Zelenskyy and Germany’s Scholz discussed additional sanctions on Russia
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz looks on before the weekly cabinet meeting in Berlin, Germany April 6, 2022.
Lisi Niesner | Reuters
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he discussed further sanctions on Russia with his German counterpart Olaf Scholz.
The two spoke of the possibility of new sanctions via phone, as well as additional defense and economic support for Ukraine, Zelenskyy reported via Twitter.
A separate conference call between Zelenskyy and other Ukrainian officials focused on the development of a sixth package of EU sanctions for Russia.
— Natasha Turak
Russia confirms prisoner exchange with Ukraine
A Ukrainian serviceman stands past a handcuffed Russian soldier in Kharkiv on March 31, 2022.
Fadel Senna | AFP | Getty Images
Russian Human Rights Commissioner Tatiana Moskalkova confirmed on Sunday that Russia and Ukraine had carried out a prisoner exchange on Saturday.
Moskalkova said that among those returned to Russia were four employees of state atomic energy corporation Rosatom, soldiers and some other civilians.
“Early this morning they landed on Russian soil,” Moskalkova said in an online post.
On Saturday an exchange of truck drivers between Russia and Ukraine was also conducted, Moskalkova said, with 32 Russian truck drivers, 20 Ukrainians and a number of Belarus nationals exchanged.
— Reuters
Jake Sullivan downplays genocide label, says focus should be on the crimes
U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan speaks to the media about the war in Ukraine and other topics at the White House in Washington, U.S., March 22, 2022.
Leah Millis | Reuters
Editor’s note: Graphic content. The following post contains a photo of civilian casualties in Bucha.
White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan deemphasized the importance of labelling Russia’s atrocities on Ukrainians as “genocide.”
“The label is less important,” Sullivan said on CNN’s “State of the Union.” It shouldn’t distract from the fact that “these acts are cruel and criminal and wrong and evil and need to be responded to decisively.”
The U.S. is still determining whether the actions in Ukraine constitute genocide, Sullivan later said on ABC’s “This Week.”
“I think we can all say that these are mass atrocities. These are war crimes. These are shocking and brutal acts that are completely unacceptable, beyond the pale for the international community. So whatever label one wants to affix to them, the bottom line is this, there must be accountability,” Sullivan said.
(EDITOR’S NOTE: Image depict deaths) Criminalists get from the mass grave the bodies of civilians killed by the Russian army in Bucha, outside of Kyiv, Ukraine April 8, 2022.
Maxym Marusenko | Nurphoto | Getty Images
Before the war began, the Kremlin had planned to target civilians who opposed the invasion, U.S. intelligence has shown. That’s led to “broad-scale war crimes” across the Eastern European nation.
Some Russian troops may also be acting out of frustration, Sullivan told ABC News.
“They had been told they were going to have a glorious victory and just ride into Kyiv without any opposition with the Ukrainians welcoming them,” Sullivan said. “And when that didn’t happen, I do think some of these units engaged in these acts of brutality, these atrocities, these war crimes even without direction from above.”
“But make no mistake, the larger issue of broad-scale war crimes and atrocities in Ukraine lies at the feet of the Kremlin and lies at the feet of the Russian president.”
— Jessica Bursztynsky
UN says 69 children are among the 1,793 civilians killed in Ukraine
Candles, a children’s clothing and shoes are seen during a demonstration organized by the Ukrainian Association in Finland, to honor the memory of the children killed in Mariupol, Ukraine, in Helsinki, on April 10, 2022.
Jussi Nukari | AFP | Getty Images
The United Nations has confirmed 1,793 civilian deaths and 2,439 injuries in Ukraine since Russia invaded its ex-Soviet neighbor on Feb. 24.
Of those killed, the UN has identified at least 69 children.
The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights adds that the death toll in Ukraine is likely higher, citing delayed reporting due to the armed conflict.
The international body said most of the civilian casualties recorded were caused by the use of explosive weapons, including shelling from heavy artillery and multiple launch rocket systems, as well as missiles and airstrikes.
— Amanda Macias
Russia declares missile strikes in Ukraine’s Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk and Mykolaiv regions
Russia’s military declared missile strikes on Ukraine’s eastern Dnipropetrovsk and Kharkiv regions and southern Mykolaiv region Sunday. Russian defense ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said in a statement:
“During the night in the village of Zvonetske — Dnipropetrovsk region — high-precision sea-based missiles destroyed the headquarters and base of the Dnipro nationalist battalion, where reinforcements from foreign mercenaries arrived the other day.”
