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Summary
Russia’s war on its neighbour in now in its third week. Hundreds have been reported to be dead or wounded while more than two million Ukrainian refugees have so far fled their homeland, according to UN estimates.
It is 7.20am in Ukraine and here is where the crisis currently stands:
- Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Russia was a “terrorist state” in his latest video address. “The world must know it. The world must acknowledge it,” he said, and also accused Russian forces of attacking a convoy of humanitarian aid for the besieged city of Mariupol.
- Zelenskiy said Ukrainian authorities managed to evacuate almost 40,000 people on Thursday from five other cities.
- The Russian defence ministry said that it would open up humanitarian corridors for civilians to evacuate from Kyiv, Kharkiv, Sumy, Chernihiv and Mariupol. It also accused Ukraine of using security service personnel to drive aid trucks and spy on Russian military positions.
- European Union leaders “acknowledged the European aspirations” of Ukraine and agreed to support Ukraine in “pursuing its European path”. After a meeting in Versailles, a statement also called for an immediate and unconditional withdrawal of Russian forces, and praised Ukraine’s courageous resistance.
- The US Congress passed a spending bill late Thursday evening, including $13.6bn in emergency aid for Ukraine.
- US president Joe Biden will ratchet up the economic pressure on Vladimir Putin on Friday by calling for the end of normal trade relations with Russia, according to reports. The White House has just confirmed reports that US president Joe Biden will announce new actions on Friday to continue to hold Russia accountable.
- US press secretary Jen Psaki said the United States has seen reports that Russia may be considering seizing the assets of US and international companies suspending operations in Russia. Psaki said any “lawless decision by Russia to seize the assets of these companies” will “ultimately result in even more economic pain for Russia”.
- There are conflicting reports about the state of Russian forces around Kyiv. A large Russian military convoy last seen north-west of Kyiv has largely dispersed and redeployed, according to US company Maxar Technologies, based on satellite photographs. But a US defence official said on Thursday that Russian forces have moved 5km (or about 3 miles) closer to the Ukraine capital, despite Ukrainians fighting back “very, very well”.
- A recently released report from the UK’s Ministry of Defence says Russian forces are “committing an increased number of their deployed forces to encircle key cities” due to strong Ukrainian resistance.
- The Ukrainian military also confirmed reports suggesting Russian troops had dispersed to regroup and replenish supplies in its daily operational report. According to the general staff of the armed forces of Ukraine, Russian forces have slowed in their advance while some have retreated back to Russian territory.
- The United Nations security council will convene on Friday at Russia’s request, diplomats said, to discuss Moscow’s claims of US biological activities in Ukraine.
- High-level talks between Russia and Ukraine – the first of their kind since Moscow invaded its neighbour two weeks ago – ended without a ceasefire. Ukraine’s foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, said there had been no progress towards achieving a ceasefire with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov.
- Hundreds of thousands of people in Mariupol face an “increasingly dire and desperate” humanitarian situation, the International Red Cross has said. A delegation leader said people in Mariupol had “started to attack each other for food” and many people report having no food for their children.
- Ukraine opened seven humanitarian corridors for civilians to evacuate on Thursday, but no one was able to leave the besieged port city of Mariupol, the Ukrainian deputy prime minister said. In the north-eastern Sumy region, more than 12,000 civilians were evacuated by car or bus, the state emergency services said.
- The British public will be able to offer accommodation to Ukrainian refugees as the government announces a new route to the UK for those fleeing the Russian invasion.
- Boris Johnson has expressed fears that Vladimir Putin may use chemical weapons in Ukraine. Echoing language used by the White House, the UK prime minister said Russian claims about its enemies getting ready to use chemical weapons were “straight out of their playbook”.
- Germany’s former chancellor Gerhard Schröder has reportedly met Russian president, Vladimir Putin, in Moscow for talks on ending the war in Ukraine, Politico reported, citing sources familiar with the matter.
- The Chelsea football club owner, Roman Abramovich, is among seven of Russia’s wealthiest and most influential oligarchs to have been hit with sanctions by the UK, in an effort to further punish allies of Vladimir Putin over the invasion of Ukraine.
For any tips and feedback please contact me through Twitter or at samantha.lock@theguardian.com
Japan will freeze the assets of three Belarusian banks, with the government also announcing a $100 million humanitarian donation to Ukraine and its neighbouring nations to help Ukrainians fleeing the war.
Tokyo’s latest sanctions on Belarus are to be imposed from 10 April, Agence France-Presse reports.
Japan had previously announced sanctions on Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.
Earlier this week, the European Union gave the go-ahead to cut three Belarusian banks from the global Swift messaging system over the country’s involvement in the Kremlin’s attack.
The three banks that will be sanctioned in Japan’s asset freeze are Belagroprombank, Bank Dabrabyt, and the Development Bank of the Republic of Belarus, the foreign ministry said.
The ministry said Japan would send $100 million to Ukraine, Poland, Hungary, Moldova, Slovakia and Romania through various international organisations, to respond to “urgent needs” such as health, shelter and child protection.
Ukrainian refugees are seen pictured leaving the western city of Lviv by train en route to Poland on Thursday.
The Ukrainian military has just released its daily operational report this morning, confirming earlier reports suggesting Russian troops had dispersed to regroup and replenish supplies.
According to the general staff of the armed forces of Ukraine, Russian forces have slowed in their advance while some have retreated back to Russian territory.
In the Black Sea and Azov operating zones, Ukrainian authorities said weather conditions “were on our side and forced the occupier ships to return to naval bases and base points”.
The White House has just confirmed reports that US president Joe Biden will announce new actions on Friday to continue to hold Russia accountable for its unprovoked and unjustified war on Ukraine.
US Congress passes $13.6bn in aid for Ukraine
The US Congress has just passed a spending bill late Thursday evening, including $13.6bn in emergency aid for Ukraine.
Senators in the legislative body’s upper chamber followed their House of Representatives colleagues, who green-lit the $1.5-trillion package on Wednesday.
Senate democratic majority leader Chuck Schumer said:
We’re keeping our promise to support Ukraine as they fight for their lives against the evil Vladimir Putin.
With nearly $14 billion in emergency aid, Congress will approve more than double what the administration originally requested.”
Senate approved the overall $1.5 trillion overall legislation by a 68-31 bipartisan margin, the Associated Press reports.
Updated
US president Joe Biden will ratchet up the economic pressure on Vladimir Putin on Friday by calling for the end of normal trade relations with Russia, according to reports.
The move, reported by Reuters and Bloomberg citing anonymous Biden administration sources, would clear the way for increased tariffs on Russian imports and comes on top of widespread sanctions and the decision this week to ban oil imports from Russia by the US and UK.
Removing Russia’s status of “permanent normal trade relations” will require an act of Congress, one senior administration official told Reuters. But lawmakers in both houses of Congress have expressed support for such a move.
Outlawing all US trade with Russia would deepen the already serious economic problems facing Putin’s regime.
Earlier on Thursday, the head of the International Monetary Fund said it expected to cut its global growth estimate due to the economic damage caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
In addition to the damage to Ukraine, western sanctions will lead to a “sharp contraction” of the Russian economy, Kristalina Georgieva said.
Russia is “moving into a deep recession” with massive depreciation of the ruble and sinking purchasing power for its citizens, she said, adding that a debt default is no longer “an improbable event.”
Updated
Chinese premier Li Keqiang said on Friday that the Ukraine situation was “disconcerting” and that it was important to support Russia and Ukraine in ceasefire talks.
Speaking at the close of an annual parliamentary session in Beijing, Li did not directly answer reporters’ questions about whether China will refrain from condemning Russia no matter what that country does, Reuters reports.
Nor did he say whether China is prepared to provide further economic and financial support for Russia as it faces sanctions.
Updated
Recently released satellite images made available by US space technology firm Maxar Technologies provide a closer look at the unfolding situation on the ground in Ukraine.
The photos reveal a massive convoy of Russian troops that had stalled outside the Ukrainian capital largely dispersed and redeployed out into towns and forests near Kyiv, with artillery pieces moved into firing positions.
One image shows some of Russian military vehicles repositioned along a line of trees near the village of Lubyanka, about 50km north-west of Kyiv.
Several of the redeployments shown in the satellite images appear near Antonov International Airport, which lies between Lubyanka and Kyiv, and suggests that the vehicles have not made any significant progress towards the capital.
The images also show further damage to civilian areas on the outskirts of the capital. Fires were also seen in an industrial area in the city of Chernihiv, while fires at the fuel storage area in Hostomel were also documented, north-west of Kyiv.
Updated
The council of the European Union has “acknowledged the European aspirations” of Ukraine with EU leaders agreeing to support Ukraine in “pursuing its European path”.
European council president Charles Michel said “without delay” EU leaders “will further strengthen our bonds and deepen our partnership to support Ukraine in pursuing its European path”.
In a statement the council said:
The European Council acknowledged the European aspirations and the European choice of Ukraine ... The Council has acted swiftly and invited the Commission to submit its opinion on this application in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Treaties. Pending this and without delay, we will further strengthen our bonds and deepen our partnership to support Ukraine in pursuing its European path. Ukraine belongs to our European family.
The council commended the people of Ukraine “for their courage in defending their country and our shared values of freedom and democracy”.
We will not leave them alone. The EU and its Member States will continue to provide coordinated political, financial, material and humanitarian support. We are committed to provide support for the reconstruction of a democratic Ukraine once the Russian onslaught has ceased.”
Russia, and its accomplice Belarus, bear full responsibility for this war of aggression and those responsible will be held to account for their crimes, including for indiscriminately targeting civilians and civilian objects, the statement added.
“… without delay, we will further strengthen our bonds and deepen our partnership to support Ukraine in pursuing its European path”. #Ukraine️ #WeStandWithUkraine #EUCO https://t.co/tNsriqVPtK
— Charles Michel (@eucopresident) March 11, 2022
https://twitter.com/GitanasNauseda/status/1502103582337871874
A historic night at Versailles. After five hours of heated discussions EU leaders said yes to Ukrainian eurointegration. The process started. Now it is up to us and Ukrainians to accomplish it fast. Heroic Ukrainian nation deserves to know that they are welcome in EU.
— Gitanas Nausėda (@GitanasNauseda) March 11, 2022
Oil prices fall again after volatile week
The price of oil slipped back again on Friday and is set to record its biggest weekly drops since November after see-sawing on fears that more countries would ban Russian imports, balanced against other big producers bringing on more supply.
Brent crude, the international benchmark, fell 1.42% to $107.78 at 2.25am GMT after dropping 1.6% in the previous session. US West Texas intermediate crude fell 0.13% to $105.88 a barrel, following a 2.5% decline on Thursday.
Having touched a 14-year high of $139.13 a barrel on Monday, Brent is on course to drop 7% on the week. It moved in a range of $25 on Thursday after the United Arab Emirates appeared to indicate that it would pump more oil to ease the ban on Russian supplies to the UK and US.
But the situation remains volatile and there seems little relief in sight for drivers being pummelled by rocketing fuel costs in many western countries.
Neil Wilson, an analyst at Markets.com in London, said: “For now markets are trading these headlines and crude remains super-volatile... treacherous markets.”
Updated
US press secretary Jen Psaki has said the United States has seen reports that Russia may be considering seizing the assets of US and international companies suspending operations in Russia.
In a series of tweets, Psaki said:
We have seen reports that Russia may be considering seizing the assets of US and international companies that have announced plans to suspend operations in Russia or to withdraw from the Russian market.
Any lawless decision by Russia to seize the assets of these companies will ultimately result in even more economic pain for Russia. It will compound the clear message to the global business community that Russia is not a safe place to invest and do business.
We stand with American companies who are making tough decisions regarding the future of their Russian operations.”
We have seen reports that Russia may be considering seizing the assets of U.S. and international companies that have announced plans to suspend operations in Russia or to withdraw from the Russian market.
— Jen Psaki (@PressSec) March 11, 2022
A $1.5 trillion US government spending bill containing $13.6 billion in emergency aid for Ukraine is headed toward final passage in the Senate this evening.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer set the vote after he and Republican Leader Mitch McConnell agreed on the outlines of a final debate on the sprawling, 2,700-page bill that the House of Representatives passed late on Wednesday.
“We’re keeping our promises to support Ukraine as they fight for their lives against the evil Vladimir Putin,” Schumer said, according to a Reuters report.
Besides the funds to finance ammunition and other military supplies and humanitarian aid for Ukraine, the legislation funds regular US military programs and an array of non-defence operations through 30 September.
Ukrainian human rights activist Oleksandra Matviichuk sung a lullaby calling for a no-fly zone to be implemented over Ukraine.
