Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
KYIV, Ukraine — Ukrainian forces are preparing for new Russian attacks in the east as Moscow builds up troops there after setbacks near the capital Kyiv, said President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who called for Russia to be punished with stronger sanctions.
Fighting
- British military intelligence reports shelling, missile strikes around Chernihiv and heavy fighting in Mariupol, where Ukrainian forces control the city center. Heavy fighting is expected in Kyiv suburbs in the coming days.
- Russia's defense ministry said it was prepared to observe a cease-fire in Mariupol on Thursday, Russian news agencies reported.
- Nearly 5,000 people have been killed in Mariupol, the mayor's office estimates, and about 170,000 people remain trapped amid ruins without food, heat, power or running water. Many more have fled. Reuters has been unable to verify the figures.
Economy
- Russia demanded oil and gas payments be made in rubles by Friday, and a Russian newspaper said Gazprom was studying options for halting gas supplies.
- President Joe Biden is preparing to order the release of up to 1 million barrels of oil per day from the nation's strategic petroleum reserve, according to two people familiar with the decision. The International Energy Agency will hold an emergency meeting on Friday.
Diplomacy
- Russia and Ukraine are to resume peace talks online on April 1, said a senior Ukrainian official.
- Russian President Vladimir Putin was misled by advisers who were too scared to tell him how poorly the war in Ukraine is going and how damaging Western sanctions have been, a U.S. official said, citing declassified intelligence.
Humanitarian concerns
- A convoy of Ukrainian buses set out for Mariupol to try to deliver humanitarian supplies and bring out trapped civilians, the deputy prime minister said.
- Russia may have committed war crimes by killing civilians and destroying hospitals in its pounding of Ukrainian cities, the top United Nations human rights official said.
Quotes
- "We cook what we find among neighbors. A bit of cabbage, a bit more of potatoes, we've found tomato paste, some beetroot," said former steelworker Viktor from Mariupol.
×
