Ukrainian presidential adviser calls for heavier weaponry from the West as Russia shifts military focus (2024)

Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak on Saturday called on the US and its allies to deliver heavier weaponry to Ukraine as the Russian military shifts its campaign to focus on the east and south of Ukraine.

"After the rapid retreat of the Russians from Kyiv and Chernihiv, it is clear that Russia has prioritized another tactic — to move east/south, to control large occupied territories (not only in Donetsk and Luhansk regions) and to gain a strong foothold there," he said.

The Russian military said the "first stage" of its invasion of Ukraine was complete and that it would withdraw forces from around Kyiv and Chernihiv to concentrate on the Donbas region in the country's east. Russia's announcement of that new phase in part may provide political cover for the Russian military, explaining heavy setbacks in the battles around Kyiv, but Ukrainian officials have also reported aramping up of military activity and shelling in the Donbas by Russian forces.

Podolyak alluded to the expectation from US and Western officials that Ukraine might need to prepare for partisan warfare in the event of Russian invasion and the fall of the Ukrainian capital.

The US, the UK and other NATO allies provided anti-tank weapons and man-portable air defenses. Podolyak said Ukraine needed heavier weaponry.

"'Afghanization' is when there is a strong guerrilla resistance across the country that inflicts heavy losses on the aggressor for many months or even years and thus significantly weakens the power of the occupier's army," he said. "Such actions took place during the Soviet Union's attempt to control Afghanistan: Afghan guerrillas destroyed and weakened the Soviet occupiers for years. As a result, weakened Russia as a whole."

Podolyak continued, "Some of our partners believed that something similar could happen in today's Ukraine. The Russians think otherwise. They have established in the east and south and are dictating harsh conditions. Sowe definitely can't do without heavy weapons if we want to unblock the east and Kherson and send [back] the Russians as far as possible."

An International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) team left for Mariupol on Saturday as part of a renewed attempt to facilitate evacuation efforts from the besieged southern city.

A press officer for the ICRC told CNN Saturday that ICRC team"left Zaporizhzhia earlier this morning for Mariupol."

The ICRC are not able to give further information on the team's current location as it stands, the press officer added.

On Friday evening, the ICRC announced in a statement that its team of three vehicles and nine personnel failed to reach the city "after arrangements and conditions made it impossible to proceed."

The Ukrainian flag has been raised over the Chernobyl nuclear power plant following the withdrawal of Russian forces, the state enterprise overseeing nuclear power plants said on Saturday.

"Today, April 2, at 11:00, Ukrainian flag was raised over the Chernobyl NPP and the anthem was sung," Energoatom said in a statement on Telegram.

"The entire staff of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, which has worked heroically in the harsh conditions of the occupation since February 24 and provided nuclear and radiation safety at the station and nearby facilities, was present at the ceremony," the statement added.

Some background: Chernobyl was the site of the world's worst nuclear disaster in 1986.

On April 26 of that year, an explosion ripped through the No.4 reactor at Chernobyl, killing 30 people immediately. Countless others died from radiation symptoms in the years that followed.

In late February, during the first week Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the plant and its surrounding territory fell into the hands of Russian troops.

However, Russian troops since announced their intention to leave and hand over control to Ukrainian personnel, Energoatom said in a statement on Thursday.

"It was confirmed that the occupiers, who seized the Chernobyl nuclear power plant and other facilities in the Exclusion Zone, marched in two columns towards the Ukrainian border with the Republic of Belarus," the statement published on Telegram said.

CNN's Nathan Hodge contributed reporting to this post.

Pope Francis said a trip to Ukraine "is on the table," while speaking to journalists on Saturday.

When asked by a reporter if he was considering visiting Kyiv, Pope Francis replied after a long pause and said, “Yes, it is on the table.”

He greeted more than 70 journalists onboard his plane to Malta on Saturday morning, saying, “it will be a nice trip."

Frances also received a photo and a letter from the family of Fox News cameraman, Pierre Zakrzewski, 55, who was killed in Ukraine along with Oleksandra "Sasha" Kuvshynova, a 24-year-old Ukrainian journalist working as a consultant for the network.

Francis’s words as he looked at Pierre’s photo was “lui è la su,” which translates from French as “he is up there."

