LIVE: 26 flights over next 3 days to bring back Indians from Ukraine

12:39 AM

Google, Meta face penalties in Russia as deadline passes to open local offices

Alphabet Inc's Google and Facebook owner Meta Platforms Inc are among internet companies facing possible punitive measures in Russia after failing to open local offices and take other measures required by a communications law.

 

Since July 2021, Russian legislation signed by President Vladimir Putin has obliged foreign social media companies with more than 500,000 daily users to open local offices or be subject to restrictions as severe as outright bans.

 

The new rules also require companies to register with Russian communications regulator Roskomnadzor and have a system for fielding user complaints. In November, Roskomnadzor listed 13 companies it wanted to set up officially on Russian soil. Last month, it said it would start imposing restrictions by the end of February.

 

11:37 PM

All Indians have left Ukraine's capital Kyiv: Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla

All Indian nationals have left Kyiv and nearly 60 per cent of Indians in Ukraine have left the country so far, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla said on Tuesday. Shringla said at a media briefing that enquiries reveal that all Indian citizens have come out of Ukraine's capital.

 

"All of our nationals have left Kyiv. The information with us is that we have no more nationals left in Kyiv, nobody has contacted us from Kyiv since. All our enquiries reveal that each and every one of our nationals have come out of Kyiv," Shringla said at a media briefing on the evacuation of Indian citizens from Ukraine in the wake of Russia's military operations.

 

He said out of an estimated 20,000 Indian citizens in Ukraine, 60 per cent have left the country since the first advisory was issued by the government.

 

"We had an estimated 20,000 Indian nationals in Ukraine at the time we issued our first advisory. Approximately 12,000 have left Ukraine so far, which means 60 per cent of the people have left the country. Of the remaining 40 per cent, roughly half remain in the conflict zone in Kharkiv and the other half have either reached the western border of Ukraine or are heading towards the western border. They are generally out of conflict areas," Shringla said.

11:12 PM

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke to US President Joe Biden

11:12 PM

Russia holds drills with nuclear subs, land-based missiles

Russian nuclear submarines sailed off for drills in the Barents Sea and mobile missile launchers roamed snow forests on Tuesday in Siberia after President Vladimir Putin ordered his nation's nuclear forces put on high alert over tensions with the West over the invasion of Ukraine.

 

Russia's Northern Fleet said in a statement that several of its nuclear submarines were involved in exercises designed to train maneuvering in stormy conditions.

 

It said several warships tasked with protecting northwest Russia's Kola Peninsula, where several naval bases are located, would join the maneuvers.

 

In the Irkutsk region of eastern Siberia, units of the Strategic Missile Forces dispersed Yars intercontinental ballistic missile launchers in forests to practice secret deployment, the Defense Ministry said in a statement.

10:38 PM

Russia pummels Ukraine''s No. 2 city as convoy nears Kyiv

Russian forces stepped up their attacks on populated urban areas Tuesday, bombarding the central square in Ukraine's second-largest city and Kyiv's main TV tower.

 

Ukraine's president accused Moscow of a blatant campaign of terror and vowed: Nobody will forgive. Nobody will forget.

 

Ukrainian authorities said five people were killed and five wounded in the attack on the TV tower, which is a couple miles from central Kyiv and a short walk from numerous apartment buildings. Officials said a TV control room and a power substation were hit, and Ukrainian TV channels stopped broadcasting.

 

At the same time, a 64-kilometer convoy of hundreds of Russian tanks and other vehicles advanced on Kyiv in what the West feared was a bid by Russian President Vladimir Putin to topple Ukraine's government and install a Kremlin-friendly regime.

10:08 PM

Nations agree to release 60 million barrels of oil amid war

The International Energy Agency said on Tuesday that all 31 member countries have agreed to release 60 million barrels of oil from their strategic reserves to send a strong message to oil markets that there will be no shortfall in supplies as a result of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

 

The IEA board made the decision at an extraordinary board meeting of energy ministers chaired by US Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm.

 

Besides the United States, other members of the organisation include the United States, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Japan and Canada. IEA members hold emergency stockpiles of 1.5 billion barrels. The release amounts to 4 per cent of stockpiles or roughly 2 million barrels per day for 30 days. It's only the fourth time in history that the IEA has done a coordinated drawdown since the reserves were established in the wake of the Arab oil embargo in 1974.

