RUSSIA CLOSES IN ON UKRAINE’S MARIUPOL

Mariupol could fall into Russian hands within “hours”, a Ukrainian official said, as the enemies agreed on Wednesday to a humanitarian corridor for civilians to flee the devastated port city following a two-month siege.

As fighting raged in the country’s east and south, the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, arrived in Kyiv, where he vowed the EU would do “everything possible” to help Ukraine win the war.

“You are not alone. We are with you,” Mr. Michel said during a press conference alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Mr. Michel’s visit comes as the West continues to pour weapons into Ukraine amid a renewed Russian push into the eastern Donbas region .

Hours ahead of Mr. Michel’s arrival, the Pentagon said Ukraine had recently received fighter planes and parts to bolster its Air Force, following repeated calls from Kyiv for heavier weapons. It later corrected its statement saying Ukraine had received parts for their aircraft from allies but not complete warplanes.

Control of Mariupol and the separatist-controlled Donbas region in the east would allow Moscow to create a southern corridor to the Crimean Peninsula that it annexed in 2014, depriving Ukraine of much of its coastline.

In the latest ultimatum issued in its battle to capture Mariupol, Moscow made another call for the city’s defenders to surrender on Wednesday by 2 p.m. Moscow time and announced the opening of a humanitarian corridor for any Ukrainian troops who agreed to lay down their arms.

As the deadline approached, a commander in the besieged Azovstal steel plant issued a desperate plea for help, saying his marines were “maybe facing our last days, if not hours”.

“The enemy is outnumbering us 10 to one,” Serhiy Volyna from the 36th Separate Marine Brigade said.

“We appeal and plead to all world leaders to help us. We ask them to use the procedure of extraction and take us to the territory of a third-party state.”

RUSSIA TESTS NUCLEAR-CAPABLE SARMAT BALLISTIC MISSILE

Amid the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday said Russia has successfully tested the Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile which is the world's most powerful missile that is believed to be capable of penetrating any missile defence. It is colloquially known as Satan.

The successful test of the Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile is a big and significant event for Russia's defence, Putin said adding that this will make Russia's enemies think twice.

“It has no analogues in the world and won’t have for a long time to come,” Mr. Putin said. “This truly unique weapon will strengthen the combat potential of our armed forces, reliably ensure Russia’s security from external threats and provide food for thought for those who, in the heat of frenzied aggressive rhetoric, try to threaten our country.”

RUSSIAN OLIGARCH LAMBASTS COUNTRY'S 'MASSACRE'

A Russian oligarch has lambasted the country's "massacre" in Ukraine and called for an end to the "crazy war".

Oleg Tinkov wrote in a profanity-littered Instagram post that he did not see "any beneficiary" of the conflict.

Mr Tinkov is one of Russia's most well-known entrepreneurs and founded the global online bank Tinkoff Bank and owned the cycling team Tinkoff-Saxo.

He is also one of the most high profile Russians to publicly condemn President Vladimir Putin's actions.

Two of the country's most prominent oligarchs Mikhail Fridman and Oleg Deripaska have made separate calls for peace, but have stopped short of direct criticism.

Mr Fridman, a billionaire banker, has said any personal remarks could be a risk not just to himself but also staff and colleagues.

However, the businessman Boris Mints, who worked for the Russian government in the 1990s but was discharged of his political roles four days after Mr Putin took office, has joined Mr Tinkov in voicing direct criticism of the president.

POLICE ACTION IN SRI LANKA CONDEMNED

The fatal shooting of an anti-government protester by the Sri Lankan police on Tuesday has sparked wide condemnation domestically and internationally, while intensifying ongoing anti-government protests in the wake of severe food shortages and record inflation.

The police opened fire on demonstrators in Rambukkana town, located in Kegalle district and about 100 km from Colombo, amid non-stop agitations by citizens across the country. They are demanding that the ruling Rajapaksa brothers resign, taking responsibility for the deepening economic crisis in the country.

Chaminda Lakshan, the first victim of police violence in the ongoing demonstrations, was a father of two, and in his early forties.

“Chaminda Lakshan was at the protest, but not anywhere in the front, according to another injured protester. He [Chaminda] was apparently standing on the side when he suddenly clutched his stomach and fell,” said Ruwan Wijewardene, a former State Minister of Defence, who visited the area hours after the incident.

“Why did the police open fire to disperse the crowd? New visuals emerging from the scene have made police claims of protesters turning violent highly questionable,” he told The Hindu on Wednesday.

The Inspector-General of Police (IGP), C. D. Wickramaratne, who noted that the police resorted to “minimum force” to “prevent a group from trying to set fire” to a bowser, has promised an inquiry.

Dozens, including some policemen, were injured in the incident on Tuesday, following which a police curfew was declared in the area.

International rights watchdogs, Colombo-based diplomats and local activists were quick to condemn the move.

