RUSSIA-UKRAINE CONFLICT: LATEST UPDATES

Russia's military operation in Ukraine entered the sixth day on Tuesday and marked one of the most tragic developments throughout. With sirens going off across Ukraine's capital Kyiv, and Russian missiles burning down an administrative building and residential blocks in Kharkiv, several civilians lost their lives.

Here are the developments of day six of Russia-Ukraine conflict:

* Rocket strikes on Kharkiv killed at least 11 people and wounded 35, Ukrainian Interior Ministry adviser Anton Herashchenko said. Herashchenko said that the toll is expected to rise as debris is being cleared. Russian airstrikes hit a TV tower at the heart of Kyiv causing the death of five persons and injuring five more.

* A 21-year-old Indian medical student named Naveen Shekharappa dies in shelling in Kharkiv, sending shockwaves across the country. Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to his father soon after, and even called another high-level meeting to oversee the current evacuation process of stranded Indians from Ukraine.

* More than 600,000 people across Ukraine have fled their homes to escape the fighting, according to the United Nations, and more than 130 civilians have been killed in Ukraine since Thursday, including 13 children.

* Ukrainian authorities also reported 70 soldiers killed in a rocket attack in a town between Kyiv and Kharkiv.

* Satellite images taken on Monday show a Russian military convoy north of the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv that stretches for about 40 miles (64 km), a U.S. private company said. Maxar Technologies (MAXR.N) also said additional ground forces deployments and ground attack helicopter units were seen in southern Belarus, less than 20 miles (32 km) north of the Ukraine border.

 * Russia Asks Kyiv Residents to Leave: Russian defence ministry on Tuesday said that it was planning to launch “high precision strikes” in Kyiv and asked its residents to leave. In a statement issued on Tuesday, the defence ministry said that Russia was preparing to launch “high-precision strikes” against the “Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and the 72nd Center for Information and Psychological Operations (PSO)” in Kyiv. “We urge Ukrainian citizens involved by Ukrainian nationalists in provocations against Russia, as well as Kyiv residents living near relay stations, to leave their homes,” the statement said.

* Oil company Shell became the latest Western firm to announce it was pulling out of Russia.

* The delegations of Russia and Ukraine are planning to meet for the second round of ceasefire talks on Wednesday (March 2).

ZELENSKY: FIGHTING TO BE EQUAL MEMBER OF EUROPE

“Prove that you are with us,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told the European Union on Tuesday, a day after Kyiv officially asked to join the bloc as it battles invading Russian forces.

EU lawmakers, many wearing #standwithUkraine T-shirts bearing the Ukrainian flag, others with blue-andyellow scarves, gave Zelensky a standing ovation as he addressed the European parliament via video link. “We are fighting to be equal member of Europe,” Zelensky said in Ukrainian in a speech translated into English by an interpreter who spoke through tears. “Without you, Ukraine is going to be alone. We have proven our strength. We have proven that, at a minimum, we are exactly the same as you are. . . So do prove that you are with us. Do prove that you will not let us go. Do prove that you are indeed Europeans, and then life will win over death and light will win over darkness. . . ”Zelensky said.

“We are (with you),” European Commission vice-president Maros Sefcovic said in response to Zelensky’s appeal, saying the EU would provide Ukraine with weapons, on top of slapping unprecedented sanctions on Russia. Charles Michel, the chairman of EU leaders, told the EU parliament after Zelensky’s speech the bloc would have to seriously look at Ukraine’s “legitimate” request to join. But he added: “It is going to be difficult, we know there’re different views in Europe (about further enlargements). ” The presidents of eight central and eastern European nations on Monday published an open letter calling for Ukraine to be granted immediate EU candidate status and for the start of formal membership talks.

'PUTIN MAY MAKE GAINS ON BATTLEFIELD BUT…': BIDEN CALLS OUT RUSSIA PRESIDENT OVER UKRAINE WAR

US President Joe Biden on Tuesday said that America will be joining Canada and European Union in banning Russian aircraft from its airspace for war in Ukraine. Biden opened his first State of the Union address by directly calling out Vladimir Putin, saying the Russia President "badly miscalculated" in thinking that he could bend the "foundations of the free world" to his "menacing ways".

"Six days ago, Russia's Vladimir Putin sought to shake the very foundations of the free world. Thinking he could make it bend to his menacing ways. But he badly miscalculated. He thought he could roll into Ukraine and the world would rollover. Instead, he met with a wall of strength he never anticipated or imagined. He met the Ukrainian people," Biden said.

Biden also revealed that the US department of justice intends to target Russian oligarchs by finding and seizing their yachts, luxury apartments, and private jets.

Branding Putin as a "dictator", the US President said the action of the Russian leader "has costs around the world."

He asserted that the US and its allies will defend "every inch of NATO territory with full force of our collective power."

"Ukrainians are fighting back with pure courage. Putin may make gains on the battlefield but he will have to continue to pay a high price over the long run."

