Japan pledges $1 billion to help Ukraine’s neighbors take in refugees
From CNN's Xiaofei Xu in Paris
Japan's Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki delivers a speech at the G7 High-Level Corporate Governance Roundtable in Niigata, Japan, on May 11. (Kazuhiro Nogi/Reuters)
Japan will provide $1 billion to help Ukraine's neighbors in taking refugees from the war-stricken country, Japanese finance minister announced Thursday.
"Besides confirming the results of our financial aids [to Ukraine] so far, we would also like to discuss how to strengthen our cooperation with international financial institutions and help Ukraine's neighboring countries, including in taking in Ukrainian refugees," Japanese Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki told reporters, according to Japanese public broadcaster NHK.
Suzuki was speaking at the G7 Finance Minister and Central Bank chief meeting in Niigata.
"I would like to achieve concrete results and bring them forward to the Hiroshima summit," Suzuki said.
Japan is scheduled to host this year's G7 summit in Hiroshima starting on May 19.
10:01 a.m. ET, May 11, 2023
Artillery and rocket fire intensifies in Zaporizhzhia as Russia claims it’s eliminating Ukrainian positions
From CNN's Katharina Krebs in London and Olga Voitovych in Kyiv
Firefighters work at a site of a residential house destroyed by a Russian military strike in the village of Malokaterynivka, Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, on May 11. (Reuters)
The Ukrainian official leading the regional military administration in Zaporizhzhia, Yurii Malashko, said Thursday that the Russian military had shelled several towns and villages in the region, injuring civilians and damaging property. The Russians have claimed they are eliminating deployment points of the Ukrainian military.
Indirect fire in the region has intensified ahead of what observers expect to be a Ukrainian counteroffensive.
"After 70 attacks, more than three dozen destructions were recorded in 20 settlements," Malashko said on Telegram. "The enemy fired 60 times from artillery, 5 times from multiple rocket launchers, launched 3 air strikes and one missile attack, and carried out one attack from a UAV."
Malashko said that in the village of Malokaterynivka, eight people were injured by cluster shells. Three of them were ambulance workers who went to the scene, he said. There was also damage in the settlements of Huliaipole, Orikhiv and Stepnohirsk.
What Russia says: The Russian Defense Ministry on Thursday issued a statement claiming that Russian air defenses and Akatsiya self-propelled artillery crews had destroyed Ukraine’s temporary deployment point close to Huliaipole. The ministry claimed that an ammunition depot of the Ukrainian’s 102th Artillery Brigade had been destroyed.
"In South Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia directions, the attacks, launched by aviation and artillery of the Vostok Group of Forces have resulted in the neutralisation of the enemy units close to Vuhledar and Prechistivka (Donetsk People's Republic), Malinivka, Huliapole, Novodanilivka and Kamianske (Zaporizhzhia region)," the ministry claimed.
A Russian military blogger said that elsewhere in the south – in Kherson region – the Russian air force had used powerful FAB-500 bombs to attack Ukrainian storage facilities. CNN is unable to independently verify the claim.
9:33 a.m. ET, May 11, 2023
UK confirms donation of Storm Shadow cruise missiles to Ukraine
From CNN's Niamh Kennedy and Lindsay Isaac in London
Visitors pass behind the French made Storm Shadow/Scalp EG cruise missiles at the opening of the five-day Dubai Air Show in Dubai on November 20, 2005. (Rabih Moghrabi/AFP/Getty Images)
The UK has donated Storm Shadow cruise missiles to Ukraine, the British defense ministry confirmed Thursday.
This follows exclusive CNN reporting earlier Thursday that the UK had supplied Ukraine with multiple Storm Shadow cruise missiles, citing conversations with senior Western officials.
The donation of the Storm Shadow missiles "complements" long-range systems previously gifted to Ukraine as well as Ukraine's own Neptune cruise missiles, Ben Wallace told lawmakers Thursday.
"The donation of these weapon systems gives Ukraine the best chance to defend themselves against Russia's continued brutality, especially the deliberate targeting of Ukrainian civilian infrastructure, which is against international law," Wallace said in parliament.
8:43 a.m. ET, May 11, 2023
It’s mid-afternoon in Kyiv. Here’s what you need to know
From CNN staff
For weeks, a question has hung over the war: When will Ukraine launch its long-anticipated counteroffensive? Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky tried to pour cold water on the speculation Thursday, claiming that his forces needed “a bit more time” to wait for equipment to arrive. But, after Ukrainian troops made significant gains around Bakhmut this week, Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin claimed the counteroffensive is already underway.