The Bar Association of Sri Lanka, a body of lawyers, said it was “shocked and saddened at the loss of life” in the incident where the police are alleged to have shot at protesters and have called for an independent investigation.

RESTRUCTURE DEBT, IMF TELLS COLOMBO

The International Monetary Fund said on Wednesday that it has asked cash-strapped Sri Lanka to “restructure” its huge foreign debt before a bailout programme could be finalised.

Sri Lanka opened talks with the IMF in Washington this week after announcing its first ever default on external borrowings.

“When the IMF determines that a country’s debt is not sustainable, the country needs to take steps to restore debt sustainability prior to IMF lending,” the Fund’s country director Masahiro Nozaki said in a statement.“Approval of an IMF-supported program for Sri Lanka would require adequate assurances that debt sustainability will be restored.”

EXILED’ EX-PM TO BE BACK IN PAK, FACE THE COURTS: MINISTER

Pakistan’s former three-time PM Nawaz Sharif is returning to the country after Eid to voluntarily face the judicial process in all cases against him, federal minister and PML-N leader Javed Latif said on Wednesday. He also revealed that PPP had named the party’s chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari for the vacant foreign minister’s berth and that he would take the oath for the office after returning from London.

Nawaz, whose third term as PM ended in 2017 when he was forced to resign in accordance with the Supreme Court’s decision in the Panama papers case, flew to London in November 2019 to seek treatment for various ailments. “Nawaz Sharif will be seen in Pakistan after Eid,” Latif said in a video statement a day after new PM Shehbaz Sharif’s 37-member cabinet took the oath of office.

On the cases as pending against Nawaz, the minister said PML-N believed in the sanctity of the legal process and would accept whatever verdict the courts gave. Farhatullah Babar, PPP’s secretary-general, said party chief Bilawal was visiting London primarily to meet Nawaz and congratulate him on the new coalition government.

A two-member bench of the Lahore high court is scheduled to take up a petition filed by PML-N, seeking the removal of Nawaz’s name from the no-fly list. His name was put on the exit control list by the erstwhile PTI-led government after he made a long-distance comeback to politics in 2020 by breaking a two-year silence to denounce the country’s powerful military and vowing to topple Imran Khan.

ZELENSKY & NAVALNY VOICE SUPPORT FOR MACRON IN POLLS

Paris : Ukrainian President Zelensky and jailed Russian Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny both voiced support for French President Emmanuel Macron ahead of an election that pits Macron against Russia-friendly far-right candidate Marine Le Pen. Navalny tweeted his support for Macron, calling on French citizens to vote for him in Sunday’s runoff vote, while Zelensky, in a TV interview, also spoke in favour of Macron.

“A Russian political prisoner addressing the voters of France is quite ironic. . . I certainly, without hesitation, urge the people of France to vote for @EmmanuelMacron on April 24,” Navalny said in along Twitter thread. He added that he also wanted to appeal to those who would not rule out voting for Le Pen. He said anyone who calls themselves a “conservative” and is sympathetic to President Putin is actually “just a hypocrite with no conscience”.

Zelensky was more circumspect in his support for Macron. “While I do not think that I have the right to influence what happens in

your country, I want to say I have a relationship with Emmanuel Macron and I would not want to lose that,” he told French TV station BFM. He added that Le Pen was wrong in her views about Russia-Ukraine issues. “If Le Pen understands that she has made a mistake, our relationship could change,” Zelensky said. Le Pen, who prior to the war had been an open admirer of Putin, has said that as president she would block European sanctions on Russian oil and gas.

SHANGHAI ALLOWS 4M MORE OUT OF HOMES AS VIRUS RULES EASE

Shanghai allowed four million more people out of their homes on Wednesday as anti-virus controls that shut down China’s biggest city eased, while the IMF cut its forecast of Chinese economic growth and warned the global flow of industrial goods might be disrupted.

Atotal of almost 12 million people in the city of 25 million are allowed to go outdoors following the first round of easing last week, health official Wu Ganyu said at a news conference. Wu said the virus was “under effective control” for the first time in some parts of the city. Under the latest changes, more than 4 million people are included in areas where the status shifted from closed to controlled, said Wu. He said some are not allowed to leave their neighbourhoods and large gatherings are prohibited.

Meanwhile, the IMF reduced its forecast of Chinese growth this year to 4. 4% from 4. 8% due to the shutdowns of Shanghai and other industrial centers. That is down by almost half from last year's 8. 1% growth and below the ruling Communist Party’s 5. 5% target. China’s case numbers in its latest infection surge are rela- tively low, but the ruling party is enforcing a “zero-Covid” strategy that has shut down major cities to isolate every case.

On Wednesday, the government reported 19,927 new cases in China’s mainland, all but 2,761 of which had no symptoms. Shanghai accounted for 95% of the total, or 18,902 cases, of which 2,495 had symptoms.