PremiumRussia Ukraine: So far 48 Flights under Operation Ganga have landed in India out of which 18 flights landed in last 24 hours, says the government
Europe's biggest nuclear power plant, the Zaporizhzhia facility in Ukraine, was on fire after a Russian attack, the mayor of a nearby town said. Firefighters could not battle the blaze because they were being fired upon by Russian troops, according to the Ukrainian atomic energy ministry.
Russia and Ukraine agreed on the need for humanitarian corridors and a possible ceasefire around them for fleeing civilians, their first sign of agreement on any issue since the war began eight days ago.
The United States and Britain announced sanctions on more Russian oligarchs, and more Western companies including Nike and IKEA closed operations in Russia
Four tranches of humanitarian aid were sent earlier and today two more tranches were dispatched by IAF flights (Poland, Slovak, Romania). Today one IAF flight carried 6 tonne of material to Romania and second carried 9 tonne material to Slovakia: Govt of India
In terms of departure points, there'll be 5 flights each from Budapest, 4 from Suceava in Romania (which we mentioned yesterday), 3 from Rzeszow in Poland and 1 each from Warsaw, Bratislava (new departure point), Bucharest and Kosice in Slovakia: Govt of India
So far 48 Flights under Operation Ganga have landed in India out of which 18 flights landed in last 24 hours. The total number of Indians who returned onboard these 18 flights is around 4000: Govt of India
Forty-seven people have been killed following a Russian air strike in the northern Ukrainian city of Chernihiv, regional authorities said Friday.
"On March 3, 47 people (38 men and 9 women) were killed by a Russian air strike on a residential area in Chernihiv," local authorities said on Facebook.
Since it invaded Ukraine over a week ago, Russia has said that it does not target civilian areas, despite widespread evidence to the contrary. – AP
President Vladimir Putin says Russia is ready for talks with Ukraine but insisted that it must meet Moscow’s demands.
Putin told German Chancellor Olaf Scholz that Ukraine must agree to demilitarize, accept Moscow’s sovereignty over Crimea and surrender territory to Russia-backed rebels in the east, the Kremlin said in its readout of Friday’s call.
Russia annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula in 2014 following the ouster of the country’s former Moscow-friendly leaders and cast its support behind the rebels in eastern Ukraine. – AP
Britain's BBC said on Friday it would temporarily suspend the work of all its journalists and support staff in Russia following the introduction of a new law that could jail anyone intentionally spreading "fake" news.
Tim Davie, the director general of the BBC, said in a statement the legislation appears to criminalise the process of independent journalism. – Reuters
Pres Putin holds a telephone conversation with Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud. It was noted that OPEC+ member countries are consistently fulfilling their obligations to help ensure stability on the global oil market: Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs
FedEx Corp. has suspended all services in Russia and Belarus as fighting intensifies following the invasion of Ukraine.
FedEx earlier had suspended inbound service to Russia, but now has halted all package movements including domestic deliveries in both Russia and Belarus, according to an employee memo Friday. The company had also suspended services to Ukraine. – Bloomberg
Microsoft Corp. said it’s suspending all new sales of products and services in Russia as it condemned the country’s “unjustified, unprovoked and unlawful invasion" of Ukraine.
The U.S. tech giant also said it’s working closely with governments of the U.S., European Union and U.K. and stopping many aspects of its business in Russia in compliance with coordinated sanctions rules. – Bloomberg
Ukrainian President: “I welcome the establishment by the #UN Human Rights Council of the International Commission of Inquiry to investigate facts of Russian war crimes against Ukraine. Evidence will be documented and used in international courts. Russian war criminals will be held accountable."
Ukraine plans to hold third round of talks with Russian officials this weekend- presidential advisor: News agency AFP
“Russian FM Lavrov spreads disinfo by falsely alleging Ukraine wants to restore its nuclear arsenal. Once again: This is a cynical, blatant lie by Russia who itself fires at nuclear facilities in Ukraine. Safe zones must be established around them to prevent disaster in Europe," says Dmytro Kuleba, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine.
Dmytro Kuleba, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine: “Took part in the extraordinary meeting of NATO Foreign Ministers. My message: act now before it’s too late. Don’t let Putin turn Ukraine into Syria. We are ready to fight. We will continue fighting. But we need partners to help us with concrete, resolute and swift actions, now."
The UN Security Council will hold an emergency meeting requested by Britain Friday at 11:30 am (1630 GMT) after Russian forces attacked Europe's largest nuclear plant in Ukraine, diplomatic sources said.
The session was requested by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, diplomats told AFP, with the United States, France, Norway, Ireland and Albania joining the call for an urgent meeting.
