Russian invasion of Ukraine: tanks and rocket attacks on the cities. Breaking news

Also, 28 buses are to receive permission to pass through the Russian checkpoint in the town of Vasylivka today, Prime Minister for Reintegration of the Temporarily Occupied Territories Iryna Vereshchuk said during a briefing in Interpol.

Another 17 buses have already left Zaporizhzhya.

To date, two humanitarian corridors have also been agreed upon:

the delivery of humanitarian aid and the evacuation of people from the city of Melitopol;

as well as for the passage of a convoy of people in their own transport from the city of Energodar to Zaporizhzhya.

On the way back to Zaporizhzhya, humanitarian convoys from Mariupol and Melitopol will be able to be joined by people in their own vehicles.

A humanitarian corridor from Mariupol with transit through Berdyansk opens today, OPU deputy head Kyrylo Tymoshenko has said: "We are sending 45 buses for evacuation.

Humanitarian evacuation and delivery corridors will also operate along the following routes:

Melitopol - Zaporizhzhya
Energodar - Zaporizhzhya

Starting from 1 April, Kyiv will partially allow the sale of alcohol, the Kyiv City State Administration has said.

It will be possible to buy alcohol in Kyiv from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. in service establishments and shops.

The Australian government will impose increase tariffs by 35% import on all products from Russia and Belarus starting April 1, the press service of the country's prime minister said.

In Ukraine there is a minute's silence for those who lost their lives because of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

British intelligence predicts fierce combat in the vicinity of Kyiv in the coming days. https://t.co/dESTQT4irj

State Emergency Service: Number of dead under rubble of Mykolaiv Regional State Administration premises has risen to 16.

The White House has stated that the US is not ready to make a decision on Ukraine's security guarantees.

Threat of attack on Odesa and other regions of Ukraine remains high

Russia has added Kalibr missiles to the Admiral Makarov frigate in the Black Sea, Odesa regional military administration spokesman Oleksiy Bratchuk has said.

"The second army in the world is a sham. In reality, the armed forces of the Russian Federation are a gang of looters, scum and war criminals," the AFU General Staff showed one of the Russian occupiers who failed to bring the loot.

The Ukrainian armed forces have established control over the villages of Orlove, Zagradivka and Kochubeyivka in Kherson region, 50 km away from Kryvyy Rih, Dnipropetrovsk regional council chairman Mykola Lukashuk has said.

Zelenskyy has nominated state awards for 123 Ukrainian defenders.

UNESCO: More than 733 educational institutions have already been destroyed or damaged by Russian shelling in Ukraine.

Scheduled evacuation trains from Luhansk and Donetsk oblasts today:

Novozolotarivka (Luhansk region): 14:00 - 5501 Novozolotarivka - Lozova.

Kramatorsk (Donetsk region): 13:00 - №282/281 Kramatorsk - Lviv and 16:00 - №284/283 Kramatorsk - Lviv.

The UN has received confirmation that Russian troops used cluster munitions to shell the Ukrainian population on at least 24 occasions.

The UN is also investigating the possibility of such weapons being used by the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

The enemy shelled Prudianka, Slatyne, Bezruky, and most of all – Derhachi in the Kharkiv region. At least one person died and three were injured.

Turkey is looking for an alternative to Russian air defense. In particular, it is negotiating with France and Italy on the supply of air defense systems to find alternatives to the Russian S-400 systems.

Summary of the General Staff of AFU as of 6:00 March 31:

The aggressor considers a possibility to form occupational authorities at the temporary occupied territories of Ukraine — they are already looking "employees" for this.

Employees of Federal Security Service of russian federation work on creating a following pseudo republic at the territory of Kherson region, the 652nd group of informational and psychological operations and officers of the 12th Main General Staff of russian federation. They are holding "explanatory works" with local authorities and population.

Moral and psychological state of the enemy and motivation level of the personnel of occupational army divisions remain low and tend to worsen.

According to available information, in divisions of the separate 60th mororized rifle brigade of the 5th general army of the eastern military division, two platoon commanders have been laid off due to failures to comply with the order.

In military unites of Baltic Naval Forces, including the 79th separate motorized rifle brigade of the 11th army corps, there are numerous refusals to continue military service and to sign contracts as soldiers of conscript service.

At the territory of belarus, movement of russian military vehicle to regroup divisions and to create reserves to replenish personnel losses has been noticed.

Not single cases of mining territory and houses of local citizens are recorded at the Kyiv region territory left by the enemy.

In all directions AFU restrain the enemy, and in some directions our forces hold successful counter attacks.

