Kremlin Calls For Second Round Of Talks As Bombardment Of Ukrainian Cities Continues
A man walks past the remains of Russian military vehicles in Bucha, close to the capital Kyiv, … [+]
Kremlin Prepares For Second Round Of Talks With Ukraine
Russia will send its delegation for a second round of talks with Ukrainian representatives on Wednesday, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitri Peskov told reporters.
Peskov did not disclose where the talks are scheduled to take place but noted that the delegation will arrive for talks late in the afternoon on Wednesday and is ready to “continue the conversation tonight.”
According to state-backed news agency TASS, the talks may take place in the Belovezhskaya Forest in Belarus.
The city of Kharkiv on Wednesday witnessed fresh missile strikes that damaged the buildings of the regional police, Ministry of Internal Affairs, and the Karazin Kharkiv National University, Ukraine’s State Emergency Service said.
The missiles reportedly struck the building at around 8.10 am local time and at least three people were injured.
Kharkiv has borne to most severe aerial bombardment in the past two days with dozens of deaths and more than 100 injuries reported.
According to authorities, the airstrike left 10 private residences and a city hospital damaged. Emergency personnel have rescued 12 people, including 6 children, from basements of dilapidated homes. Zhytomyr lies to the west of Ukraine’s capital Kyiv.
On Tuesday, the European Central Bank (ECB) already ordered the closure of Sberbank’s European unit after warning about a run on its deposits earlier.
Sberbank’s move comes after several Russian lenders were targeted by severe western sanctions that included freezing of assets and exclusion from the SWIFT global payments network. Sberbank, however, was one of the major Russian lenders that was not cut off from SWIFT as part of the sanctions.
The Moscow Stock Exchange remained closed for trading on Wednesday, according to Russia’s Central Bank. The exchange has been shut since Monday after Russia was hit with a flurry of international sanctions, causing the ruble to slump to record lows.
Forbes previously reported that despite the closure of the bourse market, the value of Russian stocks have continued to crater. Several investors believe that the Russian market has become “uninvestable” due to the sanctions.
Crude oil prices continued to climb on Wednesday with Brent Crude Futures surging more than 5.6% and topping $110 per barrel, the highest level since 2013.
The West Texas Intermediate crude futures, the U.S. oil benchmark, also jumped more than 5% crossing $109 per barrel.
The surge comes as OPEC+, the group of oil producing nations including Russia, are set to meet on Wednesday to discuss April’s output.
On Tuesday, Saudi Arabia indicated that it remains committed to the OPEC+ agreement with Russia despite global outrage against its invasion of Ukraine. The Middle Eastern kingdom has also resisted U.S. calls to expand output more quickly than called for under the OPEC+ agreement.
This was confirmed by Forbes Ukraine, which reported that the Russian military has occupied the railway station and the river port in Kherson. Kherson mayor Ihor Kolikhaev said power lines in the city are damaged and local shops are facing food shortages. “People are very scared, they are hiding in their homes, in bomb shelters,” Kolikhaev added.
Biden Announces Ban On Russian Flights In U.S. Airspace During State Of The Union Speech
The United States is banning all Russian flights from American airspace, President Joe Biden confirmed during his State of the Union address Tuesday, following similar moves by Canada and the European Union last weekend. Several media outlets reported Tuesday afternoon that Biden was weighing the measure.
The president used a large share of his first State of the Union address to excoriate Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, applaud Ukraine for its stiff resistance and promise that Russia will pay a hefty economic price for the war.