Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has warned any international peacekeeping mission sent into Ukraine could lead to a direct confrontation between Russia and the NATO military alliance.
Catch up on Wednesday's updates as they happened on our blog.
Key events
- 'Active phase' of Russian invasion will break down by April, Ukrainian adviser says
- Russia's G20 membership under fire
- Russia combat power declines in Ukraine, US official says
- Zelenskyy says talks with Russia tough but 'moving forward'
- Kremlin: Russia would only use nuclear weapons if its existence was threatened
- Zelenskyy to virtually take part in NATO summit
- 'There is nothing left' of Mariupol, says President Zelenskyy
Live updates
By Kate Ainsworth
That's it for the blog tonight
Thanks for reading throughout the day.
The blog will be back tomorrow, but you can stay up to date with the latest news online or on the ABC News app.
Until then, goodnight.
By Kate Ainsworth
By Kate Ainsworth
Japan will unveil more support for Ukraine at G7 summit, PM says
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida says he plans to unveil more support measures for Ukraine and strengthen Tokyo's sanctions against Russia at a G7 meeting in Brussels.
Mr Kishida is set to leave for Belgium later on Wednesday to attend the gathering to discuss Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
It's expected more sanctions will be imposed by several other countries against Russia after the meeting.
By Kate Ainsworth
'Active phase' of Russian invasion will break down by April, Ukrainian adviser says
Ukrainian presidential adviser Oleksiy Arestovych says he expects the active phase of the Russian invasion to be over by the end of April, as the Russian advance had already stalled in many areas.
Speaking on local television, Mr Arestovych claimed Russia had already lost 40 per cent of its attacking forces, and also played down the prospect of Russia waging nuclear war.
Russia has not confirmed how many of its troops have been killed since its invasion of Ukraine began.
By Kate Ainsworth
More weapons not a lasting solution to Ukraine war: Pope Francis
Francis asked participants at his weekly general audience to remember all the victims of the war — the dead, including "fallen soldiers on one side or the other", the wounded, homeless and refugees.
"May the Lord send his spirit to make us understand that war is a defeat of humanity, that we have to defeat all those who make war," he said.
"[Making war] is a need that destroys us," he said, asking God to "free us from this 'need' for self-destruction".
It's the second time since the war in Ukraine began that the pope has evoked the spectre of a nuclear war.
Francis has made a number of strong condemnations of the war, but he criticised Russia only implicitly, so far avoiding mentioning it by name.
He has used terms such as unjustified aggression, slaughter and atrocities.
Francis has previously rejected Moscow's assertions that it launched a "special military operation".
"Let us also pray that those who govern understand that buying weapons and manufacturing weapons is not the solution to the problem," he said.
"The solution is to work together for peace, as the Bible says, in order to transform weapons into instruments of peace."
Francis has in the past said funds spent on weapons should be diverted to other aims, such as fighting world hunger and developing and distributing vaccines.
He has also called for a ban on nuclear weapons, saying even their possession for deterrence is immoral.
Reporting by Reuters
By Kate Ainsworth
In pictures: Shelling aftermath in Kyiv
It's around 1:00pm on Wednesday in Kyiv, and the Ukrainian capital remains littered with debris after facing another 24 hours of shelling by Russian forces.
By Kate Ainsworth
German Chancellor tells Putin not to use biological or chemical weapons
In direct talks, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz warned Russian President Vladimir Putin not to use biological or chemical weapons in Ukraine, according to German weekly newspaper Die Zeit.
Russian assertions that Ukraine was developing such weapons or that the United States wanted to use them seemed "like an implicit threat that Putin himself is considering using such weapons", the paper quoted Mr Scholz as saying.
"That's why it was important to me to tell him very clearly and directly: That would be unacceptable and unforgivable," Mr Scholz told Die Zeit.
By Kate Ainsworth
Ukrainian refugee now in Australia struggling to comprehend what's happening to her country
But the 29-year-old is still shocked at how badly things got for her country.
Along with her young son and sister, they made the five-day journey to Perth, thousands of kilometres away from bombs and missile strikes.
Speaking to PM's Isabel Moussalli with the help of her uncle who translated her words, Ms Hlushkova said she was working as an emergency services operator when the invasion began.
Her uncle said what she heard shocked her.
"It was quite surreal from the beginning, she couldn't believe something like that could ever happen in Ukraine," he said.
Her uncle revealed she had been dealing with people from Kyiv one of the first cities to be bombarded.
"She was talking to them and it was all over the phone so she felt very deeply emotionally involved," he said.
She thought her home in Lviv was safe but last week's air strikes showed nowhere was safe and is relieved to be here.
"I like it very much, I like the weather, it's warm because we came from winter, frankly I don't fully understand what's going on," she said through her uncle.
By Kate Ainsworth
By Kate Ainsworth
Russia trying to 'envelop' Ukrainian troops, UK says
The UK's defence ministry says it's likely Russian forces are reorganising themselves before continuing their advance in Ukraine.
The ministry said Russian forces are trying to encircle Ukrainian troops as they advance from Kharkiv in the north and Mariupol in the south, and Russian troops appear to be avoiding Mykolaiv in their journey to Odesa.
By Kate Ainsworth
Ukraine's President asks Japan to increase sanction pressure on Russia
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has used an address to Japanese parliament to ask the country to introduce a trade embargo on Russian goods.
Addressing the parliament in Tokyo via video link, Zelenskyy thanked Japan for leading the way among Asian countries in condemning Russia's invasion of Ukraine and introducing sanctions.
"Responsible states unite to protect peace. I am grateful to your state for its principled position at such a historical moment, for real assistance to Ukraine," Mr Zelenskyy said.
"You were the first in Asia who really began to put pressure on Russia to restore peace, who supported sanctions against Russia, and I urge you to keep doing this."
