Russia's war in Ukraine

By Aditi Sangal, Rhea Mogul, Lianne Kolirin and Ed Upright, CNN

Updated 6:49 p.m. ET, June 24, 2022
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9:27 a.m. ET, June 24, 2022

All pledged rocket systems will be in Ukraine by mid-July, US defense official says

From CNN's Michael Conte and Barbara Starr

The first batch of four High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems that the US pledged to Ukraine are now in the country, and the newly announced batch of four HIMARS will be delivered by “mid-July,” according to a senior US defense official.

Another platoon of Ukrainians is in training to operate the systems, the official told reporters on a background call.

9:29 a.m. ET, June 24, 2022

G7 foreign ministers say Russia is to blame for exacerbating food insecurity

From CNN's Sharon Braithwaite in London

Russia's war against Ukraine is exacerbating food insecurity, the G7 foreign ministers said Friday in a joint statement.

The ministers reiterated their condemnation of the war and called on Moscow "to cease its attacks and threatening actions and un-block the Ukrainian Black Sea ports for food exports."

"In today’s meeting the G7 Foreign Ministers of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America, and the High Representative of the European Union, reaffirmed in the strongest terms their condemnation of Russia’s continued war of aggression against Ukraine," according to the joint statement.

A Russian soldier guards a pier with grain storage silos in the background at Mariupol Sea Port, Ukraine, on June 12.
A Russian soldier guards a pier with grain storage silos in the background at Mariupol Sea Port, Ukraine, on June 12. (AP)

The ministers said that in addition to Russia's blockade of ports, troops are bombing grain silos and damaging Ukraine's agricultural infrastructure.

"Ministers rejected Russia’s false narrative and disinformation on sanctions. All G7 sanctions include exemptions to allow Russian food and agricultural products to get to global markets," according to the statement.

The foreign ministers pledged to support Ukraine with military and defense assistance "for as long as necessary."

8:26 a.m. ET, June 24, 2022

International partners "united" in fight against looming food crisis, German foreign minister says

From CNN's Nadine Schmidt and Claudia Otto in Berlin

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, right, and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, left, address journalists following a meeting at the Foreign Ministry in Berlin, Germany, on June 24.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, right, and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, left, address journalists following a meeting at the Foreign Ministry in Berlin, Germany, on June 24. (Bernd von Jutrczenka/AFP/Getty Images)

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said Friday international partners are working together in the fight against the looming food crisis caused by Russia's war in Ukraine.

''We are working together against Russia's cynical grain war that threatens to destabilize countries,'' Baerbock told reporters at a joint news conference with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, adding, ''This difficult time is also a time of almost unprecedented closeness and unity.''

''We will not allow this war to starve the world,'' Baerbock said, adding, ''There is insecurity in the world regarding delivery, especially of grains, and payment.'' 

Baerbock said the top priority of Friday's food security conference hosted by Germany is to set up reliable transport routes, including the opening of transport via sea and rail, to allow grain from Ukraine to be exported.

The German foreign minister also said with the initiative of the US, temporary silos will be built in Ukraine to store and export grain to avert a global food crisis.

9:49 a.m. ET, June 24, 2022

It's mid-afternoon in Kyiv. Here's what you need to know

After months of grueling fighting, Ukrainian forces are withdrawing from the city of Severodonetsk, a key strategic stronghold in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine. A regional Ukrainian military chief accused Russia of destroying most of the city's infrastructure during an intense shelling campaign.

Here are the latest headlines on Russia's war on Ukraine:

  • Several Ukrainian units still remain in Severodonetsk, as the withdrawal is expected to last a few days, head of the local district military administration, Roman Vlasenko, told CNN.
  • Ukrainian forces in the city held on much longer than many observers anticipated, but the military has clearly now decided that there was nothing more to defend -- and that hundreds of civilians sheltering at a chemical plant were in greater danger every passing day, writes CNN's Tim Lister.
  • Ukraine's long-term goal of joining the European Union received a boost Thursday, after the bloc's 27 member states agreed that the country should be given candidate status — a significant step on the path to full membership. 

