CNBC is continuously publishing live updates about the ongoing Russia-Ukraine War in its website.
Mariupol mayor reports mass casualties from nonstop Russian attack
The Ukrainian port city of Mariupol is suffering mass casualties and a water outage as it defends itself from a nonstop onslaught by Russian forces, Mayor Vadym Boichenko said in a live broadcast on Ukrainian TV on Wednesday.
“The enemy occupying forces of the Russian Federation have done everything to block the exit of civilians from the city of half a million people,” he said. He did not provide an exact casualty figure.
War may lead to rise in terrorism, cyberterrorism, says report
The Global Terrorism Index (GTI) 2022 published on March 2 has warned that there will a massive rise in terrorism, especially cyberterrorism, which had witnessed a downward trend in the recent past.
“The Ukraine conflict is likely to reverse gains in Russia and Eurasia, which recorded the largest improvement on the GTI in 2021,” the report by the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP) said. Founder and Chairman Steve Killelea added that the global fight against terrorism would be “sidelined” as the war between Russia and Ukraine escalates.
Biden flubs during his first State of Union address
US President Joe Biden appears to have made a gaffe during his maiden State of the Union speech, calling Ukrainians the “Iranian people” while urging them to stand united against the “unprovoked” Russian aggression. In his widely-anticipated address on Tuesday night, Biden pledged to check Russian aggression in Ukraine, tame soaring US inflation and deal with the COVID-19 pandemic.
During his speech, Biden, while aiming for an inspiring moment of support against the Russian aggression, said to an awkward slow clap: “Putin may circle Kyiv with tanks, but he’ll never gain the hearts and souls of the Iranian people.” “He’ll never, he’ll never extinguish their love of freedom,” Biden said before someone yelled from the crowd.
Biden continued and added, “He (Putin) will never weaken the resolve of the free world, receiving thunderous applause and a standing ovation from the crowd. At 79, Biden is the oldest sitting US President. The moment quickly went viral online as videos were widely shared by political commentators like former Trump administration staffer Sebastian Gorka tagging it as an example of a #SenilePresident. So far the incident has been viewed over 1 million times.”
Russia wants to reinstate fugitive Ukrainian leader
Russia wants to declare former Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych as the new leader of Ukraine, the Ukrayinska Pravda news and analysis website has reported, quoting Ukrainian intelligence.
Yanukovych was ousted during anti-government protests in 2013-14 and is now in Minsk, according to the Ukrainian website’s source. He fled to Russia in 2014.
The Kremlin may be preparing a media operation or campaign to bring Yanukovych back to Ukraine, or publish an address from him to the Ukrainian people, the newspaper said.
In January the UK said Moscow was plotting to install a pro-Moscow figure to lead Ukraine’s government.
The Foreign Office named former Ukrainian MP Yevhen Murayev as a potential Kremlin candidate.
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Source: CNBC
