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The latest developments in Russia’s war on Ukraine. All times EDT.
9:54 p.m.: Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine has dealt a deep blow to Russian foreign policy and left the country’s diplomats with an “impossible” task of trying to pursue the Kremlin’s goals amid increasing isolation, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reports.
That’s the assessment delivered by Boris Bondarev, a counselor at Russia's permanent mission to the United Nations in Geneva and a 20-year veteran of the country’s foreign service. He resigned in May because he felt the war had shown how repressive and warped Russia and its leaders had become.
8:50 p.m.: The U.S. State Department said Secretary Antony Blinken spoke on Saturday with his counterpart in India about Russia's war on Ukraine among other issues, Reuters reported.
Blinken spoke with Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar about "regional and global issues, including counterterrorism cooperation and Russia’s continuing aggression against Ukraine," the department said in a release.
India has been a large purchaser of Russia's oil, which is helping to fund its war against Ukraine.
Jaishankar will visit Russia on Nov. 8, the Russian embassy in India said on Thursday.
8:04 p.m.:
7:13 p.m.: The firing of Denis Skopin, an associate professor at St. Petersburg State University (SPSU), for his opposition to the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine is the latest instance of a deepening crackdown on academic freedom inside Russia, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reports.
Skopin -- who taught philosophy in the university’s Faculty of Liberal Arts and Sciences -- was fired on October 26 for his participation in a protest against Moscow’s mobilization of military-age men to fight in Ukraine, where he was arrested and sentenced to 10 days in jail. While detained, Skopin and other protesters were also allegedly pressured by authorities to submit summonses to their local military enlistment office.
According to the dismissal order issued by the university, Skopin was fired for his opposition to Moscow’s February 24 invasion of Ukraine and for protesting against the mobilization drive that began on September 21: “The act committed by the employee is immoral and incompatible with the implementation of educational functions and the continuation of this work,” the order stated.
“A university is a place where people should think, where qualities such as critical thinking and independent thought should be encouraged,” Skopin told RFE/RL’s North.Realities during an interview. “Unfortunately, this is no longer possible in today's Russia.”
6 p.m.: US President Joe Biden said Russia's suspension of its participation in an agreement that allowed vital grain exports from Ukraine was "purely outrageous," while speaking to reporters Saturday, Agence France-Presse reports.
There is "no reason for them to do that," the president said of the halt to the deal, which had been heralded as critical to easing the global food crisis caused by the conflict.
5:13 p.m.:
4:15 p.m.: Russia and Ukraine carried out the latest in series of prisoner of war exchanges on Saturday, with both sides returning around 50 people, officials in Moscow and Kyiv said.
Ukraine's military intelligence directorate reported the return of 52 detainees, among them soldiers, sailors, border guards, national guard members and doctors, Reuters reports.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyyy said that since March, Russia had freed a total of 1,031 prisoners.
"We remember all those who are held captive in Russia and on occupied territory and will do everything to ensure that each and every one is returned," he said in a video address.
Russia's defense ministry said Ukraine handed over 50 prisoners of war after talks.
4:10 p.m.: The European Union said Saturday, it supports U.N. led efforts to keep the Ukraine grain deal alive after Moscow announced it is exiting the initiative, Reuters reports.
"We ... stress that all parties must refrain from any unilateral action that would imperil the Black Sea Grain Initiative which is a critical humanitarian effort that is clearly having a positive impact on access to food for millions of people around the world," said Nabila Massrali, spokesperson for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy at the European Commission.
3 p.m.: Ukraine is gaining the upper hand against Russia in southern Kherson with range and precision guidance of artillery, and drones, The New York Times reports. In a war that is fought primarily through the air, Ukraine is turning the tables against Russia with Western weapons and homemade drones.
“We can reach them, and they cannot reach us,” said Major Oleksandr, the commander of an artillery battery on the Kherson front, who like others interviewed for this article gave only his first name for security reasons. “They don’t have these weapons” he said.
Oleksandr also said that falling rates of Russia firing also point to ammunition shortages. “There is an idea the Russian army is infinite, but it is a myth,” he said. “The intensity of fire has fallen by three times. It’s realistic to fight them,” he added.
2:45 p.m.: There is anxiety in policy circles that if the upcoming U.S. midterm elections lead to a Republican-controlled Congress, U.S. President Joe Biden leading Western countries in providing military aid to Ukraine could suffer setbacks. In an interview with Politico, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said U.S. Republicans’ election promises to slash Ukraine’s support will only empower China.
The NATO chief made the case for a long-term American presence in Europe and a widespread boost in defense spending.
“The presence of the United States — but also Canada — in Europe, is essential for the strength and the credibility of that transatlantic bond,” Stoltenberg said.
1:30 p.m.: A top Ukrainian official said Saturday Russia’s decision to exit the U.N.-brokered Black Sea grain deal "proves once again that negotiations with the Russian Federation are a waste of time," Reuters reports.
