Image source, REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin

Of Russia’s three most popular channels, only Gazprom-Media's NTV reported in their morning news bulletins the proposal unveiled by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to completely "phase out Russian oil", a search on the Russian media monitoring website Medialogia suggests.

NTV suggested the approval of the proposal was by no means certain and, even if it is approved by the bloc, the ban on Russian oil would first and foremost harm consumers in Europe.

"Not all European countries are prepared to support restrictions on Russian oil supplies," the presenter said in the 08:00 and 10:00 bulletins Moscow time (05:00 and 07:00 BST).

He also said Slovakia's economy minister "would be seeking a waiver to continue purchases in Russia".

According to NTV, the new sanctions package has "caused alarm in Germany" and has been condemned by Austria's union of industrialists.

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What impact would an EU ban on Russian oil have?published at 11:30 British Summer Time 4 May 2022

11:30 BST 4 May 2022

Dharshini David
Economics Correspondent

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Europe has been paying Moscow a quarter of a billion dollars per day for oil, helping to finance a brutal war on its doorstep.

But how much of an impact would ceasing those purchases actually have?

Soaring prices have meant Russia could make in total $180bn worth of sales of its crude oil abroad - as it stands, enough to fund more than half of the country’s federal budget.

But from road fuel to heating, Europe accounts around 60% of Russia’s oil exports - it would not be easy to compensate for the loss of that.

China is Russia’s biggest single customer - but it accounts for just a fifth of exports.

There are reports of buyers from India and China snapping up discounted Russian oil – but even that won’t plug the shortfall in sales.

And as Europe weans itself off of Russian oil, there could be greater price volatility. The Kremlin could find itself, ironically, benefiting more from each barrel of oil it sells to Europe, at least in the short-term.

• Oil prices have soared. Why won't Opec bring them down?

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Russia's Chief Rabbi Berel Lazar has criticised the Kremlin's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov for his remarks about Adolf Hitler's ancestry.

Lavrov suggested in an interview that the Nazi leader "had Jewish blood".

Lazar told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency: "It would be nice if he (Lavrov) apologised to the Jews and simply admitted his mistake."

Lavrov made the comments to try to justify Russia's portrayal of Ukraine as being Nazi-filled - despite the fact its president is Jewish.

Nazi Germany murdered six million Jews during World War Two.

International condemnation of Lavrov's remarks was swift - with Israel leading calls for Lavrov to say sorry.

But Russia's foreign ministry defended its minister's stance - and went further, accusing Israel of making its own "anti-historical statements".

Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu has just issued a stern warning to Nato against sending military aid to Ukraine.

"We will view any Nato means of transport arriving on the territory of the country carrying weapons or equipment for the Ukrainian military as a legitimate target for destruction," he says, as quoted by Russian state media.

He accuses Nato and its allies of continuing to "pump Ukraine full of weapons".

The US and other Western states have been arming Ukraine in its fight against the Russian invasion.

In one of the latest boosts, the UK on Tuesday pledged £300m ($376m) worth of kit including electronic warfare equipment, a radar system, GPS jammers and night-vision devices.

This morning European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen unveiled a sixth set of proposed EU sanctions against Russia. Here's a recap of the measures, which will require unanimous approval from member states before they can come into effect:

• Von der Leyen said the EU would seek to end its dependency on Russian oil, a major source of revenue for the Kremlin. Crude oil would be phased out in six months and refined products by the end of 2022, she said

• Sberbank, Russia's largest bank, and two others, Credit Bank of Moscow and the Russian Agricultural Bank, would be disconnected from the international payments messaging system Swift
• Three big state-owned Russian broadcasters - described by von der Leyen as "mouthpieces that amplify Putin's lies - would be cut off from the EU on cable, satellite and the internet
• Fifty-eight Russians would be sanctioned, including those von der Leyen said had committed war crimes in Bucha and conducted the siege of Mariupol
• But there were no proposals to end the import of Russian natural gas, which analysts say EU members would find harder to replace with alternative sources. Like oil, gas is also a key source of income for Moscow
• "Putin must pay a high price for his brutal aggression," von der Leyen told members of the European Parliament

Image source, AFP/Getty Images

Potentially abusive men are using a UK scheme to host Ukrainian refugees - to contact vulnerable women, BBC News has learned.

