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Russia Ukraine News Highlights | Russian forces shelled Ukraine's second-largest city on Monday, rocking a residential neighbourhood, and closed in on the capital, Kyiv, in a 17-mile convoy of hundreds of tanks and other vehicles, as talks aimed at stopping the fighting yielded only an agreement to keep talking.
The country's embattled president said the stepped-up shelling was aimed at forcing him into concessions.
I believe Russia is trying to put pressure (on Ukraine) with this simple method," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said late Monday in a video address. He did not offer details of the hourslong talks that took place earlier, but said that Kyiv was not prepared to make concessions when one side is hitting each other with rocket artillery.
Amid ever-growing international condemnation, Russia found itself increasingly isolated five days into its invasion, while also facing unexpectedly fierce resistance on the ground in Ukraine and economic havoc at home.
For the second day in a row, the Kremlin raised the specter of nuclear war, announcing that its nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missiles, submarines and long-range bombers had all been put on high alert, following President Vladimir Putin's orders over the weekend.
Stepping up his rhetoric, Putin denounced the US and its allies as an empire of lies. Meanwhile, an embattled Ukraine moved to solidify its ties to the West by applying to join the European Union a largely symbolic move for now, but one that is unlikely to sit well with Putin, who has long accused the U.S. of trying to pull Ukraine out of Moscow's orbit.
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NATO to hold emergency meeting over Ukraine on March 4: AFP
NATO foreign ministers will hold emergency talks in Brussels on Friday over Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the alliance said in a statement.
NATO allies have rushed to bolster their eastern flank after Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the attack, but remain adamant that they will not get involved militarily in the war in non-NATO member Ukraine.
NATO has for the first time activated its rapid response force to add to thousands of troops already sent by allies to eastern members.
The alliance has faced calls to help impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine as Russia has launched air strikes against civilian targets.
NATO has rejected that idea, arguing it could drag the alliance what could turn into a nuclear conflict with with Moscow.
"We have to accept the reality that that involves shooting down Russian planes," British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Tuesday on a trip to Estonia with NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg.
"That's a very, very big step that is simply not on the agenda of any NATO country."
Cannes Film Festival bans Russian delegations:AFP
The Cannes Film Festival said Tuesday that Russian delegations will not be welcome at this year's event in May due to the invasion of Ukraine.
"The Cannes Festival wishes to express all its support to the Ukrainian people," its team said in a statement.Adding more, he said, "Of the remaining 40%, roughly half remain in conflict zone in Kharkiv, Sumy area & the other half have either reached the western borders of Ukraine or are heading towards the western part of Ukraine - they are generally out of conflict areas."
"We are adding our voice to those who oppose this unacceptable situation and denouce the attitude of Russia and its leaders."
Besides medicines, number of other items will be of humanitarian use in Ukraine: Foreign Secy
Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla said, "Besides medicines, we have a number of other items that are also there which will be of humanitarian use in Ukraine."
Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla briefs media on Ukraine crisis
US “Mafia regime” created Ukraine crisis: Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has blamed Western powers and the US “mafia regime” for the crisis in Ukraine in an hour-long speech Tuesday.
R Vladimir Putin, Abu Dhabi leader vow 'energy market stability': AFP
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed vowed to maintain energy market stability on Tuesday, the UAE's state news agency said.
They agreed during a telephone call on the "need to maintain the stability of the global energy market," state news agency WAM said.
Sheikh Mohammed was also briefed by Putin on "the developments of the crisis with Ukraine", it said, and the crown prince stressed the need for a "peaceful solution ... in a way that guarantees the interests and national security of all parties".
Kyiv:Cradle of both modern Russia and Ukraine and of Slavic orthodoxy,Kyivis known for the golden domes of its ancient churches and monasteries.Both countries trace their origins to the medieval Kievan Rus empire which wascentredon the city. The capital of independent Ukraine since 1991, the city of 2.9 million people was long known by its Russian name Kiev.It celebrated its 1,500th anniversary in 2001 and its 16th-centuryKyiv-PecherskLavramonastery as well as the cathedral of Saint Sophia both figure on UNESCO's World Heritage list.Kyiv'svast central Independence Square, popularly known as Maidan, became thecentreof the "Orange Revolution" as well as the long pro-European uprising of 2014 that sparked Russia's annexation of Crimea.
Kharkiv:Ukraine's second city is a predominantly Russian-speaking tech hub of 1.4 million inhabitants just 40kilometres(25 miles) from the Russian border.Heavily bombarded in recent days by Russian forces, it suffered badly in World War II when two major tank battles were fought around it.Since 2014 it has become home to hundreds of thousands of people fleeing fighting between government forces and Russian-backed rebels in the nearby eastern Donbas region.