10:03 PM

5,000 Russian soldiers dead or captured

A senior Western intelligence official briefed by multiple intelligence agencies estimated on Tuesday that more than 5,000 Russian soldiers have been captured or killed so far, and that Ukrainian forces have eliminated significant numbers of Russian aircraft and tanks and some air defense systems.

 

The official said that Russian forces have increased use of artillery north of Kyiv and around the eastern city of Kharkiv and northern city of Chernihiv, and have been using heavier weapons over the last 48 hours.

 

The official also said that Russian forces are bogging down in the Donbas region in the east, where most Ukrainian forces are concentrated after eight years fighting Russian-backed separatists there. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the intelligence assessment.

9:55 PM

Two tonnes of humanitarian aid sent to Ukraine today: MEA Sources

9:52 PM

Zelensky could order troops to lay down arms, and there will be no casualties: Kremlin

Moscow continues to recognise Volodymyr Zelensky as the legitimate President of Ukraine, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. The Ukrainian leader "could order troops to lay down arms, and there would be no casualties", he suggested, RT reported.

 

Asked about the post-invasion status of Ukraine and what Russia would expect from its future elections, Peskov said the issue had nothing to do with the Russian government.

 

"The Kremlin cannot play a role in holding elections in Ukraine. It's a foreign country," he said.

9:45 PM

A flight left this morning carrying first tranche of humanitarian assistance to Ukraine: Foreign Secy

9:42 PM

PM Modi received a call from President of France Emmanuel Macron: Foreign Secy

PM Modi received a call from President of France Emmanuel Macron: Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla.

9:41 PM

A C-17 IAF aircraft is expected to fly out to Romania at 4 AM on Wednesday to bring back Indians: Foreign Secy

A C-17 IAF aircraft is expected to fly out to Romania at 4 AM on Wednesday to bring back Indians: Foreign Secretary Shringla

9:41 PM

Over next three days, 26 flights have been scheduled to bring back Indian citizens: Foreign Secy

Over next three days, 26 flights have been scheduled to bring back Indian citizens: Foreign Secretary after PM's meeting on Ukraine crisis.

 

9:41 PM

Airports in Poland and Slovak Republic will also be used to operate evacuation flights: Foreign Secy

Apart from Bucharest and Budapest, airports in Poland and Slovak Republic will also be used to operate evacuation flights: Foreign Secretary. 

 

9:40 PM

We remain very concerned over situation in Kharkiv, Sumy and other conflict zones in Ukraine: Foreign Secy

We remain very concerned over situation in Kharkiv, Sumy and other conflict zones in Ukraine: Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla

9:40 PM

PM Modi expressed deep anguish over loss of life of Indian citizen in Kharkiv

PM Modi expressed deep anguish over loss of life of Indian citizen in Kharkiv, says Foreign Secretary after meeting on Ukraine crisis. 

9:29 PM

UK extends visa offer for Ukrainian refugees

The UK government on Tuesday announced an extension of its visa offer for Ukrainians fleeing the conflict zone amid Russian attacks, expanding the scheme it launched earlier for close relatives of Ukrainian people settled in the UK to come over.

 

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the scheme will be widened further to include adult parents, grandparents, children over 18 and siblings which would mean that the UK could take in over 200,000 Ukrainian refugees. UK firms will also be able to sponsor a Ukrainian entering the country.

 

"We are extending the family scheme so that very considerable numbers would be eligible... You could be talking about a couple of hundred thousand, maybe more," Johnson said during a visit to Poland.

9:12 PM

Oil prices surge above $100 a barrel as war on Ukraine rages

Oil prices soared on Tuesday and investors shifted more money into ultra-safe US government bonds as Russia stepped up its war on Ukraine. Stocks fell following a volatile day for major indexes as investors tried to measure how the conflict will impact the global economy. The S&P 500 index fell 0.7 per cent as of 10:14 am Eastern.

 

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 337 points, or 1 per cent, to 33,554 and the Nasdaq fell 0.5 per cent.

 

The bigger moves came from the markets for oil, agricultural commodities and government bonds. Oil has been a key concern because Russia is one of the world's largest energy producers. The latest bump in prices increases pressure on persistently high inflation that threatens households around the world.

9:00 PM

UK's Johnson says we will not fight Russian forces in Ukraine

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Tuesday British troops would not fight Russian forces in Ukraine, and that recent reinforcements were firmly within the borders of NATO members.'

