Russian authorities have promised free accommodation to all residents of the occupied Kherson region who choose to evacuate to Russia.
Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin made the announcement Thursday shortly after the Russia-backed leader of Kherson asked the Kremlin to organize evacuation from four cities, citing the danger from missile strikes.
Vladimir Saldo said “these missile strikes cause serious damage, first and foremost to the residents and that missiles also hit “hotels, residential buildings, markets, (places) where there are lots of civilians.”
Saldo said a decision has been made to evacuate residents of Kherson, Nova Kakhovka, Hola Prystan and Chornobaivkato to the Russian regions of Rostov, Krasnodar and Stavropol, as well as to annexed Crimea.
The plea comes as Ukrainian forces are pushing their counteroffensive deeper into the southern region, one of four that Russia recently annexed illegally.
In a separate statement, Saldo’s deputy Kirill Stremousov tried to play down the announced evacuation, saying that “no one’s retreating … no one is planning to leave the territory.”
The British military said Thursday on Twitter that Russia-backed Kherson authorities have ordered the evacuation because they anticipate combat to extend to the city of Kherson.
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KEY DEVELOPMENTS:
— How Moscow grabs Ukrainian kids and makes them Russians
— Ukraine’s Kyiv area hit by Iranian-made kamikaze drones
— EXPLAINER: US weapons systems that Ukraine will or won’t get
— UN demands that Moscow return annexed regions to Ukraine
— NATO holds talks on nukes as concerns deepen over Putin’s threats
— Poland sees no signs of interference in oil pipeline spill
— Follow all AP stories on the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
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OTHER DEVELOPMENTS:
KYIV, Ukraine — The director general of the IAEA, Rafael Mariano Grossi, told the journalists in Kyiv that the situation around the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant remains “concerning.”
“It hasn’t improved in any way,’ he said on Thursday evening in Kyiv shortly after returning from Russia.
The International Atomic Energy Agency keeps pushing for a demilitarization zone around the nuclear plant, which means “no attack against the plant and the plant not to be used as a tool to attack,” Grossi explained. The plant is in an area occupied by Russia but those working at the plant are Ukrainian.
At the same time, he said the IAEA believes Russians want to create the security, because “they are working with him.”
However, Grossi said he still didn’t receive any indications from Russian President Vladimir Putin that he is ready to discuss with IAEA the definitive “parameters” that will allow finding a safe solution for the biggest nuclear power plant in Europe amid the war.
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BRUSSELS — NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has warned that Russian President Vladimir Putin would be crossing a “very important line” if he were to order the use of nuclear weapons in Ukraine, as the military alliance and Russia are both due to hold nuclear exercises in the coming days.
NATO is holding its exercise, dubbed “Steadfast Noon” next week. The long-planned maneuvers are conducted around the same time every year and run for about one week. It involves fighter jets capable of carrying nuclear warheads, but doesn’t involve any live bombs.
Russia usually holds its own maneuvers around the same time. Stoltenberg said Thursday NATO will “closely monitor” what Russia is up to.
Asked what NATO would do if Russia launched a nuclear attack, Stoltenberg said: “We will not go into exactly how we will respond, but of course this will fundamentally change the nature of the conflict. It will mean that a very important line has been crossed.”
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LISBON, Portugal — Portugal is sending six of its Russian-built firefighting helicopters to Ukraine to help fend off Russian forces.
Portuguese Defense Minister Helena Carreiras said…
Read More: Live Updates: Russia-Ukraine-War | AP News