A destroyed Russian tank near Irpin, northwest of Ukraine’s capital Kyiv, March 9, 2022. (Vadim Ghirda/AP)

EA on Times Radio: How Putin Revived NATO

EA on CNN 18: India’s Tightrope Walk Over Russian War on Ukraine

Ukraine War, Day 28: Russia Seizes Humanitarian Aid Bound for Besieged Mariupol

UPDATE 1742 GMT:

The leaders of the G7 nations — US, UK, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and Canada — have declared that they are ready to impose crippling sanctions on Russia “as required”.

The leaders called for an immediate halt to Russian military operations, for Belarus to “avoid further escalation and to refrain from using their military forces against Ukraine”, and for “all countries not to give military or other assistance to Russia”.

They pledged:

We will spare no efforts to hold President Putin and the architects and supporters of this aggression, including the Lukashenko regime in Belarus, accountable for their actions.

The people of Russia must know that we hold no grievances against them.

It is President Putin, his government and supporters, including the Lukashenko regime in Belarus, who are imposing this war and its consequences on Russians and it is their decision that besmirches the history of the Russian people.

UPDATE 1736 GMT:

The UN General Assembly has voted 140-5, with 38 abstentions, for a call on Russia to halt the invasion of Ukraine immediately, and to provide more access to aid and civilian protection.

The resolution was drafted by Ukraine and its allies. Only Russia, Syria, North Korea, Eritrea, and Belarus voted No.

UPDATE 1714 GMT:

Switzerland, the world’s largest center for offshore wealth, has frozen about 5.75bn Swiss francs ($6.17bn) worth of Russian assets.

Erwin Hollinger, a senior official at the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs, said the figure is likely to rise significantly.

Swiss banks have up to $213bn of Russian wealth.

UPDATE 1658 GMT:

The US has announced new sanctions against dozens of Russian defense companies, 328 members of the Duma legislature, and Herman Gref, the chief executive of Sberbank, Russia’s largest financial institution.

In some cases, the sanctions parallel those declared today by the UK (see 1000 GMT).

The Treasury Department said the sanctions will have a “deep and long-lasting effect on Russia’s defence-industrial base and its supply chain”.

UPDATE 1517 GMT:

NATO leaders have agreed to further military aid to Ukraine, including anti-tank and air defense systems and drones.

The leaders confirmed that defenses will be strengthened in members in eastern Europe with another 40,000 troops — with four new battle groups in Slovakia, Romania, Bulgaria, and Hungary — and deployment of “significant air and naval assets”.

They also called on China to “abstain from supporting Russia’s war effort in any way”, to “refrain from any action that helps Russia circumvent sanctions”, and to “cease amplifying the Kremlin’s false narratives”.

UPDATE 1510 GMT:

In another sign of resistance in Russian-occupied Kherson in southern Ukraine, a large Ukraine flag has been hung on the city hall.

Residents of Kherson, the first city seized in the Russian invasion, have been holding anti-occupation rallies. Russian forces have used stun grenades and fired to disperse the crowds. Russian officials are now considering deportations and the “liquidation” of protest leaders, according to a leaked letter from the FSB intelligence service.

Ukrainian MP Roman Hryshchuk posted an image.

UPDATE 1405 GMT:

Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry says the number of residents of besieged Mariupol forcibly deported to Russia is now more than 6,000.

UPDATE 1240 GMT:

Addressing the NATO Leaders Summit via videolink, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has pressed for more military assistance to repel the Russian invasion.

Their advantage in the sky is like the use of weapons of mass destruction. And you see the consequences today — how many people were killed, how many peaceful cities were destroyed.

Destroys all living things. Any objects — from houses to churches, from food warehouses to universities, from bridges to hospitals.

Zelenskiy called for provision of tanks to “unblock our cities that are now dying — Mariupol, Berdyansk, Melitopol, others”: “You have at least 20,000 tanks! Ukraine asked for a percent, one percent of all your tanks to be given or sold to us! But we do not have a clear answer yet.”

The President concluded, “The worst thing during the war is not having clear answers to requests for help.”

UPDATE 1045 GMT:

Continuing their media crackdown, Russian authorities have restricted Google News.

Russian officials confirmed the limitation on Wednesday, citing “access to materials containing unreliable information about the course of the special military operation in Ukraine”.

Google said, “We’ve confirmed that some people are having difficulty accessing the Google News app and website in Russia and that this is not due to any technical issues on our end.

UPDATE 1010 GMT:

Poland is expelling 45 Russian diplomats over suspicions that they are intelligence operatives.

