(Al Jazeera) Ukraine’s health ministry has said 352 civilians, including 14 children, have been killed since the beginning of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on Thursday.
It also said that 1,684 people, including 116 children, have been wounded.
UN Security Council convenes rare emergency meeting
The UN Security Council has voted to hold a rare emergency meeting of the General Assembly on Monday.
France is expected to sponsor a resolution at the UN security council calling for an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine and a guarantee that humanitarian aid can be delivered to civilians, the presidency announced.
Russia, which blocked a council resolution condemning Moscow’s “aggression” in Ukraine on Friday, is expected to use its veto power.
Ukraine files genocide case against Russia at UN’s top court
Ukraine has launched a case against Russia at the United Nations’ highest court, accusing Moscow of planning genocide and asking for the court to order Russia to halt its invasion and pay reparations.
The case asks the International Court of Justice, based in The Hague, to indicate “provisional measures” ordering Moscow to “immediately suspend the military operations.”
EU approves closure of airspace, further sanctions
EU Foreign Policy chief Josep Borrell has said the bloc has approved crippling sanctions to Russian financial markets, including the exclusion of some Russian banks from the SWIFT international payment system.
“We are going after the wealth of Putin’s elite,” Borrell told a news conference in Brussels after a virtual meeting of foreign ministers on the crisis.
The EU has also approved the closure of its airspace to Russian aircraft and unblocked 450 millions euros ($500 million) for members states to buy arms for Ukraine.
“We are afraid that Russia is not going to stop in Ukraine, and the Russian influence can start working in the neighbouring countries,” Borrell said.
BP quits Russia in up to $25 billion hit
BP is abandoning its 19.75 percent stake in Russian oil giant Rosneft, which accounts for around half of BP’s oil and gas reserves and a third of its production.
Divesting the stake will result in charges of up to $25 billion, the British oil and gas giant said, without saying how it plans to extricate itself.
Rosneft condemned BP’s decision, saying 30 years of successful cooperation had been ruined, Russian news agencies reported.
FIFA moves Russia home games to neutral venues, bans flag and anthem
FIFA has responded to the invasion of Ukraine by telling Russia to play home matches at neutral venues and banning its national flag and anthem from matches.
The governing body of world football said Russian teams would play as the “Football Union of Russia”.
It said it would continue its dialogue with other sports organisations to determine additional measures “including potential exclusion from competitions”.
Kosovo asks US for permanent military base, NATO membership
Kosovo has asked the United States to establish a permanent military base in the country and speed up its integration into NATO after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“Accelerating Kosovo’s membership in NATO and having a permanent base of American forces is an immediate need to guarantee peace, security and stability in the Western Balkans,” Kosovo’s Defence Minister Armend Mehaj said on his Facebook page.
Kosovo’s 2008 independence is recognised by more than 110 countries, mainly Western nations, but not by Russia or Serbia.
‘We are encircled’ but full of fight: Kyiv’s mayor
Russian troops are drawing closer to the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv’s mayor has said, adding that the capital is now encircled.
Vitali Klitschko said it was impossible to evacuate civilians if Russian troops managed to take Kyiv.
“We can’t do that, because all ways are blocked,” he told AP. “Right now, the most important question is to defend our country.”
Czechs, Brits refuse to face Russia in World Cup qualifiers
The Czech Republic and Britain have joined Poland and Sweden in declaring their refusal to play Russia in upcoming World Cup qualifying matches, citing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Read more here.
Zelenskyy skeptical of Russia talks
Ukraine’s president is willing to “try” talks with Russia, but is skeptical of them.
“I will be honest, as always: I do not really believe in the outcome of this meeting, but let them try,” Zelenskyy said in a video address. He added that if there was a “chance” to end war, he should take part in the talks.
Ukrainian official says missiles launched from Belarus to Ukraine
Missiles launched from Belarus have hit an airport in Zhytomyr in northern Ukraine, an adviser to Ukraine’s interior minister said.
Anton Herashchenko, the adviser to Ukraine’s interior minister, said that Iskander missiles were launched at Ukraine from Belarus at around 5 pm local time (1500 GMT).
Ukrainian and Russian officials are due to meet for talks at a venue on the Belarusian border with Ukraine, Zelenskyy’s office said earlier.
Ukraine’s president earlier said he had received “assurances” from his Belarussian counterpart that “missiles, planes and helicopters” would not fly to Ukraine from Belarus ahead of the negotiations.
Putin aiming for full victory by March 2: former minister
Russia’s former deputy foreign minister Andrei Fedorov has said Putin is aiming for a full victory by March 2.
Speaking to Al Jazeera’s Start Here, Fedorov said “everything will depend frankly speaking on the coming two days because, according to my knowledge, Putin orders for complete military operation with a victory by March 2.”
Fedorov added that Moscow was taken aback by Ukraine’s fierce resistance and by the decision on the part of European states – who are largely dependent on Russian gas – to impose harsh sanctions.
[These measures have] caused a lot of problems over here now,” he said.
EU expects more than 7 million displaced Ukrainians
The EU’s executive have said the number of Ukrainians displaced by the war could be more than 7 million.
“We are witnessing what could become the largest humanitarian crisis on our European continent in many, many years. The needs are growing as we speak,” Janez Lenarcic, European Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management, told a news conference in Brussels.
Russians hold anti-war rallies amid crackdown
Protests at Gostiny Dvor in St Petersburg were still going on as of Sunday night, amid a heavy police presence and OMON special officers in riot gear.
Sources told Al Jazeera the rallies appeared more spread out along Nevsky Prospekt, the main avenue in the city, with at least one group of demonstrators breaking off from the rally and marching down a side street, chanting “No to War!”
OVD-Info, which monitors arrests at protests, said 2,114 protesters had been detained on Sunday.
Police detain a demonstrator during an action against Russia’s attack on Ukraine in St. Petersburg. [Dmitri Lovetsky/AP]Russia admits ‘killed and injured’ troops in Ukraine
Russia’s army admitted for the first time that there were “killed and injured” soldiers among its troops in Ukraine, without saying how many had died there.
“Russian servicemen are showing courage and heroism while fulfilling combat tasks in the special military operation,” Moscow’s army spokesman Igor Konashenkov said on state television.
“Unfortunately, there are killed and injured among our comrades.”
