Live blog: Ukraine intends to withdraw 250 troops from DRC mission – UN

Wednesday, March 9, 2022

Ukraine notifies UN over troop withdrawal from peacekeeping mission in DRC 

The United Nations has received official notification from Ukraine that it intends to withdraw about 250 troops serving in the UN peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo as well as military equipment, including some aircraft.

UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric confirmed the withdrawal, stressing that every country has a right to withdraw military forces contributed to peacekeeping operations. He acknowledged "the tremendous role Ukraine has played, especially on issues of transport and helicopters."

Dujarric said it is up to the Ukrainian government to explain why it asked to pull out the troops and the UN will be contacting other countries to replace the troops and equipment in the DRC mission known as MONUSCO which has about 17,800 personnel.

The UN spokesman said Ukrainians remain present in smaller numbers in other peacekeeping missions — 13 in South Sudan, 12 in Mali, five in Cyprus, four in Abyei and three in the UN political mission in Kosovo.

Zelenskyy seeks even tougher sanctions against Russia

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has called on the West to impose even tougher sanctions on Russia after the air strike on the maternity hospital in Mariupol.

"A genocide of Ukrainians is taking place," Zelenskyy said in his daily late evening video address to the nation. Wearing his now traditional wartime army green, he said the West should strengthen the sanctions so Russia "no longer has any possibility to continue this genocide."

He said 17 people were injured in the attack, including pregnant women.

Mariupol has been blockaded by Russian troops for nine days. City officials said that about 1,200 residents have been killed.

Zelenskyy again called on Western leaders to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine, something NATO members have refused to do for fear of provoking a wider war with Russia. Short of that, Zelenskyy called for the delivery of more fighter jets to Ukraine, a proposal the Pentagon rejected.

Russia continues pounding Ukraine cities 

Russian aircraft have bombed Zhytomyr on Wednesday evening, while artillery fire continued pounding the suburbs of Kiev and Kharkiv, the country's second-largest city.

In Zhytomyr, a city of 260,000 to the west of Kiev, bombs fell on two hospitals, one of them a children’s hospital, Mayor Serhii Sukhomlyn said on Facebook. He said the number of casualties was still being determined.

"Oh, this is a hot night," he said in a video address to city residents. "Russia understands that it is losing strategically, but we have to hold out."

Russian artillery shelled Kharkiv, destroying a police headquarters, killing at least four people and wounding 15, prosecutors office representative Serhii Bolvinov said on Facebook. He said since the invasion began nearly two weeks ago, 282 city residents have been killed, including six children.

After darkness fell, Russian artillery again began shelling Kiev suburbs.

"Russian troops are methodically turning our life into a hell. People day and night have to sit underground without food, water or electricity," the head of the Kiev region, Oleksiy Kuleba, said on Ukrainian television.

Pentagon rejects NATO nations providing jets to Ukraine

The Pentagon has slammed the door on any plans to provide MiG fighter jets to Ukraine, even though a second country, calling it a "high-risk" venture that would not significantly change the effectiveness of the Ukrainian Air Force.

Pentagon press secretary John Kirby told reporters that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke with his Polish counterpart and told him the US assessment. He said the US is pursuing other options that would provide more critical military needs to Ukraine such as air defense and anti-armor weapons systems.

Poland had said it was prepared to hand over MiG-29 planes to NATO that could then be delivered to Ukraine, but Kirby said US intelligence concluded that it could be considered escalatory and trigger a "significant" Russian reaction.

He said individual NATO nations can make up their own minds on what assistance to give Ukraine, but it's questionable whether any would provide fighters without US support.

Kirby also rejected Russian accusations that the US is operating "military biological labs" in Ukraine, calling such claims "absurd" and "laughable".

White House also refuted the Russian "biological weapon labs" claim. 

"We took note of Russia's false claims about alleged US biological weapons labs and chemical weapons development in Ukraine," White House press secretary Jen Psaki said in a series of tweets.

