For full coverage of the crisis in Ukraine, visit Flashpoint Ukraine.
The latest developments in Russia’s war on Ukraine. All times EDT.
10:01 p.m.: Millions of tonnes of food from previous harvests in Ukraine still need to be cleared to make room in silos for the next one, the U.N. coordinator for a grains deal said, according to Reuters.
More than 1 million tonnes of grains and other foods have so far been exported under a grains deal brokered by Turkey and the United Nations.
"The Black Sea Grain Initiative has started creating some space but much more grain needs to shift to make space for the new harvest," said Amir Abdulla, U.N. Coordinator for the Black Sea Grain Initiative.
9:01 p.m.: Dell Technologies Inc. said it had ceased all Russian operations after closing its offices in mid-August, the latest in a growing list of Western firms to exit Russia, Reuters reported.
The U.S. computer firm, a vital supplier of servers in Russia, has joined others in curtailing operations since Moscow sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine on Feb. 24.
Dell suspended sales in Ukraine and Russia in February, saying it would monitor the situation to determine next steps.
"In mid-August, we closed our offices and ceased all Russian operations," Dell spokesperson Mike Siemienas told Reuters.
7:24 p.m.: Satellite images obtained by Schemes, the investigative unit of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s Ukrainian Service, show fires burning near the Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant a day before the flames prompted Ukrainian authorities on August 25 to disconnect the plant, Europe’s largest nuclear power facility, from the country’s electricity grid.
6:04 p.m.: Kazakhstan, a neighbor and ally of Russia, has suspended all arms exports for a year, its government said, amid conflict in Ukraine and Western sanctions against Moscow, Reuters reported.
The former Soviet republic, which also has active economic ties with Kyiv, has avoided taking sides in the Ukrainian crisis while calling for its peaceful resolution.
The Kazakh government did not give a reason in Saturday's statement for the decision to halt arms exports.
4:57 p.m.: Ukrainian Rock Star Reflects On A New Life At The Front: His band is known as the Ukrainian Red Hot Chili Peppers, but now singer Vitaliy Kyrychenko has traded his guitar for a gun and is serving on the front line. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty has the story.
4 p.m.:
3:15 p.m.: Exports under the Black Sea Grain Initiative have surpassed 1 million metric tons, the United Nations reports.
U.N. officials hailed the cargo shipments of grain and other foodstuffs from Ukrainian seaports to other parts of the world as “a remarkable achievement” amid the conflict.
In addition to grain, Ukraine has millions of tons of stored produce from past harvests, the U.N. said. Russia’s blockade of crucial Ukrainian ports after the war began has fueled a growing global food crisis.
Ukraine and Russia are among the world’s top producers of grain, cooking oil and fertilizers.
2:45 p.m.: Britain says it will donate six undersea mine hunter drones to the Ukrainian military.
The defense ministry said the equipment will be used to detect Russian mines in the water and aid efforts to keep seaports safe. Britain also will train Ukrainian navy personnel on how to use the drones in the coming months.
1:15 p.m.: Russia published a decree that makes it easier for Ukrainian citizens to live and work in Russia by scrapping work permits and allowing indefinite residency, reports Agence France-Presse. Moscow says 3.6 million Ukrainian nationals, including 587,000 children, have entered Russia since the start of its offensive six months ago.
12:05 p.m.: Kazakhstan, an ally of Russia, has suspended all arms exports for a year, its government said.
The former Soviet republic which also has active economic ties with Ukraine has avoided taking sides in the war while calling for a peaceful resolution between Russia and Ukraine.
Kazakhstan’s government statement Saturday did not give a reason for the decision to halt arms exports, Reuters reports. The country produces a wide range of military equipment, including boats, armored and artillery vehicles, machine guns, night visors, grenades, torpedoes and protective gear.
11:08 a.m.: A Russian rocket hit Kharkiv’s historical district in the early hours of Saturday, leaving one person injured, according to police.
The rocket damaged nearby buildings, leaving a large crater in the road, a local police officer told Reuters.
"There are no military objects (targets), no military equipment. Only residential buildings with regular citizens near the place of impact,” the police officer said.
10:48 a.m.: Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, issued a statement marking the country’s Aviation Day, in which he pledged that Kyiv’s troops will “destroy the occupiers’ potential step by step.”
