Vladimir Putin Russia-Ukraine war

2022 - 3 - 6

Post cover — Image courtesy of "The Economist"

How to help Ukraine as Vladimir Putin bombards its cities (The Economist)

A no-fly zone would not just be dangerous, it would also be futile. An oil embargo is a better idea | Leaders.

The answer is that there is a world of difference between diplomatic and logistical support for Ukraine and outright combat with Russia. Mr Putin has already shown that, faced with a setback on the battlefield, his instinct is to escalate. By upholding the distinction between fighting Russia and supporting Ukraine, NATO limits the risk of such an escalation, even if it does not remove it entirely. One idea is for Poland to give Ukraine some of its old Soviet-made fighter aircraft. NATO could find itself in the position where it, too, has to escalate in response, so as to preserve the credibility of the pledge that an attack on one member is an attack on all, the cornerstone of the alliance. To the extent that it is using air power, its commanders would simply shift more of their effort to ground-based weapons. It can easily become a test of which side is most willing to go to the greatest extreme. To do so would also lead to direct conflict between Russia and America. NATO aircraft—which here means the US Air Force—would first need to destroy Russian air-defence systems. However, the closer you look, the more it is apparent that a no-fly zone would not only fail to bring this about, but also court catastrophe. Having accepted that the killing of civilians is morally unacceptable, would NATO be able to stand back as the slaughter continued? Mr Putin has made clear that one of his aims is to wreck NATO, by pushing the United States out of Europe. That is much less likely if the invasion of Ukraine fails. The worse the war goes for Mr Putin, the more he will resort to terrorising Ukrainian civilians—and seek to present their leaders with the agonising choice between surrender or mass slaughter. The proponents of a no-fly zone, including Ukraine’s government, argue that preventing Russia from using its aircraft or drones would protect civilians against these merciless tactics.

Live updates: Australian missiles "on the ground" in Ukraine (Associated Press)

The latest developments on the Russia-Ukraine war : SYDNEY — Australia's prime minister has described Russia and China's closer relationship as ...

It has invited both to a diplomatic forum in Antalya next week. The war is now in its 11th day. Filippo Grandi, the U.N. high commissioner for refugees, said Sunday that “those discussions continue” with hope for success, but didn’t name specific cities. Biden and Western allies have until now held off on sanctions against Russia’s lucrative energy industry to avoid blowback on their own economies. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has repeatedly called on NATO countries to stop the Russian onslaught on his country by imposing a no-fly zone. Potential talks are to be organized in the coming days, he said. He told Putin these facilities must not be targeted by a Russian offensive or caught in the fighting. Ukraine’s regulatory authority said that phone lines, as well as e-mails and fax, are no longer working. AmEx cards issued locally in Russia by the country’s banks will also no longer work outside of Russia. The announcement comes after TikTok said users on its platform in Russia have been blocked from posting and viewing videos shared from elsewhere in the world. “I didn’t hear even a single world leader react to this,” Zelenskyy said. He did not say how many of the foreign volunteers have arrived in Ukraine.

Thousands arrested across Russia at anti-war protests (Aljazeera.com)

Police detained more than 4,300 people on Sunday at Russia-wide protests against President Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine, according to an independent ...

The US, United Kingdom and other NATO members have supplied arms to Ukraine. One protester there was shown being beaten on the ground by police in riot gear. Russia’s interior ministry said earlier that police had detained around 3,500 people, including 1,700 in Moscow, 750 in St Petersburg and 1,061 in other cities. We demand you disperse.” A video posted on social media showed a protester in a square in the far eastern city of Khabarovsk shouting: “No to war! The arrests on Sunday brought the total number of people held in anti-war protests since the invasion began on February 24 to more than 10,000, OVD-Info said.

War in Ukraine: Zelensky urges Ukrainians to go on the offensive (BBC News)

In a rallying cry, the Ukrainian president says the country has withstood the invasion "together".

You can also get in touch in the following ways: Mr Zelensky had earlier addressed a video meeting of over 300 US lawmakers. Meanwhile, with further economic sanctions under discussion in Washington and Brussels, President Putin has warned Western leaders that the economic punishments being heaped on Russia are "akin to a declaration of war". - There has been intense fighting to the north-west of Kyiv, where Russian troops have been attempting to re-take the strategic Hostomel airfield The Russian invasion of Ukraine has entered its 11th day, with some experts suggesting the invasion may have stalled in places - despite President Vladimir Putin's insistence on Saturday that the operation is "going to plan." US officials are believed to be in discussions with political leaders in Poland over the possibility of Warsaw providing Ukraine with a number of MiG fighter jets.