She said Russia could possibly be laying the groundwork for use of chemical or biological weapons in Ukraine "or to create a false flag operation using them" but did not offer evidence.

Mariupol mayor: More than 1,200 civilians dead in siege

A total of 1,207 civilians have died during a nine-day siege by Russian forces of Ukraine's port city of Mariupol, its mayor has said.

The first nine days of the Russian siege saw "1,207 peaceful Mariupol residents dying", the city authorities posted on Telegram along with a video message by Mayor Vadym Boichenko, after a Russian air strike destroyed a children's hospital in the city earlier in the day.

Blinken: Putin rejected every US off-ramp over Ukraine

Russian President Vladimir Putin has rejected every off-ramp offered by the United States to de-escalate the conflict in Ukraine, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said.

At a news conference with his British counterpart Liz Truss, he added that Ukrainians have shown that they would not accept any "puppet regime" that Putin might try to install.

"We've sought to provide possible off-ramps to President Putin. He's the only one who can decide whether or not to take them. So far, every time there's been an opportunity to do just that, he's pressed the accelerator and continued down this horrific road that he's been pursuing," Blinken said.

"If he tries to enforce such a puppet regime by keeping Russian forces in Ukraine, it will be a long, bloody, drawn-out mess."

UN says no health facility should be targeted

No health facility "should ever be a target," United Nations spokesperson Stephane Dujarric has said, after an apparent Russian air strike against a children's hospital in Ukraine.

The attack has left at least 17 adult staff injured, according to a local official in the southeastern town of Mariupol, which has faced a steady assault by the Russian military.

The UN and the World Health Organisation have called for an "immediate halt to attacks on health care, hospitals, health care workers, ambulances," Dujarric said during his daily press conference.

Meanwhile, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has condemned the air strike on the hospital, vowing to hold Russian President Vladimir Putin to account "for his terrible crimes."

Ukraine says 67 children killed since start of Russian invasion

Ukraine's top security official Oleksiy Danilov has said 67 children have been killed since the Russian invasion began on February 24.

He also urged Kiev's allies to enforce a no-fly zone over the country.

Separately, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he had talked to European Council President Charles Michel about pressuring Russia to keep civilians safe and increasing sanctions against Russia.

Russia: Destroyed 974 Ukrainian tanks, armoured vehicles

The Russian armed forces have destroyed 974 Ukrainian tanks and other armoured vehicles since the start of what Russia calls a "special military operation" on February 24, Russia's defence ministry said on Wednesday, up from 897 reported on Tuesday.

Quoted by the TASS news agency, the ministry said they had also downed 97 drones.

US official: Russia may be using unguided, 'dumb bombs'

The United States has seen indications that Russia's military is bombing Ukraine using so-called "dumb" bombs that are not precision-guided and would have limited ability to hit targets precisely, a senior US defence official has said.

"We do have indications that the Russians are in fact dropping some dumb munitions," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The official added that the United States was observing "increasing damage to civilian infrastructure and civilian casualties".

US sends two Patriot missile batteries to Poland

The United States has sent two Patriot surface-to-air missile batteries to Poland to defend against any "potential threat" to US or NATO forces in the alliance's territory, a senior Pentagon official has said.

The missile batteries, normally stationed in Germany, were repositioned at Poland's "invitation", the official said on condition of anonymity.

The move is seen as reflecting growing fear that a Russian missile could — deliberately or not — cross the border from neighbouring Ukraine into NATO member Poland.

The official did not specify where in Poland the batteries were now based, nor their operational status — saying only that they were "manned."

Britain not seeking a humanitarian no-fly zone in Ukraine

Britain is not seeking to provide a no-fly zone over humanitarian corridors in Ukraine and is instead looking to help it defend itself from Russia's invasion, Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has said.

"The reality is that setting up a no-fly zone would lead to a direct confrontation between NATO and Russia. And that is not what we are looking at," Truss said in Washington, when asked if one could be introduced over a humanitarian corridor.

"What we are looking at is making sure that the Ukrainians are able to defend their own country with the best possible selection of anti-tank weapons and anti-air defence systems."

