Ukraine-Russia war latest: Wagner troops cross border to Belarus, says Kyiv; Discontent 'growing' in Russian army

Irish volunteer fighter describes life on the Ukrainian frontline

On this edition of the Sky News Daily Podcast, an Irish volunteer fighter in Ukraine – whose code name is 'Rambo' - describes how he and his unit screamed in terror as a Russian tank chased after them.

Rhys Byrne, who is 28 and from Dublin, spoke to Sky's international correspondent John Sparks about fighting in the Ukrainian army for the past 17 months.

Kimberley Leonard speaks to John about meeting 'Rambo' at a respite centre in eastern Ukraine where army volunteers have been granted leave from the frontline

Residents nearest occupied nuclear plant invited to 'move to the Russian far east'

Anton Gerashchenko, adviser to the Ukrainian minister of internal affairs, has claimed there are flyers being handed out inviting Ukrainians in occupied Enerhodar to move to the 'Russian far east'.

He says that pictures of the flyers are circulating on Russian Telegram channels.

They are being given to Ukrainians living in the city - the nearest to the occupied nuclear power plant in Zaporizhia - claiming: "The Far East of Russia is waiting for you!"

It gives them the option of different regions to live in as well as a salary of around 55,000 rubles (£465) a month.

For context: Russia has been accused of widespread trafficking of Ukrainians - including children - from their home country into Russia over the course of the conflict.

South Korea pledges more military support on surprise Kyiv visit

On his surprise visit to the Ukrainian capital, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol pledged a bigger batch of military supplies and $150m (£114m) in humanitarian aid.

We reported earlier that Mr Yoon is in Kyiv visiting President Volodymyr Zelenskyy after attending a NATO summit in Lithuania and Poland earlier in the week.

South Korea is a US ally and the world's ninth biggest arms exporter, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) think tank.

But it is also wary of Russia's influence over North Korea and has so far resisted Western pressure to help arm Ukraine directly.

However, in a joint press conference, Mr Yoon said South Korea plans to provide "a larger scale of military supplies" to Ukraine this year, following last year's provision of non-lethal supplies such as body armour and helmets.

He did not give more details, but said South Korea will also provide Ukraine with $150 million (£114m) in humanitarian aid this year, following about $100 (£76m) million in 2022.

It will cooperate with Kyiv in projects such as infrastructure construction too, which can be backed by concessionary loans from South Korea, he said.

"We are discussing everything that is important for the normal and safe life of people," Mr Zelenskyy said, thanking Mr Yoon for "powerful" support

NATO membership for Ukraine could prolong - or even escalate - the war

Volodymyr Zelenskyy's frustration with NATO exposes a deeper tension. His continual list of "demands" is creating challenges for NATO and Western governments, with Defence Secretary Ben Wallace advising "we are not Amazon".

The Ukrainian president believes his country is fighting Russia"on behalf of" the West. It is Ukrainian lives being lost so if anyone should be grateful it should be the West.

But away from the public rhetoric, international attention is increasingly turning to the post-war security environment for Ukraine.

Unless Ukraine or Russia "wins" and achieves its strategic objectives, the war will only culminate with a negotiated agreement.

Read military expert Sean Bell's analysis here...

Barrage of artillery, drone and rocket attacks strike across Ukraine

Russia launched a barrage of mortar, artillery, drone and rocket launcher attacks over the last 24 hours.

In southern Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia province there were 45 air and artillery attacks between Friday and Saturday, governor Yurii Malashka said.

Neighbouring Kherson province was attacked 70 times over the same period, using mortars, artillery, drones, tanks, aviation and multiple rocket launchers, governor Oleksandr Prokudin said.

Russian shelling killed one civilian in eastern Ukraine's Donetsk province, governor Pavlo Kyrylenko reported.

And a further 10 drone attacks targeted the south and east, the Ukrainian air force said.

South Korean president makes 'very significant' surprise visit to Ukraine

The president of South Korea has made a surprise visit to Ukraine today to meet with Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

President Yoon Suk Yeol visited the site of mass killings in Bucha, before going to Irpin, a residential area targeted by large-scale missile attacks.

Earlier this week he attended a NATO summit in Lithuania and visited Poland, where he expressed solidarity with Ukraine.

South Korea has faced renewed pressure to provide weapons, which Mr Yoon's administration has resisted in favour of humanitarian and financial aid, wary of Russia's influence over North Korea.

Although his visit was not entirely unexpected, it is "very significant" given that few other Asian leaders have visited Ukraine, said Ramon Pacheco Pardo, the Korea chair at the Brussels School of Governance.

"If he's going it's because Zelenskyy allowed him to go, because he feels Korea is doing enough to warrant it," Mr Pacheco Pardo said, adding that it also suggested South Korea may be doing more to support Ukraine behind the scenes.

Mr Yoon said in Poland on Thursday: "We view Russia's invasion of Ukraine as a challenge to the international community's freedom, human rights and the rule of law."

Ukraine 'struggling' to split Russian army in two

Ukrainian attempts to drive down through Russian defences in the south and split its army in two have been proving "very difficult", a military analyst has said.

Serhiy Hrabskyi told Ukrainian NV radio that troops were struggling in their efforts to reach Berdyansk, a port on the Sea of Azov.

"They are moving on the village of Robotyne. The enemy is offering resistance to stop our advance southward."

The commander of Ukrainian forces in the south, General Oleksander Tarnavskyi, said his troops were "systematically moving the enemy out of their positions" in his latest update on the counteroffensive.

Russia had lost at least 200 troops in the last 24 hours there, he wrote on Telegram.

Russia's defence ministry said its forces had repelled 16 Ukrainian attacks on the eastern front, including near the long-contested town of Maryinka and in the strategic village of Klishchiivka, on Bakhmut's southern fringe.

Sky News cannot independently verify these battlefield reports.

Discontent 'growing' in Russian army - and it mirrors 'Wagner's mutiny rhetoric'

Russia has sacked a commander for a "scathing attack" on its top military brass which echoed the words of Yevgeny Prigozhin prior to the Wagner mutiny.

General Major Ivan Popov accused the Russian defence ministry of "viciously beheading the Army at the most difficult and intense moment".

His comments, made in a leaked video intended for his troops, draw attention to "serious disaffection many officers likely harbour towards the senior military leadership", according to the UK Ministry of Defence.

"The complaints largely echo those made by Wagner Group owner Yevgeny Prigozhin prior to his June 2023 mutiny," it said.

"Direct criticism from subordinates is likely to become an increasing problem for defence minister Sergei Shoigu and chief of the general staff General Gerasimov."

These military leaders were the target of Yevgeny Prigozhin's aborted rebellion in June, who he railed against for perceived failures in their invasion of Ukraine.

Russia charges Ukrainian citizen with murder of submarine commander

Sergei Denisenko has been charged with the "premeditated murder" of Stanislav Rzhitsky and illegal arms trafficking, the Russian Investigative Committee said today.

Denisenko, a Ukrainian citizen, was detained earlier this week in connection with the murder of Rzhitsky, a former submarine commander in Russia's Black Sea fleet.

Rzhitsky was killed early on Monday while on his morning run through a park in Krasnodar.

Russia's Investigative Committee previously posted a video showing the suspect, who they have now named as Denisenko, being walked through the scene of the murder.

Threat of Russia using nuclear weapons 'not that high'

Volodymyr Zelenskyy's chief of staff, Andrii Yermak, has told reporters there is always a threat of Russia using nuclear weapons to stop the counteroffensive, but it's not high right now.

Mr Yermak's statement comes a day after Joe Biden said there was no real possibility of Russian dictator Vladimir Putin using nuclear weapons against Ukraine or the West.

Yesterday, Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said the Kremlin would see the potential provision of US-made F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine as a "nuclear threat" as these planes can carry nuclear warheads.

Russian Security Council deputy chairman Dmitry Medvedev threatened nuclear facilities in Ukraine and other Eastern European countries with Russian strikes, claiming that increased NATO support could lead to World War III.