Nato has resisted imposing one following Russia’s invasion, fearing it could provoke full-fledged war in Europe.
Watch Matviichuk sing the tune in the video below.
Ukrainian authorities have said a nuclear research facility has been bombed by Russian forces, accusing Moscow of “nuclear terrorism”.
Ukrainian newspaper, the Kyiv Independent, said the Kharkiv institute - home to experimental nuclear reactor - had been bombed, citing an announcement from the State Inspectorate for Nuclear Regulation of Ukraine.
According to the inspectorate, the facility was struck with damage to the exterior and possibly numerous labs throughout the building.
No injuries or fatalities have been reported.
⚡️Russia bombs Kharkiv institute, home to experimental nuclear reactor.
— The Kyiv Independent (@KyivIndependent) March 11, 2022
The State Inspectorate for Nuclear Regulation of Ukraine announced that the facility was struck, damaging the exterior and possibly numerous labs throughout the building.
🛑 Russia just attacked #Kharkiv Institute of Physics and Technology
— Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine (@ua_parliament) March 10, 2022
Experimental nuclear reactor is located inside. The shelling caused a fire in a neighbouring hostel; the fight continues.#StopRussia #StopRussia #ClosetheSkyoverUkraine pic.twitter.com/H88CYHGl9C
Updated
Hundreds took refuge at the Kharkiv metro station in Ukraine’s second-largest city overnight as Russian attacks on the city continued.
We have some more detail surrounding the reported loss of contact with Ukraine’s Chernobyl power plant.
Earlier today, Ukraine told the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that it lost all contact with Chernobyl following a power cut at the facility,
Director general of the IAEA, Rafael Mariano Grossi, said the agency was aware of reports that power had now been restored to the site but was seeking confirmation.
“Ukraine’s nuclear regulator had told IAEA diesel generators were powering systems important for safety at Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. Operator not able to maintain some functions such as radiation monitoring, ventilation systems and normal lighting,” the statement read.
“If emergency power were lost, it would still be possible for Chernobyl staff to monitor the water level and temperature of the spent fuel pool. They would do this under worsening radiation safety conditions and would not be able to follow operational radiation safety procedures.”
However, the agency notes that the Zaporizhzhia, also under the control of Russian forces, is not able to deliver the necessary spare parts, equipment and specialised personnel to carry out planned repairs. “Maintenance activities at Unit 1 had been reduced to minimum levels,” the IAEA said.
#Ukraine nuclear regulator told IAEA today it had lost all communication w/ #Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant, can no longer provide updated info. @RafaelMGrossi says IAEA's aware of reports that power has now been restored to the site, need for confirmation. https://t.co/GhdMceMgRP pic.twitter.com/8iwjPzmef1
— IAEA - International Atomic Energy Agency (@iaeaorg) March 10, 2022
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has been reported very differently outside the west.
Venezuela says Putin is a victim, China blames the US, and a South African pundit calls out western hypocrisy.
Many an insult has been hurled at Vladimir Putin since he invaded Ukraine a fortnight ago, causing chaos, heartbreak and death.
“Look at the face of Putin. You will see the devil,” one US commentator opined on Wednesday as a maternity hospital was bombed in the city of Mariupol.
But for the Venezuelan pundit Alberto Aranguibel, Putin’s 24 February invasion was “la guerra necesaria” – the necessary war.
The Chinese academic Wang Shuo saw it as “a US-created crisis”. “The strategic selfishness of the US has brought more disasters to the world,” Wang grumbled on Wednesday in the state-run Global Times, blaming Washington’s “selfish and short-sighted action” for plunging Ukraine into war.
Read the full story from our reporters in Rio de Janeiro, Taipei, Lagos, Tokyo and Beirut.
The British public will be able to offer accommodation to Ukrainian refugees as the government announces a new route to the UK for those fleeing the Russian invasion.
After criticism of the government’s strategy and the bureaucratic delays facing Ukrainians with family ties to the UK, the British public will be asked to house refugees who have no family ties who would be eligible to work, access state benefits and public services.
Government sources confirmed to the Guardian that as part of the widening of the sponsorship scheme, individuals, charities, businesses and community groups will be able to register to offer accommodation and employment via a hotline and webpage.
Those offering a place to stay will be vetted and have to agree to house a refugee for a minimum period.
Meanwhile, a recently released report from the UK’s ministry of defence says Russian forces are “committing an increased number of their deployed forces to encircle key cities” due to strong Ukrainian resistance.
“This will reduce the number of forces available to continue their advance and will further slow Russian progress,” the report adds.
Protests against Russian occupation have been reported throughout the week in the Russian-held cities of Kherson, Melitopol and Berdyansk, the ministry notes adding that 400 protestors were reportedly detained by Russian forces in the Kherson Oblast on Wednesday.
Latest Defence Intelligence update on the situation in Ukraine - 10 March 2022
— Ministry of Defence 🇬🇧 (@DefenceHQ) March 10, 2022
Find out more about the UK government's response: https://t.co/t7F8IGf2fq
🇺🇦 #StandWithUkraine 🇺🇦 pic.twitter.com/LpqWb40nRH
Reports about the advance of Russian troops towards Kyiv remain conflicted.
A US defence official, as cited by CNN, told reporters on Thursday that Russian forces have moved 5km (or about 3 miles) closer to Kyiv in the last day, despite Ukrainians fighting back “very, very well” around the capital city,
“We see Russian forces continue to advance their troops, they’re really along two sort of parallel lines there, and we assess that the northernmost of those two lines, the closest line has reached about 40km east of Kyiv,” the official said.
Out of those two lines, “the one that’s to the south of the two which kind of emanated out of Sumy, we also assess that some of [the Russian forces] might have reached approximately 40km from Kyiv,” the official added.
On the southern line, the official believes Russian forces “might be repositioning themselves back towards Sumy,” but it is not clear how many forces, how fast they are moving back, or why they are doing that, the official said, adding that the town of Chernihiv is “now isolated”.
Updated
Russian convoy near Kyiv dispersed and redeployed, satellite images show
Satellite images show a large Russian military convoy, last seen north-west of Kyiv near Antonov airport, has largely dispersed and redeployed, a private US company said on Thursday.
Maxar Technologies said images taken on Thursday show armoured units manoeuvring in and through the surrounding towns close to the airport, according to a Reuters report.
Armoured units from the 64km (40mile) line of vehicles, tanks and artillery have been seen in towns near the Antonov Airport north of the city while some of the vehicles have moved into forests, Maxar reported.
It said images also show convoy elements further north have repositioned near Lubyanka with towed artillery howitzers in firing positions nearby.
The convoy had massed outside the city early last week, but its advance appeared to have stalled amid reports of food and fuel shortages. US officials said Ukrainian troops also targeted the convoy with anti-tank missiles.
Updated
Hello it’s Samantha Lock with you as my colleague Maanvi Singh signs off.
The United Nations security council has just confirmed it will convene on Friday at Russia’s request, diplomats said, to discuss Moscow’s claims, presented without evidence, of US biological activities in Ukraine.
The United States has dismissed Russian claims as “laughable”, warning Moscow may be preparing to use chemical or biological weapons.
Ukraine’s foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba responded:
The manic obsession with which various Russian officials fantasise about non-existent biological or chemical weapons or hazards in Ukraine is deeply troubling and may actually point at Russia preparing another horrific false flag operation.”
The manic obsession with which various Russian officials fantasize about non-existent biological or chemical weapons or hazards in Ukraine is deeply troubling and may actually point at Russia preparing another horrific false flag operation. This tweet is for the record.
— Dmytro Kuleba (@DmytroKuleba) March 10, 2022
Updated
Catch up
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Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Russia’s attacks were “open terrorism from experienced terrorists”. He continued: “The world must know it. The world must acknowledge it. We are all dealing with a terrorist state.”
- High-level talks between Russia and Ukraine – the first of their kind since Moscow invaded its neighbour two weeks ago – ended without a ceasefire. Ukraine’s foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, said there had been no progress towards achieving a ceasefire in talks in Turkey with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov.
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Ukraine opened seven humanitarian corridors for civilians to evacuate on Thursday, but not a single person was able to leave the besieged port city of Mariupol, the Ukrainian deputy prime minister said. In Ukraine’s north-eastern Sumy region, more than 12,000 civilians were evacuated by car or bus, the state emergency services said.
- Hundreds of thousands of people in Mariupol face an “increasingly dire and desperate” humanitarian situation, the International Red Cross has said. A delegation leader said people in Mariupol had “started to attack each other for food” and many people report having no food for their children.
- Boris Johnson has expressed fears that Vladimir Putin may use chemical weapons in Ukraine. Echoing language used by the White House, the UK prime minister said Russian claims about its enemies getting ready to use chemical weapons were “straight out of their playbook”.
- Twitter has removed a post by the Russian embassy in London about Wednesday’s Mariupol hospital bombing which claimed that the facility was no longer operational and that images of the attack had been faked, following criticism from Downing Street.
- Wednesday’s airstrike on a maternity hospital in Mariupol was the third time a Ukrainian maternity hospital had been destroyed since Russia’s invasion began, a UN official said. Three people, including a child, were killed in the airstrike, Zelenskiy, said.
- Germany’s former chancellor Gerhard Schröder is meeting the Russian president in Moscow today for talks on ending the war in Ukraine, Politico reported, citing sources familiar with the matter. German officials said the government had not agreed to any meeting involving the former chancellor and Putin.
- The Chelsea football club owner, Roman Abramovich, is among seven of Russia’s wealthiest and most influential oligarchs to have been hit with sanctions by the UK, in an effort to further punish allies of Vladimir Putin over the invasion of Ukraine.
- Interpol’s general secretariat said it will monitor Russia’s use of its internal systems, but declined a request from the Five Eyes intelligence alliance to suspend Russian access to its databases. The British home secretary Priti Patel joined counterparts from the US, Australia, Canada and New Zealand to call for Interpol’s general secretariat to suspend Russia’s access to its information-sharing mechanisms.
– Guardian staff
Updated
Zelenskiy, speaking in Russian, also addressed Russian propaganda:
Russian propagandists have livened up today and did their best, I guess, in order to cover up the crimes of their army in Ukraine, crimes against Mariupol, Donbas, Kharkiv, crimes against tens of other cities. To cover them up with new accusations and new old fakes. They accuse us of developing a biological weapon, that we’re purportedly plotting a chemical attack. I’m worried about it because we have repeatedly seen for ourselves: if you want to learn the plans of Russia, look at what Russia is accusing others of...
They come to us with tanks and rockets, grab what’s ours, occupy. They are embarrassed to even show it to their officers, hide their generals, and conceal from their people that they deploy conscripts only to increase their invading power. And we are the guilty ones. We are being accused of attacking peace-loving Russia...
I’m a sane president of the sane people. I’m the father of two children. No chemical or any other kind of weapon of mass destruction is being developed on our land. The entire world knows that. You know that. And if you do anything like that against us, it will receive the harshest sanctions in response.
Updated
Zelenskiy: 'We are all dealing with a terrorist state'
Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Russia’s attacks were “open terrorism from experienced terrorists”.
In his most recent address, he said around 100,000 people had evacuated the country’s cities in two days, but accused Russian forces of targeting a humanitarian corridor in the city of Mariupol.
Zelenskiy said he sent a convoy of trucks into the besieged port city with food, water and medicine but Russian forces “launched a tank attack exactly where this corridor was supposed to be”, he said in a video statement, describing it as “outright terror”.
Over the past two days, we have already evacuated around 100,000 people through humanitarian corridors. However Mariupol, Volnovakha remain entirely blocked. Even though we did everything to organise a humanitarian corridor, Russian troops did not stop shelling. Despite that, I decided to send a convoy of cargo [trucks] for Mariupol with food water, and medication.
I’m thankful to all drivers, brave people who were ready to fulfill this mission. An important mission. However, the invaders began a tank attack on the place where that corridor was supposed to take place. A corridor of life for Mariupol.
They did it deliberately, they knew what they were blowing up, they have an order to keep the city a hostage, abuse it and bomb it constantly, and shell it. Today they destroyed the building of the main directorate of the state emergency service in Donetsk oblast. The meeting spot for people waiting for evacuation was next to that building. It’s open terrorism from experienced terrorists.
The world must know it. The world must acknowledge it. We are all dealing with a terrorist state. Whatever happens, we will keep trying to deliver humanitarian aid to Mariupol that its people are in dire need of. Our people, Ukrainians. Invaders do everything to deceive out people in the blocked cities.
