Portal:Current events/2022 February 28

February 28, 2022 (Monday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Russo-Ukrainian War
- 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
  - Battle of Kharkiv
    - Dozens of people are killed and hundreds more are injured in a massive MLRS attack on Kharkiv, according to the Ukrainian Interior Ministry. Videos appear to show cluster munitions being used in the rocket attack. (The Guardian) (Sky News)
    - Hennadiy Matsehora, the mayor of Kupiansk who surrendered the city to the Russians in exchange for peace the previous day, is now indicted for treason by Ukrainian officials. (Ukrainska Pravda) (Ukrainska Pravda 2)
  - Kyiv offensive
    - A 64-kilometre (40 mi) long convoy of Russian Ground Forces armoured vehicles, tanks and artillery continues to advance towards Kyiv. (BBC News)
  - Battle of Okhtyrka
    - Ukrainian Ambassador to the U.S. Oksana Markarova confirms that Russian forces attacked Okhtyrka with a vacuum bomb. (Reuters) (The Independent)
  - Zhytomyr Airport attack
    - Russia attacks the Zhytomyr Airport using Iskander ballistic missiles launched from Belarus. (The Times of Israel)
  - Kherson offensive
    - The Russian Defence Ministry says Russian Ground Forces have captured the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, and that the plant's operations have continued normally under the guard of soldiers. However, Ukraine denies that the power plant has been seized by Russian forces. (Reuters)
  - Reactions to the 2021–2022 Russo-Ukrainian crisis
    - Ukraine–NATO relations
      - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy calls for U.S. President Joe Biden and NATO to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine. However, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki, British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace, and NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg state that NATO and the U.S. have ruled out imposing a no-fly zone. (Axios)
    - Kremlin Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov accuses the European Union of "hostile behaviour" towards Russia, and says that the arming of Ukraine was an "extremely dangerous and destabilising factor". Peskov says that Western arms supplies to Kyiv shows that Moscow was justified in demilitarising Ukraine. (Reuters)
    - Dmitry Peskov says that Vladimir Putin's nuclear deterrent order remarks were in response to comments made by British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss. (The Independent)
    - Latvia allows volunteers to participate in the Russo-Ukrainian war. (Reuters)
  - Belarus–Ukraine relations
    - Belarus is expected to directly deploy its armed forces in Ukraine, thereby aiding Russia in its invasion. However, a senior U.S. defense official says that there are no indications that Belarusian troops have been deployed yet. (The Washington Post) (The Hill)
  - France–Russia relations
    - The office of French President Emmanuel Macron states that during a phone call with the Russian President, "Putin confirmed his willingness to make commitments" to stop attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure and secure major roadways. (Times of Israel) (Reuters)
  - The United Nations reports at least 406 civilian casualties in Ukraine. (CNN)
  - The Ukrainian engineer of the Russian yacht Princess Anastasia attempts to scuttle the vessel in the port of Mallorca, Spain, damaging the yacht's engine room. (Newsweek)
  - Two ethnic Greeks are killed after the city of Sartana is bombarded by the Russian Air Force. (Greek City Times)
  - Ukrainian Air Force pilots begin arriving in Poland to begin taking control of fighter aircraft donated by European Union countries. The Ukrainian government says that the EU is handing over 70 fighter jets to its air force including 28 MiG-29s from Poland, 12 from Slovakia, 16 from Bulgaria, and 14 Sukhoi Su-25s from Bulgaria. Bulgarian Prime Minister Kiril Petkov said he had rejected the request. European Union security chief Josep Borrell later clarified that the donations were done "bilaterally" by individual EU member states and not from the EU itself. (Politico)

Business and economy

2022 Russian financial crisis
- The Central Bank of Russia (CBR) raises the interest rate from 9.5% to 20%, the highest rate since 2003. The Russian ruble also loses more than a quarter of its value at the beginning of trading, with ranges of 100–120 rubles to the US dollar. (The Guardian) (Reuters)
- The CBR orders all companies receiving foreign currency to exchange 80% of the revenue into rubles, in an attempt to stabilise the market. (Forbes Russia)
- Russia institutes capital controls, banning all trading of Russian securities by foreign legal entities. (Reuters)
- The Moscow Stock Exchange, which did not open for trade on Monday, will remain closed until Saturday, as Russian regulators attempt to contain the selloff of Russian assets and rubles. (The Wall Street Journal) (The Daily Telegraph)
- President Vladimir Putin ordered a ban on transferring hard currency, such as U.S. dollars and euros, abroad, including by servicing foreign debt. Whether this constitutes a debt default is unclear. (Bloomberg)
2021–2022 global energy crisis
- Petrol prices in the United Kingdom reach an all-time high, according to the RAC. (BBC News)
An EU subsidiary of Sberbank is declared to be "failing or likely to be failing" by European banking regulators. The bank's assets amount to €13.64 billion. (The Wall Street Journal) (Ekonomichna Pravda)

Health and environment

COVID-19 pandemic
- COVID-19 pandemic in Asia
  - COVID-19 pandemic in India
    - COVID-19 pandemic in Gujarat
      - Gujarat will lift their COVID-19 restrictions on March 2. (New Indian Express)
  - COVID-19 pandemic in Hong Kong
    - A third team of medical health experts arrive in Hong Kong amid an increase in the number of new COVID-19 cases. (Shanghai Daily)
- History of COVID-19 vaccine development
  - Novavax says that it will pursue full approval for its COVID-19 vaccine during the second half of this year. (Reuters)

