For full coverage of the crisis in Ukraine, visit Flashpoint Ukraine.
The latest developments in Russia’s war on Ukraine. All times EDT.
11:15 p.m.: Russia has added 25 more U.S. citizens to its sanctions list – including Hollywood actors Sean Penn and Ben Stiller – amid rising tensions between Moscow and the West over the Kremlin's invasion of Ukraine, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported.
The Foreign Ministry in Moscow said in a statement on Sept. 5 that the move was made in response to Washington's "widening personal sanctions against Russian citizens."
9:38 p.m.: The backup power line supplying the Russian-held Zaporizhzhia power plant in Ukraine has been disconnected deliberately to extinguish a fire, but it was not damaged, the U.N. nuclear watchdog said, citing information supplied by Ukraine, according to Reuters.
"The ZNPP continues to receive the electricity it needs for safety from its sole operating reactor," the International Atomic Energy Agency said in a statement. "Ukraine informed (the) IAEA that this back-up line will be reconnected once the fire has been extinguished."
8:15 p.m.: In his nightly video address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, “Today I thanked (outgoing British Prime Minister) Boris (Johnson) on behalf of all Ukrainians, and I am sure that this is truly a multimillion Ukrainian ‘thank you.’ I am already looking forward to continuing our cooperation with Boris in his new status.
“And I am no less looking forward to the start of cooperation with the new Prime Minister of Great Britain, Mrs. Liz Truss. We in Ukraine know her well - she has always been on the bright side of European politics. And I believe that together we will be able to do a lot more to protect our nations and to thwart all Russian destructive efforts. The main thing is to preserve our unity, and this will definitely be the case,” Zelenskyy said.
7:11 p.m.: France's top diplomat raised the danger of Russia using Turkey to avoid Ukraine-related sanctions during a sensitive visit to Ankara that tried to navigate a range of prickly disputes, Agence France-Presse reported.
Catherine Colonna met her Turkish counterpart, Mevlut Cavusoglu, before flying to Athens on Tuesday to address a new spike in tensions between the two NATO neighbors and historic foes.
Colonna made efforts at a joint media appearance with Cavusoglu to avoid a repeat of the public spat that developed during a visit by German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock to Ankara in July.
The German minister had pressed Cavusoglu on Turkey's human rights record and openly sided with Greece in the regional dispute.
6:18 p.m.:
5:16 p.m.: Theofficial website of Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy posted a statement about first lady Olena Zelenska’s interview with the BBC.
It read: The Russian invasion of Ukraine is a war waged against peaceful people. This was said by First Lady Olena Zelenska in an interview with BBC, answering questions from the host of Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg program.
"This is not a war with an army, this is a war to intimidate, to use scorched land tactics and to enter empty cities and villages," the first lady said.
Answering the question about what she would say to the residents of Great Britain who really want to help Ukrainians but are at the same time worried about whether they will be able to pay their bills against the backdrop of rising energy prices and whether they will be able to live on, Olena Zelenska noted: "I understand that the situation is very difficult. I would like to remind you that when prices rise in the world, this is exactly what happens in Ukraine, too. Everything is becoming more expensive here as well. But at the same time, we have people killed in our country. Daily.”
The Olena Zelenska said she is trying to convey to the world information about the consequences of Russian aggression in Ukraine, speaking on all possible world media platforms, and thanked Great Britain and its government for consistent support of our country.
"When we are supported so sincerely and powerfully, we feel that we are not alone," Olena Zelenska said.
4:15 p.m.:
3:19 p.m.: Moscow-installed authorities in an occupied Ukrainian region on Monday suggested plans for a referendum on joining Russia had been delayed, Agence France-Presse reported.
The Kremlin, meanwhile, said its halting of gas deliveries to Germany via the Nord Stream pipeline was due to Western sanctions hampering maintenance, after the key infrastructure was closed indefinitely for repairs.
Since the first weeks of Russia's February invasion, Kherson and the southern region of Zaporizhzhia have been largely under Russia's control and are now being forcefully integrated into its economy.
