finland since the start of the war and would bring the value of all support given to €1.5bn (£1.3bn).
The country’s defence minister, Antti Häkkänen, said in a statement that further details on the package’s contents and the delivery schedule would not be disclosed for security reasons.
“What is at stake in Ukraine’s defence struggle is the security environment outlook on Europe and Finland,” he said.
“Together with our allies, we remain unwavering in our commitment to support Ukrainians.”
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The Kremlin has said Finland is making a “big mistake” by erecting barriers along its border with Russia.
Finnish authorities plan to put up barriers at four of the country’s nine border crossings with Russia at midnight local time (10pm GMT) on Friday.
Helsinki has accused Moscow of deliberately funnelling migrants and asylum seekers to the crossings in retaliation for Finland’s increased defence cooperation with the US.
Finland’s Border Guard said 300 asylum seekers – mostly from Iraq, Yemen, Somalia, and Syria – had arrived this week, almost 100 of them by midday on Friday alone.
The four crossings being closed – Vaalimaa, Nuijamaa, Imatra and Niirala, all at the southern end of the border – are usually the busiest points of travel between the two countries.
“[One can] only express deep regret that the Finnish authorities have taken the path of destroying bilateral relations,” Russian state news agency Tass quoted Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying when asked about the issue on Friday.
“Russia has never in modern history threatened Finland. We had no reason for any confrontation. Now they have chosen this path.
“From our point of view, this is a big mistake.”
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A total of 4.4m tons of cargo, including 3.2m tons of grain, has been shipped via Ukraine’s new Black Sea shipping corridor since it was established in August, according to a report by the Interfax-Ukraine agency.
A UN-brokered deal that had allowed Ukrainian exports to pass through the Black Sea fell through in July after Russia withdrew, prompting Ukraine to announce a “humanitarian corridor” hugging the sea’s western coast.
Yuriy Vaskov, Ukraine’s deputy minister for renovation and infrastructure, was quoted as saying that 151 ships have so far passed through the corridor.
Ukraine is one of the world’s largest grain producers, and grain exports account for a significant portion of its economy.
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Construction is underway on two heavily-fortified underground schools that will allow children in the eastern Ukrainian region of Kharkiv to return safely to in-person classes.
The region, home to about 2.5 million people, shares a border with Russia and has been the target of frequent shelling since the start of the war, forcing schools to hold their lessons remotely.
Chief regional architect Anton Korotkovskykh told Reuters that the schools being built will be able to accommodate up to 500 people and withstand direct hits.
He added that 817 educational facilities in the region had been damaged or destroyed since the invasion, and that more underground sites are planned by the end of next year.
Serhiy Petrulyanis, whose company is building one of the schools, said they would be equipped with ventilation, plumbing, and heating systems.
“That is, people will be able to remain here more than just one day,” he said.
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Thousands without power after Russian strikes on energy hubs, says Ukraine
Thousands of people living near the frontlines in Ukraine have been left without power after Russian strikes on energy facilities, the Ukrainian government has said.
The country’s energy ministry said in a statement that recent shelling in the southern city of Kherson had left more than 28,000 people without power. It added that 3,000 people had been without electricity in the last day alone.
It said damage to an overhead line in the eastern Donetsk region had completely cut off the city of Kostyantynivka, and that 122 settlements were still without power.
It also said a building in Kharkiv owned by a private energy supplier had been hit, cutting off another 17,600 people.
Last winter, systematic targeting of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure by Russia left millions without light or heating. Temperatures in Ukraine in the winter months routinely drop well below freezing.
President Zelenskiy said this week that western support had allowed Ukraine to improve its air defences, though added that the country did not yet have “100% protection”.
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Zelenskiy salutes 'strength' of soldiers reaching Dnipro River’s east bank
Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, has published pictures of Ukrainian troops on the left bank of the Dnipro River on his Telegram account.
He hailed his soldiers for their strength and “for moving forward”. He wrote: “Left bank of Kherson. Our warriors. Thank you for your strength and for moving forward! Glory to each and everyone who is returning freedom and justice to Ukraine!”
Earlier on Friday, the Ukraine marine corps said in a statement on social media that it had conducted a series of successful operations on the left bank of the Dnipro River, along the Kherson front. Ukraine is hoping to establish positions on the eastern side of the river which could allow it to push on further towards Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014.
