NEW YORK (1010 WINS/AP) -- On Day 7 of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Russia continued its attacks on crowded Ukrainian cities and a 40-mile convoy of military vehicles advanced slowly toward the capital of Kyiv. Russia's escalation Wednesday came as President Joe Biden, in his State of the Union speech on Tuesday, warned that if Russian President Vladimir Putin didn’t “pay a price” for the invasion, the aggression wouldn’t stop with one country. Meanwhile, Russia and Ukraine both confirmed they'll hold a second round of talks Thursday, even as the shelling of Ukrainian cities continued in a war that has left hundreds of troops and civilians dead. In his latest speech, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Moscow aimed to “erase our history, our country and all of us” but that Ukrainians are a “symbol of invincibility.”
Wednesday, March 2, 2022
8:28 p.m.: The United Nations refugee agency estimates over one million Ukrainians have fled the country since the war started one week ago
The estimate amounts to 2% of Ukraine's entire population displaced over the course of a week.
In Syria, the country with the highest number of refugees in the world at 5.6 million, it took three months for one million people to flee at the height of the conflict.
The U.N. predicted 4 million refugees could flee Ukraine by the end of the war, but said that number could be revised to be higher should the conflict drag on.
7:20 p.m.: The International Criminal Court in the Hague, Netherlands opened an investigation into possible Russian war crimes
ICC prosecutor Karim A.A. Khan announced his intention to investigate the war in Ukraine on Monday, but he needed member states to refer the situation to him in order to do so.
Thirty-nine countries referred the situation to the ICC after Khan's statement.
"As I proceed to discharge my responsibilities, I will seek to engage with all relevant stakeholders and parties to the conflict, ensuring that investigations by my Office are conducted objectively and independently, with full respect for the principle of complementarity," said Khan in a statement. "In doing so, we will remain focused on our core objective: ensuring accountability for crimes falling within ICC jurisdiction."
4:00 p.m. - Kherson in Ukraine's south falls to Russia
Kherson, a city of 300,000 people near the Black Sea, fell under control to the Russians, Ukrainian officials said Wednesday.
“There is no Ukrainian army here,” Kherson’s mayor, Igor Kolykhaev, said in an interview with The New York Times. “The city is surrounded.”
The seizure becomes the first major city to fall under control of Russian forces since Russia's invasion began last week.
3:30 p.m. - Officials says Russia launched air strike against Kyiv rail station
Ukrainian officials have reported a powerful explosion in central Kyiv, between the Southern Railway station and the Ibis hotel, an area near Ukraine’s Defense Ministry.
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s office told The Associated Press on Wednesday night that it was a missile strike.
“Russian terrorists launched an air strike on the South Railway Station in Kyiv, where thousands of Ukrainian women and children are being evacuated,” the national railway company said.
2:40 p.m. - Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich to sell Chelsea FC over Russia's invasion of Ukraine
Billionaire oligarch Roman Abramovich sold the Premier League club, adding that the decision was "difficult."
“Please know that this has been an incredibly difficult decision to make, and it pains me to part with the club in this manner,” Abramovich said in a statement. “However, I do believe this is in the best interest of the club.”
Abramovich said he has asked his team to "set up a charitable foundation where all net proceeds from the sale will be donated,” he said. “The foundation will be for the benefit of all victims of the war in Ukraine.”
2:00 p.m.- White House announces new restrictions on Russian defense entities and on Belarus for their support on Putin's invasion
The Biden administration announced new sanctions set to address "President Putin's brutal invasion of Ukraine."
Those measures include:
-- Sweeping restrictions on Belarus to choke off its import of technological goods in response to its support of Putin's war of choice.
-- Full block sanctions on Russian defense entities.
-- Export controls targeting oil refining, a key revenue source that supports Russian Military.
-- Targeting entities supporting the Russian and Belarusian Military.
-- Banning Russian aircraft from entering and using domestic U.S. airspace.
The State Department said Wednesday that Secretary Antony Blinken will travel Thursday through next Tuesday to Belgium, Poland, Moldova, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia consult with NATO allies and European partners due to Russia's invasion.
1:35 p.m. - Ukraine, Russia to hold talks on Thursday
A top aide for Russian President Vladimir Putin says Ukrainians are on their way to Belarus for talks that have been scheduled for Thursday.
“As far as I know, the Ukrainian delegation has already departed from Kyiv, is en route ... We’re expecting them tomorrow,” Vladimir Medinsky, the head of the Russian delegation, told reporters Wednesday evening
According to Medinsky, the two sides agreed on the Brest region of Belarus, which borders Poland, as the site of the talks.
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's office confirmed to The Associated Press that the delegation is on its way, but gave no details on the time of the arrival.
