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Europe should put together for full cut-off of Russian fuel, says Ursula von der Leyen
The president of the European Fee, Ursula von der Leyen, mentioned the EU must make emergency plans to arrange for a whole cut-off of Russian fuel.
The EU chief accused Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, of utilizing power as a weapon in an handle to lawmakers in Strasbourg immediately.
The fee is engaged on a “European emergency plan” with the primary proposals to be introduced by the center of the month, she mentioned.
Von der Leyen mentioned:
If worst involves worst, then we now have to be ready.
She pressured the significance of getting a European overview and coordinated method “to a possible full cut-off of Russian fuel”.
Key occasions:
Lizzy Davies
The variety of folks going hungry on the earth has risen by 150 million because the begin of the Covid pandemic, the UN has mentioned, warning that the meals disaster sparked by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine dangers pushing the worst-hit nations into famine.
Globally, the quantity affected by power undernourishment rose to as many as 828 million final yr, an increase of about 46 million on the earlier yr, and thrice that improve if measured because the world shut down on account of Covid, a report has discovered.
With the worth of gas, meals staples and fertiliser hovering because the invasion of Ukraine, nevertheless, that whole is anticipated to rise even additional within the subsequent yr – a state of affairs that might see a few of the world’s poorest fall into famine, essentially the most excessive type of meals deprivation.
“There’s a actual hazard these numbers will climb even greater within the months forward,” mentioned David Beasley, govt director of the UN’s World Meals Programme (WFP). “The worldwide worth spikes in meals, gas and fertilisers because of the disaster in Ukraine threaten to push nations world wide into famine.
“The end result will probably be world destabilisation, hunger and mass migration on an unprecedented scale,” he warned. “We have now to behave immediately to avert this looming disaster.”
Because of the uncertainty attributable to the lingering affect of Covid shutdowns, the report, launched on Wednesday, is unable to present a exact determine for the variety of folks going hungry in 2021, as a substitute estimating that the overall was someplace between 702 million and 828 million. If the latter, that may equate to about 10.5% of the world inhabitants.
Practically 9m folks have fled Ukraine since Russian invasion, says UN
Daniel Boffey
Practically 9 million folks have left Ukraine since Vladimir Putin invaded, the UN refugee company has mentioned, because the governor of Donetsk known as on civilians nonetheless within the area to flee.
With Russia stepping up its offensive within the east of the nation, there are more and more loud calls from the Ukrainian authorities for folks to flee whereas they will from frontline areas.
The UN refugee company introduced on Wednesday that 8.793 million folks had crossed out of Ukraine since 24 February, whereas Donetsk’s governor, Pavlo Kyrylenko, urged the area’s 350,000 folks to flee amid reviews of contemporary deaths and accidents.
Donetsk is the final remaining japanese province of Ukraine partially below Kyiv’s management. Stories instructed on Wednesday that at the least seven civilians had been killed in Russian shelling over the previous 24 hours and 25 are mentioned to have been wounded.
Kyrylenko mentioned two folks had died within the area’s central metropolis of Avdiivka whereas fatalities had been additionally reported in Sloviansk, Krasnohorivka and Kurakhove.
“The future of the entire nation will probably be determined by the Donetsk area,” Kyrylenko mentioned. “As soon as there are much less folks, we will focus extra on our enemy and carry out our most important duties.”
Abstract of the day thus far
It’s 6pm in Kyiv. Right here’s the place we stand:
- Ukraine’s governor of Luhansk, Serhiy Haidai, mentioned resistance was ongoing in villages across the metropolis of Lysychansk, the place 15,000 civilians stay. On Telegram, Haidai mentioned: “Right this moment’s movies from Lysychansk are painful to observe.” He accused Putin’s troops of engaging in a scorched earth policy, “burning down and destroying every part on their means”.
