More than 1.37 million Ukrainian refugees from the Russian invasion; March 5, 8:35 a.m.
More than 1.37 million people have fled Ukraine since the start of the Russian invasion on February 24, according to the latest UN figures released on Saturday. Ukraine has borders with seven countries, Russia to the north and east, Belarus to the north, Poland and Slovakia to the west, and Romania, Hungary, and Moldova to the southwest.
According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the latest figures available on Saturday showed that 1,368,864 people have fled from Ukraine to neighboring countries since the start of the Russian offensive.
UN authorities expect the flow to increase as the Russian military appears to be concentrating its attacks on large Ukrainian cities.
These numbers include the territory controlled by Kiev, with more than 37 million inhabitants, but not the Crimean peninsula – annexed by Russia in 2014 – nor the two areas in the hands of pro-Russian separatists in the east of the country.
Putin says he has no plans to declare martial law in Russia; March 5, 8:29 am
Russia does not plan to introduce martial law, President Vladimir Putin said on Saturday, in response to insistent rumors to that effect following the conflict in Ukraine.
“Martial law is applied (…) in case of aggression especially in the regions where fighting took place. We do not have such a situation, and I hope it does not happen,” Putin said, when asked by employees of the Russian airline Aeroflot.
UK urges Britons to leave Russia if their presence is not ‘essential’; March 5, 8:15 a.m.
The British government asked its citizens this Saturday to leave Russia if their presence in the country is not “essential”, in a context of tensions as a result of the war in Ukraine. “If your presence in Russia is not essential, We strongly advise you to consider leaving [del país] through commercial destinations that are still available, ”said the British Foreign Office on its website.
Because of the sanctions imposed against the airlines, the British government said it may not be possible to travel directly to the UK or make a stopover in any country of the European Union, but those who wish to return to British territory can do so via the Middle East or Turkey.
Previously, the Foreign Office had advised Britons not to travel to Russia “due to the scarcity of flights available to return to the UK and the increasing volatility of the Russian economy.”
Ukraine starts in the Winter Paralympics as the leader of the medal table; March 5, 7:24 am
With three titles conquered this Saturday, Ukraine, in the center of all eyes for the Russian invasion, was the country that shone the most on the first day of the Paralympic Winter Games Beijing-2022, becoming the first leader of the medal table.
In the biathlon, Vitalii Lukianenko (low vision sprint), Grygorii Vovchynskyi (standing sprint) and Oksana Shyshkova (low vision sprint) won those three golds for the Ukrainian delegation, which arrived in Beijing on Wednesday after a long journey.
“The medals are of no importance, compared to what our families and friends live, and the people who have already suffered in the war” in Ukraine, Oksana Shyshkova declared. Lukianenko dedicated his gold to the people “who protect our cities.”
Ukraine accumulates after this Saturday a total of seven medals (three silvers and one bronze, in addition to the three golds). In the number of metals, host China is one higher, having achieved eight (two gold, three silver, three bronze) and is second in the medal table.
Until now, China had only one medal in a Paralympic Games, gold in curling in 2018. With eight medals in a single day at this start of the 2022 Games, it is confirmed as a new Paralympic power in sports of winter.
Their titles on Saturday also came in biathlon, with Liu Zixu (men’s sitting sprint) and Guo Yujie (women’s standing sprint). In alpine skiing, 16-year-old Austrian Johannes Aigner won the low-vision downhill event, while experienced Slovakian Henrieta Farkasova (35) won the same event, claiming her 10th Paralympic gold.
The United Kingdom wants to sanction Russian interests more “harshly”; March 5, 6:50 a.m.
The British government said on Saturday that it wants reinforce its legislative arsenal to sanction “corrupt elites” “harder and faster” related to Russian leader Vladimir Putin after his invasion of Ukraine.
Treasury Secretary John Glen told the BBC on Saturday that the government wanted to act “harder and faster” to sanction oligarchs and companies linked to the Russian government. “What we try to do is make it easier for there to be a legal basis to act,” he added.
The announcement comes at a time when London is regularly criticized, both by the opposition and by members of the Conservative majority, for not sufficiently addressing the flows of Russian money that have been entering the UK for years.
To stop these “corrupt elites”, the executive detailed in a statement that he would present amendments to his bill presented on Tuesday in parliament. These amendments will also allow the UK to align “more quickly” with sanctions imposed by the EU, the US or Canada.
“We will increase the pressure on criminal elites trying to launder their money on British soil and we will tighten the noose on corruption. They will have nowhere to hide,” Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned in the statement.
Among the proposed measures, the term for foreign companies to declare their shareholding structure will be shortened from 18 to 6 months, and fines in case of infringement will be increased.
Russia defends its restrictive law to face an “information war”; March 5, 5:40 a.m.
The Kremlin defended this Saturday the necessary “firmness” of its law that represses the “false information” about the Russian army, arguing that it faces an “information war” carried out against Russia as a result of the conflict in Ukraine.
“In the context of information warfare, it was necessary to adopt a law whose firmness would suit it, which was done,” Russian presidential spokesman Dmitri Peskov said, the day after the harsh entry into force. for those who spread any false information about the Russian army.
His adoption at full speed on Friday and his signature by President Vladimir Putin were “necessary and urgent”, he insisted. The penalties included in the law range from fines to 15 years in prison. After his adoption, Russian and foreign media announced the suspension of his activities in Russia.
Mariupol will begin evacuating civilians; March 5, 3:35
The mayor of the Ukrainian city of Mariupol announced this Saturday the start of the civilian evacuation from that strategic port on the Sea of Azov besieged by Russian forces and pro-Russian separatists.
“The evacuation of the civilian population will begin at 11:00 a.m. (09:00 GMT),” said the mayor’s office, after an agreement with Russia for a temporary ceasefire this Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. local (08:00-14:00 GMT).
“In total, several stages of evacuation will be necessary, divided into several days so that each person who wants to leave can do so,” added the same source in his Telegram account. The civilian evacuation corridor leads to the Ukrainian city of Zaporizhia, 220 kilometers to the northwest.
Russia announced a ceasefire on Saturday. to allow the evacuation of civilians from two cities in southeastern Ukraine, Mariupol and Volnovakha. In the evening, the mayor of Mariupol, Vadim Boichenko, said that the city, which usually has about 450,000 inhabitants, was under a “lockdown”. The pro-Russian separatist forces and the Russian army indicated on their side that the city was under siege.
Control of Mariupol is of a strategic nature for Russia, because it would allow it to guarantee territorial continuity between its forces arriving from the Crimean peninsula and those from the pro-Russian separatist territories of the Ukrainian Donbas.
Russian ceasefire to allow evacuation of civilians from two Ukrainian cities; March 5, 2:25 a.m.
The Russian Defense Ministry announced on Saturday a ceasefire to allow evacuation of the inhabitants of two besieged cities in Ukraine, including the strategic port of Mariupol.
Starting at 07H00 GMT”the Russian side declares a regime of silence (of arms) and the opening of humanitarian corridors for the evacuation of civilians from Mariupol and Volnovakha,” the ministry said, quoted by Russian news agencies.
Russian troops cut off the supply of electricity, food, water, gas and transport in the port city, prompting comparisons to the Nazi blockade of Leningrad in World War II. “For now we are looking for solutions to humanitarian problems and all possible ways to get Mariupol out of the blockade,” Boychenko said.