Russia: Ukrainian forces hit power lines supplying Chernobyl

Russia's defence ministry has accused Ukrainian forces of attacking power lines and a substation feeding the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in what it said was a "dangerous provocation", the Russian news agency Interfax has reported.

Ukraine said earlier there was a danger of a radiation leak after electricity was cut off to the plant during fighting between Ukrainian troops and Russian forces who are occupying the defunct power station.

The UN nuclear watchdog saw "no critical impact on security".

Zelenskyy accuses Russia of hospital strike

Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskyy has accused Russia of carrying out an air strike that severely damaged a children's hospital in the southern port city of Mariupol.

"Direct strike of Russian troops at the maternity hospital. People, children are under the wreckage," Zelenskyy said on Twitter.

"Atrocity! How much longer will the world be an accomplice ignoring terror? Close the sky right now! Stop the killings! You have power but you seem to be losing humanity."

Mariupol's city council said the hospital had been destroyed. "The destruction is colossal."

The strike injured at least 17 hospital personnel, a local official Pavlo Kyrylenko said.

The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry carried video footage on Twitter that showed holes where windows should have been in what appeared to be a badly damaged three-storey building at the hospital, and huge piles of rubble, some of it smouldering.

Russia has denied targeting civilians in its assault on Ukraine.

Russia admits conscripts 'take part' in Ukraine operation

The Russian army has admitted for the first time that conscripts are taking part in the Ukraine war, after President Vladimir Putin vowed only professional soldiers were there.

The Russian defence ministry spokesperson, Igor Konashenkov, said on Wednesday that some conscripts had been captured by Ukrainian forces.

"Unfortunately, several instances of the presence of conscripts in the units of the Russian armed forces participating in the special military operation on the territory of Ukraine have been confirmed," he said.

There have been widespread reports of young conscripts fighting in Ukraine, with rights groups saying they were inundated with calls from conscripts' families.

Putin, Scholz discuss 'diplomatic' efforts: Kremlin

Russian President Vladimir Putin and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz have discussed diplomatic ways to settle the Ukraine conflict and the implementation of humanitarian corridors, the Kremlin has said.

"In the context of the developing situation around a special military operation to protect Donbas, various political and diplomatic efforts have been discussed, in particular a third round of talks between a Russian delegation and representatives of the Kiev authorities," the Kremlin said in a statement, referring to eastern Ukraine.

Europe development bank launches 2-billion-euro package

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has announced a two-billion-euro "resilience" package to help citizens, companies and countries affected by the war in Ukraine, including those hosting refugees.

Funding will be made rapidly available to support Ukrainian companies, and where possible, businesses will be helped to relocate so their work can continue, the EBRD said in a statement.

The fund, equivalent to $2.2 billion, will also "help in countries directly affected by inflows of Ukrainian refugees," after at least 2.2 million people fled Russia's invasion.

The London-based EBRD was created in the wake of the collapse of Communism in eastern Europe "to build a new, post-Cold war era".

IOM calls for Ukraine ceasefire, humanitarian corridors

All parties involved in the Ukraine war should secure humanitarian corridors and a ceasefire should be negotiated immediately in order to secure aid, the head of the International Organisation for Migration has said.

Speaking in Warsaw at a press briefing, IOM Director-General Antonio Vitorino said humanitarian corridors would allow refugees to flee, but also supplies and aid workers to enter Ukraine to assist those who remain in the country.

EU: Russia reports of biolabs in Ukraine likely disinformation

The European Union has said it doubted the credibility of Russian claims it had uncovered a military biological programme in Ukraine.

It said Moscow had a history of spreading disinformation about biological weapons.

"The credibility of information provided by Kremlin is in general very doubtful and low," EU foreign affairs spokesman Peter Stano said.

In recent days, Russia has accused Ukraine of having tried to develop biological or nuclear weapons. On Wednesday, the Kremlin said Washington must explain "Ukrainian biological weapons labs".

