International News Updates

Besides Australia, they also earmark the remaining permanent members of Russia's Security Council, including Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Defence Minister Sergey Shoigu, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin and Internal Affairs Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev.

Earlier, head of the Kharkiv Region Military Administration Oleg Synehubov said, "What is happening in Kharkiv is an utter war crime! It's genocide of the Ukrainian people."

US intelligence believes around 75 per cent of Russian forces positioned on the borders with Ukraine are now inside the country.

"We stand ready to help those from neighbours and developing countries who are also stranded in Ukraine and may seek assistance," he said.

Putin said Russia is open to negotiations with Ukraine and expressed hope they would lead to the desired result, Xinhua news agency reported.

"India is deeply concerned that the situation in Ukraine continues to deteriorate. We reiterate our call for immediate cessation of violence and end to hostilities, Tirumurti said.

According to EU procedure, the membership application has to be submitted to the Presidency of the Council of the European Union. The Council is currently headed by France.

A convoy of Belarusian tanks and troop carriers were seen queueing near the Ukrainian border today as officials from Moscow and Kyiv started peace talks, Daily Mail reported.

Russia has called out Indian media coverage of the ongoing conflict in Ukraine to be "biased and misleading" and urged it to be "objective in information".

As Russia fails to inflict quick defeat upon Ukraine after four days of fierce hostilities, President Vladimir Putin is about to pull his Belarusian ally, dictator Aleksandr Lukashenko, into his war of occupation, The Kyiv Independent reported.

Russia's ground units, equipped with intercontinental ballistic missiles as well as vessels from the Northern and Pacific Fleets, have been placed on high combat alert, the Russian Defence Ministry confirmed on Monday.

Russia-Ukraine Conflict: Former Miss Ukraine Grand Joins Resistance

Law enforcement officers in two Ukrainian towns have been authorised to shoot looters "on the spot", the mayors have announced, RT reported.

Dozens of people have been killed and hundreds more wounded in rocket strikes by Russian forces on the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv on Monday morning, the Ukrainian interior ministry has said, The Guardian reported.

Russia planned to ride out sanctions imposed by Western countries that have sent the rouble tumbling, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov has said, BBC reported.