8 killed in Kyiv region after drone strike on residential building, Ukrainian officials say
From CNN's Svitlana Vlasova in Kyiv
At least eight people were killed in a Russian drone strike in the Kyiv region, Ukraine's state emergency service said in a statement on Wednesday.
"As of 18:00 (6:00 p.m.), 8 people died, 7 people were injured and 1 person was rescued," the statement read. "Four people are likely to be under the rubble."
Earlier in the day, the state emergency service told CNN a Russian drone strike hit a residential building in the town of Rzhyshchiv, which is about 50 miles (85 km) southeast of the capital of Kyiv.
Andrii Niebytov, the Kyiv region police chief, previously said that a drone had struck a dormitory building.
Police and emergency services evacuated more than 200 people after the strike, Niebytov said.
3:29 p.m. ET, March 22, 2023
At least 1 dead and 34 injured in Zaporizhzhia missile strikes
From CNN's Olga Voitovych
Rescuers work at a site of a residential building damaged by a Russian missile strike in Zaporizhzhia on March 22. (Reuters)
At least one person was killed and 34 were injured by missile strikes in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine’s State Emergency Service said on Wednesday.
Among the injured are three children, it said.
According to the Ukrainian prosecutor’s office, Russian forces fired at least six missiles at Zaporizhzhia and the strikes caused significant damage to civilian infrastructure.
Mykhailo Podolyak, a senior Ukrainian official and adviser to President Volodymyr Zelensky, previously said the strikes deliberately targeted civilians.
5:31 p.m. ET, March 22, 2023
Risk of nuclear conflict at highest level in decades, Russian minister says
From CNN's Radina Gigova
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov delivers a speech during a session of the UN Conference on Disarmament in Geneva, Switzerland on March 2. (Fabrice Coffrini/AFP/Getty Images)
The risk of a nuclear conflict is now at its highest level in decades, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said Wednesday, according to state news agency TASS.
"I would not like to indulge in a discussion whether the probability of a nuclear conflict is high today, but in any case it is higher than anything that we have seen over the past decades, let's put it this way," Ryabkov said during a discussion on the platform of the Valdai discussion club, according to TASS.
Ryabkov reiterated that Moscow is not departing "from the key provisions, doctrinal and political ones." He said non-nuclear states, especially those not aligned with the United States, should "more loudly to call to order politicians in the Western capitals, including Washington, who have absolutely lost their sense of reality."
President Vladimir Putin said he was suspending his country's participation in the New START nuclear arms reduction treaty with the United States during his much-delayed annual State of the Nation Address to the Federal Assembly last month.
2:49 p.m. ET, March 22, 2023
Zelensky says it was distressing to see aftermath of Russian bombardment in Donbas
CNN’s Vasco Cotovio and Victoria Butenko
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Wednesday it was distressing to see the aftermath of Russian bombardments after he made an unannounced visit to the eastern Donbas region.
“It is distressing to look at the cities of Donbas, to which Russia has brought terrible suffering and ruin,” Zelensky said in his nightly address. “The almost constant, hourly air-alert siren in Kramatorsk, the constant threat of shelling, the constant threat to life..." “Right there, in Donbas, in the Kharkiv region — wherever Russian evil has come, it is obvious that the terrorist state cannot be stopped by anything other than one thing — our victory,” he added.
Zelensky said he felt there was hope in every eastern Ukrainian city that was not under occupation, adding that it was an honor to support those closest to the front.
“I started from the front, from the Bakhmut area. It is an honor for me to support our warriors who are defending the country in the toughest frontline conditions,” he said. “I presented state awards, thanked our soldiers for their bravery, for their resilience, for Ukraine — which we are preserving thanks to such heroes, thanks to each and every one of them who is fighting against Russian evil.”
The Ukrainian president also visited injured soldiers to pay tribute.
“I wished them — and I'm sure on behalf of all of you, all of our people — a speedy recovery,” he said. “I thanked the doctors and nurses. And now I want to thank everyone who supports our soldiers recovering from injuries. Who helps with everything necessary, our doctors, everyone who works for rehabilitation after injuries.”
He finished his address by marking the beginning of Ramadan and remembering the Crimean Tatars, currently under Russian occupation.
“May the power of prayer in this holy month help us cleanse Ukraine of Russian godless evil, of those who truly believe in nothing, and that is why they are capable of such terror," he said. “Let the next Ramadan begin in peace and on the entire Ukrainian land free from Russia. Ramadan Mubarak!”
1:53 p.m. ET, March 22, 2023
Russian "offensive capacity" in Bakhmut is decreasing but fierce fighting continues, Ukrainian military says
From CNN’s Vasco Cotovio and Olga Voitovych
Ukrainian servicemen head toward Bakhmut in BMP infantry fighting vehicles on March 22. (Aris Messinis/AFP/Getty Images)
Ukraine says the offensive capacity of Russian forces in and around Bakhmut is diminishing, but cautions that it remains one of the areas where the fiercest fighting is ongoing.
“The Russian Federation continues its armed aggression against Ukraine, focusing its main efforts on attempts to completely seize Donetsk and Luhansk regions within the administrative borders,” the Ukrainian military’s General Staff said in an evening update on Wednesday. “The fiercest fighting is taking place in the southern and northern parts of Bakhmut.”
“In the Bakhmut direction, the enemy continues to conduct offensive actions, but its offensive potential is decreasing,” it added.
According to the Ukrainian military, Russian forces are continuing to expend large numbers of men trying to re-take the city.
“The enemy keeps trying to take the city, losing a significant amount of manpower, weapons and military equipment,” it said on Wednesday. “Our defenders have been repelling numerous enemy attacks around the clock in the areas of Bakhmut, Bohdanivka and Predtechyne.”
