The Bykovet family, including Olga, 42, Ilya, 13, and Yegor, 5, who are seeking refuge in abandoned apartments of a residential building, gather in a courtyard in the southern port city of Mariupol, Ukraine, on April 1, 2022.ALEXANDER ERMOCHENKO/Reuters
This digest has now been archived. Find the latest Russia-Ukraine updates here.
Here are the latest updates on the war in Ukraine:
- A Red Cross convoy travelling to the Ukrainian city of Mariupol will make another attempt to evacuate civilians from the besieged port
- The secretary of Ukraine’s national security council has denied the country was responsible for a reported attack on a Russian fuel depot
- Russia gas continued to flow in Europe despite Putin’s threat to cut off supplies unless they paid in rubles
- Kyiv’s mayor warned of “huge” battles near the Ukraine capital and pleaded with citizens to not return right away
11:45 p.m. ET
China says it’s not deliberately circumventing sanctions on Russia
China is not deliberately circumventing sanctions on Russia, a senior Chinese diplomat said on Saturday, a day after the European Union warned Beijing against allowing Moscow to work around measures imposed after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Wang Lutong, director-general of European affairs at China’s foreign ministry, told reporters that China is contributing to the global economy by conducting normal trade with Russia.
“China is not a related party on the crisis of Ukraine. We don’t think our normal trade with any other country should be affected,” he said.
Wang’s comments come a day after an EU-China virtual summit that included the EU’s comments on sanctions and China offering assurances that it would seek peace for Ukraine but “in its own way.”
Beijing, which has forged closer ties with Moscow, has refused to condemn Russia’s actions in Ukraine or call it an invasion and has repeatedly criticized what it calls illegal and unilateral Western sanctions.
- Reuters
11:09 p.m. ET
Retreating Russians leave many mines behind, Zelensky says
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned his people early Saturday that retreating Russian forces were creating “a complete disaster” outside the capital as they leave mines across “the whole territory,” even around homes and corpses.
He issued the warning as the humanitarian crisis in the encircled city of Mariupol deepened, with Russian forces blocking evacuation operations for the second day in a row, and the Kremlin accused the Ukrainians of launching a helicopter attack on a fuel depot on Russian soil.
Ukraine denied responsibility for the fiery blast, but if Moscow’s claim is confirmed, it would be the war’s first known attack in which Ukrainian aircraft penetrated Russian airspace.
“Certainly, this is not something that can be perceived as creating comfortable conditions for the continuation of the talks,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, five weeks after Moscow began sending upwards of 150,000 of its own troops across Ukraine’s border.
Russia continued withdrawing some of its ground forces from areas around Kyiv after saying earlier this week it would reduce military activity near the Ukrainian capital and the northern city of Chernihiv.
- The Associated Press
9:50 p.m. ET
U.S. will work with allies to transfer Soviet-made tanks to Ukraine, report says
The United States will work with allies to transfer Soviet-made tanks to Ukraine to bolster its defences in the Donbas region, the New York Times reported on Friday, citing a U.S. official.
The transfers, requested by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, would begin soon, the unnamed official said, according to the Times. The official declined to say how many tanks would be sent or from which countries they would come, the paper said.
The Pentagon declined to comment to Reuters. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The tanks would allow Ukraine to conduct long-range artillery strikes on Russian targets in the Donbas region of southeastern Ukraine bordering Russia, the official said, according to the Times.
It marks the first time in the war that the United States has helped transfer tanks, the newspaper said.
- Reuters
9:40 p.m. ET
Red Cross heads again for Mariupol as Russia shifts Ukraine focus
A woman carriers her terrier as she and others arrive at the registration centre in Zaporizhzhia, where the International Committee of the Red Cross said it had a team of three cars and nine staff waiting to head out toward the besieged city of Mariupol from Zaporizhzhia on April 1, 2022.EMRE CAYLAK/AFP/Getty Images
A Red Cross convoy travelling to the Ukrainian city of Mariupol will make another attempt to evacuate civilians from the besieged port on Saturday as Russian forces looked to be regrouping for new attacks in the southeast.
