Ukraine-Russia war latest: Zelensky says invitation to join Nato is ‘only way’ to end Putin’s war

Moldovan police claim to have uncovered a programme in which hundreds of its citizens were brought to Russia to undergo training to stage riots and civil unrest, the latest in a slew of meddling allegations ahead of Sunday’s election.

The police said earlier this month that Russia-backed crime groups had bribed a swathe of voters and plotted to disrupt this weekend’s presidential election and referendum on the country’s European Union membership aspirations, going as far as a plan to seize state buildings .

Russia, which accuses the pro-Western government of fomenting “Russophobia”, has denied meddling in Moldova, which accelerated its push to leave Moscow’s orbit after Russia’s full-scale invasion of neighbouring Ukraine.

Moldovan police told a news conference that law enforcement agencies believed a group linked to fugitive pro-Kremlin businessman Ilan Shor had organised the training to stage unrest.

“The anti-corruption prosecutor’s office is currently conducting an investigation into several criminal cases related to the preparation of mass disturbance in the interests of the criminal community,” prosecutor Victor Furtuna said.

Volodymr Zelensky has warned that Ukraine must either join Nato or acquire nuclear weapons – but has chosen the former option.

“We are not choosing nuclear weapons, we are choosing Nato, and I think that Donald Trump heard me,” The Guardian quoted him as saying.

Russian women are “being turned into vessels for bearing children”, a rights activist has warned, after Russia’s lower house of parliament unanimously passed a new bill aiming to outlaw content that is deemed to promote a child-free lifestyle.

“Women are being essentially turned into vessels for bearing children, not taking into account their circumstances, their motivations and whether they aspire to have a career or a family,” said Olga Suvorova, a rights activist who works with victims of domestic violence in the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk.

“The message is clear: give birth, and that’s it,” she told Reuters, adding that she feared the bill could pave the way for further encroachments on women’s rights including the ability to get an abortion.

Hungarian premier Viktor Orban has criticised Volodymr Zelensky’s “victory plan” – which calls for Ukraine to be granted Nato membership – as “more than frightening”.

Mr Orban said he would urge major EU powers France and Germany to “begin negotiations with the Russians as soon as possible, in order to find a way out of this situation”.

Russia’s foreign ministry has claimed that new British sanctions on Russian oil and gas tankers showed Moscow’s status as “a reliable energy supplier” did not suit London, the state RIA news agency reported.

The UK announced it had imposed sanctions on 18 further Russian oil tankers and four liquefied natural gas vessels, the largest batch of sanctions to date against the country’s so-called “shadow fleet”.

RIA cited the foreign ministry as saying everything was being done to try to infringe Russia’s rights.

Prime minister Denys Shmyhal has announced that Ukraine’s National Mine Strategy will aim to clear his country – currently the most heavily mined on the planet – of landmines by 2033.

But he warned that Ukraine needs help, especially with training 10,000 deminers and building machines which can clear terrain around 100 times faster than people.

Ukraine’s former commander-in-chief, Valeri Zaluzhny, on Thursday expressed his support for Volodymyr Zelensky’s “victory plan,” despite the tensions between he and the president which led to his dismissal.

“Ukraine must clearly follow the plan,” Mr Zaluzhny said in his first public appearance since his appointment as ambassador to the UK.

He told an audience at London’s Chatham House think-tank: “But this list of steps primarily concerns those countries that should ultimately be interested in stopping the war.”

The United States has sanctioned two Chinese companies and a Russian affiliate involved in making and shipping attack drones which the US alleges are used in Russia’s war effort.

The new measures are aimed at the Chinese company, Xiamen Limbach Aircraft Engine Co Ltd, that makes an engine that powers Russia's Garpiya series long-range unmanned aerial vehicles, the US Treasury Department said.

They also target China-based Redlepus Vector Industry Shenzhen Co Ltd for its role in the drones’ shipment and an affiliated Russian person and company.

Switzerland’s foreign affairs minister has welcomed a peace plan for Ukraine led by China and Brazil, saying Bern was looking at it in a “favourable light”.

“It’s the opening of a door to dialogue. In that sense we can only welcome any initiative that wishes to open doors,” said Ignazio Cassis, after being asked about the plan at a conference on demining Ukraine.

He added that a revised version of the plan still had “some contradictions”, without elaborating.

Greece’s prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has signed a security agreement with Volodymyr Zelensky, following the European Union and 20 other EU member states in committing to support Ukraine’s security.

The pact was signed on the sidelines of the European Council meeting in Brussels, the premier’s office said in a statement.

“Greece is ready to continue meeting Ukraine’s most urgent defence needs. It will also provide additional resources to accelerate F-16 training for our pilots and technicians,” Mr Zelensky said on X.

The agreement is intended to complement other deals sealed between Ukraine and its allies as it continues its defence against Russia’s invasion, and paves the way for Greece’s active involvement in Ukraine’s reconstruction efforts, the statement said.