The Russian Ambassador says Warsaw has also blocked the embassy’s bank accounts for financing “terrorist activity”.

UPDATE 1000 GMT:

The UK has announced another 65 sanctions against Russia targeting strategic industries, banks, and business elites.

The Kremlin-supported mercenaries of the Wagner Group are also blacklisted.

Sanctions have been imposed on Russian Railways; defense company Kronshtadt, a leading manufacturer of drones; the world’s largest diamond producer Alrosa; and Alfa Bank, whose founders include the sanctioned Mikhail Fridman, Petr Aven, and German Khan.

Sanctioned individuals include billionaire oil tycoon Eugene Shvidler; Herman Gref, the chief executive of Russia’s largest bank, Sberbank; and Polina Kovaleva, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s stepdaughter, who lives in a £4m house in London.

The local councillor installed by Russia as “mayor” of occupied Melitopol, after the city’s mayor was detained by Russian forces, is named for “collaboration” with the invaders.

UPDATE 0818 GMT:

A New York Times investigation documents the destruction or damage of more than 1,500 civilian buildings, structures, and vehicles in Russia’s invasion.

The toll includes at least 23 healthcare facilities, 330 schools, 27 cultural buildings, 98 commercial buildings — including at least 11 related to food or agriculture — and 900 houses and apartment buildings.

The list was compiled from verified photos and videos; descriptions and visual evidence from official announcements from Ukrainian military and government agencies; and reporting from Times journalists and press photographers in the country.

The newspaper emphasizes that its tally is an “undercount” of the actual destruction.

UPDATE 0810 GMT:

The Chinese auto manufacturer Geely is reconsidering its future in Russia, countering the expectation of some analysts that Beijing’s companies would expand involvement in the country as international companies depart.

Geely has suspended operations at a factory in Belarus exporting to Russia, and has launched a review of reputational risk, supply chain issues, and local market conditions: “We are still monitoring the situation. Every element will be considered in this.”

The Beijing-based group owns Volvo and Lotus and has a minority stake in Mercedes-Benz.

Chinese car exports to Russia rose last year to 123,000 from 43,000 in 2020.

UPDATE 0806 GMT:

“A senior military official” of NATO says up to 40,000 Russian troops have been killed, wounded, taken prisoner, or are missing in Ukraine.

If confirmed, the total would be about 20% of Russia’s invasion force.

NATO estimates that between 7,000 and 15,000 Russian soldiers have been killed (see Original Entry).

US defense officials said this week that Russia’s operational strength is below 90% for the first time in the invasion.

UPDATE 0758 GMT:

Russia’s stock market has opened, for limited trading, for the first time since the February 24 invasion of Ukraine.

Trading is restricted to stocks such as energy giants Gazprom and Rosneft to prevent a repeat of the selloff, anticipating international sanctions, on the day of the invasion. Foreigners cannot sell and traders are barred from short selling in the anticipation that the market will fall.

The benchmark MOEX index rose 8% in the first minutes of trading.

Foreign investment managers have declared Russia’s market to be “uninvestable” and removed it from global indexes.

UPDATE 0755 GMT:

The Ukrainian Defense Ministry claims it has destroyed a Russian landing ship, the Orsk, as it sat in the Russian-occupied port of Berdyansk in southern Ukraine this morning.

Officials said two other warships are “smoking heavily and trying to escape”.

UPDATE 0735 GMT:

As leaders gather for the NATO summmit in Brussels today, the UK has announced that it will send another 6,000 anti-tank and anti-air missiles to Ukraine, matching 6,000 already dispatched.

London also announced another £25m ($33m) in economic assistance to Kyiv as well as body armor, helmets, and combat boots.

Meanwhile, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy addressed an international audience, speaking in English and Ukrainian:

Starting from March 24 – exactly one month after the Russian invasion… From this day and after then.

Show your standing! Come from your offices, your homes, your schools and universities. Come in the name of peace. Come with Ukrainian symbols to support Ukraine, to support freedom, to support life.

Come to your squares, your streets. Make yourselves visible and heard. Say that people matter. Freedom matters. Peace matters. Ukraine matters.

He said of the NATO summit, as well as the European Union, and the G7, “We will see who is a friend, who is a partner, and who betrayed us for money. Life can only be defended when united.”

UPDATE 0638 GMT:

Oksana Baulina is the fourth journalist to be killed by Russian forces during the invasion of Ukraine.

Baulina was slain by shelling on Wednesday. She was filming the Russian destruction of a shopping center in northwest Kyiv, an attack in which eight people were killed earlier this week.

Another civilian was killed and two wounded.

