Ukrainian crisis

The caretaker government is preparing a request for a derogation if the European Union imposes sanctions against Russian nuclear energy, Deputy Minister of Energy Elenko Bozhkov told BNT.

President Vladimir Putin on Thursday vowed a decisive response to any country threatening Russia and lashed out against Germany for promising tanks for Kiev.

His threats came after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned that the Kremlin was consolidating its forces for a fresh offensive.

"We will continue to deny it," Lavrov said and added that no one is trying to convince Kyiv to return to the negotiating table with Moscow. "Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky is not independent, he is being manipulated," he believes.

She added that, if the United States of America wanted to, they would bring Kyiv to the negotiating table in 24 hours.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Astana, Kazakhstan, October 2022. Photo: EPA-EFE/VYACHESLAV PROKOFYEV / KREMLIN / SPUTNIK

The TurkStat figures show that in the January-December 2022 period, imports had a value of $363.71 billion, a 34 per cent increase on the previous year. Imports from Russia have doubled in value.

"The war in Ukraine also shows that our security is closely interconnected," Stoltenberg said during a visit to the Iruma air base north of Tokyo.

Turkey is the main point of dissonance in the unity of the Western Alliance against the Russian invasion of Ukraine, according to retired admiral James Stavridis.

President Joe Biden said Monday the United States would not provide F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine, as Kiev expands the list of weaponry it needs to be better able to drive Russian forces from occupied territories.

Fighting continued at key points along the long front as Russian forces sought to expand their hold on territory in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine.

President Vladimir Putin threatened to personally target Boris Johnson with a missile attack just before ordering Russian forces into Ukraine, the former UK prime minister has claimed.

The apparent threat came in a phone call just ahead of the invasion on February 24, according to a new BBC documentary to be broadcast on Monday.

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

Kyiv is negotiating the supply of long-range missiles

Ukraine is in intensive talks with its allies to provide long-range missiles. Kyiv introduced sanctions against hundreds of companies from Russia and Belarus.