- Russia’s defence ministry has claimed its forces destroyed two superior US-made Excessive Mobility Artillery Rocket Programs (HIMARS) rocket techniques and ammunition depots in japanese Ukraine. It additionally said Russian forces destroyed two ammunition depots storing rockets for the HIMARS close to the frontline in a village south of Kramatorsk in Ukraine’s Donetsk area. These claims haven’t been independently verified.
- The president of the European Fee, Ursula von der Leyen, mentioned the EU must make emergency plans to arrange for a whole cut-off of Russian fuel. The fee is engaged on a “European emergency plan” with the primary proposals to be introduced by the center of the month, she mentioned. “If worst comes to worst, then we have to be prepared,” she said.
- Sri Lanka’s president, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, mentioned he requested his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin to assist import gas to his nation because it faces its worst financial disaster in seven a long time. Rajapaksa tweeted that he had a “productive” telephone call with Putin, whereas thanking him for “all of the help prolonged by his [government] to beat the challenges of the previous
- The primary rotation of Ukrainian troopers has arrived within the UK for coaching, in accordance with the defence secretary, Ben Wallace. The coaching is a part of an modern programme that goals to coach as much as 10,000 new Ukrainian recruits alongside a £2.3bn military aid package.
Hiya, it’s Léonie Chao-Fong nonetheless with you immediately with all the most recent information from the warfare in Ukraine. I’m on Twitter or you’ll be able to email me.
Andrew Sparrow
Boris Johnson is still answering questions on the Commons liaison committee, the place he was requested whether or not he met the previous KGB agent Alexander Lebedev with out officers when he was overseas secretary in April 2018.
Johnson says he did meet Lebedev, as a result of he used to personal the Night Customary, however he says he can not bear in mind when.
When pressed, he says he thinks it’s appropriate that he met Lebedev with out officers when he was overseas secretary in Italy. Requested if he reported the assembly to his officals, he says he thinks he did.
Johnson was referring to this meeting.
From the i’s Paul Waugh:
And ITV’s Robert Peston:
Jennifer Rankin
The European parliament has backed plans to label fuel and nuclear power as “inexperienced”, rejecting appeals from Ukraine and local weather activists that the proposals are a present to Vladimir Putin.
One senior MEP mentioned the vote was a “darkish day for the local weather”, whereas specialists mentioned the EU had set a harmful precedent for nations to observe.
The row started late final yr with the leak of long-awaited particulars on the EU’s inexperienced funding guidebook, supposed to assist traders channel billions to the clear energy transition.
The European Fee determined some gas and nuclear projects could be included within the EU taxonomy of environmentally sustainable financial actions, topic to sure circumstances.
Below the plans, fuel may be classed as a sustainable funding if “the identical power capability can’t be generated with renewable sources” and plans are in place to change to renewables or “low-carbon gases”. Nuclear power may be known as inexperienced if a challenge guarantees to cope with radioactive waste.
Svitlana Krakovska, a Ukrainian local weather scientist and member of the Intergovernmental Panel on Local weather Change (IPCC), mentioned: “I’m in shock. Russia’s warfare towards Ukraine is a warfare paid for by climate-heating fossil fuels and the European parliament simply voted to spice up billions of funding to fossil fuel from Russia. How on the earth is that according to Europe’s stance to guard our planet and stand with Ukraine?”
Britain’s prime minister, Boris Johnson, has been giving proof to the Commons liaison committee together with protecting the scenario in Ukraine.
Requested what he considers victory for Ukraine, Johnson replies that it’s finally as much as Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, to determine the phrases “however he’s been very clear that he want to return at the least to the established order” earlier than Russia’s invasion on 24 February.
Johnson says even when Zelenskiy wished to do a land deal in change for peace, Russia’s president Vladimir Putin isn’t providing any such deal.
He says the UK authorities helps Ukrainians with de-mining areas of the nation and “doing what we are able to” to assist small packets of grain to go away the nation on rail routes.
As our Andrew Sparrow writes, it’s not apparent from the questions that MPs on the committee have been intently following what is happening elsewhere in the building.
