(Bloomberg) —
President Joe Biden called Russia’s Vladimir Putin a “butcher” while comforting refugees in Poland on Saturday. Earlier Biden assured Poland’s president that the U.S. vow to defend NATO territory is a “sacred commitment.” He’ll later give what’s been billed as a major speech on U.S. and allied efforts to aid Ukraine and counter Russia.
Russian shelling hit Lviv on Saturday, with television images showing a large plume of smoke near the far western Ukrainian city. That comes a day after Russia’s military said it’s focusing on taking full control of Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region. Russia is relying on “indiscriminate” bombardment after heavy troop casualties in the month after its invasion, the U.K. said.
The U.S. and European Union unveiled an agreement to help Europe wean itself off Russian fuel imports. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov accused the U.S. and EU of aiming to “destroy” Russia through “hybrid war, a total war.”
(See RSAN on the Bloomberg Terminal for the Russian Sanctions Dashboard.)
Key Developments
- Russia Says Donbas Is Ukraine Focus in Possible Shift in War Aim
- U.S., EU Reach LNG Supply Deal to Cut Dependence on Russia
- With Ukraine’s Culture Under Fire, Museums Stage Rescue Mission
- As War Rages On, Kyiv Drugmaker Inks Deal for Pfizer Covid Pill
- What Russia Invasion, Sanctions Mean for Global Economy
- German Industry Powerhouse Shaken to Core by War in Ukraine
All times CET:
Chernihiv in Ukraine’s North Encircled, Mayor Says (5:02 p.m.)
Even as the southern port city of Mariupol remains under siege, Chernihiv in Ukraine’s north, close to the Belarus border, is also encircled by Russian troops, Mayor Vladyslav Atroshenko said in a televised briefing where he warned of an expanding humanitarian crisis.
“The city is reduced to ashes,” Atroshenko said. He said more than 120,000 people remained of a pre-war population closer to 250,000, and at least 200 civilians had been killed in the past month.
Russian troops blew up a bridge that connected the city with a key road, and for now there are no evacuation routes working and no ability to get aid in, Atroshenko said.
Russia Shells Western City of Lviv (4:20 p.m.)
While Biden was visiting Poland’s capital, reports on social media and television images showed large plumes of smoke rising near Lviv, with air raid sirens sounding in the western Ukrainian city near the Polish border.
Mayor Andriy Sadovyi said Russian missiles had hit the city and told people to stay in shelters. Lviv region governor Maksym Kozytskyi said three large blasts had been felt. Russian missiles have previously hit sites in western Ukraine including a military training center and buildings near Lviv’s airport.
It comes a day after Russia’s military said it was focusing on taking full control of Ukraine’s Donbas region in the east.
Poland Asks U.S. To Speed Up Military Hardware Delivery (3:50 p.m.)
The equipment Warsaw is waiting on includes Patriot missile-defense systems, Abrams tanks and F-35 fighters. President Andrzej Duda called for the U.S. to accelerate the deliveries, adding Poland was seeking to expand co-operation with the U.S. in civilian nuclear energy and LNG.
Ukraine Foreign Minister Urges Boycott of French Firms (3:47 p.m.)
Representatives for Decathlon and Leroy Merlin declined to comment while a spokesman for Auchan didn’t immediately reply when asked to comment Saturday outside of business hours.
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has publicly called out other companies, including Nestle SA, in his push for businesses to limit their Russia operations or withdraw entirely. Many already have.
French automaker Renault SA announced on Wednesday it would halt operations at its Moscow plant, and is considering the future of a longstanding Russian venture called AvtoVaz. Nestle said it’d suspend the majority of its sales and manufacturing in Russia.
Biden Pledges ‘Sacred Commitment’ to NATO (2:12 p.m.)
The comment came as President Joe Biden met with Polish President Andrzej Duda in Warsaw, a country that’s faced warnings from Moscow for sending military aid to Ukraine, and which borders Belarus, a key ally of Russia. “We take Article 5 as a sacred commitment,” Biden said, referring to NATO’s mutual defense clause.
NATO has beefed up its presence in eastern Europe in recent weeks, although it’s repeatedly ruled out a no-fly zone for Ukraine or sending troops in, given that the country is not a member of the military alliance. Duda said Poland intends to buy more U.S. military equipment, without going into details.
Middle Eastern Leaders Lament Struggle for World Focus (2:04 p.m.)
“The humanitarian suffering that we have seen in Ukraine — and everyone is talking about it right now — has been the suffering of countries in this region for years and nothing happened actually,” Qatar’s Deputy Prime Minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, said Saturday at the Doha Forum in Qatar. The comment drew applause.
Top EU envoy Josep Borrell described the besieged Ukrainian city of Mariupol as “Europe’s Aleppo” — a reference to Syria’s civil war. That led Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud to retort that: “Aleppo was our Aleppo.” “The engagement of the global community and the engagement of the powers that could be effective now and then is quite different,” he said.
Russia to Expand Trading to All Stocks (1:49 p.m.)
Russia will expand limited trading to all shares listed on the Moscow Exchange in another shortened session on Monday.
The bourse will also resume trading in foreign shares, which will be traded in a so-called negotiated regime, the Bank of Russia said.
Ukrainians Fleeing to Poland Almost 2.27 Million (1:34 p.m.)
A total of 2.268 million people have fled Ukraine for Poland, Polish border authorities said. Some 30,500 entered on Friday and another 6,100 early Saturday.
Poland has taken in the majority of people leaving Ukraine. Millions more have been displaced within Ukraine — some 10 million in total. The number of people crossing into Poland on Friday was down 6.4% from the previous day.
Japan PM Visits Hiroshima With U.S. Envoy (12:47 p.m.)