Western leaders had expressed horror Friday after the Zaporizhzhia plant in southern Ukraine was attacked with shellfire and taken over by invading Russian forces. – AFP
“It is a war crime to attack a nuclear power plant. Putin's shelling of Europe's largest nuclear plant takes his reign of terror one step further," tweets Embassy of the United States of America in Kyiv.
The Kremlin told Russians on Friday to rally around President Vladimir Putin and said that what happened next in the negotiations over Ukraine would depend on Kyiv's reaction to this week's talks between the two sides.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters on a conference call that no documents had been agreed yet with Ukraine at the talks, but that Moscow had told the Ukrainian side how it saw the solution to the war. – Reuters
Swedes and Finns are increasingly in favour of joining the NATO defence bloc after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, adding pressure on the countries’ leaders to change long-standing policies of military non-alignment.
Polls released in the two Nordic countries on Friday showed 51% of Swedes and 48% of Finns now back joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Its the first time a Swedish majority favours the entry, while an earlier poll in Finland has also indicated majority support. – Reuters
India on Friday abstained in a vote in the UN Human Rights Council that has decided to urgently establish an independent international commission of inquiry as a result of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine.
The 47-member Council voted on a draft resolution on the situation of human rights in Ukraine. The resolution was adopted with 32 votes in favour, two against (Russia and Eritrea) and 13 abstentions, including India, China, Pakistan, Sudan and Venezuela. – PTI
Putin says other countries should normalise relations with Russia, reports Reuters.
Europe's largest nuclear power plant was hit by Russian shelling early on Friday, sparking a fire and raising fears of a disaster that could affect all of central Europe for decades, like the 1986 Chernobyl meltdown.
Also read: Russia-Ukraine war: Key facts about Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant attacked by troops
The New Development Bank (NDB) of the BRICS bloc has put all new transactions in Russia on hold citing the "unfolding uncertainties and restrictions", amidst the Ukraine crisis.
The NDB's move came a day after the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) put on hold all its projects in Russia and its ally Belarus. “The New Development Bank (NDB) applies sound banking principles in all its operations, as stated in its Articles of Agreement", a statement by the bank posted on its website on Thursday said. – PTI
Physical integrity of the (nuclear) plant (in Ukraine) has been compromised...It's time for action...Ukraine sent a request to us. I have indicated to both Russia & Ukraine my availability & position to travel as soon as possible, says IAEA DG Rafael Mariano Grossi.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has says he is having continued dialogue with Japanese Prime Minister. "Informed about Russia's nuclear terrorism at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant. We both agree on the gravity of threats to global security," he added.
British Defence Secretary Ben Wallace on Friday said Russia's Vladimir Putin was playing with fire by attacking a nuclear power plant in Ukraine's southeast and called on him to stop targeting such sites.
"We call upon the Russian president in the strongest possible terms to absolutely cease attacking sites such as that, it is incredibly dangerous," Wallace told a news conference during a visit to Copenhagen.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has claimed that over 9,200 Russian servicemen have been killed in eight days of the Russia-Ukraine war so far. – Reuters
NATO foreign ministers meet in Brussels on Friday to discuss Russia's invasion of Ukraine as Kyiv called on Western allies to implement a no-fly zone or provide them with more planes to protect civilians and infrastructure including nuclear plants.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has consistently called for a no-fly zone since Moscow's invasion more than a week ago, but NATO allies have resisted a step that could drag them into the war with Russia. – Reuters
NATO will defend all its allies and territory against a Russian attack, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Friday, as he arrived for a meeting of the alliance's foreign ministers in Brussels.
"Ours is a defensive alliance. We seek no conflict. But if conflict comes to us we are ready for it and we will defend every inch of NATO territory," he told reporters, while condemning what he called Russian attacks on civilians in Ukraine. – Reuters
The Indian Air Force (IAF) has operated three flights from Romania and Hungary to the Hindon airbase near here between Thursday night and Friday morning carrying 630 Indians who were stranded amid the Ukraine-Russia conflict.
The IAF joined the government's Operation Ganga on Thursday morning when it brought 798 Indians on four evacuation flights from the Romanian capital Bucharest, Hungary's Budapest and Polish city Rzeszow to Hindon airbase.
Till date, the IAF has evacuated a total of 1,428 Indians on seven flights, all of which have been operated through its C-17 aircraft. – PTI
Russia's parliament on Friday passed a law imposing a jail term of up to 15 years for spreading intentionally 'fake' information about the armed forces as Moscow fights back in what it casts as an information war over the conflict in Ukraine.