Baulina was reporting for independent Russian news website the Insider. She had also worked for Russian activist Alexander Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation.

American filmmaker Brent Renaud was the first journalist killed by the Russians. Irish cameraman Pierre Zakrzewski and Ukrainian producer Oleksandra Kuvshynova were slain days later. Others have been seriously wounded as Russian forces fired even though journalists identified themselves.

A cameraman in besieged Mariupol in southern Ukraine was also reportedly killed on Wednesday.

UPDATE 0630 GMT:

An 11-year-old gymnast is among the latest victims of Russian attacks on besieged Mariupol in southern Ukraine.

Kateryna Dyachenko was killed in the collapse of a house after a direct hit by Russian artillery, said her coach Anastasia Meshchanenkova.

ORIGINAL ENTRY: Ukraine’s forces have pushed back Russian attackers near the capital Kyiv, retaking territory to the west and east of the capital.

Further blunting Vladimir Putin’s initial plan to seize the city and topple the Ukraine Government — detaining or killing leaders like President Volodymyr Zelenskiy — the Russian offensive was forced to withdraw to a line 35 miles east and northeast of Kyiv, a retreat of about 15 miles, according to a senior US defense official. UK military officials reinforced the assessment.

Earlier this week, Ukrainian forces reclaimed Makariv, 70 km (43 miles) west of Kyiv.

US officials said the Russian troops were taking up “defensive positions”, indicating that they would remain in place rather than attempting to encircle or invade Kyiv.

In the first two weeks of the invasion, Russian forces closed to within 25 km (16 miles) of the capital, including an armored convoy more than 60 km (37 miles) long. But the advance force then stalled, before fanning out around Kyiv to the west and east.

Russia has been unable to make notable gains outside the south of Ukraine, where it has occupied cities along the Black Sea and is continuing to besiege Mariupol on the eastern end of a 250-km (155-mile corridor).

NATO analysts estimate that between 7,000 and 15,000 Russian troops have been killed in the invasion’s first month. In comparison, in the 10 years of its 1980s war in Afghanistan, the Soviet Union lost about 15,000 personnel.

The UK Defense Ministry assessed on Thursday morning:

Russia is likely now looking to mobilise its reservist and conscript manpower, as well as private military companies and foreign mercenaries, to replace these considerable losses.

It is unclear how these groups will integrate into the Russian ground forces in Ukraine and the impact this will have on combat effectiveness.

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in his latest video address to the nation, “The original plan of the Russian troops failed already in the first days of the invasion. They thought Ukrainians would be frightened. They thought Ukrainians would not fight. They were wrong.”

The Siege of Chernihiv

Russian forces have also been unable to capture Chernihiv, almost 100 miles north of Kyiv. However, they are besieging the city of about 150,000 people, blowing up a key bridge on the road to the capital. Officials have imposed rationing of drinking water, with 10 liters per person per day, and there has been no power for 10 days.

Chernihiv Mayor Vladyslav Atroshenko said the Russians are firing on hospitals, “Their tactic is to intentionally destroy civilians and infrastructure facilities. It has nothing to do with the targeted fire on military infrastructure facilities.”

Residents who have fled to Poland said two schools were bombed mong the destruction. One refugee said:

There was nothing, there wasn’t even bread. Bread was brought in every three days. One day I was standing in line for bread but then decided to go and get some tea. I had just walked away when they dropped the bomb. Apparently it was a helicopter — we didn’t even hear the whistle. Sixteen people died and 47 were taken by ambulance, some of them without arms and legs. Horrible. There were 100 people in that queue.

Mayor Atroshenko spoke of about 300 wounded in each of the city’s two main hospitals. There are 40 funerals per day, compared to eight before the invasion, even though half of the population has left.

Lyudmila Denisova, Ukraine’s human rights ombudsman, summarized:

Today Chernihiv remains completely cut off from the capital. The occupiers bombed the bridge across the River Desna, through which we transported humanitarian aid to the city and evacuated civilians.

The city has no electricity, water, heat and almost no gas, infrastructure is destroyed. According to local residents, the occupiers are compiling lists of civilians for the “evacuation” to Lgov [in Russia]. The racists, cutting off Chernihiv from the capital, turned its inhabitants into hostages.

The US Government formally accused Russia of war crimes on Wednesday.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said:

Today, I can announce that, based on information currently available, the US government assesses that members of Russia’s forces have committed war crimes in Ukraine.

As with any alleged crime, a court of law with jurisdiction over the crime is ultimately responsible for determining criminal guilt in specific cases.

We are committed to pursuing accountability using every tool available, including criminal prosecutions.