The newest:
- Russian troops shut in on centre of Kyiv.
- Canada sanctions Russian President Vladimir Putin, International Minister Sergei Lavrov.
- Putin urges Ukraine navy to overthrow leaders; Ukraine president rallies residents.
- Russia vetoes UN Safety Council decision calling for Moscow to withdraw troops.
- What questions do you may have about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine? Ship an electronic mail to ask@cbc.ca
Tens of hundreds of persons are fleeing Ukraine, dashing to neighbouring international locations by automobile and on foot to flee hazard from invading Russian troops.
The battle has already pushed a whole lot of hundreds of Ukrainians from their properties. United Nations officers mentioned Saturday that greater than 150,000 individuals from Ukraine have left the nation for Poland, Moldova and different neighbouring nations.
The most important numbers had been arriving in Poland, the place two million Ukrainians have already settled to work lately.
Greater than 50,000 Ukrainians have fled the nation because the begin of the Russian invasion, with roughly 35,000 believed to have fled to Poland. 0:00
At southeastern Poland’s Medyka crossing, some mentioned that they had walked for 35 kilometres to achieve the border.
“They did not have meals, no tea, they had been standing in the course of a discipline, on the highway, children had been freezing,” mentioned Iryna Wiklenko as she waited on the Polish facet for her grandchildren and her daughter-in-law to make it throughout.
The road of autos ready to enter Poland on the Medyka crossing stretched many miles into Ukraine. A girl from Lviv, who was bringing her 4 youngsters to security in Poland, described toys and baggage alongside the best way that had been so heavy that folks deserted them.
Poland’s authorities mentioned Saturday that greater than 100,000 Ukrainians had crossed the Polish-Ukrainian border previously 48 hours alone. The UN estimates that as much as 4 million may flee if the combating escalates.
One household from Chernivtsi in western Ukraine waited 20 hours earlier than with the ability to cross the border into Siret in northern Romania.
Even Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, one in every of Europe’s most anti-migrant leaders, travelled to the border city of Beregsurany, the place he mentioned Hungary was accepting all residents and authorized residents of Ukraine.
“We’re letting everybody in,” Orban mentioned.
Refugees arriving within the Hungarian border city of Zahony mentioned males between 18 and 60 weren’t being allowed to go away Ukraine.
“My son was not allowed to come back. My coronary heart is so sore, I am shaking,” mentioned Vilma Sugar, 68.
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) additionally mentioned in an announcement Saturday that’s is taking extra steps to help Ukrainians by prioritizing everlasting and non permanent residence functions.
The horrors of struggle are being skilled by the Ukrainian individuals.<br><br>And, the world is responding.<br><br>Russian anti-war activists are courting arrest in courageous opposition to Putin.<br><br>Many international locations are offering secure haven to refugees.<br><br>Canada should do its half too.
—@theJagmeetSingh
1000’s extra take shelter in Kyiv
Kyiv residents braced for one more evening of sheltering underground on Saturday, as Russian troops closed in on the Ukrainian capital and skirmishes had been reported on its outskirts.
CBC’s Margaret Evans reviews from Ukraine’ capital Kyiv, the place residents braced for one more evening of sheltering underground on Saturday. 1:38
Ukraine’s chief, in the meantime, claimed the nation’s forces had repulsed the Russian assault on Kyiv and vowed to maintain up the battle as he appealed for extra assist from the surface world.
“The true combating for Kyiv is ongoing,” President Volodymyr Zelensky mentioned in a video message, accusing Russia of hitting infrastructure and civilian targets. “We’ll win.”
Ukrainian President Vlodomir Zelensky insists he is not leaving Kyiv as Russian forces shut in on the Ukrainian capital. 3:01
The U.S. authorities had urged Zelensky to evacuate Kyiv however he declined, in response to a senior American intelligence official with direct data of the dialog. The official, who spoke on situation of anonymity as a result of he was not licensed to talk to the media, quoted the president as saying he wanted anti-tank ammunition however “not a experience.”
“The combat is right here,” Zelensky mentioned.
Central Kyiv appeared quiet Saturday, and skirmishes reported on the sting of town prompt that small Russian models had been attempting to clear a path for the primary forces. Britain’s Defence Ministry mentioned that the majority of Russian forces had been 30 kilometres from the center of town.
Russia claims its assault on Ukraine is aimed solely at navy targets, however civilians have been killed and injured throughout Europe’s largest floor struggle because the Second World Battle.
Ukraine mentioned greater than 1,000 Russian troopers had been killed. Russia didn’t launch casualty figures. The Ukrainian well being minister says that 198 individuals have been killed, together with three youngsters, and greater than 1,000 others have been wounded. His assertion made it unclear whether or not the casualties included each navy and civilians.
The mayor of Kyiv is imposing an intensified curfew as Russian troops press in on the capital metropolis.
“All civilians on the road through the curfew will likely be thought of members of the enemy’s sabotage and reconnaissance teams,” Vitaly Klitschko mentioned.
