Russia asked China for weapons and aid for Ukraine war, says US

The U.S. and China are sending top aides to meet in Rome on Monday amid mounting tensions between the two countries over the Russia–Ukraine war and as a U.S. official reports that Russia in recent days has asked China for military equipment to help press its campaign. Follow our live updates for all the latest developments.

• Moscow has reportedly asked Beijing for military supplies and economic aid. The US has warned that China will face “severe consequences” if it helps Russia dodge sanctions.
• The UK Ministry of Defence said on Sunday that Russian naval forces had established a blockade of Ukraine’s Black Sea Coast, isolating Ukraine from international maritime trade.
• Both Ukraine and Russia have said discussions will resume on Monday via video link.
• Lviv’s regional governor, Maxim Kozitsky, said on Sunday that 35 people were killed in a Russian missile attack on a Ukrainian military facility in Yavoriv near the Polish border. Ukraine held most of its drills with NATO countries at the base, one of Ukraine’s largest, before the invasion.
• Kyiv regional police chief Andriy Nyebytov reported that an American journalist was shot and killed and a colleague wounded in Irpin northwest of Kyiv on Sunday. Media reports said that a third Ukrainian colleague was also wounded in the incident. Anton Gerashchenko, an adviser to Ukraine’s interior minister, identified the journalist as 51-year-old Brent Renaud.
• Ukraine’s human rights commissioner Lyudmila Denisova accused Russia of using banned phosphorus weapons in an overnight attack in the Luhansk region in a statement posted online. Her claims could not be independently verified. Asked about the allegations on Sunday, US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan reiterated that if Russia uses chemical weapons in Ukraine, “they will pay a severe price”.
• Ukraine’s intelligence service accused Russia on Saturday of firing at a convoy that was evacuating women and children from the village of Peremoha in the Kyiv region, killing seven people including a child.
• President Joe Biden and France’s Emmanuel Macron underscored in a call on Sunday their commitment to holding Russia accountable for the invasion of Ukraine.
• The European Commission aims to double the EU’s military aid to Ukraine and has proposed earmarking another €500 million for the cause. US, EU and G7 are set to revoke Russia’s “most favoured nation” status over its invasion.
• The UN said the number of refugees fleeing Ukraine since the start of the Russian invasion on February 24 has surged past 2.6 million.