Ukraine and Russia: what you need to know right now

President Joe Biden announced on Tuesday a US ban on Russian oil and other energy imports, ramping up pressure on Moscow in retaliation for its invasion of Ukraine.

Ukraine's government accused Russia of shelling a humanitarian corridor it had promised to open to let residents flee the besieged port of Mariupol.

Biden said “Putin's war” is hurting American families at the gas pump and prices will rise further but says the moves are necessary and should encourage the shift towards cleaner energy.

Britain said it aimed to phase out imports of Russian oil by the end of 2022.

The European Commission published plans to cut EU dependency on Russian gas this year by two-thirds and end its reliance on Russian supplies of the fuel “well before 2030” .

The EU has prepared further sanctions targeting more Russian oligarchs and politicians and three Belarusian banks, three sources told Reuters.

Ukrainian civilians began leaving two besieged areas after Russia opened “humanitarian corridors” for them, but Kyiv said Russian forces had shelled an evacuation route from the port city of Mariupol.

Russia said Ukrainian authorities had endorsed only one civilian evacuation route from areas affected by fighting out of 10 that were proposed, including five towards territory controlled by Kyiv, Interfax news agency reported.

Two-million people have fled Ukraine since the start of the Russian invasion, according to the UN refugee agency.

The UN human rights office said it had verified 1,335 civilian casualties so far in Ukraine, including 474 killed and 861 injured, but the true toll was likely to be higher.

 Ukraine says its forces have killed more than 11,000 Russian troops. Russia has confirmed about 500 losses. Neither side has disclosed Ukrainian casualties.

The WHO said on Tuesday that attacks on hospitals, ambulances and other healthcare facilities in Ukraine have intensified in recent days.

London trading in industrial metal nickel was halted after prices doubled on concerns about Russian supplies.

Luxury car maker Ferrari said it would suspend exports to Russia.

The world's largest cosmetics group, L'Oreal, said it would temporarily shut its stores and e-commerce sites in Russia.

QUOTES

“I think Putin is angry and frustrated right now. He's likely to double down and try to grind down the Ukrainian military with no regard for civilian casualties,” said William Burns, director of the Central Intelligence Agency.

“The city is almost ruined, and the district where I'm living, it's like there are no houses which were not bombed,” said one young mother in the Kyiv frontline suburb of Irpin, cradling a baby beneath a blanket.