A Ukrainian presidential spokesperson said: "Ukraine strictly denies any such allegation."

Zelenskyy: Thousands being evacuated from Kiev

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said efforts are underway to evacuate some 18,000 people from the capital Kiev and embattled towns near it.

He said the efforts are part of broader evacuation attempts by multiple humanitarian corridors within Ukraine, and warned Russian forces against violating ceasefire promises.

He also issued an appeal, unusually in Russian, to urge Russian soldiers to leave.

“Our resistance for almost two weeks has shown you that we will not surrender, because this is our home. It is our families and children. We will fight until we can win back our land," he said. 

"You can still save yourselves if you just go home.”

As fighting raged on the 14th day of the invasion, safe routes were opening out of five Ukrainian areas that have been devastated by Russian shelling and air strikes.

UK readies more missiles for Ukraine to resist Russians

Britain has said it is preparing to send more portable missile systems to help Ukrainian forces destroy Russian tanks and aircraft, but denied it was escalating the conflict.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said the UK had so far delivered 3,615 Next Generation Light Anti-tank Weapons (NLAWs) "and continue(s) to deliver more".

"We will shortly be starting the delivery of a small consignment of anti-tank Javelin missiles as well," he told parliament.

Wallace added that "in response to Ukrainian requests, the government has taken the decision to explore the donation of Starstreak high-velocity man-portable anti-air missiles".

WHO reports 18 attacks on health facilities since war began

The World Health Organisation has said it has documented 18 attacks on health facilities, workers and ambulances since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began.

WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the UN health agency has delivered 81 metric tons of supplies to Ukraine and is now establishing a pipeline to send further equipment.

To date, Tedros said, WHO had sent enough surgical supplies to treat 150 trauma patients and other supplies for a range of health conditions to treat 45,000 people.

Tedros said some of the main health challenges officials were facing in Ukraine were hypothermia and frostbite, respiratory disease, heart disease, cancer and mental health issues.

Turkish, Ukrainian defence ministers discuss ceasefire, aid

Türkiye's National Defence Minister Hulusi Akar and his Ukrainian counterpart Oleksii Reznikov have exchanged views on implementing a ceasefire in Ukraine and the delivery of aid.

According to a statement by the Turkish National Defence Ministry, Akar told Reznikov over the phone that negotiations between Russia and Ukraine are important for a permanent solution to the military conflict.

Underlining the importance of declaring a permanent ceasefire at the earliest, Akar said Türkiye is ready to do its part in delivering humanitarian aid to Ukraine and establishing peace.

Davos cold-shoulders Russians over Ukraine war

The World Economic Forum has said it is freezing all relations with Russian entities, and would not allow anyone on the sanctions list to take part in the annual high-powered meeting in Davos.

"Following its condemnation of Russia's ongoing attack on Ukraine, the forum is complying with the evolving international sanctions and following the rapidly-developing situation," the WEF said in a statement sent to AFP.

"Therefore the forum freezes all its relations with Russian entities, and will not engage with any sanctioned individual or institution in any of our activities, inclusive the annual meeting" in Davos, it added.

EU adds more Russians to sanctions blacklist

The EU has agreed to add 160 Russian oligarchs and lawmakers to its sanctions blacklist, target crypto-assets and hit the maritime sector over Moscow's war in Ukraine, officials have said.

The 27-nation bloc also gave the go-ahead to cut three Belarusian banks from the global SWIFT messaging system over Minsk's support for the Kremlin's attack.

The EU is looking to close off loopholes in the unprecedented barrage of sanctions it unleashed along with Western allies after Russian President Vladimir Putin launched the invasion.

China to provide Ukraine about $790,000 in aid

Beijing has said it will provide Ukraine with about $790,000 in humanitarian aid, with the first shipment already on its way, though China has yet to condemn Russia's invasion of the country.

China has repeatedly blamed NATO's "eastward expansion" for worsening tensions between Russia and Ukraine, echoing the Kremlin's prime security grievance while refusing to criticise Moscow's decision to send troops across the border.