Mariupol, encircled since the early days of Russia’s five-week-old invasion, has been Moscow’s main target in Ukraine’s southeastern region of Donbas. Tens of thousands there are trapped with scant access to food and water.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) sent a team on Friday to lead a convoy of about 54 Ukrainian buses and other private vehicles out of the city, but they turned back, saying conditions made it impossible to proceed.
“They will try again on Saturday to facilitate the safe passage of civilians,” the ICRC said in a statement. A previous Red Cross evacuation attempt in early March failed because the route was found to be unsafe.
- Reuters
9:10 p.m. ET
New phone line launched to help Ukraine refugees, co-ordinate B.C. support
A new telephone line has been launched by the British Columbia government to help Ukrainian refugees get the support they need and to co-ordinate donations being offered from residents.
The Service B.C. phone line, 1-800-663-7867, will be available daily from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. with translation services in Ukrainian, Russian and 140 other languages.
The province says the phone line will help Ukrainian refugees and their families to locate and access services they need, such as employment, health care, housing and education.
It will also co-ordinate B.C. residents who want to volunteer or donate to help Ukrainians displaced by Russia’s war on their country.
- The Canadian Press
6:30 p.m. ET
How Ukraine is drowning out the noise of Russia’s propaganda operation
Ukrainian servicemen pose for a picture near a destroyed bridge as Russia's invasion of Ukraine continues, in the town of Irpin outside Kyiv April 1, 2022.GLEB GARANICH/Reuters
The Ukrainian government has teams working on different aspects of the information operation, he said. One handles Mr. Zelensky’s speeches, which include twice-daily videos and regular addresses to parliaments around the world. Other groups run his social media and produce videos from the front lines of the war.
The Ukrainian military’s on-the-ground updates have struck a particularly distinctive tone. They often pair images of incinerated Russian military equipment – and occasionally, the corpses of Russian soldiers – with one-liners. In a series of English-language tweets earlier this week, for instance, the Ukrainian Defence Ministry handed out “Oscars” for videos of its troops defeating Russian units.
“Best Actress: Javelin for the powerful performance in Burning Orcs,” read the caption for one clip of Ukrainian soldiers firing an anti-tank missile. By comparison, the Kremlin’s efforts to blame Kyiv and NATO for the war have fallen flat among U.S. voters. A Pew Research survey this week found 72 per cent of respondents have confidence in Mr. Zelensky to do the right thing, while 92 per cent have no confidence in Russian President Vladimir Putin. Such results were consistent across the political spectrum.
It’s a sharp blow to a propaganda operation that was once credited with helping tip a U.S. presidential election.
– Adrian Morrow, in Washington
6:00 p.m. ET
Villagers in Ukrainian town of Horenychi determined to stay put despite living under constant threat of shelling
Yura, 48, holds pieces of a Russian bomb that exploded in the village of Horenychi, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, March 31, 2022.Rodrigo Abd/The Associated Press
The dark signs of war aren’t hard to find around Horenychi. Just down the road in Stoyanka, a giant warehouse belonging to Turkey-based Ekol Logistics has been blown apart, the result of a rocket attack. Part of the sprawling complex has been completely levelled and the remainder is little more than twisted metal and blackened walls. The parking lot is strewn with broken glass, bits of shrapnel and burned out trucks. Ekol closed the warehouse weeks ago and the company said no one was injured in the attack.
On Friday afternoon another missile slammed into the warehouse, causing a loud explosion and a plume of smoke. It wasn’t clear whether anyone had been injured.
Closer to Horenychi, a gas station and adjacent café have also been blown up. All that’s left are a few bright orange seats and a flowered design along the outside wall.
Russian troops have been withdrawing from Irpin and other areas north of Kyiv in recent days, ostensibly to concentrate on eastern and southern Ukraine. On Tuesday Moscow said the pullback was designed “to increase mutual trust,” but there has been little of that around Horenychi, where bombardments have been a daily occurrence.
“It’s scary,” said Nadiya Mykhaylivna. She was selling milk from the back of her car in the centre of Horenychi on Friday because the processing plant has been closed owing to the war. “It’s scary when it’s loud. It’s scary when it’s quiet because you don’t know when it will be loud again.”
She’s been living here for 35 years. She has a husband, two children and no intention of pulling out. “It’s our place,” she said. “We’ll stay here and see how it goes.”