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Dutch government to provide €2bn in military aid for Ukraine in 2024
The Dutch government has earmarked an additional €2bn in military aid for Ukraine in 2024, in what the country’s defence minister, Kajsa Ollongren, said was a sign of unwavering support for Kyiv’s war against Russia.
It is part of a wider package the Netherlands will provide to Ukraine next year that includes an initial €102m (£89m) for reconstruction and humanitarian aid that will be increased during the year if needed. The latest package takes the total amount of Dutch support for Ukraine during the conflict to around €7.5bn, Ollongren said.
“This will safeguard our support for Ukraine and ensure continuity, which is critical for Ukraine,” Ollongren told Reuters.
There is due to be a general election in the Netherlands on 22 November that will change the composition of the ruling government coalition.
Support will be provided based on Kyiv’s needs, Ollongren said, and may include advanced drone capabilities. Air defence, ammunition and air force support will remain a priority after the Dutch, Danish and other Nato allies established an F-16 training centre for Ukrainian pilots.
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Ukrainian troops have conducted a series of successful operations on the eastern bank of the Dnipro River, the country’s military said on Friday.
The claim comes after official acknowledgment from Russia and Ukraine earlier this week that Ukraine had established positions on the eastern side of the river, which marks the frontline for a stretch of territory in south-east Ukraine.
“The defence forces of Ukraine conducted a series of successful operations on the left bank of the Dnipro River, along the Kherson front,” the Ukraine marine corps said in a statement on social media.
Ukraine liberated Kherson and areas around the city on the western bank of the river a year ago, after Russia executed a humiliating withdrawal weeks after Vladimir Putin had declared the region to be part of Russia.
Ukraine had hoped to push forward and retake more territory over the summer and autumn but Kyiv’s much-trailed counteroffensive has struggled, after Russia constructed formidable minefields and other defences along the frontline.
The news of the troops on the eastern bank of the Dnipro provides some good news for Kyiv at a time when Russia is on the offensive along other parts of the front. The Ukrainian hope is that establishing positions on the eastern side of the river could allow it to push on further towards Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014.
Read Shaun’s full story at the link below.
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The Hungarian government has released a set of questions it has called a “national survey” for an informal survey it will send to voters on a number of issues including migration, LGBTQ+ rights and support for Ukraine, including a proposal to block further European Union assistance to Kyiv unless the bloc releases frozen funds to Hungary.
As Associated Press reports, one question asks whether Hungary should block an EU plan to provide a four-year, €50bn aid package for Ukraine unless the bloc unfreezes billions in assistance to Hungary that it has held up over concerns that the government of Viktor Orbán has failed to uphold the rule of law and human rights standards.
“They are asking Hungary for additional support [for Ukraine] even as our country has not received the EU funds due to it,” says one segment of the survey. “We should not pay more to support Ukraine until we have received the money we are owed,” one possible answer says.
Hungary’s national consultation surveys, conducted numerous times by Orbán’s right-wing populist government since it took power in 2010, have been widely criticised as propaganda tools. Orbán’s government says the surveys strengthen its bargaining position on the European level by demonstrating a national consensus on political issues.
The surveys are sent by mail to every Hungarian of voting age, but bear no legally binding relevance.
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Away from the war in Ukraine, the Russian justice ministry has filed a lawsuit with the nation’s supreme court to outlaw the LGBTQ+ “international public movement” as extremist, the Associated Press reports.
The ministry said authorities have identified “signs and manifestations of extremist nature” in “the activities of the LGBT movement active” in Russia, including “incitement of social and religious discord”. Russia’s supreme court has scheduled a hearing to consider the lawsuit on 30 November, the ministry said.
It wasn’t immediately clear what exactly the label would entail for LGBTQ+ people in Russia if the supreme court sides with the justice ministry. But the move in itself represents the latest, and most drastic, step in the decade-long crackdown on gay rights in Russia unleashed under Vladimir Putin.
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Two killed in Donetsk
Two people have been killed and three have been wounded in the east Ukrainian region of Donetsk, the acting head of its military administration has said.
In a post on Telegram, Ihor Moroz said two people had been killed in the city of Selydove, while two of the injuries had occurred in the town of Antonivka and another had occurred in Toretsk.
“Russia kills civilians!” Moroz said.
Environmental groups have installed radiation sensors across southern Ukraine to improve the quality of current readings and provide warnings in the event of a nuclear incident.
Greenpeace, which worked with Ukrainian group SaveDnipro to install the detectors, said they had been placed in the city of Zaporizhzhia, home to Europe’s largest nuclear plant, as well as in Yuzhnoukrainsk, Odesa, Tarutyne, Yuzhne, and Uman.
It added that the installations followed conversations with Ukrainian authorities and would be used “to monitor [radiation levels], counter misinformation and provide vital data to help Ukrainian authorities with decision-making”.
Russian forces occupied the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant at the start of the war and the region around the site has been the scene of intense fighting.
Global bodies such as the International Atomic Energy Agency and the United Nations have repeatedly expressed concern about the potential for an incident at the plant.
In May, a senior Russian official also claimed a radioactive cloud was heading towards western Europe after the Russian military struck a depot of ammunition containing depleted uranium supplied to Ukraine by the UK.
Pavlo Tkachenko, technical director of SaveDnipro, said Russian misinformation about the situation on the ground and radiation levels in Ukraine meant there was a “need to develop independent online networks and more transparent radiation monitoring through civic projects”.
“These efforts can help reassure the public about the normal radiation levels in Ukraine and, in case of potential threats, provide the government with more data for decision-making,” he said.
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Cameron visits Moldova after Ukraine trip
The British foreign secretary, David Cameron, followed his trip to Ukraine on Thursday with a visit to neighbouring Moldova to discuss regional security.
Moldovan president, Maia Sandu, posted a photo of her and Cameron together to social media and said the two had met on Thursday night.
“We discussed Black Sea security, bilateral cooperation and our united stance against corruption,” she said.
She added that she had “expressed gratitude for the UK’s support to Ukraine” and that the support was “crucial for Moldova’s security and the stability and prosperity of Europe”.
On February, Sandu accused Moscow of plotting to overthrow her government in order to stop Moldova’s European integration and to enable Russia to use Moldova in the war in Ukraine.
Pleased to meet @David_Cameron in Chișinău last night. Expressed gratitude for the UK’s support to Ukraine: crucial for Moldova's security and the stability and prosperity of Europe. We discussed Black Sea security, bilateral cooperation and our united stance against corruption. pic.twitter.com/36GxVC2wNv
— Maia Sandu (@sandumaiamd) November 17, 2023
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On Saturday, as Republicans in the US Congress unveiled a stopgap spending measure with no funding for Ukraine, Phil Buehler was installing a 60ft-long, 10ft-tall rebuke. Its title: Irpin, Ukraine: Please Don’t Forget Us.
The artist’s latest monumental public artwork is a photograph of Irpin’s civilian car cemetery and is on display in the Little Ukraine neighbourhood of Manhattan, New York, near the Ukrainian Museum and the St George Ukrainian church, for the rest of the month.
The picture is stitched together from 35 images shot in extremely high resolution during Buehler’s week-long trip to Ukraine in October. It shows in vivid detail the pock-marked remains of civilian cars destroyed by Russian forces.
“It’s not like I composed or framed the picture so there’s a central object,” Buehler, 67, says by phone from his studio in Brooklyn, New York. “Instead there’s just this 60 feet of wrecked cars and so you kind of get to choose what your attention belongs to: is it a stuffed animal or is it bullet holes? The cars are almost life size, the toys are almost life size, the bullet holes are almost life size.”
Read David Smith’s full story here:
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Vladimir Putin has awarded a prestigious state honour to a prominent milblogger as part of a long-running attempt to co-opt milboggers and lessen criticism of the conduct of the war in Ukraine, according to a US-based thinktank.
A milblog is a blog dedicated to covering a war, typically written by someone who is a member of, or has some link to, the military. In Russia, they are one of the main sources of information about the war in Ukraine aside from state media.
On Thursday, Putin gave Mikhail Zvinchuk the Russian Order of Merit of the Fatherland Second Class for his efforts supporting the war in Ukraine. Zvinchuk runs Rybar, a Telegram channel with over 1.2 million subscribers that at points in the past has been critical of the Russian defence ministry.
The channel is also reported to have previously received funding from former Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin, who died in a plane crash in August just months after leading an armed mutiny against Russia’s military leadership.
