Ukraine war latest: Ukraine to let murderers into army as prisoners offered freedom (2024)

Russian forces have taken control of two villages in eastern Ukraine, the Russian defence ministry has claimed.

In a statement, it said Russian troops had taken over Stepova Novoselivka in the northeastern Kharkiv region, and Novopokrovske in Donetsk, in the east.

Kyiv has not yet responded to the claims.

It comes after Moscow said yesterday that its forces had seized two further villages east of the city of Donetsk (see 6.22 post).

Supermarket staff are working to remove debris caused by a Russian missile strike on the Ukrainian city of Dnipro this morning.

Regional governor Serhiy Lysak said earlier that a ballistic missile attack on the central city injured seven people, including a teenage boy.

The attack also damaged a supermarket and nearby homes, he said.

Ukraine is "ramping up the production of drones" and other weapons in the face of increasing Russian attacks.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy said "everything" was needed on the battlefield to save lives "through the power of technology".

In a post on social media, he said the war showed technology was an "effective defence against aggression".

Kyiv has increased its production of drones, "certain types of weapons, ammunition, equipment, demining machines and many other essential items", the president said.

Ukraine has dismissed reports it is reinforcing troops along its border with Belarus, saying the claims are part of an "information operation".

The defence ministry in Minsk said recently it had information showing Kyiv had been moving more troops, weapons and military equipment to its northern Zhytomyr region.

The Kremlin responded a short time ago saying it was concerned by the reports.

"It is not the first time Belarus offers information aboutUkraine presenting a threat and strengthening itself... this isanother part of the information operation conducted by Belaruswith support by Russia," Ukrainian border guard spokesman Andriy Demchenkotold national TV.

He said the border with Belarus remained "threatening" and Kyiv had necessary forces there to prevent provocations.

Belarus is a close ally of Russia and served as a launchpad for Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

The US is not ready to invite Ukraine to join NATO, Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said.

In a new interview with The Philadelphia Inquirer, the Ukrainian president said the White House under Joe Biden was "not yet ready to give us the invitation".

He also noted recent comments by presidential hopeful Donald Trump, who recently suggested that Kyiv's proposed accession into NATO provoked Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

"Unfortunately, this is the policy of one step forward, two steps back," Mr Zelenskyy told the US news outlet.

"I don't think this is the policy of world leaders. These are the very cautious steps of my de-miners in the minefield."

The Ukrainian leader suggested Kyiv's NATO membership could benefit Russia by giving it "security".

US officials have said the prospect of Ukraine joining the alliance can only be considered when the war is over.

"If the United States is afraid to annoy Putin, and this is the reason why we are not invited, then we ask our strategic partners to give us what would protect us: Patriots, a substantial number of F-16s, and the opportunity to use weapons [inside Russia]," said Mr Zelenskyy.

Two people have been killed and eight more are wounded after a Russian shelling in the eastern Donetsk region, an official has said.

Vadym Filashkin, head of the regional state administration, said Russian forces "bombarded" a residential area of a city early this morning, leaving two women aged 65 and 70 dead.

He said 10 high-rise buildings and an administrative building were also damaged.

"We are establishing the final consequences of the shelling," he said on Telegram.

Russian state media outlets claimed yesterday that American rapper Kanye West visited Moscow.

Mr West, who goes by "Ye", arrived in the Russian capital on a private visit, said Tass, citing the brand team for Russian designer Gosha Rubchinskiy.

Mr Rubchinskiy is the head of design for the rapper's hyper-successful fashion brand Yeezy.

Mr West himself allegedly posted on the Russian social media website VK last night, saying: "Hi, Moscow", according to state media RIA Novosti.

His account on VK is not verified and his visit has not been confirmed by Sky News.

The Ukrainian military has noted further fierce fighting near Donetsk villages claimed by Russia.

The Russian defence ministry said yesterday that Spirne and Novooleksandrivka had been captured by troops (see our 6.22am post for more detail).

The eastern Pokrovsk front, which includes Novooleksandrivka, remained the site of the fiercest fighting, with 42 assaults repelled out of a total of 142 battles over the past day, the Ukrainian military said.

It is not clear whether the Ukrainian military is denying that the villages have fallen into Russian hands, however.

Spirne is located in the east of the Donetsk region, near the border with Ukraine's Luhansk region, while Novooleksandrivka lies some 100km further southwest.

Ukrainian convicts are being offered their freedom in exchange for their service in the war against Russian invaders - including murderers.

Those convicted of rape, sexual assault, murdering two or more people, or crimes against Ukraine's national security aren't eligible.

Journalists from the Associated Press visited a rural penal colony in southeast Ukraine.

They watched as several convicts assembled next to a barbed wire fence to hear an army recruiter offer them a shot at parole.

"You can put an end to this and start a new life," said the recruiter.

"The main thing is your will, because you are going to defend the motherland. You won't succeed at 50%, you have to give 100% of yourself, even 150%."

This comes as Ukraine expands its military draft criteria to cope with mounting losses, battlefield shortages and the need for rest for frontline troops.

And its recruiting efforts have turned, for the first time, to the country's prison population.

Prisoners are able to qualify for their conditional release after an interview, medical exam, and a review of their conviction.

Once screened, paroled inmates are rushed to basic training at camps where they learn how to handle weapons and other combat fundamentals, before joining their units.

More than 3,000 prisoners already have been released on parole and assigned to military units after such recruitment was approved by parliament in a controversial mobilisation bill last month, Ukrainian deputy justice minister Olena Vysotska told AP.

Some 27,000 more inmates could potentially be eligible for the new programme, according to justice ministry estimates.

"A lot of the motivation comes from [inmates] wanting to return home a hero, and not to return home from prison," Ms Vysotska said.

However, Ukrainian officials are keen to draw a distinction between the Russian version of this programme - which saw thousands of convicts join the infamous Wagner mercenary group.

Those convicts-turned-troops were sent to the most brutal battles en masse, but the Ukrainian programme aims to integrate the inmates into regular frontline units.

The country has a prison population of some 42,000, according to figures forwarded by the government to the EU.

These images show members of Ukraine's 110th Colonel-General Marko Bezruchko Separate Mechanised Brigade firing a "vampire" rocket system at Russian troops in Donetsk.

The "Vehicle-Agnostic Modular Palletized ISR Rocket Equipment", or vampire, is a compact and palletised rocket launching platform.

It's capable of converting a standard pickup truck into a launcher.

Several vampire systems where reported to have been included in the latest US aid package for Ukraine.

In our 6.22am post, we reported that Russia claimed to have captured two more villages in the region over the weekend, although this has not been independently verified.