NZ to send $2m in humanitarian aid for Ukraine

Recap Monday morning’s developments on the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Click here for Monday afternoon’s live updates from 1News.

What you need to know:

- Kharkiv’s regional governor says the city, Ukraine’s second-largest, remains in Ukrainian control after it fought Russian troops. Meanwhile, Russian forces drew closer to its capital Kyiv.

- Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered Russian nuclear forces to be put on high alert in response to what he calls “aggressive statements” by leading NATO powers. It raises fears that the crisis could boil over into nuclear warfare.

- Ukraine has announced that a delegation would meet with Russian officials for talks at the Belarus border. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reportedly isn’t part of that delegation.

- The EU has put further restrictions on Russia, including shutting its airspace to the country and blocking more than half of Russia's central bank reserves under its sanctions. It is also buying and sending NZ$752 million worth of weapons to Ukraine.

- New Zealand is providing NZ$2 million as an initial contribution to help deliver humanitarian support to Ukraine.

1.40pm: From 1News sports reporter Matt Manukia:

Vladyslav Heraskevych is a 23-year-old Skeleton rider who recently represented Ukraine at the Beijing Winter Olympics.

While he didn’t win a medal, after one of his heats on February 11, he pulled out a banner which said “no war in Ukraine” and showed it to the camera.

The physics student tells 1News he arrived back home in Kyiv on February 15 but then fled to his father’s hometown which he didn’t want to name, only saying it’s “not so far away from Kyiv”.

He’s now preparing to fight against Russian forces to defend his home.

Vladyslav describes the process civilians go through to join the military fight. He says guns go first to people with shooting experience.

He says, in most cases, people without shooting experience haven’t been given guns. Instead, they’re being asked to look for Russian saboteurs.

“I don’t have experience in [the] army but I am ready for anything and I am ready to protect [the] city with [a] gun in my hands. I am ready. We Ukrainians will never give up.”

Vladyslav adds: “We are prepared to save our country, not prepared for dying.”

1.21pm: As war wages in Ukraine, Belarusians are casting ballots in a constitutional referendum that allows the country’s authoritarian leader, Alexander Lukashenko, to stay in power until 2035.

The revised main law also sheds Belarus’ neutral status, opening the way for stronger military cooperation with Russia, the Associated Press reports.

Russia deployed forces to Belarusian territory under the pretext of military drills and then sent them rolling into Ukraine as part of the invasion that began on Thursday.

1.10pm: From the Associated Press:

More than 500 people have been detained in Belarus for protesting against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, according to the country’s most prominent human rights group.

The Viasna human rights centre names 530 people detained across Belarus on Sunday, where demonstrations against the war spanned at least 12 cities.

The authoritarian Belarusian government is supporting Russia in the conflict.

1.05pm: Reuters reports the Russian rouble plunged nearly 20 per cent versus the dollar. Meanwhile, the Euro sank more than 1 per cent after Western nations announced a harsh set of sanctions to punish Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.

The rouble is coming as low as 104 per dollar, a more than a 19 per cent tumble.

The Australian dollar slid 0.98 per cent to US$0.71625, while New Zealand’s lost 1.10 per cent to US$0.66630.

Meanwhile, the Euro is down 1.15 per cent to US$1.1140 in early Asian trading. Reuters reports the currency is on track for its biggest one-day decline in nearly two years.

The Yen climbed 0.36 per cent to 115.06 per US dollar.

12.58pm: From the Associated Press:

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro says his government will remain neutral regarding Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Bolsonaro says he had a two-hour-long conversation with Putin on Monday to talk about the war and assured Russia’s leader that Brazil will keep a neutral position.

Brazil’s ultra-conservative president visited Putin in Moscow earlier this month before the invasion and says he does not want to “bring the consequences of the conflict” to Brazil.

Bolsonaro says Russia has no intention of carrying out any massacres and, that in some regions of Ukraine, “90 per cent of the people want to get closer to Russia”.

He also criticises Zelenskyy, saying people “entrusted the fate of the nation to a comedian”.