1:25 p.m. - New photos show Putin as war rages on in Ukraine
New photos of Russian President Vladimir Putin were posted by the official Kremlin Twitter account as the war in Ukraine raged on, and as Moscow said nearly 500 Russian troops had been killed since the invasion began.
The new photos show a stone-faced Putin meeting with Alexander Shokhin, the president of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, a lobby group that promotes the interests of businesses in Russia.
The Kremlin said the two men “discussed how to minimise the impact of sanctions on the largest Russian companies.”
12:30 p.m. - 498 Russian troops killed, 1,597 wounded in Ukraine: Moscow
A spokesman for the Russian Defense Ministry says 498 Russian troops have been killed in Ukraine and 1,597 wounded.
Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov rejected reports about “incalculable losses” of the Russians as “disinformation” on Wednesday and reported Moscow's casualties for the first time since the start of the attack last Thursday.
Konashenkov also said more than 2,870 Ukrainian troops have been killed and about 3,700 wounded, while 572 others have been captured.
Ukrainian officials have not yet commented on the figures, and they could not be immediately verified.
Earlier on Wednesday, Ukraine’s State Emergency Service said more than 2,000 civilians have died in the Russian invasion, though it was impossible to verify that claim.
12:15 p.m. - U.N. overwhelmingly votes to demand Russia stop war, withdraw all troops from Ukraine
The U.N. General Assembly voted Wednesday to demand that Russia stop its offensive in Ukraine and withdraw all troops, with nations from world powers to tiny island states condemning Moscow’s actions.
The vote was 141 to 5, with 35 abstentions. It came after the 193-member assembly convened its first emergency session since 1997.
Assembly resolutions aren’t legally binding, but they do have clout in reflecting international opinion. A Russian veto sank a similar resolution in the more powerful U.N. Security Council on Friday, but the assembly allows no vetoes. Under special emergency session rules, a resolution needs approval of two-thirds of those countries voting, and abstentions don’t count.
More than 90 countries co-sponsored the assembly resolution. It deplored Russia’s “aggression” against Ukraine “in the strongest terms” and demanded an immediate halt to Moscow’s use of force and the immediate, complete and unconditional withdrawal of all Russian forces from Ukraine’s internationally recognized borders. The measure also called on Russia to reverse a decision to recognize two separatist parts of eastern Ukraine as independent.
After Wednesday's vote, U.N. Secretary António Guterres released the following statement, saying, “The message of the General Assembly is loud and clear. End hostilities in Ukraine now.”
12 p.m. - Ukraine says 21 killed in Russia’s ongoing attack on Kharkiv
A Ukrainian official says the advance of Russian troops in Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second largest city, has been stopped, but that Russians have responded by shelling the city with heavy rocket launchers and air attacks.
“Kharkiv today is the Stalingrad of the 21st century,” said Oleksiy Arestovich, an adviser to Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Oleg Sinehubov, head of the Kharkiv regional administration, said that over the past 24 hours 21 people were killed and at least 112 were injured by Russians.
Explosions on Wednesday thundered on Constitution Square, near the buildings of the City Council and the Palace of Labor. A missile attack also destroyed the building of the regional police department in Kharkiv and the university building, which is located across the street.
Arestovich said that several Russian planes were shot down over Kharkiv.
The Russians used Iskander missile systems to bombard Ukrainian cities, including Kyiv, Zhytomyr, Kharkiv and Chernihiv.
Arestovich said Iskander missile systems can deviate from their target, making them “a danger to civilian objects."
11:50 a.m. - Demonstrators outside U.N. building in NYC demand end to Russian invasion
Demonstrators rallied across from the United Nation headquarters in Manhattan.
Cars honked as they drove by the protesters on First Avenue.
“No Fly Zone Over Ukraine,” one sign said.
“Stop Putin Stop War,” read another sign.
11:40 a.m. - Russia continues to attack Ukrainian cities while saying it’s ready for 2nd round of talks
Russia continued to attack Ukraine's second largest city of Kharkiv and other cities on Wednesday even as it told Ukraine it’s open to a second round of talks.
A Ukrainian delegation was on its way to the talks, seven days after Russia launched an invasion that has killed or injured hundreds of civilians. It’s unclear exactly when or where the talks are happening or what they may yield.
Ukraine has said it would not yield to Russian demands and is instead insisting on a ceasefire as the invasion shows signs of getting worse.
The two sides held talks on Monday, agreeing only to keep talking. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Tuesday that Russia should stop bombing before another meeting.
Zelenskyy has decried Russia’s attacks on civilian targets as a blatant terror campaign.
