Day 338 of the Invasion of Ukraine: Nuclear Regulator reported Strong Explosions near the Zaporizhzhia NPP (UPDATED)

Here are the highlights of events related to the war in Ukraine over the past 24 hours:

The EU extends economic sanctions against Russia until July 31

The Council of the European Union, representing the member states, announced today that it has decided to extend by six months, until July 31, the restrictive measures aimed at certain sectors of the Russian economy.

The sanctions, first introduced in 2014 in response to Russian actions destabilizing the situation in Ukraine, were significantly expanded from February 2022 following the military aggression against Ukraine.

The measures include restrictions on trade, finance, technology and dual-use goods, manufacturing, transportation and luxury goods.

They include a ban on the import or shipping by sea of crude oil and certain petroleum products from Russia to the EU, the exclusion of several Russian banks from the SWIFT international payment system, and the suspension of several Kremlin-backed disinformation media outlets.

In addition to the economic sanctions against the Russian Federation, the EU introduced various types of measures in response to Russia's destabilizing actions against Ukraine, the message recalls.

These include: restrictions on economic relations with illegally annexed Crimea and the city of Sevastopol, as well as with Donetsk and Luhansk regions; individual restrictive measures (asset freezes and travel restrictions) on a wide range of citizens and organizations, as well as diplomatic measures.

Ukraine may boycott the Olympics if Russians are allowed to participate

Ukraine does not rule out boycotting the Olympics if Russian and Belarusian athletes are allowed to compete at the Paris Games in 2024,...