President Vladimir Putin warned the West on Tuesday that efforts to isolate Moscow would fail, saying the conflict in Ukraine was “noble”. Putin said on Tuesday that he had no doubt that Russia would achieve all its goals in Ukraine – a conflict he described as inevitable and necessary to defend Russia in the long run. “Her goals are very clear and noble,” Putin said. “It is clear that we had no choice. It was the right decision. “ It comes as the West seeks to investigate allegations that Russia has used chemical weapons in the besieged Ukrainian city of Mariupol. Ukrainian officials said some people had symptoms of chemical poisoning, including respiratory failure. This comes after Russian troops reportedly deployed an unknown substance in the Black Sea port. Countries, including Britain, have warned the Kremlin that all options would be on the table if President Putin crossed that red line.

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A Russian citizen has been arrested in Poland and charged with espionage

A Russian citizen in Poland has been arrested and charged with espionage, according to a spokesman for the Polish special services coordinator. The man lived in Poland for 18 years and was engaged in business, reports Reuters. He was arrested on April 6 and will be held in custody for three months, the spokesman said in a statement. “Data collected by the Military Counterintelligence Service show that the man, under instructions from the Russian special services, gathered information about the military readiness of the Polish Armed Forces and NATO troops,” they added. Sam Hancock 12 April 2022 12:24 1649762333

WTO cuts world trade forecasts for 2022 due to Russia-Ukraine war

The World Trade Organization (WTO) has revised down its forecast for world trade growth this year, from 4.7 percent to 3 percent, due to the effects of Russia’s war in Ukraine. “The economic repercussions of this conflict will extend far beyond Ukraine’s borders,” Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the WTO director general, told a news conference on Tuesday. “It is now clear that the dual catastrophe of the pandemic and the war has disrupted supply chains, increased inflationary pressures and reduced expectations for growth in production and trade.” The Geneva-based body said global trade growth in 2023 was expected to be 3.4%, noting that these estimates were less certain than usual due to uncertainty about how long the conflict would continue. Okonjo-Iweala speaks to the media in Geneva, Switzerland on Tuesday (EPA) Sam Hancock 12 April 2022 12:18 1649762103

Nearly two-thirds of Ukraine’s 7.5 million children have fled their homes since the Russian invasion, says UN

Nearly two-thirds of all Ukrainian children were forced to flee their homes six weeks after the invasion by Russian forces, according to Unicef. The UN children’s service said 4.8 million of the country’s 7.5 million children had been uprooted from the fighting, describing the scale of the displacement as “quite unbelievable”. The warning came as the latest information provided by the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine states that 183 children were killed and 342 were injured during the conflict. Our reporter, Tom Batchelor, has the full story below: Thomas Kingsley 12 April 2022 12:15 1649761203

Watch: Russian soldiers run from Ukrainian rocket bombing in Vinnytsia region

Russian troops flee Ukrainian rocket fire in Vinnytsia region Thomas Kingsley 12 April 2022 12:00 1649760303

Ukrainian troops are coming to the UK for training

Ukrainian troops will arrive in the UK “in the coming days” for training in the use of armored vehicles, the Minister of the Armed Forces confirmed. “There are 120 armored vehicles in the process of being prepared,” Mr Heappey told LBC Radio. “And the Ukrainian troops that will handle them will arrive in the UK in the next few days to learn how to drive and steer these vehicles.” James Heappey, Secretary of the Armed Forces (Sky News) Thomas Kingsley 12 April 2022 11:45 1649759403

Sanctioned Russian oligarch used shell companies to move hundreds of millions of dollars, papers claim

A Russian oligarch under sanctions with links to Vladimir Putin has managed to smuggle hundreds of millions of dollars between shell companies, according to leaked documents. Suleiman Kerimov and his business associates are said to have links to many opaque companies based around the world – including Switzerland and the Cayman Islands – behind the transfer of $ 700 million (53 538 million), according to an investigation by the International Consortium. Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), Kerimov is believed to be the 130th richest man in the world, worth $ 14.3 billion, with a specially built Boeing 737 and super yachts said to be in his private collection. Our reporter, Tom Batchelor, has the full story below: Thomas Kingsley 12 April 2022 11:30 1649758503

NEW: Putin warns West: Russia can not be isolated

President Vladimir Putin warned the West on Tuesday that efforts to isolate Moscow would fail. Russia says it will never depend on the West again after the United States and its allies imposed deadly sanctions to punish Putin for his February 24 order for what he called a “special military operation” in Ukraine. “The sanctions were complete, the isolation was complete, but the Soviet Union was still first in space,” Putin was quoted as saying by Russian state television. “We do not intend to isolate ourselves,” Putin said. “It is impossible to isolate oneself seriously in the modern world – especially such a huge country as Russia.” Putin says the “special military operation” in Ukraine is necessary because the United States was using Ukraine to threaten Russia – including through the NATO military alliance – and that Moscow had to defend Russian-speaking people in Ukraine from persecution. He said on Tuesday that he had no doubt that Russia would achieve all its goals in Ukraine – a conflict he described as inevitable and necessary to defend Russia in the long run. “Her goals are very clear and noble,” Putin said. “It is clear that we had no choice. It was the right decision. “ Thomas Kingsley 12 April 2022 11:15 1649757603

Reports of sexual violence rise in Ukraine as UN hears rape used as ‘weapon of war’ by Russian forces

Reports of sexual violence in Ukraine are on the rise, according to a senior UN official, while a human rights group has accused Russian soldiers of using rape as a weapon of war. The head of the UN for Women, Sima Bahous, told the UN Security Council on Monday night that “we hear more and more about rape and sexual violence.” “The barbarity shown against Ukrainian civilians has raised all the red flags,” Bahous said. All complaints must be investigated independently to ensure justice and accountability, he told the council. Kateryna Cherepakha, chairwoman of the human rights group La Strada-Ukraine, said her hotline had received calls accusing Russian troops of nine rape cases involving twelve women and girls. Our reporter, Holly Bancroft, has the full story below: Thomas Kingsley 12 April 2022 11:00 1649756703

President Zelensky urges EU to ratify Russian oil and banks

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has again called on the European Union to impose sanctions on all Russian banks and Russian oil and to set a deadline for ending Russian gas imports. He was speaking in a video clip to the Lithuanian parliament on Tuesday. Days come after the European Union imposed sanctions on imports of Russian coal, wood, chemicals and other products. The ban will also bar many Russian ships and cargoes from accessing the EU and will bar all transactions with four Russian banks, including VTB. (Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved) Thomas Kingsley 12 April 2022 10:45 1649755803

Photo: The magnitude of the disaster in the northern city of Kharkiv

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Thomas Kingsley 12 April 2022 10:30