Operational situation on the diplomatic front as of March 8, 7:00 p.m.

Dmytro Kuleba: “Together with our partners, we have made a devastating economic blow. USA, UK, Japan are refusing to buy Russian oil”.

• The gas needle refusal of the Russian Federation
• The United States has announced a ban of all imports of Russian oil and gas
• The European Commission has presented a REPowerEU plan to make Europe independent from Russian fossil fuels. The offered measures are to provide a two-thirds reduction in EU demand for Russian gas by the end of this year
• The British government intends to stop importing Russian oil by the end of 2022.
• British Petroleum company has already announced decision to suspend new agreements for the purchase of oil and gas from Russia
• Japan has banned the export of refining equipment to Russia
• Shell company has announced plans of immediate suspending of all purchases of Russian crude oil, closing gas stations, and producing aviation fuel and lubricants in Russia

Military aids

For the first time, Japan will provide assistance to the Armed Forces of Ukraine. These are protective weapons for the needs of the Ukrainian army, including bulletproof vests, helmets, tents, winter clothing, medicines and electric generators

Sanctions

• The bipartisan group of US senators has drafted a bill offer to block Russia's foreign exchange reserves, that it holds in gold. The bill is designed to prevent Russia from selling its gold reserves and improve the economy
• The House of Commons in the UK has approved a new bill aimed at combating money laundering. After it’s approval by the House of Lords, the law does not allow wealthy Russians to use the City of London to launder money and conceal illicit income

Isolation of the Russian Federation

• The venture fund Index Ventures stops investing in Russian startups
• The Binance cryptocurrency exchange no longer supports Mastercard Visa cards issued in Russia
• The Estonian government has suspended the registration of Russian and Belarusian citizens as electronic residents of Estonia. The decision is aimed to prevent the use of e-resident status in Estonia to circumvent sanctions
• Dutch ISPs have begun blocking Russian media sites in the country