"At the request of the Ukrainian side, the Red Cross Society of China will provide a batch of humanitarian aid... including food and daily necessities, worth five million yuan ($792,000)," foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian told reporters.

G7 energy ministers to discuss next steps on Russian oil, gas

G7 energy ministers will meet on Thursday to discuss what more the West can do to reduce its dependence on Russian oil and gas, British Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng has said.

Britain has said it will phase out imports of Russian oil and oil products by the end of 2022, and consider banning its natural gas, joining other countries including the United States in a move to punish Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine.

Polish offer creates 'potentially dangerous scenario': Kremlin

The Kremlin has said a Polish offer to deliver Mig-29 fighter jets to Ukraine via a US air base could lead to a "dangerous scenario".

"This is a highly undesirable and a potentially dangerous scenario," Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said.

Meanwhile, Poland's prime minister has said any decision to give the fighter jets to Ukraine must be taken jointly by all NATO countries.

"We did not agree to supply planes by ourselves, because it must be the decision of the whole of NATO," Mateusz Morawiecki said during a visit to the Austrian capital Vienna.

On Tuesday, the United States rejected the plan put forward by Poland to send its fleet of Soviet-era MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine via a US air base in Ramstein, Germany.

Zelenskyy urges West to resolve Polish jet offer

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has called for Western powers to urgently decide on a Polish offer that would see his country supplied with fighter jets.

"When will there be a decision? Look, we're at war!" Zelenskyy said in a video on his Telegram channel. "We ask you again to decide as soon as possible. Send us planes."

"We have seen in the media that there are discussions between the American and Polish sides. But we sense that the Polish offer is not supported," said Zelenskyy.

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby has said the prospect of the jets being flown from a US-NATO base "into airspace that is contested with Russia over Ukraine raises serious concerns for the entire NATO alliance".

"We do not believe Poland's proposal is a tenable one," Kirby said.

Kremlin: US has declared economic war on Russia

The Kremlin has said the US has declared an economic war on Russia and that Moscow would think seriously about what to do after President Joe Biden imposed a ban on Russian oil and other energy imports.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Russia had been, is and would be a reliable energy supplier and pointed out that energy flows continued.

"The United States definitely has declared economic war against Russia and is waging this war," he said.

Power cut at Ukraine's Chernobyl nuclear plant

Power has been entirely cut to the Chernobyl power plant, site of the world's worst nuclear disaster in 1986, and its security systems, Ukraine's energy operator Ukrenergo has said.

The nuclear plant "was fully disconnected from the power grid", it said in a statement on its Facebook page, adding that military operations meant "there is no possibility to restore the lines".

Ukraine’s state-run nuclear company Energoatom has said radioactive substances could be released from the plant because it cannot cool spent nuclear fuel due to the disconnection.

Later, International Atomic Energy Agency, the UN watchdog, said it saw “no critical impact on safety” from the loss of power at the plant.

Ukraine calls on UK to relax visa rules for refugees

Ukraine's ambassador to London has said 100,000 Ukrainian refugees could eventually come to Britain.

Ambassador Vadym Prystaiko called on the government to relax the conditions for granting visas for people fleeing the conflict with Russia.

Prystaiko said he understood security checks were required, but asked for the visa process to be simplified.

"Most people don't have passports with them, their homes were bombed, we're not printing passports in my embassy," he told the British parliament's Home Affairs committee.

"In reality if you have a one-year-old, it is definitely not a terrorist. So you can strike them out of the list of potential terrorist risks."

Skipped world court case because Ukraine suit is 'absurd'

Russia did not attend a world court hearing in a lawsuit brought by Ukraine seeking to halt hostilities on its territory because of the "absurdity" of the suit, Russia's foreign ministry has said on Twitter, its first public statement on the matter.

Russia did not attend hearings on Monday at the International Court of Justice in The Hague, which is the UN court for resolving disputes between nations.

Ukraine argued that Russia had wrongly tried to justify its invasion on false assertions that it was attacking in self defence to prevent genocide.