Andrew is protecting the developments from the UK on our politics live blog.
Donetsk governor urges folks to flee after extra civilian deaths
Daniel Boffey
The governor of Donetsk, the final remaining japanese province of Ukraine partially below Kyiv’s management, has urged the area’s 350,000 folks to flee amid reviews of contemporary deaths and accidents.
At the very least seven civilians have been killed in Russian shelling over the previous 24 hours and 25 are mentioned to have been wounded because the Kremlin continues to step up its offensive in japanese Ukraine.
Donetsk’s governor, Pavlo Kyrylenko, mentioned two folks had died within the area’s central metropolis of Avdiivka whereas fatalities had been additionally reported in Sloviansk, Krasnohorivka and Kurakhove.
Kyrylenko mentioned:
The future of the entire nation will probably be determined by the Donetsk area. As soon as there are much less folks, we will focus extra on our enemy and carry out our most important duties.
After declaring victory within the province of Luhansk, Vladimir Putin has set as his newest public objective the “liberation” of the japanese Donbas area, made up of Luhansk and Donetsk, however his forces proceed to face stiff resistance.
Luhansk’s governor, Serhiy Haidai, mentioned on Wednesday that resistance was ongoing in villages across the metropolis of Lysychansk, the place 15,000 civilians stay.
On Telegram, Haidai mentioned:
Right this moment’s movies from Lysychansk are painful to observe.
He accused Putin’s troops of participating in a scorched earth coverage, “burning down and destroying every part on their means”.
UK’s ratification of Sweden and Finland becoming a member of Nato to be fast-tracked – Truss
British overseas secretary Liz Truss has introduced that the UK’s ratification of Finland and Sweden’s membership of Nato will probably be fast-tracked via parliament in London.
Whereas it has been a really busy day in British politics immediately, as my colleague Andrew Sparrow is covering on our UK politics live blog, there’s nonetheless some authorities enterprise being achieved.
Truss, who could be a frontrunner to exchange the beleaguered prime minister Boris Johnson, has simply tweeted concerning the technique of the UK ratifying Finland and Sweden’s software to hitch Nato. She mentioned:
Essential second signing the instrument of ratification to fast-track Nato membership for Finland & Sweden. It is going to now go to Washington to return into power. Russian aggression is being met with unity and resolve.
Truss then linked to her written statement to parliament which says, partially:
The federal government is dedicated to strengthening safety and defence at house and abroad. A powerful Nato is on the coronary heart of our potential to discourage and defend towards state adversaries.
With Russia conducting an unlawful and barbaric warfare in mainland Europe, it’s unsurprising that nations that already work intently with Nato would think about making use of to hitch the alliance and to learn from its collective safety ensures. We should make sure that Finland and Sweden are built-in into Nato as rapidly as attainable.
She then says she’s going to transfer that the accession is ratified on a fast-track earlier than parliamentary recess on 21 July with out the same old technique of ratifying a treaty. She says
Utilizing this course of will make sure the UK’s half is concluded swiftly and use our instance to encourage different Allies to suppose radically about how rapidly they will respectively ratify Sweden and Finland’s accession. All thirty Allies must ratify the protocols earlier than Finland and Sweden can be a part of the Alliance. I’ve been pushing my Allied colleagues arduous to finish the ratification course of as quickly as attainable. It can be crucial that the UK does every part we are able to to do likewise.
She cites the danger that Finland and/or Sweden could possibly be attacked by Russia previous to them coming below the umbrella of Nato’s collective safety, saying: “Russia has already made a number of threatening feedback within the public area concerning the potential of Swedish and Finnish membership of Nato.”
Germany’s overseas minister Annalena Baerbock has mentioned forward of her journey to Indonesia that Russia should not be allowed to make use of the G20 assembly this week as a platform.