12.55pm: Zelenskyy is continuing talks with world leaders.

He says he’s spoken with Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, to discuss “Ukraine’s membership in the EU” and “concrete decisions on strengthening Ukraine’s defense capabilities”.

Zelenskyy says he’s also spoken to UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Polish President Andrzej Duda about “further joint steps” against Russia.

12.42pm: A recap of the morning’s events from the BBC:

12.30pm: Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta says Aotearoa will be providing $2 million in humanitarian aid to support Ukrainians impacted by “Russia’s unprovoked invasion”.

She says the initial figure will help support people’s health, food and hygiene needs.

Mahuta says New Zealand will continue to monitor events in Ukraine.

“We know the consequences of Russia’s actions will be significant, and tragically many of these will fall on innocent civilians. We repeat our call, alongside international partners, for Russia to cease military operations in Ukraine, and immediately and permanently withdraw to avoid a catastrophic and pointless loss of innocent life.

“Russia must take all possible steps to protect civilians in line with international humanitarian law, and return to diplomatic negotiations to de-escalate the conflict,” she says.

“It is deeply disturbing to hear reports of the growing numbers of deaths and injuries from this conflict. The harrowing and horrific images of displaced, or suffering civilians, in Ukraine speak volumes of this unfolding tragedy and underline the consequences of Russia’s unprovoked aggression.”

New Zealand also provides annual funds to a UN emergency response fund, which has announced it will put $20 million towards helping humanitarian agencies scale up their Ukraine response.

An estimated 400,000 Ukrainians have fled their homes since Russia invaded on Thursday.

11.56am: There continue to be protests in Russia against the invasion of Ukraine, including in St Petersburg. Authorities are still detaining demonstrators, AFP reports.

11.45am: Russian Defense Ministry spokesperson Major General Igor Konashenkov tells state-backed media outlet RT his military has destroyed 254 tanks and armoured vehicles and 31 aircraft in Ukraine.

In addition, Russian forces have taken out 46 rocket launchers, 103 pieces of artillery and mortars, and 164 pieces of special military vehicles, he says.

RT, as well as the Russian state-owned media outlet Sputnik, were banned in the EU earlier today.

EU President Ursula von der Leyen says the outlets “will no longer be able to spread their lies to justify Putin’s war”.

11.22am: US ABC reports Senator Tom Cotton, R-Ark. has refused to condemn former President Donald Trump’s praise of Putin.

On Sunday at the Conservative Political Action Conference, Trump condemned the invasion of Russia.

“The problem is not that Putin is smart, which of course he’s smart. But the real problem is that our leaders are dumb,” Trump said.

It follows an earlier interview on the radio programme The Clay Travis & Buck Sexton Show. There, Trump said Putin’s actions were “genius” and “savvy”.

11.20am: Associated Press photographers capture everyday Ukrainians taking up arms as civilian soldiers to repel a Russian invasion. Some of those images below:

11.11am: Abdulla Shahid, President of the UN General Assembly, confirms the emergency special session of the assembly will take place at 4am New Zealand time on Tuesday.

Only 10 such meetings have been called in the history of the UN. The assembly makes urgent, non-binding decisions or recommendations regarding a particular issue.

11.07am: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is calling Putin's nuclear alert "a distraction from the reality of what's going on in Ukraine", the BBC reports.

Johnson says Ukrainians are fighting back with more resistance than the Kremlin was anticipating.

11.00am: From the Associated Press:

The US, for the first time, approved the direct delivery of Stinger missiles to Ukraine as part of a package announced by the White House today.

The exact timing of delivery is not known, but officials say the US is currently working on the logistics of the shipment. The officials agreed to discuss the development only if not quoted by name.

The decision comes on the heels of Germany’s announcement that it will send 500 Stinger missiles and other weapons and supplies to Ukraine.

The high-speed Stingers are very accurate and are used to shoot down helicopters and other aircraft. Ukrainian officials have been asking for more of the powerful weapons.

