The latest developments on Ukraine-Russia tensions after Russia launches military operation against Ukraine
The latest developments on Ukraine-Russia tensions after Russia launches military operation against Ukraine
The first round of talks between Russia and Ukraine concluded on February 28, without resulting in a deal. Both sides agreed to continue the talks, as Ukranian President Volodymyr Zelensky urged that Ukraine be given membership of the European Union.
The United Nations General Assembly and the United Nations Security Council met separately to address the ongoing Russian invasion. At the emergency special session of the UNGA, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said, “Nothing can justify the use of nuclear weapons.”
At the UNSC, India’s Permanent Representative T.S. Tirumurti informed the Security Council that the Government was sending humanitarian aid to Ukraine on March 1 and had senior Ministers visiting Ukraine’s neighbours to discuss the arrival of Indian citizens in these countries.
The ninth Operation Ganga flight carrying 218 Indian evacuees departed Bucharest early on Tuesday.
Russia’s global isolation continued as the United States expelled 12 Russian diplomats staffing the U.N. mission.
Explosions and gunfire continued in major Ukranian cities as Russia pressed on with its military operation, with shelling reported from the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv. More than 350 civilians, including 14 children, have been killed during the invasion, Ukraine says, while more than half a million people have fled the country.
The conflict began escalating on February 21, 2022, after Russian President Vladimir Putin recognised separatist regions in eastern Ukraine and deployed troops in a peacekeeping role.
Here are the latest updates:
India
Indian Air Force to join evacuation efforts in Ukraine: Govt. sources
In order to scale up the ongoing evacuation efforts under Operation Ganga, PM Modi has called for the Indian Air Force to join the evacuation efforts, said government sources
Leveraging the capacities of our Air Force will ensure that more people can be evacuated in a shorter time frame. It will also help deliver humanitarian aid more efficiently.
Indian Air Force is likely to deploy several C-17 aircrafts as part of Operation Ganga from today.- Nistula Hebbar
Ukraine
40-mile Russian convoy threatens Kyiv; shelling intensifies
A 40-mile convoy of Russian tanks and other vehicles threatened Ukraine’s capital Tuesday as an intense shelling attack targeted the country’s second-largest city, and both sides looked to resume talks in the coming days aimed at stopping the fighting.
The country’s embattled president said he believed the stepped-up shelling was designed to force 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 hourslong talks that took place Monday, but he said Kyiv was not prepared to make concessions “when one side is hitting another with rocket artillery.”- AP
This satellite image provided by Maxar Technologies shows the northern end of a convoy at the southeast of Ivankiv, north west of Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday Feb. 28, 2022.
| Photo Credit: AP
China
China starts evacuating citizens from Ukraine: reports
China has started evacuating its citizens from Ukraine, state media reported Tuesday, amid fears for their safety due to the invasion by Beijing’s ally Russia but also reports of resulting hostility from angry Ukrainians.
Some 600 Chinese students were evacuated Monday from Kyiv and the southern port city of Odessa, the state-run Global Times newspaper reported, citing the Chinese embassy in the Ukrainian capital.
A further 1,000 Chinese nationals will leave Ukraine on Tuesday bound for Poland and Slovakia, both European Union member states, the report added.
China has trod a cautious diplomatic tightrope on the conflict, balancing its oft-repeated insistence on the sanctity of state sovereignty with an unwillingness to call out its close ally Russia.- AFP
Ukraine
Artillery kills 70 Ukraine soldiers
More than 70 Ukrainian soldiers were killed after Russian artillery hit a military base in Okhtyrka, a city between Kharkiv and Kyiv, the head of the region wrote on Telegram.