In Donetsk and Luhansk directions, the Joints Forces have restrained 5 enemy's attacks, destroyed 10 tanks, 18 armoured and 13 automotive pcs of vehicle, 15 artillery systems. The enemy suffered great losses in personnel as well.

The Air Defense Forces of AFU during last 24 hours have hit 7 air targets - 4 aircrafts, drones, and 2 cruise missiles. Aviation of Air Forces continues to shell places of crowded with vehicle and personnel of the enemy.

The USA President Joe Biden's Administration accepted a political decision to prevent US military ships from the Black Sea before russia's invasion to Ukraine. This was declared by Tod Daniel Wolters the commander of U.S. European Command.

German truck manufacturer MAN has shut down two factories in Europe due to a shortage of components from Ukraine.

MAN was forced to send about 11,000 employees on unpaid leave.

EU prepares new connected to russian break in to Ukraine sanctions against Kremlin. Still the scale of new actions depends on the position of Moscow referring payments for gas in rubles, Reuters informs citing a source in EU.

The package of new sanctions may be ready next week already.

Lithuania enlisted russia and belarus as enemy counties and territories.

Based upon this list, companies registered there can be exluded from state acquisition tenders or seize already signed agreements.

Russian oil tankers are increasingly disappearing from tracking systems, which may indicate that they are engaged in “dark activities”, CNN reports.

Tankers are turning off transmissions deliberately to circumvent sanctions. Dark activity among Russian-affiliated crude oil tankers is up by 600% compared with before the Russia-Ukraine war began.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba called out to boycott products of Ritter Sport that rejects exiting russia due to "possible serious consequences" fir the company.

"Still staying in russia gives worse consequences, for example, fatal dagame to reputation. Stop sponsoring military crimes, Ritter Sport. Keep the name of your brand and income", the Minister called out.

The occupant authorities in Crimea hold active conscription of Crimea Tatars and set limitations for exit from the peninsula for men of conscription age, a Ukrainian Crimea Tatar politician Eskender Bariev told to NV.

"There is information they are walking through some districts including those inhabited by Crimea Tatars, record people of conscription age. This way they are interested where they are at the moment. Besides there is under legal act prohibiting Crimea inhabitants with Crimean registration to exit through Kerchenskiy Bridge. Because there is no other way to exit Crimea. From 18 to 45 years. Further, there is a danger even people reject and get into prison, they can be forced and delivered to the front line", the politician said.

USA Intelligence informs that tension and distrust between Putin and Shoigu grow due to lack of Putin's awareness on losses and failures of russian army in Ukraine, New York Times writes.

In France the Director of military intelligence, the General Eric Vido leaves his position for incorrect prognosis as for russia's break in to Ukraine, L'Opinion informs.

Americans were telling that russians had been planning to attack, and they were right. Our services were more likely to think that invasion to Ukraine would have a terrible price, and russians had other variants to overthrow the President Volodymyr Zelenskyy", the head of defence staff Thierry Burkhard confessed in his interview.

In Trostianetsj russians have mined a cemetery and streets. One of local citizens stepped onto a mine stretching at sideway and died. One more woman was saved thank to her dog: it run up front and touched a stretching. The pet died, still it saved her life.

A former Head of International tribunal on Republic of Rwanda, a Norwegian Erik Møse has headed a human rights commission of United Nations Council which will be investigating violations of international humanitarian law and connected to them crimes in the context of russian aggression against Ukraine.

Together with a Bosnian ombudsman Jasminka Džumhur and a Colombian scientist Pablo de Greiff, he has to file an oral report on his work in spring 2022 and a written report in March 2023.

The President Volodymyr Zelenskyy assigned state awards to 122 defenders of Ukraine, including 23 of them posthumously.

Pentagon believes Vladimir Putin is not told about failures of russian army in Ukraine and sanctions influence to the economy. This was declared by Pentagon official representative John Kirby.

Leroy Merlin restricted the access to Facebook page of Leroy Merlin Ukraine for the company's Ukrainian office after there was published a call out to sign a petition against the company markets activity in the aggressor country, DW writes.

In Kozeletsj village located half way to Kyiv and Chernihiv, curfew for a day and half is implemented: from 20:00 March 31 till 6:00 April 2. March 29 Kozeletsj was shelled by russians, but there were no victims and destructions, according to tge Head of the village council.

Most of Syrian mercenaries are ready to go to fight in Ukraine at russia's side, only for "food", one of former militants of Bashar Assad regime told to Arabian BBC service.

They realise that most of them will be killed most probably, but they do not have choice: prices for food and essentials enreased a lot in Syria, and people barely make ends meet.