They block communication, don’t give information, the state is doing everything to help the city to let Mariupol residents know: We are fighting. We won’t stop the fight. If you have an opportunity to talk to people in Mariupol, to write to them, remind them that Ukraine is wholeheartedly with them and is doing everything to stop the torture of the city.
Updated
Luke Harding in Lviv and Caroline Bannock:
Russia’s siege of Mariupol resumed in the dark hours of the morning, residents said, at around 3am. “The windows are shaking. It’s fucking early today,” Angela Timchenko posted on Facebook.
She described the latest bombardment of the Ukrainian city – now in its ninth day – as a “heavy downpour”. She added: “I think about where to find some tea and a drop of sugar.”
It was “frosty outside and fiercely cold” inside Mariupol’s apartments, which are without heat. There was, as she put it, “no bitch snow, which means there will be no water”. Earlier in the week the city’s residents collected snow to turn into drinking water. Without running water, Timchenko said, she was struggling to feed her family. “Tell me, is it possible to bake an egg in foil? I have six of them lying around. Kids would have had their breakfast,” she wrote.
The destruction of the city continued, residents said. On Wednesday a Russian warplane dropped a bomb on Mariupol’s maternity hospital number nine. According to Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, the strike killed three people, including a girl. Seventeen patients and staff were injured. The photos of pregnant women being carried over a landscape of rubble and smouldering craters outraged the world. This, Zelenskiy said, was genocide.
Petro Andriushchenko, a member of the city council, said genocide was still happening. Mariupol was under “constant shelling” from Russian artillery, he said: from Grad and Smerch rockets and Tochka-U missiles. On Thursday missiles pulverised another residential district, clawing holes out of several buildings. Shells also landed on Mariupol’s drama theatre, built in Soviet neoclassical style and located in the city centre.
According to Andriushchenko, Mariupol’s left bank, normally home to 135,000 people, was “no longer liveable”.
Read more:
The scale of the destruction in the Ukrainian port city of Mariupol at the hands of Russian forces has emerged in new satellite images that show devastated residential building, blasted parklands and smouldering grocery stores:
‘We all want to return’: residents fleeing Kyiv mourn a deserted city
Lorenzo Tondo in Lviv:
Two weeks ago, the greater Kyiv area had a bustling population of about 3.5 million people, its streets buzzing with busy cafes, businesses and bars.
Today, after 13 days of bombing by the Russian military, the Ukrainian capital is deserted, with 50% of its inhabitants gone.
“Half of the Kyiv population has fled,” Kyiv’s mayor, Vitali Klitschko, said on Thursday as Moscow’s forces continue to give the city no respite. “A little less than 2 million have fled the capital.”
In recent days, as the Russian bombardments in Irpin and other suburbs of the capital intensified, the citizens of Kyiv have been flowing into the western city of Lviv, where tens of thousands of people have sought shelter since the beginning of the invasion.
Anastasya Stepanchuk, 28, was determined to stay in her home in the Kyiv suburbs with her husband, who is fighting to defend the capital.
As Russian forces started to press closer to the city, she decided to flee. She left behind an unrecognisable Kyiv, the cafes and shops shuttered and the streets full of roadblocks and anti-tank defences. It has become, says Klitschko, “a fortress, with every street, building and checkpoint fortified”.
“I had to flee and I’m scared, because I left a lot of friends and, of course, my husband,” she says. “I don’t want to go abroad. I’m determined to go back to my city when things improve. Once Ukraine wins, I will come back to Kyiv to build it back. We all want to return and take part in the rebuilding.”
Many of those forced to flee their city spoke of their fears of what they would find on their return.
Read more:
Updated
Facebook and Instagram will temporarily allow users in some countries to call for violence against Russians when speaking about the Ukraine invasion, reports Reuters.
Meta Platforms will allow Facebook and Instagram users in some countries to call for violence against Russians and Russian soldiers in the context of the Ukraine invasion, according to internal emails seen by Reuters on Thursday, in a temporary change to its hate speech policy.”
The social media company is also temporarily allowing some posts that call for death to Russian President Vladimir Putin or Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko in countries including Russia, Ukraine and Poland, according to a series of internal emails to its content moderators.
These calls for death will be allowed unless they contain other targets or have two indicators of credibility, such as the location or method, one email reportedly said, in a recent change to the company’s rules on violence and incitement.
Last week, Russia said it was banning Facebook in the country in response to what it said were restrictions of access to Russian media on the platform. Moscow has also cracked down on tech companies.
Many major social media platforms have announced new content restrictions around the conflict, including blocking Russian state media RT and Sputnik in Europe, and have demonstrated carve-outs in some of their policies during the war.
Emails also showed that Meta would allow praise of the right-wing Azov battalion, which is normally prohibited, in a change first reported by The Intercept.
Meta spokesman Joe Osborne previously said the company was “for the time being, making a narrow exception for praise of the Azov Regiment strictly in the context of defending Ukraine, or in their role as part of the Ukraine National Guard.”
Updated
Ukraine’s minister of defense, Oleksii Reznikov, said today that Russian forces had killed more civilians than Ukrainian service personnel, describing Russia’s invasion as a “terrorist war.”
From the Kyiv Independent:
⚡️Reznikov: Russian forces killed more civilians than Ukrainian service personnel.
— The Kyiv Independent (@KyivIndependent) March 10, 2022
Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov has described Russia’s invasion as a “terrorist war." According to Reznikov, Russian troops killed more Ukrainian civilians than soldiers.
Updated
Ukraine told the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that it has lost all contact with Chernobyl following a power cut at the facility, reported Reuters.
Ukraine told the U.N. nuclear watchdog on Thursday it has lost all contact with the radioactive waste facilities at Chernobyl next to the defunct power plant at the site of the world’s worst nuclear accident in 1986, which is now held by Russian forces.
“Ukraine informed the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that it had lost today all communications with the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant (NPP), the day after the Russian-controlled site lost all external power supplies,” the IAEA said in a statement, adding that before there was contact by email.
IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi spoke on the ongoing situation at Chernobyl, saying in a statement:
“From day to day, we are seeing a worsening situation at the Chornobyl NPP, especially for radiation safety, and for the staff managing the facility under extremely difficult and challenging circumstances,” he said. “I repeat my urgent appeal to the forces in effective control of the plant to respect internal radiation protection procedures, to facilitate the safe rotation of staff and to take other important steps to ensure safety.”
The US Pentagon had another briefing on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine today that happened off camera. Here are updates on what was said, from Foreign Policy reporter Jack Detsch:
- The US will not be providing Patriot missile defense batteries to Ukraine, as such actions would force the US to send troops into Ukraine.
NEW: U.S. will NOT provide Patriot missile defense batteries to Ukraine: senior U.S. defense official.
— Jack Detsch (@JackDetsch) March 10, 2022
Giving Ukraine top-grade American missile batteries would force the U.S. to send troops to the war-torn country, which BIDEN has ruled out.
- Russia has launched more than 50 missiles into Ukraine each day since the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, with more than 60 missiles launched yesterday.
Russia has launched more than 50 missiles into Ukraine each day in more than two weeks of war: senior U.S. defense official.
— Jack Detsch (@JackDetsch) March 10, 2022
That's 775 missiles total of "all stripes and sizes," officials said, including 60-plus launches since yesterday.
- The US assesses that Russia has not improved their air-to-ground military coordination, more than two weeks into its invasion of Ukraine.
U.S. assesses that Russia HAS NOT improved air-to-ground military coordination more than 2 weeks into invasion of Ukraine: senior U.S. defense official.
— Jack Detsch (@JackDetsch) March 10, 2022
- The US has not seen any significant Russian military strikes in Western Ukraine.
U.S. has NOT seen any significant Russian military strikes in Western Ukraine: senior U.S. defense official
— Jack Detsch (@JackDetsch) March 10, 2022
Updated
Ukraine is a model for how Taiwan could respond if China violates the country’s “sovereignty” by attacking, a senior US defence official has said, according to Reuters.
Ukraine’s stiff resistance against the invasion by Russian forces could be a model for Taiwan to defend itself should China choose to violate the island’s “sovereignty” by attacking, a senior US defence official told a Senate hearing on Thursday.
The United States, like most countries, does not have formal ties with Taiwan, but is its main arms supplier, and has long urged it to buy cost effective and mobile defense systems * so-called “asymmetric” weapons * to counter China’s more powerful military.
“I think the situation we’re seeing in Ukraine right now is a very worthwhile case study for them about why Taiwan needs to do all it can to build asymmetric capabilities, to get its population ready, so that it can be as prickly as possible should China choose to violate its sovereignty,” Mara Karlin, assistant secretary of defence for strategy, plans and capabilities, said.
Under the United States’ “one China” policy, Washington only acknowledges China’s stance that the island belongs to it, but takes no position on Taiwan’s sovereignty.
China bristles at any reference to democratically self-governed Taiwan as independent, and Beijing’s ambassador to Washington warned in January that US encouragement of independence could trigger a military conflict between the two superpowers.
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Interpol’s general secretariat said it will monitor Russia’s use of its internal systems, but declined a request from the Five Eyes intelligence alliance to suspend Russian access to its databases.
Earlier this week, the British home secretary Priti Patel joined counterparts from the US, Australia, Canada and New Zealand to call for Interpol’s general secretariat to suspend Russia’s access to its information-sharing mechanisms, effectively the backbone of the organisation.
This follows calls from Ukraine to exclude Russia entirely from the organisation due to both the war in Ukraine and Russia’s frequent past abuse of Interpol’s red notice system which tracks suspects, due to fears it could now use this system to hunt Ukrainian politicians or other dissidents abroad.
1/ Alongside counterparts from 🇺🇸 🇨🇦 🇦🇺 and 🇳🇿, I have written today calling on @INTERPOL_HQ and its Executive Committee to take a decision this week, in accordance with its rules, on the immediate suspension of Russia’s access to its systems.
— Priti Patel (@pritipatel) March 6, 2022
Patel and the Five Eyes demanded a response from Interpol within a week, prompting a meeting of the organisation’s 13-member executive committee yesterday.
The Interpol general secretariat told the Guardian that “to prevent any potential misuse of Interpol’s channels in relation to the targeting of individuals within or beyond the conflict in Ukraine, heightened supervision and monitoring measures in relation to Russia have now been implemented by the Secretary General, a decision which was endorsed by the Executive Committee.”
They added that new rules prevent Russia’s point of contact with Interpol, known as a National Central Bureau (NCB) from sending diffusion alerts, which notify countries bilaterally that a state seeks the arrest of an individual without Interpol’s central body screening the messages. Instead, Moscow must now send any diffusions to be checked by the general secretariat before distribution.
The decision dodges demands from Five Eyes and Ukraine to suspend Russia’s access to Interpol’s 19 databases used to process data on suspects, in effect suspending them from the organisation. Russia is currently responsible for 44 percent of the publicly available Interpol red notices.
“Calls at the political level have been made to suspend or exclude Russia from the Interpol network. In parallel, law enforcement leaders from around the world have also requested continued cooperation with Russia via Interpol, highlighting serious security and safety concerns if information sharing is stopped,” said the Interpol general secretariat.
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Walt Disney Co announced today that they will be pausing business in Russia, the latest multinational company to do so, reported Reuters.
Walt Disney Co said on Thursday it will pause all business in Russia, including content and product licensing, Disney Cruise Line activities, National Geographic magazine and tours, local content productions and linear channels.
“Given the unrelenting assault on Ukraine and the escalating humanitarian crisis, we are taking steps to pause all other businesses in Russia,” the media and entertainment company said.
Disney said some businesses including linear channels and content and product licensing will take time to pause due to contractual nuances, while other streams of business will pause immediately.
The company had earlier said it would halt the release of theatrical films in Russia. Other Hollywood studios Warner Bros. and Sony Pictures Entertainment too had decided on such a move last month in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Russia has called its actions in the country a “special operation.”
Updated
Russia is using more of its forces to encircle key cities in Ukraine, slowing its advance throughout the country, reports Reuters citing UK intelligence.
Commenting on the status of Russia’s invasion, the UK’s defense ministry tweeted:
Due to strong Ukrainian resistance, Russian forces are committing an increased number of their deployed forces to encircle key cities. This will reduce the number of forces available to continue their advance and will further slow Russian progress.
(1 of 2) Due to strong Ukrainian resistance, Russian forces are committing an increased number of their deployed forces to encircle key cities. This will reduce the number of forces available to continue their advance and will further slow Russian progress.
— Ministry of Defence 🇬🇧 (@DefenceHQ) March 10, 2022
The US State Department also confirmed that Russian forces are encircling Ukrainian cities after destroying critical infrastructure, calling on Russia to allow Ukrainian civilians to evacuate via humanitarian corridors.