APPLE, NIKE AND HOLLYWOOD SPURN RUSSIA, ISOLATING PUTIN OVER UKRAINE WAR

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last week brought global condemnation, trade restrictions and financial penalties. Now the nation of 145 million is losing many of the world’s most iconic brands.

Apple Inc. and Nike Inc. both announced plans Tuesday to halt product sales in Russia, cutting off the country to the most valuable technology company and the biggest maker of athleticwear. That followed Hollywood studios such as Walt Disney Co. and WarnerMedia pausing releases of new films in the nation -- including “The Batman,” which is hitting U.S. theaters this weekend and expected to become one of the highest-grossing movies of the year.

Taken together, the moves reflect a cultural and commercial split unseen since the Cold War ended in the late 1980s. From the iPhone to Air Jordans, highly prized U.S. brands are vanishing from the Russian marketplace in a way that will be hard for consumers to ignore.

Exxon Mobil Corp. continued the exodus on Tuesday, saying it will “discontinue” its Sakhalin-1 operations in Russia. Energy was specifically excluded from initial sanctions announced last week by the U.S. and Europe, but pressure has been growing to cut ties.

In addition to ceasing product sales in the country, Apple is removing the RT News and Sputnik News applications from App Stores outside of Russia.

Around the same time, Nike said it would be cutting off Russia as well, though it blamed logistics. The athleticwear giant said it “cannot guarantee delivery of goods to customers in Russia.”

United Airlines Holdings Inc., meanwhile, pledged Tuesday to stop flying over Russia for its daily flights to India, making it the last major U.S. passenger airline to withdraw from the airspace.

Boeing announced on Tuesday it would suspend all major operations in Moscow. The US airplane maker will no longer provide technical support or maintenance, or parts, for Russian aircraft.

American Airlines Group Inc. and Delta Air Lines Inc. already said they stopped flying over Russia, shifting routes linking U.S. cities to destinations such as Tokyo and Incheon, South Korea.

And it’s not just U.S. brands leaving. BP Plc said this week that it would exit its 20% stake in Russia-controlled Rosneft, a move that could result in a $25 billion write-off and cut its global oil and gas production by a third. Shell Plc followed suit, citing Russia’s “senseless act of military aggression.” DaimlerTruck Holding AG, one of the world’s largest commercial vehicle manufacturers, also is halting its business activities in the country.

TURKEY LIMITS THE ACCESS OF RUSSIA WARSHIPS TO BLACK SEA

Turkey is calling on all sides in the Ukraine crisis to respect an international pact on passage through the Turkish straits to the Black Sea, defence minister Hulusi Akarsaid on Tuesday after Ankara closed access. Nato ally Turkey borders Ukraine and Russia in the Black Sea and has good ties with both. Under the 1936 Montreux Convention, Ankara has the right to limit transit through its Bosphorus and Dardanelles straits during wartime. This allows it to curb Russian ships going to Black Sea.

Turkish foreign minister Mevlut Cavusoglu was cited by state media as saying that Turkey had demanded all Black Sea and non-Black Sea states to halt passage through its straits. “Eroding Montreux or disrupting the status quo is to nobody’s benefit. We see a benefit in preserving Montreux. We tell all sides that it’d be beneficial to abide by Montreux,” Akar said. In a call on Monday, US secretary of state Antony Blinken “expressed his appreciation” to Cavusoglu for Turkey’s implementation ofthe pact, US state department said.

WASHINGTON EXPELS 12 MOSCOW UN DIPLOMATS ON SPYING CHARGES

The beginning of an already fraught United Nations Security Council meeting got even more tense when Russia’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Vassily Nebenzia, informed the body that the U.S. had just expelled twelve of his colleagues from the country, a move confirmed by the American Deputy UNPR Richard Mills.

Mr. Nebenzia, who conducts the meeting since Russia holds the presidency of the Council for February, opened by saying the “host country” [the U.S.] had taken “yet another hostile step” against the Russian mission by expelling twelve staff.

He called this a “gross violation” of the UN agreement with the host country and the Vienna Convention.

Russia was repeatedly being told to follow the path of diplomacy but Russia’s opportunities to do this were being “restricted”, Mr. Nebenzia said.

The decision to expel officials was taken in “full accordance with the headquarters agreement that we signed with the UN”, Mr. Mills said, and that the diplomats “were engaged in activities that were not in accordance with their responsibilities and obligations”.

A statement posted to the U.S. mission’s website said the diplomats were expelled for espionage and that U.S. action on them had been in process for several months.

CHINA STARTS EVACUATION PROCESS

China has started evacuating its citizens from Ukraine, state media said on Tuesday, as fears grow for their safety with anger reportedly rising over Beijing's refusal to condemn the Russian invasion.

One person was injured by a bullet while travelling by road from eastern Ukraine to the western city of Lviv, state broadcaster CCTV reported, adding that they were receiving hospital treatment. No further details were given on the incident.

A group of around 600 Chinese students fled the capital Kyiv and the southern port city of Odessa on Monday, the state-run Global Times newspaper reported, citing staff at the Chinese missions in Ukraine.

