Page 50 - Russia Ukraine Conflict

Putin declares captured regions part of Russia; Ukraine denies talks

Putin also urged Ukraine to sit down for peace talks but immediately insisted he won't discuss handing them back, opening a new escalatory phase of his seven-month invasion of the country.

UK imposes services sanctions on Russia over illegal annexation of Ukraine

The UK government on Friday imposed new services and goods export bans on Russia in response to what it termed the illegal annexation of four regions of Ukraine after sham referendums. The services sanctions are designed to target vulnerable sectors of the Russian economy, including IT consultancy, architectural services, engineering services and transactional legal advisory services for certain commercial activity. UK Foreign Secretary also instructed the Russian Ambassador, Andrey Kelin, be summoned to the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), to protest in the strongest terms against the Russian action in Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia. The UK utterly condemns [Russian President Vladimir] Putin's announcement of the illegal annexation of Ukrainian territory. We will never recognise the results of these sham referendums or any annexation of Ukrainian territory, said UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly. The Russian regime must be hel

US hits Russia with new sanctions for annexing Ukrainian regions

The US on Friday sanctioned more than 1,000 people and firms connected to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, including its Central Bank governor and families of National Security Council members, after President Vladimir Putin signed treaties absorbing occupied regions of Ukraine into Russia, in defiance of international law. The Treasury Department named hundreds of members of Russia's legislature, leaders of the country's financial and military infrastructure and suppliers for sanctions designations. The Commerce Department added 57 companies to its list of export control violators, and the State Department added more than 900 people to its visa restriction list. We will not stand by as Putin fraudulently attempts to annex parts of Ukraine, said Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. The Treasury Department and US government are taking sweeping action today to further weaken Russia's already degraded military industrial complex and undermine its ability to wage its illegal war.

European Union demands clampdown on issuing visas to Russian citizens

The European Union's top migration official on Friday urged the bloc's 27 nations to clamp down on issuing visas to Russian citizens amid heightened security concerns over Russian President Vladimir Putin's nuclear threats and his annexation of parts of Ukraine. This is clearly an escalation and that means also an escalation of the security threat towards the European Union, Migration Commissioner Ylva Johansson said. She urged EU countries to enforce more stringent checks on Russian citizens and deny documents to anyone who might pose a threat. Over 194,000 Russian citizens have fled to neighboring Georgia, Kazakhstan and Finland often by car, bicycle or on foot since Putin last week announced a partial mobilization of reservists to bolster his troops in Ukraine. In Russia, the vast majority of men under 65 are registered as reservists. Johansson said EU authorities must stop short-term visa holders from Russia from renewing them in Europe. If a Russian person intends to stay ..

Zelenskyy accelerates NATO bid as Russia annexes 4 Ukraine regions

Ukraine's president says his country is submitting an accelerated application to join the NATO military alliance. The comment Friday by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy came just after Russia said it would annex four region of Ukraine it seized amid its war and held gunpoint referendums viewed as illegitimate by the international community. Zelenskyy said: We are taking our decisive step by signing Ukraine's application for accelerated accession to NATO. It wasn't immediately clear what an accelerated application would mean, as ascension to NATO requires the unanimous support of the alliance's members. De facto, we have already proven compatibility with alliance standards. They are real for Ukraine -- real on the battlefield and in all aspects of our interaction, Zelenskyy said. We trust each other, we help each other, and we protect each other. This is the alliance. Zelenskyy also repeated his pledge to reunite all of the Ukrainian territory now held by Russia. The entire territory

Tiruppur exporters brace for slowdown, see demand dipping by 40%

Tiruppur contributed around 54.2 per cent of the country's textile exports last fiscal

Putin declares annexation of 4 Ukrainian regions in Kremlin ceremony

Russian President Vladimir Putin has opened a Kremlin ceremony to start the process of absorbing parts of Ukraine into Russia, defying international law. The annexation ceremony in the Kremlin's opulent white-and-gold St. George's Hall will feature Putin and the heads of the four regions of Ukraine signing treaties for them to join Russia, in a sharp escalation of the seven-month conflict. The ceremony comes three days after the completion of Kremlin-orchestrated referendums on joining Russia that were dismissed by Kyiv and the West as a bare-faced land grab, held at gunpoint and based on lies. The separatist Donetsk and Luhansk regions in eastern Ukraine have been backed by Moscow since declaring independence in 2014, weeks after the annexation of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula. The southern Kherson region and part of the neighboring Zaporizhzhia were captured by Russia soon after Putin sent troops into Ukraine on Feb. 24. Both houses of the Kremlin-controlled Russian parliament will

RBI monetary policy: Repo rate hiked by 50 bps, here is what it tells us

RBI Policy: Shaktikanta Das announced the RBI MPC's decision to hike the repo rate by 50 basis points to 5.9% and slash the GDP forecast for FY23 to 7% from 7.2% earlier

Finland government announces ban on entry of Russian tourists in country

The Finnish government has announced its decision to significantly restrict the entry of Russian citizens into the country.

