The Biden administration will announce new sanctions Wednesday in coordination with G7 nations and the European Union in response to Russian forces committing war crimes in Ukraine. There will also be a ban on all new investment in Russia, reports quoting an administration official say.
The next round of US sanctions will target Russian government officials, their family members, Russian-owned financial institutions and state-owned enterprises, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said at a news conference.
The European Union will impose additional sanctions on Russia, likely on gas and oil, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told the European Parliament Wednesday.
The EU Commission is proposing a ban on coal exports as European Union ambassadors are meeting Wednesday to decide on a wide-ranging fifth package of sanctions.
Thousands of people are fleeing Donbas as Russian forces stepped up their offensive after shifting the focus of attacks to eastern Ukraine.
Ukrainian authorities are calling on people to evacuate the eastern Luhansk region, with five humanitarian corridors out of the area planned today.
Russian forces now occupy most of Luhansk and more than half of Donetsk, reports say. Heavy fighting and Russian airstrikes have continued on the besieged southern port city of Mariupol.
In an emotionally charged address to the UN Security Council Tuesday, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky questioned the very mandate of the council. He demanded that Russia must be expelled from the Council or the Council itself should be dissolved.
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