Another 1,000 Chinese nationals were set to leave Ukraine on Tuesday bound for Poland and Slovakia, both European Union states.

China has been walking a diplomatic tightrope on the Ukraine conflict, balancing its oft-repeated insistence on the sanctity of state sovereignty with an unwillingness to call out its close ally Russia.

IRAN'S SUPREME LEADER CRITICISES US OVER UKRAINE CRISIS

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Tuesday the war in Ukraine should be stopped and accused the United States, which he called a "mafia-like regime", of creating the conflict.

Iran's top political authority also said the roots of the conflict must be acknowledged.

"Basically, the U.S. regime creates crises, lives off of crises and feeds on various crises in the world. Ukraine is another victim of this policy," Khamenei said in a televised speech.

"In my view, Ukraine is a victim of the crises concocted by the United States," Khamenei said.

"There are two lessons to be learnt here. States which depend on the support of the U.S. and Western powers need to know they cannot trust such countries," he added.

While Iran and the United States have been foes for decades, Tehran and Moscow are strategic partners. Tehran and Moscow are military allies in the conflict in Syria. Russia is also an important trade partner because of Western sanctions against Iran.

OVER 100 DIPLOMATS OF WEST, ALLIES WALK OUT ON LAVROV SPEECH TO UN RIGHTS FORUM

More than 100 diplomats from some 40 Western countries and allies including Japan walked out of a speech by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov to the top U.N. human rights forum on Tuesday in protest over Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The boycott by envoys from the European Union, the United States, Britain and others left only a few diplomats in the room including Russia's ambassador to the U.N. in Geneva, Gennady Gatilov, who is a former deputy to Lavrov. Envoys from Syria, China and Venezuela were among delegations that stayed.

Lavrov was addressing the U.N. Human Rights Council remotely, after cancelling his visit due to what the Russian mission said on Monday were EU states blocking his flight path.

In his speech, Lavrov accused the EU of engaging in a "Russophobic frenzy" by supplying lethal weapons to Ukraine during Moscow's military campaign that began last Thursday.

CASH-STRAPPED EGYPT HIKES SUEZ CANAL TRANSIT FEES FOR SHIPS

Cash-strapped Egypt increased transit fees on Tuesday for ships passing through the Suez Canal, one of the world’s most crucial waterways, with hikes of up to 10%, officials said.

The Suez Canal Authority said on its website the increases were “in line with the significant growth in global trade” and cited the canal’s “development and enhancement of the transit service.”

According to a statement, transit fees for liquefied petroleum gas, chemical tankers, and other liquid bulk tankers increased by 10%. Vessels carrying vehicles, natural gas and general cargo, as well as multi-purpose vessels, will see an increase of 7%, while a 5% increase will be imposed on oil and crude tankers and dry bulk vessels, it said.

The hikes could later be revised or called off, according to changes in global shipping, it added.

Canal authorities have been working to widen and deepen the waterway’s southern part, where a hulking vessel ran aground and closed off the canal in March 2021.

The six-day blockage disrupted global shipment.

About 10% of global trade, including 7% of the world’s oil, flows through the Suez Canal, which connects the Mediterranean and Red seas.

For Egypt, the canal — which first opened in 1869 — is a source of both national pride and foreign currency.

Authorities said 20,649 vessels passed through the canal last year, a 10% increase compared to 18,830 vessels in 2020. The annual revenues of the canal reached $6.3 billion in 2021, the highest in its history.

POWER CUT OF RECORD SPAN IN SRI LANKA

Sri Lanka on Tuesday announced nationwide seven-and-a-half hour daily power cuts, the longest in more than a quarter of a century, as its foreign exchange crisis leaves it unable to import oil.

The Public Utilities Commission said it was a “black day” for the island nation as it approved the electricity rationing starting Wednesday with power stations running out of fuel.

“What we are facing is not an issue of electricity capacity, but a foreign exchange crisis,” the regulatory commission said.

The power cuts are the longest imposed since 1996, when the country relied on hydropower for as much as 80% of its electricity and a prolonged drought saw reservoirs run dry.

AT LEAST 440 CIVILIANS KILLED IN SUDAN CLASHES, SAYS UN

At least 440 civilians died in brutal fighting between rival factions in southwestern South Sudan over just a few months last year, the United Nations said on Tuesday.

The report comes on the heels of a warning by the United Nations last month that the world’s youngest country risked a return to war, with bouts of interethnic violence and political infighting threatening to undo even the limited progress made in implementing a stuttering peace process.

“Grave human rights violations and abuses, including hundreds of killings, were committed against civilians during fighting in Tambura County, Western Equatoria State,” according to the joint report issued on Tuesday by the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) and the UN Human Rights Office.

It blamed members of the armed forces loyal to President Salva Kiir and rivals in the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army in Opposition (SPLM/A-IO) of Vice President Riek Machar, and “their respective affiliated militias” for the violence.