“Putin’s military plan to quickly capture Ukraine, it is clear now has failed. So he’s now turning to a strategy of laying waste to population centers to try to break the will of the people of Ukraine, something he will not be able to do,” said State Department spokesperson Ned Price to reporters.
Updated
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) will be presenting ideas to Russia and Ukraine today on how to ensure the safety of nuclear facilities in Ukraine, with a meeting expected soon, reported Reuters.
The U.N. nuclear watchdog will present ideas to Ukraine and Russia in the coming hours on how to ensure the safety of nuclear facilities in Ukraine and a meeting is likely “very soon,” its chief Rafael Grossi said on Thursday.
“I am quite encouraged on one important thing: Ukraine and the Russian Federation want to work with us and agreed to work with us,” Grossi told a news conference after a trip to Turkey where he met Russia and Ukraine’s foreign ministers separately. “We have to move fast.”
Updated
In Canada, a Russian pianist was pulled from an upcoming set of performances, despite speaking out against the war in Ukraine, one example of poorly thought out protests and censures amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
After mounting pressure from the city’s Ukrainian community, the Montreal Symphony Orchestra said in a statement it would be “inappropriate” for 20-year old Alexander Malofeev to perform a series of concertos this week.
Malofeev, who has family members in Ukraine, has previously criticized Russia’s “terrible and bloody” decision to invade the country.
“Honestly, the only thing I can do now is to pray and cry,” he wrote on Facebook. “I do understand that my problems are very insignificant compared to those of people in Ukraine, including my relatives who live there,” he wrote.
The Montreal symphony said it would welcome back Malofeev “when the context allows it.”
Updated
The Russian defence ministry said today that it would open up humanitarian corridors for civilians to evacuate from Ukraine to Russia everyday at 10 am Moscow time, reported Reuters citing Interfax news agency.
Ukraine previously rejected a similar proposal from Russia earlier on in the conflict.
Yesterday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called the proposal to build humanitarian corridors for civilians to go from Ukraine to Russia “absurd.”
Updated
Over 400,000 civilians have been evacuated in Ukraine, mostly from active battle zones, reports Reuters.
People queue after a train from Poland arrived with people fleeing Ukraine following Russia’s invasion, at the central train station in Berlin, Germany, March 10, 2022. Photograph: Lisi Niesner/Reuters
Over 400,000 civilians have so far been evacuated in Ukraine, mostly from active battle zones, interior minister Denys Monastyrsky said on national television on Thursday.
“They have been evacuated primarily from areas where there is ongoing combat,” he said.
Summary
It’s 9pm in Ukraine. Here’s where we stand:
- High-level talks between Russia and Ukraine – the first of their kind since Moscow invaded its neighbour two weeks ago – ended without a ceasefire. Ukraine’s foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, said there had been no progress towards achieving a ceasefire in talks in Turkey with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov.
-
Ukraine opened seven humanitarian corridors for civilians to evacuate on Thursday, but not a single person was able to leave the besieged port city of Mariupol, the Ukrainian deputy prime minister said. In Ukraine’s north-eastern Sumy region, more than 12,000 civilians were evacuated by car or bus, the state emergency services said.
- Hundreds of thousands of people in Mariupol face an “increasingly dire and desperate” humanitarian situation, the International Red Cross has said. A delegation leader said people in Mariupol had “started to attack each other for food” and many people report having no food for their children.
- Boris Johnson has expressed fears that Vladimir Putin may use chemical weapons in Ukraine. Echoing language used by the White House, the UK prime minister said Russian claims about its enemies getting ready to use chemical weapons were “straight out of their playbook”.
- Twitter has removed a post by the Russian embassy in London about Wednesday’s Mariupol hospital bombing which claimed that the facility was no longer operational and that images of the attack had been faked, following criticism from Downing Street.
- Yesterday’s airstrike on a maternity hospital in Mariupol was the third time a Ukrainian maternity hospital had been destroyed since Russia’s invasion began, a UN official said. Three people, including a child, were killed in the airstrike, Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, said.
- Germany’s former chancellor Gerhard Schröder is meeting the Russian president in Moscow today for talks on ending the war in Ukraine, Politico reported, citing sources familiar with the matter. German officials said the government had not agreed to any meeting involving the former chancellor and Putin.
- The Chelsea football club owner, Roman Abramovich, is among seven of Russia’s wealthiest and most influential oligarchs to have been hit with sanctions by the UK, in an effort to further punish allies of Vladimir Putin over the invasion of Ukraine.
That’s it from me, Léonie Chao-Fong, for today as I hand over the blog to my colleague Gloria Oladipo in the US. Goodbye for now.
Updated
China’s president Xi Jinping is “unsettled” by the Russian invasion of Ukraine because “his own intelligence doesn’t appear to have told him what was going to happen”, according to the CIA director, Bill Burns.
Speaking to the US Senate intelligence committee today, Burns said Xi was concerned about the “reputational damage” that China could suffer by association with the “ugliness” of Russia’s aggression in Ukraine.
President Xi is probably a little bit unsettled as he watches the way in which President Putin has driven Americans and Europeans more closely together and strengthened the transatlantic alliance in ways that would have been a little bit hard to imagine before the invasion began.
Updated
Russia has banned exports of wheat, meslin, rye, barley and corn to the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) until 31 August, the Russian economy ministry said.
Russia’s decision to suspend exports to EEU member countries – Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgystan and Russia itself – is to ensure its home market has enough food, the ministry said.
Russia will also ban sugar exports to third countries until 31 August, but some exceptions would be possible for the EEU countries, the ministry added.
⚡ Таможенная подкомиссия приняла решение о запрете на экспорт из России зерна в страны ЕАЭС (до 31 августа, касается пшеницы, меслина, ржи, ячменя и кукурузы)
— РИА Новости (@rianru) March 10, 2022
Updated
The CIA director, William Burns, was asked by the Senate intelligence committee about the possibility of Russian use of chemical weapons, possibly in a false-flag attack, Julian Borger writes.
This is something, as all of you know very well, that is very much a part of Russia’s playbook.
They’ve used those weapons against their own citizens. They’ve at least encouraged the use in Syria and elsewhere.
So it’s something we take very seriously.
Updated
Boris Johnson has expressed fears that the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, may use chemical weapons in Ukraine, Andrew Sparrow writes.
Echoing language used by the White House, Johnson told Sky News that Russian claims about its enemies getting ready to use chemical weapons were “straight out of their playbook”, and similar to what happened before the use of chemical weapons in Syria.
In an interview with Beth Rigby, Johnson said:
I’ll make you one other prediction, by the way, which is that the stuff that you’re hearing about chemical weapons – this is straight out of their playbook.
They start saying that there are chemical weapons that have been stored by their opponents or by the Americans. And so when they themselves deploy chemical weapons, as I fear they may, they have a sort of maskirovka, a fake story, ready to go. And you’ve seen it in Syria. You saw it even in the UK.
Asked if he expected a chemical weapons attack by Russia, Johnson said:
I just note that that is what they’re already doing. It is a cynical, barbaric government, I’m afraid.
Speaking to Sky’s @BethRigby Boris Johnson has reiterated Western officials' fears that Putin could use chemical weapons in Ukraine after Moscow accused Kyiv of planning to deploy them in the battlefield#Rigby: https://t.co/tHthJRwYeFpic.twitter.com/3xphDEo3iW
— Sky News (@SkyNews) March 10, 2022
Updated
The leaders of US intelligence agencies have been briefing the Senate on “worldwide threats”, with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine very much dominating the discussion, Julian Borger reports.
The director of national intelligence, Avril Haines, was asked about Russian allegations of a US-backed biological weapons lab in Ukraine. This is what Haines had to say:
Let me be clear. We do not assess that Ukraine is pursuing either biological weapons or nuclear weapons, which have been some of the propaganda that Russia is putting out.
She continued:
So as I understand it, Ukraine operates about a little over a dozen bio labs, and what they are involved in is Ukraine’s bio-defense and their public health response.
And I think that the US government provides assistance and or at least has in the past provided assistance, in the context of biosafety, which is something that we’ve done globally with a variety of different countries.
She described bio-defence as:
Medical counter-measures for example, things that will help you to address a pandemic if there is an outbreak in your country … things that prevent spreading of pandemics and other health issues … that you’re taking appropriate precautions, that you’re letting the medical community internationally know.
Updated
Many civilians who remain in the Ukrainian capital have signed up to become military reservists, and are busy preparing the city for an expected ground attack by Russian forces.
Student film-maker Volodymyr Yurchenko, 22, says he is documenting the preparations as a historical record. He tells the Guardian about what he thinks the footage he has shot says about his compatriots’ resolve.
Greece says it will send airplanes and buses to Poland to help expedite the transfer of refugees to the country, Helena Smith reports.
The Greek migration minister, Notis Mitarachi, said Athens had accepted a request for help from Warsaw as ever more Ukrainians flee their homeland.
He told Skai TV:
Poland asked us yesterday for help. We will send airplanes or buses to take people from Poland to Greece because Poland is now hosting more than 1.3 million people.
Seven thousand Ukrainians have already arrived in our country ... they almost immediately receive 12-month residence permits.
On Wednesday the Greek education minister said more than 1,000 refugee students would be enrolled in schools.
The majority are from the 120,000-strong ethnic Greek community in the besieged city of Mariupol, many of whom speak Greek. Special language classes will be launched for children who are non-Greek speakers.
The prime minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, has vowed to support members of the minority group in Ukraine, with Greek-Russian relations being badly shaken by an invasion that the leader has described as unprovoked and barbaric.
Updated
Mariupol maternity hospital third to be destroyed in Ukraine, UN official says
Wednesday’s airstrike on a maternity hospital in Mariupol that reportedly killed three people, including one child, was at least the third time Ukrainian maternity hospitals had been destroyed since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the UN said.
The UN’s reproductive health agency said two other Ukrainian maternity hospitals had been attacked before Russia’s strike on a facility in the south-eastern city of Mariupol yesterday, Agence France-Presse reports.
The hospital in Mariupol is “not the only one” that has fallen under assault, Jaime Nadal, the Ukraine lead for the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), told reporters today.
In Zhytomyr, the maternity [hospital] was completely destroyed. In Saltivsky, the maternity [hospital] was also destroyed.
Nadal did not specify who launched the other attacks or if there were any victims.
Updated
No civilian was able to leave the besieged Ukrainian city of Mariupol today, Ukraine’s deputy prime minister, Iryna Vereshchuk, said.
Speaking on Ukrainian national television, Vereshchuk said evacuations from Mariupol could not proceed because Russian forces had failed to respect a temporary ceasefire.
In Ukraine’s north-eastern Sumy region, more than 12,000 civilians were evacuated by car or bus, state emergency service said in a statement.
Updated
Twitter has taken down a post by the Russian embassy in London which claimed Wednesday’s attack on a maternity hospital in Mariupol had been staged.
The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, said today that three people, including a child, were killed in yesterday’s airstrike on the hospital.
NEW: Twitter has removed content from Russian Embassy UK claiming the bombing of a maternity hospital had been staged pic.twitter.com/dV3TvduDj4
— James Clayton (@JamesClayton5) March 10, 2022
Russia’s defence ministry has denied responsibility for the strike and accused Ukraine of a “staged provocation” there, claiming Russia carried out no airstrikes on ground targets in that area on Wednesday out of respect for an agreed “silent regime”.
The Russian defence ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said:
The Russian aviation carried out absolutely no missions to hit targets on the ground in the Mariupol area.
He added:
The airstrike that allegedly took place is a completely staged provocation to maintain anti-Russian hype for a western audience.
Updated
More than 60 hospitals in Ukraine have been damaged by Russian forces and five medical workers killed since Russia launched its invasion, Ukraine’s health minister, Viktor Liashko, said.
In a Facebook post published today, Liashko blamed the deaths of five healthcare workers on “Russian terrorist bullets”.
Note: the Guardian has not been able to independently verify these figures.
Updated
Updated
More than 1,200 bodies have been collected on the streets of the besieged Ukrainian port of Mariupol since Russian shelling began, the city’s deputy mayor said.
Speaking to the BBC, Serhiy Orlov said he doesn’t know how many people have been killed in total in the city, but the most recent figure is 1,207.
These are “just bodies that we collected on the street”, Orlov said.
Forty-seven people had been buried in a mass grave as it was not possible to reach burial sites outside the city, he said. “Not all of them were identified,” he added.
Updated
Germany’s former chancellor Gerhard Schröder is meeting the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, in Moscow today for talks on ending the war in Ukraine, Politico reports, citing sources familiar with the matter.