Ukraine to pull troops and equipment from UN missions

Ukraine will repatriate troops and equipment, including helicopters, involved in UN peacekeeping missions in Africa and Europe to bolster defences at home in the face of Russia's invasion, a UN official has said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a decree on Tuesday, recalling all peacekeeping forces in order to assist in the war effort at home, Ukrainian media reported.

Ukraine contributes about 300 troops, police officers and staff to six UN missions, a number unlikely to drastically alter peacekeeping operations globally.

"We have received notification from Ukraine regarding the repatriation of their equipment and contributions to peacekeeping," the spokesman told Reuters, adding that the pullout included all UN missions with Ukrainian involvement.

'Some progress' being made in talks with Ukraine: Russia

Russia has said negotiations with officials from Kiev to resolve the conflict in Ukraine are making headway and underscored that Moscow's troops are not working to topple the Ukrainian government.

"Some progress has been made," foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said during a press briefing, referring to three rounds of talks with Kiev. 

She also said the Russian military had not been tasked to "overthrow the current government", adding that Moscow would achieve its goal of ensuring Ukraine's neutral status and would prefer to do that through talks

Tobacco company Imperial Brands halts Russian operations

Imperial Brands Plc has suspended all operations in Russia, including production at its factory in Volgograd and sales and marketing activity, the maker of Winston cigarettes and Backwoods cigars has said.

IMF approves $1.4B emergency support for Ukraine

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has approved $1.4 billion in emergency support for Ukraine to finance expenditures and shore up the balance of payments, Central Bank Governor Kyrylo Shevchenko has said in a statement.

"We are immensely grateful to the IMF for its prompt response to our request. We look forward to completing all required procedures as soon as possible," Shevchenko said.

"It is vital for Ukraine now that it has been going through such a horrible time.”

No water or heat for civilians in Mariupol

The besieged Azov Sea port city of Mariupol has seen some of the most desperate scenes of the war, with civilians struggling without water, heat, basic sanitation or phones for several days.

The representatives of Ukraine’s Red Cross are trying to deliver first aid to those who need it the most, but resources are scarce.

“There is no heating, electricity, water, natural gas ... In other words there is nothing. No household commodities. The water is collected from the roofs after the rain," says Aleksey Berntsev, head of Red Cross of Mariupol.

EU agrees to toughen sanctions on Russia, Belarus

The EU has agreed to add more Russian oligarchs and officials to its sanctions blacklist, tighten rules on cryptocurrency transfers and target the maritime sector over Moscow's war in Ukraine, diplomats have said.

Russia, Ukraine agree day-long evacuation corridors

Russia and Ukraine have agreed a day-long ceasefire around a series of evacuation corridors to allow civilians to escape the fighting, Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk has said.

Vereshchuk said Moscow vowed to respect the truce from 9:00AM to 9:00PM around six areas that have been heavily hit by fighting, including regions near Kiev, in Zaporizhzhia in the south, and some parts of Ukraine's northeast.

Türkiye evacuates 83 crew from ships docked at Ukrainian ports

At least 83 crew members have been evacuated from Turkish ships docked at Ukrainian ports as the war continues in the country, Turkish officials have said.

The crew was on board 23 Turkish-flagged or -owned vessels, Türkiye's Directorate-General for Maritime Affairs said in a tweet.

“Cargo operations in Russian ports continue, except for the Sea of Azov ports,” it said.

Civilians start leaving Ukraine's Sumy in private cars - mayor

Civilians in private cars have started leaving the northeastern Ukrainian city of Sumy after a "humanitarian corridor" was established for a second successive day, Sumy Mayor Oleksandr Lysenko has said in televised comments.

UK slaps new sanctions targeting Russia's aviation sector

Britain has unveiled new aviation sanctions giving it the power to detain any Russian aircraft and banning exports of aviation or space-related goods to Russia.