Here are the latest developments:
Has the counteroffensive begun?: Despite Zelensky’s claims that Ukraine needs “more time” before launching its counteroffensive, Prigozhin said the Ukrainian president is “lying.” “The counteroffensive is in full swing,” he said Thursday. The Ukrainian military confirmed its troops are conducting “effective” advances in the Bakhmut area after inflicting heavy losses on Russian forces, driving them back 2 kilometers (1 mile) on Wednesday.
CNN Exclusive: The United Kingdom has supplied Ukraine with multiple Storm Shadow cruise missiles, giving Ukrainian forces a new long-range strike capability they have yearned for since the start of the war. The new missiles – with a firing range in excess of 250km or 155 miles – could allow Ukraine to strike deep into Russian-held territory in eastern Ukraine. The UK government confirmed CNN’s report Thursday.
Russia hits back: The Kremlin has warned its armed forces will provide an “adequate response” to the UK’s decision to supply these missiles to Kyiv. Spokesperson Dmitri Peskov said Russia’s military will make “relevant decisions” in light of the UK’s move. Moscow also hit out at the International Criminal Court judges who issued an arrest for Russian President Vladimir Putin, placing each of them on Russia’s wanted list.
Zaporizhzhia evacuations: Russian forces have evacuated more than 12,000 people from frontline areas in the occupied Zaporizhzhia region – home to Europe’s largest nuclear power plant – according to Russian officials. Evacuations began last week, amid rumors that Ukraine is preparing to attempt to reclaim the region.
Trump’s remarks: Former President Donald Trump would not say Wednesday night who he thinks should prevail in the war, telling New Hampshire GOP primary voters that he doesn’t “think in terms of winning and losing.” Speaking at a CNN town hall, Trump would not commit to sending further aid to Ukraine, should he win back the presidency. Zelensky has since said he is not worried about the outcome of the 2024 US presidential election and what it could mean in terms of Washington’s support for Kyiv, because he believes Ukraine will win by then.
Cross-border strikes: Russian authorities claimed Ukraine launched several attacks on the border regions of Bryansk and Belgorod on Thursday – the second consecutive day of such allegations. Local governors claimed the alleged attacks caused damage, but there have been no reported casualties in any of the attacks.
8:06 a.m. ET, May 11, 2023
More than 12,000 evacuated from frontline areas in Zaporizhzhia, say Russian officials
From CNN's Olga Voitovych in Kyiv
Russian forces have evacuated more than 12,000 people from frontline areas in the Zaporizhzhia region, a member of the Russian-installed main council of the military-civilian administration Vladimir Rogov said Thursday.
“Over 12,000 residents of frontline districts left for safe areas of Zaporizhzhia region,” Rogov said on his official Telegram account on Thursday. “More than 4,000 of them left by buses and more than 8,000 by their own vehicles.”
CNN could not independently verify the numbers put forward by the local Russian administration.
Rogov called on those still in these areas to take advantage of the opportunity to evacuate under what he called the “temporary relocation program,” with residents being given 10,000 rubles ($130), accommodation and meals.
Some background: Russian authorities began evacuating towns and cities in the occupied region of Zaporizhzhia last week, amid rumors that Ukraine is set to launch a long-anticipated counteroffensive to reclaim territory seized by Moscow’s invasion.
9:57 a.m. ET, May 11, 2023
Wagner chief accuses Zelensky of lying, says Ukraine's counteroffensive already in full swing
From CNN’s Vasco Cotovio in Lisbon and Olga Voitovych in Kyiv
Wagner founder and financier Yevgeny Prigozhin has rejected Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s remarks saying Kyiv still needs “a bit more time” before it launches a much anticipated counteroffensive.
“Zelensky is lying,” Prigozhin said on his official social media channels on Thursday. “The counteroffensive is in full swing.” “In the Artemovsk (Russian name for Bakhmut) direction, AFU (Armed Forces of Ukraine) units are entering the flanks. And, unfortunately, in some places they are successful,” he added.
Prigozhin’s remarks came after Zelensky said in an interview on Thursday his country needed “a bit more time” to allow additional Western supplies to arrive, before they could launch the counteroffensive. The Wagner founder went on to claim Ukrainian forces first had to resolve the situation in and around Bakhmut before trying to advance in other areas.
“That is why the offensive of the AFU has begun. Those units that have been trained, received the necessary weapons, equipment, tanks, everything else, they are already fully engaged,” he said, repeating his complaints against the Russian Ministry of Defense over the lack of ammunition supplies.