International relations

Reactions to the 2021–2022 Russo-Ukrainian crisis, International reactions to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Russia–Ukraine relations
  - A Ukrainian government delegation arrives in Belarus for peace talks with the Russian delegation in an attempt to end the war. (The Independent Uganda)
  - Ukrainian presidential advisor Mykhailo Podolyak announces that peace talks have begun as part of an effort to end the war. During the talks, Ukraine calls for a ceasefire to end the war. (Reuters) (BBC News)
  - Russian negotiator Vladimir Medinsky says that Russia and Ukraine are interested in reaching an agreement aimed at ending the war. (Forexlive)
  - The first round of peace talks conclude. Both delegations will return to their respective capitals for consultations prior to a second round of talks, which will be held at the Belarus–Poland border. (Mint)
- Russia–European Union relations, Russia–United Kingdom relations
  - In retaliation of the Russian aircraft ban, Russian authorities prohibit EU and UK airlines from landing in or crossing Russian airspace. (Bloomberg)
- Russia–Monaco relations
  - Monaco, a city favoured by Russian oligarchs, adopts sanctions against Russia in line with current EU sanctions. (Reuters)
- Russia–Switzerland relations
  - Breaking from a historic tradition of Swiss neutrality, Switzerland says it will adopt all EU sanctions on Russia effective immediately in response to the invasion. Swiss banks are believed to hold billions of dollars in Russian funds. (Reuters)
- Russia–United Kingdom relations
  - The United Kingdom bans Russian ships from docking at its ports. (Politico)
- Canada–Russia relations
  - Canada bans the importation of Russian crude oil, becoming the first G7 member to ban the importation of Russian oil. Canada also approves the delivery of 100 Carl Gustaf 8.4cm recoilless rifles and 2,000 anti-tank rockets to Ukraine. (CBC)
- Belarus–United States relations, Russia–United States relations
  - The United States closes its embassy in Minsk, Belarus, and allows "non-essential staff" at its embassy in Moscow to leave the country amid war in neighbouring Ukraine. (The Independent)
  - The United States announces it is expelling 12 Russian people in New York who are a part of Russia's delegation to the United Nations, saying they are "intelligence operatives" who have "abused their privileges of residency" by engaging in "espionage activities." (The Hill)
- Ukraine–United States relations
  - The United States says it will continue to provide arms to Ukraine to aid that country in its defense against Russian aggression. (MilitaryNews)
- Sweden–Ukraine relations
  - Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson announces that the country will send military equipment, including anti-tank launchers, to Ukraine, breaking with a doctrine of not sending arms to countries that are engaged in active conflict. (The Defense Post)
Nuclear program of Iran
- Diplomats from the U.S., United Kingdom, France, Germany, Russia, China, and Iran gather in Vienna, Austria to seek a deal to revive the 2015 Iran deal. (Euronews)
- An Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson says that efforts to revive the 2015 Iran deal could succeed if the U.S. and other Western powers take steps to solve three issues. These three issues include the extent to which sanctions would be rolled back, providing guarantees that the U.S. will not withdraw from the deal again, and resolving questions over uranium traces found at several old but undeclared sites in Iran. (Al Arabiya)
- France calls for the talks to end this week and for Iran and the Western countries to reach an agreement to revive the deal. (Times of Israel)
Taiwan–United States relations
- U.S. President Joe Biden announces that the U.S. will send a delegation to Taiwan in order to reaffirm its commitment to the country. (The Washington Post)
2021–2022 North Korean missile tests
- The KCNA says that the missile test that North Korea conducted on Sunday was to develop a "reconnaissance" satellite system. (Reuters)

Law and crime

Russo-Ukrainian War
- 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
  - Prosecutor Karim Ahmad Khan announces that the International Criminal Court will conduct a criminal investigation into war crimes and crimes against humanity in Ukraine. (CBS News)
Lynching in the United States
- The U.S. House of Representatives votes 422–3 to pass the Emmett Till Antilynching Act, a bill that would make lynching a federal crime in the U.S. (The Washington Post)

Politics and elections

2022 Belarusian constitutional referendum
- Belarus approves the adoption of the changes to the Constitution of Belarus according to President Alexander Lukashenko's proposal, with just over 65% support, according to Belarusian electoral officials. (France 24)
- Belarus confirms that it has revoked its status as a non-nuclear state, thus allowing the country to host and develop its own nuclear weapons. President Lukashenko says that he could ask Russia to return nuclear missiles to his country if any nuclear weapons are transferred to Poland or Lithuania. (Reuters)
Potential enlargement of the European Union
- Accession of Ukraine to the European Union
  - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signs an application for the country to join the European Union. (Newsweek)
Yemeni Civil War
- The United Nations Security Council votes in favour of a British-drafted resolution to place an arms embargo on the Houthis. (Voice of America)

Science and technology

IPCC Sixth Assessment Report
- A report from the second IPCC working group is published, focusing on adaptation to climate change and population vulnerability. (The Conversation)
Discoveries of exoplanets
- In new research published by the Nature journal, it is revealed that the Hot Jupiter exoplanet WASP-121b has clouds of metal and rains gems. (Joe)

Sports

International reactions to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
- FIFA and UEFA suspend all Russian football clubs from international competitions and also ban the Russian national football team from competing at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. UEFA also ends its sponsorship with Russian energy firm Gazprom. (BBC Sport)
- The International Ice Hockey Federation suspends all Russian and Belarusian clubs, as well as the respective national teams of the two countries, from its competitions. It also withdraws Russia's hosting rights of the 2023 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships. (USA Today)