Ukraine war live updates: Russian missile volley hits Ukraine’s port cities in ‘revenge strike’; Crimea bridge partially reopens after attack

South Africa’s president said Tuesday that arresting Russian President Vladimir Putin — should he show up at an economic summit next month in Johannesburg — would amount to a “declaration of war” by his country, according to the Associated Press.

The August summit is bringing together Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa — a bloc of developing economies known as BRICS. Officials have said that Putin wants to attend the gathering but have been trying to persuade him to stay away to avoid the legal and diplomatic fallout over his international arrest warrant.

Putin is the subject of a warrant of arrest by the International Criminal Court related to alleged war crimes during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. As a signatory to the Rome Statute that established the ICC, South Africa would be obligated to arrest Putin if he visits the African nation.

South Africa’s biggest political opposition party, the Democratic Alliance, has tried to compel President Cyril Ramaphosa’s government to pledge to arrest Putin in an action before the High Court in Pretoria.

But in a strongly worded affidavit to the court, made public on Tuesday, Ramaphosa reiterated his past statement that such an action against Putin could also derail any efforts to end the war in Ukraine.

“I must highlight, for the sake of transparency, that South Africa has obvious problems with executing a request to arrest and surrender President Putin,” he said. “Russia has made it clear that arresting its sitting president would be a declaration of war.”

“It would be inconsistent with our Constitution to risk engaging in war with Russia,” Ramaphosa added.

— The Associated Press

The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Office, or OHCHR, said that more than 16,300 civilians have been injured since the start of Russia’s war in Ukraine last year. The agency also said that more than 9,200 civilians have died due to the war.

The OHCHR added that death and injuries are likely higher due to an inability to access cities under Russian occupation as well as delays in reporting because of the armed conflict.

— Amanda Macias

A cargo insurance facility providing cover for Ukraine grain shipments via a safe sea corridor has been suspended after Russia quit the United Nations-backed agreement, broker Marsh told Reuters.

Moscow has withdrawn from the year-old grain export deal in a move the United Nations said risked creating hunger around the world.

The marine cargo and war facility provided cover up to $50 million per cargo and was led by Lloyd’s of London insurer Ascot, together with other underwriters.

“It is currently on pause,” said David Roe, head of UK cargo at Marsh, which acted as the facility’s broker. “It is suspended effectively due to the agreement not being extended.”

“Without the corridor being in place, there is a greater degree of uncertainty attached to the risk.”

Ascot declined to comment.

Insurance has been vital to ensure shipments through the corridor.

— Reuters

Russia’s missile and drone strikes on Ukraine’s grain ports threaten the millions of people around the world who rely on Ukrainian exports for their food, a top Ukrainian official said.

The overnight attacks are “further proof that the country-terrorist wants to endanger the lives of 400 million people in various countries that depend on Ukrainian food exports”, Andriy Yermak, the head of Ukraine’s presidential staff, was cited by Reuters as saying.

On Tuesday morning, Moscow said it had carried out a “mass revenge strike” on two port cities in Ukraine after an attack on its Kerch Bridge that it blamed on Kyiv. Russia and Ukraine exported 25% of the world’s grain before the war, and a large proportion of countries that rely on Ukrainian grain exports are in the Middle East and Africa.

Russia’s withdrawal from a landmark U.N.-brokered grain deal Monday is “a blow to people in need,” the U.N. said.

— Natasha Turak

Arms manufacturing firm Lockheed Martin raised its full-year profit forecast on the back of strong weapons sales, due in large part to Russia’s war in Ukraine.

“Given the strength of our year-to-date results and ongoing demand for our signature programs and advanced technologies, we are raising our full year sales and earnings per share outlooks for 2023,” the company’s second-quarter results statement read.

Net sales for Lockheed came in at $16.7 billion for the second quarter, an 8% increase from the previous year, and net earnings were $1.7 billion, compared to $309 million the year prior. The company said it returned $1.5 billion to shareholders in the form of dividends and share buybacks.

Lockheed produces weapons that are heavily used in Ukraine, especially its Javelin anti-tank missiles and guided multiple-launch rocket systems.

More than a quarter of the company’s net sales, meanwhile, are for the highly advanced F-35 stealth fighter jet, though there are reports of delays in delivery due to technical and software upgrades.

— Natasha Turak

Russia’s missile strikes on a grain port in Odesa are tantamount to attacking starving people, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said.

Moscow said it had carried out a “mass revenge strike” on two port cities in Ukraine after an attack on its Kerch Bridge that it blamed on Kyiv. A large proportion of countries that rely on Ukrainian grain exports are in the Middle East and Africa.

Russia withdrew from a landmark U.N.-brokered grain deal Monday, which allowed Ukrainian grain to be safely exported to countries that need it while Ukraine’s ports are blockaded by Russian naval forces. Moscow argues that the current agreement does not allow the export of Russian fertilizer products while Ukrainian agricultural products travel through the humanitarian sea corridor freely.

Before the war, Russia and Ukraine accounted for 25% of the world’s grain exports. The U.N. has warned that Russia’s abandoning of the grain deal could trigger hunger crises around the world.

— Natasha Turak

The meeting of G20 ministers in Indian is concluding after two days of economic and finance policy deliberations without a joint communique, as countries remain divided over the war in Ukraine.

