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Ukrainian President Zelenskyy in mid-February visiting troops
Photo: Ukrainian Presidency / Handout / picture alliance / AA
This article is continuously updated.
Russia's Foreign Minister Lavrov will probably not fly to UN meetings
1:28 a.m .:
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will probably not be able to travel to the meeting of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva because of the blocking of EU airspace for Russian aircraft.
The United Nations Secretariat could not guarantee the participation of the Russian delegation, said Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, according to the agencies Tass and Interfax on Russian state television.
Germany and all EU countries decided on Sunday to block the airspace for Russian planes in response to the attack on Ukraine.
The UN Human Rights Council meets in Geneva on Monday for its regular spring session.
Lavrov was originally on the list of speakers for Tuesday.
In the UN Human Rights Council, 47 countries, each elected for three years by the UN General Assembly, deal with the human rights situation around the world.
Currently, these include Russia and the other four permanent members of the Security Council, as well as Ukraine and Germany.
Zelenskyj: The next 24 hours are crucial
1:12 a.m .:
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has spoken to British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on the phone.
According to a British government spokesman, Zelenskyy said, among other things, that the next 24 hours would be "crucial" for Ukraine.
Switzerland could freeze Russian assets on Monday
12:48 a.m .:
After increasing criticism from home and abroad, Switzerland is expected to freeze Russian assets on Monday.
It is "very likely" that the Federal Council will decide this at an extraordinary meeting on Monday, Swiss President Ignazio Cassis told the Swiss television station SRF.
He cannot yet anticipate the result, but the final decision will definitely take Switzerland's neutrality into account.
In response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, numerous Western countries have imposed financial and economic sanctions on Russia.
The pressure on Switzerland has recently increased to impose similarly strong penalties – especially since Switzerland is valued as a financial center by Russian oligarchs.
The EU foreign ministers decided on Sunday evening, in consultation with the group of leading industrial nations (G7), to block all transactions by the Russian state bank.
This further limits the options for the Russian central bank to support the ruble exchange rate with international financial transactions.
The measure should come into force before the stock market opens on Monday.
Kiev and Moscow apparently want to negotiate on Monday morning
12:15 a.m .:
Talks between Ukraine and Russia about a possible peace solution are scheduled to begin in the morning hours on Monday.
This is reported by the Russian state agency Tass and Ukrainska Pravda.
Actually, the meeting should have started on Sunday.
The reason for the delay is the "logistics of the Ukrainian delegation," writes Tass, citing an anonymous source.
The Russian delegation has already left Minsk and traveled to the conference venue.
The talks are to take place in the Gomel region of Belarus, which lies on the Ukrainian-Belarusian border.
Kiev had not set any conditions for the meeting, the Ukrainian Presidential Office had previously announced.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was skeptical: "I don't believe in the outcome of this meeting, but let's try."
Von der Leyen is in favor of Ukraine joining the EU
12:02 a.m .:
EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen has spoken out in favor of Ukraine joining the EU.
After a Euronews reporter asked whether the country should be included in the community, von der Leyen said: "Over time, they do indeed belong to us.
You are one of us and we want you in.« She also emphasized that there are already several areas of cooperation.
aar/dpa/AFP/AP/Reuters