Russia Ukraine war: 'Stop fighting...': Vladimir Putin warns Ukraine (Hindustan Times)

Vladimir Putin, Russia-Ukraine crisis: Russia invaded Ukraine February 24 citing national security concerns over Kyiv's closeness to Western powers and move ...

Shanghai is now the largest city to be locked down to date since early 2020. In its place there should be an interim government," Wimal Weerawansa, a former cabinet member, said Tuesday. The parliament met today for the first time since these protests began. A group of Sri Lanka lawmakers have backed the formation of an interim government to steer the nation out of its worst economic crisis in decades. Addressing the United Nation's Security Council for the first time since Russia invaded Ukraine last month, Zelenskyy added that Russian forces killed “anyone who served our country”. He also demanded “accountability” at the UNSC for Russian crimes. Russian President Vladimir Putin delivered an ominous warning Sunday, telling Ukraine the 'military operation' that has killed hundreds (potentially thousands) already would only stop if Kyiv laid down arms and met all of the Kremlin's demands. and carries out well-known Russian demands," the Kremlin said.

Fighting traps residents in Mariupol; Putin calls on Ukraine to ... (Reuters)

Fighting stopped about 200000 people from evacuating the besieged Ukrainian city of Mariupol for a second day in a row on Sunday, as Russian President ...

read more read more read more The West, which calls Putin's reasons for invading baseless, has expanded efforts to rearm Ukraine, sending in items from Stinger missiles to anti-tank weapons. read more read more read more "They will not even give us an opportunity to count the wounded and the killed because the shelling does not stop." But the ceasefire plan collapsed, as it had on Saturday, with each side blaming the other. read more read more read more

Russia-Ukraine war LIVE updates: Putin calls on Ukraine to surrender; Zelenskyy says sanctions not sufficient (CNBCTV18)

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said Russia's "special military action" is needed "to protect people who have been subjected to bullying and genocide" - meaning those whose first or only language is Russian - in eastern Ukraine. Russia-Ukraine war ...

It was the most explicit Russian statement so far of the terms it wants to impose on Ukraine to halt what it calls its "special military operation" in Ukraine, now in its 12th day. Wheat prices jumped to a 14-year high on March 7 over concerns about global supplies amid escalating conflict in Ukraine. Consumers facing higher prices for products made with wheat could be in for more pain as global supplies grow tighter due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. On MArch 3, wheat prices jumped 37 percent and corn prices jumped 21 percent so far in 2022 after rising more than 20 percent throughout 2021. The government was due to introduce a bill later on Monday on a aid package to fund food and temporary lodgings for refugees, along with measures allowing them to legally work and access public healthcare and social assistance in Poland. "Our initial assumption is that the fund we will set up will amount to about 8 billion zloty. Sberbank and Tinkoff told users that they will be able to use Visa and Mastercard for transactions within Russia but they will stop working for payments outside of the country after Wednesday. The Russian central bank warned Sunday that all cards using the Visa or Mastercard systems will stop working for both purchases on foreign websites and transactions abroad. The ministry called on foreign leaders to force Russia to observe a ceasefire to prevent what it said could be a humanitarian catastrophe. "In a few minutes, we will start talking to representatives of a country that seriously believes large-scale violence against civilians is an argument," Ukrainian negotiator Mykhailo Podolyak said on Twitter. "Prove that this is not the case." Ukrainian negotiator Mykhailo Podolyak urged Russia to halt attacks on civilians on Monday as he prepared to start a third round of talks with Russian officials on Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. "In a few minutes, we will start talking to representatives of a country that seriously believes large-scale violence against civilians is an argument. Vladimir Lisin, a Russian billionaire, told employees at steelmaker NLMK that lost lives in Ukraine were a tragedy that was hard to justify, and called for a peaceful diplomatic resolution to the conflict. Ukraine has suffered about $10 billion in damage to infrastructure since Russia invaded the country, Infrastructure Minister Oleksander Kubrakov said on Monday. He said in televised comments that the figure stood as of Sunday, and added: "The majority of (damaged) structures will be repaired in a year, and the most difficult ones – in two years." "Our ambassador has left Ukraine because of the serious security situation," Truss told a parliamentary committee. The conflict has reignited interest in security issues after years of European defence spending cuts and fatigue following NATO failures in Afghanistan. Germany, which has long played down the role of its military in foreign policy, Denmark and Poland have all said they will ramp up defence spending with war at their doorstep. Ukraine says Russian forces stepped up nighttime shelling of cities in the center, north and south of the country.