The G20 comprises 19 countries and the European Union — essentially, the largest and most significant economies in the world, who together make up 85% of the global GDP and 75% of international trade.

The group has already failed to reach a unified position on the war in Ukraine several times. Western members of the alliance, as well as partners like Japan and South Korea, have vocally condemned Russia for its full-scale invasion of its neighbor. Other states like India, China, South Africa and Russia itself oppose condemning Moscow.

India, the host nation for this week’s G20 meeting, has refrained from blaming Russia for the war and calls for a diplomatic resolution, while also buying discounted oil from Moscow. Part of the disagreement over the language of any communique also stems from the use of the word “war”, which some states have shied away from. Russia calls the invasion, now nearly two years old, its “special military operation.”

— Natasha Turak

Russia launched overnight missile and drone attacks that it called a “mass revenge strike” on two Ukrainian port cities, one day after an explosion damaged the Crimean Kerch Bridge in an attack Moscow blamed on Kyiv.

The attacks targeted the southern Ukrainian cities of Odesa and Mykolaiv, and destroyed a warehouse as well as damaged other buildings. Ukraine’s Air Force says many of the incoming drones and missiles were intercepted by its air defenses.

Russia’s Defense Ministry said in a statement that it had hit all its intended targets.

State news agency Tass reported that the ministry said it hit “facilities where terrorist acts against the Russian Federation were being prepared using crewless boats, as well as at the place of their manufacture at a shipyard near the city of Odesa.”

— Natasha Turak

The U.K.’s military is studying and taking apart Russian vehicles captured in Ukraine to better understand how Russian equipment works and how to beat its technology, a top British military official said.

“It’s really important because we’re in a club of nations that when we get hold of Russian kit or other nations’ kit that might be a danger to us in the future, we share that knowledge,” Admiral Sir Tony Radakin told Sky News in an interview.

“But we also have the scientists that unpick the detail that another nation might have to a really forensic level, and that helps us to understand: how does their equipment work?” he added. “How can we defeat it? How can we have even better armor? How can we disrupt their communications? How can we ensure that we can penetrate their defenses?”

The admiral added that the war in Ukraine was a “wake up call” for his forces and pushed them to be “more aggressive in terms of how we look after our own nation and to strengthen our resilience.”

— Natasha Turak

The Kremlin has criticized the EU position on the lapsed Ukraine grain deal, spokesperson Dmitry Peskov was reported as saying by Russian state news agency Tass, according to a Google-translation.

Russia pulled out of the U.N.-brokered grain deal — a humanitarian corridor that permitted the export of supplies from key producer Ukraine — on Monday, objecting to ongoing restrictions on its own deliveries.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the decision was a “cynical move.”

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who was previously involved in negotiating the agreement, on Monday said he intended to speak to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on its resumption. Peskov on Tuesday said talks between the two leaders were not currently planned.

Peskov praised U.N. efforts to convince Europe to meet its commitments under the Black Sea Grain Initiative and stressed that grain deliveries from Russia to African destinations will be discussed at the upcoming Russia-Africa summit in St. Petersburg at the end of the month.

— Ruxandra Iordache

Crimea’s Kerch Bridge road partially reopened, one day after early morning explosions on it killed two people and injured one, splitting a large part of the road and halting its traffic.

“Motor transport on the Crimean Bridge has been restored in reverse mode on the most outer right lane,” Russian Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin wrote on his Telegram channel, according to a Google translation.

Ferry operations were suspended Tuesday but owing to bad weather, Russian media reported.

Moscow blamed Ukraine for what it called a “terrorist” attack. Kyiv has not taken responsibility for it.

The 12-mile road and rail bridge, which connects Russia to the Crimean Peninsula that Moscow annexed illegally from Ukraine in 2014, has been a key artery for Russian troops fighting in Ukraine and was personally opened by Russian President Vladimir Putin as point of national pride.

— Natasha Turak

Russia launched air attacks on parts of southern Ukraine overnight, according to Ukrainian officials.

A fire broke out in the port of Mykolaiv after it was hit at 1:50 a.m. and spread over 500 square meters until being extinguished at 5:30 a.m., city mayor Oleksandr Senkevich said on Telegram.

The Ukrainian Air Force, also writing on Telegram, said Russia had launched a mix of Kalibr cruise missiles and Shahed drones.

The majority of the strikes were in Odesa and Mykolaiv regions, the Air Force said, while Donetsk, Kharkiv were also hit. CNBC has not independently verified the report.

— Jenni Reid

The organization that oversaw agricultural exports under the Black Sea Grain Initiative said China was the top country to receive foodstuffs.

Since the inception of the deal in July 2022, more than 32 million metric tons of foodstuffs were exported to more than 40 global destinations. China accepted nearly 8 million metric tons of agricultural goods from Ukraine.

— Amanda Macias

The White House said President Joe Biden will meet with Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, who is in D.C. at the request of Pope Francis.

“President Biden and Cardinal Zuppi will discuss the widespread suffering caused by Russia’s brutal war in Ukraine,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement.

“They will also discuss efforts by the United States and Holy See to provide humanitarian aid to those affected, and the Papal See’s focus on repatriating Ukrainian children forcibly deported by Russian officials,” the statement added.

Zuppi has previously met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv.

— Amanda Macias