LASK, Poland (AFP) — NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg on Tuesday said Russian President Vladimir Putin had “shattered peace in Europe” by invading Ukraine, adding that the Western defence alliance would defend “every inch of our territory”. He spoke during a visit to the Lask airbase in NATO member Poland, whose neighbour Ukraine has been fighting back against a Russian offensive that is now on its sixth day. “President Putin has shattered peace in Europe. Allies […]
Tag: Russia
Italy PM urges more action on Russia oligarchs, central bank
ROME, Italy (AFP) — Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi on Tuesday urged tougher action against Russian oligarchs and more pressure on Russia’s central bank over the invasion of Ukraine. The European Union on Monday added top Kremlin-linked oligarchs and President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman to its sanctions blacklist. More wide-sweeping measures, including prohibiting transactions with Russia’s central bank, have helped send the Russian economy into turmoil. Italy, the eurozone’s third largest economy, “is ready for further […]
More than 660,000 refugees flee Ukraine: UN
GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — More than 660,000 refugees have fled the conflict in Ukraine to seek shelter in neighboring countries, the UN Refugee Agency said Tuesday. “We have now over 660,000 refugees who have fled Ukraine to neighboring countries in the past six days alone,” spokeswoman Shabia Mantoo told reporters in Geneva. “The numbers are exponentially increasing… At this rate, the situation looks set to become Europe’s largest refugee crisis this century.” © Agence France-Presse
Central square of Ukraine’s second city, Kharkiv, shelled
KYIV, Ukraine (AFP) — The central square of Ukraine’s second city, Kharkiv, was shelled on Tuesday by advancing Russian forces who hit the building of the local administration, regional governor Oleg Sinegubov said. “This morning the central square of our city and the headquarters of the Kharkiv administration was criminally attacked,” Sinegubov said in a video on Telegram. “Russian occupiers continue to use heavy weaponry against the civilian population,” he said, adding that the […]
YouTube blocks Russian channels RT, Sputnik in Europe
PARIS, France (AFP) — YouTube has blocked Russian channels RT and Sputnik in Europe “taking into account the ongoing war in Ukraine”, the video-sharing platform said on Tuesday. “We are blocking the YouTube channels of RT and Sputnik in the whole of Europe with immediate effect. Our systems need a little time before being fully operational,” YouTube said in an email to AFP. Fellow online giant Facebook took a similar decision on Monday by blocking […]
‘Bombs everywhere’: Israelis flee Ukraine
LOD, Israel (AFP) — A repatriation flight from Romania carrying Israelis evacuated from Ukraine landed at Ben Gurion airport outside Tel Aviv on Tuesday to the teary relief of waiting relatives. Badr Tawil, 23, a student who fled Ukraine’s under-fire second city Kharkiv, said he had escaped chaos. “We just woke up once and we heard the sounds around us. Bombs everywhere. So we decided to leave, just to leave Ukraine,” he said. Israeli Foreign […]
UK warns Putin could be tried for war crimes
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — The UK government warned Tuesday that Russian President Vladimir Putin and his commanders in Ukraine could face prosecution for war crimes, as indiscriminate shelling hit one city under invasion. The shelling of Kharkiv has destroyed a school and, according to its mayor, killed at least 11 civilians. The front pages of British newspapers carried photographs of two young girls killed by Russian attacks in Ukraine and the words of a […]
France says, sanctions will cause ‘collapse’ of Russian economy
PARIS, France (AFP) — France said on Tuesday that Western sanctions against Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine will cause the Russian economy to collapse. “We will bring about the collapse of the Russian economy,” Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire told the Franceinfo broadcaster a day after France, the EU and others said they would impose a new round of sanctions on Russia. “The economic and financial balance of power is totally in favour of […]
Chechnya leader says his fighters killed in Ukraine
MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) – The strongman leader of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov, said Tuesday that Chechens have been killed in Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. Kadyrov, a former rebel-turned-Kremlin-ally, has given his backing for President Vladimir Putin’s attack on Ukraine, sending his notorious fighters to the country. “Unfortunately, there are already losses among the natives of the Chechen Republic. Two died, six more were injured to varying degrees,” Kadyrov said on Telegram. Kadyrov, in charge of Russia’s […]
China starts evacuating citizens from Ukraine: reports
BEIJING, China (AFP) — China has started evacuating its citizens from Ukraine, state media reported Tuesday, amid fears for their safety due to the invasion by Beijing’s ally Russia but also reports of resulting hostility from angry Ukrainians. Some 600 Chinese students were evacuated Monday from Kyiv and the southern port city of Odessa, the state-run Global Times newspaper reported, citing the Chinese embassy in the Ukrainian capital. They travelled by bus to neighbouring Moldova […]
Russia invasion convoy masses near Ukraine capital
by Dave CLARK with Ola CICHOWLAS in Moscow Agence France-Presse KYIV, Ukraine (AFP) – A huge Russian military convoy was massing on the outskirts of Ukraine’s capital Tuesday as fears grew the invading forces were set to launch devastating assaults aimed at taking control of Kyiv and other major cities. Satellite images showed a long build-up of armoured vehicles and artillery starting 29 kilometres (18 miles) north of the city, as Moscow defied mounting global […]
Russia expelled from World Cup as FIFA and UEFA hand down bans
PARIS, France (AFP) — Russia has been expelled from the World Cup after being suspended from all international competitions “until further notice”, FIFA and UEFA announced in a joint statement on Monday, while European football’s governing body also ended its partnership with Russian energy giant Gazprom. The men’s team had been due to play in qualifying play-offs in March for the World Cup in Qatar later this year, while its women’s side had qualified […]





