Russian forces continued to lay siege to Mariupol but pulled back from positions near Kyiv, while the governor of a Russian region accused Ukrainian helicopters of attacking an oil plant inside Russia.
Look back on Friday's developments in our live blog.
Key events
- International Red Cross 'hopeful' of access to Mariupol, refused permission to bring in aid
- Fire at oil depot in Russia
- Australia to send Bushmaster armoured vehicles to Ukraine
- Pentagon says it's unclear if Russia's convoy to Kyiv still exists
- Zelenskyy fires two Ukrainian security officials
- Ukraine says most Russian forces have left Chernobyl nuclear plant
- Where to find yesterday's blog
Live updates
By Simon Smale
We're going to wrap today's blog up here
For more details on all the latest from Ukraine, check out this summary of the day's events.
We'll be back tomorrow with more live updates.
By Simon Smale
Europol sends teams to Ukraine border
Europol, the European Union police agency, has sent teams to countries bordering Ukraine in an effort to protect refugees from criminals.
The Hague-based agency said Friday its teams are supporting local authorities by running secondary security checks and seeking to “identify criminals and terrorists trying to enter the EU in the refugee flow and exploit the situation.”
The Europol teams are operating in Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Moldova and are planning to deploy to Romania, too.
The agency says they also are gathering intelligence to feed into criminal threat assessments across Europe.
The United Nations says that more than 4 million people have fled Ukraine since Russia invaded on February 24.
Police in Norway say they have also intensified information and intelligence gathering as a result of the security situation in Europe.
The move is to help “prevent and detect crime as a result of the migration flow and the tense security policy situation,” National Police Commissioner Benedicte Bjørnland said in a statement Friday.
She added that “we are particularly aware of the crime challenges that may arise as a result of the migration flow.” She did not elaborate.
More than 7,800 Ukrainians have sought asylum in Norway.
Reporting by AP
By Simon Smale
China blames US, NATO growth for Ukraine war
China is accusing the United States of instigating the war in Ukraine and says NATO should have been disbanded following the break-up of the Soviet Union.
“As the culprit and leading instigator of the Ukraine crisis, the US has led NATO to engage in five rounds of eastward expansion in the last two decades after 1999,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian told reporters at a daily briefing on Friday.
“The number of NATO members increased from 16 to 30, and they have moved eastward more than 1,000 kilometers to somewhere near the Russian border, pushing Russia to the wall step by step,” Mr Zhao said.
While China says it is not taking sides in the conflict, it has declared a “no limits” partnership with Moscow, has refused to condemn the invasion, opposes sanctions on Russia and routinely amplifies Russian disinformation about the conflict, including not referring to it as an invasion or a war in keeping with Russian practice.
Mr Zhao’s comments came as Chinese and European Union leaders were meeting virtually for a summit at which Ukraine was expected to dominate discussions.
EU officials say they are looking for a commitment from China not to undermine sanctions and assist in efforts to halt the fighting.
Reporting by AP
By Simon Smale
By Simon Smale
Who is buying Russian oil?
Australia, Britain, Canada and the United States have imposed outright bans on Russian oil purchases following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, but the European Union remains divided.
The bloc's 27 members have been unable to agree on an embargo, with Germany warning against hasty steps that could push the economy into recession, and, some countries, such as Hungary, opposing any bans.
Germany, however, aims to phase out Russian oil imports by the end of this year, officials said, as does Poland.
Many buyers in Europe are shunning Russian crude voluntarily to avoid reputational damage or possible legal difficulties.
Russian oil product exports from the Black Sea port of Tuapse in March were just half of those planned, falling to 738,000 tonnes as European buyers stayed away.
Meanwhile, India and China, which have refused to condemn Russia's actions, continue to buy Russian crude.
Lured by steep discounts following Western sanctions on Russian entities, India has bought at least 13 million barrels of Russian crude oil since late February.
That compared with some 16 million barrels for the whole of 2021, data compiled by Reuters shows.
Reporting by Reuters
By Simon Smale
By Simon Smale
International Red Cross 'hopeful' of access to Mariupol, refused permission to bring in aid
The International Committee of the Red Cross says its teams are moving towards Mariupol but have not been permitted to bring humanitarian aid supplies to the city.
A spokesperson said the organisation remained "hopeful" of access.
"We have permission to move today and we are en route to Mariupol," ICRC spokesperson Ewan Watson said.
"We are hopeful it (the safe passage operation) will commence today."
There are 54 buses involved in the operation, led by three cars with nine staff onboard, which will escort the buses, as well as an unknown number of private cars, out of the city.
The buses will evacuate residents from Mariupol and, although there is no destination decided for evacuees, there are no plans for them to be removed outside of Ukraine.
Earlier Petro Andryushchenko, an aide to the mayor of Mariupol, told Reuters the city remained closed for anyone trying to enter and it was "very dangerous" for anyone trying to leave.
