Photo taken on April 7, 2022 shows damaged buildings in Mariupol. (Photo by Victor/Xinhua)
-Ukraine bans all imports from Russia
-Russia increases spending fund to ensure economic stability
-Russian armed forces continue special military operation in Ukraine
-Zelensky, Scholz discuss defense, financial support for Ukraine over phone
BEIJING, April 11 (Xinhua) -- Relevant parties are working to broker a peaceful solution to the Russia-Ukraine conflict, whose latest developments are as follows:
"The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine supported the decision to impose a full embargo on imports of goods from Russia. From now on, no Russian products will be able to be imported into Ukraine," the Ukrainian government said on its website Sunday.
"Such a decisive step by Ukraine can serve as an example for our Western partners and will stimulate them to strengthen sanctions against Russia," Minister of Economy of Ukraine Yulia Svyrydenko said.
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Photo taken on March 24, 2022 shows ruble banknotes and coins in Moscow, capital of Russia. (Xinhua/Bai Xueqi)
The Russian government said Sunday that it has raised its reserve fund by 273.4 billion rubles (3.4 billion U.S. dollars) to ensure economic stability in the face of external sanctions.
The largest source of the increase, or 271.6 billion rubles, was additional oil and gas revenues received in the first quarter of 2022, the government said in a statement.
Russia's reserve fund was created to finance unforeseen expenses and significant measures not covered by the federal budget.
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In a briefing released Sunday, Russian Defense Ministry said Russian armed forces were continuing the special military operation in Ukraine.
"In total, 127 aircraft and 98 helicopters, 234 anti-aircraft missile systems S-300, Buk-M1, Osa AKM, 436 unmanned aerial vehicles, 2,052 tanks and other armored combat vehicles, 232 multiple launch rocket systems, 894 field artillery and mortars, as well as 1,975 units of special military vehicles of the Armed Forces of Ukraine were destroyed during the operation," said the ministry.
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People walk past a military vehicle in Irpin, Ukraine, March 4, 2022. (Photo by Diego Herrera/Xinhua)
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said Sunday on Facebook that the Russian military did "not stop trying to break through the defense of Ukrainian troops in the area of the city of Izyum."
The Russian military is "trying to take full control of the city of Mariupol," it added.
Meanwhile, a rocket attack conducted by Russian forces on Sunday destroyed an airport in the city of Dnipro in central Ukraine, Valentyn Reznichenko, the head of the Dnipropetrovsk military-civilian administration said.
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Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer announced Sunday that he would meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Monday.
Nehammer said he planned the visit to Moscow on his own initiative with an aim to promote dialogue between Russia and Ukraine, the Austrian news agency APA reported.
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky tweeted Sunday that he had a phone conversation with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to discuss defense and financial support for Ukraine.
In their talks, the pair also touched upon the sanctions against Russia over its conflict with Ukraine.
Moscow and Kiev have conducted several rounds of peace talks to seek a political settlement to the ongoing crisis in Ukraine, which has intensified over the past month. ■
