EU bans diesel and other Russian petroleum products : NPR

Black smoke rises after a shelling in Bakhmut, eastern Ukraine, February 3, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Yasuyoshi Chiba/AFP via Getty Images

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Yasuyoshi Chiba/AFP via Getty Images

Black smoke rises after a shelling in Bakhmut, eastern Ukraine, February 3, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Yasuyoshi Chiba/AFP via Getty Images

Here’s a preview and roundup of the main developments from the past week.

What to watch

As the war approaches its first year, on February 24 Ukrainian officials and Western analysts warned that Russia would likely launch a decisive offensive in the Donbass region of eastern Ukraine in the weeks to come. come. Fighting in the east has already intensified, especially around the town of Bakhmut.

A Ukrainian government reshuffle that began last month could escalate, with some politicians calling for the removal of the most senior official yet: the defense minister.

Rafael Mariano Grossi, director of the International Atomic Energy Agency, is due to go to Moscow this week. Grossi, who has repeatedly been warned about the safety of Ukraine’s troubled nuclear power plants, will meet with representatives of the Russian Foreign Ministry and the national energy company, but Russian President Vladimir Putin will not meet him, said the Kremlin.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky expressed condolences and offered assistance to Turkey after a major earthquake on Monday morning. Turkey hosts tens of thousands of Ukrainian war refugees.

Market analysts and motorists are watching for any rise in diesel pump prices after the European Union banned Russian petroleum products on Sunday.

The Ukrainian army said training on German-made Leopard tanks was starting on Monday. This is happening outside of Ukraine.

what happened last week

Ukraine asked allies to send fighter planes – shortly after the historic decisions of Germany and the United States to donate battle tanks to Ukraine. The leaders of both countries have so far said no to fighter jets. But Berlin announced more tanks. And the United States promised more weapons, including a type of GPS-guided long-range bomb that it hadn’t provided before.

Human Rights Watch called on Ukraine to investigate his allegations use of prohibited landmines in the city of Izium in eastern Ukraine.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen led a delegation to Kyiv for a EU-Ukraine Summitagainst the backdrop of air raid sirens.

A European Union ban on russian petroleum products took effect on Sunday. Usually a major importer of Russian fuel, the EU banned the products to target the Kremlin’s war chest.

A new round of US sanctions target networks supporting the Russian military based in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Israel and Singapore. The United States subsequently sanctioned the board of directors of an Iranian drone manufacturer.

More than 100 Ukrainian and 63 Russian prisoners of war were released in prisoner exchange, according to officials in each country. The UAE helped broker some of the swaps.

In depth

Europe bans Russian petroleum products, the latest strike against the Kremlin’s war chest.

60 dancers who fled the war now take to the stage — as The United Ukrainian Ballet.

Examination of the Wagner Group, a private military company that Russia relied on.

Russia and Ukraine fight daily in the sky. Where are the pilots?

Ukraine’s defense minister is pushing for fighter jets, even as training begins on tanks.

Human Rights Watch urges an investigation into Ukraine’s alleged use of landmines.

Special report

Russia’s war in Ukraine is changing the world: see its ripple effects around the globe.

Previous developments

You can read past recaps here. For context and more in-depth stories, you can find more NPR coverage here. Also, listen and subscribe to NPR Ukrainian state podcast for updates throughout the day.