PremiumPresident Joe Biden banned Russian oil and other energy imports to the United States, piling pressure on Vladimir Putin to halt the assault on Ukraine, but an effort to evacuate civilians from the besieged port city of Mariupol failed.
Ukraine's government accused Russia of shelling a humanitarian corridor it had promised in Mariupol.
US deploys two anti-aircraft missile batteries in Poland, Pentagon says
The second tranche of humanitarian aid from India to Ukraine, which arrived in Bucharest on Wednesday by IAF flight, was handed over to Romanian authorities for onward transmission to Ukraine, the Embassy of India in Bucharest said.
The Kremlin accused the United States on Wednesday of declaring an economic war on Russia that was sowing mayhem through energy markets, and put Washington on notice it was considering its response to a ban on Russian oil and energy.
Beijing said Wednesday it will provide war-torn Ukraine with about $790,000 in humanitarian aid, with the first shipment already on its way, though China has yet to condemn Russia's invasion of the country.
Power has been entirely cut to the Chernobyl power plant, site of the world's worst nuclear disaster in 1986, and its security systems, Ukraine's energy operator Ukrenergo said Wednesday.
Russia has never threatened NATO and does not threaten the Western military alliance now, Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Wednesday, adding that her country still must react to NATO's "confrontational course".
The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) will discuss on Wednesday the emergency financial assistance to Ukraine in the amount of USD 1.4 billion, the IMF said.
Russia will achieve its goal of ensuring Ukraine's neutral status and would prefer to do that through talks, Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Wednesday.
Russian foreign ministry says operation's aims do not include overthrowing Ukraine's govt
Russia and Ukraine on Wednesday agreed a day-long ceasefire around a series of evacuation corridors to allow civilians to escape the fighting, Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said.
India's defence sector will not face any problems because of the western sanctions on Russia as Moscow has an inherent military strength and is self-sufficient in its production capabilities, Niti Aayog member V K Saraswat said on Wednesday.
Russia is one of biggest suppliers of defence products and equipment to India mostly under government-to-government contract. "Russia has got inherent military strength, they have a very good military equipment manufacturing infrastructure and by and large they are self-sufficient in their production capabilities," he told PTI.
Ukraine will on Wednesday try to evacuate civilians through six "humanitarian corridors", including from the besieged southern port city of Mariupol, Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said.
She said in a video statement that Ukrainian armed forces had agreed to stop firing in those areas from 9 a.m. until 9 p.m. (0700-1900 GMT)and urged Russian forces to fulfil their commitment to local ceasefires.
An air alert has been declared in and around Kyiv, with residents urged to get to bomb shelters as quickly as possible.
The weekend visit by the U.S. delegation focused not only on the fate of detained Americans but on the possibility of easing U.S. oil sanctions on the OPEC member to fill a supply gap if President Joe Biden banned Russian oil imports in response to Moscow's invasion of Ukraine - something he did on Tuesday. Venezuela is Russia's closest ally in South America. Full story
McDonald's Corp, Starbucks and L'Oreal are temporarily closing all outlets in Russia. Coca-Cola and Pepsi suspended soda sales in the country.
Ukrainian troops repulsed efforts by Russian forces to enter the eastern city of Kharkiv, regional governor Oleh Synehubov said.
Russian forces have repeatedly tried to seize the southern regional capital of Mykolayiv in attacks that have been repulsed by Ukrainian troops, a Ukrainian presidential adviser said
Biden acknowledged the ban on Russian energy imports, which has bipartisan support, would drive up U.S. energy prices.
Britain said it aimed to phase out imports of Russian oil by the end of 2022. The EU plans to cut dependency on Russian gas this year by two-thirds.
Oil continued its rally near $126 a barrel after President Joe Biden said the U.S. would ban the import of Russian crude, escalating efforts to hobble the nation’s economy that will further strain global energy markets.
Futures in New York have soared more than 35% since the invasion of Ukraine almost two weeks ago, and settled at the highest since 2008 on Tuesday. The U.K. said it would also phase out Russian crude imports by the end of the year, and Shell Plc and BP Plc are halting new purchases, but other European nations have been reluctant to commit to similar action.
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