Russia Ukraine war news: Russian forces in Ukraine ordered to resume offensive 'from all directions'

The Japanese foreign minister declined to comment if Japan plans to join the United States, Britain and the European Union in imposing sanctions on Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. Hayashi said Japan will stay in close touch with other Group of Seven members and other international leaders while watching the developments.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was asked to evacuate Kyiv at the behest of the U.S. government but turned down the offer.Zelenskyy said in response: ``The fight is here; I need ammunition, not a ride,'' according to a senior American intelligence official with direct knowledge of the conversation, who described Zelenskyy as upbeat.Invading Russian forces closed in on Ukraine's capital on Saturday, in an apparent encircling movement after a barrage of airstrikes on cities and military bases around the country.

Imposing sanctions on President Putin & 3 members of Russia’s Security Council responsible for invasion of Ukraine: Foreign Affairs Min Sergei Lavrov,Defense Min Defense Sergei Shoigu,& 1st Dy Defense Min & Chief of Gen Staff of Armed Forces of Russian Federation Valery Gerasimov. In response to this aggression, Dept of Treasury has designated Russian Pres Putin & Foreign Min Lavrov. In a corresponding action, Dept of State has designated Shoigu & Gerasimov pursuant to EO 14024 Section 1(a)(i). US Treasury has already designated 11 members of Russian SC

A US Defense Department official said the Russians were “not moving on Kyiv as fast as they anticipated it going” and that, significantly, “Ukrainian command and control is intact” to direct the defense of the country. But officials warned that as of Friday morning Russia had sent into Ukraine only 30% of the 150,000 to 190,000 troops it had massed at the border: NYT

Ukraine's army said Saturday it had repelled a Russian attack on one of capital city Kyiv's main avenues.Russia "attacked one of the military units on Victory Avenue in Kyiv. The attack was repulsed," Ukraine's army said on its verified Facebook page, without specifying where exactly the incident took place.

An Air India plane departed from the Mumbai airport on Saturday morning for Romanian capital Bucharest to evacuate Indians stranded in Ukraine due to the Russian military offensive.The flight, AI1943, took off from the Mumbai airport around 3.40am and is expected to land at the Bucharest airport around 10am (Indian Standard Time), senior government officials said. Indian nationals who have reached the Ukraine-Romania border by road are being taken to Bucharest by Indian government officials so that they can be evacuated in the Air India flight. Air India will operate more flights on Saturday to Bucharest and Hungarian capital Budapest to evacuate Indians stranded in Ukraine.

Nato secretary-general Jens Stoltenberg said on Friday the alliance was deploying parts of its combat-ready response force and would continue to send weapons to Ukraine. Stoltenberg also said that Russia was trying to topple the Ukrainian government. He said some of the 30 allies announced the type of weapons that they would supply Ukraine, including air defences, without giving details.

Ukraine’s nuclear energy regulatory agency said on Friday that higher than usual gamma radiation levels have been detected in the area near the decommissioned Chernobyl nuclear plant, after it was seized by the Russian military. It, however, didn’t provide details of the increase.

Russian troops bore down on Ukraine’s capital Friday while the president grimly predicted that the conflict would soon intensify and fears of wider war in Europe triggered new international efforts to make Moscow stop, including direct sanctions on President Vladimir Putin. Amid reports of hundreds of casualties — including shelling that sliced through a Kyiv apartment building and pummeled bridges and schools — there also were growing signs that Russia may be seeking to overthrow Ukraine’s government, which US officials have described as Putin’s ultimate objective.