The Ukrainian military went on to say Moscow’s armies were on the defensive in some areas in the southern part of Ukraine.
“The enemy is conducting defensive actions in the Zaporizhzhia and Kherson directions. Areas near the contact line came under fire,” it said.
1:12 p.m. ET, March 22, 2023
Blinken: European countries who are party to the International Criminal Court should arrest Putin if he visits
From CNN's Jennifer Hansler
Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a Flag Day ceremony in Moscow in 2021. (Mikhail Svetlov/Getty Images)
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday that any European country that is a party to the International Criminal Court (ICC) should arrest Russian President Vladimir Putin if he visits.
“I think that anyone who is a party to the court and has obligations should fulfill their obligations,” Blinken said in response to a question from Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham at a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing.
Blinken would not say whether the US authorities would turn the Russian president over to the ICC if he were to come to this country, noting that the US is not a party to the court.
“I don’t think he has any plans to travel here soon,” Blinken said.
Putin has scarcely left Russia in recent years, and he has not traveled to the US since 2015.
Some more context: Last week, the ICC issued an arrest warrant against Putin for his role in a vast Kremlin-wide effort to forcibly deport Ukrainian children into Russia.
A report released in mid-February from the US State Department-backed Conflict Observatory by the Yale Humanitarian Research Lab found that more than 6,000 children — ranging in age from mere months old to 17 — have been in Russian custody at some point during the course of the war, although the "total number of children is not known and is likely significantly higher than 6,000."
It identified 43 facilities that are a part of the vast network where the children were sent, stretching “from one end of Russia to the other," including Russian-occupied Crimea, the "eastern Pacific Coast — closer to Alaska than it is to Moscow," and Siberia, Yale Humanitarian Research Lab's Nathaniel Raymond said.
"The primary purpose of the camps appears to be political reeducation," he said, noting that at least 32 of the facilities identified in the report "appear to be engaged in systematic re-education efforts that expose children from Ukraine to Russia-centric academic, cultural, patriotic, and in two cases, specifically military education."
12:45 p.m. ET, March 22, 2023
Sweden’s parliament has approved its NATO accession as it awaits ratification, government says
From CNN’s Allegra Goodwin in London
Sweden’s parliament formally approved the country’s accession to NATO on Wednesday, the government said in a statement.
The Nordic country requested to join the military alliance alongside its neighbor Finland last year, citing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but its application must be ratified by all 30 current member states before it can become a member itself.
Where things stand: The memberships of both countries are currently being stalled by Turkey and Hungary, both of which have yet to ratify. While Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan announced last week that his parliament would begin ratifying Finland’s NATO bid, and Hungary���s ruling party said it would also approve Finland’s accession, neither country has begun the process for Sweden.
Erdogan has said Turkey will not change its approach to Sweden unless “positive steps” are taken. The country has accused Sweden of harboring members of terror groups, something Sweden denies.
12:26 p.m. ET, March 22, 2023
Zaporizhzhia strike "certainly could be" targeted at civilians, White House says
From CNN's Betsy Klein
John Kirby, national security council coordinator, speaks during a news conference at the White House in Washington, DC, on March 21. (Al Drago/Bloomberg/Getty Images)
The Biden administration stopped short of accusing Russia of a missile strike targeting civilians in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, but said it “certainly” is consistent with previous such attacks.
“It certainly could be” targeted at civilians," National Security Council coordinator for strategic communications John Kirby told CNN’s Kate Bolduan.
“It's obviously right out of the Russian playbook to target civilian infrastructure and to show no regard for avoiding the targeting of civilians. So it absolutely could be,” Kirby said, adding that the US does not yet have “tactile information specifically about that strike.”
Kirby also discussed news that the US is expediting the shipment of Patriot missile systems and Abrams to Ukraine. While he said there has “always” been a sense of urgency, he said the Ukrainians are reacting “well” to training and that the accelerated delivery is a “good thing.” He reiterated that there is “no change” to the US policy on sending F-16 jets at this time.
“The weeks and months ahead are going to be critical. We want to make sure that the Ukrainians have everything that they need in order to be successful,” he said.
The focus of the next weeks, Kirby said, are the “Four A’s”: armor, artillery, air defense, and ammunition, pointing to “more open terrain, combined arms warfare” ahead.
Pressed by Bolduan on the possibility of China arming Ukraine, Kirby said there is “no indication they are moving in that direction or have made a decision in that regard.”
He said he is “not aware” of any plans by China’s President Xi Jinping to speak with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky but reiterated the US hope that such a conversation will take place.
11:50 a.m. ET, March 22, 2023
House foreign affairs chair announces oversight hearing on US aid to Ukraine
From CNN's Jennifer Hansler
Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, participates in the House Republicans news conference following the House Republican Conference meeting in the Capitol on February 2, 2022. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc/Getty Images).
Mike McCaul, the chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, will hold a hearing next Wednesday on “Oversight, Transparency, and Accountability of Ukraine Assistance,” the committee announced Wednesday.
The acting inspector generals from the State Department, Defense Department and the US Agency for International Development are slated to testify.
The billions of dollars in US assistance to Ukraine were expected to come under increased scrutiny by the Republican-led House.
The inspectors general have not announced any instances of misuse of US provided funds or weapons. There are dozens of ongoing projects from the Office of Inspector General related to oversight of US assistance to Ukraine.
Some background: On Monday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced the 34th drawdown of arms and equipment for Ukraine valued at $350 million. The US has committed more than $32 billion in Presidential Drawdown funds to aid Ukraine since Russia's full-scale invasion began more than one year ago.