Moscow-backed authorities have been for several weeks talking of holding referendums to officially join occupied territories to Russia, as happened in the 2014 annexation of Crimea.
But Kirill Stremousov, a pro-Moscow official in Kherson, told Russian state TV that "we will pause for now" despite preparing for a referendum due to "all the events that are occurring," amid a Ukrainian counter-offensive.
2:17 p.m.:
1:11 p.m.: A Kyiv resident and his associate have been sentenced to lengthy prison terms for assisting occupying Russian troops with their invasion of the country, RFE/RL’s Ukrainian service reported.
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said on Monday that one of the two men sentenced by the Chernihiv city court in the country's north was found guilty of providing Russian troops with coordinates locating Ukraine's Azov Regiment.
The man, according to the SBU, worked for the Russian secret services from a country in the Middle East.
After Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in late February, he moved to Ukraine and continued to provide Russia with secret information, the court said.
His associate was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
12 p.m.:
11:05 a.m.: Britain's Boris Johnson paid tribute to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the people of Ukraine in his final call as prime minister, Reuters reported.
"The Prime Minister spoke to the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, this afternoon to thank him for his leadership and friendship. The Prime Minister made clear that he believed President Zelenskyy and his people can and will win the war in Ukraine," a Downing Street spokesperson said.
Johnson will formally resign as Prime Minister on Tuesday, with foreign secretary Liz Truss to replace him.
10:30 a.m.: A representative of the Moscow-installed military administration in the occupied parts of Ukraine's Kherson region says a referendum on joining Russia has been postponed as Ukrainian armed forces continue military operations aimed at regaining control over the area, RFE/RL reported.
"We have prepared for the voting, and we wanted to hold the referendum in the nearest future, but due to the developments happening at the moment, I think we will pause [with the referendum]," the Russian-appointed deputy governor of Kherson, Kirill Stremousov, told the TASS news agency on September 5.
Kherson, an important port city on the Black Sea, has been fully under Russian control since early March, just weeks after Moscow launched its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.
In late August, Ukraine launched a counteroffensive in the south, and particularly in the Kherson region. Kyiv claims to have taken back some territory and heavy fighting continues.
8:40 a.m.: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has discussed the results of the IAEA monitoring mission to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant with French President Emmanuel Macron.
7:10 a.m.: Enerhoatom, the operator of Ukraine's Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant, says only one of six reactors at the station is still in operation, as fears around the Russian-occupied plant remain despite the installation of two U.N. watchdog inspectors at the site, RFE/RL reported.
Fighting around the plant, Europe's largest nuclear station, has raised fears of a nuclear disaster. Russian state news agency TASS reported on Monday that three explosions were heard in Enerhodar, the town where the Zaporizhzhya plant is located.
Russia has accused Ukraine of attempting to recapture the plant by force, allegations Kyiv denies.
Ukraine and the West accuse Russia of deploying heavy weaponry at the site, knowing that Ukraine likely would not fire on it. Moscow denies those allegations but has resisted efforts to demilitarize the area in order to avert an environmental catastrophe.
Fighting around the plant prompted the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to send a mission to the site last week.
6 a.m.: Ukraine advocated Monday for “maximum support” for its efforts to defeat Russia in order to blunt economic effects on European allies, while Russia reiterated its blame on Western sanctions for disruptions of gas shipments to Germany.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said Russia’s “military aggression against Ukrainians, energy blackmail against EU citizens” were to blame for “rising prices and utility bills in EU countries.”
“Solution: maximum support to Ukraine so that we defeat Putin sooner and he does not harm Europe anymore,” Kuleba tweeted.
5:30 a.m.: Two IAEA mission members are expected to stay at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant on a “permanent basis,” Ukraine’s state nuclear company Energoatom said on Monday, adding that four other representatives had left the station's territory, Reuters reported.
The Ukrainian power plant was captured by Russia in March but continues to be operated by Energoatom's engineers and supply electricity to Ukraine’s grid.
“Today... four of the six representatives of the IAEA inspection team completed their work at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant and left the plant's territory,” Energoatom wrote in a statement on Telegram.