A missile earlier struck a highrise condominium constructing on town’s southwestern outskirts close to one in every of Kyiv’s two passenger airports, leaving a jagged gap of ravaged flats over a number of flooring. A rescue employee mentioned six civilians had been injured.
Saturday’s avenue clashes adopted two days of huge air and missile strikes as Russian troopers moved in from the north, east and south. The assault pummelled bridges, colleges and residential neighbourhoods.
Conflicting accounts
It was unclear how a lot of Ukraine was nonetheless below Ukrainian management and the way a lot Russian forces have seized. Western governments claimed stiff Ukrainian resistance had slowed the Russian advance, and Russia doesn’t but management Ukraine’s skies.
Ukraine’s Infrastructure Ministry mentioned a Russian missile was shot down earlier than daybreak on Saturday because it headed for the dam of the sprawling water reservoir that serves Kyiv. Ukrainian officers additionally mentioned a Russian navy convoy was destroyed close to town early Saturday.
Along with Kyiv, the Russian assault appeared to give attention to Ukraine’s shoreline, stretching from the Black Sea port of Odesa, within the west close to the border with Romania, to the Sea of Azov port of Mariupol within the east.
If the Russian troops succeed, Ukraine will likely be lower off from entry to all of its sea ports, that are important for its economic system.
Western officers consider Russian President Vladimir Putin is set to overthrow Ukraine’s authorities and exchange it with a regime of his personal. The invasion represented Putin’s boldest effort but to redraw the map of Europe and revive Moscow’s Chilly Battle-era affect. It triggered new worldwide efforts to finish the invasion, together with direct sanctions on Putin.
Russian President Vladimir Putin known as on Ukrainians defending their nation to give up, saying will probably be simpler to achieve a diplomatic settlement than with Kyiv’s present management. 2:40
Zelensky supplied renewed assurance Saturday that the nation’s navy would stand as much as the Russian invasion. In a defiant video recorded on a downtown Kyiv avenue, he mentioned he remained within the metropolis and that claims the Ukrainian navy would put down arms had been false.
“We aren’t going to put down weapons. We’ll shield the nation,” the Ukrainian president mentioned. “Our weapon is our reality, and our reality is that it is our land, our nation, our youngsters. And we are going to defend all of that.”
The president’s whereabouts had been stored secret after he advised European leaders in a name Thursday that he was Russia’s No. 1 goal — and that they may not see him once more alive.
Ukraine is counting on determined countermeasures, together with home made weapons like Molotov cocktails, in an try to counter the Russian navy’s superior energy. 1:58
The USA and different allies, together with Canada, moved to freeze the belongings of Putin and his international minister Friday as a part of more durable sanctions on Russia because the invasion reverberated by the world’s economic system and vitality provides.
Russia remained unbowed, vetoing a UN Safety Council decision demanding that it cease attacking Ukraine and withdraw troops instantly. The 11-1 vote, with China, India and the United Arab Emirates abstaining, confirmed vital opposition to Russia’s invasion of its smaller, militarily weaker neighbour.
A senior Russian official on Saturday shrugged off the wide-ranging sanctions that the U.S., the European Union and different allies slapped on Russia as a mirrored image of Western “political impotence.”
Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy head of Russia’s Safety Council, warned that Moscow may react to the sanctions by opting out of the final remaining nuclear arms pact, freezing Western belongings and reducing diplomatic ties with nations within the West.
“There isn’t a explicit want in sustaining diplomatic relations,” Medvedev mentioned. “We could take a look at one another in binoculars and gunsights.”
NATO, in the meantime, determined Friday to ship components of the alliance’s response drive to assist shield member nations within the east for the primary time. NATO didn’t say what number of troops can be deployed however added that it might contain land, sea and air energy.
Late Friday, U.S. President Joe Biden signed a memo authorizing as much as $350 million US in extra safety help to Ukraine, bringing the overall safety help accredited for Ukraine to $1 billion over the previous 12 months. It was not clear how rapidly the help would circulate.
The assault was anticipated for weeks by the U.S. and Western allies and denied to be within the works simply as lengthy by Putin. He argued that the West left him with no different alternative by refusing to barter Russia’s safety calls for.
Putin has not disclosed his final plans for Ukraine. International Minister Sergei Lavrov gave a touch, saying, “We wish to permit the Ukrainian individuals to find out its personal destiny.”
The European Union and the USA have each introduced sanctions on Russian President Vladimir Putin’s private funds, additionally sanctioning international minister Sergei Lavrov in retaliation for the invasion in opposition to Ukraine. 2:32
Putin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov mentioned Russia acknowledges Zelensky because the president, however wouldn’t say how lengthy the Russian navy operation may final.
Zelensky supplied Friday to barter on a key Putin demand: that Ukraine declare itself impartial and abandon its ambition of becoming a member of NATO. The Kremlin mentioned it accepted Kyiv’s provide to carry talks, but it surely seemed to be an effort to squeeze concessions out of the embattled Zelensky as a substitute of a gesture towards a diplomatic answer.
