04:30 25 February

Cryptocurrencies to evade sanctions

Since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, the US administration has imposed sanctions against 80% of the Russian banking sector, with about 2,400 people and entities affected, the US Treasury Department said. According to the website, Politico.com two of the world's largest cryptocurrency exchanges have not taken steps to prevent Russian banks, under Western sanctions, from using their platforms. These are Huobi and KuCoin, both companies based in the Seychelles, which still allow traders to transact with debit cards issued by Russian banks under sanctions, including Sberbank.

00:45 25 February

Biden: "No need for F16 planes, 'for now'"

Despite repeated public appeals by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, U.S. President Joe Biden, in an interview with ABC News, ruled out "for now" sending fighter jets. For Biden, Ukraine "doesn't need F-16s now." Asked by the reporter if it meant "never," the US president said it was not possible to determine what Ukraine's defense would need in the future, but that at the moment there is no reason "according to our military now, to supply F-16s." 0.23


00:30 25 February

Biden: "I warned Xi of the risks in case of aid to Russia"

Joe Biden warned Chinese President Xi Jinping of the risks China would take if it decided to help Russia in its war against Ukraine. "I had a long conversation with him on the subject this summer," the US president told reporters at the White House. "I told him it wasn't a threat but a simple fact: 600 foreign companies left Russia after they saw what had happened," Biden said, noting that he had warned Xi "To be careful if it is true that China's future depends on Western investment."

00:15 25 February

10 billion dollars of budget support from the Ukrainian government

The United States will give another $10 billion in aid to Ukraine, money – provided in coordination with USAID, the U.S. Agency for International Development and the Treasury – intended for government budget support and also for energy assistance. State Secretary Antony Blinken stressed that "the funds are crucial for Ukraine" and that they will ensure that the Kiev government can continue to meet "the needs of its citizens, including healthcare, education and emergency services."

00:00 25 February

WSJ: Scholz and Macron asked Zelensky to start a dialogue with Putin

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron have invited Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky to start talks with Moscow during a meeting with the Ukrainian leader in Paris in February, the Wall Street Journal reports. The Wall Street Journal essentially writes that Britain, Germany and France have offered Ukraine a rapprochement treaty with NATO, which would give it greater access to Western military equipment, in exchange for starting peace talks with Russia. The proposal calls for Ukraine and NATO to conclude a cooperation agreement, which however will not mean joining the Alliance, while Kiev undertakes to start peace talks.