Schröder Moscow visit followed talks in Istanbul with a Ukrainian politician who is a member of the country’s delegation for peace talks with Russia, sources told Politico.
One source said:
Ukraine wanted to see if Schröder could build a bridge for dialogue with Putin.
Schröder, who served as German chancellor from 1998 to 2005, has come under fierce criticism at home and abroad for his refusal to sever his close links to Russian companies since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
He is on the board of Russian oil giant Rosneft and is chairman of the shareholders’ committee of the company that is in charge of building the Nord Stream 2 pipeline.
Last week, the entire staff of Schröder taxpayer-funded office resigned in response to his refusal to quit these lucrative positions at Russian gas companies.
German officials said the government had not agreed to any meeting involving the former chancellor and Putin, Reuters reports.
Asked about the report, one source said: “This was neither agreed with the government nor was it involved.” A second source confirmed this.
Updated
The UK home secretary has said Britain will ease its rigid entry requirements for Ukrainian refugees, meaning those with passports can apply for entry online and only have to give biometric details when they are in the UK.
Priti Patel’s announcement, responding to an urgent Commons question from her Labour counterpart, Yvette Cooper, follows days of criticism about the bureaucratic delays facing Ukrainians with family ties to the UK.
Updated
The Guardian’s Lizzy Davies has been speaking with Dr Natalia Kanem, the executive director of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), who’s in Moldova to see how the refugee effort is getting on.
She had strong words on yesterday’s bombing of the maternity hospital in Mariupol, describing it as “an egregious act” that broke her heart. When she heard the news, she said, she “sat down and “just put my head in my hands”.
The bombing of that maternity hospital in Mariupol is an egregious act. And I condemn what is simply a blatant contempt for the protection of innocent civilian life, and something that contradicts humanitarian law.
It was clear, she added, that “women and children, again and again, unacceptably, are the ones that are bearing the brunt” of the violence.
The protection of civilians has to be priority number one, international humanitarian and human rights law must be upheld and that bombing is one of the most egregious acts that we’ve seen.
The attack was particularly upsetting as it came “at a moment when new life is beginning”, Dr Kanem said, turning what what should have been moments of peace and safety into a horror scene.
To know that women, newborn babies, children were being pulled out of rubble and that they had died was extremely distressing, and my heart just broke.
Updated
Tanya, 18, a student from Mariupol and now studying abroad, was in contact with her mum and brother, who are still in Mariupol, on Wednesday. Here’s her story.
Yesterday my brother and my mum managed to find a spot where they could find a connection to call us. They were risking their lives going outside but they know me and my dad are extremely worried about them. They were on the phone for four or five minutes. My brother was trying to be positive but I could hear in his voice that he’s feeling desperate and they don’t know how they’re going to leave the city. It’s been one week without enough food and water, without electricity, and without heating and it’s hard because Mariupol is pretty cold.
I was born in Mariupol and I lived there for the last 10 years. In the last few years, our mayor made many changes; lots of areas have been rebuilt, and it has become a much more beautiful city. There was even a new shopping centre. And now everything is destroyed.
I can’t imagine this is happening now. I feel this is surreal. I feel like I’m just dreaming and as I’m talking about it, my hands are shaking, it’s so hard to process. Thankfully my dad, who’s a ship engineer, was onboard when the war started. Now we’re together in Germany where his company is based. Normally I’m studying in another country but I’m with him because he can’t handle it. He’s very emotional, he’s crying every five minutes because his wife and son - my mum and brother - are in Mariupol.
My brother told us that a rocket had hit the neighbouring building to the underground car park he and my mum are living in. It’s safer in the carpark than our apartment, which is on the 5th floor and is very dangerous because some of the buildings around it have been completely bombed. They’re sleeping in the car, so they can keep a little bit warm and can charge their phone. There are around 10 or 12 people down there, and my brother told me that everyone is trying to help each other; if someone has spare food or water, they share it.
There is very little food and water now. I know my mum and my brother cooked a huge amount of porridge at the beginning, a week ago, when they still had electricity. They also filled the bath in the apartment with water. They did some shopping to stock up when the war started but it’s never enough.
My mum told us, on the phone, that they’ve lost so much weight, she said it’s because they’re so stressed. She said: “Without food, that’s fine, you know. We’re not scared anymore, we’re just tired, tired from this situation. There’s no fear now, we kind of get used to all this, shooting - that’s fine, bombing - that’s fine.” She said they’re not craving food anymore, even though they’re hungry. They’re just so tired. They want to leave, they want to be safe.
I heard in news reports that a kid died of dehydration. I couldn’t believe it was possible to die of dehydration in the city, in 2022. It’s crazy, it’s really crazy.
It made me and my dad feel a little bit happier yesterday because we heard their voices. They were trying so hard to be positive when they were talking to us. My brother said we have to be strong and we have to believe in them and in Mariupol and that they will win and they will survive. My mum said “Hope dies last” even when you’re devastated and destroyed emotionally, you have to believe in the best.
Updated
Hundreds of thousands in Mariupol have no food, water, heat, electricity or medical care
Hundreds of thousands of people in the besieged Ukrainian port city of Mariupol have no food, water, heat, electricity, or medical care amid an “increasingly dire and desperate” humanitarian situation, says the International Red Cross.
In an audio message recorded on Wednesday, the organisation’s delegation deputy head, Sasha Volkov, described the harrowing conditions in the city.
“Many people report having no food for children,” Volkov said.
People started to attack each other for food. People started to ruin someone’s car to take the gasoline out.
All the shops and pharmacies were looted several days ago, he said, and people have been getting sick because of the cold.
We keep the shelter, the basement, only for children and their mother. All other adults and children above twelve they sleep in the office.
He continued:
We will have food for a few days. We have started to get sick, many of us, because of the humidity and cold that we have. We tried to achieve hygiene standards as much as possible but not always actually possible.
Updated
Ten students from South Africa who fled Ukraine following Russia’s invasion arrived home today, with 25 more expected to follow over the coming days.
The students arrived on a repatriation flight organised by the South African government and were welcomed by cheering family and friends at OR Tambo international airport in Johannesburg, the Associated Press reports.
“How can South Africa help Ukraine at this moment of crisis? How do we help the people? Because people are being killed,” said one of the students, Butlhari Mtonga. “I know people who have been killed, people are targeted. It is a very serious situation. How can we help bring peace in that land?”
Updated
Vladimir Putin has claimed that global food prices will rise further if international economic pressure on Russia continues, reports Reuters. Russia is a major global fertiliser producer.
The Russian agriculture minister, Dmitry Patrushev, told a government meeting chaired by the Russian president that the country’s food security was safe and that Moscow would continue to service its export obligations for global agriculture markets.
Updated
Video footage from the occupied south-eastern Ukrainian city of Melitopol shows residents continuing to resist:
Ukrainian citizens in cities under occupation and siege continue to protest against Russian invasion aggression and occupation this is from #Melitopol #UkraineProtests #UkraineResistance #NonviolentResistance pic.twitter.com/s2t5sevXTF
— Dr. Olga Onuch (@oonuch) March 10, 2022
Updated
Russia’s energy ministry has claimed that Belarusian specialists have restored electricity supply to the Chernobyl, reports Reuters.
The nuclear power plant in Ukraine lost power after Ukraine’s state energy company said it was cut off by Russian troops who seized it nearly two weeks ago.
The UN nuclear watchdog said afterwards that it did not believe it was a safety risk.
Russia reportedly plans to change conscription rules
Russia plans to change conscription rules so that a summons can be sent by mail, reports Nexta tv.
If a conscript does not receive a letter and does not go to the recruiting office themselves, it will be considered a criminal offence.
❗️ #Russia intends to change conscription rules
— NEXTA (@nexta_tv) March 10, 2022
It is proposed to make amendments so that a summons can be sent to a conscript by registered mail.
If he does not receive the letter and does not come to the recruiting office on his own, it will be considered a criminal offence. pic.twitter.com/kZHZByfsFo
Updated
Goldman Sachs becomes first Wall Street bank to exit Russia since invasion
Goldman Sachs has announced that it is closing its operations in Russia, becoming the first major Wall Street bank to exit the country since the invasion of Ukraine.
“Goldman Sachs is winding down its business in Russia in compliance with regulatory and licensing requirements,” the bank said in statement to Reuters.
It comes after the bank earlier disclosed a credit exposure to Russia of $650m in its annual filing.
Updated
Putin claims west trying to blame Russia for own mistakes
Vladimir Putin has claimed the west is trying to blame Russia for its own mistakes with the US ban on oil and accused countries of deceiving their populations.
Reuters reports that the Russian president has said that sanctions on Russia are not legitimate and pledged to resolve problems that arise.
He said that Russia is adhering to its obligations on energy and pointed to rising inflation in the US, citing its ban on Russian oil.
Meanwhile, Russia’s ministry of finance, known as Minfin, said it has taken measures to limit outflow of capital and that it will work with the Russian central bank to ensure the financial system’s stability.
Its priority, Minfin said, is to stabilise the financial system.
The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, said he was in continued talks with the leaders of other European countries today.
He said he discussed further support with the British prime minister, Boris Johnson, and peace talks with French president, Emmanuel Macron.
Earlier in the day he said he spoke about peace talks with the German chancellor, Olaf Scholz.
Continued dialogue with the leaders of the UK & France. Informed about new crimes of Russia against 🇺🇦 people. Further support for 🇺🇦 was discussed with 🇬🇧 PM @BorisJohnson. We also focused on peace talks with 🇫🇷 President @EmmanuelMacron. We must stop the war. #StopRussia
— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) March 10, 2022
Discussed the course of peace talks with Chancellor @OlafScholz. Stressed the importance of increasing defense support for 🇺🇦 and sanctions pressure on Russia. Raised the issue of Ukraine's membership in the EU on the eve of the informal summit of 🇪🇺 leaders.
— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) March 10, 2022
Updated
More than 2.3 million refugees have fled Ukraine since Russia’s invasion on 24 February, according to figures from the United Nations.
UNHCR, the UN’s refugee agency, recorded 2,316,002 refugees on Thursday – 160,731 more than the previous count on Wednesday.
Officials say there is an emerging "third wave" of refugee flight: "These are people who are very traumatised, they've left without any resources. They're very vulnerable, and they need more direct support."
— Dan Sabbagh (@dansabbagh) March 10, 2022
First wave had contacts, a plan + moved on. Second wave a bit less
Updated
The US commitment to the Nato alliance is “ironclad” and America is prepared to defend “every inch” of Nato territory, the US vice-president, Kamala Harris, has said.
Harris was speaking at a joint news conference with the Polish president, Andrzej Duda, in Warsaw, where she is demonstrating US support for Nato’s eastern flank countries.
The meeting came after the Pentagon rejected Poland’s proposal to transfer its MiG-29 fighter jets to the US for delivery to Ukraine. A Pentagon spokesperson described the plan as “not tenable” on Wednesday.
Harris said:
I want to be very clear. The United States and Poland are united in what we have done, and are prepared to do, to help Ukraine and the people of Ukraine, full stop.
She embraced calls for an international war crimes investigation of Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, citing the “atrocities” of bombing civilians, including a children’s and maternity hospital in Mariupol on Wednesday.
Absolutely there should be an investigation, and we should all be watching.
I have no question [that] the eyes of the world are on this war and what Russia has done in terms of this aggression and these atrocities.
Updated
Updated
Poland has described Wednesday’s strike on a maternity and children’s hospital in the Ukrainian port city of Mariupol as an “act of barbarity” that resembled genocide.
Speaking in Warsaw following a bilateral meeting with the US vice-president, Kamala Harris, the Polish president, Andrzej Duda, called for further sanctions against Moscow:
There are pregnant women, there are children. If you kill ordinary people – you throw bombs, rockets, at housing estates – this is an act of barbarity bearing the features of genocide.
Updated
The UK is “very concerned” about the potential use of chemical weapons by Russia in Ukraine, the foreign secretary, Liz Truss, has said.
In an interview with CNN, Britain’s foreign minister said Russia’s use of chemical weapons would be a “grave mistake”.
We are very concerned about the potential use of chemical weapons. We have seen Russia use these weapons before in fields of conflict, but that would be a grave mistake on the part of Russia, adding to the grave mistakes already being made by Putin.
Truss said the UK “absolutely” believed war crimes have been committed in Ukraine and called for a “tough international response”.
We absolutely believe that war crimes are being committed. We’ve referred the case to the international criminal court, along with 37 other nations.
She added:
This is why we need such a tough international response ... We are doubling down on our sanctions, being tough on banks, (we’re) putting in place (an) elimination of oil from Russia into the United Kingdom.
