Ukraine war latest: Putin sacks minister in new sign of shift in war strategy; European country now pushing to let Ukraine strike deep into Russia (2024)

The former commander of Russia's 58th army, Ivan Popov, has been arrested on suspicion of "large scale fraud", state-run TASS agency is reporting.

TASS has not provided any details of the investigation into Popov's activities.

We'll bring you more on this story as we get it.

We reported earlier this morning (see 7.29 post) that Ukrainian officials had said their forces shot down 28 out of 29 drones used by Russian forces in an overnight attack on seven regions.

However, at least seven people were injured in a strike in Kharkiv, which also damaged four private residences and 25 trucks and buses.

Footage from the scene shows firefighters battling flames in the wake of the attack.

We reported in our 12.00 post about the visit to Kyiv of Germany's foreign minister, in an effort to lend support to Ukraine's war on Russia.

However, it now appears Germany is set to offer assistance beyond the symbolic, with a source telling Reuters the country plans to ramp up military aid for Ukraine by another €3.8bn (£3.25 billion).

So far, Berlin has earmarked €7.1bn (£5.98bn) for Kyiv with weapons and ammunition this year, but the money has already been almost completely allocated to projects, Bild newspaper reported

It added that Defence Minister Boris Pistorius had asked for the additional funds and Finance Minister Christian Lindner had signalled his backing, pending final approval by parliament in June.

A finance ministry source did not confirm the exact number but added that support for Ukraine would not fail because of the ministry.

According to the report, Mr Pistorius has requested €15bn (£12.82bn) be allocated for military aid for Kyiv in Germany's 2025 budget, which is being negotiated at the moment.

As Russia continues to establish momentum in its offensives around Kharkiv, the war in Ukraine has entered an important phase.

Readers have been sending in their questions to our senior correspondents and military experts for their take on the changing battlefield environment.

Today, Peter asks:

Would US A10 Warthogs make any difference to the war in Ukraine? The US has excess stock and is decommissioning them now. They are cheaper than the F-16s, with a shorter learning curve. I know the US military was against sending some over at the beginning of the war, but now?

Military analyst Sean Bellhad this to say:

Thank you, Peter, for this interesting question.

History shows that conducting any form of military action without a credible combat air capability is very difficult. Russia is using its air force assets to pound the Ukrainian frontline, and although Ukraine has used Western surface-to-air missiles to great effect - shooting down around 10% of Russia's fighter jets - the Russian fighter air capability presents a formidable threat to any Ukrainian offensive.

The quickest way to provide Ukraine with the air support it requires would be via a NATO or Western-led no-fly zone. However, to date, there has been limited Western appetite to risk an escalation of the war to a direct conflict between NATO and Russia.

Instead, the West has agreed to provide F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine, but only when they have enough pilots trained to operate these Western aircraft, and when the logistics support and weapons are also available.

Providing Ukraine with an F-16 combat capability has taken time, and it is still not clear when the aircraft and supporting logistics will be deployed into battle, or how the F-16s will be used. One reason the F-16s were selected for Ukraine was their availability - it is the most widely used fighter jet of its generation - as that also means there is a ready supply of spares.

Most important, the F-16 is multirole. It is capable of conducting air defence missions - shooting down enemy aircraft - along with bombing missions, and it has the speed and agility to ensure survivability.

The US A-10 Warthog is an immensely capable aircraft, but it is optimised for Close Air Support - close-proximity support of ground forces. At this role it is very effective, but the platform has no air defence capability, and by modern fighter-jet standards, it is very slow - a third of the speed of many Russian fighters. That would make it very vulnerable to Russian attack if deployed into battle without a comprehensive package of air support.

Once the war is over, Ukraine will need to rebuild its own combat air capability, and might benefit from the A-10's unique capabilities. But for now, the F-16 provides Ukraine with the best prospect of a near-term combat-effective combat air capability.

Germany's foreign minister has arrived in Kyiv today in the latest public display of support for Ukraine by its Western partners - although deliveries of promised weapons and ammunition have been slow and have left Ukraine vulnerable to a recent Russian push along parts of the frontline.

Annalena Baerbock renewed Berlin's calls for partners to send more air defence systems, as Russia bombards Ukraine with missiles, glide bombs and rockets.

Germany is the second-biggest supplier of military aid to Ukraine after the United States.

Ukraine's depleted troops are trying to hold off a fierce Russian offensive along the eastern border in one of the most critical phases of the war, as it stretches into its third year.

