April 28 2022 - 13:00
Several European traders have started to pay for Russian gas in roubles - sources
Some European traders have started to pay Russia for gas sales in roubles, while large clients have yet to do so, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters on Thursday.
"Several traders, maybe more than five, have started payments," one source said on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak to the media.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has demanded that countries he terms "unfriendly" must pay for gas in roubles or be cut off.
Under the new Russian payment system, buyers are obliged to deposit euros or dollars into an account at Gazprombank, which has then to convert them into roubles, place the proceeds in another account owned by the foreign buyer and transfer the payment in Russian currency to Gazprom.
The scheme was designed as a response to sweeping Western sanctions against Russia following the start of what Moscow calls its "special military operation" in Ukraine.Gazprom and Gazprombank did not respond to requests for comment on Thursday.
The European Commission has accused Moscow of blackmail over its demand to be paid in roubles but in an advisory note issued last week, the Commission said buyers of Russian gas could participate in the scheme if they could confirm payment was complete once they had deposited euros, as opposed to later when the euros were converted to roubles.
Russia cut off gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria on Wednesday after they refused to pay in roubles under the new arrangement stipulated by Putin.
A senior European Union official said on Thursday that Poland and Bulgaria both used their existing method to pay for Russian gas before Moscow cut their gas supplies, and the countries did not comply with Moscow's proposed mechanism to pay in roubles.
The Kremlin has said payments for deliveries that took place after Putin's decree took effect were expected in May. A source named May 20 as "validation" date for payments.
There have been mixed signals from Gazprom's top consumers of gas about the rouble scheme of payments.
Three sources said on Thursday that Italian energy group Eni has yet to make a decision regarding the payment scheme Russia has introduced and is waiting for clarity on whether it amounts to a breach of sanctions.
Uniper, Germany's main importer of Russian gas, said on Monday it would be possible to pay for future supplies without breaching European Union sanctions. However, it later said that no decision had been made.
Hungary has said it plans to pay for Russian gas in euros through Gazprombank, which will convert the payment into roubles to meet the new requirement.
Reuters
UKRAINE WRAP | Nato says it will back Kyiv 'for years' if necessary in war against Russia
April 28 2022 - 16:04
Nato says it will back Kyiv 'for years' if necessary in war against Russia
Nato is ready to maintain its support for Ukraine in the war against Russia for years, including help for Kyiv to shift from Soviet-era weapons to modern Western arms and systems, secretary-general Jens Stoltenberg said on Thursday.
He spoke after the Kremlin warned that Western arms supplies to Ukraine, including heavy weapons, posed a threat to the security of the European continent “and provoke instability”.
“We need to be prepared for the long term,” Stoltenberg told a youth summit in Brussels. “There is absolutely the possibility that this war will drag on and last for months and years.”
April 28 2022 - 13:49
NATO says ready to support Kyiv in a war against Russia that could last years
NATO is ready to support Ukraine for years in the war against Russia, including helping Kyiv to advance from old Soviet-era weapons to modern Western military equipment, the alliance's Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on Thursday.
"We need to be prepared for the long term...There is absolutely the possibility that this war will drag on and last for months and years," Stoltenberg told a youth summit in Brussels, adding that NATO allies were preparing to help Ukraine to move on to NATO-standard weapons.
Reuters
April 28 2022 - 13:45
US accuses Russia of planning to shut down Ukrainian democracy
The United States accused Russia on Thursday of planning to short-circuit Ukrainian democracy by forcing the government from power and dismantling local authorities.
"We have information that Russia's planning for its further invasion of Ukraine includes a forced capitulation of Ukraine's democratically elected government, including dissolving all local municipal governments in Ukraine," U.S. Ambassador Michael Carpenter said in an address to the Vienna-based Organization for Security and Cooperating in Europe (OSCE)."New governance structures were to be set up in 'liberated' territories under Russian control," he added in the speech posted.
Without providing evidence, he said Russian officials and pro-Moscow rebels were developing a new government and new constitution. Planning included "a moratorium disallowing legitimate Ukrainian leaders and those supporting Ukraine's legitimate government from any leadership positions".
He said the Kremlin may be preparing "sham referenda" in areas of southern and eastern Ukraine it has seized since its invasion began on Feb. 24 in an attempt to legitimize its military action and assert control over these areas.
Russia says its "special military operation" is designed to demilitarise its neighbour and remove fascists from power.Last week a Russian general said Moscow wanted to take full control over southern Ukraine, despite previous assertions that it had no territorial ambitions.
Reuters
April 28 2022 - 13:00
Several European traders have started to pay for Russian gas in roubles - sources
Some European traders have started to pay Russia for gas sales in roubles, while large clients have yet to do so, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters on Thursday.
"Several traders, maybe more than five, have started payments," one source said on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak to the media.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has demanded that countries he terms "unfriendly" must pay for gas in roubles or be cut off.
