UKRAINE LIVE: KYIV FIRES FLAMINGO MISSILES AT RUSSIAN OIL FACILITIES

Key Points

• Kyiv fires long-range Flamingo missiles in attack on Russian oil facilities
• Russia's Lukoil gains buyers ahead of US sanctions deadline
• Ukraine's foreign minister presses G7 allies for support as Russia targets energy grid before winter
• Kremlin confirms UK-Russia call but dialogue failed
• Zelensky fires ministers over Ukraine energy corruption scandal
• Russia makes gains in southern Ukraine as it expands frontline attacks

Zelensky discusses Ukraine energy scandal with German chancellor

German chancellor Friedrich Merz and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky have discussed an energy scandal that has engulfed the latter's government on the phone, the German government said in a statement on Thursday.

Mr Zelensky pledged complete transparency, long-term support for independent anti-corruption authorities and further swift measures to regain the trust of the Ukrainian people, European partners and international donors, the statement said.

"The chancellor emphasized the German government's expectation that Ukraine would vigorously pursue the fight against corruption and further reforms, particularly in the area of the rule of law," it added.

Watch: Russian troops roll into Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk in 'Mad Max-style'

Moscow claims control over two Ukrainian settlements

Russia's Defence Ministry said on Thursday that its forces had captured two Ukrainian settlements in northeastern and central Ukraine.

The towns named were Synelnykove in the Kharkiv region and Danylivka in the Dnipropetrovsk region.

The Independent could not independently verify the battlefield report, but authoritative Ukrainian battlefield map DeepState shows Russian forces on the outskirts of Synelnykove.

Ukraine will have to negotiate 'sooner or later', says Kremlin

The Kremlin has said Ukraine will have to negotiate with Russia "sooner or later" and predicted that Kyiv's negotiating position would get worse by the day.

Moscow, whose forces are trying to take control of the city of Pokrovsk in eastern Ukraine, has accused Ukrainian officials of refusing to engage in peace talks. Kyiv says Moscow's terms to end the war are unacceptable and tantamount to asking it to surrender.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Thursday that Russia remained open to a political and diplomatic settlement and wanted peace.

But in the absence of such an opportunity, he said Russia would continue fighting in order to protect its own security for the benefit of future generations.

"The Ukrainian side should know that sooner or later it will have to negotiate, but from a much worse position. The position of the Kyiv regime will deteriorate day by day," Peskov said.

EU must listen to Belgian concerns on Russian frozen assets, Dutch Minister says

The European Union needs to listen to Belgium's concerns over using Russian frozen assets to help Ukraine, Dutch finance minister Eelco Heinen told reporters on Thursday ahead of a meeting with his EU counterparts in Brussels.

The European proposal to use Russian frozen assets to help Ukraine is being held up due to concerns from Belgium, where most of the assets are parked.

Belgium has demanded financial guarantees from EU capitals against the loan, but the European Commission’s top brass failing to convince the Belgian leadership to get on board with the plan last Friday, Politico reported.

Reparation loan using frozen Russian assets best way to finance Ukraine - EU chief

A reparations loan based on immobilised Russian assets is the most effective option to fund Ukraine’s financing needs, EU Commission president Ursula von der Leyen has said.

EU member states have two other options, including using "headroom" in its budget to raise capital, or for an agreement among member states to raise capital by themselves, she said in a speech in European Parliament.

"Option three is to have a reparations loan based on immobilised Russian assets. We give a loan to Ukraine, that Ukraine pays back if Russia pays reparations," she said.

"This is the most effective way to sustain Ukraine's defence and its economy."

Lavrov hopes Washington will not do anything escalate war

Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said in an interview published late on Wednesday that he hoped Washington would take no actions liable to escalate the Ukraine conflict.

Lavrov said US president Donald Trump had long advocated dialogue with Russia, had sought to fully understand the Russian position on Ukraine and "demonstrated a commitment to finding a sustainable peaceful solution".

Lavrov said Trump had acknowledged that one of the reasons behind Russia's actions was the enlargement of the Nato alliance and the deployment of its infrastructure close to its border.

Europe, he said, was "sabotaging all peacemaking efforts and are rejecting direct contacts with Moscow. They introduce new sanctions which boomerang on their economies even further. They're openly preparing for a new major European war against Russia."

Lavrov's comments were originally part of an interview with Italian daily Corriere della Sera. Tass said the Italian daily had declined to publish the interview.

Russia makes gains in southern Ukraine as it expands front-line attacks

The Russian army overran three settlements in the southern Zaporizhzhia region of Ukraine, Kyiv’s top military commander said Wednesday, as Moscow’s forces expand their efforts to capture more Ukrainian territory.

