This was CNBC's live blog tracking developments on the war in Ukraine on Tuesday August 2, 2022. See here for the latest updates.
The United States slapped more sanctions on Russian oligarchs on Tuesday, as the U.S. Senate moved closer to a vote to admit Sweden and Finland into the NATO military alliance.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke of fears over a nuclear accident in Ukraine. He told reporters late Monday that there are "credible reports" that Russia "is using this plant as the equivalent of a human shield, but a nuclear shield in the sense that it's firing on Ukrainians from around the plant."
Meanwhile, the first shipment of grain exports from Ukraine in months departed Monday from the port of Odesa. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the shipment a "positive signal."
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Two Republican senators propose amendments ahead of the vote to add Finland and Sweden to NATO
Two Republican senators have proposed amendments on the vote to add Sweden and Finland to NATO.
Money Report
Sens. Rand Paul, R-Ky., and Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, both are seeking changes to the treaty vote as Congress prepares to head into recess.
Paul told NBC News that his amendment states that "nothing in the Article Five portion of the NATO Treaty supersedes the congressional directive that we have to declare war." The NATO provision holds than an attack on one member of the alliance is an attack on all members.
Sullivan told NBC News that his amendment states that every member of NATO, to now include Sweden and Finland, should commit to the 2% of GDP spending on defense goal established at the 2014 NATO Wales Summit.
The vote to include Sweden and Finland in NATO is expected to overwhelmingly pass.
— Amanda Macias
U.S. slaps more sanctions on Russian officials and oligarchs
Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced new sanctions on Russian oligarchs and state-owned entities.
Below is the State Department's fact sheet of imposed penalties on the following Russian oligarchs:
- Alexander Ponomarenko "for operating or having operated in the aerospace sector of the Russian economy. He is an oligarch with close ties to other oligarchs and the construction of Vladimir Putin's seaside palace." He has been sanctioned by the U.K., European Union, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
- Dmitry Pumpyanskiy "for operating or having operated in the financial services sector of the Russian Federation economy." The U.K., European Union and New Zealand have also designated him. Pumpyanskiy has ties to the yacht "Axioma," which is now being identified as blocked property.
- Andrey Melnichenko "for operating or having operated in the financial services sector of the Russian Federation economy." Like Pumpyanskiy, he has also been designated by the U.K., European Union, and New Zealand.
"We are also imposing additional costs on Russia's war machine by designating 24 Russian defense and technology-related entities," Blinken wrote in a statement.
"Russia has systematically focused on exploiting high-technology research and innovations to advance Moscow's war-fighting capabilities – the same defense capabilities that Russia's military is using in its vicious attacks hitting Ukraine's population centers and resulting in the deaths of civilians, including children," he added.
— Amanda Macias
March was the deadliest month of Russia's war in Ukraine, UN says
The United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner said that March was so far the deadliest month in Russia's war in Ukraine.
There were more than 3,100 civilian casualties and 2,400 injuries due to the conflict in March, according to data compiled by the UN.
The United Nations has confirmed 5,327 civilian deaths and 7,257 injuries in Ukraine since Russia invaded on Feb. 24.
"Most of the civilian casualties recorded were caused by the use of explosive weapons with wide area effects, including shelling from heavy artillery, multiple launch rocket systems, missiles and air strikes," the UN office wrote in a report.
The human rights office added that the majority of casualties and injuries were reported in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions.
— Amanda Macias
Ukrainian troops fire a multiple launch rocket system in the Kharkiv region
- Sofiia Gatilova | Reuters
Estonia and Latvia discuss buying U.S. air defense systems
Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur and Latvian Defense Minister Artis Pabriks discussed buying U.S.-made medium-range air defense systems to bolster regional security.
The two countries are interested in buying the Multiple Launch Rocket System, or MLRS, and the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, or HIMARS. Both weapons have proven effective in Ukraine's fight against Russia.
"At present, one of the key tasks in our cooperation is to forge ahead with the Estonian-Latvian joint procurement of medium-range air defense systems. I hope that the governments of both countries will quickly take the necessary decisions to start the actual purchase process," said Pevkur after the meeting.
"The HIMARS multiple rocket launcher capability development cooperation project is another important priority," he added.
— Amanda Macias
First vessel carrying Ukrainian agriculture products expected to arrive in Turkey this evening
The first vessel carrying grain and agricultural products from Ukraine is expected to arrive off the coast of Istanbul around 5 p.m. ET.
Ukraine's Infrastructure Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov told NBC News on Monday that the vessel is expected to reach Tripoli, Lebanon in two days.
Kubrakov also said that 16 ships are ready to go, but that only three vessels will leave the port each day for the next two weeks.
— Amanda Macias
NATO chief speaks with Zelenskyy about more military aid
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy about more military aid for Ukraine's fight against Russia.