Estonia has also been providing Ukraine with Stingers since January, and in order to do that had to get US permission.

Meanwhile, Canada will send an additional N$37 million worth of defensive military equipment to Ukraine in an effort to help the country defend against Russia’s invasion.

Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly says the equipment includes helmets, body armour, gas masks and night-vision gear.

She says it will be routed through Poland to get there as quickly as possible.

Anand says Canada will offer up cybersecurity experts who can help Ukraine “defend its networks against cyber attacks that are increasingly forming part of modern-day warfare".

10.55am: Demonstrations are taking place around the world in support of Ukraine.

10.39am: From the Associated Press:

The UN Security Council has voted for the 193-member General Assembly to hold an emergency session on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Eleven voted in favour to authorise an emergency meeting. Russia opposed. China, India and the United Arab Emirates abstained.

That was the exact same vote on an earlier resolution demanding that Moscow immediately stop its attack on Ukraine and withdraw all troops. But, in that case, Russia used its veto and the resolution was defeated.

10.25am: Ukraine's Ministry of Internal Affairs says in a Facebook update 352 civilians, including 14 children, have been killed.

The ministry says 1684 people, including 116 children, have been injured.

The statement doesn’t say how many people in Ukraine’s armed forces have been hurt or killed in the conflict.

Meanwhile, Russia maintains it’s targeting only Ukrainian military facilities, not civilians.

10.20am: Charity Save the Children says there are reports that up to 10 children have been killed in the fighting and the bombing of schools in Ukraine.

Figures from the UN show at least six schools have faced shelling in recent days. Two teachers were also killed on Friday when a missile hit a school in Gorlovka, eastern Ukraine.

The charity has spoken to 15-year-old Eva, who fled her village with her parents after her school was shelled.

"But my grandparents, many children, my classmates, old people and people who have no opportunity to leave remained in the village," she says in an audio testimony.

"From those who left the village, I know that almost every second house was damaged and our school also affected. There were direct hits on it."

Irina Saghoyan, Save the Children’s Eastern Europe director, says with every school damaged, children’s prospects diminish.

"Schools, teachers, and students must be protected from attack. The protection of civilians and essential civilian infrastructure, such as schools and hospitals, must be the absolute priority of all parties. It is their legal obligation to minimise civilian suffering in this conflict," Saghoyan says.

10.12am: The New Zealand Parliament will be flying the Ukrainian flag today, Speaker Trevor Mallard says.

10.10am: CNN reports that Oleksandr Svidlo, the acting mayor of Berdyansk in south Ukraine, writes in a Facebook post that Russian forces have entered and taken control of the town.

"A few hours ago, you and I witnessed how heavy military equipment and armed soldiers entered the city and began advancing throughout our hometown. As soon as I learned about that, I tried to inform all the residents of the city so that you have the opportunity to hide in shelters," Svidlo says.

"Some time ago, armed soldiers entered the executive committee building and introduced themselves as soldiers of the Russian army, they informed us that all administrative buildings were under their control and that they were taking control of the executive committee building."

He says he doesn't know what the future will bring, "but I think tonight will be very, very hard".

The town has a small naval base and is home to about 100,000 people.

9.55am: Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko is retracting an earlier statement to the Associated Press where he indicated his city was "encircled" by Russian forces.

Klitschko is now saying on Telegram that it is "disinformation".

A spokesperson for Klitschko tells Kyiv Independent that the Mayor misspoke.

9.45am: In an address, Zelenskyy says a delegation from Ukraine will meet with Russian officials at Pripyat in Belarus.

The Guardian reports, translating his speech, that Zelenskyy says he isn’t confident any progress would be made.

9.38am: From the Associated Press:

FIFA backed away from immediately expelling Russia from World Cup qualifying on Monday but says it remained an option, deciding instead the squad can play at neutral venues using the “RFU" acronym for the country's football federation.

The compromise was immediately rejected by Poland, which says it would still refuse to play Russia in a World Cup playoff semifinal, which is scheduled for March 24.

