Russia Ukraine War Updates: 7,000 to 15,000 Russian troops dead in Ukraine, says NATO
Ukrainian President Zelenskyy has appealed to Russians “to leave Russia so as not to give your tax money to the war.” Tens of thousands of Russians already have fled Russia since the war began, fearing the intensifying crackdown at home.
A month into Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, fire continues to rain down on shopping malls and high-rise buildings in Kyiv, as the outnumbered Ukrainian military wage intense battles to defend the capital and other key cities from falling under Russian control. A barrage of strikes on cities have wreaked destruction across Ukraine over the past four weeks, but Russian forces appeared stalled outside major cities in the face of fiercer-than-expected Ukrainian resistance. NATO estimated on Wednesday that 7,000 to 15,000 Russian soldiers have been killed since the war started on February 24. Meanwhile, speaking on the eve of the NATO summit, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on the alliance to provide “effective and unrestricted” support to Ukraine, including any weapons the country needs to fend off the Russian invasion.
UEFA could thwart Russia’s bid to host soccer’s Euros
UEFA is exploring fresh sanctions to thwart Russia’s attempt to host soccer’s European Championship after the country launched a surprising bid, one month after invading its neighbor and seeing its teams suspended from international competitions over the war in Ukraine.
A meeting of the Russian Football Union executive committee on Wednesday decided to submit an initial bid to UEFA for the 2028 and 2032 tournaments ahead of the deadline for expressions of interest.
The late declaration of interest by Russia is a challenge to the joint UK-Ireland entry, which expected to be unchallenged to host the UEFA showpiece in 2028 until Turkey also entered the contest on Wednesday. Italy is the only declared bidder for Euro 2032 apart from Russia.
Biden, Western allies gather at tense moment in Ukraine war
As the war in Ukraine grinds into a second month, President Joe Biden and Western allies are gathering to chart a path to ramp up pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin while tending to the economic and security fallout that’s spreading across Europe and the world.
Over the course of a half-day Thursday, the European diplomatic capital will host an emergency NATO summit as well as a gathering of the Group of Seven industrialised nations and a summit of the 27 members of the European Union. Biden will attend all three meetings and plans to hold a news conference at the end of the day.
Biden arrived here late Wednesday with the hopes of nudging allies to enact new sanctions on Russia, which has already seen its economy crippled by a steady stream of bans, boycotts and penalties over the last four weeks.
NATO to send more troops to Europe
North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) is set to considerably increase forces deployed on its eastern flank, Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has said.
Addressing a news conference on the eve of an extraordinary NATO summit to discuss the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict, Stoltenberg added that he expected allies to agree to strengthen NATO’s position “on land, in the air, and at sea”.
“The first step is the deployment of four new NATO battlegroups. In Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania, and Slovakia. Along with our existing forces in the Baltic countries and Poland, this means that we will have eight multinational NATO battlegroups all along the eastern flank. From the Baltic to the Black Sea,” he said.
US considers freezing Russia’s gold reserves
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen was set to meet with US lawmakers Wednesday to discuss a possible freeze on Russian reserves of gold. The move comes after several lawmakers introduced the Stop Russian GOLD Act, meant to target Russia’s ability to sell its gold reserves to avoid the impact of sanctions.
Current sanctions on Russian elites, the country’s Central Bank, President Vladimir Putin and other measures do not impact Russia’s gold stockpile, which Putin has been accumulating for several years. Russia holds roughly $130 billion in gold reserves, according to lawmakers.
The Bank of Russia announced Feb. 28 that it would resume the purchase of gold on the domestic precious metals market.
Russia setting up defences outside Kyiv
A senior US defence official said Wednesday that Russian ground forces appear to be digging in and setting up defensive positions between 15-20 kilometers (9-12 miles) outside Kyiv, as they continue to make little to no progress moving toward the city center.
The official said it appears the forces are no longer trying to advance into the city and, in some cases east of Kyiv, Ukrainian troops have been able to push Russian soldiers further away. The official said Russian forces had been 20-30 kilometers (12-19 miles) away to the east and northeast, and are now about 55 kilometers (34 miles) away.
The official said that, instead, Russian troops are exerting more energy and effort in the eastern Donbas region, specifically in Luhansk and Donetsk. The official said the U.S. is seeing Russia prioritize the fight there, in what could be an effort to cut off any Ukrainian troops in those areas and prevent them from moving west to defend other cities.
Russian stock market, crushed by war, will partially reopen
Russia plans to reopen its stock market for limited trading on Thursday, nearly one month after shares plunged and the exchange was shut down following the invasion of Ukraine. There will be heavy restrictions on trading intended to prevent the kind of massive selloff that took place on Feb. 24 in anticipation of crushing financial and economic sanctions from Western nations.
