Ukraine-Russia war latest: Kyiv says it is in strongest frontline position ‘in a year’ due to drone tactics

Ukrainian drones have struck the Gorky oil pumping station in Russia’s Nizhny Novgorod region overnight, an official from Ukraine’s SBU security service said on Thursday.

Three oil tanks were damaged as a result of the strike and a massive fire broke out, covering an area of 20,000 square metres, the source said.

The station is an important part of Russia’s oil transport system and supports the operation of main oil pipelines, the source added.

Prince Harry has been speaking during his surprise visit to Kyiv.

Directly addressing Russian president Vladimir Putin, the Duke of Sussex said: “President Putin, no nation benefits from the continued loss of life we are witnessing.

“There is still a moment – now – to stop this war, to prevent further suffering for Ukrainians and Russians alike, and to choose a different course.”

He also made reference to the “American leadership” but did not mention Donald Trump by name, saying it was a “moment for America to show that it can honour its international treaty obligations”.

Harry said: “The United States has a singular role in this story. Not only because of its power, but because when Ukraine gave up nuclear weapons, America was part of the assurance that Ukraine’s sovereignty and borders would be respected.

“This is a moment for American leadership – a moment for America to show that it can honour its international treaty obligations – not out of charity, but out of its enduring role in global security and strategic stability.”

The 1986 Chernobyl disaster fueled global fears about nuclear power and slowed its development in Europe and elsewhere. Four decades later, however, there’s a revival around the world, a trend that has been given a big boost by war in the Middle East.

Over 400 nuclear reactors are operational in 31 countries, while about 70 more are under construction. Nuclear power accounts for producing about 10% of the world’s electricity, equivalent to about a quarter of all sources of low-carbon power.

Nuclear reactors have seen steady improvements, adding more safety features and making them cheaper to build and operate.

A woman living in a Russian-controlled part of southern Ukraine has been found guilty of treason and sentenced to 14 years in prison for buying war bonds to support the Ukrainian military, the court that convicted her said on Thursday.

The Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia District Court said the woman had used a Ukrainian mobile app to purchase bonds worth 270,080 roubles ($3,600), and had been caught by the FSB security service.

It identified her only by the initial B, and said she was a Russian citizen. People living in parts of Ukraine that Russian forces have captured in more than four years of war have effectively been forced to take Russian citizenship if they want to retain access to healthcare, pensions and property rights.

Human rights group Memorial, which Russia this month branded an extremist movement, named the woman as 66-year-old Larisa Belyayeva, a doctor from the village of Lyubimovka.

Ukraine began issuing war bonds in February 2022, immediately after Russia’s full-scale invasion, in order to fund its defence.

With reporting from Reuters

A 90bn euro EU loan for Ukraine could be revived after outgoing Hungarian prime minister vowed to lift his veto on the plan.

EU leaders had decided in December to jointly borrow the money to lend to Ukraine to fund its defence for this year and next, using frozen Russian funds as a potential backstop to ensure that Moscow ultimately pays.

How will Europe lend the money?

The EU will provide interest-free loans for the years 2026-2027 based on EU borrowing on capital markets backed by the EU budget headroom, which is the difference between the maximum amount the EU can ask EU members to contribute and the amount it needs to cover foreseen expenses. Hungary, Slovakia and Czechia secured exemptions.

Ukraine is not expected to pay the money back itself, with the capital only due for repayment once Russia pays war reparations after the conflict ends. Russia has central bank assets that are frozen in the EU which are worth around 210bn euros that could be used for the repayment.

The 90bn is to cover two-thirds of Ukraine’s needs for the next two years, estimated at 135 billion euros in total. Of the total, Ukraine will get 45 billion euros in 2026 and another 45 billion in 2027. Each year, 28 billion euros will be for spending on military needs and 17 billion on general budget needs.

EU ​ambassadors have approved the disbursement of a promised €90bn ($106bn) loan to Ukraine as well as a new package of sanctions against Russia ⁠after Hungary lifted its veto, the bloc’s Cypriot presidency said.

The European Union’s 27 member states are now expected to sign off on the deal by this afternoon, a spokesperson for the Cypriot presidency ⁠added.

The EU agreed last year ​on ⁠the loan to keep Ukraine liquid through 2026 and 2027. But Hungary then blocked ⁠the deal after Russia-friendly prime minister Viktor Orban accused Ukraine of ​sabotaging ⁠the transit of Russian ‌oil through a pipeline damaged by Russian attacks.

The spat had also delayed the new sanctions against Russia, which the EU ‌had initially aimed to adopt to ‌mark the fourth anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022.

The stumbling block was finally removed when Hungary’s oil group MOL yesterday said it had been informed that the Ukrainian operator of the Druzhba pipeline was ready to resume crude oil transit to Hungary and Slovakia.

MOL said it expected the first shipments via the pipeline to arrive in Hungary and Slovakia by Thursday at the latest. Both countries remain reliant on ‌Russia for much of their energy.

Ukraine’s prospects for ​receiving the loan had already improved when Orban ‌lost Hungary’s parliamentary election ⁠on 12 April. The leader of the winning party, ⁠Peter Magyar, has said he will no longer block the EU funds for ‌Kyiv, though he ​is only expected to take ‌power next month.

Russian drones attacked civilian transport infrastructure in Ukraine’s Zhytomyr region west of Kyiv, killing one, the regional governor said on Thursday.

Governor Vitaliy Bunechko said that rescue workers, repair crews and law enforcement agencies were working at the site of the attack.

He shared the details about the attack on Telegram.

The Duke of Sussex has made an unannounced visit to Ukraine to “remind people back home and around the world” of the country’s war with Russia.

Harry was filmed by ITV News arriving at Kyiv railway station on Thursday morning, stepping off an overnight train from Poland and greeting people on the platform.

“It’s good to be back in Ukraine,” he said, according to the broadcaster.

The duke said he wanted “to remind people back home and around the world what Ukraine is up against and to support the people and partners doing extraordinary work every hour of every day in incredibly tough conditions”.