Russia-Ukraine War: Russian forces attack another nuclear research institute

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that the war in Ukraine calls for international cooperation and solidarity to support everyone affected, and to overcome the clear violation of international law. He was speaking at UN General Assembly where the meeting on enhancing international cooperation was in process.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, on Thursday, has affirmed that the cities which had suffered major damage due to the ongoing Russian aggression, will be rebuilt by a dedicated program.

A day after Russia accused the United States of running chemical and biological labs in Ukraine, it has now called the UN Security Council meeting to discuss the allegations.  
In response to this week’s accusations by Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova — without evidence — White House press secretary Jen Psaki issued a public warning Wednesday that Russia might seek to use chemical or biological weapons against Ukraine, the neighbour it has invaded.

Mariupol mayor Vadym Boychenko said that the Russian forces have been shelling bombs in the residential areas every 30 minutes, The Kyiv Independent reported on Thursday. He also accused Russian invaders of hindering the evacuation of civilians from the city who have been facing a dearth of basic necessities since the Russian troops started bombing in the city. 
 

According to an adviser to Ukraine’s Interior Ministry, Anton Gerashchenko, Russian forces shelled a nuclear research institute in Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city on Thursday. He claimed that the Russian forces set the buildings on fire. A shell hit a building where there is equipment that could release radiation if it were damaged, Gerashchenko said. 

Marriott will close its corporate offices in Moscow in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the company announced Thursday. The company said it is also pausing new hotel openings and all future hotel development and investment in Russia.

US Vice President Kamala Harris on Thursday announced nearly $53 million in new humanitarian assistance from the United States government, through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), to support innocent civilians affected by Russia’s unjustified invasion of Ukraine. This additional assistance includes support to the UN World Food Program (WFP) to provide lifesaving emergency food assistance to meet the immediate needs of hundreds of thousands affected by the invasion, according to the statement released by the White House.

As the Western countries and the European nations have been invoking back-to-back sanctions against Russia, Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Pankin on Thursday warned the countries to face dire consequences, news agency Sputnik reported. "You can already see these waves, they will also go toward Western Europe, which is dependent on us, but not because we use energy supplies as a weapon – we always fulfil our obligations anchored in agreements and accords," Sputnik quoted Pankin as saying.

Even though the situation in Ukraine has been worsening, the United States on Thursday reiterated it will not send American troops on the battlefield. Has no intention to send our military troops to Ukraine to fight a war against Russia. Our assessment is based on is how to prevent a world war," said White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki, during a press conference on Thursday.

According to Ukraine’s Minister of Education and Science Serhiy Shkarlet, the Russian forces have destroyed or damaged as many as 280 educational institutions through bombing and shelling.
 

A day after a major power cut at the decommissioned plant was reported, Ukraine informed the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that it has lost all communications with Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant on Thursday.

According to a report by Kyiv Independent, the Russian government has agreed to open daily humanitarian corridors from 10 am every day, but only to Russia. This will be done without the permission of the Ukrainian government, added the report.

The micro-blogging site has deleted tweets from the Russian Embassy in the United Kingdom which attempted to deny Russian involvement in the March 9 attack on a hosptial in Mariupol. Twitter said it had removed the posts for denying violent incidents.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba met with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov on Thursday in Turkey, in an attempt to broker a 24-hour ceasefire and a humanitarian corridor to the southern port city of Mariupol, encircled by Russian troops. According to The Kyiv Independent, Kuleba said no results were reached since Lavrov didn’t have the mandate to sign any agreements.

JPMorgan Chase said Thursday that it is “unwinding” its Russian banking business and plans not to take any additional work, making it the latest bank to pull out of Russia.

Like Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan said it has a “limited” presence in Russia, a spokeswoman said, and will only be using the coming weeks to close out pre-existing business relationships. The bank will also donate $5 million to humanitarian relief efforts.

The United Nations has received official notification from Ukraine that it intends to withdraw all 308 military and police personnel serving in six U.N. peacekeeping missions, along with eight Russian-built Mi-8 helicopters currently in Congo. 

U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric made the announcement Thursday, saying this includes about 250 troops from Congo whose withdrawal was announced Wednesday as well as 36 staff officers and experts, and 22 police officers.

Sony Music has suspended all its operations in Russia, the company has confirmed on Thursday. According to Variety, in a statement, the company said, "Sony Music Group calls for peace in Ukraine and an end to the violence. We have suspended operations in Russia and will continue our support of global humanitarian relief efforts to aid victims in need." Apart from Sony, Disney, Burger King have ended their services in Russia due to invasion.

A spokesman for the United Nations says it now estimates that 2.3 million people have fled Ukraine as a result of Russia's attack on the country. Spokesman Stephane Dujarric also said Thursday that 1.9 million have been internally displaced, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. "Civilians, whether they stay or leave must be respected and protected. Safe passage is needed for humanitarian supplies and we need a system of constant communications with parties to the conflict," he said.

Russian top diplomat Sergey Lavrov said that the possibility of talks between the presidents of Russia and Ukraine was discussed at Thursday’s meeting with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kulebanews agency TASS reported. "President Putin has never refused to hold contacts, we only want to be sure that contacts aren’t held for the sake of contacts but seek to formalize specific agreements," he said.

 While the situation regarding Ukraine’s nuclear facilities is “complex and difficult,” the head of the UN nuclear agency said Thursday that he is in contact with all sides to ascertain how to help ensure the safety of the country’s nuclear facilities.

Rafael Grossi, the director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, told reporters Thursday evening in Vienna that the nuclear watchdog has ”scheduled physical inspections” of nuclear facilities in Ukraine. He would not give any details on when or how those inspections would take place citing the sensitivity of the situation.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Thursday said that Russia may use chemical weapons in Ukraine terming it's "straight out of their playbook". On the other hand, French President Emmanuel Macron is planning to speak with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the next 48 hours amid the third week of war between Moscow and Kyiv, Sputnik reported. CNN quoted Johnson saying, "I just note that that is what they're already doing. It is a cynical, barbaric government, I'm afraid."

US President Joe Biden spoke with Turkey President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to coordinate responses to Russia’s unprovoked attack on Ukraine, tweets "We discussed the importance of continued international efforts to hold Moscow accountable for its aggression"

The Russian Defense Ministry denied responsibility Thursday for striking a maternity hospital in the Ukrainian city of Mariupol and claimed that the explosions that hit the building were staged to smear Russia.

Russia’s Defense Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov denied that the Russian military struck the hospital. He claimed that the two explosions that ravaged the building were caused by explosive devices planted nearby in what he described as a “staged provocation to incite anti-Russian agitation in the West.”

American multinational investment bank and financial services company, Goldman Sachs, on Thursday, has announced to suspend its operations in Russia due to ongoing conflict with Ukraine. 
 

While speaking at a press conference, following a meeting with his Ukrainian and Turkish counterparts, Dmitry Kuleba and Mevlut Cavusoglu, news agency TASS reported that Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Moscow has never wanted war and added Putin seeks to end the conflict. 
 

The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine confirmed another Russian Su-25 aircraft was shot down by the Ukrainian forces on Thursday. Taking to Twitter, it wrote, "Another downed Russian Su-25 aircraft adorns the fertile Ukrainian land. Glory to Ukraine!" 

Three evacuation flights carrying the last batches of Indian nationals from Ukraine including around 600 students are set to arrive in India on Friday morning, people familiar with the development said. India has already brought back over 17,000 Indians, mostly students under the evacuation mission 'Operation Ganga'. The three flights are likely to be the last ones under the evacuation mission. Around 600 Indian students, who were pulled out of the besieged Ukrainian city of Sumy, are arriving in Delhi on Friday morning, the people cited above said. 

French President Emmanuel Macron condemned “a shameful and amoral act of war” after a Russian airstrike on a Mariupol maternity hospital.

Macron said Thursday he was deeply upset by images showing “lethal weapons have been used in an indiscriminate manner in the city center.” He spoke ahead of a summit of EU heads of state and government at the Versailles Palace, west of Paris.

Macron said “nothing justifies” what happened in Mariupol.

“I am very worried and pessimistic,” about the war in Ukraine, Macron said. “I don’t see a ceasefire (being) realistic in the coming hours.”

AP

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a telephonic conversation with UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and France President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday. According to the Twitter post of Zelenskyy, he discussed the ongoing aggression of Russia against civilians. Also, Zelenskyy said he discussed the peace talks with Macron. 
 

European countries continue to oppose Russia over its military aggression on Ukraine. Various European countries have imposed harsh sanctions on Russia but now the countries are looking for other ways to troll the country. Like this one - Norway has changed the street name where the Russian Embassy has situated in the capital city of Oslo. As per the reports of Barents Observer, the new address of the Russian Embassy in Oslo will now be 'Ukraine Square'.

Igor Vishnevetsky, deputy head of the Russian Foreign Ministry's Non-Proliferation and Arms Control Department, denied the possibility of the nuclear war, saying that it is "impossible." He also stated that many experts are aware of its dire ramifications for the entire globe. "Nuclear war can't be staged by definition because this would result in the end of civilisation... mankind. We can't allow it in any way," he added, as per Sputnik. 

Russian President Vladimir Putin held a telephonic conversation with his South African counterpart Cyril Ramaphosa. As per the Kremlin, both leaders exchanged greetings on the 30th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two countries and reiterated their determination to further strengthen the bilateral strategic cooperation.

The Russian President also told Ramaphosa about the reasons and goals of special military operations in Ukraine's Donbass region. Putin also updated the South African president on the status of talks with Ukrainian government representatives. Meanwhile, South Africa's President backed up ongoing political and diplomatic initiatives.

American multinational financial services company, Western Union (WU) has announced that it will cease operations in Russia and Belarus. The corporation stated that it joins the rest of the globe in denouncing Ukraine's provocative and unjustified invasion. Western Union also expressed its sincere wish for a diplomatic and peaceful resolution to the ongoing conflict. 

Swedish Defense Minister Peter Hultqvist has speculated that deploying North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) troops to Ukraine could bring entire Europe to the verge of World War III. "Sending troops to Ukraine by NATO or the West would be like inviting a world war, which no one wants," he told Swedish national broadcaster SVT, as reported by Sputnik. Hultqvist also asserted that the Kremlin has far bigger goals than just gaining control of Ukraine, implying that Moscow may be interested in other former Soviet republics.

The Ukrainian Embassy in the United States is serving as a recruitment hub for Americans interested in joining the war. Thousands of proposals from volunteers seeking to fight for Ukraine are being accepted by diplomats operating out of the embassy. As per a report by The Associated Press, Ukraine's military attaché Major General Borys Kremenetskyi said, "This is people of goodwill who are coming to assist Ukraine to fight for freedom." 