Dense fog enabled Russian troops to infiltrate Ukrainian positions in Zaporizhzhia, Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi wrote on the messaging app Telegram, adding that Ukrainian units are locked in “grueling battles” to repel the Russian thrust.

He noted, however, that the fiercest battles are still in the besieged Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk, in the eastern Donetsk region, where close to half of all front-line clashes took place over the previous 24 hours.

Russia makes gains in southern Ukraine as it expands front-line attacks

Kenya says over 200 of its nationals are fighting for Russia in Ukraine war

Kenya said on Wednesday over 200 of its citizens are fighting for Russia in Moscow's war in Ukraine, and that recruiting agencies are still actively working to lure more Kenyans into the conflict, Reuters reports.

Ukraine last week said that more than 1,400 citizens from three dozen African countries are fighting alongside Russian forces in Ukraine with some recruited through deception.

Russia was enticing Africans to sign contracts that Ukraine's foreign minister, Andriy Sybiha described as "equivalent to ... a death sentence", and urged African governments to caution their citizens.

"Recruitment exercises in Russia have reportedly expanded to include African nationals, including Kenyans," Kenya's ministry of foreign affairs said in a statement.

Major Russia port operator says system targeted by foreign hackers

Russia's Port Alliance group, which operates a network of sea cargo terminals, said on Thursday that foreign hackers had targeted its systems over three days in a distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack and an attempted hack.

It said in a statement that critical elements of its digital infrastructure had been targeted with the aim of disrupting export shipments of coal and mineral fertilisers at its sea terminals in the Baltic, Black Sea, Far East and Arctic regions.

The attack was successfully repelled and operations remained unaffected, Port Alliance said.

Denial of service is among the web's most basic form of attack and it works by simply overwhelming targeted servers with a firehose of bogus requests for data, making it impossible for legitimate web traffic to get through.

Russian authorities and state companies have regularly reported attempted DDoS and hacking attacks from abroad since Russia sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine in 2022.

Ukraine and some Western countries have in turn accused Russia of launching cyberattacks.

Port Alliance group operates cargo terminals at five Russian ports.

IMF to start mission to Ukraine soon

The International Monetary Fund will start a staff mission to Ukraine soon to discuss its financing needs and a potential new lending program, spokesperson Julie Kozack said on Thursday, underscoring the need for continued anti-corruption efforts in the war-torn country.

Ukrainian prime minister Yuliia Svyrydenko on Thursday announced an audit of all state-owned companies, including in the energy sector, following an alleged $100 million corruption scandal that has led to the suspension of two cabinet ministers.

Anti-corruption authorities said this week they had detained five people and identified two others still at large, suspected of involvement in the alleged plot to control procurement at nuclear agency Energoatom and other state enterprises.

Ms Kozack told reporters at a regular briefing that the IMF staff mission would center on policies to safeguard Ukraine's macroeconomic stability and ensure its debt sustainability, with a focus on reforms to promote domestic revenue mobilization and to strengthen governance and combat corruption.

"We've been saying for some time that Ukraine needs a robust anti-corruption architecture to level the playing field, safeguard public resources, improve the business climate and attract investment," Ms Kozack said, calling efforts to fight corruption a central requirement for Ukraine's donors.

Inside Ukraine’s start-up weapons industry rising from the ashes

After nearly four years of bitter war, Ukraine’s defence industry has more understanding than most of the demands of the modern battlefield.

The latest innovation is a cruise missile with a range of 3,000km and a payload of over a tonne, used in strikes deep into Russian territory.

Where weapons from allies come with conditions, Kyiv can fire the FP-5 Flamingo missile at any target it wants.

With arms supplies from the West so uncertain, Volodymyr Zelensky has said Ukraine now makes about 60 per cent of its own weapons.

World affairs editor Sam Kiley reports from Kyiv:

Inside Ukraine’s start-up weapons industry rising from the ashes

Eastern Ukraine is a 'major challenge' - Zelensky

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has given an update on the frontline situation in Ukraine, as he visits the region of Zaporizhzhia just kilometres from Russian positions.

“Eastern Ukraine is, without a doubt, a major challenge,” he said in an update on X.

“And here, on the Orikhiv direction, it has always been intense. I thank all the soldiers, officers, and sergeants for defending this sector – the entire Zaporizhzhia region, and the city of Zaporizhzhia, which is so important.”