US Senate approves $12.3 billion aid for Ukraine in war against Russia

US Senate approved emergency aid of USD 12.3 billion to Ukraine in its war against Russia; the measure will not only continue government spending but will also help in war to a greater extent

US will never recognise Russia's claims on Ukrainian territory: Joe Biden

In response to Russia's move to formally annex four more areas in Ukraine, US President Joe Biden said that Washington will "never, never, never recognise" Moscow's claims on Kiev's territory

Russian President Putin recognises independence for 2 more Ukraine regions

Russian President Vladimir Putin has recognised the independence of two more Ukrainian regions, a precursor to their annexation by Russia. Putin issued decrees early Friday recognising the independence of the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions. He took similar steps in February regarding Luhansk and Donetsk and earlier for Crimea. Russia's plan to annex more of Ukraine on Friday is an escalation of the seven-month war and is expected to isolate the Kremlin further, draw more international punishment and bring Ukraine extra military, political and economic support. The annexation - and planned celebratory concerts and rallies in Moscow and the occupied territories - would come just days after voters supposedly approved independence in Moscow-managed referendums. Ukrainian and Western officials have denounced the votes as illegal, forced and rigged.

US State Secy Blinken accuses Russia of 'land grab' referendums in Ukraine

Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Thursday accused Russia of a "land grab" after referendums in Ukraine and that the US will never recognise the legitimacy or outcome of the "sham" referenda. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters Thursday that four regions of Ukraine - Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia - would be folded into Russia during a Kremlin ceremony attended by President Vladimir Putin.v The Kremlin's sham referenda are a futile effort to mask what amounts to a further attempt at a land grab in Ukraine. To be clear: the results were orchestrated in Moscow and do not reflect the will of the people of Ukraine, Blinken said. The United States does not, and will never, recognise the legitimacy or outcome of these sham referenda or Russia's purported annexation of Ukrainian territory, he asserted. "This spectacle conducted by Russia's proxies is illegitimate and violates international law. It is an affront to the principles of international peace and securit

Current account deficit widens to 2.8% of GDP in Q1; trade deficit jumps

Services exports, remittances show firm momentum in Q1

Putin to annex seized Ukrainian land, UN warns of 'dangerous escalation'

If Russia moves ahead with its plans to annex four Ukrainian regions, it would mark a 'dangerous escalation' that would jeopardise the prospects for peace in the region, the UN Secretary-General said

India reaches out to US, Iraq for LNG after Gazprom reduces supply: Report

The decision comes as LNG supplies from Russia's Gazprom have been declining since the start of the Russia-Ukraine war

PM's remarks to Putin reflect India's stance on Ukraine war: S Jaishankar

India's External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar has said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recent remarks to Russian President Vladimir Putin were consistent with the existing Indian position

Ukraine pledges to reclaim land that Russia is likely to annex: Official

Ukraine is determined to reclaim territory that Russia is likely to annex following stage-managed voting in occupied areas and takes seriously Moscow's threats to use nuclear weapons in the war with its neighbor, an adviser to Ukraine's president said Wednesday. In an interview with The Associated Press in Kyiv, presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak insisted that nothing would change on the battlefield if Russia moves to incorporate four regions of southern and eastern Ukraine in the coming days, as is widely expected. We will liberate our territory by military means," Podolyak said. And for us, our actions depend not so much on what the Russian Federation thinks or wants, but on the military capabilities that Ukraine has. Ukraine and its Western allies have denounced the Kremlin-orchestrated referendums that ended Tuesday as as illegal and a sham, noting that many residents remain displaced by the seven-month war. They also said Moscow-installed local officials had announced the .

Europe ramps up energy security after suspected pipelines sabotage

European companies are ramping up security around pipelines and energy prices are climbing again as the suspected sabotage of two pipelines that deliver natural gas from Russia underscored the vulnerability of Europe's energy infrastructure and prompted the EU to warn of possible retaliation. Some European officials and energy experts have said Russia is likely to blame for any sabotage it directly benefits from higher energy prices and economic anxiety across Europe although others cautioned against pointing fingers until investigators are able to determine what happened. Russia has sharply curtailed natural gas shipments to Europe in retaliation for sanctions that the West put in place after its invasion of Ukraine. On Wednesday, Russian energy giant Gazprom increased the pressure, threatening on Twitter to cease dealing with a Ukrainian company that controls one of the two remaining pipelines that ship Russian gas to Europe. Coming on top of the apparent sabotage to the Nord ..

Moscow sets up draft offices at borders to intercept fleeing Russian men

Long lines of Russians trying to escape being called up to fight in Ukraine continued to clog highways out of the country on Wednesday, and Moscow reportedly set up draft offices at borders to intercept some of them. North Ossetia, a Russian region that borders Georgia, declared a state of high alert and said that food, water, warming stations and other aid should be brought in for those who have spent days in queues. Volunteers on the Georgian side of the border also have brought water, blankets and other assistance. North Ossetia restricted many passenger cars from entering its territory, and set up a draft office at the Verkhy Lars border crossing, Russian news agencies said. Some media outlets released photos at the crossing showing a black van with military enlistment office written on it. Another such draft checkpoint was set up in Russia along the Finnish border, according to the independent Russian news outlet Meduza. Tens of thousands of Russian men have fled in the week .