For today, links to reports from Reuters, the Kyiv Independent, Tass, the Kyiv Post, and the Associated Press; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (GAZA entry for this date is HERE.) — MCM
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Ukrainian soldiers, engineers toil round the clock to build defences, by Anna Voitenko and Sergiy Chalyi | Reuters CHERNIHIV REGION, Ukraine — Ukraine is working round the clock to build defensive fortifications to stop Russia’s troops advancing any further 26 months into their full-scale invasion. The Ukrainian government has allocated . . . READ MORE . . .
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U.S. Secretary of State Blinken says Ukraine will be NATO member. From Reuters. BRUSSELS — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said today that Ukraine will eventually join NATO as support for the country remains “rock solid” among member states. “Our purpose at the summit is to help build a bridge to that membership,” he said.
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4 killed, including first responders, 12 injured in Russian attacks on Kharkiv, by Dmytro Basmat | The Kyiv Independent Russian strikes on the city of Kharkiv killed at least four people and injured 12, Kharkiv Oblast Governor Oleh Syniehubov said early today. READ MORE . . .
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Units of battlegroup West improve forward positions in Kupyansk area. From Tass. MOSCOW — Ukraine lost up to 125 troops as units of the battlegroup West improved positions in the Kupyansk area over the past day, the Russian Defense Ministry said in a daily bulletin of the special military operation. Here are the details of this and other . . . READ MORE . . .
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How 44 countries voted to create tribunal to investigate Russian crimes against Ukraine. From Kyiv Post. Forty-four nations attending the “Restoring Justice for Ukraine” conference on April 2 signed a declaration creating a tribunal to investigate Russian war crimes. The nations condemned Russia’s full-scale Ukraine invasion as a violation of . . . READ MORE . . .
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As Zelensky’s party falters, Ukrainian parliament drifts to standstill, by Andrea Januta | The Kyiv Independent The government has been struggling in recent months to gather necessary votes during sessions, according to experts and lawmakers who spoke to the Kyiv Independent. The reason is not because of disagreement over pending legislation, but . . . READ MORE . . .
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FROM APRIL 3 Ukraine lowers its conscription age to 25 to replenish its beleaguered troops, by Hanna Arhirova and Samya Kullab | AP KYIV — Ukraine lowered its draft-eligible age for men from 27 to 25 on Wednesday, reflecting the strain that more than two years of war with Russia has put on its military and the need to infuse its depleted ranks with new conscripts. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed . . . READ MORE . . .
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FROM APRIL 3 Russia: U.S. shares blame in a concert hall attack claimed by Islamic militants, by Jim Heintz | AP TALLINN, Estonia — The head of Russia’s national security council on Wednesday contended that the United States shares blame for the attack by gunmen on a Moscow concert hall that killed 145 people, even though a branch of the Islamic State group has claimed responsibility. Since . . . READ MORE . . .