Trading will be allowed in 33 of the 50 companies that are part of the country’s benchmark MOEX index, including air carrier Aeroflot, state-owned gas producer Gazprom and the oil company Rosneft, according to the central bank announcement about the reopening.
Stocks last traded in Moscow on Feb. 25. A day earlier the MOEX sank 33% after Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine.
Zelenskyy calls for ‘unrestricted’ NATO aid
Speaking on the eve of the NATO summit, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on the alliance to provide “effective and unrestricted” support to Ukraine, including any weapons the country needs to fend off the Russian invasion.
“We ask that the alliance declare that it will fully assist Ukraine to win this war, clear our territory of the invaders and restore peace in Ukraine,” he said late Wednesday during his nightly video address to the nation.
Zelenskyy will speak to the NATO summit by video, the president’s office said.
He appealed to Western countries to stay united in the face what he says are Russia’s efforts to “lobby its interests” with “some partners” to bring them over to its side.
Russia expels several American diplomats
Russia has expelled several American diplomats from the US Embassy in Moscow and declared them “persona non grata”, a State Department spokesperson has said, days after the US ousted Russian staff at the United Nations.
Earlier this month, the US expelled 12 diplomats from Russia’s mission to the UN, saying they engaged in “espionage activities”. The move was described by Russia as a “hostile action” and gross violation of the commitments by the US as the host country of the United Nations headquarters.
“We can confirm that the US Embassy received a list of diplomats declared “persona non grata” from the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on March 23,” a State Department spokesperson said on Wednesday.
After the recent Russian invasion of Ukraine, the war of words and sanctions have intensified between the two countries.
Britain giving Ukraine thousands more missiles
Britain will send thousands more missiles to Ukraine’s government as Prime Minister Boris Johnson urged Western allies to boost the supply of military aid to Ukraine. Johnson is travelling to Brussels on Thursday for talks with NATO and leaders of the Group of Seven. He is expected to provide further details of the new British aid during the visit, including the donation of 6,000 more missiles comprising anti-tank and high-explosive weaponry.
“The United Kingdom will work with our allies to step up military and economic support to Ukraine, strengthening their defences as they turn the tide in this fight,” Johnson said.
Russian forces committed war crimes in Ukraine: US
Russian military forces, led by President Vladimir Putin, have committed war crimes in Ukraine by hitting civilian targets and have unleashed unrelenting violence that has caused death and destruction across the war-torn country, Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said.
On February 24, Russian forces launched military operations in Ukraine, three days after Moscow recognised Ukraine’s breakaway regions – Donetsk and Luhansk – as independent entities.
Russian troops have targeted areas where civilians are present, including apartment buildings, schools and hospitals.
Russian journalist Oksana Baulina killed in shelling
Russian journalist Oksana Baulina, who worked for the investigative news outlet The Insider, was killed when Russian troops shelled a residential neighbourhood in the Ukrainian capital, the outlet said Wednesday, the latest reporter to die in war: AFP News Agency
Biden to impose new sanctions against Russian politicians, oligarchs
US President Joe Biden will unveil new sanctions against Russian politicians and oligarchs during a series of summits in Brussels on Thursday, according to a media report. The US President will also discuss NATO’s force posture on its eastern edge and contingency plans for the potential use of chemical or nuclear weapons by Russia, reported CNN citing a statement by US national security adviser Jake Sullivan, who was aboard the flight as Biden headed to Europe.
Speaking on the new sanctions to be imposed against Russia, Sullivan said that during a G7 meeting, Biden and fellow leaders will “agree on an initiative to coordinate on sanctions enforcement” aimed at disallowing Russian efforts to evade existing sanctions.
India joins West in abstaining widely criticized Russian resolution at UNSC
India abstained from voting on a Russian-drafted resolution in the UN Security Council over a Ukraine humanitarian situation, which has been widely criticized for not referring to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
India and UAE joined the West in abstaining from the resolution that failed at the UNSC meeting with only Russia and China voting in favour and the remaining 13 members abstaining.
“Russia is the aggressor, the attacker the invader, the sole party in Ukraine, engaged in a campaign of brutality against the people of Ukraine. And they want us to pass a resolution that does not acknowledge their culpability,” US Ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, told the UNSC.
Zelensky urges global protests against Russia
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky urges global protests against Russia
“From March 24, come with Ukrainian symbols to support Ukraine, to support freedom & life, come to your squares, to your streets, make yourselves visible & heard,” Zelensky said in a video address
News Credit: India TV News
