Russia-Ukraine War: President Joe Biden says that he wants Russia out of the G-20. Biden made the comments during a press conference Thursday in Brussels following a series of urgent NATO meetings on the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The G-20, or Group of Twenty, is an intergovernmental forum of 19 countries and the European Union that works on major global issues. He said he raised the issue Thursday with other world leaders.
Biden said that he would prefer Russia is removed from the group, but should Indonesia or other nations disagree, he would ask that Ukraine leaders be allowed in for conversations. Biden and Western allies on Thursday pledged new sanctions and humanitarian aid in response to the continued assault in Ukraine by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Here are LIVE updates:
– Russia to be Expelled from G20?: The Kremlin said on Friday that nothing terrible will happen if the United States and its allies succeed in expelling Russia from the Group of Twenty (G20) major economies because many of the G20’s members are at economic war with Moscow anyway.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was commenting on remarks by U.S. President Joe Biden who said he favoured Russia being pushed out of the G20 after it sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine.
“The G20 format is important, but in
– Ukrainian Forces Advance East of Kyiv as Russians Fall Back: Ukrainian troops are recapturing towns east of Kyiv and Russian forces who had been trying to seize the capital are falling back on overextended supply lines, Britain said on Friday, one of the strongest indications yet of a shift in momentum in the war. The mayor of a suburb east of Kyiv said Ukrainian troops had recaptured a nearby village and thousands of civilians were now leaving the area, answering a call from the authorities to get out of the way of the counter-attack.
– Half the Population of Kharkiv Has Fled | About half the population of the eastern city of Kharkiv has left, and food and other essentials are dwindling for those who stay behind. A line formed on Thursday at an apartment block as neighbours waited for aid from the Red Cross.
Among those who stayed, there are people who can walk on their own, but many who cannot walk, the elderly, said Hanna Spitsyna, who distributed the food to the sound of explosions behind her. Kharkiv has been under siege by Russian forces since the start of the invasion, with relentless shelling that has forced people to sleep in metro stations and in basements.
– Ukraine Makes New Effort to Evacuate Mariupol Civilians | Ukraine hopes some civilians who have been trapped in the besieged city of Mariupol will be able to leave in private cars on Friday, Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said.
Repeated attempts to arrange safe passage out of the southern port city, which is surrounded by Russian forces, have failed.
Mariupol, which is normally home to about 400,000 people, has been under heavy bombardment for weeks. Civilians trapped there have been sheltering in basements with little food, power or running water.
– Exclusive-Russian Missiles in Ukraine Have Failure Rate of Up to 60%, US Officials Say | Russian precision-guided missiles are failing up to 60% of the time in Ukraine, three U.S. officials with knowledge of intelligence on the issue told Reuters, a possible explanation for the poor progress of Russia’s invasion.
Since President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, Russia has failed to achieve basic objectives such as neutralizing Ukraine’s air force despite a vastly larger armed forces.
– Russia More of a Burden to China After Ukraine Invasion- Pentagon Official | Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has made it more of a strategic burden on China, a senior Pentagon official said on Thursday.
“I do think that there’s a degree to which what Putin has done in Ukraine makes Russia much more of a strategic burden for Beijing than it was six weeks ago or six months ago,” Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Colin Kahl said.
In February, China and Russia declared a “no limits” partnership, backing each other over standoffs on Ukraine and Taiwan with a promise to collaborate more against the West.
– Zelenskyy Asks EU Leaders for Quick Membership | Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy thanked EU leaders for working together to support Ukraine and impose sanctions on Russia, including Germany’s decision to block Russia from delivering natural gas to Europe through the new Nord Stream 2 pipeline. But he lamented that these steps weren’t taken earlier, saying there was a chance Russia would have thought twice about invading.
– He then appealed to the EU leaders, who had gathered on Thursday in Brussels, to move quickly on Ukraine’s application to join the bloc. Here I ask you, do not delay. Please, Zelenskyy said by video from Kyiv. For us this is a chance. He then listed the 27 member countries, noting those he said were for us. He appealed to Germany and particularly to Hungary not to block Ukraine’s bid. “Listen, Viktor, do you know what is happening in Mariupol?” Zelenskyy said, addressing Hungarian President Viktor Orban.” I want to be open once and for all you should decide for yourself, who you are for. Orban is widely considered to be Russian President Vladimir Putin’s closest ally among EU leaders.”
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