Some background: While Pope Francis has not yet visited Ukraine amid Russia's invasion, he has shown his support for Ukrainian refugees, and called for an end to the war.

On March 19, Francis visited 19 Ukrainian refugee children at the Bambino Gesù Children's Hospital in Rome, Italy. They were receiving treatment for oncological and neurological diseases among others, as well as severe injuries from blasts, Vatican Press Director Matteo Bruni said at the time.

"More than a month has passed since the invasion of Ukraine, since the start of this cruel and senseless war, which, like every war, is a defeat for all, for all of us," Francis said at the end of March, during his weekly Angelus address.

"Enough. Stop. Let the weapons fall silent. Negotiate seriously for peace," he added. "War cannot be something that is inevitable. We cannot get used to war," Francis added.

Pakistan wants Russia and Ukraine to cease fighting immediately, and is “doing everything it can” to resolve the conflict between the two countries, Pakistan's Chief of Army Staff, Qamar Javed Bajwa, said.

“Russian aggression on Ukraine is very unfortunate; this is a huge tragedy,” Bajwa said during a speech on Saturday.

“Pakistan doesn’t believe in camp politics and wants excellent relations with all countries, especially the United States, the European Union, China, Russia and others,” Bajwa added.

The army chief’s remarks are seen as a contradiction of Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan’s position, who remained publicly ambivalent about Russia’s invasion towards Ukraine.

In early March, Pakistan, along with China, India and others, abstained from a vote at the United Nations General Assembly condemning Russia’s action towards Ukraine, stating that it remains “deeply concerned at the recent turn of events” that “reflects a failure of diplomacy.”

Later that month, Pakistan sent humanitarian aid to Ukraine at the request of Kyiv’s embassy in Islamabad.

The Director of Russia's space agencyRoscosmos, Dmitry Rogozin, published a series of inflammatory tweets on Saturday suggesting Russia might end cooperation at the International Space Station (ISS) due to international sanctions on the country's capital, Moscow.

"I believe that restoration of normal relations between partners at the International Space Station and in other joint projects is possible only after full and unconditional removal of the illegal sanctions,"Rogozin said in posts to his verified Twitter account.

Rogozin warned that Roscosmos would prepare "concrete proposals to our country's leadership" on the possibility of ending cooperation at the ISS with the space agencies of the US, Canada, the European Union and Japan.

Some background: The head of Russia's space agency has a reputation for playing fast and loose on social media, making comments on geopolitical issues and directing criticism at the US.

NASA maintains that it has a close working relationship with Roscosmos that is unaffected by the political situation on earth and the war in Ukraine.

Rogozin previously posted a heavily edited CGI video that appeared make the threat that Russian cosmonauts would abandonNASA astronaut MarkVandeHeiin space.VandeHei, who launched to the ISS in April 2021, returned to earth on March 30, along withRussian cosmonauts Anton Shkaplerov and Pyotr Dubrov.

Veteranformer astronaut Scott Kelly recently told CNN he would back off his high-profile Twitter war with Rogozin, following a warning from a NASAofficial that such attacks are “damaging” to the ISS mission.

Since November 2000, the ISS has functioned as an orbiting laboratory 227 nautical miles (420 kilometers) above our planet, as well as ahome to continuously rotating crews of astronauts and cosmonauts. It has been the site of multiple firsts as astronauts have successfully sequenced DNA andfeasted on crops grown in space.

At least four people were injured by explosions amid protestsagainst Russian occupationin the central Ukrainian town of Enerhodar, the country's state nuclear power company Energoatom said in a series of statements Saturday.

The city, which is close to the Zaporizhia nuclear power station seized by Russian forces in early March, has seen sporadic protests since its occupation.

Energoatom posted video from the scene that appeared to show crowds being dispersed by automatic weapons fire and flash-bang rounds.

The post also called the Russian military "bastards."

Energoatom said residents initially gathered for a peaceful rally in support of Ukraine. According to that account, Russian prison buses pulled up and the Russians began detaining locals

According to Energoatom, several citizens were hospitalized with injuries and severe burns due to blasts that hit a line of civilians in the vicinity of a local cultural center.

