Ukraine Briefly

May 02, 2022

Ukraine, Briefly

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• Russia suggested Sunday that it may confiscate the Russian-based assets of nations it considers unfriendly in response to a US plan to auction Russian billionaires’ assets and transfer the revenues to Ukraine, Agence France-Presse reported. At the same time, Moscow announced it was pulling out of the International Space Station, saying the decision is in reaction to international sanctions, said Bloomberg.

• Germany is now willing to quit buying Russian oil after originally opposing the idea, paving the way for a European Union ban on Russian crude imports, the Wall Street Journal added. According to diplomats and officials, the German shift enhances the possibility that EU members will agree on a phased-in ban on Russian oil, with a decision as soon as next week. Germany has also supported demands to sanction uranium imports from Russia and other parts of the Kremlin’s civil nuclear industry, according to Politico.

• Dozens have fled the Azovstal steelworks in Mariupol, the last portion of the southern city still under Ukrainian control, BBC noted. They are the first people to depart since Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the massive industrial area sealed off last week. Talks are ongoing about freeing the reported 1,000 civilians still trapped inside.

• US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi led a congressional delegation to Ukraine over the weekend, the highest-ranking US official to do so, NBC News wrote. Meanwhile, Indonesian President Joko Widodo announced Friday that Indonesia has officially invited Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to the G-20 conference, belatedly confirming an offer to the war-torn European nation’s leader that the US had encouraged him to issue, Radio Free Asia noted.

This story originally appeared in the May 02, 2022 newsletter, No Vacancy.