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Russia-Ukraine war: Western allies see Kyiv falling to Russian forces within hours 

Russia Ukraine crisis LIVE: Russian President Putin briefs Prime Minister Narendra Modi about the recent developments regarding Ukraine. PM Modi reiterates his stand that the differences between Russia and NATO can only be resolved through honest and sincere dialogue, says PMO

Russian President Vladimir Putin with Prime Minister Narendra Modi

After weeks of denying plans to attack neighbouring Ukraine, Russian forces fired missiles at several cities in Ukraine and landed troops on its coast on Thursday.

 

Russia launched a barrage of missile, artillery and air attacks early today, while Ukraine’s Interior Ministry said that the capital, Kyiv, was being targeted and urged citizens to go to shelters. Ukraine’s border guard said that it was being shelled from five regions, including from Crimea in the south and Belarus to the north, and that Russian forces had crossed into the country.

25 Feb 2022, 02:02 AM IST Western allies see Kyiv falling to Russian forces within hours 

Kyiv may fall to Russian forces within hours as Ukraine’s air defenses have been effectively eliminated, according to a senior Western intelligence official. 

Russian troops are advancing toward Ukraine down both sides of the Dnieper river and look set to take the capital, the official said. 

25 Feb 2022, 01:48 AM IST Biden won’t rule out sanctioning Putin personally

The idea of sanctioning Russia’s Putin personally was “not a bluff" and remains “on the table" as the US ratchets up its response to the invasion of Ukraine, Biden said in his appearance at the White House on Thursday.

But the US leader also conceded that even the sweeping sanctions targeting Russia’s financial sector imposed Thursday would take time to have an impact, and that he didn’t believe their announcement would cause Putin to stand down his invasion.

25 Feb 2022, 01:37 AM IST US sanctions 24 Belarusians, organizations over support of invasion

The United States on Thursday imposed sanctions on 24 Belarusian individuals and organizations "due to Belarus's support for, and facilitation of, the invasion" of Ukraine by Russia.

"Today's action focuses on Belarus's defense sector and financial institutions, two areas in which Belarus has especially close ties to Russia," the US Treasury said in a statement.

25 Feb 2022, 01:30 AM IST Biden imposes sanctions, export controls on Russia 

Biden denounced Russia’s “brutal assault" in a “premeditated attack" on Ukraine in a speech Thursday from the East Room of the White House and said he would impose a “severe cost on the Russian economy."

The U.S. is implementing export controls designed to cut Russia off from semiconductors and other advanced technology crucial to the military, biotechnology, and aerospace industries. Rules allow the U.S. to restrict exports to Russia from anywhere in the world using American technology, including software.

24 Feb 2022, 10:37 PM IST Fighting rages around Ukraine as Russia invades from three sides

Ukrainian forces battled Russian invaders on three sides on Thursday after Moscow mounted an assault by land, sea and air in the biggest attack on a European state since World War Two.

24 Feb 2022, 10:37 PM IST UK added 11 new sanctions listings on Russia

UK Thursday added 11 new sanctions listings on Russia

24 Feb 2022, 10:34 PM IST Biden meets with G7, addresses US on response to Russia

US President Joe Biden met with G7 allies Thursday to hammer out a raft of new sanctions against Russia after it invaded Ukraine, and was shortly to speak to the American people on a crisis that he warns will cause "catastrophic loss of life."

After a virtual, closed-door meeting which lasted an hour and 10 minutes, the group of rich Western democracies -- Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States -- said in a joint statement that Russia posed "a serious threat to the rules-based international order."

24 Feb 2022, 10:30 PM IST Ukraine computers hit by data-wiping software as Russia launched invasion

A newly discovered piece of destructive software found circulating in Ukraine has hit hundreds of computers, according to researchers at the cybersecurity firm ESET, part of what Ukrainian officials said was an intensifying wave of hacks aimed at the country.

The company said on Twitter that the data wiping program had been installed on hundreds of machines in the country, an attack it said had likely been in the works for the past couple of months.

24 Feb 2022, 10:29 PM IST South Ukraine region says 13 civilians, 9 troops killed

South Ukraine region Thursday said that 13 civilians and 9 troops were killed so far.