"[Russian President Vladimir] Putin has turned food, the cold and prices into weapons against the world ... Russia is waging a hybrid war against Europe, taking Africa and the Middle East hostage," presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak tweeted.
1:20 p.m.: In an interview with RFE/RL Boris Bondarev, a counselor at Russia's permanent mission to the United Nations in Geneva and a 20-year veteran of the country’s foreign service said Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine has dealt a deep blow to Russian foreign policy and has left the country’s diplomats with an “impossible” task of trying to pursue the Kremlin’s goals amid increasing isolation.
Bondarev who resigned from his post in May said “I observed the evolving decline in our diplomacy [and] its slide into an abyss of provocations and lies. But still, until there was war and until blood was shed, I - like many of my colleagues - believed that I could still work.”
12:30 p.m.: Ukraine's foreign minister accused Moscow of using a "false pretext" to suspend its participation Saturday from the U.N. brokered grain export deal that allowed Ukraine to resume exporting grain from Black Sea ports. Dmytro Kuleba wrote on Twitter "We have warned of Russia’s plans to ruin the Black Sea Grain Initiative." He also called on countries to demand that Russia stop its "hunger games."
U.N. Spokesman Stephane Dujarric said the U.N. is in touch with the Russian authorities on this matter. “It is vital that all parties refrain from any action that would imperil the Black Sea Grain Initiative which is a critical humanitarian effort that is clearly having a positive impact on access to food for millions of people around the world.” he said, as reported by VOA U.N. correspondent Margaret Besheer.
11:30 a.m.: The Russian Defense Ministry says Moscow has suspended its implementation of a U.N.-brokered grain export deal which has allowed more than 9 million tons of grain to be exported from Ukraine and brought down global food prices. The ministry cited an alleged Ukrainian drone attack against Russia’s Black Sea Fleet ships moored off the coast of occupied Crimea, which Russia says took place in early Saturday, as the reason for the move, The Associated Press reports. Ukraine has denied staging the attack.
The Russian declaration came one day after U.N. chief Antonio Guterres urged Russia and Ukraine to renew the grain deal. Guterres also urged other countries, mainly in the West, to expedite the removal of obstacles blocking Russian grain and fertilizer exports.
"It is vital that all parties refrain from any action that would imperil the Black Sea Grain Initiative which is a critical humanitarian effort that is clearly having a positive impact on access to food for millions of people around the world," U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said.
11:10 a.m.: A senior Ukrainian official expressed skepticism on Saturday about the takeover of Twitter by Elon Musk, whose relations with Kyiv have been precarious since the billionaire suggested in early October Ukraine should give up occupied land for peace, The Associated Press reports.
Musk, a self-declared "free speech absolutist," wants to shake up Twitter's content moderation, and tweeted that "the bird is freed" after completing the purchase.
Ukrainian presidential aide Mykhailo Podolyak tweeted on Saturday: "Did the bird really get its freedom, or has it just moved to a new cage?
Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev wished new Twitter owner Elon Musk luck on Friday for his takeover of the company, adding a request for the multi-billionaire to stop his support for Ukraine.
Musk's Starlink satellite system provides Internet access to users in areas where local mobile communication systems or Internet cables are damaged or destroyed, for example, as a result of missile attacks. It it also being used by the Ukrainian military.
10:55 a.m.: More than 5,500 electrical maintenance workers are struggling to make repairs in Ukraine, as Russia continues to attack the country's power grid and other infrastructure, The New York Times reports.
"We are not afraid of the dark. The darkest times for us are not without light, but without freedom," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Thursday.
Zelenskyy said about four million Ukrainians are living with power restrictions.
Russia began targeting Ukraine's electric system on Oct. 10, The Times said, as part of a "campaign that Russian officials have said is meant to cause civilian suffering and force Ukraine to submit to the Kremlin's will."
9 a.m.: The Dutch military intelligence service has warned companies that Moscow is trying to obtain high-tech assets for its war in Ukraine through front companies, Agence France-Presse reports.
Jan Swillens, head of the military intelligence service of the Netherlands said that Russian secret services have set up dozens of "front companies" in the Netherlands to evade Western sanctions. The companies buy technology in the Netherlands and then import it into Russia for military purposes.
8:55 a.m.: Ukrainian forces stationed near the northern border with Belarus say they are bracing for a possible Russian assault from across the frontier.
Border guards stationed in the Chernihiv region are monitoring the situation on the border, facing intermittent Russian shelling. The region is located north of Kyiv and is bordered by both Russia and Belarus, the Associated Press reports.
Spokesperson Halyna Shechovtsova told British broadcaster Sky that her unit was preparing fortifications due to the perceived increased risk.
A member of the guard, equipped with a British-made portable anti-tank missile system, told Sky his unit needed more weapons as they would be the "first line" of defense.