“Today’s FIFA decision is totally unacceptable,” Polish football federation President Cezary Kulesza says.

Read the full story here.

9.30am: The UN Security Council is meeting. Watch live here:

A Security Council meeting was called after Russia used its veto to shut down a resolution at an earlier meeting, which demanded Russia stop its attack and withdraw its troops from Ukraine.

The vote only needs a majority of nine in favour to pass. The five permanent council members — Russia, China, the US, France, and the UK — can’t use their vetoes because the vote is only procedural.

Ukraine is asking for an emergency session of the 193-member General Assembly in light of Russia’s invasion of its country.

The resolution gives the General Assembly the power to call emergency meetings to consider matters of international peace and security when the Security Council is unable to act because of the lack of unanimity among its five veto-wielding permanent members.

9.27am: Spain’s leader Pedro Sánchez says the country is sending aid to Ukraine.

9.15am: Dr Sanjana Hattotuwa, a researcher at Te Pūnaha Matatini who studies misinformation and disinformation, says he's noticed an increase in pro-Putin content in niche websites and accounts, including in New Zealand.

It follows the EU's move earlier today to ban Russian state news media RT and Sputnik.

9.11am: National's foreign affairs spokesperson Gerry Brownlee says Putin's decision to put his nuclear forces on high alert is a "massive escalation".

He says New Zealand needs to respond by joining all sanctions.

National MP Judith Collins says the situation is "bloody dreadful".

9.06am: Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko confirms to the Associated Press that nine civilians in the city have been killed so far, including one child.

8.59am: The BBC reports all member countries of the EU have agreed to take in Ukrainian refugees for up to three years.

The refugees won’t be required to first apply for asylum.

Meanwhile, humanitarian aid is on the way to Ukraine, according to the Turkish Red Crescent.

8.51am: From the Associated Press:

While hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians flee their country, some Ukrainian men and women are returning home from across Europe to help defend their homeland in the face of Russia's invasion.

Poland’s Border Guard says that some 22,000 people have crossed into Ukraine since Thursday, when Russia invaded the country.

At the checkpoint in Medyka, in southeastern Poland, many are standing in line to cross into Ukraine.

“We have to defend our homeland. Who else if not us?” says a moustachioed man in front of a group of some 20 Ukrainian truck drivers walking at the border checkpoint.

Another man in the group says: “The Russians should be afraid. We are not afraid."

8.40am: The Football Association says England will not be playing against Russia in international fixtures "for the foreseeable future". It joins Poland, Sweden and the Czech Republic who are also refusing to play football with Russia.

The FA says it made the decision "out of solidarity with Ukraine and to wholeheartedly condemn the atrocities being committed by the Russian leadership".

8.36am: "The oxygen supply situation is nearing a very dangerous point in Ukraine," WHO Director-General and WHO Regional Director for Europe warns.

Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and Dr Hans Henri P. Kluge are calling for critical medical supplies to safely reach those who need them.

"Compounding the risk to patients, critical hospital services are also being jeopardised by electricity and power shortages, and ambulances transporting patients are in danger of getting caught in the crossfire."

They say WHO is working with its partners to establish safe corridor for shipments to Ukraine through Poland.

8.27am: The Mayor of Kyiv, Vitali Klitschko, tells the Associated Press all routes out of the capital are "blocked".

As Russian troops draw closer to the Ukrainian capital, Klitschko is both filled with pride over his citizens’ spirit and anxious about how long they can hold out.

In an interview with the Associated Press a few hours ago, after a gruelling night of Russian attacks on the outskirts of the city, Klitschko was silent for several seconds when asked if there were plans to evacuate civilians if Russian troops managed to take Kyiv.

“We can’t do that, because all ways are blocked,” he finally says. “Right now we are encircled.”

Russian troops’ advance on the city has been slower than many military experts expected.

“We are at the border of a humanitarian catastrophe,” Klitschko says. “Right now, we have electricity, right now we have water and heating in our houses. But the infrastructure is destroyed to deliver the food and medication.”

