The president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, has proposed a new round of proposed sanctions on Russia designed “to make the Kremlin pay” for the escalation of the conflict in Ukraine. The proposed eighth package of “biting” sanctions includes a cap on the price of Russian oil and more curbs on high-tech trade.
Politicians across Europe have warned that the alleged sabotage of the two Nord Stream gas pipelines could herald a new stage of hybrid warfare targeting vulnerable energy infrastructure to undermine support for Ukraine. Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre said his country would increase its military presence at Norwegian facilities after the country became Europe’s largest supplier of natural gas.
A report by an international sanctions task force concluded that Russia should now be declared a “state sponsor of terrorism” and had reached the legal definition of a terrorist state under US and Canadian law. The head of Ukraine’s Office of the Presidency, Andriy Yermak, called for broad European and American sanctions in light of the report, after Ukraine accused Russia of sabotaging the Nord Stream gas pipelines under the Baltic Sea.
Moscow is on the verge of formally annexing regions occupied by Russia after so-called referendums that have been denounced by the West. The Russian-installed leaders of Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions in Ukraine have formally asked President Vladimir Putin to annex the occupied territories to Russia. Russia’s foreign ministry said steps would soon be taken to meet the “aspirations” of four occupied Ukrainian regions to become part of Russia. Once annexed, the Russian leadership has said it will consider attacks on Russian-controlled areas a direct attack on Russia.
President Volodymyr Zelenskii said Ukraine would “act to protect our people” in Russian-occupied regions after what he called “a mock referendum.” Ukraine’s foreign ministry said Kyiv and its allies “condemn these actions of Russia and consider them null and void.”
British Prime Minister Liz Truss told Zelenskiy in a phone call that Britain would never recognize Russian attempts to annex parts of Ukraine, Downing Street said. The head of EU foreign policy, Josep Borrell, has also denounced the “illegal referendums and their falsified results” in Ukraine.
Israel has reinforced its hitherto cautious stance on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, saying it “will not accept the results of the referendum in the eastern districts” of the occupied country. Tuesday night’s statement by the Israeli foreign ministry, which also said it “recognizes the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine,” has been hailed as an unprecedented show of support for Ukraine and a rare Israeli rebuke in Moscow
Gas prices have risen on fears that Russia could cut off supplies to Europe via Ukraine, adding to the turmoil caused by damage to the Nord Stream pipeline. The statement came after the discovery of leaks at the two Nord Stream gas pipelines near the Danish island of Bornholm in a suspected act of sabotage.
The Kremlin rejected claims that Russia was behind the attack on the Nord Stream pipelines, describing them as “quite predictable and also predictably stupid”. In a call with reporters, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the incident needed to be investigated and that the timetable for repairing the damaged pipes was unclear.
Authorities in the Russian region of North Ossetia, which borders Georgia, are imposing travel restrictions to prevent people from fleeing to Georgia to avoid military conscription. The Moscow Times report quotes the head of the region, Sergey Menyaylo, as saying that more than 20,000 people had entered Georgia through the section of the border in just two days.
The US Embassy in Moscow has issued a security alert and urged US citizens to leave Russia immediately. In a statement on its website, it warned that citizens with dual Russian and American citizenship may be called up as part of the Russian government’s mobilization. U.S. citizens should not travel to Russia, and those residing or traveling in the country should leave Russia immediately while commercial travel options remain limited, he said.
The governments of Romania, Bulgaria and Poland are asking citizens who remain in the Russian Federation to leave urgently. This may be in anticipation of border crossings becoming much more difficult as the routes get closer and more people flee forced mobilization in Russia.
Russian authorities say they are setting up checkpoints at some of the country’s borders to forcibly round up Russian men who want to avoid conscription by fleeing the country. Images on social media show military vehicles moving towards the border, to set up the mobilization checkpoint.
Russia is mounting a more substantial defense than before as Ukraine tries to advance “on at least two axes to the east,” according to the UK Ministry of Defence. Heavy fighting continued in the Kherson region, where the Russian force on the right bank of the Dnipro remained vulnerable, it said in its latest intelligence update.
Ukrainian authorities say they have identified five Russian soldiers who allegedly fired on civilian cars in the Kyiv region in the early days of the war. Russian soldiers are accused of killing five people and wounding six others as they tried to flee Hostomel on February 25, a day after Russia invaded.