Russia-Ukraine updates: Putin says war was ‘unleashed’ on Russia
The Russian president delivered his annual Victory Day speech.
More than a year after Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of neighboring Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, the countries are fighting for control of areas in eastern and southern Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's forces are readying a spring counteroffensive, but Putin appears to be preparing for a long and bloody war.
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Latest headlines:
Russian passports pushed on occupied Ukraine
Russian officials have warned Ukrainians in occupied Kherson that they may be "deported" if they don't accept Russian passports, the U.K. Ministry of Defence said Monday.
"Russia is using passports as a tool in the 'Russification' of the occupied areas, as it did in Donetsk and Luhansk before the February 2022 invasion," the ministry on Twitter.
Residents of Kherson have been warned of penalties for those who don't accept Russian passports by June 1. Some may be removed from the territory or may have their property seized, according to the U.K.
Russia says US has denied journalist visas, vows it ‘will not forgive’
Russia said Sunday that the U.S. has denied visas to Russian journalists who wanted to cover Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's trip to New York.
Lavrov promised that the decision will not be forgotten by their side.
"The country that calls itself the strongest, smartest, most free, fairest has chickened out, has done a silly thing and shown what its sworn assurances on protecting freedom of speech, access to information and so on are worth," he told reporters at the airport before his flight to New York.
"Most importantly, you can be sure: we will not forget, we will not forgive this," the minister told the pool of journalists who have not been granted U.S. visas.
The journalists had planned to cover Lavrov's appearance at the United Nations to mark Russia's chairmanship of the Security Council.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov called the U.S.’s decision “outrageous” on Sunday, Interfax, a Russian news agency, reported.
There was no immediate comment from the U.S. State Department about the claim of refused visas, according to AP.
-ABC News’ Anastasia Bagaeva, Edward Szekeres, Natalia Shumskaia
Over 16,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been trained in the EU so far
Over 16,000 Ukrainian soldiers trained in the European Union, Josep Borrell, an EU representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, said Friday.
The EU has delivered over $600 million of ammunition and missiles to Ukraine, according to Borrell.
-ABC News' Oleksiy Pshemyskiy
Russian warplane accidentally fires weapon into Russian city of Belgorod: Defense ministry
The Russian Defense Ministry reported that ammunition from a Russian Su-34 military aircraft fell in Belgorod, a city in the southern region of Russia.
"On the evening of April 20, during the flight of the Su-34 aircraft over the city of Belgorod, an abnormal descent of an aviation munition occurred," the agency said.
The ministry claimed buildings were damaged but there were no immediate reports of victims. An investigation is underway, according to the agency.
-ABC News' Will Gretsky
US Embassy in Ukraine warns of 'ongoing heightened threat of missile attacks'
The U.S. Embassy in Ukraine sent an alert to Americans on Wednesday warning of an "ongoing heightened threat of missile attacks," including in Kyiv.
"In light of the recent uptick in strikes across Ukraine and inflammatory rhetoric from Moscow, the Department of State cautions U.S. citizens of an ongoing heightened threat of missile attacks, including in Kyiv and Kyiv Oblast," the alert stated.
The U.S. Embassy urged U.S. citizens to follow guidance from local authorities and to observe air alarms and shelter appropriately.