According to the Ukrainian State Nuclear Regulatory Inspectorate, the Neutron Source subcritical nuclear facility at the Kharkiv Institute of Physics and Technology was not operating since it had been converted to the so-called long-term shutdown mode by experts. "As of March 10, 2022, the situation at the nuclear subcritical facility Neutron Source Based on the Subcritical Assembly Driven by a Linear Electron Accelerator (Neutron Source) remains unchanged: the nuclear facility has been transferred to a deep subcritical state ('long shutdown' mode)," the inspectorate said, Sputnik reported.

Rih Oleksandr Vilkul, the head of the military administration of Kryvyi, claimed that Russian troops on Thursday fired at least two missiles at the airport in  Dnipropetrovsk's Lozuvatka region. "I would like to remind you that the "Air Alert" signal is issued in advance and you always have 5 to 10 minutes (depending on where the rockets came from) to follow into the hideout," he wrote in a Facebook post. 

Following mounting pressure from the opposition and Conservative parliamentarians to speed up the scheme, UK Home Secretary Priti Patel said that the government would simplify the visa procedure for Ukrainians escaping the turmoil in their country.  "From Tuesday, I can announce that Ukrainians with passports will no longer need to go to a visa application centre to give their biometrics before they come to the UK," Patel told Parliament, as per Sputnik. 

In the wake of a new round of anti-Russian sanctions, Russian President Vladimir Putin convened a government meeting to discuss economic issues. According to Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for the Kremlin, the President intended to talk about how to mitigate the sanctions' adverse effects, stabilise the domestic market, and find a solution to the banking payment system's problems, Sputnik reported. 

According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the US has invested heavily into biological research facilities in Ukraine, alleging that they were used to develop deadly weapons and undertake bat coronavirus-related experiments. The ministry further claimed that one of the goals of the biological research laboratories in Ukraine was to develop bioagents capable of targeting specific ethnic groups.

"The available documents confirm numerous cases of the transfer of biological samples of Ukrainian citizens abroad. With a high degree of probability, we can say that one of the tasks of the United States and its allies is the creation of bioagents that can selectively affect various ethnic groups of the population", said Igor Kirillov, the head of the Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical Protection Troops of the Russian Armed Forces, Sputnik reported. 

Since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion on February 24, at least 71 children have been killed and around 100 others have been injured, the Kyiv Independent reported citing the Ukrainian ombudsman.  

In an unpredicted move, China has refused to supply Russian airlines with aircraft parts, Interfax News reported citing an official at Russia’s Aviation Authority. Boeing and Airbus have already halted their supplies in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, now a halt by China could heavily impact the industry. As the war entered its third week, thousands of people have been left dead while over two million have fled the country.

Meanwhile, speaking to the News Agency, Valery Kudinov, a Rosaviatsia official responsible for maintaining airplane airworthiness said that Kremlin was now looking for opportunities to source parts from countries including Turkey and India after a failed attempt to obtain them from China. He also revealed that Russian companies were now registering in Russia in a bid to avoid western sanctions.

Amid the ongoing invasion of Ukraine, Estonia's Foreign Ministry stated that the country has suspended the issuance of tourist visas to Russian citizens, NEXTA reported. 

Iryna Vereshchuk, Minister for Reintegration of Temporarily Occupied Territories, claimed that Mariupol city remains closed to both civilian and humanitarian cargo evacuations. 

Russian Foreign Ministry stated that President Vladimir Putin held telephonic conversations with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz as well as with French President Emmanual Macron. "The three countries’ leaders continued their discussion of Ukrainian issues," the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a Twitter post. 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that he discussed the course of peace talks with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. Zelenskyy also stressed the importance of increasing defence support for Ukraine and sanctions pressure on Russia. "Raised the issue of Ukraine's membership in the European Union on the eve of the informal summit of EU leaders.

As per the Ukrainian Parliament, President Volodymyr Zelensky has tasked the country's administration with designing a specific state programme for the restoration of every Ukrainian city devastated by Russia's invasion.

Addressing the nation, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that the country's army is fighting off the enemy in all key directions. "Thanks to our military, our National Guard, our border guards, our police, our territorial defence forces, we are not slaves. And we never will be. Because it's not in our spirit or in our fate," he stated, as per the Kyiv Independent. He also slammed Russian media about lying about Mariupol city. "Russian media mentioned the attack in Mariupol but they lied that there were no women or children in the hospital. They are lying with confidence, as they always do.," Zelenskyy added.

The Ukrainian President also vowed to rebuilt everything immediately extremely quickly and very properly once the war is over. He went on to claim that a particular development programme will be implemented in each of the affected cities. "For every city, there will be the top architects, firms, and projects," President Zelenskyy added. 
 

Ukraine's Border Guard Service stated that students from 26 countries were evacuated by train to Poland. "During the passport control, the foreigners thanked the guards, wished Ukraine a speedy victory, and said that theyʼd definitely return to their favourite Kharkiv universities when the war ended," Border Guard Service stated. 

France, an EU nation that heavily relies on Russian gas is currently preparing for the worst-case scenario of disruption to the Russian supply. Paris’ leading oil and gas corporations including Engie, TotalEnergies, and Gaz de France are exploring an alternative option to import the oil in case Russia snaps the Nord Stream 1 pipeline, which is not targeted by Western sanctions. Moscow had threatened Europe that it had yet not taken reciprocal measures for a barrage of sanctions imposed on its private banks and political entities. 

Read more here.
 

President Volodymyr Zelensky has approved a law authorising the forced seizure of Russian or Russian-owned property in Ukraine. Zelenskyy has also stated that he is willing to go to any length to seize the property of "Russian propagandists," Sputnik reported citing Stana.ua news agency.  

"We will do everything to find the foreign property of Russia's propagandists and get it confiscated. You love luxurious lifestyles and European countries, don't you? You can say goodbye to it," President Zelenskyy was quoted as saying by The Kyiv Independent. 

Petro Poroshenko, former President of Ukraine, stated that the armed Russian occupiers broke into the house of Leila Ibragimova, a deputy of the Zaporizhia regional council from the European Solidarity. And then they took her to an unknown place, he stated. "There is no limit to cynicism," Poroshenko added. 

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's Chief of Staff, Andriy Yermak, stated that the country did not expect Russia to launch a full-scale invasion. He went on to say that although authorities were preparing for Russia’s all-out invasion of Ukraine for months, but did not anticipate that it would actually take place, the Kyiv Independent reported. 

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba stated that he met with International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director-General Rafael Mariano in Antalya to discuss ways of ensuring the safety and security of nuclear facilities in Ukraine amid Russia’s invasion. "I insist: Russia must immediately withdraw forces from Chornobyl and Zaporizhzhia NPPs to avert a disaster in Europe," Kuleba added. 

Ukraine’s state bureau of investigation has said that Kyiv is investigating 38 cases of alleged treason against local officials and law enforcement officers accused of aiding Russia.

The World Health Organization has warned that the Ukraine crisis could spread infectious diseases ranging from COVID-19 to the measles, reported RT.

Ukrainian media has reported that Colonel Andrei Zakharov, commander of a Russian tank regiment, was eliminated by the AFU in the Brovary district of the Kyiv region. It is to note here that he received the Order of Courage from the hands of Vladimir Putin in 2016, #Ukrainian media reported.

The mayor of Zhytomyr Serhii Sukhomlyn has said a civilian building, a thermal electricity plant and two hospitals were hit in Russian airstrikes in the western Ukrainian city. 

Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko on Friday, March 11.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Kuleba said that NATO is not ready to ensure the security of Ukraine.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said, "I do not believe and do not want to believe that a nuclear war could start". He also said that his country has not used oil and gas supply as weapons.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy prized the title of Hero of Ukraine to 14 militaries with 6 Heroes were being awarded posthumously.

Russia's Sergey Lavrov told Kuleba that Russia is always ready for high-level negotiations if they have "added value". The Russian foreign minister also noted that Russian President Vladimir Putin did not refuse to meet with Volodymyr Zelenskyy and someday, such a need would arise. 

Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov has also attempted to justify the attack on Mariupol's maternity and children's hospital which killed three. He said the hospital in Mariupol was being used by Ukrainian nationalists as a 'base'.

According to reports, Lavrov has also said the West is acting dangerously by arming the Ukrainians

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has claimed "We have not attacked #Ukraine and we are not planning to attack other countries" after meeting his Ukrainian counterpart amid the ongoing war.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu has said "At this time of greatest need for peace, we met with my Russian and Ukrainian counterparts Lavrov and Kuleba on the Antalya Diplomacy Forum margin in a trio format.  Our hope is to restore peace in our region."

 "We will continue our efforts for the operation of diplomacy between Russia and Ukraine," he added.

 

As per reports, Ukrainian Foreign minister Kuleba said that he’s ready to meet again with Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov “if there will be prospects to a solution.”

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmtryo Kuleba has said that the talks with Russian Foreign minister Lavrov were "difficult". According to Sputnik, Kuleba said that no agreement of ceasefire was reached even though both sides met for the first time in Turkey after Russia launched its 'special' military operation on 24 February. 

According to Kyiv Independent, Kuleba said, “I came here with a humanitarian purpose, to walk out of the meeting with a decision to arrange a humanitarian corridor to and from Mariupol.”

As per reports, due to sanctions on Roman Abramovich, the sale of Chelsea FC is on hold and the club cannot sell tickets, merchandise or transfer players.

High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell has said that the European Union (EU) has reached the limit of its capabilities to impose financial sanctions on Russia, stated Sputnik. 

Russian President Vladimir Putin's press secretary Dmitry Peskov has said, "Kyiv constantly comes out with proposals of direct talks between Putin and Zelenskyy, now this issue is being discussed by the foreign ministers."

The Czech Republic wants to equate the "Z" sign of the Russian occupiers with Nazi symbols.
 

IAEA head Rafael Mariano Grossi is flying to Turkey to discuss the situation at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant with the foreign ministers of Russia and Ukraine.

During a conference on aircraft maintenance, Valery Kudinov, head of the Airworthiness Maintenance Department of the Federal Air Transport Agency (Rosaviatsia) has said that China has refused to supply aircraft parts to Russian airlines.

Russian airstrike on maternity and children's hospital on Wednesday killed three people, including a child, the city council said on Thursday. It was previously known that the attack had wounded 17 people in the besieged port city.

As of Thursday, the United Nations (UN) has said that more than 2.3 million people have been forced to flee to neighbouring countries, including 112,000 third-country nationals.

Chelsea Foot Club owner Roman Abramovich is one among the seven oligarchs sanctioned by UK government, BBC reported.

American footwear manufacturer Crocs has suspended retail activities in Russia and imports products into the country.

