Moscow attacks humanitarian corridors in Ukraine and threatens to cut off oil and gas flow to Europe, while Biden and others ban import of Russian energy
For nearly two weeks Russia’s military has been launching missile attacks and carrying out land invasions in Ukraine, with no discernable end in sight.
Most recently, Ukrainian civilians have been evacuated from Irpin and Sumy as food, water, and medicine scarcity deepen across the country. As of March 8, the invasion has prompted 2 million people to flee Ukraine.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian cities such as Kyiv, Kharkiv, Chernihiv, Mykolaiv, and Mariupol are suffering from aerial blitz and offensive attacks against civilians. At this time officials cannot say whether the attacks on citizens are coordinated or not.
Since Feb. 24, approximately 474 civilians have been killed and 861 injured. These numbers could be higher due to a considerable delay in information processing in government-controlled combative regions.
On March 7, Ukraine and Russia held a third round of talks in Belarus, and they discussed potential ceasefires and evacuation logistics. The talks reportedly led to no substantial developments in negotiations.
During and after the talks, Russia said that they would allow Ukrainians from Kyiv and Mariupol to evacuate to Russia and Belarus, a Russian ally. Ukraine rejected the offer. After Russia announced a temporary ceasefire in some Ukrainian cities to allow for a humanitarian corridor, Ukraine accused Russia of shelling refuge routes that were devised to facilitate a safe passageway for refugees and deliver aid and supplies.
In an attempt to sway Moscow against its invasion of Ukraine, the Biden administration implemented bans on Russian oil and natural gas.
This decision has been the United States’ most significant response to Russia’s invasion. Washington has already imposed sanctions on Russia’s central bank, and several other economic initiatives are designed to stifle Russian oligarchs.
Moscow has yet to officially respond to the United States’ ban on Russian energy.
French officials state that the European Union will likely not follow suit due to the heavy dependency on Russian energy. However, the United Kingdom said that it would follow Biden’s lead and slowly begin divesting from the import of Russian energy, announcing the goal of eliminating Russian gas and oil from the British market by the end of 2022.
Moreover, multinational oil company Shell has vowed to completely withdraw from involvement in Russia’s crude oil after purchasing a discounted shipment of hydrocarbons from the country. Shell has also said that it will discontinue service stations and aviation fuel operations in Russia.
In response to various Western bans on Russian energy, the Kremlin threatened to discontinue Europe’s natural gas flow via the Nord Stream 1 pipeline, the main gas channel from Russia to Germany. This could potentially lead to a doubling of oil barrel prices, prompting $300 per barrel.
Russia currently supplies 40 per cent of Europe’s gas. The cut-off of Nord Stream 1 could lead European countries to face extreme rates of inflation and economic recession.
This is not to mention that Russia is also the world’s largest exporter of oil and gas, making up 7 per cent of the global supply. Amidst the Ukraine crisis, oil prices are at their highest since 2008.
This is a developing story with more information to come.
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