Here are the latest developments in the war in Ukraine:
– Ukraine a ‘crime scene’ –
“Ukraine is a crime scene,” the International Criminal Court’s chief prosecutor says on a visit to the town of Bucha west of Kyiv, one of several towns where Russia is accused of massacring civilians.
Prosecutor Karim Khan says there are “reasonable grounds to believe that crimes within the jurisdiction of the court are being committed”. The ICC investigates allegations of war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide and aggression.
Bucha’s mayor says more than 400 people have been found dead so far and 25 women have reported being raped.
– Russia committing ‘genocide’: Biden –
U.S. President Joe Biden accuses Russian forces for the first time of committing genocide in Ukraine.
“It’s become clearer and clearer that (President Vladimir) Putin is just trying to wipe out the idea of even being able to be a Ukrainian,” he tells reporters.
The Kremlin says the genocide claims are “unacceptable”.
– Mariupol troops surrender: Moscow –
Russia says more than a thousand Ukrainian soldiers have surrendered in the besieged southeastern city of Mariupol after a ferocious six-week battle for the strategic port.
Ukraine has yet to confirm the report.
– Polish, Baltic leaders to Kyiv –
The leaders of Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania travel to Kyiv together by train to show support for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier says he had planned to join them but was told by Kyiv he was “not wanted”. He has been criticized for his past advocacy of warmer ties with Russia. A top aide to Zelensky says Kyiv wants German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to visit instead.
– Attacks in south, east –
Ukraine accuses Russian troops of shooting six men and one woman in a home in the southern village of Pravdyne on Tuesday and then blowing up the building to hide the evidence.
The governor of Kharkiv says seven civilians have been killed by Russian shelling in the eastern region in the past 24 hours.
– Separatists sanctioned –
Britain says it and the European Union plan to impose sanctions on 178 pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine.
Separatist forces have been fronting the fight against Ukrainian marines in Mariupol.
– Europe must act: Zelensky –
Zelensky urges Europe to take more action against Russia. “We can either stop Russia or lose the whole of Eastern Europe,” he warns.
– U.S. warns China –
U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warns that China’s stance towards Russia and its invasion of Ukraine could affect countries’ willingness to collaborate and trade with Beijing.
“The world’s attitude towards China and its willingness to embrace further economic integration may well be affected by China’s reaction to our call for resolute action on Russia,” she tells the Atlantic Council.
– 1,500 Russian soldiers in morgues –
An official in the central Ukrainian city of Dnipro says the remains of more than 1,500 Russian soldiers are being kept in its morgues.
Dnipro deputy mayor Mikhail Lysenko tells reporters he hopes “Russian mothers will be able to come and pick up their sons.”
– Finnish NATO decision ‘within weeks’ –
Finland’s Prime Minister Sanna Marin says the country, which has been non-aligned since the end of the Cold War, will decide whether to apply for NATO membership “within weeks.”
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has also relaunched a debate over NATO membership in neighboring Sweden.