- Russia says it is able to present humanitarian corridors on Wednesday to evacuate civilians from Kyiv and different Ukrainian cities.
- Evacuations from southeastern metropolis of Mariupol failed once more, a Ukrainian official says, accusing Russia of firing on a humanitarian hall.
- European Fee proclaims plan to chop Russian fuel imports by two-thirds this yr.
- US President Joe Biden bans imports of Russian oil and fuel, whereas Britain says it’s going to part out Russian vitality merchandise by yr’s finish.
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy calls for extra Western motion in opposition to Moscow as Russian advance continues.
Listed here are all the newest updates:
Table of Contents
UK’s international minister travels to US for Russia talks
British International Secretary Liz Truss will meet her US counterpart Antony Blinken on Wednesday to debate the conflict in Ukraine, and scale back vitality dependency on Russia.
“The Ukraine disaster is a wake-up name free of charge democracies,” Truss mentioned in a press release.
“I’m within the US to speak about what extra we will do to discourage hostile state actors, scale back strategic dependency on Russian vitality – and authoritarian states extra broadly – and construct stronger financial and safety alliances all over the world.”
1000’s evacuated within the jap metropolis of Sumy
Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk has mentioned that 5,000 individuals, together with 1,700 international college students, have been evacuated from the jap metropolis of Sumy.
Vereshchuk mentioned town confronted a “catastrophic state of affairs”, lower off from water, energy and communications.
She additionally mentioned that Ukraine is not going to settle for Moscow’s provide to determine protected corridors for civilians to go in direction of Russia, saying it’s going to solely comply with protected exits main westwards.
Common Music Group suspends operations in Russia
Common Music Group has mentioned that it’s suspending all operations in Russia and shutting its workplaces – becoming a member of a rising record of firms protesting the conflict in Ukraine.
“We urge an finish to the violence in Ukraine as quickly as potential,” the corporate mentioned in a press release.
“We’re adhering to worldwide sanctions and, together with our workers and artists, have been working with teams from a variety of nations (together with the U.S., U.Okay., Poland, Slovakia, Germany, Czech Republic and Hungary) to help humanitarian reduction efforts to convey pressing assist to refugees within the area.”
It’s ‘clear’ Russia will lose battle, says US official
Russia is destined to lose its conflict in Ukraine, US State Division Undersecretary Victoria Nuland has mentioned.
“It’s clear that Russia will lose this battle – whether or not they lose it rapidly or whether or not they lose it extraordinarily slowly, it’s only a matter of time,” Nuland mentioned at a congressional listening to.
“The issue is that if this may be misplaced rapidly, many, many, many lives might be saved, which is why now we have to proceed to pour on the financial stress; now we have to proceed to help the defensive wants of the Ukrainian individuals.”
US says it was not consulted on Polish jet provide
Poland’s resolution to place all its MIG-29 jets on the disposal of the US was not pre-consulted with Washington, State Division Undersecretary Victoria Nuland has mentioned, regardless that the administration had been discussing Ukraine’s broader request for Polish plane.
“To my data, it wasn’t pre-consulted with us that they deliberate to present these planes to us,” she mentioned at a listening to of Senate International Relations Committee.
“I look ahead when this listening to is over, to getting again to my desk and seeing how we are going to reply to this proposal of theirs to present the planes to us,” she mentioned.
Coca-Cola and Pepsi droop their gross sales in Russia
Coca-Cola and Pepsi have mentioned they’re suspending gross sales in Russia.
Coca-Cola mentioned its enterprise in Russia and Ukraine contributed about 1 to 2 p.c of the corporate’s internet working income in 2021.
Pepsi, whose firm is formally referred to as PepsiCo and whose drinks have been one of many few Western merchandise allowed within the Soviet Union earlier than its collapse, mentioned it will proceed to promote each day necessities, akin to milk, child formulation and child meals.
‘This conflict shouldn’t be good for China,’ says US State Division official
Undersecretary Victoria Nuland has mentioned US officers’ engagements with China – together with a latest name between Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his Chinese language counterpart Wang Yi – aimed to get Beijing to affect Moscow to finish the invasion.
“Our intention in our common engagement with China, together with Secretary Blinken’s name along with his counterpart, was to underscore that this conflict shouldn’t be good for China, that we wish to see China use its affect with Russia to get this conflict ended, and at a minimal to assist get these humanitarian corridors going,” Nuland informed US lawmakers.
“And that if they’re involved about their financial state of affairs as they need to effectively be, with the bottom development charges in 15 years, that this conflict is contributing to it.”
Ukrainian president’s spouse condemns ‘mass homicide’ of civilians
Olena Zelenska, the Ukrainian president’s spouse, has thanked the nation’s allies for his or her help and urged them to do extra to discourage Russia.
Zelenska additionally mentioned in an open letter that the Russian invasion of Ukraine amounted to “the mass homicide of Ukrainian civilians”.
“Essentially the most terrifying and devastating of this invasion are the kid casualties,” she mentioned, mentioning eight-year-old Alice, who died on the streets of Okhtyrka whereas her grandfather tried to guard her, and Polina, a baby from Kyiv, who died in shelling alongside her dad and mom.