But we need to do more with our allies because Putin has to lose in Ukraine. That is vitally important. And it’s just appalling, the suffering we’re seeing on the streets of Ukraine.
Updated
Half of Kyiv population has fled since Russian invasion, mayor says
Speaking on Ukrainian television, Kyiv’s mayor, Vitali Klitschko, said half of the capital’s total population had left the city as Russian forces advance on the city, AFP reports.
From our information, one in two Kyiv residents has left the city.
A little less than 2 million people have currently left. However, Kyiv has been transformed into a fortress. Every street, every building, every checkpoint has been fortified.
Updated
Three people including a child were killed in yesterday’s airstrike on a maternity and children’s hospital in the Ukrainian city of Mariupol, Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, said.
In a televised address, Zelenskiy said Russia’s claim that the hospital had no patients was not true.
Like always, they lie confidently.
Earlier, the Russian foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, claimed there had long been no women or children at the hospital in Mariupol, only armed radicals.
Updated
Turkey was keen to promote the importance of what it called “tripartite” talks between the Ukrainian foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, the Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov and Turkish foreign minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, despite little results, Ruth Michaelson reports.
“It is meaningful that this meeting has taken place,” Çavuşoğlu told a press conference. “Both parties wanted Turkey to be present in this meeting.” Asked about the atmosphere in the room, he said it “took place in a civilised manner. They didn’t raise their voices.”
“I didn’t have any expectation that all demands would be met, certain decisions can only be taken at a leadership level,” he added. “Of course we couldn’t expect a miracle to come out of it, but it was meaningful because political contact took place.”
In an interview with Turkish broadcaster TRT World immediately after the talks, Kuleba said that he was surprised that Lavrov was not empowered by the Kremlin to make agreements on his demands for humanitarian corridors and a potential ceasefire.
“He came to discuss but not decide,” he said. “I would like to commend Çavuşoğlu, who really did his best to facilitate the discussion, but I have the impression that Lavrov came to talk but not decide, so we didn’t find common ground on these issues. I proposed a number of solutions, but unfortunately he was not in a position to accept them, my impression is he had no authority to make decisions during these talks,” he said.
“I was surprised to hear it as my assumption is that foreign ministers have the power to make decisions, the power to make deals. But it seems specifically for the first round of talks, Lavrov was not in this position,” he added.
Turkey boasts deep diplomatic and economic ties to both Russia and Ukraine, and has positioned itself as a neutral partner keen to keep the trust of both countries while maintaining its own international commitments as a member of Nato. The Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, is due to speak with the US president, Joe Biden, later today, and the German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, is expected in Ankara next week.
Yet Turkey’s efforts for a diplomatic push are in part an effort for self preservation, as war in Ukraine risks further endangering Turkey’s economy and perhaps even domestic politics. The country is currently weathering a prolonged economic crisis that has seen the lira lose half its value just last year, and protests around rising energy costs and spiralling inflation.
As a major buyer of Russian natural gas as well as Russian and Ukrainian wheat, Turkey’s economy is only becoming more vulnerable as the conflict in Ukraine continues. Many in Turkey expected Erdoğan to call a snap election later this year, which now appears in doubt as the country’s economy seems unlikely to recover as the government previously hoped.
“We don’t have to take sides in war; on the contrary, we are a country that can establish an equal dialogue with both sides to end it. We can’t afford to take sides,” Çavuşoğlu told Turkish TV channel Habertürk earlier this month when asked about international sanctions on Russia.
Turkey has worked to affirm its alliances with both Russia and Ukraine even before Russia’s invasion, including a visit by Erdoğan to Kyiv at the beginning of February. Turkish officials have since stressed that they have remained neutral, despite a constant stream of images broadcast by the Ukrainian defence ministry showing Turkish Bayraktar TB2 drones attacking columns of Russian artillery. Ukraine recently received a new batch of the drones just last week, according to Ukrainian officials.
Both Çavuşoğlu and Kuleba stressed that they were open to further talks if the Russian side agreed. “Turkish diplomacy succeeded in what others could not do, bringing us together for the first meeting between the Ukrainian and Russian foreign ministers in years, especially since the beginning of the conflict,” said Kuleba.
Çavuşoğlu also raised the possibility of a direct meeting between Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky, and the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, either in Belarus or in Turkey. “Lavrov said Putin in principle is not against such a meeting,” he said.
Updated
Dramatic drone footage is circulating this morning of a Ukrainian ambush on a column of Russian tanks just outside Brovary, in a location around 35km direct drive away from the centre of Kyiv, Dan Sabbagh writes.
Bellingcat, the specialist open source investigators, said they had geolocated the video, to a lightly inhabited area on the E95 road heading towards Kyiv – a direct route to the east of the capital where Russian forces are trying to mass.
This video of a Russian military column coming under attack and retreating was geolocated to 50.587111, 30.837889 by @MrWolfih and confirmed by Bellingcat. Filmed in Brovary, northeast of Kyiv. https://t.co/fj8ukOgip0 pic.twitter.com/oc8dV4OOIR
— Bellingcat (@bellingcat) March 10, 2022
The well produced 45-second video circulating is a montage of the fighting on the road, with audio that appears to be a Russian commander reporting the attack to his superiors and the death of a regiment leader. That could also suggest the battle filmed did not take place today.
One Russian military expert who reviewed the video, Rob Lee, a former US marine and PhD student at King’s College London, said he thought this displayed “very poor tactics” on the part of the Russians, with a force clearly positioned “on an obvious avenue of approach”.
Updated
Updated
The Hermitage museum in St Petersburg has demanded the return of art works loaned to Italy from its collection as the consequences of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and sanctions hit the culture sector, Angela Giuffrida reports.
The Russian state museum, one of the oldest and largest in the world, has asked for pieces currently on display at exhibitions in Milan to be returned by the end of March.
The works include Canova’s Winged Cupid, on show at Milan’s Gallerie d’Italia as part of an exhibition jointly organised with the Hermitage, and Tiziano’s Young Woman with Feather Hat, which is being displayed at Palazzo Reale.
In a letter from Hermitage director, Mikhail Piotrovsky, to both museums, and quoted in the Italian press, Piotrovsky said that the decision, made by Russia’s culture ministry, meant “all outstanding loans must be returned from abroad to Russia”, adding that “the Hermitage is a state museum that depends on the ministry of culture”.
The museum has also asked for Picasso’s Young Woman to be returned from the Fondazione Fendi in Rome, according to Italy’s La Stampa newspaper. The painting had never been shown in Italy before and was due to be on display until 15 May.
Updated
The Chinese foreign minister, Wang Yi, said China hopes the war in Ukraine can stop “as soon as possible” in a conversation with his French counterpart, Jean-Yves Le Drian.
Wang’s comments mark the first time he has described the situation in Ukraine as a “war”. China has so far refrained from describing Russia’s attack on Ukraine as an “invasion” or to condemn it.
Chinese state broadcaster CCTV cited the Chinese foreign minister as calling on all sides to calm down and to take more actions to prevent escalation in Ukraine.
Updated
Ukraine is investigating 38 cases of alleged treason against local officials and law enforcement officers accused of aiding Russia, Ukraine’s state bureau of investigation said.
Criminal proceedings have been launched against several police officers in the Ukrainian cities of Mariupol and Kherson.
They have committed treason under conditions of martial law and gone to the side of the enemy.
The SBI is investigating 38 criminal proceedings against Ukrainian officials and law enforcement officers, who have assisted to the aggressor, under Article 111 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (treason).
— ДБР (@dbr_gov_ua) March 10, 2022
Law enforcement officers have identified local officials who “actively support and promote Russian aggression”, the bureau said.
One official was detained in the Donetsk city of Kramatorsk and similar actions were recorded in other occupied territories, it said.
All traitors will be detained and held strictly accountable before the law.
Hello everyone. It’s Léonie Chao-Fong here again as we unpack all the latest developments on the unfolding crisis in Ukraine. Feel free to drop me a message if you have anything to flag, you can reach me on Twitter or via email.
Updated
The mayor of Zhytomyr has said a civilian building, a thermal electricity plant and two hospitals were hit in Russian airstrikes in the western Ukrainian city.
Footage shows a military plane flying overhead followed by explosions. The mayor, Serhii Sukhomlyn, said there were no known injuries.
Here's a summary of the latest developments...
- A meeting between the Russian and Ukrainian foreign ministers, Sergei Lavrov and Dmytro Kuleba, in Turkey ended with little progress appearing to have been made. In a news conference afterwards, Reuters reports that Kuleba said that no progress was made on a ceasefire and that Lavrov did not commit to a humanitarian corridor in the south-eastern city of Mariupol, where he said the situation was most difficult. Lavrov also said that Russia will try to never again be dependent on the west.
- A humanitarian convoy trying to reach Mariupol today has been forced to turn around due to fighting, Reuters reports the Ukrainian deputy prime minister has said. An airstrike on a hospital in Mariupol on Wednesday killed three people, including a child, the city council said today, reports the Associated Press. The attack wounded 17 people in the besieged port city, including women waiting to give birth, doctors and children.
- Ukraine opened seven humanitarian corridors, including the one from Mariupol, according to the country’s deputy prime minister. The governor of Sumy said that three columns of evacuees were leaving after a ceasefire was agreed.
- The British home secretary has pledged to streamline the online visa application system for Ukrainians following heavy criticism of her response to the crisis. Priti Patel said that from Tuesday, Ukrainian refugees will no longer have to go to a visa application centre to provide their biometrics before coming to the UK.
- The US vice-president, Kamala Harris, says she will discuss issues with Poland that will force Russia to pay a price for its invasion on Ukraine, reports Reuters. Speaking today during a visit to Warsaw, she also said that Poland was doing “extraordinary work” to help Ukrainian refugees.
-
More than 2.3 million people have fled Ukraine so far since the start of the Russian invasion two weeks ago, the UN said today. The UN migration agency said that of those who have been forced to take refuge in neighbouring countries, 112,000 people are third-country nationals.
- The UK has frozen the assets of seven Russian businessmen including Roman Abramovich, Igor Sechin, Oleg Deripaska and Dmitri Lebedev after they were added to the country’s sanctions list, reports Reuters. Abramovich is the owner of Chelsea Football Club, Deripaska has stakes in En+ Group, Sechin is the chief executive of Rosneft and Lebedev is chairman of the board of directors of Bank Rossiya.
- Russia’s foreign ministry has said Moscow will no longer participate in the Council of Europe, the continent’s leading human rights organisation founded in response to the humanitarian outrages of the second world war.
That’s it from me for now. Handing over to Leonie Chao-Fong. Thanks for reading.
Updated
UK announces more changes to Ukrainian visa scheme following outcry
The British home secretary has pledged to streamline the online visa application system for Ukrainians following heavy criticism of her response to the crisis.
Priti Patel told MPs the system will be simplified from Tuesday following pressure from both opposition and Conservative MPs and the Ukrainian government.
She said that Ukrainian refugees will no longer have to go to a visa application centre to provide their biometrics before coming to the UK.
PA reports that she said:
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.
Instead, once their application has been considered and appropriate checks completed, they will receive direct notification that they’re eligible for the scheme and can come to the UK.
In short, Ukrainians with passports will be able to get permission to come here fully online from wherever they are and will be able to give their biometrics once in Britain.
This will mean that visa application centres across Europe can focus their efforts on helping Ukrainians without passports.
Updated
Russia has denied firing on civilian targets following the bombing of a hospital in Mariupol but claimed the Kremlin would look into the incident.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, asked for comment in the immediate aftermath, told Reuters: “Russian forces do not fire on civilian targets.”
But on Thursday he said the Kremlin would look into the incident. “We will definitely ask our military, because you and I don’t have clear information about what happened there,” Peskov said. “And the military are very likely to provide some information.”
However, other Russian officials rejected the bombing as fake news. “This is information terrorism,” foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said.
Meanwhile, Russian foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, today claimed that there have long been no women or children at the hospital, only armed radicals.
Updated
The Russian foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, has said that Vladimir Putin would not refuse a meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskiy to discuss “specific” issues, reports Reuters.
Updated
Guardian correspondent Shaun Walker (see also 9:28) describes the difficulties faced by refugees fleeing Ukraine to get UK visas:
On the plane met a British citizen of UKR origin who’s lived in UK for 29 years. He went to meet his 16 year old nephew at the Romania border. Has now flown to Budapest, will wait at own expense for 8 days for first UK visa appointment. Then wait more for decision. Outrageous. https://t.co/HOxo3I3q31
— Shaun Walker (@shaunwalker7) March 9, 2022
Fighting stops humanitarian convoy trying to reach Mariupol
A humanitarian convoy trying to reach Mariupol has been forced to turn around due to fighting, Reuters reports the Ukrainian deputy prime minister has said.