– Paul Waldie, in Horenychi
5:20 p.m. ET
Russia headed for recession, closed economy despite ruble rebound, U.S. says
Two women walk past a currency exchange office screen displaying the exchange rates of U.S. Dollar and Euro to Russian Rubles in Moscow, Russia, April 1, 2022.The Associated Press
Punishing sanctions imposed by the United States and its allies on Moscow for invading Ukraine are pushing Russia into recession and starting to turn it back into a closed economy, a senior U.S. Treasury official said on Friday.
The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told reporters that the Treasury sees Russia as struggling with steep inflation, diminished exports and shortages despite a recovery of its ruble against the dollar. The official dismissed the rebound as driven by stringent capital controls and foreign exchange curbs, not market forces.
Inflation that has run as high as 6 per cent over the past three weeks is a better indication of the sanctions’ performance inside Russia, revealing the ruble’s diminished purchasing power, the official said, adding that black market ruble exchange rates were well below the international rate.
After Western democracies imposed initial sanctions immobilizing around half of the Russian central bank’s $630 billion in foreign exchange assets and cutting several key Russian banks off from the SWIFT international transaction network, the ruble lost half its value against the dollar.
– Reuters
5:00 p.m. ET
Ukraine says it carried out prisoner exchange with Russia
Ukraine and Russia carried out a prisoner exchange on Friday, leading to the release of 86 Ukrainian servicemen and women, the deputy head of Ukraine’s presidential administration Kyrylo Tymoshenko said.
He did not say how many Russian soldiers were swapped, but said the deal was a result of ongoing peace negotiations. He made the comments in an online post.
– Reuters
4:35 p.m. ET
Talks resume as Ukraine denies hitting depot on Russian soil
Talks to stop the fighting in Ukraine resumed Friday, as another desperate attempt to rescue civilians from the encircled city of Mariupol failed and the Kremlin accused the Ukrainians of launching a helicopter attack on a fuel depot on Russian soil.
Ukraine denied responsibility for the fiery blast, but if Moscow’s claim is confirmed, it would be the war’s first known attack in which Ukrainian aircraft penetrated Russian airspace.
“Certainly, this is not something that can be perceived as creating comfortable conditions for the continuation of the talks,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, five weeks after Moscow began sending upwards of 150,000 of its own troops across Ukraine’s border.
Meanwhile, Russia continued withdrawing some of its ground forces from areas around Kyiv after saying earlier this week it would reduce military activity near the Ukrainian capital and the northern city of Chernihiv to promote trust at the bargaining table.
– The Associated Press
4:20 p.m. ET
Kremlin spokesman says Russia will strengthen western border to deter attack
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Friday said Russian President Vladimir Putin had ordered the military to strengthen the country’s western borders so that no one would ever think of launching an attack.
Peskov told the main television network in neighbouring Belarus that unnamed nations were strengthening their military potential near Russia’s western borders. Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu was working on a security plan, he said.
“Of course this will be done in a way to make us secure and ensure we reach the required level of parity so that it wouldn’t cross anyone’s mind … to attack us,” he said.
Putin sent troops on Feb. 24 for what he calls a “special military operation” to demilitarise Russia’s southwestern neighbour Ukraine. Western countries call it an unprovoked war of aggression.
– Reuters
3:55 p.m. ET
Destruction of war in Ukraine takes its toll
3:35 p.m. ET
U.S. providing Ukraine with supplies in case Russia deploys chemical weapons
The United States is providing Ukraine with supplies and equipment in case Russia deploys chemical or biological weapons in its invasion of Ukraine, the White House said on Friday.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki said the supplies were being provided to the government of Ukraine in light of warnings from the United States and other countries that Russia could deploy such weapons and might be planning a “false flag” operation to lay the groundwork for such an attack.
The White House has not provided evidence that Russia has been planning such an attack. A senior U.S. defense official said last week that there was no concrete indications of an imminent chemical or biological weapons attack in Ukraine.
The Kremlin, which describes the war as a “special military operation,” has accused Ukraine of preparing to use chemical weapons, also without providing evidence. U.S. officials say that claim is a lie, and may indicate that Russia is preparing to do so itself.