Mr Andryushchenko said Russian forces had since Thursday been preventing even the smallest amount of humanitarian supplies reaching trapped residents, making clear a planned "humanitarian corridor" had not been opened.
Reporting by Reuters
By Simon Smale
Russia withdrawing some troops from Kyiv region
Russia is continuing to withdraw some of its forces from around Kyiv region and they are heading towards Belarus, the local governor said on Friday.
"We are observing the movement of joint [Russian] vehicle columns of various quantities," Governor Oleksandr Pavlyuk wrote on the Telegram messaging app.
He said Russian forces had left the village of Hostomel, next to Kyiv's international airport, which was the scene of fierce fighting early in the war.
But he said the Russians were digging in at the town of Bucha.
Reuters was unable to verify the information.
Yesterday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned that Russian withdrawals from the north and centre of the country were just a military tactic to build up strength for new attacks in the south-east.
“We know their intentions,” Mr Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address to the nation.
“We know that they are moving away from those areas where we hit them in order to focus on other, very important ones where it may be difficult for us.
“There will be battles ahead,” he added.
By Simon Smale
Gazprom to continue providing natural gas to Europe
Russian state-owned energy giant Gazprom said on Friday it was continuing to supply natural gas to Europe via Ukraine in line with requests from European consumers.
The company said requests stood at 108.4 million cubic metres (mcm) for April 1, down from 109.5 mcm a day earlier.
Meanwhile, Austrian energy firm OMV said it had contacted Gazprom about making payment in roubles.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is demanding foreign buyers pay for gas in roubles from Friday or risk having their supplies cut off.
OMV's chief executive, Alfred Stern, stressed in an interview with Die Presse that there was no basis for payment in any currency other than the euro.
"The phase-out of Russian gas has its price. We must be aware of that," he said.
He added that OMV's investments in Russia were a "bad investment" and that the company "misjudged the risk".
Reporting by Reuters
By Simon Smale
Russian troops remain in exclusion zone around Chernobyl
Some Russian troops were still in the "exclusion zone" around the defunct Chernobyl nuclear power station on Friday morning, the head of the Ukrainian agency in charge of the zone said.
Yevhen Kramarenko confirmed on national television that the Russian forces that occupied the power station after invading Ukraine on Feburary 24 had left the plant itself but said some troops had been seen in the exclusion zone outside the territory of the decommissioned power station.
Ukraine’s state power company, Energoatom, said the pullout at Chernobyl came after soldiers received “significant doses” of radiation from digging trenches in the forest in the exclusion zone around the closed plant.
The International Atomic Energy Agency said it could not independently confirm the exposure claim.
The exclusion zone was established around the plant soon after a reactor there exploded in the world's worst nuclear accident in 1986.
Reporting by Reuters/AP
By Simon Smale
Russian troops withdrawing from Chernihiv in northern Ukraine
Russian forces are withdrawing from the Chernihiv region of northern Ukraine but have not yet left entirely, the local governor said in a video address on Friday.
"Air and missile strikes are [still] possible in the region, nobody is ruling this out," Governor Viacheslav Chaus said.
He added that Ukrainian forces were entering and securing settlements previously held by Russian troops.
Mr Chaus said it was still too early for Ukrainian forces in the Chernihiv region to let their guard down as Russian troops "are still on our land."
Russia said on Tuesday it would scale down operations in the Chernihiv and Kiev regions.
Reporting by Reuters
By Simon Smale
Photos from Belgorod fuel depot fire
The Russian Emergency Ministry Press Service has released some photos of the fuel depot that is on fire in Belgorod, that it says is as a result of a Ukrainian air strike.
Belgorod is around 34km into Russian territory from the Russia-Ukraine border from the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv.
Regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov accused Ukraine of flying helicopter gunships into Russian territory and striking the facility, which is run by Roseneft.
Two people are reported to have been injured by the strike which, if it is confirmed, would be the first of its kind by Ukranian forces on Russian soil.
Reporting by AP
By Simon Smale
Russia thanks India for response to conflict
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Friday Russia appreciated India's response to the Ukraine crisis.
"We appreciate that India is taking this situation in the entirety of facts and not just in a one-sided way," Mr Lavrov said in his opening remarks during a meeting with his Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar.
"We continue to implement projects in the areas of energy, science and technology, outer space, pharmaceutical industry."
Mr Lavrov's mission to shore up support from a country Moscow has long-regarded as a friend comes a day after senior US and British officials held talks in New Delhi to persuade the Indian government to avoid undermining Western sanctions.
US Deputy National Security Adviser for International Economics, Daleep Singh said the United States would not set any "red line" for India on its energy imports from Russia but did not want to see a "rapid acceleration" in purchases.
British Foreign Minister Liz Truss also said Britain respected India's decision to buy discounted oil from Russia, while advocating stringent sanctions on Russia relating to the ports, gold and energy sectors.