In its latest assessment of the conflict, the Institute for the Study of War said Putin first recruited Zvinchuk to a Kremlin working group on the war in December last year and that it had observed a significant “content and tonal” shift in Rybar’s recent coverage.
It said the shift was “likely the result of Putin’s efforts to co-opt prominent Russian milbloggers to re-establish Kremlin dominance over the Russian language online information space, carry out information operations against western audiences, and prevent other influential Russian officials from buying milbloggers’ loyalties.
“Zvinchuk’s award also likely serves as an effort to incentivize other milbloggers to offer their loyalty to the regime in exchange for accolades and Kremlin recognition.”
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Russian casualties reach 316,760, says Ukraine
Russian casualties since the start of the war in Ukraine now stand at 316,760, according to the Ukrainian military.
In its latest set of daily figures, Ukraine’s general staff also said the total numbers of tanks and armoured combat vehicles destroyed had reached 5,415 and 10,132 respectively.
"He who is not everyday conquering some fear has not learned the secret of life."
— Defense of Ukraine (@DefenceU) November 17, 2023
Ralph Waldo Emerson
The combat losses of the enemy from February 24, 2022 to November 17, 2023. pic.twitter.com/AhL4M6LUdC
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy has said his country’s air defence capabilities are increasing.
The comments come after Ukraine said earlier this year that it would be unable to defend its main cities from Russian bombardment without a significant increase in support to strength its air defences.
In response, the UK and others announced they would deliver hundreds of new air defence systems.
Speaking in his nightly address, Zelenskiy said Ukraine was “constantly getting stronger” and thanked “everyone in the world who helps”.
“The geography of our cooperation for the sake of a sky shield for Ukraine is very extensive,” he said.
“Our air defence capabilities are increasing. Of course, this is not yet a hundred percent protection. There is a lot of work to be done.
“Cities like Kharkiv, regions like Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia need more systems, more security. This is the task of all our diplomats, of our entire state.
“I thank everyone who is effective in this.”
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The Kremlin’s spokesperson has said he has “no doubt” Vladimir Putin will still be Russian president after the election in March.
Asked what the next president should be like in an interview with student journalists at the Moscow State Institute for International Relations, Dmitry Peskov said: “The same.”
He then smiled and added: “Or different but the same.
“Putin has not yet announced his intention to run but I sincerely want to believe that he will do that, and I have no doubt that he will win the elections.
“I have no doubt that he will continue to be president.”
Nine people killed in Kherson shelling
At least nine people have been killed in Russian shelling of the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson.
Oleksandr Prokudin, head of the Kherson regional military administration, said hundreds of shells were fired at the city and the surrounding area on Thursday, targeting residential areas, shopping districts, and administrative buildings.
“As a result of Russian aggression, six people died, 10 more were injured, including one child,” he said on Telegram on Friday morning.
He later added that another three women were confirmed to have been killed.
Ukraine says it has carried out 'successful actions' on Dnipro east bank
The Ukrainian armed forces have said they have carried out “successful actions” on the east bank of the Dnipro river.
The river has been the de facto frontline in southern Ukraine since Russian forces withdrew from the Kherson region last November.
Reports this week suggested Ukraine had established a foothold on the eastern side, and on Wednesday the Russian-installed governor of the Kherson region acknowledged the presence of Ukrainian forces in the village of Krynki.
“The Defense Forces of Ukraine conducted a series of successful operations on the left bank of the Dnipro River, along the Kherson front,” read a statement posted to social media by Ukraine’s Marine Corp on Friday morning.
“In cooperation with other units of the Defense Forces, [they] managed to gain a foothold on several bridgeheads.”
A separate statement by Ukraine’s general staff added that “tough battles are going on”.
“One of the main goals of this work is to push the enemy as far as possible from the right bank in order to secure the civilian population from continuous Russian shelling,” it said.
“The farther Russian artillery stands from Kherson – the better.”
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Opening summary
Hello and welcome to the Guardian’s live coverage of the war in Ukraine.
More than 2,400 children from Ukraine aged between six and 17 years old have been taken to 13 facilities across Belarus since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, according to research published by Yale University.
Ukraine’s prosecutor general said in May that he was investigating the alleged role of Belarus in the forced transfer of more than 19,000 identified children from Russian-occupied territories since the conflict broke out, including to Russia.
The total number is estimated by some experts and organisations to be far higher.
