Ukrainian troops leave parts of Bakhmut, UK says

Ukrainian troops have been forced to withdraw from some territory in the battlefield city of Bakhmut as Russia mounts a renewed assault there with intense artillery fire over the past two days, Britain said in an intelligence update on Friday. Russia’s ambassador to the United States said Washington had threatened retaliation after Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich was detained on espionage charges, and suggested it might be time to cut the number of U.S. journalists in Russia. China’s defence minister Li Shangfu will visit Russia from April 16-19, and meet Russian military officials, the Chinese defence ministry said. U.S. officials have expressed concern China might supply arms to Russia, something Beijing has denied. China only wants to promote talks in Ukraine and will not do anything to add fuel to the fire, China’s foreign minister, Qin Gang, said earlier. * European Union foreign policy chief Joseph Borrell said it would be hard for Europe to trust China if it did not try to find a political solution to the Ukraine crisis based on Russia’s withdrawal from Ukrainian territory.