Day 446 since the beginning of the war: violent explosions from anti-aircraft missiles have roused the residents of the Ukrainian capital from their sleep. All information in the news blog.
The most important things at a glance
Klitschko: rescue workers on duty – debris fell on the zoo
3.10 a.m.: According to Mayor Vitali Klitschko, explosions can still be heard in Kiev. The rescue workers have been deployed, Mayor Vitali Klitschko writes on his Telegram channel. Debris fell on the city’s zoo in Shevchenkivskyi district.
In another entry, Klitschko reports that falling debris set fire to several cars in the Solomjanskyj district. Further information about the extent of the damage and possible victims is initially not available.
Ukraine: Attacks on Kiev in the night
2.31 a.m.: According to official sources, the Ukrainian capital Kiev is again the target of Russian air attacks. “The anti-aircraft defense is capturing the targets,” writes the head of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s office, Andriy Yermak, on Telegram without giving any further details.
Representatives of the Kiev military administration also explain to the news service that the air defense systems repelled attacks on the capital. Reuters witnesses in Kiev report multiple explosions that sound like the destruction of flying objects.
Pentagon: Abrams training tanks arrived in Bavaria
According to the US Department of Defense, 31 Abrams training tanks have arrived at the military training area in Grafenwoehr, Bavaria. “I can confirm that the 31 M1 Abrams training tanks have arrived in Grafenwoehr, Germany,” Pentagon spokesman Pat Ryder said in Washington on Monday. Ukrainian forces are expected in Grafenwoehr “in the coming weeks” and will begin training on the tanks. The point is to train the Ukrainian tank crews both in the use of the Abrams tank and in its maintenance and thus prepare them comprehensively for their use in the Russian war of aggression.
At the end of April, US Chief of Staff Mark Milley said at a meeting of the Ukraine contact group at the US air force base in Ramstein, Rhineland-Palatinate, that the US would first deliver training tanks that were not fit for combat. The Abrams tanks intended for the battlefield were still being repaired. US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said the US has accelerated deliveries to allow more armored equipment to be made available to Ukraine in the coming months.
Georgia allows scheduled Russian flights
10:16 p.m.: Russia and the Black Sea republic of Georgia are resuming direct air traffic for the first time since 2019, despite their tensions and warnings from the West. On Monday, Azimuth Airlines became the first Russian airline to receive permission for daily direct flights from Moscow to the Georgian capital Tbilisi. According to the airline’s booking system, flights are available from this Friday as of Monday evening. The Georgian aviation authority announced that Azimuth was not subject to sanctions and could therefore head for the South Caucasus republic.
Overall, Georgia is not participating in Western sanctions against Russia in the wake of Moscow’s war against Ukraine. However, the authorities in Tbilisi are reacting to threats from the West to impose sanctions on Georgia itself if Russian companies affected by the international sanctions are allowed to land there. Russia had previously allowed direct air travel again after it was suspended at Moscow’s behest in 2019 amid tensions between the two countries.
Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin had given permission for direct flights by decree – and for the first time allowed Georgians to enter Russia without a visa, which came into force on Monday. Hundreds of thousands of Georgians live in Russia, and it is now easier for them to be visited by their relatives. Direct flights also shorten flight times between neighboring countries immensely. Many Georgians took the decision with relief.
Ukrainian army chief: “We’ll take everything back, including Crimea”
9:21 p.m.: In the long term, Ukraine needs a “highly modern and combat-ready army,” says its chief Zalushny. A Russian invasion must never be repeated. Read more here.