24 Feb 2022, 10:29 PM IST Russia attacks Ukraine; peace in Europe 'shattered'

Russia launched a wide-ranging attack on Ukraine on Thursday, hitting cities and bases with airstrikes or shelling, as civilians piled into trains and cars to flee. Ukraine's government pleaded for help as it said Russian tanks and troops rolled across the border in a “full-scale war" that could rewrite the geopolitical order.

24 Feb 2022, 10:16 PM IST Putin hosts biz summit to discuss sanctions in Moscow

Russian President Vladimir Putin hosts business summit to discuss sanctions in Moscow.

24 Feb 2022, 10:13 PM IST Putin says 'no other way' to defend Russia other than invading Ukraine

Russian President Vladimir Putin says 'no other way' to defend Russia other than invading Ukraine.

24 Feb 2022, 10:11 PM IST Ukrainian ambassador to US says 'all Ukrainians' will fight Russian invasion

Ukraine's ambassador to the United States Oksana Markarova said on Thursday that the Ukrainian military was fighting back against a Russian invasion and that "all Ukrainians" would resist the assault.

24 Feb 2022, 10:06 PM IST Red Cross fears 'massive casualty numbers' in Ukraine

The Red Cross chief voiced alarm Thursday at the escalating conflict in Ukraine, with the risk of death and destruction at a scale that is "frightening to contemplate".

"I fear increased suffering, with the potential of massive casualty numbers and extensive destruction of civilian objects like water and electricity plants," Peter Maurer, head of the International Committee of the Red Cross, said in a statement.

He warned as well of "mass displacement, trauma, family separation and missing persons".

24 Feb 2022, 10:01 PM IST Russia plans to 'decapitate' Ukraine govt: US defense official

The United States believes Russia's invasion of Ukraine is designed to decapitate Ukraine's government and one of the three main axes of assault is directed at the capital Kyiv, a senior U.S. defense official said on Thursday.

"The indications we've seen thus far, in just these first, not even 12 hours, are in keeping with our assessment earlier, that would be his goal: to decapitate this government," said the official, speaking on the condition of anonymity.

24 Feb 2022, 09:59 PM IST Ukraine demands Russia be banned from SWIFT bank transfers

Ukraine demanded Thursday that Russian banks be excluded from the international SWIFT financial transfer network, as Western capitals considered how to ramp up sanctions in the wake of Moscow's invasion.

President Volodymyr Zelensky made the appeal after a call with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron, adding: "A package of extra severe sanctions against Russia from the EU is already arriving."

24 Feb 2022, 09:50 PM IST India focusing on evacuating 16,000 nationals from Ukraine as crisis worsens

India is focusing on evacuating its 16,000 nationals still stuck in Ukraine, the South Asian nation's foreign secretary told reporters late on Thursday after Russian forces mounted a mass assault by land, air and sea.

24 Feb 2022, 09:46 PM IST Battle underway for airbase on Kyiv outskirts

Russian and Ukrainian forces were on Thursday battling for an airbase on the northern outskirts of Kyiv after dozens of attack helicopters swooped south from Belarus towards the capital.

24 Feb 2022, 09:42 PM IST Meeting of Cabinet Committee on Security underway: Foreign Secy

Meeting of Cabinet Committee on Security underway to take stock of situation in Ukraine: Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla

24 Feb 2022, 09:37 PM IST 4,000 Indians have already left Ukraine, Shringla says

As many as 4,000 Indian nationals have already left Ukraine in the past few days. The MEA control room in Delhi has got 980 calls and 850 emails, Foreign Secretary Harsh V Shringla says.

24 Feb 2022, 09:31 PM IST PM Modi to speak to Russian Prez Vladimir Putin shortly

The Prime Minister is scheduled to speak to Russian President Vladimir Putin shortly, confirm Foreign Secretary Harsh V Shringla.

24 Feb 2022, 09:28 PM IST Russian chess great Kasparov slams Putin after Ukraine invasion. See post

24 Feb 2022, 09:25 PM IST Czech Republic stops issuing visas to Russians

Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala on Thursday said the EU member had stopped issuing visas to Russian citizens in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

"We are suspending the processing of visa applications from Russian nationals at all our consular offices with the exception of humanitarian cases," Fiala told reporters.