Kyiv to audit state companies after graft scandal, says PM

Ukrainian prime minister Yuliia Svyrydenko said on Thursday that her government would carry out an audit of all state-owned companies, including energy ones, following a major corruption scandal that has led to the suspension of two cabinet ministers.

"We are preparing a comprehensive solution for all state-owned companies, including energy companies. We are conducting an audit and have instructed the supervisory boards to check the status of work, especially in the area of procurement," she said in a video published on the Telegram app.

Kyiv fires long-range Flamingo missiles in attack on Russian oil facilities

Ukrainian forces fired domestically-produced missiles, including the Flamingo, in a wave of attacks on Russian targets overnight, the military has said.

This includes an attack on the Morskoy Neftyanoy Terminal oil storage facility in occupied Crimea.

A helicopter parking site and other military facilities, including the Kirovske airfield, were also struck.

“Last night, several long-range strike systems were launched, including the domestically developed Flamingo, Bars and Lyutyi,” the Ukrainian army’s general staff said in a social media update.

"Units from the Ukrainian defence forces struck several dozen targets in Russia and the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine on the night of 12-13 November as part of efforts to reduce the military, economic and offensive capabilities of Russia, the aggressor state,” the Ukrainian army’s general staff said.

Another oil depot near Berdyansk in the Zaporizhzhia region was hit, as were several targets inside Russia.

The scale of the damage is still being assessed, the military added.

Lavrov hopes Washington will take no steps to escalate Ukraine war

Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov has said he hoped Washington would take no actions liable to escalate the Ukraine conflict.

Lavrov said US president Donald Trump had long advocated dialogue with Russia, had sought to fully understand the Russian position on Ukraine and "demonstrated a commitment to finding a sustainable peaceful solution".

"We are counting on common sense and that the maintaining of that position will prevail in Washington and that they will refrain from actions that could escalate the conflict to a new level," Lavrov was quoted as saying by Russian state news agency TASS.

The Russian minister did not acknowledge Moscow’s role in increasingly attacking Ukraine in its winter offensive.

Lavrov's comments were originally part of an interview with Italian daily Corriere della Sera. Tass said the Italian daily had declined to publish the interview.

Lavrov said Trump had acknowledged that one of the reasons behind Russia's actions was enlargement of the Nato alliance and the deployment of its infrastructure close to its border.

"In essence, that is what Russian president Vladimir Putin and Russia have been warning about for the last 20 years," Lavrov was quoted as saying.

Bulletin | Zelensky fires ministers as outrage grows over Ukraine energy corruption scandal

Read our Bulletin on Volodymyr Zelensky’s corruption scandal, bringing you all you need to know in just five bullet points...

Zelenskyy fires ministers as outrage grows over corruption scandal

Watch: Russia ‘human’ robot falls on stage during debut

Bulgarian parliament overrules presidential attempt to takeover sanctioned oil refinery

The Bulgarian parliament has overruled a presidential veto on legislation allowing the government to take control of Lukoil's oil refinery and sell it to shield the asset from looming US sanctions.

The US Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and Britain imposed sanctions last month on Lukoil and Rosneft, Russia's two biggest oil companies, escalating pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the war in Ukraine and threatening their operations across Europe.

Lawmakers approved changes last week giving a government-appointed commercial manager powers to oversee the continued operation of Lukoil's refinery in Bulgaria beyond November 21, when the U.S. sanctions are due to take effect, and to sell the company if needed.

President Rumen Radev vetoed the bill on Wednesday, warning it lacked safeguards against future financial claims against the state.

Parliament rejected his objections by 128 votes to 59 on Thursday, the Bulgarian news agency BTA reported.

Zelensky discusses Ukraine energy scandal with German chancellor

German chancellor Friedrich Merz and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky have discussed an energy scandal that has engulfed the latter's government on the phone, the German government said in a statement on Thursday.

Mr Zelensky pledged complete transparency, long-term support for independent anti-corruption authorities and further swift measures to regain the trust of the Ukrainian people, European partners and international donors, the statement said.

"The chancellor emphasized the German government's expectation that Ukraine would vigorously pursue the fight against corruption and further reforms, particularly in the area of the rule of law," it added.

Watch: Russian troops roll into Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk in 'Mad Max-style'

Moscow claims control over two Ukrainian settlements

Russia's Defence Ministry said on Thursday that its forces had captured two Ukrainian settlements in northeastern and central Ukraine.

The towns named were Synelnykove in the Kharkiv region and Danylivka in the Dnipropetrovsk region.

The Independent could not independently verify the battlefield report, but authoritative Ukrainian battlefield map DeepState shows Russian forces on the outskirts of Synelnykove.