Mariupol:The key port city of Mariupol on the Sea of Azov has been under attack since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine. Mariupol was briefly occupied by the Russian-backed separatists from Donetsk at the start of the uprising against Kiev in 2014 before being retaken by Ukrainian forces.The southeastern city of 441,000 people lies between territory held by the separatists and the Crimean peninsula, which was annexed by Moscow in 2014.Russian forces claimed to have linked up with separatists Tuesday.
Berdyansk:The Russian army claimed to have taken port ofBerdyanskon the Sea of Azov Monday after advancing from Crimea. The resort of 115,000 inhabitants is famed for its beaches and mud baths, welcoming more than half a million tourists a year.It is only 84kilometresalong the coast from Mariupol.
Kherson:Kherson –which is being besieged by Russian forces from Crimea -- is a strategic port on the west bank of the Dnieper River which controls the approaches to the Crimean peninsula.Formerly the base of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, its fall would open the way to Odessa in the west, which has a majority Russian speaking population, and the borderswith NATO-member Romania and Moldova. A shipbuilding city, it has a population of 287,000 people.
Scores of diplomats have walked out of two meetings at the United Nations in Geneva in which Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov was beamed in for a video statement, as a protest against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.Lavrov spoke by video to the Conference on Disarmament and the Human Rights Council, which he had planned to attend before closure of airspace to Russian planes by several European countries prevented his travel to the Swiss city.“What you have seen is strong support for Ukraine,” said Bonnie Jenkins, U.S. Undersecretary of State for arms control and international Security, after the walkout from the disarmament meeting.Shortly afterward, in a conference room two floors higher, scores of diplomats — including Ukraine’s ambassador in Geneva and the foreign ministers of Canada and Denmark —poured out of the Human Rights Council chamber.
China's foreign minister spoke with his Ukrainian counterpart on Tuesday and called for a resolution to the crisis through negotiation, Chinese state media said, as Beijing treads a difficult diplomatic line on the invasion by its close ally Moscow.Foreign Minister Wang Yi told Dmytro Kuleba that Beijing "deeply regrets that conflict has broken out between Ukraine and Russia, and is paying extreme attention to the harm suffered by civilians", state broadcaster CCTV reported, adding that Wang called for the two countries to "find a way to resolve the issue through negotiations".
Dr IgorPolikha, Ambassador of Ukraine to India said, "I extend my deepest condolences on the death of Indian studentNaveenShekharappawho was killed in shelling in Kharkiv, Ukraine. Earlier shelling and bombings happened on military sites but now also happening in the civil areas."
Three evacuation flights from Romania's capital Bucharest and Hungary's capital Budapest came to India on Tuesday with 616 Indian nationals who were stranded in Ukraine due to the Russian military offensive, officials said. On Tuesday, two flights were operated by IndiGo while one service was operated by Tata Group-owned Air India Express.India began the evacuation of its citizens from Ukraine's western neighbours such as Romania and Hungary on February 26. Private Indian carriers have brought back 2,012 Indian nationals in nine special flights till now. Air India Express operated the Bucharest-Mumbai flight via Kuwait with 182 Indian nationals.IndiGo operated Budapest-Delhi flight via Istanbul with 216 Indian nationals. India's largest carrier also operated Bucharest-Delhi service via Istanbul with 218 Indian nationals.Meanwhile, IndiGo sent four planes, two to Budapest and two to Rzeszow in Poland, to evacuate Indians. SpiceJet also sent a plane to Kosice in Slovakia for evacuation on Tuesday. Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia had said on February 27 that around 13,000 Indians, mainly college students, are currently stranded in Ukraine. Ukranian airspace has been shut down since February 24, when the Russian government started its military operations against the country.
NATO’s chief says the alliance sees no need to change its nuclear weapons alert level, despite Russia’s threats.NATO’s secretary-general, Jens Stoltenberg, spoke to The Associated Press following talks on European security with Polish President Andrzej Duda an air base in Poland where NATO’s Polish and U.S. fighter jets are based. “We will always do what is needed to protect and defend our allies, but we don’t think there is any need now to change the alert levels of NATO’s nuclear forces,” Stoltenberg said.The Kremlin has raised the specter of nuclear war, reporting on Monday that its land, air and sea nuclear forces were on high alert following President Vladimir Putin’s weekend order. NATO itself has no nuclear weapons, but three of its members, the United States, Britain and France, do.
