April 27, 2022 Russia-Ukraine news

The family of former US Marine Trevor Reed says he has been released from Russian custody.

"We’d respectfully ask for some privacy while we address the myriad of health issues brought on by the squalid conditions he was subjected to in his Russian gulag," the family continued, although they did not specify how many days Reed was detained.

They thanked US President Joe Biden "for his kindness, his consideration, and for making the decision to bring Trevor home," adding that Biden's action "may have saved Trevor's life."

Biden also confirmed Reed's release, saying he had shared the news with his family.

“Today, we welcome home Trevor Reed and celebrate his return to the family that missed him dearly. Trevor, a former U.S. Marine, is free from Russian detention," Biden said in a statement. "I heard in the voices of Trevor’s parents how much they’ve worried about his health and missed his presence. And I was delighted to be able to share with them the good news about Trevor’s freedom."

Reed’s release came due to a prisoner swap for Russian citizen Konstantin Yaroshenko, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said on her official Telegram channel.

“The negotiations that allowed us to bring Trevor home required difficult decisions that I do not take lightly. His safe return is a testament to the priority my Administration places on bringing home Americans held hostage and wrongfully detained abroad,” Biden said.

He went on to call for the release of detained security director Paul Whelan, who was first arrested in 2018, saying he would not "stop until Paul Whelan and others join Trevor in the loving arms of family and friends."

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken also welcomed the release of Reed in a statement Wednesday "while continuing to call for the release of wrongfully detained" Whelan.

"We also remain committed to securing the freedom of all U.S. nationals wrongfully detained abroad," he said.

Today's main developments in Russia's war in Ukraine center around accusations of gas "blackmail," after Moscow halted supplies to Poland and Bulgaria, well as heavy fighting on the ground.

Here's a look at the latest developments: 

Russia said on Wednesday it will swap former US Marine Trevor Reed for a Russian prisoner held in the United States.

"As a result of a lengthy negotiation process, on April 27, 2022, US citizen Trevor Rowdy Reid, previously convicted in the Russian Federation, was exchanged for Russian citizen Konstantin Yaroshenko, who was sentenced to 20 years in prison by an American court in 2010," Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on her official Telegram channel Wednesday. 

Russian state news agency RIA Novosti also reported the move. 

Following a request from Ukraine, the European Commission proposed on Wednesday a series of temporary “trade-liberalizing measures” that would enable Ukraine “to maintain its trade position with the rest of the world and further deepen its trade relations” with the European Union.

“These temporary and exceptional measures will contribute to supporting and fostering the existing trade flows from Ukraine to the [European] Union” and “would add flexibility and certainty for Ukrainian producers," the Commission said in its proposal. 

And to mitigate the economic impact of the aggression, the Commission explained it was “appropriate and necessary” to accelerate closer economic relations between the EU and Ukraine “in order to provide a quick support to the Ukrainian authorities and the population.”

The recommendation -- which would be valid for one year -- would include a “temporary suspension of all outstanding tariffs” and establish a “deep and comprehensive free trade area” between Ukraine and the EU. 

The Commission proposal would remove all tariffs, import duties on industrial products, fruit and vegetables as well as drop quotas on agricultural and processed agricultural products.

In this proposal the Commission hopes that these measures would “establish conditions for enhanced economic and trade relations” with the aim of “Ukraine's gradual integration in the EU Internal Market.”

In a statement, President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen said, “I have been in discussions with President [Volodymyr] Zelensky on ways of supporting the economy,” and that today’s proposal “will greatly facilitate the export of Ukrainian industrial and agricultural goods to the EU.” 

The proposal now needs to be signed off by the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union.

The Kremlin has rejected accusations of blackmail in its move to halt gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria, after they refused to pay in rubles.

“This is not blackmail,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on a regular conference call.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen had accused Russia of using gas to “blackmail” the bloc, after Gazprom said it halted supplies to the two countries on Wednesday. 

“The need for the conditions that were documented in President [Putin’s] decree, meaning the new payment method, was caused by unprecedented unfriendly steps in the economy and financial sector undertaken against us by unfriendly countries,” Peskov said. 

According to Peskov, Russia was forced to switch to payment in rubles for gas supply to Europe due to the new restrictions.

“We had a significant amount of our reserves blocked, or 'stolen', putting it simply. All this required a transition to a new payment system,” Peskov went on to say.