India has bought millions of barrels of crude oil from Russia at a discount since the war erupted, justifying the purchases as beneficial for its citizens and something that even European countries are doing.
Defence analysts say New Delhi can ill-afford to alienate Russia, which has been its biggest arms supplier for decades.
Russian and Indian officials have declined to share the agenda of Mr Lavrov's visit. He was due to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi before departing on Friday evening.
Reporting by Reuters
By Jacqueline Howard
Humanitarian corridor out of Mariupol in doubt, Ukraine official says
An aide to the mayor of Mariupol told Reuters the city remains closed for anyone trying to enter and is "very dangerous" for anyone trying to leave.
Petro Andryushchenko said Russian forces had since Thursday been preventing even the smallest amount of humanitarian supplies reaching trapped residents, making clear a planned "humanitarian corridor" had not been opened.
"The city remains closed to entry and very dangerous to exit with personal transport," he said on the Telegram messaging app.
"In addition, since yesterday the occupiers have categorically not allowed any humanitarian aid - even in small quantities - into the city."
A convoy of buses that set out for Mariupol on Thursday did not reach the city, Ukrainian officials said.
The Mariupol mayor said this week that up to 170,000 residents were trapped there with no power and dwindling supplies.
Repeated attempts to organise safe corridors have failed, with each side blaming the other.
The governor of the Luhansk region in eastern Ukraine said separately that he hoped five safe corridors would be opened on Friday to towns and cities in his region.
By Jacqueline Howard
Russian youths dread being sent to 'special operation' in annual conscription rounds
Today marks an annual spring conscription in Russia, which aims to round up more than 100,000 men for a one-year tour of military duty.
As Moscow's forces bog down in Ukraine, many young Russians of draft age are increasingly jittery about the prospect of being sent into combat, the Associated Press reports.
All Russian men aged 18-27 must serve one year in the military, but a large share avoid the draft for health reasons or deferments granted to university students.
Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu pledged this week that the new recruits won't be sent to front lines or “hot spots.”
“I don't trust them when they say they won't send conscripts into combat. They lie all the time,” said Vladislav, a 22-year-old. He asked that his last name not be used, fearing reprisals.
Even though President Vladimir Putin and his officials say that conscripts aren’t involved in what Russian authorities call “the special military operation in Ukraine,” many appeared to have been taken prisoner during its initial days. Videos emerged from Ukraine of captured Russians, some being shown calling their parents, and were put on social media.
The mother of one of the prisoners said she recognized her 20-year-old draftee son in a video even though he was shown blindfolded.
“I recognized him by his lips, by his chin. You know, I would have recognized him by his fingers,” said the woman, who asked to be identified only by her first name, Lyubov, for security reasons. "I breastfed him. I raised him.”
The Defence Ministry was forced to walk back its statements and acknowledge that some conscripts were sent to Ukraine “by mistake” and were taken prisoner while serving with a supply unit away from the front.
By Jacqueline Howard
By Jacqueline Howard
Russian attack in Mykolaiv kills 24 people
Ukrainian emergency services say the death toll from an attack on the Mykolaiv Regional State Administration has risen to 24.
It said a rocket directly hit the government building in the southern Ukrainian city. Twenty-three bodies were pulled from the rubble and one person rescued died in hospital. A further 33 people were injured.
By Jacqueline Howard
Ukraine forces retake key villages along Kyiv supply route
British military intelligence says Ukrainian forces have retaken the villages of Sloboda and Lukashivka to the south of Chernihiv and located along main supply routes between the city and Kyiv.
"Ukraine has also continued to make successful but limited counter attacks to the east and north east of Kyiv," Britain's Ministry of Defence said.
Chernihiv and Kyiv have been subjected to continued air and missile strikes despite Russian claims of reducing activity in these areas, the ministry added.
By Jacqueline Howard
Fire at oil depot in Russia
A large fire has broken out at an oil depot in Belgorod, just over the Russian border from Kharkiv.
Via his Telegram account, governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said two employees of the depot had sustained non-life-threatening injuries.
He later blamed an air strike from two Ukrainian attack helicopters for the blaze.
By Jacqueline Howard
More about the Bushmaster vehicles Australia has promised Ukraine
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's appeal for Australian-made armoured vehicles has been answered, with Prime Minister Scott Morrison confirming Bushmasters will be sent to assist the fight against Russian forces.
A Bushmaster is an armoured vehicle designed to carry up to 10 troops.
The vehicles are designed for all environments and are blast resistant.
A Bushmaster can sustain itself for a period of up to three days, with a central tyre inflation system allowing it to continue to travel with punctures.
Retired Australian Army lieutenant general Peter Leahy says Australia has Bushmasters to spare.
"We've got over 1,000 of them, in fact a number of them are surplus to requirement in the Australian Army [and] they're also used by the Air Force," he said.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison hasn't said how many vehicles will be sent, or when they will be flown to Ukraine.
They will be flown over on Australia's C-17 Globemaster aircraft.