Dmytro Zhyvytskyy posted photographs of the charred shell of a four-story building and rescuers searching rubble. – AP
Kharkiv, Ukraine
A view of a school destroyed as a result of fight not far from the center of Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, located some 50 km from Ukrainian-Russian border, on February 28, 2022.
| Photo Credit: AFP
Australia
Australia commits $50 million in support for Ukraine
Australia will provide Ukraine with $50 million in missiles, ammunition and other military hardware to fight Russian invaders.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Tuesday elaborated on his country’s plans after revealing a day earlier that his government would provide Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy with lethal military equipment. Mr. Morrison promised only non-lethal military equipment last week.
“President Zelenskyy said: Don’t give me a ride, give me ammunition,’ and that’s exactly what the Australian government has agreed to do,” Mr. Morrison said.
Australia had committed $50 million to provide both lethal and non-lethal defensive support for Ukraine through NATO, he said.
“The overwhelming majority of that … will be in the lethal category,” Mr. Morrison said.- AP
Mumbai
Air India flight carrying 182 Indians nationals from Ukraine lands in Mumbai
An Air India Express flight carrying 182 Indian nationals evacuated from war-torn Ukraine landed here from the Romanian capital Bucharest on Tuesday, March 1 morning, an airline spokesperson said.
Union MSME Minister Narayan Rane received them at the Mumbai airport, the spokesperson said.
The AI Express flight IX-1202 from Bucharest via Kuwait touched down the runway at 7.40 am, he said.
An aircraft to bring back Indian nationals from Ukraine had left from Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) for Bucharest on Monday.- PTI
International Criminal Court
ICC to open probe on ‘situation in Ukraine’: prosecutor
International Criminal Court prosecutor Karim Khan said Monday he was launching an investigation on the “situation in Ukraine” following Russia’s invasion.
“Today I wish to announce that I have decided to proceed with opening an investigation into the situation in Ukraine, as rapidly as possible,” Khan said in a statement.
“I am satisfied that there is a reasonable basis to believe that both alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity have been committed in Ukraine” since 2014, he added.
“Given the expansion of the conflict in recent days, it is my intention that this investigation will also encompass any new alleged crimes falling within the jurisdiction of my office that are committed by any party to the conflict on any part of the territory of Ukraine.”- AFP
Russia
Disney halts film releases in Russia over Ukraine invasion
Disney announced Monday it is suspending the release of its films in theaters in Russia after Moscow’s assault on Ukraine, following the example of other major companies choosing to pull out of the country.
“Given the unprovoked invasion of Ukraine and the tragic humanitarian crisis, we are pausing the release of theatrical films in Russia, including the upcoming ‘Turning Red’ from Pixar,” the US entertainment giant said in a statement.
“We will make future business decisions based on the evolving situation. In the meantime, given the scale of the emerging refugee crisis, we are working with our NGO partners to provide urgent aid and other humanitarian assistance to refugees,” it said.- AFP
Russia
Mastercard blocks multiple Russian financial institutions from network
Mastercard has blocked multiple financial institutions from the Mastercard payment network as a result of sanction orders on Russia, it said late on Monday.
Mastercard will continue to work with regulators to abide fully by compliance obligations, the company said in a statement.- Reuters
Donetsk, Ukraine
A serviceman of pro-Russian militia walks inside a house that was damaged by recent shelling, in Donetsk, Ukraine February 28, 2022.
| Photo Credit: REUTERS
Ukraine
Russia shells Ukraine’s Kharkiv as pressure on Moscow bites
Russia shelled the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv as it pressed on with its invasion Tuesday, defying mounting global pressure that saw a war crimes probe opened against Moscow, sanctions smash its economy and FIFA ban it from the World Cup.
At least 11 people killed by Russian attacks in Kharkiv and Russian missile fire on several residential buildings.
Explosions were also reported in and around Brovary, a city on the outskirts of the capital, Kyiv.
Russian fire killed several civilians, including children, in Kharkiv and Russian armoured vehicles and tanks are “everywhere” around the city, said mayor Igor Terekhov, quoted by Ukrainian media.
