A Ukrainian service member stands at an infantry fighting vehicle at a position on the front line in the north Kyiv region (Reuters)Russia Ukraine War Crisis Live: Russia’s defence ministry reported the use of hypersonic Kinzhal missiles in Ukraine, according to an IFX report. Additionally, it said that the radio reconnaissance centres of Ukraine’s military has been destroyed near Ukraine’s Odessa.
On Friday, Vladimir Putin appeared at a huge flag-waving rally at a packed Moscow stadium and lavished praise on his troops fighting in Ukraine, three weeks into the invasion. Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called for comprehensive peace talks with Moscow, saying Russia would otherwise need generations to recover from losses suffered during the war.
US President Joe Biden warned Chinese leader Xi Jinping of ‘consequences’ if Beijing gave material support to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the White House said. Meanwhile, India told the UN Security Council meeting that it attaches importance to the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention and stressed that any matter relating to obligations under the convention should be addressed through consultations and cooperation between the parties concerned.
Ukrainian firefighters extinguish a blaze at a warehouse after a bombing in Kyiv, Ukraine, March 17, 2022. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
Nine people were killed and 17 wounded in shelling of the suburbs of the city of Zaporizhzhia in southern Ukraine on Friday, deputy mayor Anatoliy Kurtiev said on Saturday.
The military has since declared a 38-hour curfew in Zaporizhzhia, which was being attacked by Russian forces with mortars, tanks, helicopters and rocket systems, Kurtiev said in an online post. (Reuters)
Ukrainian authorities have not noticed any significant shifts over the past 24 hours in front line areas where Ukrainian troops are battling Russian forces, presidential adviser Oleksiy Arestovych said on Saturday.
In an online video address, he said fighting was ongoing and named the southeastern city of Mariupol, the southern cities of Mykolaiv and Kherson, and the eastern town of Izyum as particular hotspots where Russian troops were on the offensive. (Reuters)
A generation of Ukrainians who knew of war only from history books and the stories of their grandparents has been forced to prepare to fight, and some are choosing to do it with the partners they were building their lives with only weeks ago.
In a training centre in the southern city of Odessa, young urban professionals who might normally be choosing where to meet friends for a coffee learn about handling weapons and applying emergency first aid to battlefield wounds.
'Every person should know how to fight, how to make medicine, aid for your relatives or other people,' said 26-year-old graphic designer Olga Moroz, training in civil defence alongside her boyfriend, 32-year-old sales manager Maxim Yavtushenko.
The couple, who had been planning their wedding in the summer, were at the dimly lit facility that provides basic training for 80 to 150 people a day, all seeking to have some kind of preparation for the day that Russian troops pressing closer to the city finally arrive. (Reuters)
In video after video taken in Ukraine, a puff of smoke and a brief flash of light signal that another clutch of Russian troops are about to die.
Sometimes it is only a split second before that light streaks to a tank or armoured vehicle that suddenly erupts in smoke and flame, often bursting from within as ammunition inside explodes.
Rewinding these videos a bit often shows Ukrainian soldiers before the attack, patrolling to an ambush point with large green tubes carried on their backs — each one a gift from Britain. In perhaps 15 seconds, and sometimes even faster than that, the soldiers can unsling the weapon, unfold its aiming sight, release a safety catch and wait for their prey to appear. What are there tubes? Read here.
In the besieged port city of Mariupol, Ukrainian and Russian forces are fighting for the Azovstal steel plant, one of the biggest in Europe, said Vadym Denysenko, an adviser to Ukraine's interior minister, in televised remarks on Saturday.
Now there is a fight for Azovstal. "I can say that we have lost this economic giant. In fact, one of the largest metallurgical plants in Europe is actually being destroyed," Denysenko said. (AP)
The foreign ministers of Ukraine and Russia are scheduled to meet for talks on the sidelines of the Antalya Diplomatic Forum in Turkey on Thursday. Turkish foreign minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has said the talks will be held in “trilateral format”: that is, with Turkey present in the room as a mediator.