The White House has set up a team of experts to plan how to respond if Moscow does deploy any weapons of mass destruction - chemical, biological or nuclear, senior administration officials said last week.
Psaki, asked about reports that Washington was also now providing gas masks and other protective equipment to Ukraine, told reporters: “In an effort to assist our Ukrainian partners, the U.S. government is providing the government of Ukraine lifesaving equipment and supplies that could be deployed in the event of Russian use of a chemical or biological weapon.”
She stressed that the shipment of such supplies would “not compromise our domestic preparedness in any way, shape or form.”
– Reuters
3:15 p.m. ET
Ukrainian MPs ask Canada for military weapons, financial aid
3:00 p.m. ET
Ukraine denies attack on Russian fuel depot
A view shows a fuel depot on fire in the city of Belgorod, Russia April 1, 2022.BELPRESSA/Reuters
The secretary of Ukraine’s national security council has denied the country was responsible for a reported attack on a Russian fuel depot.
Moscow had earlier placed the blame on Ukraine. There was no independent confirmation of details about the incident.
“For some reason they say that we did it, but in fact this does not correspond with reality,” Oleksiy Danilov said on Ukrainian television on Friday.
Regional Gov. Vyacheslav Gladkov said earlier that two Ukrainian helicopter gunships had flown at low altitude and struck the facility in the city of Belgorod north of the border.
Two workers at the depot were injured, he said. But Russian media cited a statement from state oil company Rosneft that denied anyone was hurt.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelensky’s office said 86 Ukrainian service members were freed in the Zaporizhzhia region as part of a prisoner swap with Russia. The number of Russians released was not disclosed.
– The Associated Press
2:30 p.m. ET
Nearby towns still under siege, Kyiv mayor says
A soldier walks the amid the destruction caused after shelling of a shopping center last March 21 in Kyiv, Ukraine, March 30, 2022.Rodrigo Abd/The Associated Press
The mayor of Kyiv said the bombardment of satellite towns near the Ukrainian capital was ongoing despite Russian promises of scaling back troops from the region.
Vitali Klitschko told British broadcaster Sky News on Friday he could hear the sounds of explosions “nonstop during the day and night.”
Klitschko said that the cities northwest of Kyiv such as Irpin, Borodyanka and Hostomel were being targeted after Ukrainian fighters moved back Russian troops, and that fighting also persisted in Brovary, east of Kyiv.
For those who may want to return to Kyiv in light of the supposed Russian withdrawal, he urged people to wait a “couple of weeks” to see how the situation develops.
– The Associated Press
2:00 p.m. ET
Ukraine mulls international bonds to fund war defence effort
Ukraine, hoping to tap fresh sources of money to fund its defence efforts, is looking at ways to extend a domestic bond issuance programme to international capital markets, a source familiar with the situation said on Friday.
Kyiv launched a programme selling hryvnia-denominated bonds to raise money for its fight against Russia - dubbed “war bonds” - in late February. The government said it aimed to raise around $1.36 billion through its domestic programme.
The source said Ukraine’s government now hoped to launch an international fixed income instrument - which would be most likely be denominated in U.S. dollars - in the months to come.
“Ukraine has been encouraged by the support that it has been receiving not only from official creditors but from the broader Ukrainian diaspora and international regulatory authorities,” the person told Reuters.
“The idea is to extend its current programme of domestic bonds to an international audience,” the source said, adding the government was hoping to raise as much as possibly, maybe “hundreds of millions of dollars.”
It was not clear whether the bonds would be aimed at a retail audience - including the country’s large diaspora - or institutional investors, or both.
– Reuters
1:40 p.m. ET
Russia is breaking promises on humanitarian corridor for Mariupol, local governor says
Armoured vehicles of pro-Russian troops drive along a street during Ukraine-Russia conflict in the besieged southern port city of Mariupol, Ukraine March 31, 2022.ALEXANDER ERMOCHENKO/Reuters
The governor of Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region on Friday accused Russia of breaking its promises in terms of allowing humanitarian aid to reach the city of Mariupol, which is encircled by Russian troops.
“Humanitarian deliveries, despite all the agreements and promises of the Russian side, are not being carried out,” Governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said in a televised address. “The humanitarian corridor … is essentially not operational.”
