Russia's war on Ukraine latest: Russian missiles strike Ukrainian cities

Reuters could not independently verify battlefield reports. ECONOMY/DIPLOMACY * Russia-installed officials in the Moscow-controlled part of Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region said on Thursday a halt in electricity supplies to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power station from Ukrainian-held territory was "a provocation". * Western allies warned against reaching premature conclusions on who was responsible for blowing up the Nord Stream pipelines, with Germany suggesting the attack could also have been a "false flag" operation to blame Ukraine.

Russian missiles struck cities across Ukraine, including the capital Kyiv, the Black Sea port of Odesa and the second city of Kharkiv early on Thursday, while Ukrainian defenders repelled fierce assaults on the beleaguered town of Bakhmut. FIGHTING

* Russian missiles hit a wide arc of targets, including cities stretching from Zhytomyr, Vynnytsia and Rivne in the west to Dnipro and Poltava in central Ukraine, officials said. There were power outages but no immediate reports of casualties. * Ukraine's military said its forces had managed to push back intense Russian attacks on the eastern mining town of Bakhmut, despite a Russian claim of control of its eastern half.

* Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in a video address that the battle for Bakhmut and the surrounding Donbas region was "our first priority". Reuters could not independently verify battlefield reports.

ECONOMY/DIPLOMACY * Russia-installed officials in the Moscow-controlled part of Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region said on Thursday a halt in electricity supplies to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power station from Ukrainian-held territory was "a provocation".

* Western allies warned against reaching premature conclusions on who was responsible for blowing up the Nord Stream pipelines, with Germany suggesting the attack could also have been a "false flag" operation to blame Ukraine. * The U.S. obtained a warrant for the seizure of a Boeing aircraft owned by Russian oil group Rosneft that is valued at over $25 million, the U.S. Justice Department said.

* U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said he had no plans to visit Ukraine after President Zelenskiy extended an invitation, CNN reported. * The mother of Russian mercenary boss Yevgeny Prigozhin won a legal bid on Wednesday to overturn European Union sanctions against her, as a court ruled there was no proof that she bore responsibility for his actions.

* A concert cellist linked to Russian President Vladimir Putin moved millions of francs through Swiss bank accounts without any proper checks, Swiss prosecutors said on Wednesday at the opening of a trial of four bankers accused of helping him. They have denied the charges. * European Union countries agreed on Wednesday to speed up supplies of artillery rounds and buy more shells to help Ukraine but still have to work out how to turn these aims into reality.

STORIES ABOUT THE FIRST ANNIVERSARY SINCE THE WAR BEGAN * TIMELINE - Major developments since Russia's invasion

* Ukraine's Zelenskiy has defied Putin against the odds * Putin, secure in power, has set the stage for long war

* A year on, Ukraine and its government have not just survived. They've fought back * Toughened by war's scars, Kyiv presses on

* Graphics of a year of war and the financial markets * Russian economy holds up but road back to prosperity may be long

* Moscow's decades-old gas ties with Europe lie in ruins * Top brands pull out of Russia, but goods easy to find

* Can U.S. support for Ukraine last? * External backers pour billions into Ukraine

* How has China stood by 'no limits' partner Russia? * Life and death in Mariupol - a survivor's tale of war

* Family mourns Bucha victim who became symbol of war 

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)