Turkey has sought to mediate between Russia and Ukraine since the time tensions rose. “Upon President @RTErdogan’s initiatives and our intensive diplomatic efforts, Foreign Ministers Sergei Lavrov of Russia & Dmytro Kuleba of Ukraine have decided to meet with my participation on the margins of @AntalyaDF,” Cavusoglu tweeted.
All four people on board a US military aircraft that crashed in northern Norway on Friday have died, local police said Saturday.
The MV-22B Osprey aircraft belonging to the US Marine Corps was taking part in a military exercise called Cold Response when it crashed in a remote region. Some 30,000 troops from 27 countries are involved in Cold Response, an exercise designed to prepare Nato member countries for the defence of Norway.
"Police reached the crash site at around 0130 CET (0030 GMT). It is regrettably confirmed that all four on board the plane have perished," Ivar Bo Nilsson, head of the operation for Nordland police, said in a statement. (Reuters)
Ukraine hopes to evacuate civilians Saturday via ten humanitarian corridors from cities and towns on the front line of fighting with Russian forces, Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said.
She said a corridor had been agreed for the besieged city of Mariupol, although the authorities' previous efforts to evacuate civilians there under a temporary ceasefire have mostly failed, with both sides trading blame. (Reuters)
Amid the Ukraine war, Russia has announced ‘humanitarian corridors’ to allow citizens to flee from the cities of Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, Mariupol and Kyiv. These corridors also allow food and medical aid to be brought to the areas of conflict. According to a United Nations estimate, over 3.1 million people have fled Ukraine to neighbouring countries in the last three weeks. Poland has accepted the move number of refugees, pegged at close to two million people.
So, how safe are these corridors? Do they work? Where else have they been used? Take a look
The MEA has appointed a funeral agent to take possession of the mortal remains of Naveen Shekharappa Gyanagoudar, the student killed in Ukraine. The agent has taken possession of the mortal remains and after completing necessary paper works, has transported the human remains to Warsaw in Poland. The Indian Embassy in Poland and Funeral Agent have completed all documentation required for transportation of the remains to India.
Commissioner of Karnataka State Disaster Management Authority and state nodal officer Manoj Rajan said the remains are expected to reach Bengaluru's Kempegowda International Airport on March 21, 2022 at 3 am through Emirates Flight Number EK0568. (Kiran Parashar reports from Bengaluru)
India's oil imports from the United States will rise by 11% this year, officials said Saturday, as it looks to secure supplies from producers around the world, including heavily sanctioned Russia.
The surge in oil prices following Russia's invasion of Ukraine last month threatens to fan Indian inflation, stretch public finances and hurt growth just when it was emerging from a pandemic-induced slowdown. New Delhi faces criticism from the West for its long-standing political and security ties with Moscow, with some saying that engaging in business with Russia will help fund its war.
India has urged an end to the violence in Ukraine but abstained from voting against Russia. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, meeting his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi during a visit on Saturday, said he will encourage a unified approach on Ukraine. (Reuters)
Russia's defence ministry reported the use of hypersonic Kinzhal missiles in Ukraine, according to an IFX report. Additionally, it said that the radio reconnaissance centres of Ukraine's military has been destroyed near Ukraine's Odessa. (Reuters)
A humanitarian corridor for evacuations in Ukraine's Luhansk region will be opened on Saturday morning, regional governor Serhiy Gaiday said on Telegram.
"A humanitarian corridor has been agreed, we will try to evacuate people and bring food today. A 'regime of silence' has been agreed for March 19, starting at 9 am (12.30 pm IST)," Gaiday said. (Reuters)
India’s neighbours in South Asia have taken their own positions economy, the big power rivalry playing out in their countries, and their relations with these powers. There was a clear divide among the seven countries between those who maintained a neutral position, and those who were unequivocal in their opposition to Russia.