Russia, too, ramped up its rhetoric, with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov reminding the world about the country's vast nuclear arsenal. In an interview with Al-Jazeera, he said: “A third world war will be nuclear, and devastating," according to Russian news sites.
11:25 a.m. - US DOJ launches Task Force KleptoCapture to go after Russian oligarchs
The U.S. Justice Department says it will crack down on Russian oligarchs and anyone else who violates the sweeping sanctions imposed by the Biden administration in response to the war against Ukraine.
Attorney General Merrick Garland on Wednesday announced the creation of Task Force KleptoCapture, a team of federal agents and prosecutors responsible for investigating and prosecuting any violations of new and future sanctions.
That includes seizing the assets belonging to oligarchs and others who violate the sanctions, and thwarting any efforts to use cryptocurrency to get around sanctions.
Garland said in a statement announcing the sanctions that the Justice Department “will leave no stone unturned” in investigating and prosecuting “those whose criminal acts enable the Russian government to continue this unjust war.”
11:15 a.m. - Biden says it’s Zelenskyy’s “judgement to make” to stay or leave Ukraine
President Biden said it’s Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s “judgement to make” on whether or not to leave his country.
Biden was asked by a reporter outside the White House on Wednesday “how worried” he is about Zelenskyy’s safety and if he thought his Ukrainian counterpart should stay or leave as a miles-long convoy of Russian military vehicles gets closer to Kyiv and as Russian saboteurs reportedly roam the streets.
“I think it’s his judgment to make, and we’re doing everything we can,” Biden said.
Zelenskyy has said he plans to stay in Ukraine amid the invasion by Russia. He acknowledged last week that he is “target No. 1” of the Russian forces and that Moscow wants to “destroy Ukraine politically by taking down the head of state.”
Zelenskyy is believed to be in a secure bunker in or around Kyiv. His family has been moved to an undisclosed location.
10:45 a.m. - US airspace ban on Russia airlines begins Wednesday night
Russian flights will be banned from U.S. airspace beginning Wednesday night, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation.
The orders will take effect at 9 p.m. ET, Reuters first reported.
The DOT said: “We acknowledge that there may be Russian foreign air carriers and/or foreign civil aircraft operators in the midst of various types of scheduled, charter, or other operations in the United States at the time this action is taken. Accordingly, affected operations already inflight en route are exempt from this Order until 2100L EST on March 2, 2022. Carriers and/or operators with aircraft on the ground in the United States may request authority from the Department to conduct the non-revenue ferry operation that will be necessary for their aircraft to depart the United States.”
During his State of the Union address Tuesday night, President Biden said the U.S. was joining Canada and the European Union in banning Russian flights from its airspace.
“I am announcing that we will join our allies in closing off American airspace to all Russian flights, further isolating Russia and adding an additional squeeze on their economy,” Biden said.
The U.S. ban raises the possibility that Russia could respond by prohibiting U.S. flights over its territory, which would make for longer and more costly flights, especially for cargo carriers. FedEx and UPS both fly over Russia, although they announced this weekend that they were suspending deliveries to that country.
9:00 a.m. - Over 2,000 civilians killed so far, Ukrainian government says
Ukraine’s State Emergency Service said more than 2,000 civilians have died in the Russian invasion, though it was impossible to verify that claim.
The U.N. human rights office has tallied 136 civilian deaths, while acknowledging the actual toll is surely far higher.
The overall death toll from the seven-day war is not clear, with neither Russia nor Ukraine releasing the number of troops lost.
The U.N. refugee agency says more than 874,000 people have fled Ukraine since Russia’s invasion last week and the figure is “rising exponentially,” putting it on track to cross the 1 million mark possibly within hours.
UNHCR spokeswoman Shabia Mantoo said Wednesday that people are continuing to stream into Ukraine’s neighboring countries to the west, with more than 200,000 fleeing since Tuesday.
A day earlier, Mantoo had cautioned that the outflows from Ukraine could make it the source of the “biggest refugee crisis this century” — eclipsing the one from Syria’s war over the last decade.
The latest figures show that more than half — or nearly 454,000 — have gone to Poland, more than 116,300 to Hungary and over 79,300 to Moldova. Another 69,000 have gone to other European countries and 67,000 have fled to Slovakia.
8:00 a.m. - Russia, Ukraine ready for 2nd round of talks
Russian and Ukrainian officials say they are standing by to resume talks about their war, though the time and place for negotiations was unknown and hopes for a breakthrough remain low.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters Wednesday that “in the second half of the day, closer to evening, our delegation will be in place to await Ukrainian negotiators.”
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said Ukrainian officials are ready for new talks but said the venue is undecided and Kyiv won’t accept any Russian ultimatums.
Kuleba said: “Russia’s demands remain the same as (Russian President Vladimir) Putin announced in his address before the war started.”
