NEW YORK (1010 WINS/AP) -- The Russian military assault on Ukraine entered its fifth day on Monday after Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered his nuclear forces on increased alert, ratcheting up tensions yet further. There was a tense calm in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv initially on Monday, but explosions and gunfire were heard later in the day and in embattled cities in eastern Ukraine as Russia's invasion continued to meet unexpectedly stiff resistance. The first round of Ukraine-Russia talks aimed at ending the fighting between Moscow and its smaller neighbor concluded on Monday with no immediate agreements. Here's the latest:
Monday, Feb. 28, 2022
3:23 p.m.- US confirms it expelled Russian diplomats at the UN in NYC amid fallout from Russia's invasion of Ukraine
Russian diplomats have been expelled from the UN for engaging in activities "not in accordance with their obligations and responsibilities." Russian envoy said 12 diplomats were expelled in total.
3:10 p.m. - International Criminal Court prosecutor to launch probe 'as rapidly as possible' into 'alleged war crimes or crimes against humanity' in Ukraine
Prosecutor Karim Khan said in a statement Monday night that the investigation will look at alleged crimes committed before the Russian invasion, but added that "given the expansion of the conflict in recent days, it is my intention that this investigation will also encompass any new alleged crimes falling within the jurisdiction of my office that are committed by any party to the conflict on any part of the territory of Ukraine."
2:32 p.m. - Satellite image shows Russian forces less than 20 miles from Kyiv
Russian military convoys were visible on a satellite image just 17 miles outside the center of Kyiv.
1:40 p.m. - Monaco, often favored by wealthy Russians, will freeze Russian assets and impose sanctions on Russia
Monaco is proceeding with freezing Russian and will levy sanctions on Russia in the wake of its invasion of Ukraine, according to a statement by the Monaco Royal Palace.
"In accordance with its international commitments, the Principality has adopted and implemented, without delay, procedures for freezing funds and economic sanctions identical to those taken by most European States," the palace said in a statement.
1:28 p.m.- Moscow Stock Exchange to remain closed for 2nd straight day
The Moscow Stock Exchange will remain closed on Tuesday, the Central Bank of Russia said Monday.
The country's largest trading group said Monday it would remain closed until March 5 as it "assesses the feasibility" of reopening "depending on the development of the situation."
1:04 p.m. - New York Stock Exchange, Nasdaq temporarily halted trading of Russia-based companies as sanctions cripple the Russian economy
The New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq Stock Market stopped trading of several Russian stocks this morning amid tough sanctions on Russia levied after the country's invasion of Ukraine, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Per NYSE's website, the exchange halted the trading of Russian telecom operator TeleSystems PJSC, mining and steel company Mechel PAO and online real-estate classifieds company Cian PLC due to "regulatory concern."
Nasdaq paused trading other Russian companies, including search-engine operator Yandex NV and online retailer Ozon Holdings due to "news pending."
The Journal reports the halts are temporary while the NYSE and Nasdaq's regulatory teams study sanctions imposed.
12:27 p.m. - FIFA, UEFA to suspend Russia from international soccer ‘until further notice’
FIFA and UEFA announced Monday that all Russian teams, whether national representative teams or club teams, "shall be suspended from participation in both FIFA and UEFA competitions until further notice."
"Football is fully united here and in full solidarity with all the people affected in Ukraine," the bodies said in a joint statement. "Both Presidents hope that the situation in Ukraine will improve significantly and rapidly so that football can again be a vector for unity and peace amongst people."
12:20 p.m. - Twitter will flag posts from Russian-state media and reduce circulation of content on platform
"Today, we’re adding labels to Tweets that share links to Russian state-affiliated media websites and are taking steps to significantly reduce the circulation of this content on Twitter. We’ll roll out these labels to other state-affiliated media outlets in the coming weeks," said Yoel Roth, Head of Site Integrity at Twitter.
12:00 - 1st round of talks end with Russia, more talks could come soon: Zelenskyy adviser
A top adviser to Ukraine’s president said the first round of talks with Russia about ending the fighting in Ukraine has concluded, and more talks could happen soon.
"Ukrainian and Russian delegations held the first round of negotiations. Their main goal was to discuss ceasefire and the end of combat actions on the territory of Ukraine. The parties have determined the topics where certain decisions were mapped out," Zelenskyy's adviser, Mikhaylo Podolyak, said.
He added, "In order for these decisions to be implemented as roadmap, the parties are returning for consultations to their capitals. The parties discussed holding another round of negotiations where these decisions can develop."
Three large explosions were heard in Kyiv shortly after the meeting ended, according to CNN.
11:30 a.m.- Ukraine President Zelenskyy signs application to join the European Union
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he has signed an application to join the European Union - in the face of Russian President Vladimir Putin's opposition.
"Today I signed the application for Ukraine's membership in the European Union. I'm sure it's real," he wrote.
President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen expressed her desire for Ukraine to join the bloc on Sunday, calling the country under attack "one of us."
10:03 a.m. - At least 44 injured in city of Kharkiv
Ukrainian authorities say at least 44 people have been wounded in fighting in Ukraine's second-largest city of Kharkiv, and that seven of them died in hospitals.
It wasn't clear if the casualties, which covered the past 24 hours, were all civilians. The state emergencies agency said the casualties could be higher because the damage from Monday's shelling of residential areas is still being assessed.
Ukrainian social networks featured videos showing residential quarters hit by a series of powerful explosions amid fighting with Russian forces.
The Russian military has consistently denied targeting residential areas despite abundant evidence of shelling of residential buildings, schools and hospitals.