The Ukrainian leader posted on his Telegram channel a series of photos dedicated to the country’s air force and vowed that the Russian “invaders will die like dew on the sun.”
“Ukrainian soldiers will destroy the occupiers’ potential step by step, and the day will come when the enemy will perish in Zaporizhzhia, in the south, in the east of the country, and in Crimea,” Zelenskyy said.
8:35 a.m.: Russia blocked the adoption of a joint declaration by the United Nations following a four-week U.N. conference on a nuclear disarmament treaty.
Moscow objected to the draft text denouncing what it said were “political” aspects of the text.
The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), which 191 signatories review every five years, aims to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons, promote complete disarmament and promote cooperation in the peaceful use of nuclear energy.
The nations had been gathered at U.N. headquarters in New York since August 1 participating in a month of negotiations, including a final session that was postponed for several hours on Friday. Russian representative Igor Vishnevetsky said the draft final text, which was more than 30 pages long, lacked “balance.”
8:10 a.m.: There is a risk of a radioactive leak at Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant — Europe's largest — which is occupied by Russian troops, according to the state energy operator, reports Agence France-Presse.
Energoatom said Saturday Moscow's troops had “repeatedly shelled” the site of the plant in southern Ukraine over the past day, whilst Russia' defense ministry claimed Kyiv's troops were responsible.
Russia's defense ministry said Ukrainian forces "shelled the territory of the station three times" in the past day. “A total of 17 shells were fired,” the ministry said in a communique.
The Zaporizhzhia facility was seized by Russian troops in the opening weeks of the February invasion and has remained on the front line ever since.
5:38 a.m.: The latest intelligence update from the U.K. defense ministry said pro-Russian separatist militia have probably made some progress towards the center of the village of Pisky, near Donetsk Airport. However, overall, Russian forces have secured few territorial gains.
The update said there is a realistic possibility that Russia has increased its efforts in the Donbas in an attempt to draw in or fix additional Ukrainian units, amid speculation that Ukraine is planning a major counter-offensive.
4:48 a.m.: Russia late Friday blocked agreement on the final document of a four-week review of the U.N. treaty considered the cornerstone of nuclear disarmament which criticized its military takeover of Europe’s largest nuclear plant soon after Russian troops invaded Ukraine, an act that has raised fears of a nuclear disaster, The Associated Press reported.
3:49 a.m.: The latest Ukraine assessment from U.S. think tank the Institute for the Study of War said Russian forces conducted limited ground attacks southwest of Izyum, northeast and south of Bakhmut, and on the northwestern outskirts of Donetsk City.
Ukrainian forces, the assessment said, continued targeting Russian ground lines of communication and military infrastructure in Kherson Oblast which support operations on the west bank of the Dnipro River.
2:29 a.m.: Coca-Cola HBC has started making a local cola, Dobry Cola, in Russia after stopping production and sales of Coca-Cola Co KO.N products following the mass exodus of Western companies earlier this year, Reuters reported.
Dobry has been a juice brand in Russia, but Coca-Cola HBC, which is separate from Coca-Cola Co., said earlier this month it was exploring extending existing local brands through its Multon Partners business.
Dobry Cola has no connection with Coca-Cola or the Coca-Cola Co., Coca-Cola HBC said in a statement.
1:16 a.m.: Ukraine has now exported 1 million tonnes of agricultural products from its Black Sea ports under the terms of a grain deal brokered by Turkey and the United Nations, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, according to a Reuters report.
In an evening address, Zelenskyy said 44 ships had been sent to 15 nations. A further 70 applications for ships to be loaded had been received, he added, reiterating that Kyiv's goal was to export 3 million tonnes a month.
12:02 a.m.: A U.S. citizen recently died in Ukraine, a State Department spokesperson said, adding that officials are in touch with the family and are providing consular assistance, Reuters reported.
"We also once again reiterate U.S. citizens should not travel to Ukraine due to the active armed conflict and the singling out of U.S. citizens in Ukraine by Russian government security officials, and that U.S. citizens in Ukraine should depart immediately if it is safe to do so using any commercial or other privately available ground transportation options," the spokesperson said.
Some information in this report came from Reuters and The Associated Press.
