Ukraine evacuate
Ukraine was trying to evacuate as many trapped civilians as possible on Thursday (April 7, 2022) as Russian forces pounded cities and towns in the east and south of the country.
Deputy Prime Minister Irena Vereshchuk announced an agreement with Russia on opening 10 safe corridors, mostly in southern and eastern Ukraine, but said residents trying to leave the besieged city of Mariupol would have to use their own vehicles.
Multiple attempts to agree on safe passage for buses to take supplies to Mariupol and bring out civilians have failed since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, with each side blaming the other.
Ukrainian officials say Russia has been regrouping for a new offensive in the east and south, and want civilians to leave those areas while they still can.
“Evacuate! The chances of saving yourself and your family from Russian death are dwindling every day,” said Serhiy Gaidai, the governor of the Luhansk region, adding that Russian troops had not made any significant breakthroughs.
Local officials reported heavy Russian shelling and rocket fire in the southern region of Kherson in the last few days.
Russia-Ukraine conflict | UN Security Council Briefing on Ukraine:
EU sanctions on Russia
European Union envoys are set to approve on Thursday a ban on Russian coal that would take full effect from mid-August, a month later than initially planned, two EU sources told Reuters, following pressure from Germany to delay the measure.
The phase-out of EU imports of Russian coal is the cornerstone measure in a fifth package of sanctions against Russia that the EU Commission proposed this week, as a reaction to atrocities in the Ukrainian town of Bucha.
Once approved, it will be the EU’s first ban on any import of energy from Russia since the start of what the Kremlin calls a “special operation” in Ukraine on February 24.
Oil and gas, which represent far bigger imports from Moscow, are still untouched.
The EU Commission had initially proposed a wind-down period of three months for existing contracts, meaning that Russia could effectively still export coal to the EU for 90 days after sanctions were imposed, according to a document seen by Reuters.
But that period has been extended to four months, the sources who are familiar with the discussions told Reuters on condition of anonymity.
That followed pressure mostly from Germany, the EU’s main importer of Russian coal.
EU prepares for fresh sanctions against Moscow:
Ukraine destruction
Ukraine’s Ministry of Defence released drone footage which it said showed destruction in Borodoyanka, a town in Kyiv region that was under Russian occupancy and is now back under the Ukrainian flag.
The video is said to be shot on Wednesday and shows aerial views of damaged and destroyed buildings and roads in the area.
The video matched satellite imagery and street-level images of Borodyanka before the invasion, with a major roundabout being the main landmark featured in the footage.
Russia’s six-week-long invasion has so far forced over four million to flee abroad, killed or injured thousands, left a quarter of the population homeless, turned cities into rubble and prompted a slew of Western restrictions on Russian elites and the economy.
Russia-Ukraine conflict I Prof. Everisto Benyera gives a possible outcome of the conflict:
Peace talks prospects
The Kremlin said on Thursday that Washington’s decision to keep supplying Ukraine with weapons and military assistance would probably damage chances of successful peace talks between Russia and Ukraine.
“Pumping weapons into Ukraine will not contribute to the success of Russian-Ukrainian talks,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said on a conference call with reporters when asked about US weapons supplies to Ukraine.
“Of course, this will most likely have a negative effect.
Russia-Ukraine conflict | Discussion on prospects of peace talks: Rustem Safrono and Brooks Spector:
