Ukraine

United Nations, Apr 5 (PTI) Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is scheduled to address the United Nations Security Council on Tuesday, the first time he will address the most powerful UN organ since Russia's invasion of his country and after streets strewn with corpses of what appeared to be civilians were found in the suburbs of Kyiv, sparking worldwide horror and condemnation.

BUCHA, Ukraine (AP) — Russia faced a fresh wave of condemnation on Monday after evidence emerged of what appeared to be deliberate killings of civilians in Ukraine. Some Western leaders called for further sanctions in response, even as Moscow continued to press its offensive in the country’s east.

Germany’s defense minister suggested the European Union discuss a ban on Russian gas imports, but more senior officials indicated an immediate boycott was not possible — a sign that leaders could struggle in the short-term to ramp up already severe sanctions on Russia.

ODESA, Ukraine, April 3 (Reuters) - Russian attacks have destroyed an oil refinery in the central Poltava region and struck "critical infrastructure", most likely oil facilities, near the port city of Odesa, local officials said on Sunday.

Russian forces have attacked Odesa, the main base for Ukraine's navy, alongside other Ukrainian Black Sea ports such as Mariupol and Mykolaiv. If taken, it would give Russia a land corridor from Crimea to Transniestria, a Russian-speaking breakaway province of Moldova that hosts Russian troops.

April 3 (Reuters) - Ukraine's foreign ministercalled on the G7 on Sunday to impose "devastating" new sanctions on Moscow and accused Russia of carrying out a deliberate "massacre" in the town of Bucha outside Kyiv.

Ukraine said on Saturday its forces had retaken all areas around Kyiv and the mayor in Bucha, a liberated town 37 km (23 miles) northwest of the capital, said that 300 residents had been killed by the Russian army. 

LVIV, Ukraine, April 3 (Reuters) - A leading rights group said on Sunday it had documented what it described as "apparent war crimes" committed by Russian military forces against civilians in Ukraine.

Human Rights Watch (HRW) issued a statement saying it had found "several cases of Russian military forces committing laws-of-war violations" in Russian-controlled regions such as Chernihiv, Kharkiv, and Kyiv.

KIEV, April 2 (Xinhua) -- The draft agreements that were discussed during the meeting in Istanbul this week are now ready for discussion by the presidents of Ukraine and Russia, head of the Ukrainian delegation David Arakhamia said Saturday.

The draft has been "developed enough to conduct direct consultations between the two leaders of the countries," Arakhamia was quoted by Interfax-Ukraine news agency as saying.

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Residents of Ukraine’s besieged southeastern coast awaited possible evacuation Sunday as the country’s president said Russia’s obsession with capturing a key port city had left its forces weakened and created opportunities for his military.

Two loud explosions were heard in Odesa on the Black Sea, and black smoke was seen rising above the city, which is where Ukraine’s navy is headquartered. It is west of Mariupol, a smaller port that has been under attack for almost the entire war and rescuers are desperate to reach.

Kyiv, Apr 2 (AP) Ukrainian troops moved cautiously to retake territory north of the country's capital on Saturday, using cables to pull the bodies of civilians off the streets in one town out of fear that Russian forces might have booby-trapped them before leaving.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned in his nightly video address hours earlier that departing Russian troops were creating a catastrophic" situation for civilians by leaving mines around homes, abandoned equipment and even the bodies of those killed."

April 2 (Reuters) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has accused Russian soldiers of deliberately mining areas in northern Ukraine as they withdraw or are pushed out by Ukrainian forces.

Ukraine says its troops have retaken control of more than 30 towns and villages in the Kyiv region since Russia announced this week it would scale down its operations around the capital and in the neighbouring northern region of Chernihiv to focus on battles in the east.

ZAPORIZHZHIA, Ukraine, April 2 (Reuters) - Ukrainian forces were advancing on Saturday into areas north of Kyiv littered with debris and destroyed Russian tanks as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy accused departing Russian soldiers of leaving behind mines.

Ukrainian presidential adviser Okeksiy Arestovych said Ukrainian troops had retaken more than 30 towns and villages in the region since Russia announced this week it would scale down operations around the capital to focus on battles in the east.