Ukraine will have to negotiate 'sooner or later', says Kremlin

The Kremlin has said Ukraine will have to negotiate with Russia "sooner or later" and predicted that Kyiv's negotiating position would get worse by the day.

Moscow, whose forces are trying to take control of the city of Pokrovsk in eastern Ukraine, has accused Ukrainian officials of refusing to engage in peace talks. Kyiv says Moscow's terms to end the war are unacceptable and tantamount to asking it to surrender.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Thursday that Russia remained open to a political and diplomatic settlement and wanted peace.

But in the absence of such an opportunity, he said Russia would continue fighting in order to protect its own security for the benefit of future generations.

"The Ukrainian side should know that sooner or later it will have to negotiate, but from a much worse position. The position of the Kyiv regime will deteriorate day by day," Peskov said.

Russia says it foiled Ukrainian-British plot to steal MiG-31 jet

Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) said it had foiled a plot by Ukrainian and British spies to tempt Russian pilots to steal a MiG-31 jet armed with a Kinzhal hypersonic missile for $3 million, state media reported on Tuesday.

The RIA news agency cited the FSB as saying that the hijacked jet was to be flown toward a NATO air base in the Romanian city of Constanta, where it could have been shot down by air defences.

The FSB, the main successor to the Soviet-era KGB, said Ukraine and Britain had planned a large-scale "provocation" using the hijacked aircraft, and that Ukrainian military intelligence had sought to recruit Russian pilots for $3 million to steal the fighter.

"The measures taken have thwarted the Ukrainian and British intelligence services’ plans for a large-scale provocation," RIA cited the FSB as saying.

Read more here:

Russia says it foiled Ukrainian-British plot to steal MiG-31 jet

EU must listen to Belgian concerns on Russian frozen assets, Dutch Minister says

The European Union needs to listen to Belgium's concerns over using Russian frozen assets to help Ukraine, Dutch finance minister Eelco Heinen told reporters on Thursday ahead of a meeting with his EU counterparts in Brussels.

The European proposal to use Russian frozen assets to help Ukraine is being held up due to concerns from Belgium, where most of the assets are parked.

Belgium has demanded financial guarantees from EU capitals against the loan, but the European Commission’s top brass failing to convince the Belgian leadership to get on board with the plan last Friday, Politico reported.

Kremlin says contacts with Britain failed to develop

The Kremlin has confirmed this week that there was contact between Britain’s national security adviser, Jonathan Powell, and Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov - but that the talks failed to develop into a sustained dialogue.

The Financial Times reported that Powell had sought to establish a back channel to Moscow amid concerns in Britain and Europe that the administration of US president Donald Trump might sideline their interests on Ukraine.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Britain had shown little interest in engaging with Russia’s perspective on the conflict.

“There were indeed contacts,” Peskov said. “A dialogue took place, but it did not continue.”

Ukraine’s Southern Defense Forces spokesperson says situation 'quite difficult'

Fighting has intensified in the Orikhiv and Huliaipole sectors of the frontline in the Zaporizhzhia region, with up to 50 clashes reported daily.

Russian units continue to launch assaults and infiltration attempts as they try to press their advantage before winter.

Vladyslav Voloshyn, spokesperson for Ukraine’s Southern Defense Forces, said Russian troops are carrying out heavy bombardments.

“They have destroyed all existing fortifications and shelters, forcing us to withdraw from several positions,” he said.

Ukrainian forces have moved to secondary lines to stabilise the front.

Voloshyn described the situation as “quite difficult,” with Russian troops pushing to advance deeper into Ukrainian territory.

Ukrainian troops withdraw from several villages in Zaporizhzhia amid heavy fighting - ICYMI

Ukrainian forces have pulled back from several positions in the southern Zaporizhzhia region amid heavy fighting, a military spokesperson said.

The retreat marks another shift in the front line as Russian troops push forward in south-eastern Ukraine.

Vladyslav Voloshyn, spokesperson for Ukraine's Southern Defense Forces, told public broadcaster Suspilne that troops had “completely withdrawn” from the villages of Uspenivka and Novomykolaivka.

“Very fierce fighting continues for Yablukove and several other locations,” he said.

“The defensive operation is ongoing, and the contact line remains dynamic.”

Reparation loan using frozen Russian assets best way to finance Ukraine - EU chief

A reparations loan based on immobilised Russian assets is the most effective option to fund Ukraine’s financing needs, EU Commission president Ursula von der Leyen has said.

EU member states have two other options, including using "headroom" in its budget to raise capital, or for an agreement among member states to raise capital by themselves, she said in a speech in European Parliament.

