April 28, 2022 Russia-Ukraine news

Ukraine's General Prosecutor Iryna Venediktova said a number of Russian soldiers allegedly involved in human rights abuses in the town of Bucha have been identified.

In a Facebook post, Venediktova said 10 soldiers had been identified as being "involved in torture of peaceful civilians" during their occupation of the town.

The soldiers were of various ranks, she said, naming four privates, four corporals and two sergeants. They were from the 64th Separate Motor Rifle Brigade, she added.

Earlier this month, the 64th Brigade was awarded an honorary title by Russian President Vladimir Putin, who praised their “great heroism and courage” and awarded the unit the title of ‘Guards’ for “protecting Russia’s sovereignty.” 

“This high distinction recognizes your special merits, great heroism and courage in defending your Fatherland, and in protecting Russia’s sovereignty and national interests,” the congratulatory statement from Putin read. 

In a "very short time, the investigation established that during the occupation of Bucha, they took unarmed civilians hostage, didn’t provide food and water to them, kept them on their knees with their hands tied and their eyes covered in duct tape, and they were mocked and beaten. They used fists and the stocks [of their guns]. They beat information about the location of the [Ukrainian] Armed Forces and the Defense Forces out of people, and some were tortured for no reason at all," Venediktova said.

"Russian servicemen threatened to kill the victims and even imitated the execution of their prisoners by firing in their direction," she added. "The role and participation of each of them in these crimes has been established through investigative and coordinated work of prosecutors and police officers ... We are currently checking on their involvement in the killings in Bucha."

US President Joe Biden is set to deliver remarks on offering support for Ukraine at 10:45 a.m. ET at the White House.

Biden is expected to discuss a proposal he will send to Congress Thursday outlining a legislative package to further pressure Russian oligarchs over Russia's war in Ukraine, the White House said.

The package — developed through an interagency process including the Treasury Department, Justice Department, State Department and Commerce Department — will "establish new authorities for the forfeiture of property linked to Russian kleptocracy, allow the government to use the proceeds to support Ukraine and further strengthen related law enforcement tools," the White House said in a fact sheet.

The proposal is expected to come alongside a request for Congress to approve new supplemental aid for Ukraine, including military, economic and humanitarian assistance that is expected to last through the end of the fiscal year.

While members have agreed that more money for Ukraine is necessary, it's still not clear how the supplemental would move swiftly through Congress nor is it clear how quickly this proposal on oligarchs could move. A likely path would be to tie the two pieces of legislation together, but Republican and Democratic leaders are in the early stages of talks on how to pass the broader funding for Ukraine.

One element of the package would streamline the federal government's efforts for seizing the assets of Russian oligarchs by creating a new administrative process through Treasury and the Justice Department "for the forfeiture of property in the United States that is owned by sanctioned Russian oligarchs and that has a connection to specified unlawful conduct." It would make it a criminal offense for people to "knowingly or intentionally possess proceeds directly obtained from corrupt dealings with the Russian government."

Read more about the package here.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres visited the war-ravaged Ukrainian town of Bucha, which was associated with war crimes by Russian troops in Ukraine on Thursday. Guterres toured residential areas in the suburb of Kyiv and nearby town of Borodyanka, that were left largely in ruins when Russian troops pulled out.  

The UN chief is expected to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba later in the day. Ukrainian authorities have previously requested UN to guarantee safe passage for civilians in Mariupol. Some officials in Kyiv have criticized Guterres’s itinerary after the UN chief met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Tuesday.

It's now nine weeks since Russia invaded Ukraine. Russian forces are currently "exerting intense fire," as a multi-pronged offensive takes shape across three regions, according to Ukraine's military leadership.

The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said Thursday that the Russians are focusing on trying to make a breakthrough in the Izium area of eastern Ukraine. 

Here are today's latest developments:

Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova condemned unexplained explosions in Transnistria as “acts of terrorism” on Thursday. Speaking at a regular briefing in Moscow, Zakharova expressed Russia’s concern about “escalating tensions” in the breakaway territory within Moldova.

Ukraine has previously described the blasts as a planned provocation by Russian security services. 

A series of incidents occurred in parts of Russian-backed Transnistria, which has housed Russian troops for decades, sparking fears that Moscow's war could soon stretch beyond Ukraine and create a new theatre of conflict in eastern Europe.

Two radio towers in the territory were damaged in blasts on Tuesday, the Transnistrian Ministry of Internal Affairs said in a statement. On Monday, explosions were heard in Transnistria's capital Tiraspol, near the Ministry of State Security building.

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“We consider these acts of terrorism aimed at destabilising the situation in the region and we expect a thorough and objective investigation into all circumstances around what happened,” Zakharova said Thursday.

The spokeswoman dismissed “sensational” claims about Russia preparing an offensive using its troops stationed in the region, as well conscripts from Transnistria. She accused Kyiv of “dragging” Transnistria into the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, and attempting to “use the situation to strengthen a “blockade pressure” on the region.