Peskov said Putin’s culture adviser Vladimir Medinsky remains the main negotiator for Russia.
The first round of talks on resolving the Russia-Ukraine war were held near the Belarus-Ukraine border last Sunday.
They produced no breakthrough, though the two sides agreed to meet again.
5:30 a.m. - China says it won't join in financial sanctions on Russia
China's bank regulator says Beijing won’t join the United States and European governments in imposing financial sanctions on Russia.
China is a major buyer of Russian oil and gas and is the only major government that has refrained from criticizing Moscow’s attack on Ukraine.
Beijing disapproves of the sanctions, which it believes lack a legal basis and “will not have a good effect,” said Guo Shuqing, the chairman of the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission.
“We will not join such sanctions, and we will keep normal economic, trade and financial exchanges with all the relevant parties,” Guo said at a news conference. “We disapprove of the financial sanctions."
5:15 a.m. - Pope Francis thanks Poland for taking in refugees
Pope Francis is thanking Poland for opening its borders and homes to Ukrainians fleeing the Russian invasion.
Francis gave a special shout-out to Poland during his Wednesday general audience. The weekly appointment coincided with Ash Wednesday, which Francis has designated as a day for fasting and prayers for peace in Ukraine.
Speaking to Polish pilgrims, Francis said he was “profoundly grateful” for Poland’s gestures of solidarity.
“You are the first ones who have supported Ukraine opening your borders, your hearts, the doors of your homes to the Ukrainians who are escaping the war,” Francis said. “You are generously offering everything necessary so that they can live in a dignified way despite the dramatic moment.”
5:00 a.m. - Russia says it has taken Ukraine’s largest nuclear plant
Russia claims its military has taken control of the area around Ukraine’s largest nuclear power plant.
That’s according to the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency, the U.N. nuclear watchdog.
It said Wednesday it had received a letter from Russia saying personnel at the Zaporizhzhia plant continued their “work on providing nuclear safety and monitoring radiation in normal mode of operation.” The letter added: “The radiation levels remain normal.”
Zaporizhzhia is the largest of Ukraine’s nuclear sites, with six out of the country’s 15 reactors.
Already, Russia has seized control of the decommissioned Chernobyl nuclear power plant, scene of the world’s worst nuclear disaster in 1986.
4:45 a.m. - Video appears to show attack on Kharkiv police HQ
Videos circulated online of an apparent attack on the regional police and intelligence headquarters in Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city. It shows a building with its roof blown off and its top floor on fire.
Pieces of the five-story building are strewn across adjacent streets.
The Ukrainian government’s center for strategic communications released images Wednesday of strikes hitting Kharkiv, with balls of fire lighting up the city skyline over populated areas.
Russia has continued heavy artillery and airstrikes on the cities of Kyiv, Kharkiv, Mariupol and Chernihiv in the last 24 hours, according to the latest intelligence assessment released by the U.K. Defense Department on Wednesday.
4:30 a.m. - Zelenskyy: Russian troops are trying to ‘erase our history’
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has expressed concern that Russian attacks could threaten holy religious sites and said Russian troops are trying to “erase our history.”
In a speech posted on Facebook, Zelenskyy on Wednesday denounced a Russian strike that hit Holocaust memorial site Babi Yar in Kyiv.
He said: “This is beyond humanity. Such missile strike means that for many Russians our Kyiv is absolute foreign. They know nothing about our capital, about our history. They have orders to erase our history, our country and all of us.”
“What will be next if even Babi Yar (is hit), what other ‘military’ objects, ‘NATO bases’ are threatening Russia? St. Sophia’s Cathedral, Lavra, Andrew’s Church?” he asked, referring to sites in Kyiv held sacred by Ukrainian and Russian Orthodox believers around the world.
Zelenskyy also claimed almost 6,000 Russian soldiers have been killed since the invasion began last Thursday. Russia has not released overall casualty numbers and the figure could not be confirmed.
4:00 a.m. - Biden says US is closing airspace to all Russian flights, seizing apartments of Russian oligarchs
President Biden said in his first State of the Union address that the United States is closing its airspace to all Russian flights in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He said the U.S. is working to seize yachts and apartments of Russian oligarchs.
Biden devoted the first 12 minutes of his address to Ukraine. Lawmakers of both parties repeatedly rose to their feet and applauded as he praised the bravery of Ukraine’s people and condemned Russia's assault.
He warned of costs to the American economy, as well, but said that without consequences, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s aggression wouldn’t be contained to Ukraine.
Biden declared that he and all members of Congress, whatever political differences there may be, were joined “with an unwavering resolve that freedom will always triumph over tyranny.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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