Repeated efforts to deliver aid to Mariupol and help civilians evacuate have failed, with both sides blaming the other.
– Reuters
1:25 p.m. ET
Red Cross says team unable to reach Mariupol
A child is helped off a bus at the registration center in Zaporizhzhia, where the International Committee of the Red Cross said it had a team of three cars and nine staff waiting to head out towards the besieged city of Mariupol from Zaporizhzhia, more than 200 kilometres away on April 1, 2022EMRE CAYLAK/AFP/Getty Images
The International Committee of the Red Cross says a team intending to help people leave the besieged city of Mariupol was unable to reach the port city on Friday.
The Red Cross said in a statement that the team hopes to try again Saturday.
“Arrangements and conditions made it impossible” for the convoy of three vehicles to get safely to Mariupol and they returned to Zaporizhzhia, it said.
“For the operation to succeed, it is critical that the parties respect the agreements and provide the necessary conditions and security guarantees,” the organization said.
– The Associated Press
12:50 p.m. ET
International Energy Agency members agree to release more reserve oil
The International Energy Agency says its members agreed Friday to release further oil from their emergency reserves in response to the market turmoil caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The Paris-based agency said in a statement that the agreement was reached at an extraordinary meeting of ministers. It did not provide information on how much emergency stock would be released, saying this would be made public next week.
The agency’s 31 members previously announced last month that they would release 62.7 million barrels of oil to ease shortages.
It said members noted the high oil price volatility caused by the war, with commercial inventories at their lowest level since 2014 and particular difficulties in diesel markets. Russia is the world’s third-largest oil producer, with about 60 per cent of exports going to Europe and 20 per cent going to China.
The IEA said its member hold emergency stockpiles of 1.5 billion barrels.
– The Associated Press
12:19 p.m. ET
Ukrainian MPs urge Canada to send ‘heavy weaponry’ to help defend against Russian invasion
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau (R) meets with a delegation of Ukrainian member's of Parliament in his office on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Canada on March 31, 2022.SEAN KILPATRICK/AFP/Getty Images
In a plea for support, Ukrainian MPs visiting Ottawa urged the federal government to quickly provide military assistance, saying the country needs lethal weaponry to defend itself against Russian forces.
The delegation met with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland this week and said that while they appreciate the support the Canadian government has provided so far, they need more. Ukraine needs military assistance and more weapons “now, not tomorrow, but just now,” said Lesia Zaburanna, an MP and the chair of the delegation. Read full story.
– The Globe’s Janice Dickson
11:24 a.m. ET
Red Cross struggles to get aid to Mariupol
Local residents carry foodstuff while walking past an apartment building damaged during Ukraine-Russia conflict in the besieged southern port city of Mariupol, Ukraine March 31, 2022.ALEXANDER ERMOCHENKO/Reuters
The International Committee for the Red Cross struggled to work out an operation to send emergency aid into Mariupol and bring civilians out by bus.
The strategic southern port city on the Sea of Azov has seen some of the worst suffering of the war, with weeks of heavy fighting and shortages of water, food and medicine. Around 100,000 people are believed to be in the city, down from a pre-war 430,000.
“We are running out of adjectives to describe the horrors that residents in Mariupol have suffered,” Red Cross spokesperson Ewan Watson said. “The situation is horrendous and deteriorating, and it’s now a humanitarian imperative that people be allowed to leave and aid supplies be allowed in.”
City authorities said the Russians were blocking access to Mariupol and it was too dangerous for people to leave on their own. Those who have fled have mostly done so via private cars, but driveable vehicles and fuel are in short supply.
“We do not see a real desire on the part of the Russians and their satellites to provide an opportunity for Mariupol residents to evacuate to territory controlled by Ukraine,” Petro Andryushchenko, an adviser to the mayor of Mariupol, wrote on the Telegram messaging app.
He said Russian forces “are categorically not allowing any humanitarian cargo, even in small amounts, into the city.”
On Thursday, Russian forces blocked a 45-bus convoy attempting to evacuate people from Mariupol, and only 631 people were able to leave in private cars, the Ukrainian government said. Russian forces also seized 14 tons of food and medical supplies trying to make it to Mariupol, Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said.