Ukrainian ambassador to UN Ambassador O’Donnell has said, "UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres should feel empowered to forge a global coalition to enforce a no-fly zone, through a robust peacekeeping operation, enabling a ceasefire & enacting the responsibility to protect".

Rosaviatsia has reported that Russian airlines plan to return some of the planes to lessors

Major global insulin manufacturers have confirmed that they will continue to operate on the Russian market and continue to supply, said the Russian Ministry of Health.

Ukraine expects a temporary ceasefire to evacuate civilians from 10 cities including regional capital Sumy, encircled Mariupol and Volnovakha, Izyum, in Kharkiv Oblast, and Kyiv’s suburbs - Bucha, Borodyanka and Irpin, stated Kyiv Indepedent. 

Ukraine's Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Oleg Nikolenko said, "Talks between the foreign ministers of Ukraine, Turkey and the Russian Federation on ending Russian aggression against Ukraine have commenced in Antaliya."

Toyota Motor Corp. said it will donate up to $2.7 million for Ukraine. In addition, it will allow up to 40 paid hours a year per employee if they offer Ukrainian refugees temporary housing or if they provide language assistance for refugees.

The Central Bank of Ukraine urged banks in Vietnam, Turkey, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan to stop operations with Russian "Mir" payment cards.

The Japanese cosmetics company Shiseido has decided to suspend the supply of its products to Russia. The German brand HugoBoss also announced its withdrawal.

Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine Iryna Vereshchuk announced the opening of seven humanitarian corridors.

Japan's Toyota Motor Corp. has stopped imports of vehicles, until further notice "due to supply chain disruptions".

Ukraine's Defence Ministry on Thursday said that till March 10, Russia has lost more than 12,000 personnel, 335 tanks, 123 artillery systems among other losses.

Russian Foreign Ministry said, "Unfriendly to Russia, EU and NATO states, abusing their absolute majority in the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe (CMCE), continue destroying the Council as well as the common humanitarian and legal expanse in Europe," according to Sputnik.

Ukraine's Ministry of Defence said, "The second army of the world is a scandal. Ukrainian economic warriors are surprised. The wheels are different, the barrels are not cleaned... even their "pride", the mark "Z", written as "ZU"...Wash, clean, change the wheels... and will be at war."

Ukrainian Defence Ministry has said, "The Russian army is losing, confidence, personal warehouse, tanks, ammunition to them. And the conscience was not there...Ukrainians do not let the good go - collect trophies."

According to reports, Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda slammed the Russian army fighting in Ukraine. He said, "I look at these soldiers and I don't see the motivation, what should they fight for. For Putin? Who is Putin to them? They are, beyond any doubt, the army of the aggressor, the soldiers of the aggressor."

Ukrainian foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba has arrived in Antalya, Turkey, for negotiations with Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov amid raging war. The trilateral meet in Antalya is scheduled for 8:00 GMT or 1:30 PM IST.

The United States may impose sanctions against the Russian energy company, Rosatom.
 

The latest intelligence update by the UK's Ministry of Defence has stated, "The large Russian column north west of Kyiv has made little progress over the past week and is suffering continued losses at the hands of the Ukrainian Armed Forces."

In Brovarsky district, the Armed Forces of #Ukraine and volunteer battalions are repelling Russian occupiers.

The Financial Times has reported that Chinese corporations Xiaomi, Oppo and Huawei have reduced the supply of smartphones to Russia by at least two times.

Russian First Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN, Dmitry Polyanskiy, dismissed reports about that attack on Mariupol hospital as "fake news". 

The Ukrainian Defense Intelligence Directorate reports that downed Russian military pilots cannot open their parachutes after ejection.
 

In Markhalivka, a man lost his entire family to a Russian airstrike on residential houses with only his cat surviving.

Image: @nexta_tv/Twitter

Canada will send Ukraine a shipment of lethal and non-lethal military aid worth $50 million.

In a bid to protest Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Lithuanian capital Vilnius has given the Russian embassy a new address on “Ukrainian Heroes’ Street”. Vilnius Mayor Remigijus Simasius claimed in a statement, "From today, the business card of every employee of the Russian embassy will be decorated with a note honouring Ukraine’s fighting, and everyone will have to think about the atrocities of the Russian regime against the peaceful Ukrainian nation when writing this street name".

After night shelling on Okhtyrka killed three civilians including two women and a 13-year-old boy, the region was reduced to ruins. 

Ukraine Defence Ministry has said, "The opponent has reduced the pace of entering, his personal composition is demoralized. The number of cases of desertification and looting has increased significantly. We believe in armed forces and other Ukrainian defenders! Glory to Ukraine!"

United States President Joe Biden will hold talks with Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan over the situation in Ukraine. It is also to note here that Ukrainian and Russian Foreign Ministers are set to meet in Turkey as Russian forces continue to launch their offensive. Most recently, Russian missiles devasted a maternity hospital in Mariupol.

According to a US Defense Department source cited by CNN, Russia has fired 710 missiles into Ukraine since the start of war on 24 February.

The German city of Cologne took in 38 orphans from Ukrainian orphanages as people continue to flee war-torn nation amid Russia's military aggression. 

The United States Congress voted in favour of a bill to ban oil and energy imports from #Russia. The bill also provides for the suspension of Russia's participation in the World Trade Organization.
 

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) executive board on Wednesday approved an additional $1.4 billion emergency financing for Ukraine to help supplement urgent financing needs and mitigate the economic impact amid the ongoing war with Russia. The said fund will be disbursed under the Rapid Financing Instrument (RFI) to bolster Ukraine's economy amid severe human sufferings and a potentially deep recession predicted for later this year, IMF said in a statement. The monetary fund also informed that the Ukrainian authorities had cancelled an existing stand-by lending arrangement with the global lender but promised to work with the additional funds to design economic reforms focused on growth when conditions permit.

"The Russian military invasion of Ukraine has been responsible for a massive humanitarian and economic crisis. Financing needs are large, urgent, and could rise significantly as the war continues," Kristalina Georgieva, IMF Managing Director, said in a statement, adding that once the war is over war-torn Ukraine was likely to need "large support."

"The tragic loss of life, huge refugee flows, and immense destruction of infrastructure and productive capacity is causing severe human suffering and will lead to a deep recession this year," she further noted.

British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace, on Wednesday, asserted that Downing Street is mulling to supply multiple missiles to Ukraine as the Russian invasion of the ex-Soviet state entered its third week. Addressing the House of Commons on Wednesday, Wallace said that the UK would supply Starstreak anti-aircraft weapons and “a small consignment” of Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine. It is imperative to note that the country has already sent 3,615 portable missiles systems called NLAW short-range anti-tank weapons to the country and Wallace said that the supply would continue, according to The Guardian.

He told Parliamentarians, “The capability needs strengthening. So in response to Ukrainian requests, the government has taken a decision to explore the donation of Starstreak high-velocity man-portable anti-air missiles.”

US must “immediately abolish illegal works in the field of military biology” in post-Soviet nations, said Russian Ambassador to the US, Anatoly Antonov. Following a lengthy statement by the White House rejecting Russia’s allegations of US involvement in developing biological weapons lab in Ukraine, Antonov said, “Such nervous statements by the American authorities testify to the serious concern of the White House by revealing the truth about the work being carried out on the military-biological program at the borders of the Russian Federation under US funding.”

Russian envoy said, “We urge the United States to immediately abolish illegal works in the field of military biology, including. A. on the territory of post-Soviet space. Stop blocking the efforts of the international community to strengthen the CBTO regime. Do not hinder the resumption of work on the legally binding Protocol to the Convention with an effective verification mechanism.”

“In addition, it is time for Washington to speed up the deadline for the destruction of national reserves of chemical weapons. Let us remind you: The United States remains the only country participating in the Convention on the Prohibition of Chimorrhoids that has not yet fulfilled its international obligations,” he added.

As per reports, due to Western sanctions, the so-called "pride of the Russian car industry", Lada, is forced to stop its production. The automobile concern is very dependent on parts and components from Western countries.

US House of Representatives has approved $13.6 billion in US aid to battered Ukraine and its European allies. After approval in the House on Wednesday night, Senate approval is expected by week’s end or perhaps slightly longer. As per AP, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told reporters: “We’ve got a war going on in Ukraine. We have important work that we’re doing here.”

Citing a report from the Sumy regional military administration, Sumy regional state administration head Dmytro Zhyvytsky said overnight strikes in the north-eastern city of Okhtyrka, Sumy region, reportedly killed a 13-year-old boy and two women. He said, "Enemy aviation hit residential houses. 5 people were rescued from the falls, 2 of them children. Also partially destroyed police department".

“The enemy artillery fired at the former Electrobutprilad plant. The result of the shelling killed three villagers, including a minor boy,” he said.

“Great Pisarívka suffered a night bombing. Power lines are torn, lying on the ground. A 13-year-old boy and 2 women were killed as a result of an artillery shelling.”

Ukraine wiped out 4 Russian Su-25 aircraft, 2 helicopters, and 2 cruise missiles in Kyiv and the Joint Force Operation regions on March 8-9, Interfax news agency has reported, citing the Air Force of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. According to the updated estimates by Ukraine, its forces have destroyed 56 Russian aircraft and 82 helicopters.

Ukraine has launched a website to track human rights violations by Russia. According to Kyiv Independent, the Head of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s office, Andriy Yermak said the collected information will be used as evidence against Russia in the European Court of Human Rights and the International Court of Justice

United States Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo has said "There is no expiration date" on export sanctions against Russia. She added on March 9 that the export controls will last “as long as it takes.”

Raimondo also noted that the United States is “in it to win”. She also warned that any country, such as China, would face repercussions if it did not abide by the export restrictions.

United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said, "Today's attack on a hospital in Mariupol, Ukraine, where maternity & children's wards are located, is horrific. Civilians are paying the highest price for a war that has nothing to do with them. This senseless violence must stop. End the bloodshed now."

The world’s third-largest brewer, Carlsberg has said it will stop selling its flagship beer brand, cease all advertising in Russia and will donate profits from its Russia business where the company has already halted investments. 

America's top general in Europe European Command Gen. Tod Wolters said the most effective way to support the Ukrainian military is with additional anti-tank and anti-aircraft weapons — not MiG-29 fighter jets, as per CNN

As per reports, one of the most famous snipers "Wali" has arrived in Ukraine to fight against Russia. The average productivity of the sniper is seven men in a day.  On the front type like Ukrainian, the same productivity can reach up to 10. "Vali" can provide up to 40 deaths per day, stated reports.

American manufacturer of agricultural machinery Deere has suspended deliveries to Russia and Belarus.
 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said that 35,000 people have been rescued through humanitarian corridors. “Today we were able to organize three humanitarian corridors: from the city of Sumy, from city of Kyiv and Kyiv region, and from Enerhodar,” he said, adding that efforts will continue Thursday.

“We are praying to be able to evacuate people from Mariupol, from Izium, from Volnovakha, etc. to evacuate to safe places of free Ukraine. And I'm sure that every Ukrainian that knows these people need help will make sure these people feel cared for," he said.
 

Japanese company Nintendo is suspending shipments of its products and software to Russia amid Ukraine crisis.
 

Polish Sejm on Thursday approved a law on assistance to Ukrainian refugees. According to reports, people fleeing war-torn Ukraine would have the right to use public services and health care and will be able to send their children to Polish schools. Additionally, the Ukrainian refugees' stay in Poland may take 18 months with the possibility of extension.
 

About 50,000 people evacuated from Sumy in two days amid the Russian military's aggression.

Sony's PlayStation unit has decided to suspend all software and hardware shipments to Russia and the PlayStation Store will be also unavailable for Russian users, media reported. According to the CNBC broadcaster, the decision was made over the Russian decision to launch a military operation in Ukraine. Within the past several days, similar announcements have been made by a number of global companies.

Amid the deteriorating condition in Ukraine, the United States on Wednesday has warned of a possible Russian chemical attack in Ukraine. Recently, Moscow had used a thermobaric weapon system, or "vacuum" bombs, during Putin's invasion of Ukraine. In a series of Tweets, the spokeswoman noted that the false claim that the US has biological weapons labs and chemical weapons development facilities in Ukraine was also echoed by Chinese officials.

According to the White House, US President Joe Biden and his Turkish counterpart Tayyip Erdogan will hold a telephonic conversation on Thursday. As per the information provided by the White House, both the leaders will discuss the latest developments involving Russia and Ukraine.

The local authorities of Donetsk People's Republic, on Wednesday, accused Ukrainian armed forces of shelling in the Dolomitnoye region. Also, they accused the Ukrainian forces of using 120mm mortars. Notably, the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics reported the most intensive bombardments by the Ukrainian military in recent months.

US lodging chains, Hiltons or Hyatts have announced to suspend development activities and any new investments in Russia, citing Moscow's decision to invade Ukraine. The latest announcement will be effective from today until further notice.

Days after Visa and Mastercard suspended their operations in Russia, a report by NEXTA claimed that Apple Pay, Google Pay and, Samsung Pay have also suspended their services.
 

A flight carrying Indians evacuated from war-hit Ukraine arrived at the Hindan airbase near Delhi from Bucharest, Romania on Thursday.

WarnerMedia's CEO Jason Kilar has announced on Wednesday that amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the entertainment conglomerate will be "pausing all new business in Russia". According to Variety, in a memo to WarnerMedia staff, Kilar said, "I want to share with each of you a number of decisions we have made with regard to WarnerMedia's business operations in Russia." "Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, WarnerMedia is pausing all new business in Russia. This includes ceasing broadcasts of our channels, halting all new content licensing with Russian.

The International Monetary Funds has approved USD 1.4 billion in emergency financing for Ukraine amid the ongoing war with Russia, the fund said in a statement. "The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) today approved a disbursement of USD 1.4 billion (SDR 1005,9 million) under the Rapid Financing Instrument (RFI) to help meet urgent financing needs and mitigate the economic impact of the war," Russia's Sputnik News Agency reported citing the statement.

ANI

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke to UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Wednesday. According to the tweet of Johnson, he thanked his Ukrainian excellency for his address to the House of Commons. Also, he assured Zelenskyy of imposing tough sanctions on Russia. "We will tighten these to impose the maximum economic cost on Russia and are stepping up our military support to Ukraine," Johnson said.

In a major action against Russia's illegal invasion of Ukraine, YouTube, on Wednesday, has turned off all features that allowed YouTube channel creators to earn money in Russia.

US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a telephonic conversation on Wednesday. According to Pelosi, they had a 45-minute call in which the Ukrainian President has told her that it will take “everybody’s help” in rebuilding Ukraine after the war with Russia. Pelosi said she hopes the U.S. can help facilitate the transfer of Soviet-era MiG fighter planes that Ukraine has requested from neighbouring NATO allies.

As a Russian attack severely damaged a maternity hospital in the besieged port city of Mariupol, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the latest attack on the hospital has shown the real agenda behind the attack. "Today is the day that defines everything. It defines who is on which side. Russian bombs fell on a hospital in Mariupol. As of now, 17 people are injured. Rescuers are still going through the debris," The Kyiv Independent quoted Zelensky as saying on Wednesday.

Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby has again reiterated that the United States will not support sending additional fighter jets to Ukraine. According to him, the best way to support the Ukrainian defence is by providing them with the weapons and assistance that they need most to defeat Russian aggression. During a press conference, he said Ukrainian forces need anti-armour and air defence in particular.

To provide air policing of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) airspace, F-35B Lightning aircraft from Royal Air Force station Marham arrived at Amari airbase in Estonia on Wednesday (local time). This comes at a time when Russian aggression in Ukraine continues and NATO is aiming to further strengthen and defend its eastern flank. 

Amid the ongoing war in Ukraine, several major companies have again suspended their service in Russia. According to the latest update, companies like Discovery, Inc-- an American multinational mass media factual television conglomerate based in New York City has suspended their broadcast in Russian until further notice. Apart from Discovery Inc, Nestle has also announced the termination of investment in Russia, citing invasion. Also, a Swiss manufacturer of chocolate and confectionery Lindt & Sprüngli has decided to suspend the supply of its products to Russia.

A day after the United States announced to ban the import of Russian oil to the US, the United Arab Emirates on Wednesday said it will urge OPEC to consider boosting oil output. Notably, oil prices have risen sharply since Russia — the world’s third-largest oil producer — invaded Ukraine late last month. “We favour production increases and will be encouraging OPEC to consider higher production levels,” UAE’s ambassador to the United States, Yousef Al Otaiba, said in a statement posted on his embassy’s website.

Taking to Twitter on Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he has discussed humanitarian corridors and other issues with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. Zelenskyy tweeted that they agreed on “the need to ensure effective humanitarian corridors for civilians” during the call.

As the Russia-Ukraine war completed two weeks, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) has sent F-35B Lightning aircraft to Amari airbase in Estonia on Wednesday to provide air policing of NATO airspace. This comes at a time when Russian aggression in Ukraine continues and NATO is aiming to further strengthen and defend its eastern flank. As the Western nations continue to work out plans to target Russia's economy, European Union on Wednesday announced new sanctions against Russia and Belarus targeting Russian leaders, oligarchs, their family members, and the maritime sector. The measures will also disconnect three Belarus banks from the SWIFT financial messaging system.

The Pentagon said Wednesday that two U.S. Army Patriot air defence batteries have been shifted from Germany to Poland as a precautionary defensive move. It said the decision was made by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin in consultation with the Polish government, which asked for the Patriots.

A Russian airstrike devastated a maternity hospital Wednesday in the besieged port city of Mariupol and wounded at least 17 people, Ukrainian officials said, amid growing warnings from the West that Moscow’s invasion is about to take a more brutal and indiscriminate turn.

 Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday spoke to his Hungarian counterpart Viktor Orban and thanked him for facilitating the evacuation of more than 6000 Indian citizens through the Ukraine-Hungary border following Russia's military operation in Ukraine. In a telephonic conversation, the two leaders discussed the ongoing situation in Ukraine and agreed on the need to ensure an immediate ceasefire and a return to diplomacy and dialogue, read Prime Minister's Office press release.

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday took to Twitter to thank European Bank for Reconstruction and Development for providing monetary support of €2 billion. In the tweet, he thanked the President of EBRD, Odile Renaud-Basso, for providing a significant contribution to counter Russian aggression. In the next tweet, he informed his conversation with the President of the European Council, Charles Michel.

 A Russian attack severely damaged a maternity hospital in the besieged port city of Mariupol, Ukraine said Wednesday, and citizens trying to escape shelling on the outskirts of Kyiv streamed toward the capital amid warnings from the West that Moscow’s invasion is about to take a more brutal and indiscriminate turn.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on Twitter that there were “people, children under the wreckage” of the hospital and called the strike an “atrocity.” Authorities said they were trying to establish how many people had been killed or wounded.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has blamed Ukrainian “nationalists” for hampering the evacuation of civilians from besieged Ukrainian cities. The Kremlin said that Putin discussed the situation in Ukraine in Wednesday’s phone call with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, with a “special emphasis given to the humanitarian aspects.” It said that Putin told Scholz about Russian “efforts to organize humanitarian corridors for civilians to exit areas of fighting and attempts by militants from nationalist units to hamper safe evacuation of people.”

Ukrainian officials said that the continuous Russian shelling has derailed efforts to evacuate civilians from areas affected by fighting.

Students of Sumy State University, who were evacuated after struggling hard, were finally reached Poland on Wednesday. After reaching Poland, the students thanked Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Indian World Forum, RedCross, and the Embassy of India in Kyiv.

Watch the video here:

"Ukrainian forces inspire us by their bravery and courage. We provided hundreds of millions of dollars to Ukraine. NATO's responsibility is that this conflict does not spread beyond Ukraine," NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said.

Ukrainian officials say a Russian strike hit a children's hospital and maternity facility in the port city of Mariupol.
 

A top official at the State Department said Tuesday she was surprised by Poland's announcement that it would give the United States its MiG-29 fighter jets for use by Ukraine.

Speaking with lawmakers at a hearing on the Ukraine crisis, U.S. Undersecretary of State Victoria Nuland said she learned of Poland's plans only while driving to the hearing.

“To my knowledge, it wasn’t pre-consulted with us,” Nuland told senators.

The Pentagon quickly rejected Poland's offer, raising the concerning prospect of warplanes departing from a U.S. and NATO base to fly into airspace contested with Russia in the Ukraine conflict.

Ukraine has been pleading for more warplanes as it resists mightier Russian forces. Washington has been looking at a proposal under which Poland would supply Ukraine with the MiG-29s and in turn receive American F-16s to make up for their loss. Ukrainian pilots are trained to fly the Soviet-era fighter jets.

Poland has been less than enthusiastic about the idea, at least publicly, largely because Russia has warned that supporting Ukraine’s air force would be seen in Moscow as participating in the conflict and could create a risk of retaliation.

So the Polish Foreign Ministry announced the plan in a statement, which said the 28 jets would be delivered to the U.S. Ramstein Air Base in Germany free of charge.

The White House was reportedly blindsided by the announcement.

"I think that actually was a surprise move by the Poles," Nuland said,

Poland's offer represented a rare display of disharmony by NATO allies seeking to boost Ukrainian fighters while avoiding getting caught up in a wider war with Russia.

Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi spoke on phone today with His Excellency Viktor Orban, Prime Minister of Hungary. The two leaders discussed the ongoing situation in Ukraine and agreed on the need to ensure an immediate ceasefire and a return to diplomacy and dialogue.

Prime Minister conveyed his warm thanks to His Excellency Orban and to the Hungarian government for facilitating the evacuation of more than 6000 Indian citizens through the Ukraine - Hungary border. 

Prime Minister Orban conveyed his best wishes to the Indian medical students evacuated from Ukraine and said that they could choose to continue their studies in Hungary if they wished.  Prime Minister expressed his appreciation for this generous offer.

The leaders agreed to remain in touch on the evolving situation and to continue their efforts to encourage an end to the conflict.

Russia-Ukraine war: Desperate Ukrainians seek escape routes Ukraine banned wheat exports as civilians sought escape routes and concerns intensified over safety at the embattled country's nuclear plants, including the decommissioned Chernobyl site. 

As the Russian invasion rounds out its second week, feeding the desperate populace became an increasingly critical concern. Ukraine's government banned the export of wheat crucial to global food supplies in an effort to stave off food shortages and hunger inside the country. Safety at Chernobyl, which has been under Russian control, rose as yet another worry as the site's power ran out and it operated on emergency generators.

In the days since Russia launched war on Ukraine, some 2 million people have fled the country, nearly half of them children. Russian troops have captured swaths of territory in the south, but have faced fierce Ukrainian resistance in other regions. 

Life has become increasingly desperate in cities cut from electricity and facing food and medicine shortages. The port city of Mariupol is particularly devastated, lacking running water, heat, sanitary systems and phone service. 

ARE CIVILIANS BEING SAFELY EVACUATED?

Civilian evacuations were expected in a number of areas, including from the northeastern border city of Sumy, which saw 5,000 people evacuated safely on Tuesday. Nearly two dozen buses carrying aid to the city are anticipated to return full with evacuated residents, Ukrainian officials say. 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said efforts were being made Wednesday to evacuate some 18,000 people from embattled towns in the Kyiv region to the capital itself. Speaking in Russian, he appealed to Russian soldiers to save themselves and just go home.

Other routes are hoped for out of Mariupol, Enerhodar in the south, Volnovakha in the southeast and Izyum in the east during a 12-hour-long ceasefire Wednesday. Civilians would be led to places in Ukraine held by the government. 

Elsewhere, Ukrainian officials said civilians, among them children, were killed by Russian firepower in the town of Chuhuiv late Tuesday and in the city of Malyn, to the west of Kyiv. 

WHAT HAS THE AP DIRECTLY WITNESSED OR CONFIRMED ELSEWHERE IN UKRAINE?

Civilians from towns northwest of the capital made their way toward Kyiv Wednesday as part of a humanitarian corridor, with firefighters and police helping people carrying their animals and belongings cross over a small river via a damaged bridge. 

In Kyiv, air raid sirens could be heard Wednesday morning before an all-clear was issued. Families with small children continue to seek refuge inside a subway station to escape the sounds of war above. One university student told the AP that people go home from time to time to shower and get food only.

In the encircled port city of Mariupol, women and children gathered in a basement shelter as outgoing artillery fire blazed in the distance. 

A Ukrainian soldier was seen telling people to remain united as a store was being raided for essential items. You don't need to panic. Please don't steal everything. You will live here together. This is your home, he was heard saying. 

People have been collecting water from streams or melting snow in Mariupol, which has a population of just under half a million. Power cuts mean that many residents have lost internet access and now rely on their car radios for Russian-controlled broadcasts.

WHAT'S HAPPENING AT UKRAINIAN NUCLEAR PLANTS?

All Chernobyl nuclear plant facilities are without power and the diesel generators have fuel for 48 hours, Ukraine's main grid operator said. The state communications agency says the power outage could put systems for cooling nuclear material at risk. The site has been under control of Russian troops since last week.

Ukraine's nuclear regulator says remote data transmission from monitoring systems at Chernobyl have been lost. 

The Vienna-based U.N. nuclear watchdog said it saw no critical impact on safety at Chernobyl because there could be effective heat removal without need for electrical supply from spent nuclear fuel at the site.

Ukraine's energy minister says Ukrainian staff at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, the largest in Europe, are physically and emotionally exhausted. He said about 500 Russian soldiers and 50 pieces of heavy equipment are inside the station, which the Russians took control of in an attack last week.

WHAT'S THE VIEW FROM INSIDE RUSSIA?

Russia has cracked down on independent reporting and blocked access to Russian-language journalism by multiple foreign news outlets. Scattered protests against the war continue in the country, but sources of information about what is happening are diminishing for people inside Russia. 

The U.S. will  ban all Russian oil imports, even if it means  rising costs for Americans, particularly at the gas pump. Shell also said it will stop buying Russian oil.

McDonald's, Starbucks, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo and General Electric all announced Tuesday  they're temporarily suspending business in Russia. Some companies, such as McDonald's, say they will keep paying wages for now to their workers in Russia.

Russia's Central Bank sharply tightened currency restrictions in ways not seen since Soviet times. It ordered the country's commercial banks to cap the amount clients can withdraw from their hard currency deposits at $10,000 in U.S. dollars. Any withdrawals above that amount would be converted to rubles at the current exchange rates.

(AP)
 

Russia skipped the hearing at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) which was taking the case of Ukraine regarding the act of genocide by Russia in the ongoing war and Russia termed the lawsuit as 'absurd'.

The ICJ in The Hague was hearing Ukraine's application to initiate a case on genocide against Russia, with Kyiv denying that acts of genocide have been committed in the people's republics of Donetsk and Luhansk (DPR and LPR). The Russian delegation was not present at the ICJ session.

"On March 7-8, UN International Court of Justice in The Hague held a hearing on the request for provisional measures presented by Ukraine in an unsubstantiated lawsuit against Russia. In light of the apparent absurdity of the lawsuit, we decided not to attend it," said the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Permanent Representative of President of Ukraine in Crimea, Anton Korynevich, told the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on Monday that Kyiv intends to prove the groundlessness of Russia's accusations of genocide against Ukraine.

"Ukraine's case is straightforward. Russia accuses Ukraine of committing genocide. Ukraine denies that claim in the strongest possible terms and we will prove it," Korynevich said.

Ukraine on February 27 filed an Application instituting proceedings against the Russian Federation before the ICJ, the principal judicial organ of the United Nations.

Korynevich at the ICJ hearing slammed Russia for "disrespecting the international law.""Not the first time that Ukraine experienced first-hand Russia's disrespect for international law. Now the world understands its disrespect & the hate of its cruelty...Putin lies & citizens of Ukraine die," he remarked at the ICJ.

Russian forces launched military operations in Ukraine on February 24, three days after Moscow recognized Ukraine's breakaway regions, Donetsk and Luhansk as independent republics followed by the announcement of a "special military operation" to "demilitarize" and "denazify" Ukraine.

(ANI)
 

The last big group of 600 Indian students evacuated from the northeastern Ukrainian city of Sumy has boarded a special train from Lviv for Poland. They are likely to board flights to India on Thursday.  

The students reached Lviv in western Ukraine from Poltava on another special train. 

"Ambassador flags off special train with 600 Indian students from Sumy University at Lviv Railway Station. They will travel to Poland and are expected to board evacuation flights to India tomorrow. Be Safe Be Strong," the Indian embassy in Ukraine said in a tweet on Wednesday.

Several videos emerged on social media showing the students holding Indian flags and raising "Bharat Mata ki Jai" slogans.

Covering hundreds of miles across Ukraine, using multiple means of transport, the students are being evacuated from the war-hit east European country after their two weeks of excruciating stay in beleaguered Sumy.

The Indian government is carrying out a most delicate and challenging evacuation exercise under Operation Ganga to help stranded Indians leave Ukraine.

The operation in Sumy began on Tuesday morning when the last big group of 600 Indians was evacuated from the city.

The Indian nationals were taken from Sumy in a convoy of 13 buses escorted by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to Poltava, Anshad Ali, a student coordinator, said.

The students are enduring a strenuous journey to escape the war-hit region. This is the second attempt to evacuate them from Sumy, which has been witnessing heavy shelling and intense gunfire ever since a Russian offensive on Ukraine began last month.

Jisna Jiji, a 25-year-old medical student who spoke to PTI from the train to Lviv, said all of them are relieved to have come out of Sumy.

"We are tired but happy. We are travelling since Tuesday morning and have to travel for several more hours but now, we have hope that we will reach home safely," she said.

Ali, who spoke to PTI from Poltava, said it is a nearly-12-hour train journey to Lviv, from where the students will be taken to Poland.

He informed that around 600 Indians were moved out of Sumy. The group also included a handful of Bangladeshi and Nepalese nationals.

"After the Indian students, the students of other countries were also evacuated. Around 95 per cent of the students have been evacuated from Sumy," Ali said.

For two weeks, the Indian students in Sumy waged a doughty battle in bomb shelters and basements of their hostels in frigid weather, low on food, drinking water and other essential supplies, as Russian forces clobbered the city with rockets and heavy gunfire.

The first attempt to evacuate them was made on March 7 after the distressed students put out a video, saying they have decided to take up a journey on foot to reach the Russian border. The attempt failed as the ceasefire did not take hold and the students were made to return to their hostels.

The Indian embassy in Ukraine has issued an advisory, urging all stranded Indian nationals to make use of the "humanitarian corridor" and leave the country using trains, vehicles or any other available means of transport, keeping in mind their safety.

Considering the security situation, the establishment of the next humanitarian corridor is uncertain, the advisory said.

"All stranded Indian nationals are urged to make use of this opportunity and evacuate using trains or vehicles or any other available means of transport, giving due consideration to safety," it said.

(PTI)

Extending the gains for a second day, key stock indices Sensex and Nifty jumped by more than 2 per cent on Wednesday as oil and energy, financials and IT stocks advanced amid reports of diplomatic efforts to end Russia's attack on Ukraine.
 

Poland is ready to make its Russian-made fighter jest available to Ukraine, via NATO, Poland's prime minister said Wednesday. But he added that it's a very serious decision that should be taken by all NATO alliance members because it affects wider security.

Premier Mateusz Morawiecki says the decision on whether to make the MiG-29 planes available to Ukraine as it fights Russia's invasion is now in the hands of NATO and the U.S.

Poland is not a side in this war (...) and NATO is not a side in this war, Morawiecki said during a visit to Vienna. Such a serious decision like handing over planes must be unanimous and unequivocally taken by by all of the North Atlantic Alliance." Morawiecki said talks on the subject are continuing.

Ukraine has been calling on the US and Western countries to provide fighter jets. Poland responded on Tuesday by offering to transfer its planes to a U.S. military base in Germany, with the expectation that the planes would then be handed over to Ukrainian pilots. The Pentagon reacted by saying it had not been aware of the plan which it finds untenable.

