Russia’s war on Ukraine latest: Russian missile attack hits Kyiv infrastructure By Reuters

(Reuters) – Russian missile attacks hit critical infrastructure in Kyiv and the eastern city of Kharkiv on Saturday morning, and a utility company imposed emergency power cuts in the capital and two other regions.

BATTLE FOR SOLEDAR

* Russia said on Friday its forces had taken control of Soledar in eastern Ukraine, in what would be a rare success for Moscow after months of battlefield reverses, but Kyiv said its troops were still fighting in the town.

* President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Ukrainian forces continued to fight in Soledar, a small salt-mining town, and other cities in the Donetsk region.

* Reuters could not verify the accounts.

ARMS

* Prime Minister Rishi Sunak outlined Britain’s ambition to send some of its main battle tanks to Ukraine along with additional artillery support during a phone call on Saturday with Zelenskiy, Sunak’s office said.

* France hopes to deliver “AMX 10-RC” light combat tanks to Ukraine in two months, armed forces minister Sebastien Lecornu said on Friday.

* Belarus may enter the conflict, a Russian foreign ministry official said on Friday. Russia used Belarus as a springboard to invade Ukraine in February, but the border area is now heavily waterlogged, making an imminent attack from there unlikely.

DIPLOMACY, ECONOMY

* Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, after meeting U.S. President Joe Biden in Washington on Friday, stressed the importance of standing up to Russia’s invasion, saying that if a unilateral change to the status quo went unchallenged, the same would happen elsewhere, including in Asia – an apparent reference to China’s vow to reunite with self-ruled Taiwan, by force if necessary.

* Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev accused Kishida on Saturday of shameful subservience to the United States and suggested he should ritually disembowel himself.

* Russia is becoming too dependent on oil revenues to support its budget as it ramps up military spending, economists said, warning that the government may have to raise taxes if crude prices fail to meet expectations this year.

* A close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested on Friday confiscating property and assets of Russians who discredit the armed forces and oppose the war in Ukraine.

* At least four Chinese-owned supertankers are shipping Russian Urals crude to China, according to trading sources and tracking data, as Moscow seeks vessels for exports after a G7 oil price cap restricted the use of Western cargo services and insurance.