Ukraine denies Putin has taken Bakhmut but warns ‘situation is critical’ -live

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy landed Saturday in Hiroshima for diplomatic talks with the leaders of the world’s most powerful democracies who have tightened sanctions meant to punish Moscow and change the course of its 15-month invasion of Ukraine.

Japan says Zelenskyy’s decision to visit Hiroshima stems from his “strong wish” to participate in talks that will influence his nation’s defense against Russia.

An EU official, speaking on condition of anonymity to brief reporters on the deliberations, said Zelenskyy will take part in two separate sessions Sunday. The first session will be with G7 members only and will focus on the war in Ukraine. The second session will include the G7 as well as the other nations invited to take part in the summit, and will focus on “peace and stability.”

Ukraine has denied claims by Russia that it has taken full control of Bakhmut but warned the situation in the key battle town is “critical”.

Hanna Maliar, Ukraine’s defence minister, pushed back on the claim by Yevgeny Prigozhin that his Wagner Group of mercenaries had seized the town  around lunchtime.

“Heavy fighting in Bakhmut. The situation is critical,” she said on the Telegram messaging app.

“As of now, our defenders control some industrial and infrastructure facilities in the area and the private sector.”

Economy, climate and nuclear proliferation

• Italy’s prime minister Giorgia Meloni is set to leave the G7 summit in Hiroshima a day earlier than scheduled to lead the response to flooding which hit the north of her country this week, two sources said.
• G7 leaders agreed on an initiative to counter “economic coercion,” pledging action to ensure that any actors attempting to weaponise economic dependence would fail and face consequences.
• The G7 called for the development and adoption of international technical standards for “trustworthy” artificial intelligence (AI) as lawmakers of the rich countries focus on the new technology.
• G7 leaders reaffirmed their commitment to a highly decarbonised road sector by 2030 and committed to the goal of achieving net-zero emissions on roads by 2050.
• The G7 must take the lead in phasing out fossil fuels, the leaders of seven countries including the Netherlands and Chile said, attempting to build momentum for a global deal this year to gradually quit oil, coal and gas.
• The G7 believes that publicly supported investment in the gas sector can be temporarily appropriate while countries are accelerating the phasing-out of their dependency on Russia, a draft communique seen by Reuters showed.
• Leaders of the G7 called for a “world without nuclear weapons,” urging Russia, Iran, China and North Korea to cease nuclear escalation and embrace non-proliferation, a statement released by the White House showed.

• G7 leaders outlined a shared approach towards China, looking to “de-risk, not decouple” economic engagement with a country regarded as the factory of the world.
• The G7 is looking to bridge a vast gap with emerging economies in the “Global South” by focussing on infrastructure and debt relief, officials say, part of a strategy to blunt China’s influence in lower-income countries.
• US President Joe Biden and Japanese PM Fumio Kishida have discussed ways to strengthen defence cooperation and counter coercive behaviour by China, the White House said.
• China is gravely concerned about recent signs of “negative” China-related moves at the G7 summit and urges Japan not to turn it into a “political show” against or to curb China, the country’s embassy in Japan said. Its embassy in London warned that any words or deeds harming China’s interests would be met with “firm and resolute countermeasures”.

• Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said decisions taken by the G7 countries at their summit in Japan were aimed at the “double containment” of Russia and China.
• G7 leaders said they had ensured that Ukraine had the budget support it needs for this year and early 2024. “Today we are taking new steps to ensure that Russia’s illegal aggression against the sovereign state of Ukraine fails and to support the Ukrainian people in their quest for a just peace rooted in respect for international law,” they said in a statement.
• Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky received a warm welcome in Japan after arriving to attend the G7 summit for back-to-back bilateral meetings with world leaders.
• The United States announced sanctions on more than 300 targets, aiming to punish Russia for its invasion of Ukraine and intensifying one of the harshest sanctions efforts ever implemented.
• During the summit, US President Joe Biden will announce a $375 million military aid package for Ukraine that includes artillery, ammunition and HIMARS rocket launchers, a US official said.
• Biden informed G7 leaders that Washington will support a joint effort with allies to train Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets, CNN reported, citing a senior US administration official.
• German chancellor Olaf Scholz said his government wanted pragmatic measures to prevent the circumvention of sanctions imposed on Russia.
• Britain published plans to ban imports of Russian diamonds, copper, aluminium and nickel and announced a new wave of sanctions against Russia, targeting companies connected to the alleged theft of Ukrainian grain.
• President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said he invited India to join Ukraine’s peace formula during talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the G7 summit, their first meeting since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.
• G7 leaders called on all participants of the Black Sea grain deal “to continue and fully implement its smooth operation at its maximum potential and for as long as necessary,” it said in a statement.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said he had invited India to join Ukraine’s peace formula during his talks with prime minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Japan.

Zelensky said on the Telegram messaging app that the two had also discussed Ukraine’s needs in demining and mobile hospitals during their first face-to-face meeting since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.

Modi told Zelensky he was keen to help and that for him the war was an issue of humanity and human values.

“I assure you that for its resolution India, and I personally will do everything within our means,” he said.

Ukraine has denied that Russia’s mercenary Wagner Group has taken full control of Bakhmut.

A spokesperson for Ukraine Military East Command was responding to a claim by Yevgeny Prigozhin that his forces took the key town around lunchtime.

The fight for Bakhmut has become the longest-running battle since Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine last February.

The head of Russia’s Wagner mercenary group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, on Saturday claimed full control of the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, the focus of the longest and bloodiest battle of the war.

The claim could not be  independently verified.  Prigozhin made the claim in a video in which he appeared in combat fatigues in front of a line of fighters holding Russian flags and Wagner banners.

“Today, at 12 noon, Bakhmut was completely taken,” Prigozhin said.

The Group of Seven nations took to the world stage to warn against China’s “accelerating build-up of its nuclear arsenal” but added that the rich nations cohort is not turning inwards, as the biggest global leaders met in Hiroshima on Saturday with the war in Ukraine playing in the backdrop.

China’s “accelerating build-up of its nuclear arsenal without transparency (or) meaningful dialogue poses a concern to global and regional stability”, the G7 leaders said in a joint statement, taking aim at Beijing and Moscow separately.

“We are not decoupling or turning inwards. At the same time, we recognise that economic resilience requires de-risking and diversifying,” the statement said.

Rishi Sunak has met Volodymyr Zelensky at the G7 summit in Hiroshima after the Ukrainian president closed in on obtaining the F-16 fighter jets he wants to fight off Russia.

“Good to see you,” the Prime Minister said, slapping him on the back after they greeted each other with an embrace. “You made it.”

Asked by reporters if it was a good day for Ukraine, Mr Zelensky smiled, nodded and said “thank you so much”.

Sam Blewett has the full report:

Western countries will be running “colossal risks” if they supply Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets, TASS news agency quoted Russian deputy foreign minister Alexander Grushko as saying on Saturday.

Grushko was responding to a question about the implications of providing the jets, which Ukraine has been requesting from NATO countries.

It has not yet won commitments to deliver the planes, but US President Joe Biden told G7 leaders on Friday that Washington supports joint allied training programs for Ukrainian pilots on F-16s, senior US officials said.

“We see that Western countries are still adhering to the escalation scenario. It involves colossal risks for themselves,” Grushko was quoted as saying.

“In any case, this will be taken into account in all our plans, and we have all the necessary means to achieve the goals we have set.”