Report from Reuters on the outcome of the meeting between Kuleba and Lavrov:
Ukrainian foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba said after a meeting with Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov that it appeared Russia will continue its offensive and seeks a surrender from Kyiv that it will not get.
Speaking at a press conference in southern Turkey, Kuleba said his impression from the meeting was that Russia is not in a position at this point to establish a ceasefire after invading Ukraine. Lavrov has a different impression of what foreign ministers do in a crisis, he added.
Sergei Lavrov vows that Russia will try never again to be dependent on west
In more from Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov’s press conference, Reuters reports that he has said that Russia will try to never again be dependent on the west.
He also claimed that Russia’s property rights have been stamped on by the west, that they will endure the crisis and that Ukraine seems to want to have meetings for the sake of meetings.
Updated
Further updates from the meeting in Turkey between the Russian foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, and his Ukrainian counterpart, , Dmytro Kuleba, from Reuters:
Kuleba said Ukraine was ready to seek balanced diplomatic solutions, but that the country will not surrender.
He said his impression was that Russia is not currently in a position to establish a ceasefire and that they did not discuss military supplies to Ukraine.
He said that Ukraine is ready for diplomacy but that they are also ready to defend themselves.
Ukraine cannot stop the war if the country that started the aggression has no desire to do so, Kuleba said, and that it was not easy to listen to Lavrov during the meeting.
He said he hopes that Russia will allow the Mariupol humanitarian corridor to function, which he said is a priority. He also hopes that they can reach a 24-hour truce.
He said he is ready to continue engagement to stop the war.
Meanwhile, Lavrov told a press conference that he reminded Ukraine that Russia had presented its proposals and that they discussed humanitarian questions.
He also said that Russia is prepared to discuss security guarantees for Ukraine and that Russia will come out of the crisis with refreshed views on the world and no illusions about the west.
Updated
Meeting between Russian and Ukrainian foreign ministers ends with no progress on ceasefire or humanitarian corridor in Mariupol
The meeting between the Russian and Ukrainian foreign ministers, Sergei Lavrov and Dmytro Kuleba, in Turkey is over with little progress appearing to have been made.
In a news conference afterwards, Reuters reports that Kuleba said that no progress was made on a ceasefire and that Lavrov did not commit to a humanitarian corridor in Mariupol, where he said the situation was most difficult.
He said holding the meeting was not easy but that he is ready to meet again using the same format.
Updated
Russia to pay a price for its invasion on Ukraine, says Kamala Harris
The US vice-president, Kamala Harris, says she will discuss issues with Poland that will force Russia to pay a price for its invasion on Ukraine, reports Reuters.
Speaking today during a visit to Warsaw, she also said that Poland was doing “extraordinary work” to help Ukrainian refugees.
After Warsaw, she is due to travel to Bucharest, Romania.
I am en route to Warsaw, Poland and later this week to Bucharest, Romania. This trip comes at an important moment as the United States continues to demonstrate unity with our NATO Allies and provide support to the people of Ukraine in response to Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.
— Vice President Kamala Harris (@VP) March 9, 2022
Updated
Mariupol hospital strike on Wednesday killed three, says city council
An airstrike on a hospital in Mariupol yesterday killed three people, including a child, the city council said today, reports the Associated Press.
The attack wounded 17 people in the besieged port city, including women waiting to give birth, doctors and children.
Bombs also fell on two other hospitals yesterday.
The World Health Organization said that since the invasion started two weeks ago it had confirmed 18 attacks on medical facilities.
Updated
More than 2.3m people have so far fled Ukraine, says UN
More than 2.3 million people have fled Ukraine so far since the start of the Russian invasion two weeks ago, the UN said today.
The UN migration agency said that of those who have been forced to take refuge in neighbouring countries, 112,000 people are third-country nationals.
More people are being displaced by the war in #Ukraine. As of today:
— IOM - UN Migration 🇺🇳 (@UNmigration) March 10, 2022
🛑 Over 2.3 million people have been forced to flee to neighboring countries, including 112,000 third-country nationals.
They need critical humanitarian support and protection. pic.twitter.com/77CqCJq2oM
After some weeks reporting in Ukraine, I crossed the Ukraine-Romania border at Siret yesterday, along with thousands of Ukrainian women and children getting out. Like at many land borders, there were huge queues of cars waiting to cross, and the line for pedestrians was more than six hours, quite gruelling given the sub-zero temperatures and swirling snow flurries. This was entirely down to the slow processing of exits on the Ukrainian side.
On the Romanian side, there was a really impressive welcome, with dozens of volunteers on hand speaking English, Russian or Ukrainian, hot drinks, food, and buses to Suceava, the nearest city. From there, all travel on Romanian trains is free. When I flew out of the city of Iasi today, the airport was packed with Ukrainian refugees, and here too there were information stands, free food and volunteers on hand to help refugees.
Updated
UK freezes assets of seven Russian businessmen including Roman Abramovich
The UK has frozen the assets of seven Russian businessmen including Roman Abramovich, Igor Sechin, Oleg Deripaska and Dmitri Lebedev after they were added to the country’s sanctions list, reports Reuters.
Abramovich is the owner of Chelsea Football Club, Deripaska has stakes in En+ Group, Sechin is the chief executive of Rosneft and Lebedev is chairman of the board of directors of Bank Rossiya.
However, the UK said it had published a licence that allows a number of football-related activities to continue at Chelsea.
“There can be no safe havens for those who have supported Putin’s vicious assault on Ukraine,” the British prime minister, Boris Johnson, said.
A spokesperson for Abramovich told Reuters that they could not comment immediately on the announcement of UK sanctions.
Updated
Updated
Sweden’s government plans to increase military spending to 2% of GDP “as soon as practically possible” following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“Today, we present a new initiative with a clear message to the Swedish people and to the world around us. Sweden’s defence capability must be greatly strengthened,” prime minister, Magdalena Andersson, said today, reports Reuters.
Following the end of the cold war, Sweden’s defence spending as fallen from 3% of GDP in the early 1980s to around 1% in recent years.
Councillors at Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown county council in Dublin last night voted to change the address of the Russian embassy from Orwell Road to Independent Ukraine Road, a move that will now go out to consultation with residents.
The motion was proposed by Labour councillor Peter O’Brien, who said he was inspired by Latvia, Lithuania, Norway and Albania, where similar changes, in solidarity with Ukraine, have taken place.
The embassy has been the scene of several incidents since war broke out. Earlier this week a man was charged with criminal damage after crashing his truck into the embassy gates, while a priest was last week told he would also be summonsed after dousing the gates with red paint. He said he would be “delighted” to be charged as his defence would be “provocation” by Putin.
Updated
The Belarus president, Alexander Lukashenko, has reportedly instructed Belarusian specialists to ensure power supply to the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine.
According to reports by the BelTA news agency, cited by Reuters, Lukashenko also told the defence ministry that the Belarus army must prevent any attempt to cut off Russian supply lines and any “strike at Russians from the rear”.
Ukraine said yesterday that there was a danger of a radiation leak at Chernobyl after the electricity was cut off, but the UN nuclear watchdog said it saw “no critical impact on security”.
Updated
Updated
The head of Ukraine’s embassy in Australia says he cannot remain “diplomatically polite” when his parents spend their nights in a bomb shelter in Kyiv, and has called for the Russian ambassador to be expelled.
Volodymyr Shalkivskyi issued the plea to the Australian government as he spoke about how his parents, aged in their 70s, had rebuffed suggestions to flee Ukraine’s capital and were now asking for molotov cocktail recipes.
“They’re making sandwiches [for] our military and they spend the nights in bomb shelters,” Shalkivskyi, the chargé d’affaires at Ukraine’s embassy in Australia, said on Thursday.
“As my father told me, two nights in a bomb shelter is enough to completely change any pro-Russian sentiment that you have in your heart.”
Shalkivskyi also relayed a message he had received from his mother, 73, after she looked out from the balcony on the seventh floor of her apartment building in northern Kyiv.
“‘I think it’s a good position. Can you send me a recipe of molotov cocktail?’”
Meeting between Russian and Ukrainian foreign ministers begins in Turkey
A meeting between the Russian and Ukrainian foreign ministers, Sergei Lavrov and Dmytro Kuleba, is under way in Turkey.
It was brokered by Turkish foreign minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu. Pictures of the meeting showed the two sitting opposite each other.
Talks between the foreign ministers of Ukraine, Turkey and the Russian Federation on ending Russian aggression against Ukraine have commenced in Antaliya. pic.twitter.com/LUDCClMNaQ
— Oleg Nikolenko (@OlegNikolenko_) March 10, 2022
Updated
A no-fly zone over Ukraine would help end the conflict faster and save hundreds of lives, the Polish ambassador to Kyiv said today.
Speaking two weeks after Russia’s invasion of the country, which has since seen relentless bombing, Reuters reports that Bartosz Cichocki told TVN24 that “every day of delay costs hundreds of human lives”.
“This is an extension of the conflict that could be ended much faster precisely thanks to the closure of the airspace.”
The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, has has been pleading for Nato to introduce a no-fly zone but the alliance is wary of being drawn into direct conflict with Russia.
It comes after the US on Tuesday rejected an offer by Poland to transfer its Russian-made MiG-29 fighter jets to a US base in Germany for them to use to replenish Ukraine’s air force.
Updated
Here are some of the most recent images from Ukraine:
Updated
Russia says it will no longer participate in Council of Europe
Russia’s foreign ministry has said they will no longer participate in the Council of Europe, the continent’s leading human rights organisation founded in response to the humanitarian outrages of the second world war.
The Kremlin said that Nato members were undermining the European body designed to uphold human rights, rule of law and democracy. In reality, Russia’s relationship with the Council of Europe has always been marked by confrontation.
Russia joined the Council of Europe in 1996, following an application by Boris Yeltsin as part of an attempt to embed the country’s transition to democracy.But the contradictions have been evident throughout. Some suggest Russia’s membership of the 47 country body has delegitimised it.
Russia’s rights of representation were suspended on 25 February - the day after the invasion of Ukraine. And they were previously suspended in 2001, following the second Chechen war, and in 2014 when Vladimir Putin invaded Crimea.
The Council of Europe is not related to the EU.
Updated
The subject of Ukraine entering the European Union is “not for tomorrow”, the French European affairs minister has said as EU leaders gathered for a two-day summit in Versailles.
“It will take time,” Clement Beaune said, reports Reuters, referring to debates over whether to give Ukraine a fast-track entry into the EU in response to the Russian invasion.
According to a draft declaration, EU leaders plan to phase out purchasing Russian oil, gas and coal, but they are unlikely to offer the Ukraine EU membership it wants.
Ukraine opens seven humanitarian corridors amid reports that Russian troops have taken over parts of Mariupol
Ukraine has opened seven humanitarian corridors, including one from Mariupol, amid reports that Russian troops have taken over parts of the city.
The country’s deputy prime minister said that seven humanitarian corridors had been opened, reports Reuters. The governor of Sumy said that three columns of evacuees were leaving after a ceasefire was agreed.
But there were also reports of airstrikes on Mariupol, where a maternity hospital was yesterday bombed, this morning. And, according to Interfax news agency, Russian troops have taken over parts of the city.
New — More Russian airstrikes on Mariupol being reported this morning. According to local media, one dead.
— Oliver Carroll (@olliecarroll) March 10, 2022
The Polish border guard said today that so far 1.43m people have entered Poland from Ukraine since the start of the invasion. On Wednesday alone, around 117,600 crossed the border and already today approximately 22,000 people have crossed.
The Lithuanian president has said Russian forces lack motivation and are “the army of the aggressor,” Nexta tv reports.
Gitanas Nausėda 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.”
#Lithuanian president #Nauseda about the #Russian army in #Ukraine:
— NEXTA (@nexta_tv) March 10, 2022
"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." pic.twitter.com/2ibfqGYq1o
Meanwhile, Vilnius has renamed the road of the Russian embassy in the Lithuanian capital to “Ukrainian Heroes’ Street” in protest of Russia’s invasion.
“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,” Vilnius mayor Remigijus Simasius said.
It comes after Latvia, a fellow Baltic state, last week renamed the street of the Russian embassy in Riga to “Independent Ukraine Street”.
Hi, I’ll be looking after the blog for the next few hours. Please get in touch with any tips or suggestions: miranda.bryant@guardian.co.uk
Updated
Ukrainian foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba has arrived in Antalya, Turkey, for negotiations with Russian foreign minister Lavrov.