The men, some with a reported history of violence, message the women on Facebook groups specially set up to connect sponsors and hosts.

Some refugees have also become homeless after relations with hosts broke down or because housing was not well vetted.

But a UK government official said safeguards were in place.

These included "Home Office security and background checks on all sponsors, before visas are issued", and at least one council visit to a sponsor's property.

A charity head labelled the Homes for Ukraine scheme, external dangerous and said she was "shocked by the absence of safeguarding checks".

One of the remaining defenders inside the Azovstal metal works in Mariupol has described the conditions there to the BBC.

More than 500 people nursing injuries are still inside the vast industrial complex, Mykhailo Vershynin told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

Two hundred of them were in a critical condition, he claimed. Vershynin added that the health of the wounded was worsening due to a lack of medical assistance and unsanitary conditions.

There was a “total lack of everything”, he said – whether food, water, or medication.

Azovstal’s hospital had been purposefully bombed by Russian troops, he alleged.

Despite the desperate conditions, Azovstal’s defenders were said to be “ready to fight to the end”.

Vershynin, who was a police patrol chief before the war, said the defenders varied in ages from 19 to 60.

On Sunday, a first group of civilians were finally evacuated from the vast industrial complex. Yesterday, they reached Ukrainian-held Zaporizhzhia.

You can read more of their stories here.

It's not yet clear if any more civilians will be able to leave the complex today.

Image source, Reuters/Transnistria Interior Ministry

The European Union is considering additional military support for Moldova, in an effort to avoid war spreading to Ukraine's neighbour.

On a visit to the Moldovan capital Chisinau, European Council President Charles Michel said the EU was looking at how it could strengthen the country's armed forces.

His comments come after last week's series of unexplained explosions in Transnistria - a breakaway Russian-controlled region which is part of Moldova. These raised fears the conflict could spread.

Recent reports based on Ukrainian intelligence sources suggested Russia could attack Moldova to try and strengthen its offensive on south-western Ukraine.

Image source, Getty Images

If you're just joining us, here's a quick round-up of the latest developments in the war in Ukraine:

• The EU has unveiled proposals for new sanctions against Russia, including a ban on oil imports from the country by the end of this year. The measures - which need member states' approval - also include plans to remove Russia's largest bank, Sberbank, from the Swift financial system - more on that here
• Russian missiles struck three power stations in the western city of Lviv late on Tuesday, causing blackouts in the city. The attack is thought to have been directed against Ukraine's rail network, crucial for supplying weapons to Ukrainian forces in the east
• Efforts are continuing to evacuate hundreds of civilians trapped in bunkers under the Azovstal steelworks in the city of Mariupol. The city's mayor said more civilians were leaving Mariupol today with the help of the United Nations and Red Cross
• Belarus, a close Russian ally and Ukraine's neighbour to the north, has started large-scale military drills, the country's defence ministry has said
• The UK's Ministry of Defence says Russia has deployed 22 batallion groups near Izyum, an eastern city, in a bid to further push into the Donbas region

Europe will continue buying Russian oil via third countries once EU countries introduce an embargo, a Russian official predicts.

Senior MP Vladimir Dzhabarov told the state-run RIA Novosti news agency Europe's leaders "have gone a little crazy".

"They say we won’t buy oil from us. Well, don’t buy it, we don’t push it to you,” he said.

"You will still buy it, only through third countries. Our oil is the same, only more expensive."

The European Union's chief executive has proposed a phased oil embargo on Russia, as well as sanctioning Russia's top bank and banning Russian broadcasters from European airwaves.

As we've been reporting, Russian missile strikes hit electrical substations around the western city of Lviv late on Tuesday.

The strikes are thought to have been directed against Ukraine's rail network, which is crucial for supplying weaponry from Western allies to the east of the country.

Parts of Lviv have been left without power and water.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin

European Union countries Hungary and Slovakia will be able to continue buying Russian crude oil until the end of 2023 under existing contracts, Reuters has reported an EU source as saying.

As a consequence, this means both countries would be able to benefit from an embargo on Russian oil proposed by the European Commission.

The EU has been outlining plans this morning to ban imports of Russian crude oil within six months and refined oil products by the end of the year.

In a bid to convince reluctant and more-reliant countries not to veto the plans, Brussels has suggested a longer period to implement the embargo for Hungary and Slovakia, Reuters reports the source as saying.

