Despite several rounds of peace talks, Russia's offensive against Ukraine continues.
Moscow is now concentrating attacks on the eastern region of Donbas.
Our Han Seong-woo is standing by on the line.
Seong-woo, first up, what's happening on the ground.
I'm hearing a fire broke out at a fuel depot in a Russian border city?
That's right, Daniel.
Belgorod's the name of the region and its governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said two Ukrainian
military helicopters struck a fuel depot there in what is Moscow's first accusation of a
Ukrainian air strike on Russian soil since the outbreak of the war in late February.
Although not verified yet, a video of the alleged attack posted online shows what appears
to be several missiles being fired from low altitude, followed by an explosion.
The resulting blaze injured two workers, according to Gladkov, but the Russian oil firm that
owns the fuel depot, said in a separate statement that nobody was hurt in the fire.
The Kremlin says Vladimir Putin has been informed of the event.
Let me also add that head of the International Atomic Energy Agency Rafael Grossi, who visited
plants in Ukraine this week, just said the war in Ukraine has provided the IAEA with
unprecedented logistic challenges in wartime nuclear security.
Seong-woo, we're also learning Russian troops have confiscated several tons of humanitarian
aid headed to southern Ukraine?
Yes, Daniel.
According to Iryna Vereshchuk, who is Ukraine's Minister of Reintegration of Temporarily Occupied
Territories, fourteen tons of humanitarian aid, including food and medicine, bound for
the city of Melitopol in southern Ukraine, were confiscated by Russian forces on Thursday...
along with the buses carrying the supplies.
Ukrainian officials are negotiating with Russia for the return of the buses so they can also
be used to evacuate people out of the city.
CNN reports, though, that around 2,000 civilians from the besieged city of Mariupol, are evacuating
on buses to the Ukrainian government-held city of Zaporizhzhia.
According to the Mariupol city council on Telegram, the evacuation convoy left the coastal
city of Berdyansk for Zaporizhzhia on 42 buses escorted by the Red Cross and State Emergency
Service vehicles.
"Time is running out for the people of Mariupol.
They are desperately in need of assistance, and they are desperately in need of leaving
the city if they wish to do so.
That is what we are hopeful to achieve today."
This follows Russia's prior announcement that it would reopen the evacuation corridor from
Mariupol to Zaporizhzhia today...
at the request of France and Germany.
The Ukrainian government earlier estimated that around 100-thousand civilians are trapped
inside the city, which has suffered weeks of bombardment.
Meanwhile, in a another video address to the Ukrainian people, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy
said that although the situation in the south and in Donbas remains "extremely difficult,"
Russia will pay in the end.
"Also, in the Donbas, in Mariupol, in the Kharkiv direction, Russian troops are accumulating
the potential for strikes powerful strikes.
We will defend ourselves.
We will do everything we can to stop the occupiers and cleanse our land of their evil and senseless
crimes."
He also said he had sacked two senior members of the national security service,... referring
to them as "anti-hero" traitors.
Despite a dark backdrop, peace talks are set to continue.
Expectations are high they could produce some positive results.
Correct.
Talks between Ukraine and Russia will resume on Friday online through video.
Ukrainian negotiator, David Arakhamia, said Thursday that they will focus on the peace
framework Ukraine presented at the talks earlier this week in Istanbul, Turkey talks Russia
said were "constructive."
The diplomatic stakes are higher now, though, with the Russian president having just signed
a decree requiring certain countries to pay for Russian gas in rubles or see their supplies
halted,... a demand major western European states instantly rejected....
Germany even describing it as "blackmail."
The United States called it a sign of the dire straits Russia's economy is in.
"...this is a reflection of the fact that the sanctions, the export controls, the other
economic measures, including the measures, the additional measures that we announced
today have had a significant, substantial, profound effect on the Russian economy...
That's all I have for now, Daniel.
Back to you.