“It is expected that two experts will continue to work at the (plant) on a permanent basis,” the statement said.
Russian-installed local official Vladimir Rogov confirmed during a radio interview on Monday that two observers would remain, but did not give a likely time frame.
“The IAEA mission's members have now left the Zaporizhzhia (plant), while at present two people have remained there as observers,” he said.
5:15 a.m.: The Kremlin said on Monday that there was little hope of anything positive from the next British prime minister as the leadership contest had been dominated by anti-Russian rhetoric.
“I don’t think we can hope for anything positive, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
Britain’s next prime minister is set to be announced later today, following a weeks long party leadership contest between British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak, a former finance minister.
4 a.m.:
3:30 a.m.: European gas prices rocketed as much as 30% higher on Monday after Russia said one of its main gas supply pipelines to Europe would stay shut indefinitely, stoking renewed fears about shortages and gas rationing in the European Union this winter, Reuters reported.
The benchmark gas price surged as high as 272 euros per megawatt hour when the market opened after Russia said on Friday that a leak in Nord Stream 1 pipeline equipment meant it would stay shut beyond last week’s three-day maintenance halt.
Europe has accused Russia of weaponizing energy supplies in retaliation for Western sanctions imposed on Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine. Russia says the West has launched an economic war and sanctions have hampered pipeline operations.
The Nord Stream pipeline, which runs under the Baltic Sea to Germany, historically supplied about a third of the gas Russia exported to Europe but it was already running at just 20% of capacity before flows were halted last week for maintenance.
2:30 a.m.:
2:15 a.m.: China’s top legislator Li Zhanshu will visit Russia next week, state media reported Sunday, becoming the highest-ranking Communist Party politician to travel to the country since Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, Agence France-Presse reported.
Beijing and Moscow have drawn closer in recent years, ramping up cooperation as part of what they call a "no limits" relationship, acting as a counterweight to the global dominance of the United States.
Meanwhile, tensions between China and the West have risen as Beijing has refused to condemn Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine and provided diplomatic cover by blasting Western sanctions and arms sales to Kyiv.
Li, who ranks third in the Chinese government hierarchy, will pay official visits to Russia, Mongolia, Nepal and South Korea from Wednesday until September 17, according to the official Xinhua news agency.
1:30 a.m.: European leaders sought to ease the impact of high energy prices across the continent after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiyy warned of a difficult winter, even as he reported progress in a counter-offensive against Russian troops, Reuters reported.
In Sunday’s nightly remarks, Zelenskiyy thanked his forces for taking two settlements in the south and a third, along with additional territory, in the east, citing “good reports” from his military commanders and intelligence head.
Kyrylo Tymoshenko, deputy head of the president’s office, earlier posted an image of soldiers raising the Ukrainian flag over a village he said was in the southern area that is the main focus of the counter-offensive.
Ukraine began the counter-offensive last week targeting the south, particularly the Kherson region, which Russia seized early in the conflict.
12:01 a.m.: The Joint Coordination Center (JCC) authorized the movement of three outbound vessels carrying a total of 49,250 metric tons of grain and other food products under the Black Sea Grain Initiative, according to a statement shared by VOA U.N. correspondent Margaret Besheer.
The three commercial vessels authorized to move Monday are:
My Meray from Chornomorsk to Egypt carrying 30,000 metric tons of corn; Golden Yara from Pivdennyi/Yuzhny to Mersin, Turkey, carrying 13,500 metric tons of wheat; Baron from Odesa to Ambarli, Turkey, carrying 5,750 metric tons of corn.
Destinations indicated are based on information received at the JCC and may change based on commercial activity.
As of Sunday, the total tonnage of grain and other foodstuffs exported from the three Ukrainian ports is 2,076,280 metric tons. A total of 187 voyages (100 inbound and 87 outbound) have been enabled so far.
The joint teams plan 15 inspections Monday, eight on inbound vessels and seven on outbound.
Some information in this report came from Reuters and Agence France-Presse.