Mr Zelenskyy said Russian forces were preparing new attacks from the so-called exclusion zone around the Chernobyl nuclear power station after occupying the defunct plant last month in the early stages of the war in Ukraine.
He gave no further details or evidence of the attacks he alleged Russia was planning.
"The world is on the verge of many new crises," he said.
"The environmental and food challenges are unprecedented."
Reporting by Reuters
By Kate Ainsworth
Italian PM urges China to not support Russia
Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi has urged China not to support Russia after its invasion of Ukraine and to join global efforts to bring peace to Ukraine.
Speaking to the Italian parliament, Mr Draghi also said that Russian President Vladimir Putin did not appear to be interested in agreeing a ceasefire that could allow negotiations to end the conflict to succeed.
By Kate Ainsworth
Smoke clouds linger over Kyiv sky after Russian shelling
Several fires have been started on the outskirts of Kyiv after shelling by Russian forces, blanketing the Ukrainian capital in a thick, dark cloud of smoke.
By Kate Ainsworth
Russia says it will retaliate if Poland expels its diplomats
Russia will retaliate if its diplomats are expelled from Poland, according to the state-owned RIA news agency, which cited the country's foreign ministry.
Earlier, Poland's special services said they had asked the foreign ministry to expel 45 people working for Russia under the cover of diplomatic work.
To date more than 2.1 million Ukrainian refugees have fled to Poland since Russia's invasion began last month.
By Kate Ainsworth
Russia warns sending peacekeeping troops to Ukraine may lead to confrontation with NATO
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said sending peacekeepers to Ukraine may lead to a direct confrontation between Russia and the NATO military alliance.
Poland last week said an international peacekeeping mission should be sent to Ukraine and be given the means to defend itself.
"I hope they understand what they are talking about," Lavrov told staff and students at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations.
"This will be the direct clash between the Russian and NATO armed forces that everyone has not only tried to avoid but said should not take place in principle."
Moscow has accused Kyiv of stalling peace talks by making proposals unacceptable for Russia. Ukraine has said it is willing to negotiate but will not surrender or accept Russian ultimatums.
Lavrov said Ukrainian authorities were backing away from their own proposals at the talks, making it difficult to achieve a breakthrough.
"The talks have started, they are difficult because the Ukrainian side... constantly changes its mind and backs away from its own proposals," Lavrov said.
Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that the talks with Russia were tough and at times confrontational.
Reporting by Reuters
By Kate Ainsworth
Ukraine's central bank asks SWIFT to disconnect Russia's central bank
The Ukrainian central bank asked the SWIFT network to switch the Russian central bank off from its financial messaging system.
"We hope for your support and assistance in order to save the lives of thousands of Ukrainians and protect the sovereignty of our country," Governor Kyrylo Shevchenko said in a statement.
A number of Russian banks were barred from SWIFT earlier this month.
SWIFT is the Belgian-headquartered consortium used by banks and other financial institutions that serves as a key communications line for commerce worldwide.
The international payments system SWIFT is used by more than 11,000 financial institutions in more than 200 countries.
By Kate Ainsworth
'This is not a war of occupation but a war of annihilation'
Mr Nelles, who is from Kyiv, but is based in Dusseldorf working for the German Society for International Cooperation, said the Russians had made gains quickly but had underestimated the fighting spirit of his people.
"It was a blitz and an attempt to take territory quickly and swiftly," he told PM's Nick Grimm.
"They were expecting the Ukrainians to collapse, and instead of collapsing the Ukrainians resisted very fiercely and pushed back very hard so they were surprised to meet such stiff resistance across the country but especially in Kyiv."
He said that resistance was being met with missile strikes and attacks on cities which risked being annihilated.
"That's what the Ukrainians are afraid of and have warned about for days and weeks now they said this is not a war of occupation but a war of annihilation," he said.
"Russia switched tactics from pounding cities to punishing Ukrainians for their resistance."
Mr Nelles said what Ukraine is experiencing is also what happened in Syria.
"They're really intent on punishing Ukrainians for their resistance," he said.
"The more desperate they get, the more brutal they get and unfortunately they have a lot of firepower still in the arsenal."
By Kate Ainsworth
Russian Foreign Minister to meet Red Cross chief in Moscow to discuss Ukraine war
Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will meet the head of the International Committee of the Red Cross, Peter Maurer, in Moscow on Thursday (local time).
Mr Maurer will be in Moscow for talks on the Ukraine conflict, an ICRC spokesperson said.
"The agenda of the meeting envisages discussion of the key areas of the ICRC's work in the field of humanitarian response," Russia's foreign ministry said in a statement.
By Kate Ainsworth
In pictures: The people who have fled Mariupol
More than 4,000 people have safely made their way to Zaporizhzhia from Berdyansk after fleeing from Mariupol in the last 24 hours.
Many of them are children, clutching their belongings and pets for comfort as their home city is relentlessly attacked by Russian forces.
By Kate Ainsworth
Nine humanitarian corridors to open: Ukrainian Deputy PM
Ukraine's Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk has confirmed nine humanitarian corridors will open across the country today to evacuate civilians.
Ms Vereshchuk said no agreement had been reached with Russia to establish a safe corridor from the heart of Mariupol, but said those trying to leave the besieged city would find transport in Berdyansk, which is around 84 kilometres south-west of the port city.
According to the Mariupol City Council, 4,367 people who fled Mariupol to Berdyansk were evacuated to Zaporizhzhia yesterday.
It comes after Ukrainian leaders accused Russia of seizing 15 rescue workers and drivers from a humanitarian convoy trying to get desperately needed food and supplies into Mariupol.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy estimates around 100,000 civilians remain in Mariupol.