8.17am: The Kyiv Independent reports there is another air raid alert in Kyiv.

8.15am: Putin has temporarily lost his most senior official position in world sports.

The International Judo Federation cites “the ongoing war conflict in Ukraine” for suspending Putin’s honorary president status.

The Russian President is a keen judoka and attended the sport at the 2012 London Olympics.

8.08am: From the Associated Press:

Some early signs are emerging of significant economic consequences to Russia following its invasion of Ukraine.

While official quotes for the Russian ruble were unchanged at roughly 84 rubles to US$1, one online Russian bank, Tinkoff, is giving an unofficial exchange rate of 152 rubles over the weekend.

Videos from Russia show long lines of Russians trying to withdraw cash from ATMs, while the Russian Central Bank issued a statement calling for calm, in an effort to avoid bank runs.

Reports also show that Visa and Mastercard are no longer being accepted for those with international bank accounts.

“Banks and credit card companies dealing with Russia are going into lockdown mode given the fast pace and increasing bite of the sanctions,” says Amanda DeBusk, a partner with Dechert LLP.

Russia may have to temporarily close bank branches or declare a national bank holiday to protect its financial system, analysts say.

“If there’s a full-scale banking panic, that’s a driver of crisis in its own right,” says Adam Tooze, a professor of history at Columbia University and Director of the European Institute.

“A rush into dollars by the Russian general population moves things into an entirely new domain of financial warfare.”

8.02am: Ukraine-based Al Jazeera reporter Liz Cookman says Mariupol in the country's south-east is surrounded by Russian troops.

She says air sirens are also ringing in Dnipro.

7.52am: Belgium will be sending Ukraine more military equipment, Zelenskyy says.

7.47am: Ukrainian Ambassador to the US Oksana Markarova tells CNN Zelenskyy won’t be part of the delegation heading to the Belarus border to speak with Russian officials.

Markarova says Zelenskyy will stay in Ukraine to help defend the country. On Sunday, the US offered Zelenskyy transport to evacuate Kyiv. He turned down the offer.

Markarova tells CNN although Ukraine is ready to talk, it will not surrender.

7.43am: Ardern tells Breakfast she agrees with Kasparov that the “world needs to take a stand” against the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and that New Zealand has been strong on condemning the attacks.

She says New Zealand is not in the same position as other nations for deploying military aid, but is supporting humanitarian efforts.

Among the actions taken by the New Zealand Government include targeted travel bans, the prohibition of the export of goods to Russian military and security forces, and the suspension of bilateral foreign ministry consultations until further notice.

7.31am: Kasparov says Putin has been planning for Ukraine's invasion in plain sight, thinking he'd get away with it.

But, Putin has "reached a point where the world couldn’t tolerate any more of his aggression", he says.

"It’s tragic we had to walk that far, and Ukraine is paying with their lives."

He says Western powers “could have stopped Putin eight years ago” during the illegal annexation of Crimea. Instead, according to Kasparov, the West didn’t take Putin seriously and didn’t place stringent sanctions on him.

He says that's allowed Putin to build up a war chest of sorts. The Washington Post reports Russia's central bank had US$640 billion in foreign exchange reserves, largely in the computers of Western central banks, as of February 18.

7.27am: Kasparov says "New Zealand's voice must be heard" in the world's condemnation of Russia's actions in Ukraine.

That's because it's not about just Ukraine, but the world, he says.

The human rights advocate says China is watching events unfold. He says if Putin is allowed to succeed, "Taiwan might be next".

On Friday, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said Russia was undergoing an “illegal invasion of Ukraine”.

“New Zealand calls on Russia to do what is right and immediately cease military operations in Ukraine and permanently withdraw to avoid a catastrophic and pointless loss of innocent life,” she said last week.

Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta says New Zealand is also exploring its options to provide humanitarian aid.

7.12am: Soviet Union-born Human Rights Foundation chairperson, ardent Putin credit, and retired chess legend Garry Kasparov will be speaking to Breakfast in a few minutes.