Afghanistan, Bhutan, Maldives and Nepal supported the resolution against Russia Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka abstained. Nepal, which is a member of the UN Human Rights Council, also voted for the HRC resolution to set up an independent investigation into Russia’s alleged violations of human rights in Ukraine.
➡️ Ukraine's President Zelenskyy called for meaningful talks with Russia to stop its invasion, as Moscow said it was "tightening the noose" around the key port of Mariupol.
➡️ Biden warned China's Xi of "consequences", which the White House said could include sanctions, if Beijing gave material support to Russia's invasion. Both sides called for a diplomatic solution to the crisis in its fourth week.
➡️ Ukraine expects progress on its EU membership bid within months, Zelenskyy said after a call with the head of EU executive, Ursula von der Leyen.
➡️ As the prolonged assault has reduced much of Mariupol to rubble, Ukraine's defence ministry said it had "temporarily" lost access to the Azov Sea, which connects to the Black Sea and would be a major loss for Ukraine.
➡️ "Russian forces have made minimal progress this week," Britain said. It said Russian attempts to surround Kyiv and Mykolaiv have been pushed back while heavy Russian shelling of encircled cities of Kharkiv, Chernihiv, Sumy and Mariupol was reported on Friday.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russian forces are blockading Ukraine's largest cities to create a "humanitarian catastrophe" with the aim of persuading Ukrainians to cooperate with them.
He said more than 9,000 people were able to leave besieged Mariupol in the past day, and in all more than 180,000 people have been able to flee to safety through humanitarian corridors.
He again appealed to Russian President Vladimir Putin to hold talks with him directly. "It's time to meet, time to speak," he said. "I want to be heard by everyone, especially in Moscow." (AP)
Ukraine's defence ministry said late Friday it lost access to the Sea of Azov "temporarily" as invading Russian forces were tightening their grip around the Sea's major port of Mariupol.
"The occupiers have partially succeeded in the Donetsk operational district, temporarily depriving Ukraine of access to the Sea of Azov," Ukraine's defence ministry said in a statement. The ministry did not specify in its statement whether Ukraine's forces have regained access to the Sea. (Reuters)
The Indian embassy in Kyiv, operating from Warsaw, issued an advisory, reminding citizens that they are still functional.
"Embassy of India continues to function and can be contacted through email: cons1.kyiv@mea.gov.in and the following 24*7 helpline numbers on WhatsApp for assistance: +380933559958, +919205290802, +917428022564," it said in a statement.
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s nuclear sabre-rattling in Ukraine, which did create political ripples in Europe, has triggered a far more consequential debate on the importance of atomic weapons in deterring Chinese expansionism. For those facing Chinese wrath in Asia, it is not difficult to buy into the proposition that Russia would have thought twice before invading Ukraine if Kyiv had nuclear weapons.
In an important statement last week, the former prime minister of Japan, Shinzo Abe, called for a national debate on hosting American nuclear weapons on Japanese soil. In South Korea, which is electing its president this week, front-runner Yoon Suk-yeol has talked of strengthening Seoul’s nuclear deterrence against both Pyongyang and Beijing. Taiwan, which is in the cross-hairs of President Xi Jinping’s regional strategy, is reportedly developing a nuclear-powered submarine that could offer some deterrence against a Chinese invading force. Australia, which is working with the UK and the US to build nuclear-powered submarines, is accelerating the project after the Ukraine invasion.
As Ukraine mourns its dead, scores of empty strollers were lined up in the cobbled central square of the city of Lviv on Friday to commemorate the children killed in the country since Russia's invasion.
Lviv city hall placed 109 strollers, or prams, in neat rows — one for each child killed since the start of the war, according to Ukrainian authorities. Two stuffed teddy bears were laid in a bright blue baby carrier. A little girl sitting on a bench held a small Ukrainian flag.
"Remember your children when they were small and sitting in strollers like these," said Zhuravka Natalia Tonkovyt, a Canadian citizen of Ukrainian origin who was passing by, speaking as if to address Russian mothers.