China says ‘highly concerned’ about civilian casualties in Ukraine

President Joe Biden has said that dictators who do not “pay a price for their aggression” cause more chaos. According to excerpts released on Tuesday ahead of his first State of the Union address, Mr. Biden said that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine was premeditated and unprovoked. The United Nations’ top court has scheduled hearings next week into a request by Ukraine for the court to order Moscow to halt its invasion. The news of a fellow Indian dying in shelling in Kharkiv spread rapidly among hundreds of students glued to their phone screens and sheltering in bunkers in cities on the eastern border of the country that is witness to fierce fighting between Russian and Ukrainian militaries. The Indian embassy in Ukraine issued an advisory on March 1, urging all Indian nationals to leave Kyiv urgently, “preferably by available trains or through any other means available”, as Russian invasion continued its sixth day. The first round of talks between Russia and Ukraine concluded on February 28, without resulting in a deal. Both sides agreed to continue the talks, as Ukranian President Volodymyr Zelensky urged that the country be given membership of the European Union. The United Nations General Assembly and the United Nations Security Council met separately to address the ongoing Russian invasion. At the emergency special session of the UNGA, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said, “Nothing can justify the use of nuclear weapons.” At the UNSC, India’s Permanent Representative T.S. Tirumurti informed the Security Council that the Government was sending humanitarian aid to Ukraine. Russia’s global isolation continued as the United States expelled 12 Russian diplomats staffing the U.N. mission. More than 350 civilians, including 14 children, have been killed during the invasion, Ukraine says, while more than half a million people have fled the country. The conflict began escalating on February 21, 2022, after Russian President Vladimir Putin recognised separatist regions in eastern Ukraine and deployed troops in a peacekeeping role. (Source: The Hindu)