Russia Ukraine Crisis News Highlights: A day after India reported its first casualty in Ukraine’s Kharkiv yesterday, another Indian student today died in the war-torn country due to a stroke. According to the Ministry of External Affairs, the student has been identified as Chandan Jindal. He was 22 years old and was a student of Vinnytsia National Pyrogov, Memorial Medical University. Jindal hailed from Punjab’s Barnala. | READ MORE
Also, the Indian Embassy in Kyiv has issued an urgent advisory for the students in the embattled city to leave the region immediately. The advisory comes on the back of fresh missile attacks by the Russian forces in the second largest city of Ukraine. With complete control of the airspace, the Russian assault is targeting areas in and around Kharkiv. The military operation, a term used by Moscow, has entered the seventh day today. Intense battles are being fought in Kyiv and Kharkiv. Port of Kherson is under Russia control now.
Earlier in the day, the US has announced that it will ban Russian flights from entering American airspace. The decision was announced by US President Joe Biden in his State of the Union speech. Apart from the airspace ban, Biden also categorically stated that going forward, the US administration will also target the Oligarchs, who have close links with the Kremlin. The airspace ban comes after a similar restriction was imposed by the European Union. While the pressure is mounting on Russian President Vladmir to stop the biggest military assault that Europe has seen since World War II, the on-ground realities are starkly different.
Now, reports are coming in from Kharkiv, the second largest Ukrainian city, that Russian paratroopers have landed in the region. In related development, the 64-km-long convoy is still on its way to Kyiv.
In more simpler timelines, this would mean that even though the world community is trying to dissuade Putin with sanctions, boycotts and military aid to Ukraine, the so-called ‘special military operations’ have not halted.
The boycott by private corporate giants continues with Nike and Boeing joining the list. Reports from Moscow suggest that Nike products are not available for online shoppers. A message on the site says that the deliveries to Russia can’t be promised. Similarly, aviation giant Boeing has said that it will suspend all its operations in Moscow with immediate effect.
Circling back to what Biden announced today, now there’s a growing chorus amid the American politicians to suspend Russian oil import. If this happens, it will be a major blow for Putin.
Back home, the Narendra Modi government has decided to intensify the efforts to bring back the Indian students stuck in Ukraine. Latest government updates say that no Indian is left in Kyiv. In the next 3 days, New Delhi will operate 26 flights to evacuate all Indians. As per the government data, 12,000 Indians have been evacuated so far.
Here are the latest updates on Russia-Ukraine conflict:
PM Modi and President Putin discussed safe evacuation of Indian nationals from conflict areas in Ukraine: Official statement (PTI)
Video appeal from Ukraine by Indian student, who is also village pradhan in UP’s Hardoi, lands her in trouble as officials say it will be probed how gram sabha bank account operated in her absence and if there were any financial irregularities (PTI)
PM Narendra Modi spoke on phone today with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The leaders reviewed the situation in Ukraine, especially in Kharkiv where many Indian students are stuck. They discussed the safe evacuation of the Indian nationals from the conflict areas. (ANI)
Ukraine deeply regrets that a student from India has become a victim of this shelling by the Russian Armed Forces in Kharkiv. We offer our deepest sympathies to India & the relatives of the victim: Ukraine Ambassador to UN Sergiy Kyslytsya (ANI)
We're setting up two call centers– one in Bucharest & another in the Siret (Romania) to coordinate the Indian students: Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia (ANI)
Cities in eastern Ukraine remain areas of concern: Ministry of External Affairs on stranded Indians (PTI)
#WATCH | "Here at Rzeszow Airport in Poland where C-17 Globemaster has been called to take our students back home. Two Indigo flights also adding to the numbers being brought back," tweets MoS Civil Aviation Gen(Retd)VK Singh
— ANI (@ANI) March 2, 2022
(Video Source: Gen (Retd) VK Singh's Twitter account) pic.twitter.com/ky0NzroPRN
As a consequence of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, we are evacuating Indian students from the war zone area. Efforts are underway to evacuate all Indian students from Ukraine: Union Minister G Kishan Reddy (ANI)
14 students from Goa were studying in Ukraine out of which 2 have reached their homes, 3 have crossed the border & reached Romania. The remaining students are in touch with Indian Embassy. We are trying to evacuate all Indian citizens stranded in Ukraine: Goa CM Pramod Sawant (ANI)
Delhi govt to provide conveyance to Delhi residents evacuated from Ukraine and brought to Hindon airbase: Transport Minister Kailash Gahlot (PTI)
National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) sends relief material, including blankets and sleeping mats, to Ukraine (PTI)
Operation Ganga: Nearly 17,000 Indians left Ukraine, 15 flights scheduled in next 24 hrs, says MEA (ANI)
PM Narendra Modi to chair high-level meeting on Ukraine issue at 8:30 pm: Govt sources (PTI)
Union Minister Kiren Rijiju met Indian students who reached Slovakia's Kosice from Ukraine amid conflict between Russia and Ukraine
— ANI (@ANI) March 2, 2022
"We are waiting for the flight to return to our home country," said students pic.twitter.com/F8O4jv0jDY
Four IAF aircraft with approximately 800 Indian evacuees to land at Hindon airbase between 1.30 am tonight and 8 am tomorrow morning. Minister for State Ajay Bhatt to receive them.
Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan writes a letter to PM Modi & sought his "urgent intervention with the Russian leadership to set up a humanitarian corridor for students to come out of the war zone…" pic.twitter.com/O6PvFOxnJA
— ANI (@ANI) March 2, 2022
In an urgent advisory, the India embassy in Ukraine on Wednesday asked all Indians stranded in Kharkiv to leave the conflict zone immediately.
The embassy asked Indians to proceed to settlements in Pesochin, Babaye and Bezlyudovka as soon as possible.
“For their safety and security, they must leave Kharkiv immediately repeat immediately in the light of the detriorating situation. They should proceed to Pesochin, Babaye and Bezlyudovka as soon as possible for their safety,” the embassy said. | READ MORE
Chandan Jindal, an Indian national in Ukraine lost his life due to natural causes. His family is also in Ukraine: Arindam Bagchi, MEA spokesperson (ANI)
We now estimate that nearly 17000 Indians left Ukraine's borders since our advisories were issued in mid-February: MEA (PTI)
Ukraine's State Emergency Service says over 2,000 civilians dead in week of war; independent confirmation not possible., reports AP
As part of ongoing #OpGanga, #IAF has deployed four C- 17 aircraft to supply relief material and evacuate Indian nationals using airfields in Romania, Poland and Hungary due to ongoing crisis in Ukraine.#HarKaamDeshKeNaam pic.twitter.com/fbaCYNXhYp
— Indian Air Force (@IAF_MCC) March 2, 2022
First IAF’s C-17 aircraft to return from Romania tonight with around 200 Indian citizens returning from Ukraine at 11 pm tonight. Two more planes will return from Poland & Hungary by early morning tomorrow: IAF officials (ANI)
Indian Air Force has till now launched four flights to bring back Indian nationals from Ukraine: IAF Officials (ANI)
A day after India reported its first casualty in Ukraine’s Kharkiv yesterday, another Indian student today died in the war-torn country due to a stroke. According to a report in the Hindustan Times, the student has been identified as Chandan Jindal of Punjab’s Barnala. He was 22 years old and was a student of Vinnytsia National Pyrogov, Memorial Medical University.
As per the reports, he was admitted to Emergency Hospital Vinnytsia after suffering an Ischemic stroke a month ago and breathed his last earlier today. His father has written to the Central government requesting to make necessary arrangements for bringing his body back home. | READ MORE
#WATCH| Union Minister for Civil Aviation Jyotiraditya Scindia ushered Srishti, an Indian national stranded in Ukraine to front row&asked fellow passengers to take care of her. She had a ligament tear&was stuck in Bucharest, she met the minister last night during #OperationGanga pic.twitter.com/yU8O1zTVdb
— ANI (@ANI) March 2, 2022
The aftermath of Russian strikes in several areas of Kyiv in Ukraine
— ANI (@ANI) March 2, 2022
Images source: Reuters pic.twitter.com/wKEMPi0j2u
Exxon Mobil Corp’s decision to exit Russia has put India’s flagship overseas firm ONGC Videsh in a fix as it is a partner in the global energy giant-operated Sakhalin-1 oil fields in Far East Russia, sources said.
ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL) and three other state-owned Indian firms hold 49.9 per cent stake in a separate Vankor oilfield in west Siberia but that investment will not be impacted as they repatriated their dividend income from last year in January 2022 and would not immediately face issues because of Russia being cut off from the global payment system SWIFT over its Ukraine invasion. | READ MORE
Russian and Belarusian athletes can compete as neutrals at the Winter Paralympics in Beijing, the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) said on Wednesday, despite calls to ban them following Russia's invasion of Ukraine for which Belarus has been a key staging area. Reuters