???? Live: Spain sends six Leopard tanks to Ukraine

Issued on: 22/04/2023 – 16:22

3:15pm: Residents in Russia’s Belgorod return home after bomb scare

More than 3,000 people in the Russian city of Belgorod were returning to their homes on Saturday after being evacuated while an explosive was disposed of, the local governor said.

Two days earlier a Russian warplane accidentally dropped a bomb on the city, damaging local houses, authorities said. Those evacuated lived in the same area.

Belgorod region governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said that people had started to return to their homes after a “shell” was removed from the area.

2:54pm: Six Leopard tanks leave Spain en route to Ukraine

Six Leopard 2A4 tanks destined for Ukraine left Spain by ship on Friday and will arrive in days, Spain’s Defence Minister Margarita Robles said on Saturday. 

“The Leopards… and around 20 transport vehicles left from Santander port heading for Ukraine, where they will arrive in five or six days,” Robles told journalists.

Robles said this month that Spain will send Ukraine 10 Leopard 2A4 tanks. The military is repairing the remaining four. Spain has also trained 40 tank crew members and 15 mechanics.

Ukraine has been reliant on outdated Soviet-era tanks and appealed to the West for modern battle tanks, saying they are critical to its ground capabilities.

1:42pm: Over 3,000 civilians to be evacuated after explosive found in Russia’s Belgorod

More than 3,000 people will be evacuated in the Russian city of Belgorod, which borders Ukraine, after an explosive was found, the local governor said on Saturday, two days after a Russian warplane accidentally dropped a bomb on the city.

Military explosive experts have decided to “neutralize” the explosive at a training ground, Belgorod region governor Vyacheslav Gladkov wrote on Telegram.

“The operational headquarters decided to evacuate 17 apartment buildings within a radius of 200 metres. According to preliminary data, it is more than 3,000 people. Anyone who needs help with temporary accommodation, it will be provided,” he said.

On Thursday, a Russian Sukhoi-34 supersonic warplane accidentally fired a weapon into Belgorod, causing an explosion and injuring three people, according to Russian officials.

It was not immediately clear if the two incidents were connected.

1:01pm: Russia says it takes three districts in western part of Ukraine’s Bakhmut

Russia’s Defence Ministry said on Saturday that Russian assault troops had captured three more districts in the western part of the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut.

The Russian military sometimes refers to the Wagner group of fighters as “assault troops”.

Ukrainian and Russian units have been battling for months over the eastern city, much of which lies in ruins.

“The airborne troops were restraining the Ukrainian units on the flanks and supported the actions of the assault squads to capture the city,” the ministry said in its latest bulletin.

9:21am: Russian head of Crimea says air defences activated, no damage or casualties

The top official in the Russian-annexed Crimea region of Ukraine said on Saturday that air defence systems had been activated but there were no reports of damage or casualties.

“Air defence forces worked in the sky over Crimea. No damage or casualties. I ask everyone to remain calm and trust only trusted sources of information,” the official, Sergei Aksyonov, said on the messaging app Telegram.

He did not say what the target of the air defences was or specify the location of the military activity.

Key developments of Friday, April 21:

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg attended a meeting on Friday at the Ramstein Air Base in Germany, where 50 countries, including the United States, were present to discuss coordinating further support for Ukraine. While there, he said that he was “confident” that Ukraine is prepared to retake more territory as Kyiv readies a new offensive against invading Russian forces.

Poland on Friday allowed the transit of Ukrainian grain and other food through its borders, partially lifting a near week-long ban imposed in response to protests from its farmers.

>> Read our blog for all of yesterday’s events as they unfolded

(FRANCE 24 with AFP, AP and Reuters)