Japan’s prime minister escorted the U.S. ambassador to his hometown, Hiroshima, on Saturday to pay respects to 1945’s atomic bombing victims and warned that the world is again facing threats of nuclear attacks stemming from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“The tragedy should never be repeated,” Fumio Kishida said, according to the Associated Press. The potential use of nuclear weapons by Russia was “a realistic concern,” he said .
Record Humanitarian Aid Flows to Ukraine (11:27 a.m.)
Ukraine said it received 10,300 tons of humanitarian aid in the past 24 hours, a record volume for a single day since the war started a month ago, Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko said.
An aide to President Voldymyr Zelenskiy said Russian troops continue their offensive at the town of Izyum in Kharkiv region.
Biden Meets With Top Ukrainian Officials, Polish President (11:45 a.m.)
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba and Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov met Saturday with their U.S. counterparts, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.
President Joe Biden joined the meeting about an hour after it started and stayed for about 40 minutes, before holding a meeting with Polish President Andrzej Duda. The U.S. leader is expected to make a “major address” later on Saturday on U.S. and allied efforts to aid Ukraine and counter Russian aggression.
Russian Defense Minister Appears in Video (11:26 a.m.)
Russia’s Defense Ministry issued a video of its chief, Sergei Shoigu, amid speculation on social media after he hadn’t been seen in public for about two weeks. Shoigu was discussing military supply priorities for the year.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, asked by reporters Thursday about the official’s absence from public view since March 11, said Shoigu had been too busy to do media events, while state television showed a video of him without sound.
Kyiv Curfew Extended (10:44 a.m.)
The curfew in Ukraine’s capital and the entire Kyiv region will be extended from 8 p.m. on Saturday to 7 a.m. on Monday.
Zelenskiy Calls on Qatar to Boost Gas Exports (10:15 a.m.)
Ukraine’s president called on gas-rich Qatar to boost its energy exports to Europe as part of efforts to help reduce the continent’s reliance on Russian hydrocarbons.
“Responsible states like the state of Qatar are reliable and solid exporters of natural resources and they can make their contribution to the stabilization in Europe,” Volodymyr Zelenskiy told the Doha Forum, held in Qatar’s capital, on Saturday via a video address.
“The future of Europe rests with your efforts,” he said. “I ask you to increase the output of energy to ensure that everyone in Russia understands that no country can use energy as a weapon to blackmail the world.”
Ukraine Seeks to Resume Grain Exports (9:27 a.m.)
Ukraine’s government is looking to restore the flow of agricultural exports as farmers need foreign-exchange revenue to finance their operations, said newly appointed Agriculture Minister Mykola Solskyi.
There is grain in storage worth $7.5 billion available for exports, but it is difficult to ship it as most of the country’s seaports are blocked.
Earlier we shipped 4 million to 5 million tons of agriculture goods, including grains, through ports a month, he said. Now it is only a few thousand tons via western borders. It’s very important to fix that.”
Biden to Meet Ukrainian Defense, Foreign Ministers in Warsaw (9:31 a.m.)
President Joe Biden will meet with Ukraine’s Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov and Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba in Warsaw on Saturday, the White House said. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Minister Lloyd Austin will also attend.
It will be the first time Biden and Kuleba have met face-to-face since Vladimir Putin’s Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine.
Biden also has a bilateral meeting with Polish President Andrzej Duda before returning to the White House.
Russian Forces Lean on ‘Incriminate’ Bombardment, U.K. Says (8:06 a.m.)
Russian forces are proving reluctant to engage in large scale urban infantry operation given “its own already considerable losses,” according to U.K. defense intelligence. Russian troop deaths in the one-month conflict have been estimated as high as 15,000.
Instead, Russia is “preferring to rely on the indiscriminate use of air and artillery bombardments in an attempt to demoralize defending forces,” the U.K. said on Twitter.
Zelenskiy Says Russia Realizing Talks Are Necessary (7:10 a.m.)
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Ukraine’s military defense is forcing Russia’s leadership to realize that “talks are necessary,” after earlier bemoaning a stalemate amid ultimatums and demands he cede territory.
“The conversation must be meaningful. Ukrainian sovereignty must be guaranteed, Ukraine’s territorial integrity must be ensured,” Zelenskiy said in a video address late Friday. The Russian Defense Ministry said earlier that its forces, which have failed to take several major cities, would focus on taking control of the full eastern Donbas region.
In the past week, Ukraine set up 18 humanitarian corridors, allowing 37,606 people to flee from blockaded cities, Zelenskiy said. The situation in Mariupol, the southeastern port city that’s seen some of the most brutal fighting, remains “absolutely tragic,” he said, adding that the Russia military must bear responsibility for crimes against the Ukrainian people.
Ukraine Will Seek New Security Guarantees, Aide Says (7 a.m.)
Ukraine will seek a new “structure of security guarantees” after the war, presidential aide Andriy Yermak told the Atlantic Council in a video interview.
“Give the world the model that will prevent Russia from conducting an aggressive policy for many years, not only after the end of fighting on Ukraine territory,” he said.
Russia to Bar Some Foreign Shipping in Retaliatory Move (9:47 p.m.)
Russia’s government said it will limit access to Russian sea ports and internal waterways for ships from countries that have banned Russian shipping from their ports. The ministry of transport is due to fill in the details of the restrictions, and the countries involved, within five working days.
Macron to Discuss Mariupol Evacuation With Putin (8:55 p.m.)
Macron said he will call Putin by Monday to discuss a humanitarian evacuation from Mariupol. The operation will be coordinated with the governments of Turkey and Greece. “The sooner, the better,” Macron said at a news conference in Brussels, adding that he expects the evacuation to start in coming days.
About 2,800 people were able to leave Mariupol in private cars on Friday, part of an overall evacuation of more than 7,300 people from combat areas, Ukrainian deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said.
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