Russian officials have repeatedly said that false information has been spread by Russia's enemies such as the United States and its allies in an attempt to sow discord and divide its people.
Russian lawmakers passed the law, making the spread of 'fake' information or public calls for sanctions against Russia criminal offences. – Reuters
* Zaporizhzhia is the largest of Ukraine's four nuclear power plants, which together provide about half the country's electricity.
* This is the first time war has broken out in a country with such a large and established nuclear power programme, the International Atomic Energy Agency says.
* Zaporizhzhia's six units each have a net capacity of 950 Megawatts electric, or a total of 5.7 Gigawatts electric, according to an IAEA database. The first unit was connected to the grid in 1984, and the last in 1995.
* The power plant is operating at just a fraction of its capacity. An internal IAEA notification seen by Reuters on Friday said. – Reuters
Italy's Draghi says the EU must continue to react united and with the utmost firmness, together with its allies, to support Ukraine and protect European citizens. – Reuters
Any calls for NATO to enforce a no-fly zone in Ukraine would be irresponsible and could drag the military alliance into direct conflict with Russia, Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte said on Friday.
"I believe that all encouragements for NATO to get involved into the military conflict now are irresponsible," Simonyte said in Vilnius. – Reuters
China's foreign ministry on Friday urged all sides to ensure the safety of nuclear facilities in Ukraine, after a fire broke out in a building adjacent to a nuclear plant there during intense fighting.
Russian military forces have seized the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant - Europe's largest - in Ukraine's southeast, the regional state administration said on Friday.
"Operational personnel are monitoring the condition of power units," it said on social media, quoting the Ukrainian nuclear inspectorate.
It said efforts sought to ensure the operations were in line with safety requirements.
Ukraine has said Russian forces attacked the plant in the early hours of Friday, setting an adjacent five-story training facility on fire.
Private carrier Go First on Friday said it has operated first evacuation flight to New Delhi from Budapest in Hungary to bring back 177 Indian evacuees from war-hit Ukraine.
The city-based airline also said it will operate two flights every till March 10 as part of the Operation Ganga mission.
The first evacuation flight of Go First from Budapest departed at 5.58 pm (local time) on Thursday and arrived in New Delhi at 9.20 am (local time) on Friday with 177 passengers onboard, the airline said in a statement.
The U.S. should immediately move toward recognizing Taiwan as a country, former U.S. Secretary of State and potential presidential candidate Mike Pompeo said in Taipei, comments that are likely to spark an angry response from Beijing.
“It is imperative to change 50 years of ambiguity," said Pompeo, the top diplomat in the Trump administration who is visiting in an unofficial capacity at the invitation of a think tank in Taipei.
Fighting has stopped near the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant on Friday and radiation levels are currently normal.
Zaporizhzhia power plant spokesperson Andrey Tuz said the plant has not sustained any critical damage, although only one power generation unit out of six is operational as the fire continued at the facility
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba tweeted a plea to the Russians to stop the assault and allow fire teams inside. Full story here
The International Atomic Energy Agency said on Twitter that it's been informed by Ukraine’s nuclear regulator that “there has been no change reported in radiation levels" at a nuclear power station shelled by Russian troops.
The agency said its Director General Mariano Grossi was in touch with Ukraine’s Prime Minister Denys Schmygal and the Ukrainian regulator and operator about the situation at the Zaporizhzhia plant.
biteThe United States and Britain announced sanctions on more Russian oligarchs, and more Western companies including Nike and IKEA closed operations in Russia
An Indian student has been hospitalised after he was shot with a bullet in the capital city of Ukraine, a few days after an Indian student lost his life in the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
Speaking exclusively to ANI, Minister of State (MoS) for Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) General VK Singh revealed the information at Poland's Rzeszow airport on Thursday.
The UN's atomic watchdog urged Russian forces to stop attacking a Ukrainian nuclear power plant on Friday, warning of "severe danger" if the reactors were hit.
"IAEA Director General @RafaelMGrossi speaks with #Ukraine PM Denys Shmygal and with Ukrainian nuclear regulator and operator about serious situation at #Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, appeals for halt of use of force and warns of severe danger if reactors hit," the International Atomic Energy Agency tweeted.
Washington: The Department of Homeland Security will grant temporary legal status to Ukrainians living in the US.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said Thursday that Temporary Protected Status would be extended for 18 months.
Russian troops are shelling Europe's largest nuclear power station in Ukraine.
“We demand that they stop the heavy weapons fire," Andriy Tuz, spokesperson for the plant in Enerhodar, said in a video posted on Telegram. “There is a real threat of nuclear danger in the biggest atomic energy station in Europe."
The plant accounts for about one quarter of Ukraine's power generation.
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