A Ukrainian serviceman walks amid the rubble of a building heavily damaged by multiple Russian bombardments near a frontline in Kharkiv, Ukraine, Monday, April 25, 2022. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)Russia Ukraine War Crisis Live: Russian state-owned energy giant Gazprom is suspending gas supply to Poland and Bulgaria starting Wednesday, the two countries have said. Polish and Bulgarian officials said Tuesday that Moscow is cutting off natural gas deliveries to their countries due to their refusal to pay in Russian rubles, a demand made by President Vladimir Putin after sanctions were levied against his nation over the invasion of Ukraine, Associated Press Reported.
The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency said Tuesday that Russian troops risked causing an accident with their “very, very dangerous” seizure of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine. Agency Director-General Rafael Mariano Grossi said that while radiation levels are normal, the situation is still “not stable”. “Nuclear authorities have to keep on alert.” Russian troops stormed the Chernobyl exclusion zone in February on their way to Kyiv. They withdrew late last month as Russia pulled its forces from areas near Kyiv and switched its focus to fighting in eastern Ukraine.
Meanwhile, a series of blasts was heard early on Wednesday in the Russian city Belgorod near the Ukrainian border and an ammunition depot was on fire, regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said in a Telegram message. Gladkov said no civilians had been hurt by the fire which broke out at a facility near Staraya Nelidovka village, Reuters reported.
A man sits in a courtyard near a building damaged during Ukraine-Russia conflict in the southern port city of Mariupol, Ukraine April 25, 2022. (Reuters)
Global wheat prices have soared since Russia invaded Ukraine in February. The two nations account for 30%of the world's wheat exports. That means many low-income nations who are net food importers are bracing for a year of hunger.
The disruption of war compounds existing drops in food production linked to climate change. On a global scale, climate change has already cut global average agricultural production by at least one-fifth. Food insecurity often translates to widespread social unrest, as we saw in the 2011 Arab Spring protests, which came after major food price rises.
Countries in the Middle East and North Africa are likely to be hit hardest in the short term, given they are the major importers of Ukrainian wheat and have major food security issues. Countries dependent on specific commodities and which can't switch to alternative food sources are also at risk. (The Conversation)
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and Russian President Vladimir Putin have met one-on-one for the first time since Russia invaded Ukraine, and the United Nations said they agreed on arranging evacuations from a besieged steel plant in the battered city of Mariupol.
UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said the Russian leader and UN chief on Tuesday discussed “proposals for humanitarian assistance and evacuation of civilians from conflict zones, namely in relation to the situation in Mariupol”.
They also agreed in principle, he said, that the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross should be involved in the evacuation of civilians from the Azovstal steel complex where Ukrainian defenders in the southeastern city are making a dogged stand. Read more.
Ukraine retains control over the majority of its airspace, Britain's defence ministry said on Wednesday, adding that Russia has failed to effectively destroy the country's air force or suppress its air defences.
"Russia has very limited air access to the north and west of Ukraine, limiting offensive actions to deep strikes with stand-off weapons," it said on Twitter.
"Russian air activity is primarily focused on southern and eastern Ukraine, providing support to Russian ground forces," the ministry added in a regular bulletin. (Reuters)
Taiwan's main military drills this year will draw on the experiences of the war in Ukraine, focusing on asymmetric and cognitive warfare as well as use of reserves as it practices fighting off a Chinese attack, a top officer said on Wednesday.
Taiwan, claimed by China as its own territory, has raised its alert level since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, wary that Beijing might make a similar move on the island, though it has reported no signs this is about to happen.
What lessons to learn from the war has been widely debated in Taiwan, and discussed with the United States, according to Taiwan's defence minister.
Lin Wen-huang, head of the Taiwan defence ministry's joint operations department, said this year's Han Kuang exercises, which simulate a Chinese invasion and are Taiwan's largest annual war games, would "draw on the experience" of the Ukraine war.
"Of course, we will keep a close watch on the Russia-Ukraine war and the movements of the Chinese Communist's military, and will carry out exercises," he told reporters. (Reuters)
A series of blasts was heard in the early hours of Wednesday in the Russian city Belgorod near the Ukrainian border, regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said, and an ammunition depot in the province was on fire.
Gladkov said no civilians had been hurt by the fire which broke out at a facility near Staraya Nelidovka village. Russia this month accused Ukraine of attacking a fuel depot in Belgorod with helicopters and opening fire on several villages in the province.
The Belgorod province borders Ukraine's Luhansk, Sumy and Kharkiv regions, all of which have seen heavy fighting since Russia invaded Ukraine two months ago. (Reuters)
Thirty-six years after the world's worst nuclear disaster, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency said Tuesday that Russian troops risked causing an accident with their "very, very dangerous" seizure of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine.
Standing under an umbrella during a rain shower outside the damaged plant, agency Director-General Rafael Mariano Grossi said that while radiation levels are normal, the situation is still "not stable." Nuclear authorities have to "keep on alert."
Russian troops moved into the radiation-contaminated Chernobyl exclusion zone in February on their way toward the Ukrainian capital. They withdrew late last month as Russia pulled its forces from areas near Kyiv and switched its focus to fighting in eastern Ukraine. The site has been back in Ukrainian hands since then and disrupted communications have been restored. (AP)