Russia's offensive continues but slows down

Russia’s offensive in Ukraine continued but at a significantly slower pace on Tuesday, Ukraine’s armed forces said.

* Russia warned that oil prices could surge to $300 a barrel and it might close the main gas pipeline to Germany if the West halts oil imports over the invasion of Ukraine as peace talks made little progress.

On Tuesday, Russian natural gas company Gazprom continued gas shipments via Ukraine at the same volume of 109.5 million cubic meters a day, the RIA Novosti news agency reported.

* Ukraine’s military intelligence said on Tuesday that Ukrainian forces have killed a Russian general near the besieged city of Kharkiv, the second Russian senior commander to die in the invasion.

Russia’s defence ministry could not be immediately reached for comment. Reuters could not verify the report.

Ukraine says its forces have killed more than 11,000 Russian troops. Russia has confirmed about 500 losses. Neither side has disclosed Ukrainian casualties.

The World Bank approved $723 million in loans and grants for Ukraine to be transferred in the next few days. U.S. congressional negotiators neared a deal to provide Ukraine billions of dollars in emergency aid. The White House requested $10 billion.

*Negotiators make little progress Russian negotiators said they did not have positive developments to report following talks with Ukraine and warned not to expect the next round to bring a final result. The talks “are not easy,” Vladimir Medinsky said.

Ukraine’s negotiator Mykhailo Podolyak said some small progress had been made on agreeing on logistics for the evacuation of civilians, but no agreement was reached that significantly improves the broader situation.

A fourth-round will take place very soon, Russia said. The Russian and Ukrainian foreign ministers are expected to meet in Turkey on Thursday.

*A Russian airstrike hit a bread factory in northern Ukraine and killed at least 13 civilians, Ukrainian officials said.

As many as 5 million Ukrainians could flee the country if Russia’s invasion continues, the EU’s top diplomat said, while the United Nations’ refugee agency said over 1.7 million have left so far.

The United States and its allies at a UN meeting urged Russia to allow safe passage for civilians stuck in areas of active hostility.

* Germany will host a virtual meeting of agricultural ministers from G7 countries on Friday to discuss the impact of the invasion on global food security and how to best stabilize food markets, the government said.

* China says friendship with Russia ‘rock solid’ While promising humanitarian aid to Ukraine, China’s foreign minister hailed Beijing’s friendship with Russia as “rock solid”.

*’ No war’ protests in Russia Police detained 5,020 people at Russia-wide protests against the invasion of Ukraine, according to an independent monitoring group. * Putin rules out conscripts for Ukraine Russia will not use any conscripted soldiers in Ukraine, President Putin said. INSIGHT * For foreign fighters, Ukraine offers purpose, camaraderie, and a cause.

“In Ukraine rivers of blood and tears are flowing. This is not only a military operation but a war which is leading to death, destruction, and misery,” said Pope Francis, rejecting Moscow’s term “military operation.”