(Reuters) – Finance chiefs of the world’s largest economies strongly condemned Moscow for its war on Ukraine, with only China and Russia itself declining to sign a joint statement.
Diplomacy and sanctions
* The European Union vowed to increase pressure on Moscow “until Ukraine is liberated” as it adopted a tenth package of sanctions on Russia on Saturday.
* Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said he held a long conversation with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Friday, the anniversary of Russia’s invasion of its neighbour.
* French President Emmanuel Macron said on Saturday he will visit China in early April, in part to seek Chinese help with ending Russia’s invasion.
* China called on Friday for a comprehensive ceasefire and gradual de-escalation in a 12-point paper. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy welcomed some elements of the Chinese proposal but said only the country where a war is being fought should be the initiator of a peace plan.
* U.S. President Joe Biden said on Friday he saw nothing in the Chinese plan “that would be beneficial to anyone other than Russia”.
* The United States marked the anniversary of the invasion with $2 billion in weaponry for Kyiv and new sanctions against Russia aimed at undermining Moscow’s ability to wage war.
Berlin protest
* A demonstration against supplying Ukraine with weapons attracted 10,000 people on Saturday, drawing criticism from top German government officials and a large police presence to maintain order.
Oil
* Russia has halted supplies of oil to Poland via the Druzhba pipeline, Daniel Obajtek, chief executive officer of Polish refiner PKN Orlen, said on Saturday.
Fighting
* Ukraine’s military said on Friday that Russia had doubled the number of ships on active duty in the Black Sea and predicted this could be a preparation for more missile strikes.
* Russia said its forces continued to attack in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region on Friday, killing up to 240 Ukrainian soldiers over the past 24 hours.
* Reuters could not immediately confirm battlefield claims.
Anniversary
* Ukrainians honoured their dead and vowed to fight on, while Russia said it was making battlefield gains in the east as its invasion entered a second year on Friday.
* In Moscow, there was a mixture of defiance and some sadness but no major public events to mark the anniversary.
* TIMELINE- Major developments since Russia’s invasion
* Ukraine’s Zelenskiy has defied Putin against the odds
* Putin, secure in power, has set the stage for long war
* A year on, Ukraine and its government have not just survived. They’ve fought back.
* Toughened by war’s scars, Kyiv presses on
* Graphics of a year of war in the markets: How the dollar, energy and food prices swirled
* Russian economy holds up but the road back to prosperity may be long
* Moscow’s decades-old gas ties with Europe lie in ruins
* Top brands pull out of Russia, but goods easy to find
* Can U.S. support for Ukraine last?
* External backers pour billions into Ukraine
* How has China stood by ‘no limits’ partner Russia?
* A year into war, older refugees running out of hope
* Life and death in Mariupol – a survivor’s tale of war
* Family mourns Bucha victim who became symbol of war
Podcast
Learn more about the Ukraine war. Listen to a special episode of the Reuters World News Podcast.
(Compiled by Reuters editors)