Ukraine war briefing: Children ordered to leave key Ukrainian stronghold as Russians advance

Ukraine has begun the compulsory evacuation of children from the city of Sloviansk, in a sign the security situation is deteriorating in one of the country’s main remaining strongholds in the Donbas area. Russian forces have been slowly advancing to the north and east of Sloviansk and are about 20km (12 miles) from the edge of the city at various points along the frontline, Reuters reports. Sloviansk is one of several towns and cities that remain under Ukrainian control in an urban “fortress belt” in the eastern region of Donetsk, which comprises part of the Donbas. Russia sees control of the entire Donbas, known for its coalmines and heavy industry, as its key military goal. Ukraine still controls just under a quarter of the Donetsk region.

Ukraine is still expecting the first tranche of a 90bn euro ($103bn) loan from the EU next month, despite a failure to break Hungary’s veto of the funding this week, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Friday. EU leaders were unable to convince the Hungarian prime minister, Viktor Orbán, on Thursday to lift his blockade of the loan, which is crucial for Ukraine to maintain its fight against Russia. Zelenskyy said he had discussed the matter with the EU leaders and trusted they would find a solution.

However, Orbán has raised the prospect of further actions his government could take against Ukraine to force the resumption of Russian oil deliveries that have been stalled to Hungary and Slovakia since January. Speaking on Friday, Orbán said he and his government had “a lot of cards in our hands” beyond holding up the financial aid Kyiv needed to equip its armed forces and keep its economy running. “We have other tools as well,” he said. “40% of Ukraine’s electricity supply goes through Hungary; we haven’t touched that yet. [The EU] constantly wants to introduce new sanctions [against Russia]. That will require unanimity, and we will not give it.” Tensions between Hungary and Ukraine have escalated in recent weeks into a bitter feud over Hungary’s access to Russian oil through a pipeline that crosses Ukrainian territory.

Zelenskyy said negotiators will seek clarity from US officials on the next round of trilateral talks with Russia, postponed due to the Iran war. “We want clear dates – at least approximate ones. Everyone understands that the situation in the Middle East, the war, is affecting the postponement of this date,” Zelenskyy said on Friday. He added Ukrainian officials at talks in the US on Saturday would discuss the recent “dangerous” US decision to ease some sanctions on the Russian energy sector.

A sizable number of US Patriot air defence missiles have been moved from Europe toward the Middle East, leaving concerning gaps in Europe’s air defences against Russia, US defence officials told the Associated Press. Two Patriot missile systems were sent from Germany to Turkey after several ballistic missiles were fired toward Turkey from Iran since the start of the war, the Turkish defence ministry and three US officials said. The US officials said missiles for the Patriot system were moved from various locations around Europe in an effort to reinforce air defences towards the Middle East. One official said stocks of Patriot missiles were “absolutely” dwindling in Europe and elsewhere because of the war in Iran, and added the situation was “pretty concerning”.

Hungarian security operatives administered a “forced injection” to one of the Ukrainians detained earlier this month during a dramatic raid on bank vehicles carrying gold bars and tens of millions of dollars and euros in cash, sources have told the Guardian. The sources said they believed the injection contained a relaxant that was meant to predispose subjects towards becoming talkative during interrogations, write Shaun Walker and Flora Garamvolgyi.

Russia attacked Ukrainian oil and gas facilities in Poltava and Sumy regions overnight, Ukraine’s largest state oil and gas company, Naftogaz, said. The company said damage had been caused, and operations at the unspecified facilities were suspended.

Ukraine has deployed military units to protect critical and civilian infrastructure against drones in the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, and Jordan, Ukraine’s security council secretary Rustem Umerov has confirmed.