“Wagner continues to carry out combat missions in a terrible shortage of ammunition and shell hunger, because the promises made by the Ministry of Defense are not kept.”
What Ukraine says: Ukrainian military officials have previously said the counterattacks around Bakhmut mentioned by Prigozhin are part of a “positional struggle” and not necessarily related to a larger counteroffensive effort.
“Sometimes the enemy has some success after a powerful artillery strike and the destruction of infrastructure, and they can move forward," the spokesperson for the Eastern Grouping of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Serhii Cherevaty said on May 1, explaining the frontline was constantly shifting. "But we counterattack and often win back our positions after inflicting fire on the enemy.”
7:51 a.m. ET, May 11, 2023
Russia will put on its wanted list ICC judges who issued arrest warrant for Putin, official says
From CNN's Radina Gigova
The exterior of the International Criminal Court is seen on March 17, in The Hague, Netherlands. (Pierre Crom/Getty Images)
Russia's Investigative Committee will soon put on the country's wanted list the judges of the International Criminal Court (ICC) who issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin and another official, the chairman of the Investigative Committee Alexander Bastrykin said Thursday, according to state news agency RIA Novosti.
"The Investigative Committee then very quickly opened a criminal case against the chairman and three judges, who actively influenced the adoption of this decision. They will soon be put on the wanted list," Bastrykin said, speaking at the St. Petersburg International Legal Forum.
Some background: The International Criminal Court issued on March 17 an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russia’s children's rights commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova for an alleged scheme to deport Ukrainian children to Russia.
The court said there “are reasonable grounds to believe that Mr Putin bears individual criminal responsibility” for the alleged crimes, for having committed them directly alongside others, and for “his failure to exercise control properly over civilian and military subordinates who committed the acts.”
Some context: The ICC charges were the first to be formally lodged against officials in Moscow since it began its unprovoked attack on Ukraine last year.
The Kremlin has labeled the ICC’s actions as “outrageous and unacceptable.”
7:29 a.m. ET, May 11, 2023
Moscow warns of "adequate response" to UK supply of long-range missiles to Kyiv
From CNN's Anna Chernova
The Kremlin has warned its armed forces will provide an “adequate response’ to the United Kingdom’s decision to supply long-range missiles to Kyiv.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov condemned the move during a conference call with journalists on Thursday, promising a Russian reply.
“This will require an adequate response from our military who will naturally make relevant decisions with this in view,” Peskov added.
Some background: Earlier on Thursday, CNN reported that the United Kingdom had supplied Ukraine with multiple Storm Shadow cruise missiles, citing multiple senior Western officials.
The missiles have a maximum range of 250 km (155 miles) and give Ukrainian forces a new long-range strike capability in advance of a highly anticipated counteroffensive.
UK Defense Secretary Ben Wallace is expected to announce to the House of Commons that the UK is sending Storm Shadow missiles to Ukraine.
The missile is “a real game changer from a range perspective,” a senior US military official told CNN and gives Kyiv a capability it has been requesting since the outset of the war.
7:30 a.m. ET, May 11, 2023
Zelensky dismisses fears over 2024 US presidential election, saying Ukraine will “win by then”
From CNN's Vasco Cotovio in Lisbon
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky pictured in his office in Kyiv, Ukraine, on May 10. (President of Ukraine)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he is not worried about the outcome of the 2024 US presidential election and what it could mean in terms of Washington’s support for Kyiv, because he believes Ukraine will win before then.
“Who knows where we'll be [when the election happens]?” he told European public broadcasters in an interview published on Thursday, according to one of the outlets, the BBC. “I believe we'll win by then.”
Zelensky added that Ukraine continues to enjoy bipartisan support in the US Congress.
Some context: The US has provided significant financial support for Ukraine since Russia launched its invasion. On Tuesday, the US announced a $1.2 billion aid package to Ukraine to support the long-anticipated launch of its counteroffensive against Russian forces. With the new package announcement, the US has committed $36.9 billion in military aid to Ukraine since the beginning of the war in February 2022.
Zelensky’s comments came after former President Donald Trump would not say Wednesday night who he thinks should prevail in the war, instead telling New Hampshire GOP primary voters that he wants “everybody to stop dying” and that he doesn’t “think in terms of winning and losing.”
Speaking at CNN’s town hall, Trump – asked whether he supports providing US military aid to Ukraine – would not commit to sending aid to the war-torn country, should he win the Republican presidential nomination and then the White House.
While Trump said he would meet with Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin and solve the war in Ukraine “in one day, 24 hours,” he would not say whether he believed Putin was a war criminal but that it “should be discussed later.”