  • German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock accused Russia of using ''hunger as a weapon of war'' and holding ''the whole world hostage,'' ahead of a key gathering on Friday in Berlin.
  • Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says his country is “grateful” to US President Biden and the American people for the latest package of $450 million in military aid.
  • As he marked four months since Russia began its invasion, Zelensky wrote on his official Telegram channel on Friday: “Everything changed for Ukraine four months ago. We became a country in army boots. A country in tanks, aircraft, ships. A country in trenches and shelters.”
  • A Russian-installed politician in the occupied southern Ukrainian city of Kherson was killed on Friday, according to Russian state news agency RIA Novosti. Ukrainian officials claimed responsibility.
7:46 a.m. ET, June 24, 2022

"We became a country in army boots," Zelensky says, observing four months of war

From CNN's Olga Voitovych

As he marked four months since Russia began its invasion, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says his nation “became a country in army boots.”

“Everything changed for Ukraine four months ago. We became a country in army boots. A country in tanks, aircraft, ships. A country in trenches and shelters,” Zelensky wrote on his official Telegram channel on Friday.

“Our way of life changed, but not our worldview. The path on which we are going to the goal changed, but the goal remained the same,” he continued

“We are fighting for our freedom and our land. We are fighting for the future of our children and grandchildren, for their life and opportunity to build a new Ukraine,” Zelensky added.

Russia began its invasion of Ukraine four months ago on Feb. 24.

9:49 a.m. ET, June 24, 2022

Lavrov claims EU and NATO making "coalition" to "essentially" fight war with Russia

From CNN’s Anna Chernova

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov claimed Friday that the EU and NATO are gathering a "coalition" to "essentially" prepare for a war with Russia.

Commenting on Ukraine and Moldova joining the EU, Lavrov said the EU is not a military-political bloc, therefore, unlike NATO, the development of its relations with other countries does not create any threats or risks for Russia.

However, Russia perceives the rhetoric of the union had been increasingly aggressive and “Russophobic,” Lavrov said at a joint press conference with his Azeri counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov in Baku.

The European Union, together with NATO, is gathering a sort of modern coalition to fight, essentially, a war with the Russian Federation,” Lavrov said, adding Russia will “monitor this very closely.”
France's President Emmanuel Macron, left, President of the European Council Charles Michel, center and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, right, attend a press conference after a European Council meeting where they granted Ukraine and Moldova EU candidacy status in Brussels, Belgium, on June 23.
France's President Emmanuel Macron, left, President of the European Council Charles Michel, center and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, right, attend a press conference after a European Council meeting where they granted Ukraine and Moldova EU candidacy status in Brussels, Belgium, on June 23. (John Thys/AFP/Getty Images)

The European Council granted Ukraine and Moldova EU candidacy status on Thursday in a bid to show support for the two countries in the face of Russian aggression against Ukraine.

The question of Ukraine and Moldova joining the EU was labelled "internal European affairs" by Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, also on Friday. However, he added that it is crucial that a decision on the matter does not further affect Russia’s relations with the two countries or the European bloc.

“These are, of course, internal European affairs,” Peskov told reporters on a regular conference call.

He added, however: “It is crucial for us that all these processes do not bring more problems to us and to the relations of the above-mentioned countries with us. And that it doesn’t lead to a further deterioration of our relations with the EU.”

Peskov's comments echo the words of Russian President Vladimir Putin who said last Friday that Russia “has nothing against” Ukraine entering the EU as it is the “sovereign decision of any country” to join an economic bloc.

9:46 a.m. ET, June 24, 2022

Ukrainian withdrawal from Severodonetsk could last a few days, says local official

From CNN's Olga Voitovych

Ukrainian soldiers ride on an armored personnel carrier (APC) on a road out of the eastern Luhansk region, Ukraine, on June 23.
Ukrainian soldiers ride on an armored personnel carrier (APC) on a road out of the eastern Luhansk region, Ukraine, on June 23. (Anatolii Stepanov/AFP/Getty Images)

Ukrainian forces have begun to withdrawn from Severodonetsk, but several units still remain in the Donbas city, as the operation is expected to last a few days, head of the Severodonetsk district military administration, Roman Vlasenko, told CNN.

“As of now, the Ukrainian military still remains in Severodonetsk,” Vlasenko said on Friday. “They are being withdrawn from the city at the moment. It started yesterday.”

There are a lot of units there, so I think the withdrawal will take a few days,” he added, without specifying where they were withdrawing to.

Vlasenko went on to say that 568 civilians were also in the city, inside the Azot plant.

They will be able to get out as soon as the shelling is over, but to the occupied territory,” he added.