"Local doctors are doing their best in the difficult conditions of almost complete lack of drugs and materials and trying to save their lives and health," the statement said. "Some of the victims will be released today after the necessary procedures."

Evacuations efforts continue in Ukraine, with a total 6,266 people evacuated from cities on Friday, according to the country's Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk. Of that number, 771 people originally came from the besieged southern port city of Mariupol.

Meanwhile, Russian forces said they struck a major oil refinery in Ukraine on Saturday morning using high-precision weaponry.

Here's what you need to know:

Evacuations ongoing: Sevenevacuation corridorsalong key routes are expected to open in Ukraine on Saturday, Vereshchuk announced in a Facebook post on Saturday.She said the list includes the route from the besieged southern city ofMariupolto the government-held city ofZaporizhzhiain southeastern Ukraine, as well as routes from Berdiansk, Rubizhne, Nizhny, Severodonetsk, Popasna and Lysychansk.

Russia attacks Ukrainian oil refinery: Russian forces targeted a major Ukrainian oil refinery in a series of strikes Saturday morning, according to a spokesman for the country's military. The refinery, in the central city of Kremenchuk, was hit by "high-precision long-range air and sea-based weapons," Russian defense ministry spokesman IgorKonashenkov said in a briefing. He said Russia's military had destroyed storage facilities holding gasoline and diesel fuels that were supplying Ukrainian troops in the country's eastern and central regions. Russia also struck military airfields inPoltavaand Dnipro, cities to theeastof Kremenchuk,using high-precision air-based missiles, Konashenkov said.

Moscow's warning for London: Russia would consider British long-range artillery and anti-ship systems "legitimate targets" if they United Kingdom were to deliver those weapons to the Ukrainian military, Russia's ambassador to the UK said.

“Any weapon deliveries are destabilizing," Ambassador Andrei Kelin told Russian state news agency TASS. "They exacerbate the situation and make it bloodier."

Russian officials have long complained about deliveries of advanced military weaponry to Ukraine by the US and the UK. Some of those armaments, particularly anti-tank weapons, have enabled Ukrainian troops to blunt Russian advances.

Cold-calling Russia: In an attempt to pierce Russian President Vladimir Putin's digital iron curtain, some people are cold calling or messaging strangers in Russia to counter the Kremlin's propaganda about the war in Ukraine. They hope the truth will better inform Russian citizens and perhaps even help put an end to the conflict.

Seven evacuation corridors along key routes are expected to open in Ukraine on Saturday, according to Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk.

Announcing the corridors in a Facebook post Saturday, Vereshchuk said the list includes the route from the besieged southern city of Mariupol to the government-held city ofZaporizhzhiain southeastern Ukraine.

Private transport will travel along the evacuation route, stopping in Mangush,Berdiansk, Tokmak, Vasylivka and Kamyanske, before reaching the final destination of Zaporizhzhia.

Vereshchuk announced in a video message on Friday evening that a convoy of 42 buses traveling from the southern city of Berdiansk -- carrying residents from the besieged city of Mariupol -- had managed to pass a key Russian checkpoint, and was en route to Zaporizhzhia. Thatconvoy arrived in Zaporizhzhia later that night.

Vereshchuk hailed the arrival as a success, after the Ukrainian government's efforts to try and "open the corridors from Mariupol to Zaporizhzhia" since March 5.

A total of 6,266 people were evacuated from Ukrainian cities on Friday, including 1,431 people who moved from the southern cities of Berdiansk and Melitopol in their own vehicles to Zaporizhzhia through evacuation corridors, according to Vereshcuk.She added that of that number, 771 people originally came Mariupol.

A route for buses and private vehicles from Berdiansk to Zaporizhzia is also expected to operate on Saturday, with stops planned in Tokmak, Vasylivka and Kamyanske.

Evacuation routes will also open from the city of Rubizhne in the separatist controlled region of Luhansk to Bakhmut in the eastern region of Donetsk, also controlled by Russian-backed separatists.

The remaining routes will operate from Nizhnyto Bakhmut, Severodonetsk to Bakhmut, Popasna to Bakhmut and Lysychansk to Bakhmut.

CNN's Nathan Hodge and Julia Presniakova contributed reporting to this post