More now on the latest sanctions being introduced by the EU on Russia.

The EU will "de-swift" Russia's largest bank - Sberbank - and two other banks, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has said.

Swift is an international payment system that allows the smooth and rapid transfer of money across borders.

Western nations have previously said removing Russian banks from swift would "harm their ability to operate globally".

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has just laid out details of another package of sanctions against Russia to be agreed by EU countries in the coming days.

Von der Leyen said the bloc was ending its dependency on Russian oil - with purchases banned by the end of the year.

She acknowledged that it would not be easy, as some countries were dependent on such imports.

Hungary has opposed an embargo on Russian fuels.

Image source, .

There is no consensus among the EU's 27 members on winding down the use of Russian natural gas - a fuel which has not yet been targeted by EU sanctions.

Germany is dependent on purchases from Moscow. As the chart below shows, it's the world's top buyer of Russian gas.

It's worth noting, though, that the data is from 2020 - since when Berlin has been reducing its reliance.

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Paul Kirby
BBC News online Europe editor

Image source, EPA

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has been giving details to the European Parliament of a sixth package of sanctions targeting Russia's economy, its military and propaganda. She said that Russia's Vladimir Putin wanted to wipe Ukraine from the map and would not succeed and it was his own country that was sinking.

"We will make sure that we phase out Russian oil in an orderly fashion," she said. "So in a way that allows us and our partners to secure alternative supply routes and at the same time be very careful that we minimise the impact on the global market."

Von der Leyen said crude oil imports would be phased out over six months and refined products by the end of 2022. Although she made no mention of any exemptions, two countries that are most reliant on Russian oil, Slovakia and Hungary, are expected to be given longer to find alternative sources.

"Thus we maximise pressure on Russia while at the same time we minimise the collateral damage on us and our partners around the globe. We have to ensure that our economy remains strong."

She went on to give details of a package of relief and reconstruction for Ukraine: "We want to Ukraine to win this war," she said. Von der Leyen said Ukraine's economic output was set to fall by 35%-50% in 2022 and it would need €5bn a month just to keep going. "We have to do our share too."

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has given details of a sixth package of sanctions to be agreed in the coming days. She listed four separate types of sanctions:

High-ranking Russian military officers who committed war crimes in Bucha and Mariupol were to be targeted: "We know who you are, you will not get away with this."

Sberbank, Russia's largest bank, is to be disconnected from the SWIFT bank transfer system.

Three big state-owned Russian broadcasters are to be cut off from the EU on cable, satellite or the internet as what she called "mouthpieces that amplify Putin's lies".

Von der Leyen said the EU was also announcing an end to its dependency on Russian oil: "It will not be easy but we simply have to do it." All Russian oil will be phased out, she said, but in an orderly fashion. Crude oil will be phased out in six months and refined products by the end of 2022, she said.

European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen is due to give details to the European Parliament in the next few minutes of proposals for a sixth round of sanctions on Russia.

The highlight of the proposals is expected to be a phased embargo on imports of Russian oil. Reports say the EU's 27 member states could be given six months to wean themselves off Russian crude oil and eight months for related products.

Two states, Hungary and Slovakia, are likely to be exempt from the phase-out plan because of their reliance on Russian oil.

More civilians are leaving Mariupol today, the regional governor has said.

Writing on Telegram, Pavlo Kyrylenko said the effort had been supported by the United Nations and Red Cross.

Some buses had already left the city on Wednesday, he wrote.

Kyrylenko said civilians were being evacuated to Ukrainian-controlled Zaporizhzhia from the "Azov region".

But it was not immediately clear whether the evacuees had been sheltering inside the vast Azovstal steel plant - from which a group of people was finally evacuated on Sunday.

Twelve Russian attacks were repelled by Ukrainian forces in the eastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions over the past 24 hours, according to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

In a statement on its Facebook page, it said Russian forces also carried out assaults in the area of ​​Popasna, where fighting continues.

It added that in Mariupol, Russia continued to launch airstrikes and fire at its positions in the Azovstal steelworks area.

Russia has increasingly focused its military efforts on the east of Ukraine.

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Tatyana says she faces a scary situation after losing her home to shelling.

The 64-year-old was speaking in the southern port city of Mariupol, which has been devastated by the war.