Ukraine blamed Russia for firing cruise missiles Tuesday at a bridge across the estuary of the Dniester River, suggesting Moscow is attempting to cut off the southwestern corner of Ukraine that borders Moldova.

Transnistria is unrecognized by the international community, which considers it a part of Moldova. But the Moldovan capital, Chisinau, essentially has no control over the territory, which declared itself a republic more than three decades ago.

Local authorities in the Ukrainian city of Mariupol have warned that it's vulnerable to epidemics given the appalling sanitary conditions in much of the city and the fact that maybe thousands of bodies remain uncollected.

An estimated 100,000 people still live in the city, despite weeks of heavy fighting, and the absence of a centralized water supply.

On Thursday, the city council said there was a risk of cholera, dysentery and Escherichia coli -- a bacterial infection that can cause severe stomach pain, bloody diarrhea and kidney failure.

The council said there were intolerable living conditions that would worsen as temperatures warmed.

Mariupol mayor Vadym Boychenko said: "The occupiers cannot provide the existing population with food, water and medicine. Or [are] just not interested in it. They block all evacuation attempts. And without that, people will die. After all, now in the ruined Mariupol medieval living conditions. Immediate and complete evacuation is needed."

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov has warned against "pumping up" Ukraine and other countries, such as Georgia and Moldova, with weapons, saying this threatens security of the European continent and provokes instability in the region.

“The tendency to pump up Ukraine and other countries with weapons is the type of actions that threaten the security of the continent and provoke instability,” Peskov told reporters on Thursday's regular conference call when asked to comment on remarks about supporting Ukraine and other countries in the region with arms made by British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss on Wednesday.

Truss suggested Wednesday it is essential to arm not just Ukraine with heavy weapons, but also Moldova, Georgia and the Western Balkans.

“Some argue we shouldn’t provide heavy weapons for fear of provoking something worse. But my view, is that inaction would be the greatest provocation,” Truss said.

“And we must ensure that, alongside Ukraine, the Western Balkans and countries like Moldova and Georgia have the resilience and the capabilities to maintain their sovereignty and freedom,” she added.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said Thursday that should Finland and Sweden apply to join the alliance it would be able to "find arrangements" to help the two countries during the interim period before they became formal members.

When asked at a news conference about what kind of guarantees and help the alliance could give the countries before they officially joined, Stoltenberg replied: "The reality is that Finland and Sweden are already close to NATO and we work together, we operate together, we exercise together."

"I am confident that there are ways to bridge that interim period in a way which is good enough and works for both Finland and Sweden."

Although previously non-aligned with NATO, Finland and Sweden are edging ever closer toward joining the US-led military alliance.

Russia has previously warned that such moves could lead to a more aggressive stance with regard to its hypersonic or nuclear weapons.

Speaking at a visit to the European Parliament in Brussels alongside President Roberta Metsola, Stoltenberg stressed should Finland and Sweden decide to apply to NATO, the accession process would “go quickly."

“We are in dialogue with Finland and Sweden, and it’s their decision. But if they decide to apply, Finland and Sweden will be warmly welcomed, and I expect the process to go quickly,” he told the press.

Two of Europe’s leading energy companies have confirmed they are in talks with Gazprom about how to pay for Russian gas, while complying with EU sanctions and Russia’s new rules demanding that all gas be paid for in rubles.

German firm Uniper said: “We consider a payment conversion compliant with sanctions law and the Russian decree to be possible. Uniper will continue to pay in euros. Uniper is in talks with its contractual partner about the concrete payment modalities and is also in close coordination with the German government.”

And Austrian firm OMV said: “We have analyzed the Gazprom request about payment methods in light of the EU-sanctions and are now working on a sanctions-compliant solution."

This comes after Russia said it has cut off natural gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria, dramatically escalating its response to Western sanctions imposed on Moscow over the war in Ukraine.

Russian state energy giant Gazprom said in a statement Wednesday that it had fully halted supplies to Polish gas company PGNiG and Bulgaria's Bulgargaz after they refused to meet a demand by Moscow to pay in rubles, rather than euros or dollars.

Uniper, which is one of Europe’s leading gas companies, added: “For our company and for Germany as a whole, it is not possible to do without Russian gas in the short term; this would have dramatic consequences for our economy.”

Under the new Russian payment scheme, energy importers have had to open two bank accounts with Gazprombank -- a foreign currency account and a ruble account. Buyers are required to deposit foreign currency (dollars or euros) with Russia’s Gazprombank, which then converts it into rubles for onward payment to Moscow.

A European Commission document release last week advised that it “appears possible” to comply with the new Russian rules without getting into conflict with EU law.

On Wednesday, the Hungarian Foreign Minister confirmed to CNN that his country will use the payment scheme put in place by Moscow to pay for its oil and gas.