Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday insisted that the residents of four Ukrainian regions that Moscow illegally annexed a year ago “made their choice — to be with their Fatherland.” In an address released in the early hours to mark the first anniversary of the annexation, Putin insisted that it was carried out “in full accordance with international norms.” He also claimed that residents of the Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions had again expressed their desire to be part of Russia in local elections earlier this month, in which Russia’s Central Election Commission said that the country’s ruling party won the most votes. The West has denounced both the referendum votes carried out last year and the recent ballots as a sham. The votes were held as Russian authorities attempted to tighten their grip on territories Moscow illegally annexed a year ago and still does not fully control. A concert was held in Red Square on Friday to mark the anniversary, but Putin did not participate. Meanwhile, in Ukraine, air defenses shot down 30 out of 40 Iranian-made kamikaze drones aimed at the Odesa, Mykolaiv and Vinnytsia provinces overnight, the Ukrainian air force said Saturday. Vinnytsia regional Gov. Serhii Borzov said that air defenses shot down 20 drones over his central Ukrainian region, but that a “powerful fire” broke out in the town of Kalynivka when a drone struck an unspecified infrastructure facility. Romania’s Ministry of National Defense said on Saturday that a possible unauthorized entry into its national airspace occurred overnight amid the bombardment. It said the radar surveillance system of the Romanian Army detected “a possible unauthorized entry” into the national airspace of NATO member Romania, with a signal detected toward the city of Galati, which is close to the border with Ukraine. “At this moment, no objects have been identified that fell from the airspace onto the national territory,” the statement read, adding that NATO allies were informed in real time and that searches will continue through Saturday. Emergency authorities issued text message alerts overnight to residents living in the counties of Galati and Tulcea, after detecting what the defense ministry said was “groups of drones heading toward Ukrainian territory” near the border. In recent weeks, Romania has found drone fragments on its soil from the war next door at least three times as Russian forces carry out sustained attacks on Ukraine’s Danube ports. Russia’s Defense Ministry said Saturday that it had shot down nine Ukrainian rockets fired at its southern Belgorod region, which borders Ukraine. Local officials in Russia’s Bryansk region, also bordering Ukraine, reported disruptions to power supply following an unspecified attack on the town of Pogar. Drone strikes and shelling in the Russian border regions are a regular occurrence. ___ AP writers Stephen McGrath in Sighisoara, Romania, and Elise Morton in London contributed to this report. ___ Follow the AP’s coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine Read More Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Pope creates 21 new cardinals who will help him to reform church and cement his legacy Slovakia election pits a pro-Russia former prime minister against a liberal pro-West newcomer UAE's president-designate for UN COP28 offers full-throated defense of nation hosting climate talks

England forward Fran Kirby has extended her Chelsea contract by another year. Kirby, who signed a two-year deal in 2021 that included the option of a further 12 months, joined the Blues from Reading in 2015 and has gone on to become the Women’s Super League club’s leading scorer with 110 goals in 175 appearances. During her time with Chelsea, Kirby has won 13 trophies, including five WSL titles as well as the FA Cup on four occasions. Kirby was also part of the England side which won the European Championship on home soil last summer, but has been ruled out of this year’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand after needing knee surgery. The 29-year-old suffered the injury during Chelsea’s Continental League Cup semi-final against West Ham in February. A club statement read: “Chelsea is delighted to announce that an option to extend the contract of forward Fran Kirby by a further year has been exercised. “We look forward to seeing Fran back in blue next season.” PA Read More England’s World Cup squad: Who’s on the plane, and who’s got work to do? Ella Toone upbeat on England’s World Cup chances despite ‘difficult’ injury setbacks ‘Everyone wants to see us fail’: How Erin Cuthbert drives Chelsea to stay on top

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