EU nations, the US unleash SWIFT penalties on Russia

A protest against Russia’s invasion, in Madrid, on Sunday. Pic/AFP

The US and European nations have moved to impose the most potentially crippling financial penalties yet on Moscow, going after the central bank reserves that underpin the Russian economy and severing some Russian banks from a vital global financial network.

The measures, which will include curbs on the Russian central bank's international reserves, will be implemented in the coming days, the leaders of the European Commission, France, Germany, Italy, Great Britain, Canada and the US said in a joint statement. "Even beyond the measures we are announcing today, we are prepared to take further measures to hold Russia to account for its attack on Ukraine."

Russian exports of all commodities from oil and metals to grains will be severely disrupted by fresh Western sanctions, dealing a blow to Russia's economy and hurting the West with a spike in prices and inflation, traders and analysts said.

More EU nations shut airspace to Russian flights

European nations and Canada moved on Sunday to shut their airspace to Russian aircraft. Among EU nations that announced on Sunday their decision to shut their airspace to Russian aircraft are Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Iceland, the Netherlands, Italy, Baltic countries Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia. The German transport ministry on Sunday said the country's airspace will be closed for three months, but humanitarian aid flights are excluded from the ban. The moves follow similar closures by Britain, Poland, Bulgaria, Czech Republic and Romania.

Russian troops advance on Ukrainian ports

Kyiv: Russian troops squeezed strategic ports in the country's south on Sunday. A Russian Defence Ministry spokesman, Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov, said the country's forces had blocked the Ukrainian cities of Kherson on the Black Sea and the port of Berdyansk on the Azov Sea. Cutting Ukraine's access to its sea ports would deal a major blow to its economy. Gen. Konashenkov said the Russian forces also took control of an airbase near Kherson and the Azov Sea city of Henichesk Ukrainian authorities also have reported fighting near Odesa, Mykolaiv and other areas.

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