Peskov added that all the new conditions “were brought to the attention of buyers in advance.”

The United Kingdom has imported nearly 2 million barrels of Russian oil since the start of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, according to figures released by Greenpeace on Wednesday.

Shipments totaling 1.9 million barrels, with an estimated value of $276 million, have flowed into the UK despite a raft of international sanctions leveled against Russian businesses intended to weaken the Kremlin’s war machine, Greenpeace said. 

The UK government has imposed a ban on Russian owned, operated or flagged ships from entering the UK. However, Russian fossil fuels are still able to pour into Britain via tankers owned and flagged by other nations.

“The UK government is no stranger to hypocrisy but pledging ‘unwavering support’ to Ukraine while shipping in almost 2 million barrels of Russian oil is utterly disingenuous, even by Boris Johnson’s standards,” Georgia Whitaker, oil and gas campaigner at Greenpeace UK said.

Downing Street has said it will phase out imports of Russian oil, but only by the end of the year. 

“Despite the mounting death toll, the UK government has given itself until the end of the year to stop importing Russia’s bloody oil," Whitaker added.

“Sanctions don’t work until they’re implemented and eight more months of oil and gas imports is eight months too many. It’s clear we need an explicit and immediate ban on all Russian fossil fuels,” Whitaker said.

A UK government spokesperson said: “We will phase out Russian oil by the end of the year, and imports of Russian liquid natural gas as soon as possible thereafter." 

“The UK has no issues with either gas or oil supply, and unlike Europe we are not dependent on Russian energy imports," the spokesperson said. 

On Monday, Greenpeace activists chained themselves to the anchor of a Russian oil tanker bound for a Norwegian port, demanding the Nordic nation cease importing Russian fossil fuels. 

Russia has sanctioned 287 members of the British Parliament, including Downing Street Chief of Staff Steve Barclay and speaker of the House of Commons Lindsay Hoyle, its Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Wednesday.

The retaliatory move bans the politicians from entering Russia and comes in response to the UK sanctioning 386 Russian lawmakers on March 11, it says. 

Both Conservative and Labour party lawmakers are among those sanctioned by Moscow.

“The hostile rhetoric and far-fetched accusations coming from the mouths of British parliamentarians not only condone the hostile course of London, aimed at demonizing our country and its international isolation, but are also used by opponents of mutually respectful dialogue with Russia to undermine the foundation of bilateral cooperation,” it said. 

British Environment Secretary George Eustice, Brexit minister Jacob Rees-Mogg, and Conservative lawmakers Jeremy Hunt and Steve Baker are among the most prominent British political figures to feature in Russia’s list. 

Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki on Wednesday accused Russia of a “direct attack” on his country by halting gas supplies.

Speaking in Poland’s lower house of parliament, the Sejm, Morawiecki sought to reassure lawmakers about increased supply through other pipelines, and that come the fall, “Poland will not need Russian gas.”

He announced that Poland’s Świnoujście terminal is operational and will expand its production from six billion cubic meters of LNG (liquified natural gas) to between seven and eight billion cubic meters. 

Morawiecki also noted a new gas pipeline under construction in Norway called the Baltic Gas Pipeline will be completed in three months time, which he said will pump 10 billion cubic meters of LNG into Poland.

A new cross-border pipeline under construction with Slovakia will pump more than five billion cubic meters of LNG once completed, he said.

Poland also has interconnectors with Germany and the Czech Republic, and “in a few days, we are opening an interconnector with Lithuania,” he said. He said this was all on top of between 20 and 21 billion cubic meters of domestic LNG production.

“Ukraine is on the front line. We, all European countries, must be aware that this is a fight for peace, a fight for sovereignty, a fight for security, and we must not bow,” he said. 

The Ukrainian-held city of Severodonetsk, in the Luhansk region, was subject to heavy shelling during a CNN team’s visit on Wednesday.

The team was able to hear the launch, flight and impact of what appeared to be heavy Russian artillery rounds -- an indication that Russian forces are within just a few kilometers of the city center.

Local police told CNN that the artillery was landing at or near the city’s hospital.

The Ukrainian military said Wednesday that the Russian military was advancing through the town of Rubizhne, to the north, in order to further contest Severodonetsk city.

Though most civilians appear to have left, some remain -- both sheltering in basements and walking the streets.