“It’s within the curiosity of us all to make sure that worldwide legislation is revered and adhered to. That’s the frequent denominator,” Reuters reviews Baerbock mentioned in a press release. “And it is usually the explanation why we won’t merely stand apart and permit Russia to make use of the assembly as a platform.”
Russia’s defence ministry has claimed its forces destroyed two superior US-made HIMARS rocket techniques and ammunition depots in japanese Ukraine.
The ministry mentioned Russia’s armed forces destroyed two launchers for the Excessive Mobility Artillery Rocket Programs (HIMARS) that America and its allies had been supplying to Ukraine.
It additionally mentioned Russian forces destroyed two ammunition depots storing rockets for the HIMARS close to the frontline in a village south of Kramatorsk in Ukraine’s Donetsk area.
These claims haven’t been independently verified.
Sri Lanka’s president, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, mentioned he requested his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin to assist import gas to his nation as it faces its worst economic crisis in seven decades.
Rajapaksa tweeted that he had a “productive” phone name with Putin, whereas thanking him for “all of the help prolonged by his [government] to beat the challenges of the previous”.
Rajapaksa added:
I requested a suggestion of credit score help to import gas to [Sri Lanka] in defeating the present [economic] challenges.
Europe should put together for full cut-off of Russian fuel, says Ursula von der Leyen
The president of the European Fee, Ursula von der Leyen, mentioned the EU must make emergency plans to arrange for a whole cut-off of Russian fuel.
The EU chief accused Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, of utilizing power as a weapon in an handle to lawmakers in Strasbourg immediately.
The fee is engaged on a “European emergency plan” with the primary proposals to be introduced by the center of the month, she mentioned.
Von der Leyen mentioned:
If worst involves worst, then we now have to be ready.
She pressured the significance of getting a European overview and coordinated method “to a possible full cut-off of Russian fuel”.
Ukrainian emergency providers have launched drone footage exhibiting smoke rising above a residential space within the Mykolaiv area.
Russia launched a missile assault on Tuesday, hitting properties and infrastructure, together with the freeway connecting Kherson and Odesa.
Some extra strains from Russian overseas ministry spokesperson, Alexei Zaitsev, who mentioned US basketball participant Brittney Griner might enchantment her sentence or apply for clemency as soon as a verdict has been delivered.
Griner, one in all America’s most embellished ladies’s basketball gamers, was detained by Russian authorities in February after it mentioned it found vape cartridges that contained cannabis oil in her baggage at an airport close to Moscow.
Zaitsev mentioned in a briefing:
The courtroom should first ship its verdict, however nobody is stopping Brittney Griner from making use of the enchantment process, and likewise asking for clemency.
He added that “makes an attempt to current the case as if the American girl was illegally detained don’t stand as much as criticism”.
Griner made a direct enchantment to US president Joe Biden for her freedom in a handwritten letter that was delivered to the White Home on Monday, in accordance with her representatives.
“I’m terrified I could be right here ceaselessly,” an excerpt shared by Griner’s representatives with the Guardian said. “I understand you’re coping with a lot, however please don’t overlook about me and the opposite American Detainees. Please do all you’ll be able to to convey us house.”
Latvia to reinstate obligatory navy service as Russia tensions rise
Latvia is to reinstate obligatory navy service amid rising stress with Russia within the wake of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
“The present navy system of Latvia has reached its restrict. In the meantime, we now have no purpose to suppose that Russia will change its behaviour,” the Latvian defence minister, Artis Pabriks, advised reporters on Tuesday.
Latvia had scrapped obligatory service a couple of years after becoming a member of the Nato navy alliance. Since 2007, the EU member’s navy has consisted of profession troopers together with Nationwide Guard volunteers who serve within the infantry part-time at weekends.
The nation of below 2 million folks, which borders Belarus and Russia, has solely 7,500 active-duty troopers and Nationwide Guard members, backed by 1,500 Nato troops.
Russia says Turkey has not seized ship carrying ‘stolen Ukrainian grain’
Russia has denied reviews {that a} Russian-flagged ship is being held and investigated by Turkish authorities within the Black Sea port of Karasu over claims its cargo was stolen from Ukraine.