She additionally cited 14-year-old Arseniy, who was hit within the head by wreckage and couldn’t be saved as a result of an ambulance couldn’t get to him on time due to intense fires.
Bumble stops service in Russia
Bumble, the relationship platform, has introduced it’s discontinuing its service in Russia, becoming a member of different firms which have suspended their operations within the nation over the conflict in Ukraine.
The corporate mentioned it’s eradicating all of its apps from the Apple App Retailer and Google Play Retailer in Russia and Belarus. Bumble mentioned it expects to lose about $2m in first-quarter income consequently.
FIFA postpones Ukraine’s World Cup qualification playoff in opposition to Scotland
FIFA has postponed Ukraine’s World Cup qualification playoff match in opposition to Scotland on March 24, citing Russia’s invasion.
“Following session with UEFA and the 4 taking part member associations in Path A of the European qualifying play-offs, it was unanimously agreed within the spirit of solidarity to just accept,” FIFA mentioned in a press release.
“The match between Scotland and Ukraine … will now be postponed to the present June window, and consequently, the match between the winners of Scotland v Ukraine and Wales v Austria can even be postponed.”
Poland to donate fighter jets to Ukraine
Ukraine has pleaded for extra warplanes, and now Poland mentioned it will give all of its MiG-29 fighter jets to the US, agreeing to an association that may enable them for use by Ukraine’s navy.
The Polish International Ministry mentioned in a press release that Poland is able to ship the jets to the US Ramstein Air Base in Germany.
“On the similar time, Poland requests the USA to supply us with used plane with corresponding operational capabilities,” it mentioned.
Russia prepared to supply humanitarian corridors from Kyiv, different cities: Tass
Russian forces will cease firing from 10am Moscow time (07:00 GMT) on Wednesday and are prepared to supply humanitarian corridors so individuals can go away Kyiv and 4 different cities, the Tass information company reported, citing a senior Russian official.
Details about corridors from Kyiv, Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv and Mariupol might be despatched to Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk, mentioned Mikhail Mizintsev, who heads the Russian Nationwide Defence Management Centre.
Vereshchuk mentioned earlier on Tuesday that authorities had as soon as once more not been capable of evacuate civilians from Mariupol.
US Home set to cross Russia sanctions invoice, Pelosi says
Nancy Pelosi, speaker of the US Home of Representatives, has mentioned the chamber is ready to cross a Russia sanctions invoice afterward Tuesday. She mentioned the laws would help Biden’s resolution to ban Russian oil imports.
“Our invoice has three main provisions: it’s going to ban the import of Russian oil & vitality merchandise into the U.S., it’s going to take steps to assessment Russia’s entry to the WTO and discover how we will diminish Russia within the international economic system & it’s going to reauthorize & strengthen the Magnitsky Act,” Pelosi wrote on Twitter.
US Congress edges nearer to authorising assist for Ukraine
The US Congress seems to be on the cusp of an settlement that may allocate billions of {dollars} in emergency assist for Ukraine, amongst different issues.
Sweeping laws, awaiting ultimate approval from Democratic and Republican congressional leaders, was anticipated to supply as a lot as $14bn to assist Ukraine reply to Russia’s invasion.
“Republicans and Democrats are very, very near finalizing the settlement. I count on there might be textual content launched in just a few hours,” Senate Majority Chief Chuck Schumer informed reporters at a mid-afternoon information convention.
Blinken holds ‘productive dialog’ on Ukraine with UAE counterpart
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has mentioned he held a “productive dialog” along with his UAE counterpart Abdullah bin Zayed Al-Nahyan.
“We worth the shut coordination on Ukraine and a powerful worldwide response to help Ukrainian sovereignty,” Blinken, who’s at the moment in Europe, mentioned on Twitter.
The UAE had abstained from a UN Safety Council proposal condemning the Russian invasion however voted in favour of the same decision within the UN Normal Meeting final week.
Productive dialog as we speak with UAE Minister of International Affairs @ABZayed. We worth the shut coordination on Ukraine and a powerful worldwide response to help Ukrainian sovereignty. The U.S. will proceed to bolster sturdy UAE defenses to discourage regional threats.
— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) March 8, 2022
Evacuation from Mariupol fails once more, Ukrainian official says
Ukraine has mentioned residents of Mariupol in search of to depart town alongside a protected hall got here underneath Russian hearth on Tuesday.
“Ceasefire violated! Russian forces at the moment are shelling the humanitarian hall from Zaporizhzhia to Mariupol,” the Ukrainian international ministry spokesperson, Oleg Nikolenko, wrote on Twitter.
Tons of of 1000’s of individuals in Mariupol have been sheltering underneath bombardment with out water or energy as makes an attempt to create corridors to securely evacuate civilians have stumbled amid continued combating and objections to the proposed routes.
Photographs: Residents endure as Russian forces lay siege to Mariupol
Civilians within the besieged port of Mariupol in southeastern Ukraine are anxiously ready for information of evacuation efforts as they wrestle to outlive in a metropolis the place our bodies have been left uncollected on the streets.
An estimated 200,000 individuals – practically half the inhabitants of about 430,000 – hope to flee town.
See the photographs right here.
Welcome to Al Jazeera’s persevering with protection of the Ukraine-Russia disaster.
Learn all of the updates from Tuesday, March 8, right here.