Inside Politics: Russian paratroopers enter Kharkiv

In his first state of the union address last night, Joe Biden, the US president issued a warning to Vladimir Putin, telling the Russian president that he has “no idea what’s coming” after the ruble lost 30 per cent of its value as a result of harsh sanctions imposed by western countries. “I want you to know we are going to be OK,” the president reassured his citizens, in a speech headlined by the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. “We are going to be OK. When the history of this era is written, Putin’s war in Ukraine will have left Russia weaker and the rest of the world stronger,” he added. That the Covid pandemic and Biden’s own domestic security concerns amid the rise of the alt right – two policy areas large enough to keep any US president busy – came further down the running order of his speech tells you something about the “perma-crisis” gripping the US, the west and the wider world. On the ground in Ukraine, Russian paratroopers have entered Kharkiv as the war enters day seven.

Prime minister Boris Johnson and Labour leader Keir Starmer face off at PMQs, where the exchanges will be dominated by the ongoing war in Ukraine. The Commons sits from 11.30an with COP26 questions to Alok Sharma, followed by PMQs at noon.

– Shadow immigration minister Stephen Kinnock on Sky News Breakfast at 8.05am

– Defence secretary Ben Wallace on ITV GMB at 8.30am

DAY 7: Russian paratroopers entered Kharkiv overnight as the Kremlin launched a renewed attempt to seize control of Ukraine’s second-largest city. As the conflict entered day seven, officials there said a gun battle between the opposing forces broke out after Russians attacked a military hospital. Volodymyr Tymoshko, the city’s police chief, said the situation was “under control” and that security at the facility had been “strengthened”. At least 21 people were killed and 112 wounded in shelling in the city in the past 24 hours, regional governor Oleg Synegubov said. Meanwhile, Russian troops continue to advance on the capital Kyiv, although the 40-mile long column of armoured vehicles captured by satellite images may have stalled slightly, western intelligence agencies say.

KHERSON FALLS: It is understood that around 80 per cent of Russia’s invasion forces are now inside Ukraine and there are reports this morning that the port and railway station in Kherson, a city in the south, have been captured by the invading forces who are now in control of the area. The UK Defence Ministry said it had seen an increase in Russian air and artillery strikes on populated urban areas over the past two days. It also said Kharkiv, Kherson and Mariupol are now encircled by Russian forces. We’ll have all the latest updates on our liveblog.

MISSILE STRIKES: Amid fears that Vladimir Putin could resort to brute force if his troops continued to meet stiff Ukrainian resistance, a Russian missile hit Kyiv’s main TV tower, killing five people and injuring more. The missile also hit the Babyn Yar Holocaust Memorial, where Nazi soldiers executed 33,771 Jews over a two day period in September 1941. “To the world: what is the point of saying ‘never again’ for 80 years, if the world stays silent when a bomb drops on the same site of Babyn Yar?” Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukraine president, said in a tweet following the blast. A TV control room and power substation were hit, and at least some Ukrainian channels briefly stopped broadcasting, officials said. Russia previously told people living near transmission facilities used by Ukraine’s intelligence agency to leave their homes and claimed the attack was to destroy “psychological operations.”

BELARUS SANCTIONS: Liz Truss, who Russia blamed for its decision to put its nuclear forces on high alert, accused Belarus of aiding and abetting the Kremlin yesterday as she slapped president Alexander Lukashenko’s with a first tranche of sanctions. “The Lukashenko regime actively aids and abets Russia’s illegal invasion and will be made to feel the economic consequences for its support for Putin,” the foreign secretary said. “We are inflicting economic pain on Putin and those closest to him. We will not rest until Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity is restored.” The Foreign Office said the government was imposing its “first tranche” of sanctions against Belarusian military chiefs and organisations for assisting in Putin’s aggression. Four senior defence officials working for Alexander Lukashenko’s government and two Belarusian military enterprises have been sanctioned with immediate effect under the UK’s sanctions regime. Sanctions have also been issued against the Russian Central Bank, Russia’s sovereign wealth fund and its chief executive and the government is considering further sanctions on Russian oligarchs living in London.

NO FLY ZONE NO GO: On his trip to visit allies in the east yesterday, Boris Johnson was confronted by a Ukrainian woman who said the alliance was too afraid of getting into World War III, which she believed had already started as she urged the prime minister to make the case for a no-fly zone over Ukraine, which Russia would view as Nato forces engaging with its troops and therefore result in a major escalation. “The Ukrainian people are desperately asking for the west to protect our sky, the woman said as the PM delivered his remarks in Warsaw, Poland. “We are asking for a no-fly zone.” “Unfortunately the implication of that is the UK would be engaged in shooting down Russian planes, it would be engaged in direct combat with Russia,” he replied. The PM also visited Estonia and issued some of his gloomiest warnings yet about the conflict, saying that, so far, it has been “worse” than many had expected. He said the west is ready to maintain “unrelenting” diplomatic and economic pressure over the long term to ensure the failure of Putin’s imperial ambitions, even if the Russian president succeeds in his immediate goal of overrunning Kyiv and seizing parts of Ukraine.

COST OF LIVING CR…: What cost of living crisis? The watchdog governing MPs’ pay has decided to increase the salary of the UK’s elected representatives by £2,200 from next month. The Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (Ipsa) said basic pay would rise from £81,932 to £84,144 in April – a move likely to spark outrage given the cost of living squeeze faced by millions of families. The annual increase to MPs’ salaries will be 2.7 per cent, the same as the average increase in pay for public sector employees, following a two-year freeze in the wake of the Covid crisis. Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has spoken out about a pay rise for MPs this April – saying recently that it “shouldn’t go ahead” given the severe cost of living squeeze facing the public. He added: “The mechanism is independent but I think it’s for me, as leader of the opposition, to say that I do not think we should have that pay rise.” However, Richard Lloyd, IPSA’s chair, defended the decision – arguing that it was “right” that MPs were paid fairly and pointing out the increase was in line with public sector pay rises on the way.

“With every hour, the passionate desire of the people of Ukraine to defend their country has become more apparent and millions of people around the world have been stirred and moved by their courage. The reality is that whatever happens in the coming days or weeks, the Ukrainian people have shown already that their spirit will not be broken, and they will not be subdued. We as the international community have a responsibility to do everything we can to help the Ukrainians.”

PM says UK will continue to support Ukraine.

“Remarkable how Ukraine has managed to keep its state functioning in such extreme circumstances.”

Financial Times politics editor George Parker.

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