Ukraine-Russia war LIVE – Roman Abramovich hit with suspected POISONING after negotiating peace with Ukraine

All you need to know about Russia's invasion of Ukraine

Everything you need to know about Russia's invasion of Ukraine...

• Why is Russia invading Ukraine?
• Will the UK go to war?
• How can I join the Ukraine foreign legion?
• What can I do to help Ukraine?
• Who is Ukraine's president Volodymyr Zelenskyy?
• How much gas does the UK get from Russia?
• Is Russia a part of Nato?
• Does Russia have nuclear weapons?
• Why is Ukraine not in Nato?
• How big is the Russian army?
• What is Article 5 of the Nato treaty?
• What is the Minsk agreement?
• Which countries were in the Soviet Union?
• What does the Z mean on Russian tanks? Meaning behind symbols explained

Chelsea FC asks for ticket sale money to go to Ukraine war victims

Chelsea FC has asked for the revenue generated by ticket sales, which would normally have gone to the club, to be donated to war victims in Ukraine.

A Premier League spokesperson said: "The revised licence allows fans to attend Chelsea FC games; Chelsea fans to travel to away Premier League fixtures and Chelsea fans to attend the FA Cup, UEFA Champions League and WSL games.

"The Premier League will receive and hold any revenue from the sale of these tickets that would normally have gone to Chelsea.

"Chelsea FC have requested and the Premier League agreed that this revenue will be donated to charity to benefit victims of the war in Ukraine.

"The beneficiary charities will be announced in due course after consultation with the club."

Ukraine orphans on route to Scotland after UK arrival

A group of 52 children from orphanages in Dnipro, Ukraine, have arrived safely in London before heading to their temporary home in Scotland.

The children, aged between one and 18, and their carers were supposed to leave Poland on Monday but were held up after key paperwork was not provided in time.

The flight finally touched down in Heathrow on Wednesday evening and the group are en route to Callander in Stirling, where accommodation has been arranged for them.

The charity Dnipro Kids, formed by supporters of Edinburgh's Hibernian FC, enabled many of the children to flee Ukraine for Poland.

Robert Brown from the charity said it and Stirling Council were "committed to giving the children a wonderful time so that they can escape the trauma of what they've been through, and we can turn their experience into an adventure they'll remember for the rest of their lives".

Putin ‘loses 40,000 troops’ in Ukraine invasion 

RUSSIA has suffered 40,000 casualties in its Ukraine invasion as Vladimir Putin reportedly purged a senior general in response.

To add to his woes, one of the tyrant’s inner circle has defected and fled Russia in protest at the war, becoming the highest-ranking Kremlin official to break ranks.

Putin expected a quick victory when he ordered the invasion but fierce resistance from the Ukrainians has seen a mounting death toll, with several generals and senior officers among the dead.

Russia accidentally revealed it has lost 10,000 troops, when the figure was disclosed by a pro-Kremlin newspaper.

But NATO has said that figure could be as high as 15,000 with the total losses including wounded, captured or missing up to 40,000.

The estimate is based on  figures or what Russia has revealed, either intentionally or deliberately, a NATO official has disclosed.

If the NATO estimate is correct, then the Russian losses in just under a month in Ukraine are now the same as they suffered during their ten year war in Afghanistan, which ended in 1989.

BBC given emergency funding to tackle Russian disinformation on Ukraine war

The BBC World Service will receive £4.1 million in emergency funding from the Government to help it counter disinformation about the war in Ukraine.

The broadcaster has been given the money to support its Ukrainian and Russian language services in the face of "increased propaganda from the Russian state".

Following a BBC request, the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office will provide the extra funding to cover urgent and unexpected costs that have arisen due to the conflict.

The DCMS said the funding will help the BBC relocate staff and operations to safe locations so they can continue their reporting on the war.

It will also go towards developing new and more widely accessible content delivered through a range of channels - including TV, radio and digital.

The BBC will also use the money to "tackle disinformation" and to "help local audiences circumvent the Kremlin's media restrictions and continue to access the BBC's journalism".

BBC director-general Tim Davie welcomed the cash, saying: "I am hugely proud of our coverage and the bravery and resilience of our colleagues reporting this difficult and complex story, day in, day out.

"This additional funding from the Government will enable us to continue expanding the ways we are reaching audiences in Russia and Ukraine.

"The BBC has seen a big demand for clear, fact-based, impartial journalism to counter disinformation and our teams are working around the clock to bring people the very best independent journalism.

"This funding will also help us with the immediate need to support staff who have been displaced, many of whom are continuing to work and provide vital expertise to the whole of the BBC, while life changes dramatically around them. We pay tribute to their incredible strength and professionalism."

Zelensky to address Irish Parliament

The Ukrainian president is set to address the Irish parliament next month.

Volodymyr Zelensky has accepted an invitation to address the Oireachtas on April 6.

It comes as the Russian invasion of Ukraine continues despite sanctions against Vladimir Putin's regime.

Mr Zelensky received a standing ovation after addressing the UK House of Commons earlier this month. He has also addressed the US Congress.

Taoiseach Micheal Martin is set to attend a meeting of the European Council in Brussels on Thursday, which is to discuss Russian military aggression against Ukraine, security and defence, energy, economic issues, Covid-19 and external relations.

Ireland has so far accepted more than 10,000 refugees, mostly women and children, fleeing the violence.

Who is Alexander Bortnikov?

Alexander Bortnikov is the current director of Russia’s FSB – making him one of the most powerful people in Russia and an influential member of Putin’s inner circle.

Like Putin, he is a former officer of the KGB and first met Putin while the pair were stationed together in Leningrad – now Saint Petersburg – in the 1970s.

Since stepping into the might role in 2008, the terrifying spymaster is said to have turned the FSB into the “punishing sword” of Putin’s regime.

The organisation is both the brain and the heart of Putin’s government and behaves like a “state within the state”, according to the Dossier Center.

Not long after Putin was appointed acting president, Bortnikov was first made head of Russia’s Economic Security Service, wielding huge power and leverage.

He is also one of a small handful of people in Russia to earn the rank of Army General.

Renault suspends operations at Moscow factory

French car giant Renault said Wednesday that it would immediately suspend operations at its Moscow factory after Kyiv called for a boycott of the company for remaining in Russia.

Renault is also considering "the possible options" for its Russian affiliate AvtoVAZ, the company said in a statement, adding that it had downgraded its 2022 financial outlook.

Russian journalist killed in Kyiv shelling

A Russian journalist for the investigative news outlet The Insider was killed when Russian troops shelled a residential neighbourhood in the Ukrainian capital, the outlet said Wednesday.

Oksana Baulina, who previously also worked for Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny's anti-corruption group, "died under fire in Kyiv" while "filming the destruction" caused by Russian shelling, The Insider said on its website.

EU loosens state aid rules for companies affected by sanctions on Russia

EU companies affected by sanctions imposed on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine can get up to 400,000 euros ($440,360) in state support under looser EU state aid rules, the European Commission said today.

Companies in the agriculture, fisheries, aquaculture sectors can get up to 35,000 euros while businesses facing a liquidity crunch can get state guarantees on loans, subsidised loans.

Companies facing soaring energy costs can get state aid up to 30% of costs, capped at 2 million euros, confirming a Reuters story on Tuesday.

MoD pushed YouTube to remove hoax videos of defence secretary

YouTube is facing demands from the Ministry of Defence to remove hoax videos featuring Defence Secretary Ben Wallace or risk helping the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The calls came after a third extract of a hoax call between Mr Wallace and an imposter posing as Ukrainian prime minister Denys Shmyhal was published on Wednesday.

The MoD says the clips have been "doctored" to aid disinformation and "propaganda" at the behest of the Kremlin, as it struggles in the war.

But the footage has remained on the video sharing giant owned by Google since Monday when the first video extract emerged, despite the attempts of officials to get them blocked or pulled down.

The MoD wrote to YouTube saying that the apparently altered clips wrongly claim British-supplied Nlaw anti-tank missiles have failed and falsely suggest the UK is running out of its own supplies.

"Any perceived failure of our lethal aid supplied to support Ukraine will provide an immediate detrimental effect upon the morale of Ukrainian forces mounting resistance to Russian aggression and create another chapter in the Kremlin's playbook of disinformation and lies," the letter reads.

It says that the "modified and edited clips" risk being used by Vladimir Putin's Russian state as a premise for more attacks breaching international law and to "inflict further human rights abuses".

Ukraine-Russia: Latest developments

• Vladimir Putin’s £500million gold plated monster yacht has been pictured as the crackdown continues on dirty Russian money
• Russian “ghost buses” are secretly shipping out Putin’s war dead as more than 15,000 troops are believed to have been killed
• President Zelensky saluted the courage of his troops and warned Ukraine is on the “brink of survival” against Putin
• Russian forces face running out of food and the war could be over in weeks
• Mariupol remains under siege as dying kids are forced to eat dog and drink radiator water to survive
• Putin’s demoralised and frostbitten troops revealed they thought they would be met with a “victory party” in Ukraine
• Pictures show inside the amazing Red Cross hospital on the frontline helped to save the lives of babies fleeing Ukraine

Kyiv mayor says one killed, two seriously wounded in carpark shelling

The mayor of Kyiv said one person was killed and two seriously wounded on Wednesday after shells hit a shopping centre's parking lot in a northern district of the Ukrainian capital.

"The enemy continues to fire at the capital," Mayor Vitali Klitschko said in an online post.

Russia denies targeting civilians.

Morale reportedly low amongst Putin's depleted forces

Putin is becoming so desperate he is recruiting mercenaries and private contractors to boost his depleted forces.

Morale among Russian troops is believed to have collapsed with some now shooting themselves to avoid being sent to the front line.

Ukraine claims as many as 15,300 Russian troops have been killed, more than 200 aircraft have been destroyed, along with more than 500 tanks, 1,500 armoured vehicles and 70 fuel trucks.

In one intercepted conversation, a Russian said: “They’ve been shooting at us for 14 days.

"We’re scared. We’re stealing food, breaking into houses.

"We’re killing civilians.

“Officers shoot themselves in the legs to go home. There are corpses everywhere.”

Another said troops “look for Ukrainian ammunition to shoot themselves in the legs and go to hospital”.

Sanctions on Russia ‘are not cost-free for the UK’ warns Sunak

Standing up to Russia and providing support for Ukraine will not be “cost-free” for the UK economy, Rishi Sunak has warned.

The Chancellor pitched his spring statement on Wednesday on the issue of security, as he said a strong economy at home meant being able to fight threats – such as Vladimir Putin – abroad.

Mr Sunak told the Commons the sanctions imposed on Russia were “of unprecedented scale and scope” and that the UK had a “moral responsibility” to help Ukraine.

But he said measures taken against the Russian president and his regime were “not cost-free for us at home” and presented a “risk” to the recovery.

Mr Sunak told MPs: “The sorrow we feel for (Ukraine’s) suffering, and admiration for their bravery, is only matched by the gratitude we feel for the security in which we live. And what underpins that security is the strength of our economy.”

He said: “We should be in no doubt, behind Putin’s invasion is a dangerous calculation: that democracies are divided, politically weak and economically insecure – incapable of making tough long-term decisions to strengthen our economies.

“This calculation is mistaken.”

But he said it was too early to yet know the impact the invasion – and subsequent western support – would have on the economy.

Ukraine pushes back Russian forces in areas around Kyiv

Ukrainian forces have pushed back Russian troops in several areas around Kyiv, the city's mayor said Wednesday, vowing to defend every building rather than surrender the capital.

Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko said there were battles raging on the northern and eastern outskirts of the city, and that "the small city of Makariv and almost all of Irpin is already under the control of Ukrainian soldiers".

Irpin borders Kyiv to the east, and Makariv is located some 50 kilometres (30 miles) to the west.

Fierce exchanges of artillery fire took place in Irpin and Lyutizh to the north of Kyiv, with considerable activity behind the front lines in Irpin, AFP journalists said.

A Ukrainian news agency spoke of a possible encirclement of Russian troops at Irpin, as well as Bucha and Hostomel, which are located in the western outskirts of Kyiv.

Klitschko said he didn't have any more detailed information of ongoing Ukrainian counteroffensives.

Russian troops quickly pushed to the outskirts of Kyiv after invading the country on February 24, but their attempt to encircle and enter the city have failed.

Zelensky receives assurances from PM

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday said he had spoken with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who had assured his support for Ukraine ahead of NATO, G7 and EU summits.

"Received assurances of his (Johnson's) support on the eve of tomorrow's important meetings. Discussed the course of hostilities and defense assistance to Ukraine," Zelensky said on Twitter.

Thursday's NATO summit in Brussels is expected to unlock additional aid for Kyiv including equipment to help Ukraine protect against chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear threats.

Graphic: Russian losses in Ukraine so far

A UK military expert claims Russian troop morale is collapsing in the face of heavy casualties and logistical nightmares.

Professor Michael Clarke, former director of the Royal United Services Institute think tank said on Thursday: "The Russians are making almost every tactical mistake it is possible to make."

He added: said: “The Ukrainians are stalling the Russian advance in all areas and operating quite effective counter attacks. The Russians are losing a lot of equipment and troops.”

Ukraine-Russia: Latest developments

• Vladimir Putin's £500million gold plated monster yacht has been pictured as the crackdown continues on dirty Russian money
• Russian "ghost buses" are secretly shipping out Putin's war dead as more than 15,000 troops are believed to have been killed
• President Zelensky saluted the courage of his troops and warned Ukraine is on the "brink of survival" against Putin
• Russian forces face running out of food and the war could be over in weeks
• Mariupol remains under siege as dying kids are forced to eat dog and drink radiator water to survive
• Putin's demoralised and frostbitten troops revealed they thought they would be met with a "victory party" in Ukraine
• Pictures show inside the amazing Red Cross hospital on the frontline helped to save the lives of babies fleeing Ukraine

Zelensky calls on French companies to leave Russia

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called on French companies including carmaker Renault, supermarket group Auchan and DIY retailer Leroy Merlin to leave Russia, during an address to the French parliament on Wednesday.

"French companies must quit the Russian market," Zelensky said during a 15-minute video address in his trademark green t-shirt.

He added: "Renault, Auchan, Leroy Merlin and others must stop sponsoring the Russian war machine."

Nato chief says China backing Russia with 'blatant lies'

NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg on Wednesday accused China of giving political backing to Russia as it attacks Ukraine, and warned Beijing against providing material support to Moscow's war effort.

"China has provided Russia with political support, including by spreading blatant lies and misinformation, and allies are concerned that China could provide material support for the Russian invasion," Stoltenberg said ahead of an urgent NATO summit on Thursday.

"I expect leaders will call on China to live up to its responsibilities as a member of the UN Security Council, refrain from supporting Russia's war effort, and join the rest of the world in calling for an immediate, peaceful end to this war."

Thank you for reading my coverage on the Russia-Ukraine war this morning. My colleague Joe Gamp will now be looking after the blog until 10pm tonight.

Before I hand over, here is a summary of the news today so far:

• Boris Johnson told Cabinet today that Ukraine allies should provide more defence aid
• Nestle to suspend brands in Russia – including KitKat and Nesquik
• Nine humanitarian corridors have been agreed for today, according to Ukraine’s deputy prime minister
• Russian troops only have three days of supplies left, says Ukraine military officials – this includes fuel, food and ammunition.
• The Kyiv city administration says Russian forces shelled the Ukrainian capital overnight and early this morning
• A humanitarian response adviser for the charity Mercy Corps, has said that people have become “more and more dependent on aid”, but have yet to see “the international aid effort kick in”
• French authorities have today sent a convoy of rescue vehicles and emergency equipment, to be provided to Ukraines emergency service.
  • They include 11 fire engines, 16 rescue vehicles, and 23 trucks transporting 49 tons of health and emergency equipment.

PM: Ukraine allies should provide more defence aid

Boris Johnson has told his Cabinet today that allies should go further in “providing further defensive military aid to Ukraine”.

Recalling the Cabinet meeting today, No 10 said: “The Prime Minister paid tribute to the fierce resistance from the Ukrainian people in the face of the brutal and inhumane actions of Putin’s regime.

“He said Putin’s actions had already crossed the threshold of barbarism and the west should not hesitate to go further in strengthening sanctions and providing further defensive military aid to Ukraine.”

Russian climate envoy steps down

Russian climate envoy Anatoly Chubais has stepped down and left the country in protest against President Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine.

This makes him the highest-level official to break with the Kremlin over the invasion.

Bloomberg reports: "Chubais, 66, is one of the few 1990s-era economic reformers who’d remained in Putin’s government and had maintained close ties with Western officials. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

"Since the war, the government has stepped up pressure on domestic critics of the invasion. Putin warned on 16 March that he would cleanse Russia of the “scum and traitors” he accuses of working covertly for the US and its allies. Facing economic meltdown, the Russian leader accused the West of wanting to destroy Russia."

'Real threat' of Russians using chemical weapons in Ukraine

U.S. President Joe Biden has said today that Russia's potential use of chemical weapons against Ukraine is a real threat.

"I think its a real threat," Biden said when asked about concerns Russia may use chemical weapons in Ukraine as he departed for Europe to attend the NATO summit.