– Associated Press
10:19 a.m. ET
Video: Alleged Ukrainian strike on Russia oil depot
9:52 a.m. ET
Ukraine says Russian forces pushed back around Kyiv but fighting continues
A Ukrainian serviceman takes a selfie photograph standing on a destroyed Russian tank after Ukrainian forces overran a Russian position outside Kyiv, Ukraine, Thursday, March 31, 2022.VADIM GHIRDA/The Associated Press
Russian forces are being pushed back around Kyiv but fighting is still fierce in some areas near Ukraine’s capital, Ukrainian officials said on Friday.
Russia said during negotiations on Tuesday that it would scale down operations in the Kyiv and Chernihiv regions, both of which are in northern Ukraine, but officials in both regions say fighting has continued in some areas.
Reuters was unable to verify the information about military movements or fighting in Ukraine.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has said Russian forces are not withdrawing but regrouping, and Ukrainian officials say Russian troops are losing ground rather than retreating of their own accord.
“Our troops are chasing them both to the northwest and northeast (of Kyiv), pushing the enemy away from Kyiv,” said Oleksiy Arestovych, a political adviser to President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Arestovych said Russia was carrying out a partial troop rotation and sending some of its forces to fight in eastern Ukraine.
The Kyiv region’s governor, Oleksandr Pavlyuk, wrote on the Telegram messaging app earlier on Friday that some Russian troops had moved back and were heading toward the border with Belarus, a Russian ally.
– Reuters
9:30 a.m. ET
8:31 a.m. ET
Red Cross teams on way to Mariupol, but without aid
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is sending staff to the besieged Ukrainian port city of Mariupol and is hopeful that evacuations of thousands of civilians can begin on Friday, a spokesperson said at a media briefing.
The city has been encircled since the early days of the Russian invasion of Ukraine that began on Feb. 24; a previous attempt by the Red Cross to access it in early March failed because the route was found to be unsafe and conflict resumed.
“We have permission to move today and we are en route to Mariupol,” ICRC spokesperson Ewan Watson said. “We are hopeful it (the safe passage operation) will commence today.”
The Red Cross team of 3 cars carrying 9 staff members aims to lead a convoy of about 54 Ukrainian buses and a number of private vehicles out of the city, where up to 170,000 people are without power and have limited food, according to the mayor.
Watson stressed that the operation had been approved by both sides but the body is still working out some key details such as the exact timing as well as the destination, which will be an undetermined location in Ukraine.
“Piecing together this safe passage convoy has been and remains extremely complex,” he said.
The Red Cross was not allowed did to take humanitarian aid with the convoy, and it departed without the medical and other supplies it had pre-positioned in the city of Zaporizhzhia, he said.
– Reuters
8:17 a.m. ET
Kyiv mayor says big battles being fought near Ukrainian capital
Ukrainian soldiers walk next to destroyed Russian tanks in the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Thursday, March 31, 2022.Rodrigo Abd/The Associated Press
“Huge” battles are being fought to the north and east of Kyiv, the mayor of the Ukrainian capital said on Friday.
“The risk of dying (in Kyiv) is pretty high, and that’s why my advice to anyone who wants to come back is: Please, take a little bit more time,” Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko said, issuing a warning to residents who have fled the capital.
Kyiv’s regional governor said earlier on Friday that Russian forces were pulling back in some areas around the capital but strengthening its positions in others.
-Reuters
7:54 a.m. ET
World heritage at risk amid Ukraine war, U.N. cultural agency says
Dozens of churches, historical sites and museums have been damaged by the war in Ukraine, the U.N. cultural agency said on Friday, adding that it was particularly worried about the northern city of Chernihiv.
UNESCO said last month it had bolstered protective measures for Ukraine’s endangered cultural heritage in light of Russia’s invasion, such as using a “Blue Shield” emblem to mark its cultural sites and monuments.
“We are very concerned about both the situation at the humanitarian and (cultural) heritage levels. Humanity’s heritage is in danger (in Ukraine),” Ernesto Ottone, UNESCO’s assistant director-general for culture, told a news conference.