“High-precision air-launched missiles in the area of the settlement of Stara Bohdanivka, Mykolaiv region and at the Chuhuiv military airfield [in Kharkiv region] destroyed launchers of Ukrainian S-300 anti-aircraft missile systems identified by reconnaissance,” the statement added.
A couple hugs while walking past a building that was heavily damaged by shelling, as Russia’s attack on Ukraine continues, in Kharkiv, Ukraine, April 10, 2022.
Alkis Konstantinidis | Reuters
CNBC was unable to independently verify the claims, but Ukrainian military spokespeople said there has been frequent shelling in the Dnipropetrovsk region for the past 24 hours.
Moscow says it is not targeting civilians, despite well-documented evidence to the contrary.
— Natasha Turak
Satellite images show convoy of armed forces heading towards Donbas region
Satellite images from Maxar Technologies show a convoy of military forces heading south toward the Donbas region on April 8.
A satellite image shows armoured vehicles at the northern end of a military convoy moving south through the Ukrainian town of Velykyi Burluk, Ukraine, April 8, 2022.
Maxar Technologies | Reuters
A satellite image shows armoured vehicles and trucks of a military convoy moving south through the Ukrainian town of Velykyi Burluk, Ukraine, April 8, 2022.
Maxar Technologies | Reuters
A satellite image shows armoured vehicles and trucks at the southern end of a military convoy moving south through the Ukrainian town of Velykyi Burluk, Ukraine, April 8, 2022. Picture taken April 8, 2022.
Maxar Technologies | Reuters
— Maxar Technologies via Reuters
Nine humanitarian corridors in eastern Ukraine agreed for Sunday
A young girl sits on a suitcase before the train leaves the eastern city of Kramatorsk, in the Donbas region on April 3, 2022.
Fadel Senna | AFP | Getty Images
Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk announced an agreed nine humanitarian corridors for Sunday via a Telegram post. The news comes as thousands of people desperately try to flee Ukraine’s east in anticipation of a major battle in the Donbas.
One corridor will run in the Donetsk region from Mariupol to Zaporizhzhia, by private vehicle only. Three other corridors have been established to the Zaporizhzhia region from Berdiansk, Tokmak and Energodar, running by both bus and private transport. Five corridors will be open in the Luhansk region, Vereshchuk detailed.
There is no corridor from the southern city of Melitopol, which is under Russian control.
— Natasha Turak
Russia seeks to rebuild troop numbers with retired soldiers, U.K.’s MoD says
Russia’s military is aiming to increase its troop strength with soldiers discharged in the last decade after suffering heavy losses in its invasion of Ukraine, the U.K.’s Ministry of Defence said in its daily intelligence update on Twitter Sunday.
“In response to mounting losses, the Russian armed forces seek to bolster troop numbers with personnel discharged from military service since 2012,” the bulletin read.
“Efforts to generate more fighting power also include trying to recruit from the unrecognised Transnistria region of Moldova,” it added.
NBC could not immediately verify the report.
— Natasha Turak
Zelenskyy renews call for immediate embargo on Russian oil, says Ukraine can’t wait
Ukraine’s president has renewed calls for the “whole civilized world” to immediately ban Russian oil as “Ukraine does not have time to wait.”
In his nightly address, Volodymyr Zelenskyy said: “Action must be taken immediately… And the oil embargo should be the first step.”
It must be carried out “at the level of all democracies, the whole civilized world,” he said. “Then Russia will feel it. Then it will be an argument for them — to seek peace, to stop pointless violence.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addresses nation as Russia’s offensive enters day 45 in Kyiv, Ukraine on April 09, 2022.
Ukrainian Presidency | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images
Zelenskyy has been pressing world leaders to impose a full embargo on Russian energy for weeks now.
“Oil is one of the two sources of Russian self-confidence, their sense of impunity,” he said in the late night address. “Another source — gas — will also be shut down over time. It’s just inevitable.”
But the Ukrainian leader stressed the urgency, saying that “Ukraine does not have time to wait. Freedom does not have time to wait.”
— Joanna Tan
Zelenskyy calls on other countries to follow UK on increasing aid
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson walk at the Independence Square after a meeting, as Russia’s attack on Ukraine continues, in Kyiv, Ukraine April 9, 2022.
Ukrainian Presidential Press Service | Reuters
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on Western nations to increase their support for the embattled country after British Prime Minister Boris Johnson pledged more military and financial aid.
The two leaders met in Kyiv earlier in the day, leading Britain to increase support for the country.
“It’s time to impose a full embargo on Russian energy, to increase the supply of all weapons to us,” Zelenskyy said.
—Jessica Bursztynsky