The findings by the Humanitarian Research Lab at Yale School of Public Health, which receives US State Department funding, shared with Reuters are the most extensive to date about the alleged role of Belarus in the Russian relocation programme for Ukrainian children.
In May, the head of the Belarus Red Cross admitted the organisation was involved in bringing Ukrainian children to Belarus from Russian-occupied areas.
In other key developments:
British foreign secretary David Cameron vowed to maintain military support for Ukraine during a surprise visit to Kyiv on Thursday. The visit by Cameron, a former prime minister, came as Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy said that the flow of vital artillery ammunition from western allies had dropped off since the start of the Israel-Hamas war last month. “Our deliveries have decreased,” Zelensky told reporters, referring specifically to 155mm shells that are widely used on the eastern and southern frontlines in Ukraine, saying “they really slowed down”.
Cameron also visited the southern port city of Odesa on his first trip abroad as foreign minister of the UK, which has been a staunch ally of Ukraine since Russia launched a full-scale invasion in February 2022. “We will continue to give you the moral support, diplomatic support, the economic support, but above all, the military support, that you need not just this year, and next year, but for however long it takes,” Cameron said during a meeting with Zelenskiy.
Separately, Zelenskiy told reporters that Russian forces were likely stockpiling missiles for strikes on his country’s energy facilities over the coming winter months. “My estimation is that they are accumulating [missiles], but that they don’t have many more missiles compared to what they previously had,” Zelenskiy said, referring to attacks last year on critical infrastructure.
A Russian court sentenced a St Petersburg artist to seven years in prison in a closely watched trial that has highlighted the severe punishments meted out to ordinary Russians for even small acts of civil protest against the invasion of Ukraine. Aleksandra “Sasha” Skochilenko, an artist, musician and activist, was found guilty on Thursday of “knowingly spreading false information about the Russian army” in March 2022. The artist replaced five price tags in a local supermarket with pieces of paper urging shoppers to stop the war and resist propaganda on television.
Russian shelling killed two people and injured at least 12 on Thursday in different areas of southern Ukraine’s Kherson region, local officials said.
Northrop Grumman is exploring producing 120mm tank ammunition in Poland as the US ally surges defence production capacity, the company’s chief told Reuters. Countries geographically close to Russia such as Poland, Finland and Germany have been exploring deals to build US weapons in Europe, negotiating new deals to buy arms and looking to speed up existing contracts as the war in Ukraine reshaped thinking on the volume of munitions needed in future conflicts.
The European Commission has proposed a 12th round of sanctions against Moscow, including restrictions on scores of individuals apparently including the son of the former president Dmitry Medvedev and a relative of Vladimir Putin. Among the 47 individuals the commission wants added to existing sanctions lists are Putin’s cousin Anna Tsivileva, who chairs the “defenders of the fatherland” foundation that supports Russian soldiers fighting in Ukraine, and Ilya Medvedev, whose name and date of birth match those of the former president’s only son.
The US has imposed sanctions on maritime companies and vessels for shipping Russian oil sold above the G7’s price cap, as Washington seeks to close loopholes in the mechanism designed to punish Moscow for its war in Ukraine. The US Treasury in a statement said it slapped sanctions on three UAE-based companies and three vessels owned by them in the action, accusing the vessels of engaging in the export of Russian crude oil priced above the $60 a barrel cap.
Turkey’s parliament opened a long-delayed debate on Sweden’s Nato aspirations that could strengthen Ankara’s ties with western allies despite its fury over Israel’s war with Hamas. Sweden and Finland dropped decades of military non-alignment and sought the nuclear protection afforded by the US-led defence organisation in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year.
Polish trucking representatives said they would expand a border protest against Ukraine by blocking another crossing for cargo vehicles over what they call unfair competition from the war-torn country. Kyiv had said earlier Thursday that it failed to reach an agreement in new talks with Polish transport companies that have been blocking cargo at three major border points for almost two weeks.
A grandson of French war hero and former president Charles de Gaulle said he wanted Russian citizenship, saying Russia offered “great possibilities”. Pierre de Gaulle is little known in France, but Russian state media have heralded his pro-Kremlin statements as proof that leading western voices support Moscow’s assault in Ukraine. “It would be an honour for me to acquire Russian citizenship,” he told a journalist at the St Petersburg cultural forum, Russian agencies said.
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