Turkish customs officers acted after Kyiv claimed the Zhibek Zholy was illegally transporting 7,000 tonnes of grain out of Russian-occupied Berdiansk, a Ukrainian port within the south-east of the nation.
Officers in Karasu mentioned the ship was ready off port whereas inquiries had been undertaken into the provenance of the cargo.
However Russian overseas ministry spokesperson, Alexei Zaitsev, advised reporters immediately that the ship was “present process normal procedures”.
On Monday, Russia’s overseas minister, Sergei Lavrov, confirmed that the ship was Russian-flagged, whereas showing to muddy the waters whereas claiming the Kremlin was searching for readability.
Kyiv has accused Russia of stealing grain from occupied Ukrainian territory to promote on the worldwide markets. The nation’s grain exports are answerable for virtually 15% of the world’s whole.
Hiya everybody. It’s Léonie Chao-Fong right here once more to convey you all the most recent developments on the warfare in Ukraine. Be at liberty to get in contact on Twitter or via email.
Eire’s Taoiseach Micheál Martin has witnessed the devastation inflicted by Russian forces in the war-scarred suburbs of Borodianka, Bucha and Irpin whereas on a go to to Ukraine to reiterate his nation’s solidarity with Kyiv.
Martin started his go to immediately with a visit to Borodianka, the place he met the city’s mayor and considered residence blocks gutted by hearth in the course of the Russian shelling.
From there, he visited the location of a mass grave in Bucha on the grounds of the church of St Andrew earlier than travelling to close by Irpin.
After viewing the war-scarred suburbs of Borodianka, Bucha and Irpin, Martin tweeted that it was “tough to grasp the devastation and inhumanity of Russia’s assaults” throughout its invasion of Ukraine.
Martin is because of talk about how Eire and the EU can help Ukraine in conferences later immediately.
He’ll restate Eire’s full backing for persevering with sanctions towards Russia and for Ukraine’s path to full EU membership.
Talking forward of his go to to Kyiv, Martin mentioned Eire would proceed to welcome and help civilians fleeing the warfare in Ukraine.
Martin mentioned:
The folks of Eire stand with Ukraine and its folks within the face of Russia’s immoral and unprovoked warfare of terror.
The bombardment and assaults on civilians are nothing in need of warfare crimes, and I’ll use my go to to precise Eire’s help for strikes to carry these behind these assaults absolutely accountable.
Alex Lawson
The Norwegian authorities has stepped in to finish a strike that had threatened supplies of gas to Britain.
The labour dispute had shut down oil and gasfields and was anticipated to chop Norway’s fuel provides by virtually 60% by the weekend.
Gassco, Oslo’s state-owned pipeline operator, had even warned that “in a worst-case state of affairs, deliveries to the UK may cease completely”.
Staff demanded a pay improve to deal with rising inflation, which has been triggered partially by a soar in oil and fuel costs since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Nonetheless, the Norwegian authorities has the ability to intervene to finish industrial disputes. The nation’s labour minister, Marte Mjøs Persen, mentioned: “When the battle can have such nice social penalties for the entire of Europe, I’ve no alternative however to intervene within the battle.”
Gasoline costs had soared in latest days because the strike motion threatened to exacerbate the prevailing provide crunch, however their rally was halted on Wednesday after the announcement.
European nations have been scrambling to fill their fuel storage websites earlier than the winter for worry that Russia will minimize off provides altogether.
Britain sources a couple of third of its fuel from Norway and the rest from a mix of the North Sea, different components of Europe and imports of liquefied pure fuel from the remainder of the world, together with the US.
Germany is much extra reliant on Russian fuel and fears are rising over the knock-on impact of Russia lowering fuel provides. The important thing Nord Stream 1 fuel pipeline from Russia into Germany can also be scheduled for upkeep from 11-21 July.
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