"It's vital that NATO and allies provide even more assistance to Ukraine even faster," Stoltenberg wrote in a tweet.
He said that the two also discussed the first shipment of grain since Russia's late February invasion and subsequent naval blockade of Ukrainian ports.
— Amanda Macias
UN says at least 5,327 killed in Ukraine since start of war
The United Nations has confirmed 5,327 civilian deaths and 7,257 injuries in Ukraine since Russia invaded its ex-Soviet neighbor on Feb. 24.
The Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights said the death toll in Ukraine is likely higher, because the armed conflict can delay fatality reports.
The international organization said most of the civilian casualties recorded were caused by the use of explosive weapons with a wide impact area, including shelling from heavy artillery and multiple launch rocket systems, as well as missiles and airstrikes.
— Amanda Macias
Russia's top court designates Ukraine's Azov Regiment a 'terrorist' group
Russia's supreme court recognized Ukraine's Azov Regiment as a terrorist group, according to Reuters, in a move that could see captured soldiers tried under robust anti-terror laws and potentially jailed for up to 20 years.
The Azov Regiment, which has far-right and ultra-nationalist roots, has been a prominent unit fighting against pro-Russian forces in eastern Ukraine.
It was formally incorporated into Ukraine's national guard in late 2014 shortly after being set up as a paramilitary volunteer group.
— Sam Meredith
German chemicals firm warns of production chain collapse as Putin squeezes gas flows
Covestro warned Tuesday that the rationing of gas could see some of its sites shut down, as its CEO stressed the importance of reducing the company's reliance on fossil fuels.
"Due to the close links between the chemical industry and downstream sectors, a further deterioration of the situation is likely to result in the collapse of entire supply and production chains," the firm said.
Read the full story here.
—Anmar Frangoul
Russia faces ‘economic oblivion’
Russia is facing "economic oblivion" in the long-term because of international sanctions and the flight of businesses, several economists have said.
Many see long-lasting costs to the Russian economy from the exit of foreign firms – which will hit production capacity and capital and result in a "brain drain" – along with the loss of its long-term oil and gas markets and diminished access to critical imports of technology and inputs.
Read the full story here.
—Elliot Smith
BP's Gelsenkirchen plant no longer uses Russian crude
Amid its second-quarter earnings update Tuesday, BP CEO Bernard Looney said that the firm's refinery in Gelsenkirchen, Germany, no longer uses Russian crude, down from 50%.
Oil majors have been one of many sectors that have cut or significantly reduced their exposure to Russia following its invasion of Ukraine.
Back in late February, BP announced it was offloading its 19.75% stake in Rosneft, a Russian-controlled oil company.
— Matt Clinch
US 'deeply concerned' of Russian control of Ukrainian nuclear facilities, Blinken says
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the U.S. is "deeply concerned" about reports that Russian forces have taken over nuclear facilities in Ukraine.
"There are credible reports, including in the media today, that Russia is using this plant as the equivalent of a human shield, but a nuclear shield in the sense that it's firing on Ukrainians from around the plant," Blinken told reporters at the United Nations, adding that this was "the height of irresponsibility."
"And of course, the Ukrainians cannot and will not fire back, lest there be a terrible accident involving a nuclear plant," he said.
Blinken said that it was important that the International Atomic Energy Agency be granted access to nuclear facilities in order to safeguard against an accident.
— Amanda Macias
Germany argues over nuclear shutdown amid gas supply worries
Rising concern over the impact of a potential Russian gas cutoff is fueling the debate in Germany over whether the country should switch off its last three nuclear power plants as planned at the end of this year.
The door to some kind of extension appeared to open a crack after the Economy Ministry in mid-July announced a new "stress test" on the security of electricity supplies. It's supposed to take into account a tougher scenario than a previous test, concluded in May, that found supplies were assured.
Since then, Russia has reduced natural gas supplies through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline to Germany to 20% of capacity amid tensions over the war in Ukraine. It cited technical issues that Germany says are only an excuse for a political power play. Russia recently has accounted for about a third of Germany's gas supply, and there are concerns it could turn off the tap altogether.
The main opposition Union bloc has made increasingly frequent demands for an extension of the nuclear plants' lives. Similar calls are coming from the smallest party in Chancellor Olaf Scholz's coalition government, the pro-business Free Democrats.
— Associated Press
Macron tells Zelenskyy that Russian war crimes will not go unpunished
French President Emmanuel Macron told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in a phone call that war crimes committed by Russian forces will "not go unpunished."
"While war crimes are multiplying, the President of the Republic reaffirmed his support for the Ukrainian people and their resistance and declared his determination to ensure that these crimes do not go unpunished," a French presidential office source wrote in a readout of the call.
During the call, the 36th exchange between the two leaders since Russia's war in Ukraine began, Macron said that France would send a team of forensic experts and a mobile DNA analysis laboratory to Ukraine.
— Amanda Macias