7.10am: From the Associated Press:

BP says it is exiting its share in Rosneft, a state-owned Russian oil and gas company.

BP has held a 19.75 per cent stake in Rosneft since 2013. The British company says its CEO, Bernard Looney, and former BP executive Bob Dudley will immediately resign from Rosneft’s board.

“Like so many, I have been deeply shocked and saddened by the situation unfolding in Ukraine and my heart goes out to everyone affected. It has caused us to fundamentally rethink BP’s position with Rosneft,” Looney says in a statement.

6.58am: From the Associated Press:

Some 66,000 refugees have entered Hungary from Ukraine since the beginning of the Russian invasion on Thursday, with more than 23,000 entering on Saturday alone, according to the Hungarian police and Hungary’s foreign minister.

Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto says that his government would send 100,000 litres of gasoline and diesel to Ukrainian authorities for use by paramedics, medical institutions and disaster management.

“Hungary has a role to play in humanitarian disaster response and relief,” Szijjarto says.

Some 28 tonnes of food aid has also been sent into Ukraine so far, Szijjarto says, adding that Hungary would provide 1 million euros (NZ$1.6 million) in aid to Ukraine on Monday.

Hungary’s government says it will allow all citizens and legal residents of Ukraine to enter Hungary as refugees, emphasising that none will be turned away if they can prove legal status in Ukraine.

In a declaration on Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy banned men aged 18 to 60 who are Ukrainian citizens to leave the country.

6.47am: Polish President Andrzej Duda tweets:

The Associated Press reports the US joined European allies on Saturday in dramatically escalating financial penalties against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, after the West’s initial rounds of sanctions failed to deter Putin's military offensive.

Two of the key new measures target the heart of Russia's financial system, its Central Bank, and cut an unspecified number of Russia's banks off from the SWIFT financial network. SWIFT is a vital element of global commerce and banking that moves money from bank to bank around the world.

6.45am: For the first time, the Russian defence ministry has acknowledged casualties in Ukraine, according to reporting by state-owned Russian News Agency TASS.

The ministry tells TASS there are "losses", and Russian forces have been "killed and wounded". However, it hasn't given any figures, only that it is "several times less" than Ukraine's losses.

Ukraine claims that its forces killed 3500 Russian troops since the start of the attack on Thursday.

Ukraine says the Russian military have hit 1067 Ukrainian military facilities, including 27 command posts and communication centres, 38 air defence missile system and 56 radar stations.

6.38am: Get a wrap of overnight developments from Ukraine below from the BBC:

6.34am: The latest from 1News' US correspondent Anna Burns Francis:

US Defence officials are wrapping up a background meeting on the situation in Ukraine.

The officials say Russian forces are running into fuel and logistical issues. They also say that of the 320 missiles launched so far by Russia, a number of them have run into failure issues.

Russian forces are making advances in the streets of Kyiv, and Russian forces have been caught wearing Ukrainian army uniforms, the US officials say.

They've called Putin's decision to put nuclear forces on high alert an "unnecessary escalation".

6.25am: The EU has announced a range of new sanctions against Russia.

Among them include the banning of all Russian aircraft from its airspace, the banning of state-owned media outlets Russia Today and Sputnik, and an extension of sanctions to target Belarus, President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen says.

She says the sanctions against Belarus would target its “most important sectors”, and that Alexander Lukashenko, the President of Belarus, is “complicit in the vicious attack against Ukraine”.

For the first time in history, the EU also says it intends to start shipping arms to Ukraine.

It’s after Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused the West of largely leaving his country to fend for itself.

6.20am: Ata mārie and welcome to live coverage of the fighting in Ukraine from 1News.

The Associated Press reports tensions are escalating after Putin ordered Russian nuclear forces to be put on high alert on Monday in response to what he calls “aggressive statements” by leading NATO powers.

The directive to put Russia’s nuclear weapons in an increased state of readiness for launch raises fears that the crisis may boil over into nuclear warfare, whether by design or mistake.