(AP) 

Ukraine claims to have shot down Russian Su-27 fighter aircraft which crashed in Osokorky in Kyiv; says the 'Russian pilot ejected but died'.

"Russia continues holding hostage over 400.000 people in Mariupol, blocks humanitarian aid and evacuation. Indiscriminate shelling continues. Almost 3.000 newborn babies lack medicine and food. I urge the world to act! Force Russia to stop its barbaric war on civilians and babies!" Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba tweeted.

Vice President Kamala Harris’ trip to Warsaw to thank Poland for taking in hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians fleeing Russia’s invasion took an unexpected turn before she even left Washington. She’ll be parachuting into the middle of unexpected diplomatic turbulence over fighter jets.

The Polish government on Tuesday came out with a plan to transfer its Russian-made fighter planes to a U.S. military base in Germany, with the expectation that the planes would then be handed over to Ukrainian pilots trying to fend off Russian forces.

In turn, the U.S. would supply Poland with U.S.-made jets with “corresponding capabilities.”

But the Poles didn’t run that idea past the Biden administration before going public with it, and the Pentagon quickly dismissed the idea as not tenable. Warplanes flying from a U.S. and NATO base into airspace contested with Russia would raise the risk of the war expanding beyond Ukraine. 

It was a rare moment of disharmony in what has been a largely united effort by NATO allies to assist Ukraine without getting embroiled in a wider war with Russia.

And it meant Harris was flying into fractious terrain Wednesday as she opens a two-day visit to Poland and Romania and tries to patch things up. 

“This fighter jet situation is a messy deal, and Harris will have to go there and smooth things out,” said Daniel Fried, who served as U.S. ambassador to Poland for President Bill Clinton and was a senior adviser in the George W. Bush and Barack Obama administrations. “There’s plenty of discussion on the way ahead that needs to be had with the Poles that is better to have in an in-person conversation.” 

Harris is expected to continue talks with the Poles about getting fighter jets to the Ukrainians during her visit to Warsaw, according to a senior administration official who previewed the trip on the condition of anonymity. The matter remains a priority to the Biden administration, the official added.

Harris is slated to meet on Thursday with Polish President Andrzej Sebastian Duda and Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki as well as with Ukrainians who have fled to Poland. She’ll also meet with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau while in Warsaw. Trudeau has been in Europe this week meeting with Ukraine allies.

Harris will travel on Friday to Bucharest, where she’s to meet Romanian President Klaus Iohannis.

The vice president also is expected to use the meetings in Poland and Romania to underscore the U.S. commitment to the NATO alliance and the need for continued humanitarian and military assistance for Ukraine. She’ll also highlight the need for allies to continue their close coordination.

Biden has applauded Poland and other eastern European countries for stepping up in the midst of what’s become an enormous humanitarian crisis that is only growing. Some 2 million people have fled Ukraine, and more than half of the refugees have arrived in Poland.

Biden on Tuesday said he was committed to helping Ukraine’s neighbors assist refugees. He has deployed 4,700 additional U.S. troops  to Poland to bolster the defense of the eastern flank NATO ally.

“I’ve made it clear that the United States will share in the responsibility of caring for the refugees so the costs do not fall entirely on the European countries bordering Ukraine,” Biden said. He had been looking to Congress to pass a $14 billion aid package to assist Ukraine and its eastern European allies.

Hours after Biden spoke, Poland blindsided the White House with its proposal.

Victoria Nuland, undersecretary of state for political affairs, told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that she saw the Polish government’s announcement as she was driving to Capitol Hill to testify.

Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn. called it “curious” for Poland to announce its plan “without alerting us first.”

Secretary of State Antony Blinken did say on Sunday that the U.S. was working with Poland on plans to supply Ukraine with fighter jets and to “backfill” Poland’s needs. The Polish government, however, made clear that it would not send its fighter jets directly to Ukraine or allow its airports to be used.

Poland’s idea of transferring its MiGs to the U.S. did not come up during the talks with Blinken, according to a U.S. official familiar with the talks.

The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the delicate matter, said White House officials did not think the proposal would easily solve logistical challenges of providing aircraft to Ukraine and questioned the logic of transferring the planes to a major NATO base in Germany only to move them back to eastern Europe. 

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been pleading for NATO to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine or provide Ukraine with fighter jets. NATO has nixed the no-fly zone idea, saying such a move would lead to the biggest conflict in Europe since World War II and spread further.

Rep. Michael McCaul of Texas, the top Republican on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said late Tuesday he hoped the administration could work out a better agreement with Poland and “give them assurances that we will deliver” fighter jets.

McCaul also said that more lethal drones could be another option to help provide air power to the Ukrainians

Harris traveled to the Munich Security Conference last month to rally European allies in the days ahead of the invasion. She also met with Zelenskyy and other European officials.

“The vice president’s trip to Poland and to Europe is part of our effort to show our strong support for our NATO allies and partners, the security assistance they’ve been providing, their role in accepting and welcoming refugees from Ukraine,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said.
 

Ukraine's government has banned the export of wheat, oats and other staples that are crucial for global food supplies as authorities try to ensure they can feed people during Russia's intensifying war.

New rules on agricultural exports introduced this week also prohibit the export of millet, buckwheat, sugar, live cattle, and meat and other byproducts from cattle, according to a government announcement. 

The export ban is needed to prevent a humanitarian crisis in Ukraine, stabilize the market and meet the needs of the population in critical food products, Roman Leshchenko, Ukraine's minister of agrarian and food policy, said in a statement posted on the government website and his Facebook page. 

It's the latest sign that Russia's invasion of Ukraine threatens the food supply and livelihoods of people in Europe, Africa and Asia who rely on the farmlands of the Black Sea region known as the breadbasket of the world.

Russia and Ukraine together supply nearly a third of the world's wheat and barley exports, which have soared in price since the invasion. 

The products they send are made into bread, noodles and animal feed around the world, and any shortages could create food insecurity in places like Egypt and Lebanon.

The export ban will likely reduce global food supplies just when prices are at their highest level since 2011.

(AP)

Ukraine's Foreign Affairs Minister Dmytro Kuleba said that "reserve diesel generators have a 48-hr capacity to power the Chornobyl NPP. After that, cooling systems of the storage facility for spent nuclear fuel will stop, making radiation leaks imminent"

"Putin’s barbaric war puts entire Europe in danger," Kuleba added.

The only electrical grid supplying Chornobyl NPP & all its nuclear facilities occupied by the Russian army is damaged. CNPP lost all electric supply. I call on int'l community to urgently demand Russia to cease fire and allow repair units to restore power supply: Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba

After bombs started falling in her hometown of Kharkiv, Annamaria Maslovska left her friends, her toys, and her life in Ukraine and set off on a days-long journey with her mother toward safety in the West. 

After finally crossing the Hungarian border by train along with hundreds of other Ukrainian refugees, the 10-year-old Maslovska said she had begun to worry about her friends in Kharkiv after the messages she sent to them on Viber went unanswered. 

I really miss them because I can't contact them, they just read my messages and that's all. I really worry, because I don't know where they are, she said in clear English from inside the train station at the border town of Zahony. 

Annamaria, who was raised alone by her mother, is one of more than 1 million children who have fled Ukraine in the less than two weeks since Russia first invaded the country, something UNICEF spokesperson James Elder called a dark historical first. That means that children represent around half of the more than 2 million people that have fled the war, an exodus that the UN refugee agency has called the fastest-growing refugee crisis in Europe since World War II. 

Most of those fleeing the war have entered countries on Ukraine's western border, like Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, Romania and Moldova. The majority have gone into Poland, where 1.33 million refugees have crossed according to the Polish Border Guard agency.

Moldova Prime Minister Natalia Gavrili?a told CNN on Sunday that one in every eight children in her country is a refugee.

In addition to children, most other refugees are women  the mothers and grandmothers of the children that are bringing them to safety  since Ukrainian men from age 18 to 60 aren't permitted to leave the country. 

That policy is aimed at keeping men available to fight against Russian forces that are making deeper incursions into Ukrainian territory. 

Annamaria's hometown of Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city with 1.5 million inhabitants, has undergone heavy bombardment by Russian forces. Residential areas in the city near the Russian border were shelled for several days before a missile strike hit a government building in the city's central Freedom Square last week, killing at least six. 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the attack frank, undisguised terror. 

Even though she's only 10, the precocious Annamaria, now a refugee, already knows she wants to be an actress in the United States, and is proud of speaking English at a high level. 

I want to be an actress in USA and English is a very popular language, she said. A big per cent of people in the world know it and it's very easy to speak it in other countries.  

She and her mother, Viktoria, planned to travel on to Hungary's capital, Budapest, but didn't know where they would go after that. Annamaria said she hoped to visit Disneyland in Paris. 

Once the war ends, she said, she wants to go back to Kharkiv and reconnect with her friends who have been scattered by Russia's violent invasion.

If war stops, I really want to go home because there are my friends, there are beautiful parks, supermarkets, centers, and playgrounds behind my house, she said. Kharkiv, it's like a piece of your heart.

(AP) 

A Pakistani citizen was among 17 foreign nationals who were rescued by India from Sumy in Ukraine where they were stuck for about a fortnight amid continuous bombing by Russia.

Official sources said besides the Pakistani woman, Asma Shafique, a Nepalese citizen, two Tunisian and 13 Bangladeshi nationals were rescued by India, along with nearly 700 Indian citizens.

All these people were evacuated from Sumy on Tuesday by the Indian Embassy with help from the International Committee of Red Cross, after Russia and Ukraine agreed to create a humanitarian corridor following separate telephonic conversations Prime Minister Narendra Modi had with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Besides the students, about 20 Indians working in Sumy and their family members were also rescued by India.

These evacuees have boarded a special train from Poltava and are likely to board a flight to India from Poland on Thursday.

The train will take the students to Lviv in western Ukraine, from where they will be taken to Poland in buses, Anshad Ali, a student coordinator, informed.

The distance between Poltava and Lviv is around 888 km.

Covering hundreds of miles across Ukraine, using multiple means of transport, the students are being evacuated from the war-hit east European country after their two weeks of excruciating stay in beleaguered Sumy.

The Indian government is carrying out a most delicate and challenging evacuation exercise under Operation Ganga to help stranded Indians leave Ukraine.

(PTI)

The Chernobyl nuclear power plant, which was taken over by Russian forces last month, has stopped transmitting data to the IAEA, the UN atomic watchdog has said, expressing deep concern for the staff working under Russian troops at the nuclear site in northern Ukraine.

The Chernobyl site is not currently operational and handling of nuclear material has been halted. The facility holds decommissioned reactors, as well as radioactive waste facilities, the International Atomic Energy Agency ( IAEA), said, citing information from Ukraine's nuclear regulator.

IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi "indicated that remote data transmission from safeguards monitoring systems installed at the Chornobyl NPP had been lost, the Vienna-based agency said in a statement on Tuesday.

The Agency is looking into the status of safeguards monitoring systems in other locations in Ukraine and will provide further information soon, it said.

The agency said it had been informed by Ukrainian officials that it is becoming increasingly urgent to rotate staff for the safe management of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, where some 210 personnel have been working for almost two weeks straight since Russian forces seized control of the facility.

On February 24, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a special military operation against Ukraine.

In contrast to the current situation for staff at Ukraine's operating nuclear power plants who are rotating regularly, the same shift has been on duty at the Chernobyl NPP since the day before the Russian military entered the site of the 1986 accident on February 24, in effect living there for the past 13 days, the statement said, citing Ukraine's nuclear regulator.

The staff has been effectively living at the site of the world's worst nuclear disaster for the past 13 days and while they have access to food, water and medicine to a limited extent, their situation is worsening, the IAEA said.

I'm deeply concerned about the difficult and stressful situation facing staff at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant and the potential risks this entails for nuclear safety. I call on the forces in effective control of the site to urgently facilitate the safe rotation of personnel there, IAEA chief Grossi said in the statement.

Grossi has repeatedly stressed that staff operating nuclear facilities must be able to rest and work in regular shifts, asserting that this is crucial for overall nuclear safety.

Their capacity to make decisions free of undue pressure is among the seven indispensable pillars of nuclear safety and security he outlined at a meeting of the IAEA's Board of Governors on 2 March, convened to address the safety, security and safeguards implications of the situation in Ukraine, the IAEA said.

To help protect the country's nuclear facilities, the Director-General has expressed his readiness to travel to the Chernobyl NPP, or elsewhere, to secure the commitment to the safety and security of all Ukraine's nuclear facilities from the parties of the conflict, it said.

The site, located in an Exclusion Zone, includes decommissioned reactors as well as radioactive waste facilities. The regulatory authority said it could only communicate with the plant via e-mail, the IAEA said.

Regarding the status of Ukraine's operational nuclear power plants, the regulator said eight of the country's 15 reactors were operating, including two at the Zaporizhzhya NPP controlled since last week by Russian forces, and that the plants' personnel were working in shifts. Radiation levels at the sites were normal, the statement said.

(PTI) 

As firefighters in Malyn engage in dousing the fire caused due to Russian airstrikes, Republic's Shawan Sen reported live from the bombing location.

Russia confirms taking control of Zaporizhzhia and Chernobyl nuclear plants, claiming it was "done exclusively to prevent any attempts to stage nuclear provocations."

"Energy resources from Russia play a decisive role in Eastern Europe, therefore Hungary will not make decisions from overseas to the detriment of its people," Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said.

We were not only evacuating Indians but nationals from Nepal, Pakistan, Turkey and Bangladesh too; several NGOs and spiritual organisations also assisted in the operation: Union Minister Piyush Goyal on the success of Operation Ganga.

Just spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. I let him know that Canada will send Ukraine another shipment of highly-specialized military equipment. Discussed sanctions against Russia & humanitarian assistance for Ukraine. Invited him to address Canada’s Parliament: Canadian PM Justin Trudeau

Russian media releases video claiming humanitarian aid brought by the Russian military to the Izyumsky district of the Kharkiv region.

India is one of those countries which will decide the fate of this century. As far as the Indian position on the Russian relationship is concerned, thankful for the call PM Modi made to our President. We're thankful for the humanitarian steps India has been making: Sviatoslav Yurash, Ukrainian MP

Foreign Secretary Liz Truss reaches the United States for talks to deepen diplomatic, intelligence and security ties "together" against Russian President Vladimir Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine.

Russia's St. Petersburg State University has prepared orders to expel students who were detained at unsanctioned anti-war rallies.

Ukraine's youngest MP Sviatoslav Yurash has stated that as far as the West is concerned, "we have received a lot of aid, we have received a lot of help and we are thankful for that". However, he also added that "nothing is enough, nothing is too much and all are welcome". 

Speaking to ANI, Yurash said, "We understand West does right thing after exhausting other options. Reality is, it takes time for those institutions to spring into action. We don't have time, so we're fighting Russian invaders."

Ukraine's youngest MP Sviatoslav Yurash has stated that as far as the West is concerned, "we have received a lot of aid, we have received a lot of help and we are thankful for that". However, he also added that "nothing is enough, nothing is too much and all are welcome". 

Speaking to ANI, Yurash said, "We understand West does right thing after exhausting other options. Reality is, it takes time for those institutions to spring into action. We don't have time, so we're fighting Russian invaders."

Ukraine is expecting a temporary ceasefire to evacuate civilians from 10 cities on March 9. According to NEXTA, the routes include Enerhodar and Mariupol to Zaporizhzhia, from Sumy to Poltava, from Izium to Lozova, from Volnovakha to Pokrovsk, from Vorzel, Borodianka, Bucha, Irpin, and Hostomel to Kyiv.

Nordic and EU countries suspend cooperation with Russia in the Barents/Euro-Arctic region. 

An investigation by Amnesty International has revealed that a Russian airstrike that reportedly killed 47 civilians as they queued for bread in Chernihiv on Thursday may constitute a war crime. Analysis by the NGO’s crisis response team concluded that the attack was most likely a Russian airstrike that used at least 8 unguided aerial bombs known as “dumb bombs”.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke to Canadian PM Justin Trudeau on defence cooperation between Kyiv and Ottawa and how to increase sanctions pressure on Russia. Taking to Twitter, Zelenskyy said that Ukraine and Canada agreed on further diplomatic steps.

People in Moscow are selling online sweet-and-sour sauce from McDonald's after the American fast-food company confirmed in a statement on March 8 that it will temporarily suspend its 850 outlets in Russia and halt all its operations.

Amid the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine, the two countries have agreed on day-long evacuation corridors, Ukraine official confirmed. 

The World Economic Forum in Davos has frozen its relations with Russia and suspended a strategic partnership with Russian businessmen. 

Speaking to Politico, WEF spokeswoman Amanda Rousseau said, "We are not cooperating with any person who is under sanctions, and we have frozen all relations with Russian organizations". 

Ukraine has accused Germany of noting doing enough to stop Russian President Vladimir Putin. 

“Germany has done a heroic deed? No, you are doing too little to stop Putin's war," said Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba.

The volume of shipping near Russian seaports decreased by 30% after the introduction of international sanctions and the withdrawal of many corporations from the country, Wall Street Journal reported. 

“The special military operation of the Russian armed forces carried out since February 24, preempted and thwarted a large-scale offensive by strike groups of Ukrainian troops on the Luhansk and Donetsk People’s Republics, which are not controlled by Kyiv, in March of this year.” Russian defence ministry spokesperson Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov was quoted as saying by news agency AP. 

China has accused NATO of pushing tensions between Russia and Ukraine to a “breaking point”. Speaking at a daily news briefing, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian urged the US to take China’s concerns seriously and avoid undermining its rights or interests in handling the situation in Ukraine and its ties with Russia. 

Speaking about the Russian oil imports ban, Lijian also said that Beijing strongly opposes unilateral sanctions as "they will not bring peace and security. 

The Chairman of the Investigative Committee of Russia has been instructed to initiate a criminal case on the original secret order of the commander of the National Guard of Ukraine on the offensive against the Donbass in March 2022. 

Enerhodar Mayor Dmytro Orlov has announced that the ceasefire has begun to evacuate civilians from Enerhodar and its neighbouring villages to Zaporizhzhia, as well as to deliver food and medicine to civilians.

At least 10 people killed in a Russian military attack in the eastern Ukrainian town of Severodonestk. 

The IAEA has informed that Chernobyl nuclear power plant personnel has not been replaced for almost two weeks, since the capture by the Russian army. The agency expressed concern about the stressful situation and has called for negotiations on safety assurances.

The Russian Ministry of Defense publishes the original secret order of the commander of the National Guard of Ukraine dated January 22, 2022 on the offensive against the Donbass in March 2022. 

Russia has warned that it is working on a "swift" response to western sanctions. 

“Russia’s reaction will be swift, thoughtful and sensitive for those it addresses,” Dmitry Birichevsky, the director of the foreign ministry’s department for economic cooperation, said, according to the RIA news agency.

Russia state-affiliated media claims that Mariupol civilians have managed to flee amid reports of being used as human shield by Ukraine. 

Ukraine claims more than 12,000 Russian soldiers have been killed in combat since Vladimir Putin declared war on the eastern European country on 24 February. On the 14th day of the war, Ukraine also claimed that 317 tanks, 49 aircraft, 28 anti-aircraft warfare systems and 81 helicopters belonging to Russia have been destroyed.

Heineken suspends the production and sale of beer under the Heineken brand in Russia, all plants continue to operate.
 

Head of Sumy regional state administration Dmytro Zhyvytskyy has informed that Russian airstrikes killed 22 people in the city overnight on March 8. He stated that three children were among those killed in the northeastern city.

In the wake of the ongoing conflict between Kyiv and Moscow, the UK has imposed a ban on exports of aviation and space products and technologies to Russia. 

Foreign businesses hastily leave Russia, however, some companies think to sit on the sidelines and pretend that the war does not affect them.

Ukraine's energy minister Herman Halushchenko has said that Russian forces that now control a Ukrainian nuclear plant are forcing the exhausted staff to record an address that they plan to use for propaganda purposes. Taking to Facebook Halushchenko informed that about 500 Russian soldiers and 50 pieces of heavy equipment are inside the station. He said the Ukrainian staff are physical and emotionally exhausted. 
 

The Ukrainian Parliament has informed that 37 countries have called not to allow Russia and Belarus to participate in international sports competitions. 

A special flight on Wednesday evacuated 11 seriously ill children to Israel. The children were accompanied by their parents, NEXTA reported. They will be treated at Schneider Children's Hospital. 

The United States authorities will not be imposing sanctions against uranium from Russia because American nuclear power plants depend on it, NEXTA reported. 

Ukraine marks the 208th birth anniversary of the father of the Ukrainian nation, Taras Shevchenko.

Russia forces have failed to make a significant breakthrough to the north of Kyiv, and Ukrainian forces appear to be succeeding in shooting down enemy planes, according to the latest update from Britain’s Ministry of Defence.

"Fighting north-west of Kyiv remains ongoing with Russian forces failing to make any significant breakthroughs," the press note read.

“Ukrainian air defences appear to have enjoyed considerable success against Russia’s modern combat aircraft, probably preventing them achieving any degree of control of the air," it added.

The IMF will consider an immediate $1.4 billion bailout for Ukraine in order to reduce the shock to the war-torn economy.