Germany recently pledged a third US-made Patriot battery for Ukraine, but Kyiv officials say they are still facing an alarming shortfall of air defences against the Russian onslaught.

The Kremlin's forces have used their advantage in the skies to debilitate Ukraine's power grid, hoping to sap Ukrainian morale and disrupt its defence industry.

Ms Baerbock, accompanied by Ukrainian energy minister Herman Halushchenko, toured a thermal power plant in central Ukraine that was heavily damaged in April.

Missiles supplied by the United States were used to strike Russian-occupied Ukranian region Luhansk, a Moscow-installed official has said.

The head of theLuhansk region, Leonid Pasechnik, said today thatUkrainehad attacked it the previous day with ATACMS, wounding eight people.

The claim of the attack on the city of Sverdlovsk could not be independently verified.

Finland's government has proposed emergency legislation today to block asylum seekers entering across its vast and often snow-bound border with Russia.

Helsinki believes Moscow is promoting the migration due to political antagonism since theUkrainewar.

Finland shut the 830-mile frontier last year after increased arrivals from countries including Syria and Somalia, soon after Helsinki joined NATO.

The Kremlin denies weaponising migration, claiming the West is engaged in a smear campaign.

The draft law proposed by the right-wing coalition acknowledges that turning migrants back without processing asylum applications would breach Finland's international rights commitments.

But, Prime Minister Petteri Orpo said, it would be temporary and only activated in exceptional circ*mstances.

We reported last week on the appointment of Andrey Belousov as Russia's new defence minister.

Analysts at the time said the decision to install an economist with no military experience indicated that Vladimir Putin was taking significant steps towards mobilising the Russian economy and defence industrial base to support a protracted war in Ukraine and possibly prepare for a future confrontation with NATO.

Seemingly in line with this move, the Russian president yesterday fired deputy defence minister Colonel General Yury Sadovenko and replaced him with former deputy economic minister and current federation council accounts chamber auditor Oleg Savelyev.

The Institute for the Study of War, a US-based thinktank, said: "Russian milbloggers observed that Savelyev's appointment is consistent with the Kremlin's effort to improve the wartime economy, given that Savelyev has an extensive background in economics and experience in overseeing the audits of defence, national security, and law enforcement activities."

According to ISW, the milblogger added that Mr Belousov was beginning to form his own team within the Russian MoD. Some of those close to former defence minister Sergei Shoigu may soon resign, it has been suggested.

Mr Putin also dismissed presidential Advisor Alexandra Levitskaya yesterday, although the reason for his firing is "unclear", the organisation added.

Much has been made in recent months of Russia's apparently successful efforts to circumvent the plethora of Western sanctions imposed following their invasion of Ukraine.

In the latest response to this happening, US treasury secretary Janet Yellen has urged European bank executives this morning to step up their efforts to comply with moves to shut down Russia's evasion of sanctions.

She said at the start of a meeting with bankers that the secondary sanctions authority, implemented last December, had frustrated Russia's efforts to procure goods needed for its war in Ukraine, but that more work was needed.

"I urge all institutions here to take heightened compliance measures and to increase your focus on Russian evasion attempts," Ms Yellen said in prepared remarks.

"I ask that you ensure that your global sanctions compliance policies are stringently applied by your branches and subsidiaries abroad."

A longstanding point of contention since the war in Ukraine started has surrounded the issue of how the country should be permitted to use the weapons it receives from its Western supporters.

Mindful of the risks of an escalation that could draw NATO into a wider conflict, the major donors to Ukraine such as the US and UK have so far insisted that their weapons are not used to launch strikes into Russian territory.

While there has been a degree of broad contention around this policy, a minister from one European country is now suggesting it should be abandoned if Kyiv is to be given the best chance of defeating its invading forces.

Lithuanian foreign minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said restrictions such as those imposed by the US on using long-range ATACMS missiles inside Russia were a "mistake."

"From the beginning, we have made the mistake of limiting the Ukrainians because it could be seen as an escalation," he said in an interview with French TV station LCI.

Ukrainian officials are reportedly trying to convince Washington to lift the ban - and Mr Landsbergis said such decisions were "dominated by fear of Russia".

"The Ukrainians must be allowed to use the equipment provided to them so that they can achieve strategic objectives," he said.

"They must be able to strike Russian territory, supply lines, and military units preparing to attack Ukraine.

"Only one side has rules imposed on it. We must abandon these rules that we created."