 

"These are nothing more than defensive measures, which have been the essence of NATO for more than 70 years," he said during a visit to Estonia where Britain has deployed more troops.

 

"I want to be crystal clear finally, on that point, we will not fight Russian forces in Ukraine and our reinforcements like these reinforcements here in Tapa are firmly within the borders of NATO members and they are profoundly the right thing to do."

8:51 PM

Putin miscalculated two things: Boris Johnson

8:45 PM

Russian oil trade in disarray over sanctions, ships turned back

Russian oil producers are postponing tenders due to a lack of buyers and as importers in Europe and Asia reject Russian ships amid widening disruption from a raft of sanctions imposed on Moscow over the war in Ukraine.

 

The West and many other nations moved quickly to impose sweeping sanctions against Russian companies, banks and individuals following Russia's invasion of Ukraine last week.

 

Moscow calls its actions in the neighbouring country a "special operation". Oil producer Surgutneftegaz has added an additional 80,000 tonnes of Urals oil to its March loading schedule at the Black Sea port of Novorossiisk and offered the cargo in a tender, traders said, although previous attempts to sell cargoes via tender have failed.

8:37 PM

Blinken says Russian 'crimes' mounting by hour in Ukraine

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken told the U.N. Human Rights Council on Tuesday that Russian "crimes" in Ukraine are "mounting by the hour", with strikes hitting hospitals, schools and residential buildings.

 

Blinken, addressing the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva, said that the forum's urgent debate on Ukraine scheduled for Thursday, where a resolution brought by Kyiv and allies would set up an international probe into violations, is an "important step toward ensuring documentation and accountability".

 

"We must send a resolute and unified message that President (Vladimir) Putin should unconditionally stop this," he said.

 

Blinken also said that China "continues to commit genocide and crimes against humanity in Xinjiang" against Muslim Uyghurs, and called for U.N. human rights boss Michelle Bachelet to release her office's report with findings on the situation.

 

8:17 PM

Covid-19: Delhi reports 344 new cases, 4 deaths, 416 recoveries

8:01 PM

PM Modi chairs high-level meeting to review evacuation of Indian nationals from Ukraine

7:28 PM

Russia, Ukraine to hold second round of talks on March 2, TASS reports

The second round of Russia-Ukraine talks is planned for March 2, Russia's TASS news agency reported on Tuesday, quoting a source on the Russian side.

 

After the first round of negotiations which took place on Monday and produced no tangible results, the sides had said they would meet again in the coming days.

7:17 PM

UN scales up aid for Ukraine, appeals for $1.7 bn

UN agencies on Tuesday launched an emergency appeal to respond to the soaring humanitarian needs following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, calling for $1.7 billion to help people who have fled the country and those still inside.

 

"The crisis has turned very ugly very fast," Martin Griffiths, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, told journalists at a press conference in Geneva. He called for compassion to match the scale of the crisis.

 

Filippo Grandi, UN High Commissioner for Refugees, said at the same briefing that 150,000 more people had fled the country in the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of refugees to around 677,000.

 

7:10 PM

If we want to build a reputation of India then we will have to establish its antiquity: RSS chief

6:38 PM

NATO sees no need to change nuclear alert level

NATO's chief says the alliance sees no need to change its nuclear weapons alert level, despite Russia's threats.

 

The alliance's secretary-general, Jens Stoltenberg, spoke to The Associated Press following talks on European security with Polish President Andrzej Duda. They met at an air base in Lask, central Poland, where NATO's Polish and US fighter jets are based.

 

“We will always do what is needed to protect and defend our allies, but we don't think there is any need now to change the alert levels of NATO's nuclear forces,” Stoltenberg said.

 

The Kremlin has raised the spectre of nuclear war, reporting on Monday that its land, air and sea nuclear forces were on high alert following President Vladimir Putin's weekend order. NATO itself has no nuclear weapons, but three of its members, the United States, Britain and France, do.

 

6:31 PM

Russia cuts off Ukraine military from the Sea of Azov

Russian forces have cut off the Ukrainian military from the Sea of Azov north of the Black Sea, the TASS news agency quoted Russia's defence ministry as saying on Tuesday.

 

The forces of Russian-backed separatists have reached the borders of Ukraine's Donetsk province and joined Russian troops, another agency, RIA, quoted the ministry as saying.

6:16 PM

UK says evicting Russia from UN Security Council among 'all options' on table: Report