More than 350 civilians, including 14 children, have been killed during the invasion, Ukraine says, while more than half a million people have fled the country.- AFP
Russia
Taekwondo-Putin stripped of black belt over Ukraine invasion
Russian President Vladimir Putin has been stripped of his honorary taekwondo black belt over his country’s invasion of Ukraine, a personal rebuke heaped on top of international economic and sporting sanctions.
World Taekwondo, citing its motto of “Peace is More Precious than Triumph,” condemned the Russian military action in Ukraine, saying the “brutal attacks on innocent lives” violated the sport’s values of respect and tolerance.
“In this regard, World Taekwondo has decided to withdraw the honorary 9th dan black belt conferred to Mr. Vladimir Putin in November 2013,” the governing body said in a statement.
It added that it would join the International Olympic Committee in banning the Russian flag and anthem at its events.- Reuters
Kyiv, Ukraine
Vast Russian army convoy spotted north of Kyiv
A huge Russian military convoy stretching some 40 miles was spotted Monday by a US satellite imaging company just north of the Ukrainian capital Kyiv, which has already repulsed several assaults.
Satellite photos provided by Maxar, a US company, showed that the convoy — which had been massing since Sunday — had mushroomed to more than 40 miles of military vehicles.
It said the column covered the entire stretch of road from near Antonov airport, some 18 miles from the capital, to the town of Prybirsk – a distance of approximately 40 miles.- AFP
Taiwan
Taiwan to follow SWIFT move, sends medical aid to Ukraine
Taiwan will join moves to block some Russian banks from the SWIFT international payments system and has sent humanitarian aid to Ukraine to show support for the international “democratic camp”, the government said on Tuesday.
Taiwan has joined with Western-led allies in putting sanctions on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, and expressed cross-party sympathy for the Ukrainian people, seeing parallels with what Taipei views as Beijing’s threats against the island.
Premier Su Tseng-chang told reporters Taiwan was in lock-step with its democratic partners around the world on its sanctions decision, adding that on SWIFT the government will “cooperate” with what Western countries have decided.
The move is largely symbolic as Taiwan’s trade with Russia is minimal.- Reuters
India at UNGA
India calls for immediate cessation of violence, says all differences can only be bridged through honest dialogue
India has said that it was deeply concerned over the deteriorating situation in Ukraine and reiterated its call for immediate cessation of violence and end to hostilities, saying all differences can only be bridged through honest, sincere and sustained dialogue.
India’s Permanent Representative to the U.N. Ambassador T.S. Tirumurti told a rare emergency special session of the U.N. General Assembly on Ukraine convened on February 28 that New Delhi is doing whatever it can to undertake immediate and urgent evacuation efforts of Indian nationals still stranded in Ukraine.
U.S.A.
U.S. expels 12 Russian diplomats staffing U.N. mission
The beginning of an already fraught United Nations Security Council meeting got even more tense when Russia’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Vassily Nebenzia, informed the body that the U.S. had just expelled twelve of his colleagues from the country, a move confirmed by the American Deputy UNPR Richard Mills.
India at UNSC
India ready to help nationals of neighbouring, developing countries stranded in Ukraine: Tirumurti tells U.N. Security Council
As the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) met in a special session to vote on a resolution calling for Russia’s withdrawal from Ukraine, the U.N. Security Council (UNSC) met to discuss the humanitarian crisis that is developing in the region.
Expressing concern about the unfolding humanitarian crisis in Ukraine, India’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations (UNPR) T.S. Tirumurti said that India’s evacuation efforts had been hampered by the events at the Ukraine border.
Ukraine
Ukraine seeks to join EU as round of talks with Russia ends
An embattled Ukraine moved to solidify its bond with the West on Monday by applying to join the European Union, while the first round of Ukraine-Russia talks aimed at ending the fighting concluded with no deal but an agreement to keep talking.
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy posted photos of himself signing the EU application, a largely symbolic move that could take years to become reality and is unlikely to sit well with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has long accused the West of trying to pull Ukraine into its orbit.