The ban includes any aircraft owned, operated or chartered by anyone connected with Russia or designated individuals or entities, and will include the power to detain any aircraft owned by persons connected with Russia, the Foreign Office said in a statement.

The new measures will also prevent aviation and space related exports including insurance and re-insurance.

Aviation sanctions threaten safety of Russian flights: Russia

Russia's foreign ministry has said that sanctions imposed by the United States and European Union on aviation threatened the safety of Russian passenger flights, the RIA Novosti news agency has reported.

British transport minister Grant Shapps said Britain had used new aviation sanctions to impound an aircraft after making it a criminal offence for Russian aircraft to fly or land in the United Kingdom.

10 dead in strikes in Severodonestk in eastern Ukraine

At least 10 people were killed in a Russian military attack in the eastern Ukrainian town of Severodonestk, a local official for the Lugansk region has said in a statement on Telegram.

The Russian military "opened fire" on residential homes and other buildings in the town, he said, without immediately specifying whether it was an artillery attack. The region has seen heavy fighting in recent days

China blames NATO for pushing Russia-Ukraine tension to 'breaking point'

Moves by US-led NATO have pushed tension between Russia and Ukraine to a "breaking point", Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian has said.

At a daily news briefing, he urged the United States to take China's concerns seriously and avoid undermining its rights or interests in handling the Ukraine issue and ties with Russia.

Ukraine makes new attempt to get civilians out of Mariupol, other cities

Ukraine will try to evacuate civilians through six "humanitarian corridors", including from the besieged southern port city of Mariupol, Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk has said.

She said in a video statement that Ukrainian armed forces had agreed to stop firing in those areas from 0700-1900 GMT (9AM until 9PM local) and urged Russian forces to fulfil their commitment to local ceasefires.

Our sanctions will hurt you, Russia warns the West 

Russia has warned the West that it was working on a broad response to sanctions that would be swift and felt in the West's most sensitive areas.

"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, was quoted as saying by the RIA news agency.

Ukraine says building defences of key cities

The general staff of Ukraine’s armed forces has said the country is building up its defence of key cities in the north, south and east as Russia’s advance has stalled.

It said in a statement that forces around Kiev are resisting the Russian offensive with unspecified strikes and “holding the line.”

The Ukrainian general staff said that in the northern city of Chernihiv, Russian forces are placing military equipment among residential buildings and on farms. And in the south, it said Russians dressed in civilian clothes are advancing on the city of Mykolaiv.

Universal Music Group suspends all operations in Russia

Universal Music Group has said it is suspending all operations in Russia as war rages on in Ukraine.

“Effective immediately, we are suspending all operations in Russia and closing our offices there. We urge an end to the violence in Ukraine as soon as possible,” the company said in a statement.

Ukraine bans exports of several grains, sugar, salt, meat

Ukraine's government has banned exports of rye, barley, buckwheat, millet, sugar, salt, and meat until the end of this year, according to a cabinet resolution.

Ukraine's air defences having considerable success against Russian jets: UK

Britain has said Ukraine's air defences were having success against Russian jets, likely preventing Russia from controlling the airspace.

"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," the Ministry of Defence intelligence update posted on Twitter said.

Britain's assessment also said Russian forces had failed to make any significant breakthroughs in fighting north west of Kiev.

Russia says Ukraine planned attack on rebel region in March

Russia's defence ministry has said it had obtained secret documents which proved that Ukraine planned a March attack on Russian-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine.

The ministry published six pages of documents it said showed Kiev planned a military assault on the Russian-backed rebel regions in Donbass.

The documents, which written in Ukrainian and appear to outline combat preparations for tactical military units, were not independently verified.

Kiev residents urged to get to bomb shelters

An air alert has been declared in and around Kiev, with residents urged to get to bomb shelters as quickly as possible.

"Kiev region, air alert. Threat of a missile attack. Everyone immediately to shelters," regional administration head Oleksiy Kuleba said on Telegram.

For days, as Moscow's forces have laid siege to Ukrainian cities, attempts to create corridors to safely evacuate civilians have stumbled amid continuing fighting. 

