Russia-Ukraine conflict updates: Biden unveils more sanctions after Russia takes Chernobyl

Zelenskyy orders full military mobilization to counter Russia

Zelenskyy said he was ordering a full mobilization of the Ukraine armed forces to counter Russia’s attacks.

The mobilization will be carried out within 90 days from the date of entry into force, he said in a statement.

Zelenskyy also confirmed that 137 people have been killed and that 316 have been injured thus far since the attacks began Thursday.

Why would Russia want to take Chernobyl?

Few places conjure more foreboding than Chernobyl, the site of the deadly 1986 nuclear disaster. So alarm bells rang in the West when Russian forces seized the decommissioned power plant in the early hours of their invasion of Ukraine on Thursday.

Why would Russia make a radioactive wasteland one of its very first targets in Ukraine?

While the full answer may be known only to top officials in Moscow, the site happens to lie along one of the most direct paths to Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital.

“The location is important because of where it sits,” retired Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges, former commanding general of U.S. Army Europe, said in an interview. “If Russian forces were attacking Kyiv from the north, Chernobyl is right there on the way, almost in the way.”

Chernobyl is less than 10 miles from Ukraine’s border with Belarus, a Russian ally where Moscow has been massing troops in preparation for its attack on Ukraine. From there, it’s a relatively straight shot of about 80 miles south to Kyiv.

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Russia sanctions are a ‘big deal,’ experts say. But effects could take years.

The flurry of sanctions the U.S. announced this week against Russia are some of the hardest-hitting that Moscow has ever faced, but the slow pain they inflict may not be enough to deter Putin from escalating his invasion of Ukraine, experts said.

Biden and several U.S. allies, including the European Union, the United Kingdom and Japan, have vowed to review further restrictions on Moscow as punishment for the invasion.

The sanctions that have already been announced are significant in size and scope, said former Treasury and State Department officials who handled U.S. sanctions in the past, but the longtime U.S. reliance on the national security tool has left the U.S. with few other options if Putin and Russia do not respond.

Nevertheless, the Russian economy is already feeling the effects of war, and the sanctions could over time further cause the Russian stock market to falter, deflate the value of the ruble — which hit an all-time low Thursday — and make doing business in Russia increasingly difficult.

“We’re counting a lot on sanctions, and the ones the Biden administration have put together are really pretty tough,” said Daniel Fried, a longtime diplomat and former ambassador to Poland who helped lead the West’s 2014 response to Moscow’s aggression against Ukraine as the State Department coordinator for sanctions policy. He called the recent sanctions “a big deal.” 

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Russia says it will support banks under sanctions

Russia said its central bank will support banks affected by the sanctions the U.S. and other countries imposed this week.

Leaders in Europe, Canada and the U.S. announced Thursday that they are committed to issuing severe economic sanctions following Putin’s decision to attack Ukraine. Biden took aim at Putin by mounting pressure through Russia’s economy, including the two largest majority state-owned institutions, Sberbank and VTB.

Russia issued a statement through its central bank assuring that the state has a plan to remain functioning regardless of the sanctions. 

“All operations of banks in rubles will be carried out, and the corresponding services will be provided to all customers as usual,” the statement said. “All customer funds in foreign currencies are also held and can be withdrawn in the account currency. The Bank of Russia is ready to support banks with funds in rubles and foreign currency.” 

A majority of the bank’s balance at each bank is measured in rubles, the statement insists, and “maintain a high margin of stability.”  

Some Russians share black squares on social media to indicate anti-war stance

Some well-known Russians have posted black squares on social media to publicly indicate their opposition to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. 

Black squares were shared to show solidarity with the protests in the U.S. after the death of George Floyd nearly two years ago. And Thursday, many Russians appeared to use the same tactic to show their support for the country’s anti-war movement. 

Television host and comedian Ivan Urgant posted “Fear and pain. NO to war” on Instagram, alongside a black square, for his 9.9 million followers.

Maxim Galkin, a Russian singer and comedian, posted the same black square for his 9.4 million Instagram followers, writing: “There can be no justification for war! No War!” 

Two-time Olympic figure skating silver medalist Evgenia Medvedevа wrote over a black background on her Instagram story, “I hope this all ends as soon as possible, like a bad dream,” placing a white dove emoji below the text for her 1.3 million followers.

Former television host Xenia Sobchak, whose father was a mentor to Putin, posted the black square to Instagram for her millions of followers. “We are all now locked in this situation. No exit. We, the Russians, will be dealing with the consequences of today for many years to come,” she wrote.

Russian attack on Ukraine draws protesters around the world

Saint Petersburg, Russia

Moscow

New York City

Dublin

Rome, Italy

Istanbul, Turkey

Conductor Valery Gergiev, a Putin supporter, replaced ahead of Carnegie Hall performance

Russian conductor Valery Gergiev, a known friend and supporter of Putin’s, will no longer lead a series of concerts this weekend at Carnegie Hall. 

Carnegie Hall and the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra announced Thursday that the Canadian conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin will step in for Gergiev, leading the orchestra in three concerts at Carnegie Hall from Friday through Sunday. 

No reason was cited for Gergiev’s removal from the program; his relationship with Putin reflects the global denunciation of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

In a recent interview with The New York Times, Daniel Froschauer, the orchestra’s chairman, called Gergiev a gifted artist and said he would take the podium for the Carnegie dates. “He’s going as a performer, not a politician,” Froschauer said.

Carnegie Hall and the orchestra also said the Russian pianist Denis Matsuev, who had been scheduled to perform with Gergiev and the orchestra Friday, would not appear.

Russian forces have moved closer to Kyiv, fired more than 160 missiles, says U.S. defense official

Russia has launched more than 160 missiles since it began striking Ukraine, a senior U.S. defense official said.

Russian troops, meanwhile, have moved closer to Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital, the official said Thursday, adding that the country has also sent additional airborne troops to Kharkiv, where fighting is ongoing. 

As part of its response to Russia’s aggression and in support of its NATO allies, the U.S will deploy 7,000 more troops to Germany from Fort Carson, Colorado, the Defense Department said.

57 people killed in Russian attacks, top Ukrainian health official says

Fifty-seven people have died and 169 others have been injured since the Russian attacks began Thursday, Ukrainian Health Minister Viktor Lyashko said.

Lyashko, who said there were both combat and non-combat injuries, did not differentiate between civilian and military casualties.

Medical workers are included in the numbers, as he reported that hospitals and medical workers have come under fire in areas like Avdiivka and Vuhlerad.

U.S. sanctions also target Belarus for supporting Russia

The new round of sanctions against Russia that Biden unveiled Thursday also targets another country: Belarus. 

The measures take aim at Belarusian state-owned banks and the country’s defense and security industries, as well as a number of its “regime-connected officials and elites,” for their support of Russia’s invasion, according to the Treasury Department. 

The White House said in a statement, “We call on Belarus to withdraw its support for Russian aggression in Ukraine.”

Biden announced the latest round of sanctions just hours after the United Kingdom slapped similar sanctions on Belarus, as well as Russia. Other U.S. allies are expected to follow suit.

Alexander Lukashenko, the president of Belarus and a close ally of Putin’s, said Thursday that troops from his country could be used in further Russian military operations in Ukraine if necessary, local media reported.