Under the new Russian payment system, buyers are obliged to deposit euros or dollars into an account at Gazprombank, which has then to convert them into roubles, place the proceeds in another account owned by the foreign buyer and transfer the payment in Russian currency to Gazprom.
The scheme was designed as a response to sweeping Western sanctions against Russia following the start of what Moscow calls its "special military operation" in Ukraine.Gazprom and Gazprombank did not respond to requests for comment on Thursday.
The European Commission has accused Moscow of blackmail over its demand to be paid in roubles but in an advisory note issued last week, the Commission said buyers of Russian gas could participate in the scheme if they could confirm payment was complete once they had deposited euros, as opposed to later when the euros were converted to roubles.
Russia cut off gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria on Wednesday after they refused to pay in roubles under the new arrangement stipulated by Putin.
A senior European Union official said on Thursday that Poland and Bulgaria both used their existing method to pay for Russian gas before Moscow cut their gas supplies, and the countries did not comply with Moscow's proposed mechanism to pay in roubles.
The Kremlin has said payments for deliveries that took place after Putin's decree took effect were expected in May. A source named May 20 as "validation" date for payments.
There have been mixed signals from Gazprom's top consumers of gas about the rouble scheme of payments.
Three sources said on Thursday that Italian energy group Eni has yet to make a decision regarding the payment scheme Russia has introduced and is waiting for clarity on whether it amounts to a breach of sanctions.
Uniper, Germany's main importer of Russian gas, said on Monday it would be possible to pay for future supplies without breaching European Union sanctions. However, it later said that no decision had been made.
Hungary has said it plans to pay for Russian gas in euros through Gazprombank, which will convert the payment into roubles to meet the new requirement.
Reuters
April 28 2022 - 12:55
Russia is not allowing evacuation of wounded fighters from Mariupol steel works - local official
Russia is not allowing wounded Ukrainian fighters to be evacuated from the Azovstal steel works where they are holed up in the southern city of Mariupol, the local governor said on Thursday.
Pavlo Kyrylenko, the Donetsk region's governor, said Russia was also not allowing humanitarian corridors to be established to evacuate civilians in the region. But he said only 370,000 residents remain in Ukrainian-controlled parts of the Donetsk region compared to 1.67 million before Russia's invasion.
Russia denies targeting civilians in the invasion.
Reuters
April 28 2022 - 10:32
Putin warns West of lightning retaliation for intervention in Ukraine
Russian President Vladimir Putin warned of lightning-fast retaliation if countries interfere in Ukraine, while US President Joe Biden was set to comment on Thursday in support of Ukraine's fight against “Russia's brutal war”.
Russia has told the US to stop sending arms to Ukraine, saying large Western deliveries of weapons were inflaming the conflict.
Addressing lawmakers in St Petersburg on Wednesday, Putin said the West wanted to cut Russia up into different pieces and accused it of pushing Ukraine into conflict with Russia.
April 28 2022 - 08:00
Biden to deliver remarks on Thursday in support of Ukraine, White House says
US President Joe Biden will deliver remarks on Thursday morning in support of Ukraine, the White House said.
"The President will deliver remarks on support for Ukrainians defending their country and their freedom against Russia's brutal war," the White House said.
Reuters
April 28 2022 - 07:40
Britain says Russia's Black Sea fleet retains ability to strike Ukraine
Russia's Black Sea fleet retains the ability to strike Ukrainian and coastal targets, despite its losses of the landing ship Saratov and the cruiser Moskva, Britain's defence ministry said on Thursday.
About 20 Russian Navy vessels, including submarines, are in the Black Sea operational zone, the ministry said on Twitter.
"The Bosphorus Strait remains closed to all non-Turkish warships, rendering Russia unable to replace its lost cruiser Moskva in the Black Sea," it added in the regular bulletin.
Reuters could not immediately verify the report.
Reuters
April 28 2022 - 07:00
Air defence activated in Russia's Belgorod - TASS
Air defence systems were active in the Russian city of Belgorod in the early hours of Thursday, the TASS news agency cited the local government as saying.
The Belgorod province borders Ukraine's Luhansk, Sumy and Kharkiv regions, all of which have seen heavy fighting since Russia invaded Ukraine two months ago. Russia has accused Ukraine of carrying out strikes on targets in the region.
Reuters
April 28 2022 - 06:30
Ukraine farmer refuses to leave home shelter
Ukrainian farmer Bogryap has converted his cellar into a bomb shelter with minimal supplies and refuses to flee his village of Studenok as fighting rages on nearby.
April 28 2022 - 06:15
China drone-maker DJI halts Russia, Ukraine sales
Drone giant DJI Technology said it will temporarily suspend business in Russia and Ukraine to ensure its products are not used in combat, making it the first major Chinese firm to cite the conflict in halting sales in Russia.
April 28 2022 - 06:00
UN Secretary General describes meeting with Putin as ‘very useful’
UN Secretary General António Guterres speaks with CNN's Anderson Cooper after his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.