NEW YORK (1010 WINS/AP) -- President Joe Biden is expected to announce Tuesday that the U.S. will ban the import of Russian oil; European countries, which are much more dependent on Russian energy supplies, will not take part. Meanwhile, a temporary ceasefire set up to allow civilians to get out of Ukraine appeared to be holding Tuesday, even as Russian aircraft continued to bomb cities in eastern and central Ukraine, and as shelling pounded the suburbs of Kyiv. As the war entered its 13th day, more than 2 million people—half of them children—have fled Ukraine, the U.N. said.
Tuesday, March 8, 2022
10:30 a.m. - Average price for gallon of gas hits record $4.17 in US
The average price for a gallon of gasoline in the U.S. hit an all-time record of $4.17 as the country prepares to ban Russian oil imports.
The average price rose by 10 cents per gallon in one day, and it's up 55 cents since last week, according to AAA data.
Gasoline stocks in the U.S. fell last week even as demand is on the rise with summer approaching.
The increase in gas demand and a reduction in total supply is contributing to rising prices at the pump, but skyrocketing oil prices are playing an increasingly large role.
The price of benchmark U.S. crude jumped 8% Tuesday to more than $129 per barrel.
Americans can expect the current trend at the pump to continue as long as crude prices climb, the AAA said.
8:45 a.m. - Biden expected to ban Russia oil imports
President Joe Biden has decided to ban Russian oil imports, toughening the toll on Russia’s economy in retaliation for its invasion of Ukraine, a source told the Associated Press.
The move follows pleas by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to U.S. and Western officials to cut off the imports, which had been a glaring omission the massive sanctions put in place on Russia over the invasion. Energy exports have kept a steady influx of cash flowing to Russia despite otherwise severe restrictions on its financial sector.
Biden was set to announce the move as soon as Tuesday, the source said, speaking on the condition of anonymity. The White House said Biden would speak at 10:45 a.m. to announce, “actions to continue to hold Russia accountable for its unprovoked and unjustified war on Ukraine.”
The U.S. will be acting alone, but in close consultation with European allies, who are more dependent on Russian energy supplies. European nations have said they plan to reduce their reliance on Russia for their energy needs, but filling the void without crippling their economies will likely take some time. Natural gas from Russia accounts for one-third of Europe’s consumption of the fossil fuel. The U.S. does not import Russian natural gas.
Ukrainians crowd under a destroyed bridge as they try to flee crossing the Irpin river in the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Tuesday, March 8, 2022.AP Photo/Felipe Dana
8:30 a.m. - Temporary ceasefire appears to hold in Ukraine
Civilians in one eastern Ukrainian city were leaving on buses Tuesday amid a 12-hour-long cease-fire in that area after Russia and Ukraine agreed on establishing five safe corridors for people to escape the fighting.
Ukraine has submitted routes to evacuate the capital and communities north of Kyiv, as well as several eastern cities. While Russia hadn’t confirmed the routes, the shelling had quieted enough that the Ukrainians were trying to move people onto buses out and to get trucks of aid in.
“We think this is obviously a welcome step, that the ceasefire seems to be being observed by the Russians,” Pentagon press secretary John Kirby said. “They don’t exactly have a good track record in that regard. So it’s welcome to see that people are able to get out.”
Meanwhile, Russian aircraft continued to bomb cities in eastern and central Ukraine overnight. Shelling pounded suburbs of the capital, Kyiv.
Ukrainian servicemen guard a checkpoint on a main road in Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 7, 2022.AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda
8:00 a.m. - ‘Creditable reports’ that Russian forces are ‘targeting civilians’: NATO official
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg says Russia’s armed forces may be deliberately targeting civilians as they try to flee the military assault on Ukraine.
Stoltenberg said Tuesday “there are very creditable reports of civilians coming under fire as they try to evacuate. Targeting civilians is a war crime, and it’s totally unacceptable.”
He told reporters in Latvia that the humanitarian impact of the almost two-week long war “is devastating.”
“We need real humanitarian corridors that are fully respected,” he said.
Asked what NATO can do to help, Stoltenberg said: “We have a responsibility to ensure the conflict does not spread beyond Ukraine.”
Ukrainian soldiers walk on a destroyed bridge in Irpin, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Tuesday, March 8, 2022.AP Photo/Felipe Dana
7:30 a.m. - Dozens of kids reportedly among 474 civilians killed
The U.N. human rights office says it has confirmed 474 civilian deaths in Ukraine since the Russian invasion began on Feb. 24.
The office said Tuesday that the number of confirmed civilian injuries now stands at 861.
The U.N. office uses strict methodology and only reports casualties it has been able to verify. It acknowledges that the real figures are much higher.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov released new estimates of casualties and damage from the Russian war, saying Russian military actions have killed 38 children and wounded more than 70.
Overall at least 400 civilian deaths have been recorded and 800 wounded, though “these data are definitely incomplete,” Reznikov said in a video address.
In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Presidential Press Office, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addresses the nation in Kyiv, Ukraine, late Monday, March 7, 2022.Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP
7:00 a.m. - Zelenskyy wants humanitarian corridors expanded
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has called for the expansion of humanitarian corridors for Ukrainian civilians fleeing war, and more support from the Red Cross.
In a video address Tuesday from an undisclosed location, he said a child died of dehydration in the blockaded southern seaport of Mariupol, in a sign of how desperate the city’s population has become.
He pleaded again with Western countries to provide air support.
He said evacuation buses have been sent to Mariupol but that there was no firm agreement on the route, so “Russian troops can simply shoot on this transport on the way.”
6:30 a.m. - Shell to stop buying Russian oil, natural gas
Energy giant Shell said it will stop buying Russian oil and natural gas as well as shut down its service stations and other operations in the country amid international pressure for companies to sever ties over the invasion of Ukraine.
Shell said in a statement Tuesday that it would withdraw from all Russian hydrocarbons, including crude oil, petroleum products, natural gas and liquefied natural gas, “in a phased manner.”
The decision comes just days after Ukraine’s foreign minister criticized Shell for continuing to buy Russian oil.
A man stands atop a destroyed bridge in Irpin, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Tuesday, March 8, 2022.AP Photo/Felipe Dana
6:00 a.m. - 2 million people have fled Ukraine since invasion began: UN
The number of refugees fleeing Ukraine reached 2 million on Tuesday, according to the United Nations, the fastest exodus Europe has seen since World War II.
“Today the outflow of refugees from Ukraine reaches two million people. Two million,” Filippo Grandi, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, wrote on Twitter.
The update came as a new effort to evacuate civilians along safe corridors finally got underway Tuesday. The route out of the eastern city of Sumy was one of five promised by the Russians to offer civilians a way to escape the Russian onslaught.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
