(Bloomberg) — German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Russia is only beginning to feel the harshest effects from sanctions and that more measures are on the way. Poland became the latest eastern European nation with plans to expel Russian diplomats.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy will take part via video link in this week’s special NATO summit to discuss the Russian invasion. Meanwhile, U.S. President Joe Biden, who’s traveling to Europe for the meeting on Thursday, said further sanctions on Russia will be announced during his trip.
The front was largely static throughout the country as Russian forces regroup in response to stiffer-than-expected resistance from Ukraine’s military. Kyiv said the evacuation of civilians from the besieged southern port of Mariupol continued, but about 100,000 people remain there under bombardment.
(See RSAN on the Bloomberg Terminal for the Russian Sanctions Dashboard.)
Key Developments
- Wall Street’s Retreat From Moscow Is Fastest, Harshest Ever
- Ukraine Is Changing the World Order, Just Not How Putin Hoped
- China-Europe Rail Routes Become Supply Chain’s Latest Problem
- Biden Takes Tough-on-Putin Message to Allies Riven by Own Needs
- Oil Gains as NATO, EU Summits Raise Specter of New Russian Curbs
- Russian Billionaires Are Running Out of Havens to Stash Fortunes
All times CET:
EU Budget Chief Downplays Need for New Joint Debt Issuance (10:30 a.m.)
The European Union’s budget chief pushed back against the prospect of raising new joint debt to weather the impact of the ongoing war in Ukraine and finance the bloc’s defense and energy priorities.
“Honestly, there is money and there is still flexibility to discuss the use of funds,” Budget Commissioner Johannes Hahn said in an interview on Wednesday. He instead urged member states to use more than 1 trillion euros ($1.1 trillion) of EU funds available to cope with the current crisis.
EU Agrees to Share Classified Data With Ukraine (10:25 a.m.)
The EU has approved an agreement with Ukraine that would allow the bloc to share classified information, such as satellite images, with Kyiv, according to people familiar with the matter.
The agreement will initially last for one year and can be renewed, the people said. EU ambassadors were informed of the agreement at a meeting on Tuesday.
Scholz Says Teetering Russian Economy Is ‘Only the Beginning’ (10:00 a.m.)
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said the barrage of sanctions is pushing the Russian economy to the edge, with the stock exchange shuttered, the ruble crashing and foreign companies leaving the country “in the hundreds” – and more measures are to come.
“This is only the beginning,” Scholz told Bundestag lawmakers in Berlin. “Most of the hardest effects will be seen in coming weeks – and we are continuously tightening the sanctions further.”
The German leader said his government will add to relief measures for households and companies struggling with soaring energy bills as the country weans itself off Russian energy imports by bringing additional sources of coal, gas and oil.
Draghi Says EU Leaders to Support Ukraine’s EU Membership Process (9:40 a.m.)
Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi said European leaders meeting this week will reaffirm their support for offering Ukraine a process to bring it closer to EU membership, even if the path to accession is a long one.
“The process will be long, and time will be needed to allow for a real and functioning integration,” Draghi told lawmakers in Rome. Italy’s position is to support and encourage Ukraine along a path that’s already begun, he said.
Germany and the Netherlands are among countries that have said the bloc should focus on practical help for Ukraine rather than a symbolic idea of membership that could take a decade or more to play out.
Baltics, Poland Ask EU to Block Russian Access to Ports (9:15 a.m.)
The transport ministers of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland called on the EU to block its roads for Russian and Belarusian cargo trucks and to restrict entry to ports for their ships, the Lithuanian Transport Ministry said in a statement.
Russian vessels are already blocked from U.K. ports.
Poland to Expel About 40 Russian Diplomats (9:15 a.m.)
Poland has decided to expel around 40 Russian diplomats for alleged espionage, Onet.pl website reported, citing government sources it didn’t identify.
The Foreign Ministry summoned the Russian ambassador for a meeting on Wednesday morning, according to the website. It came just hours after the government said it detained an employee of a civil registry office who allegedly worked for Russian intelligence services.
Several eastern European nations have kicked out Russian diplomats since the war in Ukraine, including over violations of the Vienna convention.
China Backs Russia as Member of the G-20 (9:00 a.m.)
China signaled it stands by Russia’s continued membership in the Group of 20, saying the bloc needs to work together on issues from global economic growth to the pandemic.
“Russia is an important member” of the grouping, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said Wednesday at a regular press briefing in Beijing. “No member has the right to remove other countries.”
Beijing has struggled to convince the world it’s a neutral player in the war, as assurances to international audiences are undermined by messages at home affirming the China-Russia partnership.
Oil Edges Higher Before NATO Summit (8:15 a.m.)
Oil edged higher, with West Texas Intermediary crude near $110 a barrel, ahead of a flurry of high-level diplomatic activity over the month-old war in Ukraine that may see fresh curbs on Russia.
Soybean futures in Chicago headed for the strongest close in almost a decade on a global shortage of oilseeds and as surging prices of petroleum products make plant-based fuels more attractive.
European stock futures climbed and American equity futures were steady amid a global bond rout sparked by surging inflation.
Ukraine Says Russian Attempts to Advance Blocked (7:45 a.m.)
The Ukrainian army blocked Russian attempts to advance on all fronts in the past day, its General Staff said on Facebook.
Russian planes and missiles were active over the period, bombarding the capital Kyiv, Chernihiv and the Kyiv and Kharkiv regions, it said. A bridge used for humanitarian deliveries and to evacuate civilians from Chernihiv was destroyed.
Russia’s advances have been largely stalled in recent days, as the war has shifted into a more grinding phase.
Vietnam Airlines to Halt Hanoi-Moscow Flights (3:10 a.m.)
Vietnam Airlines will suspend Hanoi-Moscow flights from Friday after insurance partners sought changes to contracts due to the fighting in Ukraine, according to a spokesperson for the airline.
The carrier said in a statement it was working to resume the flights as soon as possible.
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