An extraordinary virtual meeting of NATO Defence Ministers will be held on Wednesday, 16 March. According to a press note, ministers will meet via secure teleconference. The meeting will be chaired by the NATO Secretary-General, Jens Stoltenberg.

The General Staff of Ukraine’s Armed Forces has claimed that Russia does not rule out the possibility of involving up to 800 servicemen from the unrecognized breakaway state of Transnistria in its war against Ukraine. 

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is scheduled the fly to Turkey for the Antalya diplomacy Forum. 

The Russian embassy in the United States has claimed that they may find biological weapons in Ukraine. Taking to Twitter, it said that Washington is afraid that the pathogens stored at Ukrainian facilities will fall into the hands of Russian experts.

Russia has announced a humanitarian ceasefire in Ukraine for Wednesday. It has declared a "silence mode" and is ready to provide humanitarian corridors from a number of cities, including Kyiv, Sputnik news agency reported. 

Mikhail Mizintsev, the head of the humanitarian coordination centre, said, "The said statement should be immediately brought to the attention of the Ukrainian side and proposed by 03:00 [Moscow time, midnight GMT] on March 9, 2022, to agree on the indicated routes and the start time of the humanitarian corridors, as well as submit a written approval of these approaches, including guarantees to ensure security."

Russian Ka-52 helicopters destroy anti-aircraft guns and armoured vehicles. 

Sumy Mayor Dmytro Zhyvytskyi has informed that as a result of Russian shelling in Okhtyr, one person has been killed, fourteen injured and others missing. Posting photos of the damage on Facebook, Zhyvytskyi said that civilian infrastructure had been targeted including a railway station, executive committee building, local department stores and shops. He even added that the city is without power, water and has experienced disruption to its sewerage system.

In Ukraine's Kherson region, it has been discovered that soldiers of the Russian Armed Forces, dressed in civilian clothes, were heading towards the city of Mykolaiv. According to Ukraine's armed forces, Russian troops, in violation of International Humanitarian Law, also continue to "hide arms and military equipment among residential buildings and in rural premises the objects of spodar". 

A group of businessmen in the EU started a petition to ban double citizenship in European countries for Russians. The Ukrainian Parliament in a statement said that to prevent the military aggression of the Russian Federation against the countries of Europe, it is vitally important to prohibit holding both EU and Russian Federation citizenships. 

"The Russian Federation attacked Ukraine again. They bombarded a sovereign country. The country, which ratified the Ukraine-EU Association Agreement and became the candidate for the EU accession. However, the Russian Federation did not hesitate to assault Ukraine. They blatantly aim to punish Ukrainians for their European choice," Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine said. 

US citizens in Ukraine should depart immediately if it is safe to do so using any commercial or other privately available ground transportation options, the US embassy in Kyiv has announced. In its 'Level 4' travel advisory, the embassy said citizens should not travel to Ukraine due to the active armed conflict. 

"All U.S. citizens should carefully monitor government notices and local and international media outlets for information about changing security conditions and alerts to shelter in place," it added. 

UK transport secretary Grant Shapps has said that he had made it a criminal offence for any Russian aircraft to enter UK airspace. Now, Russian planes that stray into British airspace could be detained by the British government. 

Grant Shapps said, "I have made it a criminal offence for ANY Russian aircraft to enter UK airspace and now HMG can detain these jets. We will suffocate [Vladimir] Putin’s cronies’ ability to continue living as normal while thousands of innocent people die."

In recent minutes, there have been reports of explosions again in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv and surrounding areas. According to reports, air raid sirens have gone off in the city again.

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief Rafael Grossi has indicated that remote data transmission from safeguards monitoring systems installed at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant had been lost. The plant is no longer transmitting data to the UN watchdog, Grossi informed. He also said that the agency is looking into the status of safeguards monitoring systems in other locations in Ukraine and will provide further information soon. 

Japan’s Self-Defense Forces sent bulletproof vests to Ukraine on Tuesday, marking a rare move for the country. According to a statement from Japan's Defence ministry, strict guidelines that ban the transfer of defence supplies from Japan to parties in conflict were updated on Tuesday to allow defence equipment assigned by the defence minister to be given to Ukraine following Russia's invasion. It's the first time Japan’s Self-Defense Forces has sent bulletproof vests overseas.

Taking to Twitter, Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs thanked the United States for recognizing Taiwan's support for Ukraine and condemnation of Russia's aggression. Taiwan stated that as a US ally and partner in the Indo-Pacific, Taiwan will defend international rules-based order and stand with Ukraine. 

Ukraine's First Deputy Interior Minister Yevhen Yenin has said that foreign volunteers will be able to obtain Ukrainian citizenship if they want to. He informed that so far, twenty thousand foreign volunteers have joined Ukrainian forces to fight Russia. 

Kyrylo Tymoshenko, deputy head of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's office, has informed that both evacuation stages from Ukraine's north-eastern city of Sumy have now been successfully completed. Tymoshenko said that about 5,000 people and more than 1,000 private vehicles are already in safety. 

UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss will hold talks in the US on Wednesday with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, as well as members of Congress. As quoted by BBC, Truss, ahead of her trip to US said, "The UK, US and our allies have shown remarkable strength and unity in supporting Ukraine and imposing severe sanctions on Russia. We need to maintain that unity and do more to ensure Putin fails in Ukraine". 

"The Ukraine crisis is a wake-up call for free democracies," Liz Truss stated.

Separately, her office informed that the topic of her discussions will "be what more the UK and US can do to support Ukraine on security, intelligence, and humanitarian issues". 

The situation at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) is under the full control of the Russian National Guard (Rosgvardiya), Rosgvardiya spokesman told reporters as per Sputnik. Russia said that the station staff are working normally and Ukrainian soldiers who guarded the facility laid down their weapons and were allowed to go home. 

"Currently, the station is operating normally, the administration of the facility is fulfilling its functional duties, the necessary access control regime is being fully implemented, the plant is fully controlled by Rosgvardiya," the spokesman said.

Kyiv Independent have reported that air raid sirens in Kyiv, Zhytomyr, and Vasylkiv were heard. Residents are asked to go to the nearest shelter.

The United States has no “direct evidence” of war crimes in Ukraine except what has emerged on social media, admitted US Defence Intelligence Agency Director Lt. Gen. Scott Berrier on Tuesday. During a congressional hearing, according to Sputnik, Berrier said, “I don’t know if we have direct evidence besides what we see on social media”.
 

Demonstrators in the United States brought a list of political figures killed or attempted to be killed by the Kremlin to the Russian embassy in Washington. The protesters also "renamed" the street on which the embassy is located after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. 

Dmytro Lunin, who heads the Poltava Oblast Military Administration, has informed that around 5,000 people have been successfully evacuated from Sumy to Poltava Oblast on March 8. Lunin said that those evacuated were mostly women and children, as well as citizens of Turkey.

Pakistan's Asma Shafique thanks the Indian embassy in Kyiv and Prime Minister Modi for evacuating her. According to ANI, Shas has been rescued by Indian authorities and is en route to Western Ukraine for further evacuation out of the country. She will be reunited with her family soon. 

Speaking at a virtual meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Chinese President Xi Jinping called for “maximum restraint” in Ukraine overnight. Xi said that China is “pained to see the flames of war reignited in Europe”. He stated that the three countries should jointly support peace talks between Russia and Ukraine, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported.

The Chinese President described the situation in Ukraine as “worrying” and said the priority should be preventing it from escalating or “spinning out of control”. He added that France and Germany should make efforts to reduce the negative impacts of the crisis, and expressed concern about the impact of sanctions on the stability of global finance, energy supplies, transportation and supply chains.

The United Kingdom has accused Russia of breaching the ceasefire agreement for the ‘third successive day’. In its latest Defence Intelligence update on the Ukraine crisis, Britain said that shelling and small-arms were reported throughout the day. 

US President Joe Biden has pledges to 'everything' he can to minimize Vladimir Putin's price hike in US.

What the Ukrainian city of Sumy looks like after the Russian bombing. 

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has lost contact with safeguards monitoring systems at Chornobyl. The agency said that systems that monitor nuclear material at the radioactive waste facilities at Chornobyl, taken over by Russian forces, have stopped transmitting data. 

Ukraine’s energy minister has said that Russian military units are allegedly “torturing” staff at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant to force them into making a public statement. Taking to Facebook, Herman Halushchenko said that operating staff had been “held hostage for four days”.

"There are about 500 Russian soldiers and 50 units of heavy equipment inside the station. The employees of the station are physically and psychologically exhausted,” Halushchenko said.

United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine has informed that civilian casualties has reached 1,335 since Russia’s full-scale invasion began. According to the agency, so far, 474 civilians have been killed and 861 injured. 38 children have been killed and 71 wounded. UN believes the real figures are considerably higher.

The Pentagon has rejected Poland’s offer to give the US its MiG-29 fighter jets for use by Ukraine, in a rare public display of disharmony by NATO allies seeking to boost Ukrainian fighters while avoiding getting caught up in a wider war with Russia.

“We will continue to consult with Poland and our other NATO allies about this issue and the difficult logistical challenges it presents, but we do not believe Poland’s proposal is a tenable one,” Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said in a statement.

CIA Director William Burns has said that Russian President Vladimir Putin is "not crazy". However, he also stated that Putin’s increasing isolation and insulation from conflicting views make him “extremely difficult to deal with". 

Florida senator wars Russian military clash with NATO troops. At some point Vladimir Putin will start targeting the supply convoys bringing weapons & aid once they cross over into Ukraine, senator Marco Rubio said. He added that this could bring Russia’s missiles and aircraft in very close proximity to deployed NATO forces in Poland.
 

Ukraine has informed that as a result of the airstrike, 7 private one-storey residential buildings were destroyed, 5 people died, including 2 children. 

State Service of Ukraine for Emergencies said, "March 8 at 20:50 in Malyn, Zhytomyr region on the street. As a result of the air strike, 7 private one-storey residential buildings were destroyed, 5 people died, including 2 children (born in 2021). Search and rescue operations continue."

Russia's ongoing invasion in Ukraine, announced by President Vladimir Putin on February 24, shows no signs of abating and is still going on. As many as three rounds of talks have taken place between the two nations but have failed to resolve the crisis. The two nations are struggling to establish humanitarian corridors to evacuate Ukrainian civilians. According to UN refugee agency, more than 2 million Ukrainians have fled their country since Russia launched its attack. 

The US has banned imports of Russian oil, which accounts for less than 10% of US imports. The United Kingdom and European Union also announced plans to phase out their imports of Russian fuel. Moreover, McDonald's, Starbucks, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo and General Electric, ubiquitous global brands, announced they were temporarily suspending their business in Russia in response to the country's invasion of Ukraine.