9:35 a.m. - Olympic body calls for Russia to be excluded from sports
The International Olympic Committee has made a sweeping move to isolate and condemn Russia because of the country's invasion of Ukraine.
The Olympic body has urged others to exclude the country's athletes and officials from international events.
The IOC says it's needed to "protect the integrity of global sports competitions and for the safety of all the participants."
It opens the way for FIFA to exclude Russia from a World Cup qualifying playoff match on March 24.
Poland has refused to play the scheduled game against Russia. The IOC's call also applied to athletes and officials from Belarus because that country has abetted Russia's invasion.
8:18 a.m. - Russia closes its airspace to 36 nations
Russia has closed its airspace to carriers from 36 nations, including European countries and Canada, responding in kind to their move to close their respective airspaces to all Russian aircraft.
The move, announced Monday by the state aviation agency, follows a decision by the EU and Canada over the weekend to close their skies to the Russian planes in response to Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.
It added that planes from those countries could only enter Russia's airspace with special permission.
7:34 a.m. - State Department shutters US embassy in Belarus
The State Department has closed the U.S. Embassy in Belarus and is allowing non-essential staff at the U.S. Embassy in Russia to leave the country due to the war in Ukraine.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced the suspension of operations at the Minsk embassy and the authorized departure from Moscow in a statement on Monday.
"We took these steps due to security and safety issues stemming from the unprovoked and unjustified attack by Russian military forces in Ukraine," he said.
7:31 a.m. - US cuts off Russian central bank, sanctions state investment fund
The U.S. Treasury Department announced new sanctions that would immobilize any assets of the Russian central bank in the United States or held by Americans. The Biden administration estimated that the move could impact “hundreds of billions of dollars” of Russian funding.
“The unprecedented action we are taking today will significantly limit Russia’s ability to use assets to finance its destabilizing activities, and target the funds Putin and his inner circle depend on to enable his invasion of Ukraine,” said Secretary of the Treasury Janet L. Yellen. “Today, in coordination with partners and allies, we are following through on key commitments to restrict Russia’s access to these valuable resources.”
Biden administration officials said Germany, France, the UK, Italy, Japan, European Union and others will join the U.S. in targeting the Russian central bank.
6:30 a.m. - Ruble collapses after West hits Russia with sanctions
Russia's Central Bank scrambled to shore up the tanking ruble, which plunged to a record low of less than 1 U.S. cent after Western nations moved to block some Russian banks from a global payments system.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has caused markets to swing wildly, given the vast potential economic impact, especially on inflation and energy supplies.
The Russian central bank raised its key rate to 20% from 9.5% in a desperate attempt to shore up the plummeting ruble and prevent a run on banks. That brought a temporary reprieve for the Russian currency, which bounced back to the level it was at last week, but only briefly.
It fell as low as 119 to the dollar and by midday in Europe was down 14% at 95.75 to the dollar.
6:15 a.m. - 102 civilians killed so far in Ukraine violence: UN
U.N. human rights chief Michelle Bachelet says her office has confirmed that 102 civilians, including 7 children, have been killed, and 304 others injured in violence in Ukraine since Thursday, as she cautioned that the tally was likely a vast undercount.
“Most of these civilians were killed by explosive weapons with a wide impact area, including shelling from heavy artillery and multi-launch rocket systems, and air strikes,” Bachelet told the Human Rights Council in Geneva on Monday. “The real figures are, I fear, considerably higher.”
Bachelet said millions of people have been “forced to huddle in different forms of bomb shelters."
The Kremlin has denied that the Russian military targeted populated areas in Ukraine despite abundant evidence that residential buildings, schools and hospitals have been hit during the Russian invasion.
Bachelet cited updated U.N. figures that more than 500,000 people have fled the country in the last several days.
U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi gave the estimate in a tweet. The latest and still growing count had 281,000 people entering Poland, more than 84,500 in Hungary, about 36,400 in Moldova, over 32,500 in Romania and about 30,000 in Slovakia, UNHCR spokeswoman Shabia Mantoo said.
6:00 a.m. - Ukraine’s president posts new video message
Ukraine’s president says 16 Ukrainian children have been killed and another 45 have been injured in the Russian invasion.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a video message Monday that “every crime, every shelling by the occupiers bring our partners and us even closer.”
He hailed the sanctions that the West slapped on Russia, saying they have brought the Russian currency down. Zelenskyy asked the European Union a special quick path to membership.
Zelenskyy said that over 4,500 Russian troops have been killed and called on Russian soldiers to lay down their guns and leave. “Don’t trust you commanders, don’t trust your propaganda, just save your lives,” he said.
U.S. officials say they believe the invasion has been more difficult, and slower, than the Kremlin envisioned, though that could change as Moscow adapts. The British Defense Ministry said Monday that the bulk of Putin’s forces are about 20 miles north of Kyiv, their advance having been slowed by Ukrainian forces.
5:30 a.m. - UN General Assembly, Security Council to hold meetings on Ukraine
The two major bodies in the United Nations will hold separate meetings Monday on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The meetings of the 193-nation General Assembly and the more powerful 15-member Security Council reflect widespread demands for a cease-fire and escalating concern for the millions of Ukrainians caught up in the war.
The Security Council gave a green light Sunday for the first emergency session of the General Assembly in decades. It will give all U.N. members an opportunity to speak about the war and vote on a resolution that U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield said would “hold Russia to account for its indefensible actions and for its violations of the U.N. Charter.”
Both meetings follow Russia’s veto of a Security Council resolution demanding that Moscow immediately stop its attack on Ukraine and withdraw all troops. The vote Friday was 11-1, with China, India and the United Arab Emirates abstaining.
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