Some background: Amid intense urban combat, hundreds of civilians, including dozens of children, took shelter in the Azot chemical plant in Severodonetsk. Unlike the Azovstal plant in Mariupol, it offers little protection below ground.

As with Azovstal, the Azot plant and its immediate surroundings became the focal point of Ukrainian resistance, frustrating Russian commanders.

9:46 a.m. ET, June 24, 2022

Russia claims it has encircled up to 2,000 Ukrainian soldiers in Donbas

From CNN's Anna Chernova, Vasco Cotovio and Olga Voitovych

Russia says it has encircled around 2,000 Ukrainian soldiers in Donbas as it intensifies its efforts to capture Severodonetsk and Lysychansk, its defense ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said in a Friday briefing.

"In total, in the Hirske area, we have cut off up to 2,000 people: about [Ukrainian] 1,800 servicemen, 120 Nazis from Right Sector, up to 80 foreign mercenaries, as well as over 40 armored combat vehicles and about 80 guns and mortars,” Konashenkov said, adding that 41 Ukrainian soldiers had surrendered voluntarily in the past 24 hours.

CNN has reached out to the Ukrainian military and regional administration for comment on Russia’s claims — which CNN has been unable to independently verify — but has yet to hear back.

Earlier on Friday, the head of the Luhansk regional military administration conceded that Russian forces had made progress in some areas to the south of Lysychansk, namely Zolote and Toshkivka.

The Russian Ministry of Defense also said Moscow’s forces had targeted five ammunition depots in the Luhansk region, adding that Ukrainian forces were seeing high levels of attrition.

"To replenish the losses in manpower, Ukrainian command are forced to form separate rifle battalions formed by untrained, mobilized citizens in each regions towards Donetsk and Luhansk,” he said.

In the same area of Luhansk, the head of the Hirske military-civilian administration Оleksii Babchenko said that town had been “completely occupied” by Russian forces. The specifics have not yet been confirmed.

“Unfortunately, as of 8 a.m. today, Hirske territorial community is completely occupied,” Babchenko said in a televised address. “Despite the fact that there was a very strong fortified area near Zolote, the breakthrough was made from the direction of Orikhove-Toshkivka.

“The occupation regime is currently being established.

There are about 4,000 locals left in the entire territorial community. The situation is extremely difficult: there is no electricity, water or gas,” Babchenko went on to say.

“As early as Tuesday (June 21), it was impossible to reach Hirske, to deliver humanitarian aid and evacuate the population, because all roads were either not under our control, or already being fired at," he said.

Babchenko went on to say that around 60% of buildings in the town had been damaged.

5:58 a.m. ET, June 24, 2022

"Russia uses hunger as weapon of war and holds the whole world hostage," says German minister

From CNN's Nadine Schmidt

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock attends a press conference on Germany's contribution against the global hunger crisis at the International Conference on Food Security in Berlin on June 24.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock attends a press conference on Germany's contribution against the global hunger crisis at the International Conference on Food Security in Berlin on June 24. (Bernd von Jutrczenka/picture alliance/Getty Images)

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock accused Russia of using ''hunger as a weapon of war'' and holding ''the whole world hostage,'' ahead of a key gathering on Friday in Berlin.

US State Secretary Antony Blinken is among those attending the conference on the looming food crisis caused by the war in Ukraine.

Baerbock told reporters in Berlin that the event, entitled "Uniting for Global Food Security," will address supply shortages caused by the war, while aiming to "stabilize food supplies worldwide."  

She said the conference was called into action ''at very short notice'' and that 50 delegations, as well as 40 ministers, from around the world will be attending.

The top priority is to set up reliable transport routes to allow grain from Ukraine to be exported, she said of the food security conference.

Anyone who does not attend the hunger crisis conference should ask themselves how they can contribute,'' she added.

The West has demanded that Russia stop the blockade of Ukrainian seaports to allow vast stores of grain to be taken to world markets as fears rise of famines in vulnerable regions.

Germany's development minister Svenja Schulze, who was speaking at the same news briefing, said the country will spend $4.2 billion this year in the fight against global hunger.

The Berlin conference will take place as the leaders of the G7 countries prepare to meet in the Bavarian Alpine resort of Schloss Elmau between June 26 and 28.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky is expected to discuss financial aid for Ukraine with the G7 leaders by video link on Monday.