A russian delegation going to the avia salon in Turkey, is advised to hide its affiliation to russian federation. An internal document obtained by Ukrainian intelligence proofs this.

Arahamia on the agreement with russian federation: first, there should be total stop of fire and full withdrawal of russian troops to the positions of February, 24, then there will be a large summit of international partners and temporary implementation of the agreement.

The question about neutrality of Ukraine will be brought up for a national referendum. "This is huge procedure which takes at least half of a year".

National Guard showed how a russian tank had been destroyed in Lugansk region. Details are classified.

Deputy Infrastructure Minister Mustafa Nayem showed how Trostyanets looks after the Russian occupation. Hundreds of houses, the railway and bus stations, a hospital and part of the city's main enterprise, the local chocolate factory where Corona, Milka, Alpen Gold, Barney's Bear, TUC and Oreo chocolates were produced, were destroyed in the town.

Vladimir Putin has "grossly underestimated" the combat effectiveness of his army, said Jeremy Flemming, head of the British intelligence service GCHQ (Government Communications Centre).

He said Russian soldiers "refuse to follow orders, deliberately damage their own equipment and once even accidentally shot down their own aircraft".

"We believe Putin's advisers are afraid to tell him the truth," Flemming said.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy has set up military administrations instead of civil-military ones in Avdiyivka, Ugledar, Maryinka, Ochertino, Svetlodarsk, Slovyansk and Toretsk. A military administration has also been set up in Druzhkivka.

Military administrations are set up where the normal authorities cannot fulfil their mandate.

The leadership of the Sumy Region and Ukrzaliznytsya have started working on the possibility of resuming railway service in the region.

"In the near future we will restore passenger service. First, on the territory of Sumy Region, Sumy region - Kharkiv region, and then it will be Bilopillia - Sumy - Boromlya - Trosytnytsia - Smorodino station and further into Ukraine", - said the head of the region Dmytro Zhyvytskyy.

On 30 March, the AFU air force destroyed four Russian aircraft, one UAV and two cruise missiles.

The UN has organised a humanitarian convoy for Sumy Region, the head of the regional administration, Dmytro Zhyvytskyy, has said.

"Tomorrow [Thursday] a large humanitarian convoy organised by the UN is coming to us. Seven UN vans are arriving in the Sumy region. Some of them will go to the town of Trostyanets," he said.

The humanitarian cargo will consist not only of foodstuffs. There will be a large amount of film so that broken windows can be covered.

The Pentagon estimates that Russia is withdrawing about 20 per cent of its troops from northern Ukraine. We are talking primarily about Kyiv, but troops are also being withdrawn from near Chernihiv and Sumy.

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby stressed that these units will not stop participating in the war. Russia wants to restore their combat effectiveness and redeploy them.

Ukraine wants to have a million reservists. According to Davyd Arahamiya, "there will be an army and there will be, conventionally, another million people who are to be trained every year once or twice a year at training ranges".

In an interview with journalist Vasiliy Golovanov on a Unified TV marathon, Arahamiya described this as a concept of "strengthened immunity", like in Switzerland or Israel.

CNN reports that Ukraine has sent a new list of military needs to the US:

- reconnaissance and combat drones;
- tactical radars for anti-aircraft defense;
- electronic warfare systems for anti-drone warfare;
- aircraft;
- mobile hospitals;
- repair of armoured vehicles in other countries.

Zelenskyy advised  "couch analysts" who criticize the Armed Forces to go to war themselves.

"If someone pretends to be able to educate our Armed Forces on how to fight, how to oppose to the enemy, then the best way to do this is to go to the battlefield directly. Not from the armchair at home or wherever one goes for safety. But from actual combat encounters. If you are not prepared for that, you should not start educating our defenders."

The AFU General Staff has published a list of top officers who have been lost by the Russian army due to death, injury or dismissal:

- Lieutenant General Sergey Kisel, commander of the 1st Tank Army - removed;
- Lieutenant General Vladislav Ershov, commander of the 6th General Army - removed from his post and arrested;
- Lieutenant General Sergei Nirkov, Chief of Staff - Deputy Commander of the 35th General Army - seriously wounded;
- The Chief of Staff - Deputy Commander of the 36th General Army, Major General Andrey Seritsky - seriously wounded;
- Lieutenant General Andrei Sukhovetsky, deputy commander of the 41st General Army - dead
- Lieutenant General Yakov Ryazantsev, commander of the 49th General Army - dead;
- Lieutenant General Mikhail Zusko, commander of the 58th General Armies - removed from office and arrested.