In just under one hour the pair will meet in the highest level meeting between the two sides since the beginning of the war. Turkish president Recep Erdogan said he hopes “the meeting between the ministers will open the way to a permanent ceasefire”.
🇺🇦 Глава МЗС Дмитро Кулеба прибув до Анталії. Там заплановані переговори з міністром закордонних справ росії Лавровим. pic.twitter.com/SH2bcu1v6y
— Телеканал "Прямий" (@prm_ua) March 10, 2022
Footage of two Ukrainian explosive disposal specialists defusing a Russian bomb with just their hands a bottle of water has gone viral after the video was shared by Ukrainian media outlet NEXTA TV.
The 31-second clip, which has since been viewed more than 1.8m times, was captioned “bomb defusing process” and shows two men kneeling beside the weapon while carefully unscrewing the seal using just a small water bottle and gloves.
Charles Lister, senior fellow and the director of the Syria and countering terrorism and extremism programs at the Middle East Institute, shared the video, describing the moment as an act of “mind boggling bravery”.
“This Russia-dropped bomb would flatten a building — and yet these Ukraine EODs defuse it with 2 hands and a bottle of water, while shells audibly land nearby,” Lister said. “Mind boggling bravery.”
Bomb defusing process pic.twitter.com/AZeMaesE6K
— NEXTA (@nexta_tv) March 9, 2022
An airstrike on a maternity hospital in the port city of Mariupol which wounded women waiting to give birth and buried children in rubble was just one of three attacks on Ukrainian hospitals on Wednesday, according to reports.
Bombs also fell on two hospitals in the city of Zhytomyr, about 150km west of Kyiv.
One was a children’s hospital, mayor Serhii Sukhomlyn said in a Facebook post, adding that there were no injuries.
The World Health Organization said it has confirmed 18 attacks on medical facilities since the Russian invasion began two weeks ago.
"So far, WHO has verified 18 attacks on health facilities [in #Ukraine], #healthworkers and ambulances, including 10 deaths and 16 injuries. These attacks deprive whole communities of health care"-@DrTedros #NotATarget https://t.co/nI0AYxkydO
— World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) March 9, 2022
Today's attack on a hospital in Mariupol, Ukraine, where maternity & children's wards are located, is horrific.
— António Guterres (@antonioguterres) March 9, 2022
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.
Updated
Russian troops have made 'little progress' towards Kyiv - British defence report
The UK’s ministry of defence has also just released its latest intelligence report on the situation in Ukraine, seemingly corroborating Ukrainian authorities.
The ministry said there has been a “notable decrease in overall Russian air activity” over Ukraine in recent days, noting it is likely due to the “unexpected effectiveness and endurance” of Ukrainian air defence forces.
The report also notes that the large Russian column north west of Kyiv has “made little progress in over a week” and is suffering “continued losses” at the hands of the Ukrainian armed forces.
“As casualties mount, Putin will be forced to draw from across Russian armed forces and other sources to replace losses,” the report adds.
Latest Defence Intelligence update on the situation in Ukraine - 10 March 2022
— Ministry of Defence 🇬🇧 (@DefenceHQ) March 10, 2022
Find out more about the UK government's response: https://t.co/uGIai2vjg2
🇺🇦 #StandWithUkraine 🇺🇦 pic.twitter.com/kUN8pCzuT4
The Ukrainian military has released its daily operational report this morning, claiming the Russian advance into parts of Ukraine has slowed.
According to the update provided by the general staff of the armed forces of Ukraine, Russian troops have been held back in advancing upon Kyiv and regions of eastern Ukraine including Donetsk, Slobozhansky and part of the Tavrij operating districts.
The Ukrainian cities of Kharkiv, Okhtirku and Chernihiv remain protected while the defence of the southern city of Mariupol continues, the report adds.
The military said its main efforts are on preventing Russia’s progress from the south-east.
Russia forces have “reduced the pace” and personnel are “demoralised” while “the number of cases of desertification and looting has increased significantly,” the report adds.
Updated
Watch the moment Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy accused Russia of war crimes after a Russian airstrike hit a maternity hospital in the besieged port city of Mariupol, allegedly wounding 17 people.
“An aerial bomb on a maternity hospital is the conclusive evidence that what is happening is a genocide of Ukrainians,” he said
The scale of the destruction in the Ukrainian port city of Mariupol at the hands of Russian forces has emerged in new satellite images that show devastated residential building, blasted parklands and smouldering grocery stores.
Shown alongside images from before the invasion, the pictures paint a bleak picture of the damage done so far to the besieged city, which Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy described as “ultimate evidence that genocide of Ukrainians is happening” in the wake of the shelling of a maternity hospital.
The first image, taken by private company Maxar, shows the extensive damage done to grocery stores and a shopping mall in the city, with both buildings smouldering under the intense shelling
Another photo reveals the damage done to residential areas, where many residents are without power, heat, water or communications for over a week. Some of the buildings have been entirely destroyed.
On top of a $13.6 billion fund to deliver aid to Ukraine, the US House of Representatives confirmed it also passed legislation to ban US imports of Russian oil and other energy.
It passed the House with 414 votes in favour and 17 against and now goes to the Senate before being signed into law by US president Joe Biden. Fifteen Republicans and two Democrats opposed the measure, Reuters reports.
Passage of the bill came one day after US president Joe Biden used his executive powers to impose such a ban.
The House measure put lawmakers on record as firmly supporting the US trade ban. It also calls for reviewing Russia’s participation in some international trade programs, such as the World Trade Organisation.
Lawmakers abandoned an effort to attach language revoking Russia’s permanent normal trade relations status, which would have allowed the United States to raise tariffs on Russian imports above levels afforded all WTO members.
The Lithuanian capital Vilnius has given the Russian embassy a new address on “Ukrainian Heroes’ Street” to protest Moscow’s invasion of its pro-western neighbour.
“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,” Vilnius mayor Remigijus Simasius claimed in a statement.
Until now, the Russian embassy has taken its address from nearby Latvian Street, whose name remains unchanged.
But a hitherto nameless smaller road leading straight to the embassy acquired the Ukrainian moniker.
A Ukrainian man has described the moment he learned that his wife and two children were killed by a Russian shell after seeing a post showing their dead bodies on Twitter.
“I recognised the luggage and that is how I knew,” Serhiy Perebyinis told the New York Times.
Tetiana Perebyinis and their two children - Mykyta, 18, and Alisa, 9 - died in the town of Irpin while attempting to flee. A photo of the dead family lying beside a monument for World War Two victims made the front page of multiple newspapers.
Important decision by the @nytimes to put this @lynseyaddario photo above the fold on the front page of today's NYT.
— Jeremy Diamond (@JDiamond1) March 7, 2022
The world should not avert its eyes to what Russia is doing in Ukraine pic.twitter.com/udhBA0TBIi
In a post to Facebook early Thursday morning, Perebyinis said the ordeal was “like a horror movie”.
“This is all hard to watch when your beloved wife is lying in a black bag on the floor,” he wrote.
He also vowed for justice for his family: “I will be fighting for them to the end. I’ll make sure there is a court verdict.”
“I recognized the luggage and that is how I knew.” Devastating story by @AndrewKramerNYT about a husband realizing his wife and two children had been killed trying to flee Irpin. https://t.co/6PrMMBB7Vo
— Paul Sonne (@PaulSonne) March 10, 2022
Updated
More than two million refugees have so far fled Ukraine, according to estimates from the UN refugee agency UNHCR.
On Wednesday alone, at least 35,000 civilians were evacuated from besieged Ukrainian cities, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said. Three humanitarian corridors allowed residents to leave the cities of Sumy, Enerhodar and areas around Kyiv.
It is hoped evacuations will continue on Thursday with three more routes set to open out of the cities of Mariupol, Volnovakha in the southeast and Izium in eastern Ukraine.
US House approves $13.6bn worth of aid for Ukraine
In case you missed the announcement earlier, the US House of Representatives approved $13.6 billion in aid to Ukraine and its European allies on Wednesday night.
After approval in the House, Senate approval is expected by week’s end or perhaps slightly longer.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told reporters: “We’ve got a war going on in Ukraine. We have important work that we’re doing here.”
She said with her party in the 50-50 Senate needing at least 10 GOP votes to pass legislation, Democrats “are going to have to know there has to be compromise.”
The House approved the overall bill in two separate votes. The measure’s security programs were overwhelmingly approved by 361-69, the rest by 260-171, with most Republicans opposed.
Today, the House will proudly pass our government funding legislation, which includes $13.6 billion in assistance for Ukraine.
— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) March 10, 2022
We will also pass our strong, bipartisan bill to ban Russian oil and energy products and taking further actions to diminish Russia’s economy.
The Ukraine aid included $6.5 billion for the US costs of sending troops and weapons to eastern Europe and equipping allied forces there in response to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion and repeated, bellicose threats.
There was another $6.8 billion to care for refugees and provide economic aid to allies, and more to help federal agencies enforce economic sanctions against Russia and protect against cyber threats at home. Biden had requested $10 billion for the package.
Pelosi said she talked to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for 45 minutes Wednesday. She said they discussed the weapons and other assistance his country needs and “the crimes against humanity that Putin is committing,” including a Russian airstrike that destroyed a maternity hospital. “This is the beast that Putin is,” Pelosi said.
Summary
Russia’s war on Ukraine has entered its third week. Hundreds have been reported to be dead or wounded while more than two million Ukrainian refugees have so far fled their homeland, according to UN estimates.
It is 6.50am in Ukraine and here is where the crisis currently stands:
- A children’s hospital and maternity ward in Mariupol was destroyed by a Russian airstrike on Wednesday afternoon, Ukrainian officials said.
- Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy called the attack “the ultimate evidence of genocide” adding that children are buried under rubble while the regional governor said 17 people have been wounded. “A children’s hospital, a maternity ward. How did they threaten the Russian Federation?” Zelenskiy added. The Guardian was unable to fully verify Ukrainian officials’ accounts, but video published by the Associated Press showed multiple injured people at the site of the hospital attack.
- Western officials warned of their “serious concern” that Vladimir Putin could use chemical weapons on Kyiv. In an assessment, they said an “utterly horrific” attack on the Ukrainian capital could be unleashed as Russian forces attempt to overcome the logistical issues that have apparently plagued troops headed towards Kyiv.
- The US House of Representatives approved $13.6 billion in US aid to Ukraine and its European allies.
- Britain is planning to supply Starstreak anti-aircraft weapons and “a small consignment” of Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine as Russian forces close in on Kyiv, the British defence secretary said.
- Canada will also provide Ukraine with an additional $50m in lethal and non-lethal military aid.
- The United States has seen indications that Russia is dropping “dumb bombs” – unguided munitions with no precise target – on Ukraine, a senior US defence official said.
- Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov has landed in Turkey for the face-to-face talks on Thursday with his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba, the highest-level meeting between the two countries since Russia invaded. Kuleba warned in a Facebook video his expectations were “limited”.
- Ukraine has accused Russian forces of “holding 400,000 people hostage” in Mariupol. The Ukrainian foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, said the city, where conditions are described as “apocalyptic”, was still being shelled by Russian troops despite an agreement to establish a safe evacuation corridor for civilians.
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Overnight strikes in the north-eastern city of Okhtyrka, Sumy region, reportedly killed a 13-year-old boy and two women, according to regional officials.
- Ukrainian authorities have said the power supply has been cut to the defunct Chernobyl power plant. The UN’s atomic watchdog said the spent nuclear fuel stored there had cooled down sufficiently for it not to be an imminent concern. Still, the news is raising concerns that a lack of external power to the site could compromise nuclear safety.
- More than 40,000 civilians were evacuated from across Ukraine on Wednesday but authorities struggled to get people away from conflict zones around the cities of Kyiv, Kharkiv and Mariupol, a Ukrainian negotiator said. Ukrainian authorities said earlier that the corridors should allow residents of the heavily bombarded cities of Mariupol, Enerhodar, Sumy, Izyum and Volnovakha, as well as towns around Kyiv including Bucha, Irpin and Hostomel, to leave, calling on Russian forces to respect an “official public commitment” to cease fire.
- The International Monetary Fund has approved $1.4 billion in emergency financing for Ukraine to help meet urgent spending needs and mitigate the economic impact of Russia’s military invasion.
- Mining giant Rio Tinto has become the latest corporation to cut ties with Moscow saying it was ending all commercial relations with Russian businesses.
For any tips and feedback please contact me through Twitter or at samantha.lock@theguardian.com
