LIVE: Russia says first phase of Ukraine operation mostly complete

Russia said that it would focus on completely 'liberating' eastern Ukraine's Donbass region

7:28 PM

Russia says first phase of Ukraine operation mostly complete, focus now on Donbass

Russia's defence ministry said on Friday that the first phase of its military operation in Ukraine was mostly complete and that it would focus on completely "liberating" eastern Ukraine's Donbass region.

 

The announcement appeared to indicate that Russia may be switching to more limited goals after running into fierce Ukrainian resistance in the first month of the war Russian news agencies quoted the defence ministry as saying that Russian-backed separatists now controlled 93% of Ukraine's Luhansk region and 54% of the Donetsk region - the two areas that jointly make up the Donbass.

 

The ministry said it did not rule out storming Ukrainian cities that had been blockaded and that Russia would react immediately to any attempt to close the airspace over Ukraine - something Kyiv has asked NATO to do, but NATO has resisted.

7:26 PM

Russian negotiator says Moscow, Kyiv making little progress on key issues

Russia and Ukraine are coming closer to an understanding on secondary issues at peace talks but there has been limited progress on the key questions, Moscow negotiator Vladimir Medinsky said on Friday, the Interfax news agency reported.

 

"Negotiations have been going on all week, from Monday to Friday, in video conference format, and will continue tomorrow," Interfax quoted Medinsky as saying. "On secondary issues, positions are converging. However on the main political issues, we are in fact treading water."

7:12 PM

Polish president's plane makes emergency landing in Warsaw ahead of Biden visit

The airplane carrying Polish President Andrzej Duda to meet U.S. President Joe Biden in eastern Poland has made an emergency landing after returning to Warsaw, Duda's advisor Jakub Kumoch was cited as saying by state-run news agency PAP on Friday.

 

The head of Duda's office, Pawel Szrot, told Reuters that the Polish president did not face any danger.

6:55 PM

Ukraine crisis likely to slow global economic growth, Yellen says

The Russia-Ukraine crisis is driving up commodities prices and is likely to reduce prospects for global growth in the coming year, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warned on Friday.

 

Ukraine is a major global supplier of wheat and corn, and prices have surged since Russia invaded its Eastern European neighbor last month.

 

"We are seeing pressure on commodity prices because of the Russia-Ukraine situation. And it's importantly oil and natural gas, but also other commodities," Yellen said in an interview with CNBC.

6:54 PM

Ukraine crisis likely to slow global economic growth, Yellen says

The Russia-Ukraine crisis is driving up commodities prices and is likely to reduce prospects for global growth in the coming year, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warned on Friday.

 

Ukraine is a major global supplier of wheat and corn, and prices have surged since Russia invaded its Eastern European neighbor last month.

 

"We are seeing pressure on commodity prices because of the Russia-Ukraine situation. And it's importantly oil and natural gas, but also other commodities," Yellen said in an interview with CNBC.

6:51 PM

Russia to focus on complete 'liberation' of Ukraine's Donbass

Russia will focus on completely "liberating" Ukraine's Donbass region and does not rule out the possibility of storming blockaded Ukrainian cities, Interfax cited the defence ministry and army as saying on Friday.

 

The defence ministry said Russia had been considering two options for its "special operation" in Ukraine -- one solely within the self-proclaimed separatist republics in Donbass and the other on the whole territory of Ukraine, Interfax reported.

6:34 PM

Putin says West trying to cancel Russian culture including Tchaikovsky

President Vladimir Putin on Friday said the West was trying to cancel Russian culture, including the works of great composers such as Pyotr Tchaikovsky, Dmitry Shostakovich and Sergei Rachmaninov.

 

"Today they are trying to cancel a whole thousand-year culture, our people," Putin said in a televised meeting with cultural figures, referring to the cancellation of events involving Russian masters in some Western countries in recent weeks.

 

"In this way they are banning Russian writers and books," Putin added.

6:19 PM

Biden plans gas shipments to Europe to cut Russian leverage

President Joe Biden on Friday is expected to announce increased shipments of liquefied natural gas to Europe, part of a long-term initiative to wean the continent off Russian energy after the invasion of Ukraine.

 

He plans to discuss the issue with Ursula von der Leyen, head of the European Union's executive arm, shortly before leaving for Poland, the final leg of his four-day trip.

 

Earlier this week, Von der Leyen said "we are aiming at having a commitment for additional supplies for the next two winters.” And Jake Sullivan, Biden's national security adviser, recently told reporters that the administration wants to quickly “surge” gas to Europe.

5:45 PM

Ukraine says Chernobyl workers' town is isolated by Russian forces

Local authorities in Ukraine said on Friday the town of Slavutych that services the defunct Chernobyl nuclear plant was "completely isolated", with Russian forces just beyond the town's limits.

 

In a statement, the Kyiv region administration said: "Slavutych is completely isolated. The enemy is 1.5 km (one mile) from the town."

5:25 PM

PM Modi shares stage with Uttar Pradesh CM, his cabinet

5:24 PM

Ukraine hopes to agree humanitarian corridor for Chernihiv, says deputy PM

Ukraine hopes to agree a humanitarian corridor to help people evacuate from Chernihiv on Saturday after local authorities reported the northern city was in effect cut off by Russian forces, Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said.

 

Speaking on television on Friday, Vereshchuk said negotiations with Russia on creating humanitarian corridors were challenging, with Russia wanting civilians to evacuate to Russian-controlled territory.

 

Both sides accuse the other of thwarting efforts to help civilians in front-line areas in Ukraine.

 

5:15 PM

'The Finance Bill, 2022' passed in Lok Sabha

Lok Sabha completes Budgetary exercise for FY23 by passing Finance Bill.

4:57 PM

Arvind Kumar Sharma, Yogendra Upadhyaya, Ashish Patel and Sanjay Nishad take oath as Ministers

4:51 PM

We have not raised taxes to fund economic recovery: FM Sitharaman

4:30 PM

Keshav Prasad Maurya and Brajesh Pathak take oath as the Deputy Chief Ministers of Uttar Pradesh