Maria Tsvetkova, Aleksandar Vasovic

KYIV (Reuters – Western Allies Announce New Sanctions against Russia. This includes the removal of Russia’s key banks from the global payment system. Ukraine expressed its gratitude for this move on Sunday, as it repelled Russian forces from attacking Kyiv.

Russian forces bombarded several cities with rockets over the night, setting fire to an oil terminal in Vasylkiv. It is located southwest of Kyiv. Online posts revealed that the blasts were ablaze and emitted smoke to the night sky.

Natalia Balasinovich said, “The enemy is determined to destroy everything.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin called for a “special military operation” on Thursday. He ignored Western warnings for weeks and claimed that the “neo Nazis” who rule Ukraine had threatened Russia’s safety – a claim Kyiv, Western governments and others have dismissed as false propaganda.

A major attack on a European country since World War Two could threaten to end the post-Cold War order.

Reuters witnessed in Kyiv occasional blasts of gunfire on Saturday, however it wasn’t clear from where they were coming.

We have resisted enemy attacks and we have prevailed. In a message posted to his social media, Volodymyr Zeleskiy, Ukrainian President, stated that the fighting is continuing.

An American defense official stated that Ukraine was resisting the Russian advances on three fronts. The advance has caused hundreds of thousands to flee westwards.

In order to restrict Russia’s support of the rouble as well as finance its war efforts, the United States and European partners said that they would also impose limitations on Russia’s central bank.

The Western Allies declared that they were determined to keep Russia at large and impose additional costs.

“We will implement these measures within the coming days,” according to a joint statement https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/02/26/joint-statement-on-further-restrictive-economic-measures from the United States, France, Germany, Canada, Italy, Britain and the European Commission.

“THANKS TO FRIENDS”

After initially avoiding such an action largely due to concerns about their economies’ impact, allies stated that they would “ensure that certain Russian banks are removed” from SWIFT. While they didn’t name any of the expelled banks, an EU diplomat indicated that about 70% of Russian banks would be affected.

This decision, which was earlier called by the French finance minister a “financial nuke weapon” due to the economic damage it would cause to the Russian economy, is a setback for Russia’s trade. It also makes it more difficult for Russian companies to do business.

SWIFT is the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication. This secure messaging network facilitates fast cross-border payment, which makes it an essential mechanism for international commerce.

Russia’s central banks could face sanctions that would restrict Putin from using his international reserves of more than $630 trillion. It is commonly believed this will protect Russia against economic harm.

These new measures will stop Russia “using its war chest,” stated Ursula von der Leyen (president of the European Commission), the executive branch of the European Union.

However, Russia’s banks, which are large, have been deeply integrated in the international financial system. This could lead to sanctions that can cause a spillover effect and harm trading partners across Europe.

Denys shmygal, Ukrainian prime minister, stated in a Sunday tweet (NYSE.) that “thanks to our friends…for the promise to remove several Russian bank SWIFT”

After Putin’s Friday pause, the Kremlin stated that its troops are moving again in “all directions”. The government of Ukraine stated that there was no pause.

An adviser to the Ukrainian president stated that about 3.500 Russian soldiers have been wounded or killed. Western officials also claimed intelligence indicated that Russia was suffering more casualties than anticipated and slowing its progress.

Russia has yet to release any casualty statistics, making it impossible to determine tolls and the exact picture of the ground.

‘DETERMINED RESISTANCE’

A U.S. official claimed that Russia’s military had not achieved the gains they desired, especially in the north.

They were “frustrated by what they saw is a very determined resistence,” the U.S. official claimed, but didn’t provide any evidence.

Interfax quoted the Health Ministry of Ukraine as saying that 1,115 Ukrainians have been wounded and at least 198 Ukrainians were killed, three of them children.

Interfax later mentioned the Donetsk region administration from eastern Ukraine that stated 17 civilians were dead and 73 had been wounded by Russian bombing.

Moscow claims it will not strike civilian areas.

Ukraine is a democracy of 44 million citizens. It gained independence from Moscow in 1991 following the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Putin said that Russia must eradicate what he called a threat to its country’s smaller neighbour. In this accusation, he accused Kyiv of genocide against Russian speakers in Eastern Ukraine. This is something Kyiv as well its Western allies deny.

Filippo Grandi of the U.N. Refugee Council said that over 150,000 Ukrainian refugees crossed into countries neighboring to Poland. Half went to Hungary and Moldova.

The U.S. President Joe Biden authorized the release of as much as $350 Million worth of weapons from U.S. stockpiles, while Germany announced that it will send anti-tank weapons, and surface-to air missiles, a departure from its traditional policy of not exporting arms to war zones.