"Option three is to have a reparations loan based on immobilised Russian assets. We give a loan to Ukraine, that Ukraine pays back if Russia pays reparations," she said.

"This is the most effective way to sustain Ukraine's defence and its economy."

Lavrov hopes Washington will not do anything escalate war

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in an interview published late on Wednesday that he hoped Washington would take no actions liable to escalate the Ukraine conflict.

Lavrov said U.S. President Donald Trump had long advocated dialogue with Russia, had sought to fully understand the Russian position on Ukraine and "demonstrated a commitment to finding a sustainable peaceful solution".

Lavrov said Trump had acknowledged that one of the reasons behind Russia's actions was the enlargement of the NATO alliance and the deployment of its infrastructure close to its border.

Europe, he said, was "sabotaging all peacemaking efforts and are rejecting direct contacts with Moscow. They introduce new sanctions which boomerang on their economies even further. They're openly preparing for a new major European war against Russia."

Lavrov's comments were originally part of an interview with Italian daily Corriere della Sera. Tass said the Italian daily had declined to publish the interview.

Ukrainian ministers submit resignations amid $100m corruption scandal

Ukraine’s justice and energy ministers submitted their resignations amid a high profile corruption scandal.

Anti-corruption watchdogs, which president Zelensky had tried to weaken earlier this year, revealed the findings of a 15-month investigation, resulting in the detention of five people, and another seven linked to about $100m in kickbacks in the energy sector.

Read the full story:

Ukraine’s top ministers submit resignations amid $100m corruption scandal

Russia's Lukoil gains buyers ahead of US sanctions deadline

The foreign assets of Russian oil major Lukoil are attracting potential bidders from Egypt to Kazakhstan as time runs out to clear deals before US authorities enforce sanctions.

The US has hit Lukoil with sanctions as part of its effort to bring the Kremlin to peace talks over Ukraine, and has already blocked Lukoil's attempt to sell foreign assets to trader Gunvor ahead of the 21 November sanctions deadline.

The sanctions have also already disrupted Lukoil's operations in Iraq, at pump stations in Finland and a refinery in Bulgaria.

As its empire creaks, governments and partners are hoping to snap up its foreign assets on the cheap.

Washington late last month hit Rosneft and Lukoil, Russia's two biggest oil companies, with sanctions in a move underlining Washington's intent to squeeze Russia financially and force it towards a peace deal that would end the war on Ukraine.

Watch: Russian troops roll into Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk in 'Mad Max-style'

Russia stands to gain very little from the bloody battle for Pokrovsk

Not a word of what the Russian defence ministry says is credible. Its claims that Russian troops have surrounded Ukrainian forces in Pokrovsk, Kostyantynivka and Kupiansk, in eastern Ukraine, are agitprop.

But Volodymyr Zelensky’s statement from the front line that his country’s fighters are “under pressure” is something of an understatement.

Ukraine's top military commander, Oleksandr Syrskyi, told the New York Post that Russia was concentrating some 150,000 troops on a drive to capture the town, which is much prized by Russia.

Dozens, perhaps hundreds, of Russian troops may have already successfully infiltrated the three tactically important towns.

Kupiansk is on Russia’s route towards Kharkiv. The other two control the eastern and southern routes to the last remaining Ukrainian redoubts in Donetsk – Kramatorsk and Slaviansk.

Vladimir Putin has thrown a massive effort into the fight for Donetsk, which Moscow has already illegally “annexed”.

Russia stands to gain very little from the bloody battle for Pokrovsk

Ukrainian forces fighting grueling battles in Zaporizhzhia

The Russian army overran three settlements in the southern Zaporizhzhia region of Ukraine, Kyiv's top military commander said in the latest battlefield update yesterday, as Moscow's forces expand their efforts to capture more Ukrainian territory.

Dense fog enabled Russian troops to infiltrate Ukrainian positions in Zaporizhzhia, Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi wrote on the messaging app Telegram, adding that Ukrainian units are locked in "grueling battles" to repel the Russian thrust.

He noted, however, that the fiercest battles are still in the besieged Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk, in the eastern Donetsk region, where close to half of all front-line clashes took place over the previous 24 hours.

The cities of Kupiansk and Lyman in Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region have also recently witnessed an uptick in combat.

Russia's air defence units destroy 130 Ukrainian drones overnight

Russia's air defence units destroyed and intercepted 130 Ukrainian drones overnight over Russian regions, the country’s defence ministry said in an early morning update.

Of these, at least one drone targeted Moscow and seven targeted Crimea, the defence ministry said.

Russia does not disclose the total number of drones used in attacks to target its various cities.