Horodnia, the nearest town to this double border, was captured by Russian forces at the beginning of the full-scale invasion in February.
It returned to Ukrainian control after Moscow repositioned its forces towards the east and south a few months later.
Speaking to Sky, resident Nadia Polovetska said the ongoing war gave "no rest" to the town's residents.
"Our nerves are completely shot," she said.
Russia used Belarus as a staging ground for troops and weapons when it invaded Ukraine eight months ago.
Fears persist that the authoritarian president of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, who has publicly supported Russia's attack on Ukraine, might agree to send his own troops south into Ukraine.
So far, Lukashenko has repeatedly rebuffed speculation that Belarus would send its own soldiers to fight alongside Russia.
Earlier this month, however, authorities announced a joint "regional grouping of troops" with Russia and said some 9,000 Russian soldiers would be stationed in Belarus.
8:30 a.m.: Russia's defense ministry on Saturday said that British navy personnel blew up the Nord Stream gas pipelines last month, directly accusing a leading NATO member of sabotaging critical Russian infrastructure, Reuters reported.
The defense ministry did not provide evidence to back up its claim.
"According to available information, representatives of this unit of the British Navy took part in the planning, provision and implementation of a terrorist attack in the Baltic Sea on September 26 this year - blowing up the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines," the ministry said.
Britain's defense ministry declined immediate comment.
Russia has previously blamed the West for the explosions last month that ruptured the Russian-built Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines on the bed of the Baltic Sea.
But Russia has never before given specific details of who was responsible for the damage to the pipelines, previously the largest routes for Russian gas supplies to Europe.
The Kremlin has repeatedly said allegations of Russian responsibility for the damage were "stupid" and Russian officials have said Washington had a motive as it wants to sell more liquefied natural gas (LNG) to Europe.
The United States has denied involvement.
8:25 a.m.: Could Russian soldiers fighting in Ukraine lose the will to fight? At least one expert interviewed by CNN thinks so.
"Fear and panic are more infectious than COVID" for an army, said Jeff McCausland, a combat veteran of the Gulf War and a visiting professor of international security studies at Dickinson College in Pennsylvania.
He said a key factor that leads to soldiers giving up on the battlefield is whether they believe in the cause they're fighting for.
He pointed out that Ukrainians are fighting to defend their families and country, but for the Russians opposing them, the purpose may not be so clear.
6 a.m.:
5:00 a.m.: Russia said on Saturday that the accelerated deployment of modernized U.S. tactical nuclear weapons at NATO bases in Europe would lower the "nuclear threshold" and that Russia would take the move into account in its military planning, Reuters reports.
Politico reported that the United States told a closed NATO meeting that it would accelerate the deployment of a modernized version of the B61, the B61-12, with the new weapons arriving at European bases in December, several months earlier than planned.
Russia has around 2,000 working tactical nuclear weapons while the United States has around 200 such weapons, half of which are at bases in Italy, Germany, Turkey, Belgium and the Netherlands.
4:10 a.m.: More than a million Ukrainians have fled to Germany since Russia's invasion in February. Among the European Union countries, only Poland has welcomed more, according to Agence France-Presse.
A key challenge is the "major uncertainty" faced by the Ukrainians, said Benjamin Beckmann, who oversees integration programs at Germany's federal office for migration and refugees.
For many of them -- mostly women and children -- it remains an open question whether or not they will return to their homeland once the war is over.
3:19 a.m.: A Russian-installed governor in Moscow-annexed Crimea said the Russian navy was "repelling" a drone attack early Saturday in the bay of Sevastopol, home to Moscow's Black Sea Fleet, Agence France-Presse reports.
"Ships of the Black Sea Fleet are repelling a UVA (unmanned aerial vehicle) in Sevastopol bay," Sevastopol governor Mikhail Razvozhayev said on Telegram. "No facilities in the city have been hit. The situation is under control."
City authorities later said that the harbor was "temporarily" closed to boats and ferries.
2:10 a.m.: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says about 4 million people across Ukraine have been hit by power restrictions that Ukraine’s energy companies have been forced to impose because of damage to infrastructure caused by Russia's bombing campaign, according to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.
Zelenskyy said in his nightly address on October 28 that the areas affected include the Kyiv and Kharkiv and the regions around the two major cities.
Kyiv Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko said the city's energy supply system on October 28 was operating in emergency mode. He said it would take two to three weeks to eliminate an electricity deficit ranging between 20 percent and 50 percent.
12:41 a.m.:
12 a.m.: A U.S. fighter in Ukraine detailed the horrors of war to a CBS News reporter. In an interview the American volunteer said “We are fighting pure evil. Anybody in the West that asks Ukraine to just do peace talks, they need to go to these villages. They need to see what’s been done to these people.” He said he witnessed Russians using white phosphorus munitions. “It comes down extremely slow. But there is nothing you can do and everything it touches, just incinerates.”
Some material for this article came from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters.
