KABUL (BNA) Russia’s invasion of Ukraine entered its second week as an apparent tactical failure so far, with its main assault force stalled for days on a highway north of Kyiv and other advances halted at the outskirts of cities it is bombing into wastelands.
The number of refugees who have fled Ukraine rose to more than 1 million, the United Nations said. Hundreds of Russian soldiers and Ukrainian civilians have been killed, and Russia itself has been plunged into isolation never before experienced by an economy of such size.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said he believed some foreign leaders were preparing for war against Russia and that Moscow would press on with its military operation in Ukraine until “the end”. Lavrov also said Russia had no thoughts of nuclear war.
The Chinese foreign ministry said that reports on Chinese and Russian coordination ahead of Russia’s attack on Ukraine are “fake news”. Senior Chinese officials told senior Russian officials in early February not to invade Ukraine before the end of the Winter Olympics in Beijing, the New York Times reported.
French customs have seized a yacht belonging to Rosneft boss Igor Sechin as it tried to leave the Mediterranean port of La Ciotat in a breach of EU sanctions on Russian oligarchs. At least five superyachts owned by Russian billionaires were anchored or cruising in Maldives, an Indian Ocean island nation that does not have an extradition treaty with the United States.
The bells of major churches across Europe chimed in unison to express solidarity with the people of Ukraine, mourn those killed, and pray for peace.
Alamyar