24 Feb 2022, 09:03 PM IST Ukraine's capital of Kyiv imposes curfew

The mayor of Ukraine's capital of Kyiv ordered a curfew on Thursday in comments shown on television after Russia launched an invasion of Ukraine.

24 Feb 2022, 08:53 PM IST Ukraine troops fighting to prevent repeat of Chernobyl

Zelensky says Ukraine troops fighting to prevent repeat of Chernobyl. "Russian occupation forces are trying to seize the #Chornobyl_NPP. Our defenders are giving their lives so that the tragedy of 1986 will not be repeated. Reported this to @SwedishPM. This is a declaration of war against the whole of Europe," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenksyy said in a tweet.

24 Feb 2022, 08:31 PM IST Indian passengers from Ukraine can return via Qatar, says govt

The Centre on Thursday said Indian passengers from Ukraine can return via Qatar, with aviation industry experts stating that civilian flights will restart from Ukraine only when its airspace opens.

Currently 20,000 Indians, mostly students, are stranded in Ukraine.

24 Feb 2022, 08:23 PM IST Battle underway for airbase on Kyiv outskirts

Russian and Ukrainian forces are battling for control of an airbase on the northern outskirts of Kyiv, a senior Ukrainian officer said Thursday, as dozens of attack helicopters swooped on the area.

"Fighting is underway for Gostomel airfield," armed forces chief Valeriy Zaluzhny said in a statement posted online. Shortly earlier, AFP reporters had seen helicopters flying low over the city from the north.

24 Feb 2022, 08:11 PM IST 200 students accommodated near Indian embassy 

Embassy of India in Ukraine accommodates more than 200 Indian students at school near the Embassy in Kyiv.

24 Feb 2022, 08:06 PM IST Measures taken to bring home students: Karnataka CM

Appropriate measures are being taken to bring home Karnataka students stranded in Ukraine. Indian Embassy in Ukraine has issued suitable guidelines for the safety of students. We're in constant touch with the Indian Embassy in Ukraine: Karnataka CM Basavaraj Bommai. 

24 Feb 2022, 07:59 PM IST PM Modi chairs CCS meet

Prime Minister Narendra Modi chairs the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security. – ANI

24 Feb 2022, 07:43 PM IST PM Modi likely to speak to Russian President Vladimir Putin

Prime Minister Narendra Modi likely to speak to Russian President Vladimir Putin tonight, according to reports.

24 Feb 2022, 07:37 PM IST Poland to open reception centres for Ukrainian refugees

Poland said Thursday it will open nine reception centres along its border with Ukraine in anticipation of an influx of refugees after Russia invaded the country.

24 Feb 2022, 07:30 PM IST 'The worst sunrise in my life': Ukrainians wake to attack

The missile fragment pierced the ceiling of Mikhail Shcherbakov’s apartment in Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second largest city. A Russian attack, after weeks of warnings, had hit home.

“I heard noise and woke up. I realized it sounded like artillery," Shcherbakov said. He jumped from the couch and ran to wake his mother, and something exploded behind him.

The missile left a nearby computer and teacup shrouded with dust, instant artifacts of Europe’s latest crisis.

24 Feb 2022, 07:22 PM IST Russia says it has destroyed 74 military facilities in Ukraine

Russia's defence ministry said it had destroyed 74 above-ground military infrastructure facilities in Ukraine on Thursday, including 11 aerodromes, the RIA news agency reported.

24 Feb 2022, 07:09 PM IST In picture: Map of Ukraine locating cities where explosion and strikes occurred

In picture: Map of Ukraine locating cities where explosion and strikes occurred
24 Feb 2022, 06:58 PM IST UK PM calls Putin a 'dictator'

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has called his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin a "dictator".

Johnson also termed Russia's invasion of Ukraine a "hideous and barbaric venture", adding that Western allies are preparing a "massive package of sanctions" against Moscow.

"We cannot and will not just look away," Boris Johnson told the people of Ukraine.

24 Feb 2022, 06:52 PM IST EU tells Belarus to 'not take part' in Russian attack on Ukraine

EU chief Charles Michel on Thursday urged Belarus to "not take part" in Russia's military assault on Ukraine, ahead of an emergency European Union summit to decide new sanctions on Moscow over its invasion.

