RUSSIA-UKRAINE LIVE: Dozens of civilians killed as Kharkiv hit by rocket strikes
RUSSIA-UKRAINE LIVE: Hackers take down Putin’s propaganda machine, Roman Abramovich ‘heads for peace talks in Belarus’, British volunteers join fight in Ukraine while petrol prices hit all-time high at 176p litre in UK
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Dozens of civilians have been killed and hundreds wounded after Russian rocket artillery fired in Ukraine’s second-largest city of Kharkiv, authorities said today.
And fresh measures to help Ukrainian refugees fleeing the Russian invasion are likely to be introduced as the UK Government came under pressure to act.
Meanwhile Defence Secretary Ben Wallace dismissed Vladimir Putin putting his nuclear forces on high alert as being a part of the Kremlin’s ‘battle of rhetoric’.
In addition, the Russian central bank was forced to sharply raise its key interest rate to save the rouble from collapse as the war worsened the humanitarian crisis.
Ahead of an emergency United Nations General Assembly meeting, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the next 24 hours would be a ‘crucial period’.
In the meantime, Russian and Ukrainian forces have again been engaged in heavy fighting ahead of the widely expected assault on the capital.
Ukrainian defenders have put up stiff resistance, but a US official cautioned that far stronger Russian forces inevitably will learn and adapt their tactics.
A Ukrainian delegation is due to meet the Russians today on the Belarus border, but Mr Zelensky has indicated he sees little prospect of any meaningful dialogue.
It was claimed Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich is trying to broker a deal to end to the war in Ukraine and has already arrived in Belarus to assist in peace talks.
Also today, petrol prices have skyrocketed today with one BP garage selling it for 175.9p a litre while the average soared to 151p for the first time ever.
And the Anonymous group have targeted three Russian state news agencies and taken down the Kremlin website after Russia painted Ukrainian troops as ‘Nazis’.
Here, follow MailOnline’s live blog for all the updates on the crisis in Ukraine today:
