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A Russian aircraft was intercepted by RAF and German fighter jets near Estonian airspace in the first joint exercise between the two Nato allies.
Two British and German Typhoon jets were scrambled on Tuesday when a Russian air-to-air refuelling aircraft failed to communicate with Estonian air traffic control.
The UK Ministry of Defence stressed the “routine” nature of the mission, but it comes amid tensions between the West and Russia over the invasion of Ukraine.
It comes as Moscow’s ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov said Russia views the incident involving one of its Su-27 fighter jets and a US military drone over the Black Sea as a provocation.
“The American UAV deliberately and provocatively was moving towards Russian territory with transponders turned off,” Mr Antonov said in remarks posted on his embassy’s website, referring to the drone as an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).
It follows as a US surveillance drone crashing into the Black Sea after it was intercepted by Russian fighter jets, Washington has said.
While there have been other such intercepts, the “reckless” incident was noteworthy because it was “unsafe and unprofessional” and caused the downing of a US aircraft, the White House said.
The Ukrainian troops being ‘sent to death’ in Bakhmut
Ukrainian troops have told of being “sent to death” in Bakhmut – the small eastern city at the centre of Russia’s ever-intensifying winter campaign.
Amid reports of ”heavy losses” within Moscow’s ranks, Kyiv forces have spoken of their own desperate fight for survival against Russia’s “infinite” stocks of artillery and personnel.
“When they drive us to Bakhmut, I already know I’m being sent to death,” one Ukrainian soldier told The Kyiv Independent during a short stay in nearby Kramatorsk, some 25km west of the front line.
“(The Russians) keep firing at us, but we don’t have artillery – so we have nothing to attack them back with,” said Volodymyr, whose surname was withheld to protect his identity. “I don’t know if I will return or not. We are just getting killed.”
Russia’s advance has relied heavily on members of the Wagner group – often referred to as Vladimir Putin’s “private army” — who have made slow gains in Bakhmut, but at an immense cost.
Moscow first attempted to win the brutal conflict with a “human wave” of assaults using battalions of convicts, before sending in elite mercenary troops.
It comes after president Volodymyr Zelensky and his top military command agreed to continue to defend Bakhmut.
“It’s a pity that probably 90 per cent of our losses are from artillery – or tanks and aviation. And much less (casualties) from shooting battles,” Valeriy, another solider, told the news site a few hours after leaving Bakhmut.
He said “only a few” of the original 27 members of his platoon got out of the city with him, but explained that most of them were wounded, not killed.
“The Russians have so many weapons, and there are so many of them,” Valeriy said. “They are firing at us all the time. Sometimes, you hear an incoming (shell) every second.”
German arms industry seeks clarity on Ukraine weapons orders
Germany’s defence industry says it stands ready to ramp up its output, including the kinds of arms and ammunition needed by Ukraine, but needs clarity about what governments want before investing in further production capacity.
Ukraine became the world’s third largest importer of arms in 2022 after Russia’s invasion triggered a big flow of military aid to Kyiv from the United States and Europe, according to Swedish think tank SIPRI.
More on this story here:
Russia accuses US of ‘direct participation in war’ after drone collision
Russia says it will try to retrieve the remains of a US military surveillance drone that fell into the Black Sea after an incident involving Russian fighter planes, accusing Washington of “directly participating” in the war in Ukraine.
Kremlin security council secretary Nikolai Patrushev told the Rossiya-1 TV channel: “I don’t know whether we will be able to retrieve it or not, but that it has to be done. And we’ll certainly work on it. I hope, of course, successfully.”
“Secondly, regarding the drone - the Americans keep saying they’re not taking part in military operations. This is the latest confirmation that they are directly participating in these activities - in the war,” he said.
Latest pictures from the area of the heaviest battles in Bakhmut
World should move on from Ukraine war, says India’s G20 negotiator
Russia’s war in Ukraine has brought the world to a standstill when urgent action is needed to address growing global poverty, India’s G20 summit negotiator Amitabh Kant said on Wednesday.
Kant’s comments follow two back-to-back G20 ministerial meetings in India in the last three weeks overshadowed by the war, which entered its second year last month.
India, which holds the bloc’s presidency this year, has sought to highlight the economic impact of the conflict as well as issues such as climate change and poorer countries’ debt.
“Europe cannot bring growth, poverty, global debt, all developmental issues to a standstill across the world,” Kant told reporters.
“Especially when the south is suffering, especially when 75 countries are suffering from global debt, especially when one-third of the world is in recession, especially when 200 million people have gone below poverty line. Can that one war bring the entire world to a standstill?”
“Nutrition has been impacted, health outcomes have been impacted, learning outcomes have been impacted, people have become stunted and wasted and we are just concerned with one Russia and Ukraine war,” Kant said. “The world needs to move on and Europe needs to find a solution to its challenges.”
Putin set to host Syrian leader Assad at the Kremlin
Russian President Vladimir Putin is set to host Syrian leader Bashar Assad for talks in the Kremlin on Wednesday that are expected to focus on rebuilding Syria after a devastating civil war.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the two leaders would talk about “postwar reconstruction and the continuation of the peace process in all of its aspects with an emphasis on the absolute priority of Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
More from the AP here:
£11bn boost for defence budget over the next five years, says UK chancellor
British chancellor Jeremy Hunt has confirmed the government would add £11bn to the defence budget over the next five years.
Jeremy Hunt said: “Today, following representations from our persuasive defence secretary, I confirm that we will add a total of £11bn to our defence budget over the next five years and it will be nearly 2.25 per cent of GDP by 2025.
“We were the first large European country to commit to 2 per cent of GDP for defence and will raise that to 2.5 per cent as soon as fiscal and economic circumstances allow.”
Erdogan indicates he will ratify Finland’s Nato bid
Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan has indicated that he would send ratification of Finland’s Nato membership to parliament soon, saying that he would “keep his promise”.
“Mr President (Niinisto) will come to Turkey on Friday and we will meet. After that, we will fulfil our promise,” Erdogan told reporters on Wednesday, when asked whether he would send ratification of Finland’s Nato bid to Turkish parliament next week.
Finland’s Niinisto is due to visit Istanbul on 16-17 March.
“Positive messages will be given to Finland’s president during his visit,” the second official said.
Pope urges 'respect' for Orthodox monastery facing eviction in Kyiv
Pope Francis has called for “respect” of religious sites in Ukraine, as he mentioned the monastery from which the Russian-aligned Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) is facing eviction.
Ukrainian authorities have given the UOC a 29 March deadline to vacate its headquarters in the historic Kyiv Pechersk Lavra complex, in the latest move against a denomination the government says is pro-Russian and collaborating with Moscow.
Referring specifically to the Lavra monastery, Francis asked “the warring parties [in Ukraine] to respect religious sites”, and praised people who devote their lives to prayer, “be they of whatever denomination”.
The pope made the remarks during his weekly address to crowds in St Peter’s Square. In an apparent slip up, he referred to the “nuns” of the monastery, which is actually home to male Orthodox priests.
In pictures: Azovstal defenders remembered
Members of the Association of Azovstal Defenders' Families and activists hold posters during a rally to commemorate the fallen soldiers and prisoners of war.
Ukrainian fighters of Mariupol's Azovstal steel works, who spent months defending the steel plant, surrendered in May last year during the Russian siege.
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2023-03-15 15:21:07Z
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