In an appeal to Belarus and its people during a media conference at NATO headquarters, Michel said: "You have the choice not to follow Russia's destructive action. You have the choice not to take part in this needless tragedy against your neighbours in Ukraine."

24 Feb 2022, 06:45 PM IST Russia-Ukraine conflict: Latest developments

- Putin announces 'operation'

- 'Full-scale invasion'

- Russians reach Kyiv region

- Dozens dead

- NATO acts

- Johnson vows massive sanctions

- Airbases, defences 'destroyed'

- Moldova closes airspace

- Oil prices soar

- European stocks slump

- Russian bourses suspended

- Shipping closed

24 Feb 2022, 06:33 PM IST 'Devastating' consequences to Ukraine invasion: UN refugee chief

The UN refugee chief warned Thursday Russia's invasion of Ukraine would have "devastating" humanitarian consequences and urged neighbouring countries to keep borders open to those fleeing the violence.

"We are gravely concerned about the fast-deteriorating situation and ongoing military action in Ukraine," Felippo Grandi said in a statement.

"The humanitarian consequences on civilian populations will be devastating. There are no winners in war but countless lives will be torn apart."

24 Feb 2022, 06:25 PM IST Macron vows response 'without weakness' to Russia's 'act of war'

French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday warned Russia of an uncompromising response to its attack on Ukraine, which he described as a turning point in European history.

"We will respond without weakness to this act of war, with calm, determination and unity," Macron said in an address to the nation, adding that the events were a "turning point in the history of Europe and our country" that would have "deep and lasting consequences for our lives".

24 Feb 2022, 06:13 PM IST 'Russia will pay a heavy price': European Commission Prez

24 Feb 2022, 06:04 PM IST Ukraine military plane with 14 aboard crashes near Kyiv

Ukraine military plane with 14 aboard crashes near Kyiv, as per emergency service

24 Feb 2022, 06:04 PM IST Ukrainian military plane shot down, five killed

A Ukrainian military plane was shot down on Thursday and five people were killed, Ukrainian police and the state emergency service said, as its armed forces sought to defend against a massive Russian military operation.

24 Feb 2022, 05:55 PM IST Ukraine says fierce fighting under way at numerous locations

Ukraine on Thursday fought Russian forces along practically its entire border with Russia, and there was fierce fighting in the regions of Sumy, Kharkiv, Kherson, Odessa and at a military airport near Kyiv, an adviser to the presidential office said.

24 Feb 2022, 05:37 PM IST India issues third advisory

The Indian embassy in Ukraine issued a third advisory today asking Indian citizens living in the east European nation to go to bomb shelters if they hear air raid sirens in the capital city Kyiv.

24 Feb 2022, 05:28 PM IST South Korea says will join sanctions against Russia

South Korea will join international economic sanctions against Russia over its "armed invasion" of Ukraine, President Moon Jae-in said Thursday.

"The sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of Ukraine must be guaranteed," Moon said, in a statement issued by Seoul's presidential Blue House.

24 Feb 2022, 05:17 PM IST Eighteen killed in attack near Ukraine's Odessa

Eighteen people died Thursday in an air strike on a military base near Ukraine's Black Sea port city of Odessa, the local administration said.

"Eighteen died -- eight men and 10 women. At the moment, we are still digging through the rubble," the Odessa regional administration said in a statement.

24 Feb 2022, 05:09 PM IST US calls on Russia to cease invasion of Ukraine

The United States has called on Russia to "immediately cease its military action and withdraw all its forces from in and around Ukraine".

24 Feb 2022, 05:07 PM IST NATO puts jets on high alert, activates its defence plans

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on Thursday that the Western military alliance will deploy capabilities and forces on its territory after Russian invaded Ukraine, saying it put over 100 warplanes on high alert.

24 Feb 2022, 05:04 PM IST European stock markets down 5% on Ukraine invasion

European stock markets tumbled on Thursday as Russia launched an invasion of Ukraine, causing panic on trading floors.

Frankfurt's DAX index fell by 5.2 percent, the Paris CAC 40 dropped 5.0 percent and the Milan FTSE MIB index was down by 5.1 percent as of 1110 GMT. The European benchmark EURO STOXX 50 meanwhile plummeted 5.2 percent.

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