Russian forces have seen their advances stopped in certain areas, including around Kiev, the capital, by fiercer resistance than expected from the Ukrainians

Lavrov travels to Türkiye to hold talks with Kuleba

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov travels to Türkiye where he will have talks with his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba, the TASS news agency cited the Russian foreign ministry as saying.

Evacuation from Ukraine's Sumy to continue: Governor

 A humanitarian corridor out of the besieged Ukrainian city of Sumy will continue to function, regional governor Dmytro Zhyvytskyy has said.

About 5,000 people rode buses out of the northeastern city on Tuesday after Moscow and Kiev agreed on the corridor, he said, and about 1,000 cars were also able to leave, moving towards the city of Poltava.

IAEA says loses contact with Chernobyl nuclear data systems

The Chernobyl nuclear power plant is no longer transmitting data to the UN's atomic watchdog, the agency has said, as it voiced concern for staff working under Russian guard at the Ukrainian facility.

International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Grossi "indicated that remote data transmission from safeguards monitoring systems installed at the Chernobyl NPP had been lost", the agency said in a statement.

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

Pentagon says Poland's jet offer for Ukraine 'not tenable'

The Pentagon has rejected Poland's surprise announcement that it would give the United States its MiG-29 fighter jets for use by Ukraine.

Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby said Poland's declaration that it intended to deliver the 28 jets to the US Ramstein Air Base in Germany raised the concerning prospect of warplanes departing from a US and NATO base to fly into airspace contested with Russia in the Ukraine conflict.

“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,” Kirby said in a statement.

Hungary will not support sanctions on Russia covering oil, gas imports: PM

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has announced that his country is against possible sanctions on Russia that would cover imports of its oil and natural gas.

Orban said that Hungary condemns Russia’s launch of a war on Ukraine but would not allow Hungarian families “to be made to pay the price of war.” Noting that the sanctions imposed on Russia affect all countries in Europe, he said the expansion of sanctions to Russia’s energy sector will affect Hungary "very seriously."

Orban said Hungary buys most of its oil and natural gas from Russia and 90 percent of Hungarian families heat their homes with gas, adding the Hungarian economy could not function without oil and gas.

Russia’s central bank limits foreign cash withdrawals

Russia's central bank has said that it is limiting the amount of cash that citizens with foreign currency accounts can withdraw as part of "a temporary procedure.”

The procedure runs from March 9 to September 9, the bank said in a statement published on its website.

Account holders can withdraw up to $10,000 in cash, and the rest of the funds should be in roubles at the market rate on the day of issue.

Russia to allow Ukrainian civilians to leave major cities 

Russian forces will stop firing from 10 am Moscow time (0700 GMT) to provide humanitarian corridors for people to leave capital Kiev and four other cities, senior Russian officials have said.

Meanwhile, the United Nations human rights office said it had verified 1,335 civilian casualties so far in Ukraine, including 474 killed and 861 injured, but the true toll was likely to be higher. 

Ukraine says its forces have killed more than 11,000 Russian troops. 

Russia has confirmed about 500 losses. 

Neither side has disclosed Ukrainian casualties.

Civilian evacuations took place on Tuesday, in particular from the town of Sumy, where two convoys left during the day.

Evacuations also took place outside the capital Kiev.

But attempted evacuations from the port town of Mariupol have failed on several occasions in recent days, with both Kiev and Moscow blaming the other side for the failures.

Meanwhile, Ukraine's president called for an end to the war with Russia, saying the two countries should hold talks for the sake of the people. 

"The war must end. We need to sit down at the negotiation table –– not for obsolete murderous ambitions, but in the interests of the people," Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a video message. 

Japan may exit Sakhalin energy projects to stop Russia's aggression   

Japanese Industry Minister Koichi Hagiuda has said that Tokyo may consider pulling out of the "Sakhalin projects", referring to energy projects on Russia's Sakhalin Island, if that helps stop Russia's aggression against Ukraine.

Hagiuda made the comment during a parliament session. 

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