Europe

MOSCOW (AP) — The Russian military says its nuclear deterrent forces have been put on high alert in line with President Vladimir Putin’s order.

28 Feb 2022; MEMO: Qatar Airways has asked a UK court to reinstate an order for 50 Airbus A321neo passenger jets that the European planemaker revoked as part of a bitter dispute over the partial grounding of larger A350s, a court filing showed on Friday, reported Reuters.

Feb 28 (Reuters) - About 800 people were arrested as Belarus voted to ditch its non-nuclear status in a referendum that raises the stakes at a time when the country has become a staging ground for the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the government said on Monday.

The vote sparked the biggest protests in months as thousands took to the streets in Belarus, where President Alexander Lukashenko has imposed a sweeping crackdown on dissent after a contested election challenged his grip on power in 2020.

LONDON (AP) — FIFA drew a swift backlash from European nations for not immediately expelling Russia from World Cup qualifying on Sunday and only ordering the country to play without its flag and anthem at neutral venues under the name of its federation — the Football Union of Russia.

Protesting against FIFA’s response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Poland said it would still refuse to play the country in a World Cup playoff semifinal, which is scheduled for March 24.

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — They file into neighboring countries by the hundreds of thousands — refugees from Ukraine clutching children in one arm, belongings in the other. And they’re being heartily welcomed, by leaders of countries like Poland, Hungary, Bulgaria, Moldova and Romania.

ROME (AP) - The Vatican is offering its services for any negotiation aimed at ending the war in Ukraine.

Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s No. 2 official, told several Italian newspapers in an interview published on Monday, that “even though what we feared and what we hoped wouldn’t happen did happen, there is always space for negotiation.”

He noted that the Holy See, “offering its willingness to facilitate dialogue with Russia, is always ready to help the parties to get back on that path.”

Moscow, Feb 28 (AP) Russia's Central Bank has sharply raised its key rate from 9.5% to 20% in a desperate attempt to shore up the plummeting ruble and prevent the run of banks amid crippling Western sanctions over the Russian war in Ukraine.

MOSCOW, February 26. /TASS/. Russia is capable of taking measures to mitigate the damage from sanctions, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Saturday.

"Immediate measures are certainly being taken in order to mitigate the damage from sanctions and ensure the unhindered operation of all economic sectors and systems," he noted.

Peskov stressed that Russia "has every possibility and potential to do that." "It was created in advance for such situations," the Kremlin spokesman added.

MINSK, February 27. /TASS/. Belarus will turn to Russia with a request to return nuclear weapons to it if the United States deploys them in Poland or Lithuania, President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko announced on Sunday.

According to Lukashenko, he mentioned this possibility during the conversation with French President Emmanuel Macron. "If the United States, or France … transfer nuclear weapons to Poland, to Lithuania, to our borders, … I will appeal to [Russian President Vladimir] Putin to return the weapons that I once gave without any preconditions," Lukashenko said.

MOSCOW, February 25. /TASS/. Moscow is ready to hold talks at any moment once the Ukrainian Armed Forces lay down their arms, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said at a press conference following talks with Deputy Foreign Minister of the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) Sergey Peresada and Foreign Minister of the Lugansk People’s Republic (LPR) Vladislav Deinego on Friday.