UNESCO’s first preliminary list of totally or partially damaged sites featured 29 religious sites, 16 historical buildings, four museums and four monuments, it said.
7:01 a.m. ET
Ukraine foreign minister says he has no information about who carried out Belgorod strike
A flash of light is captured on a security camera near a fuel depot in the city of Belgorod, Russia April 1, 2022, in this still image taken from a video obtained by REUTERS.VIDEO OBTAINED BY REUTERS/Reuters
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on Friday he could not confirm or deny Ukraine’s alleged involvement in a strike on a fuel depot in the Russian city of Belgorod because he was not privy to all military information.
Responding to a question about the attack at a briefing in Poland, Kuleba said: “I can neither confirm nor reject the claim that Ukraine was involved in this simply because I do not possess all the military information.”
He also said Ukraine was waiting for Russia’s formal response to Kyiv’s proposals laid out at peace talks in Turkey and that foreign powers were not pushing Ukraine to compromise in negotiations.
-Reuters
6 a.m. ET
Russians leave Chernobyl, accuse Ukraine of striking Russian oil depot
Russian troops left the heavily contaminated Chernobyl nuclear site early Friday after returning control to the Ukrainians, authorities said, as residents in parts of eastern Ukraine braced for renewed attacks and awaited blocked supplies of food and other humanitarian relief.
Ukraine’s state power company, Energoatom, said the pullout at Chernobyl came after soldiers received “significant doses” of radiation from digging trenches in the forest in the exclusion zone around the closed plant. The International Atomic Energy Agency said it could not independently confirm the exposure claim.
In what would be the first attack of its kind, if confirmed, the governor of Russia’s Belgorod region accused Ukraine of flying helicopter gunships across the border on Friday morning and striking an oil depot.
The depot run by Russian energy giant Rosneft is located about 35 kilometres north of the Ukraine-Russia border. The helicopter attack set the facility ablaze, and two people were injured, according to a Telegram post by Belgorod governor Vyacheslav Gladkov. Read full story
-The Associated Press
5:46 a.m. ET
Gas still flows from Russia to Europe as buyers navigate Putin’s ruble order
Russian gas flowed into Europe on Friday, while European gas prices continued to rise, as firms grappled with President Vladimir Putin’s threat to cut off supplies unless they paid in rubles.
Two of the three main pipelines for Russian gas into Europe, Nord Stream 1 across the Baltic Sea and into Slovakia over Ukraine were flowing normally, while flows through the Yamal-Europe pipeline over Belarus had reversed direction.
While this meant gas is flowing from Germany to Poland through the Yamal-Europe route, it is not an uncommon switch.
Under the decree signed by Putin, foreign buyers of Russian gas must open ruble accounts in state-controlled Gazprombank from Friday to allow foreign currency to be converted to rubles.
Analysts said the plan, which puts Gazprom at the heart of the trade, was more about shielding it from future sanctions than depriving Europe of gas.
“This is less of a standoff and more of a stand-down. It amounts to a warning from Putin not to tighten financial sanctions further,” said Jeffrey Schott of the Peterson Institute of International Economics think tank.
-Reuters
5:35 a.m. ET
Red Cross unsure if it can reach Mariupol for aid delivery
Local residents carry foodstuff while walking past an apartment building damaged during Ukraine-Russia conflict in the besieged southern port city of Mariupol, Ukraine March 31, 2022. REUTERS/Alexander ErmochenkoALEXANDER ERMOCHENKO/Reuters
The International Committee of the Red Cross says it’s not sure that a planned delivery of aid into Mariupol and an evacuation of civilians out of the besieged Ukrainian city will happen Friday.
Spokesman Ewan Watson told a U.N. briefing in Geneva that the humanitarian group has sent three vehicles toward Mariupol and a front line between Ukrainian and Russian forces, but two trucks carrying supplies for the city were not accompanying them.
Dozens of busses that have been put together by Ukrainian authorities to take people out also have not started approaching the dividing line, he said Friday.
Watson called it an “extremely complex” operation, adding that “not all details are in place to ensure that this happens today.”
He said the hope was that “thousands” of people could be ferried out, and their destination would be into parts of Ukraine less affected by the fighting that has been ongoing since Russia’s invasion on Feb. 24.
-The Associated Press