Ukraine

Ukrainian forces struggled to hold their ground in bloody street-to-street fighting in the eastern frontline city of Sievierodonetsk as President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said the situation was difficult, also pledging to retake Russia's gains.

The Welshman's contract with Real Madrid ends this summer.

Ukrainian and Russian troops fought street by street for control of the industrial city of Sievierodonetsk on Monday in a pivotal battle of the Kremlin offensive in Ukraine's eastern Donbas region.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Sunday he had traveled to Lysychansk and Soledar, two cities very close to some of the most intense fighting between his country's troops and Russian forces.

Swiatek dominated the final with a 6-1,6-3 victory over Gauff.

U.N. aid chief Martin Griffiths is in Moscow on Thursday and Friday to discuss clearing the way for exports of grain and other food from Ukraine's Black Sea ports, a U.N.

The situation on the eastern frontline in Donbas has become increasingly desperate, with Ukrainian towns facing near constant shelling from Russian forces.

Russia's foreign minister Sergei Lavrov has dismissed all rumours around Vladimir Putin's health.

Europe's race to replace Russian gas supply has threatened Australia's plans for five gas import terminals as they compete for key infrastructure, raising the risk of a supply shortfall in Australia's populous southeast in the next two years.

European Union leaders agreed on Monday to ban most imports of Russian oil to the 27-nation bloc as Ukrainian and Russian forces battled on the outskirts of Sievierodonetsk, the last city still held by Kyiv in Ukraine's strategic Luhansk province.

European Union leaders agreed in principle on Monday to cut 90% of oil imports from Russia by the end of this year, resolving a deadlock with Hungary over the bloc's toughest sanction yet on Moscow since the invasion of Ukraine three months ago.

In recent weeks, Russia has focused its drive on Donbas after pulling back from a failed advance on Kyiv and other Ukrainian regions.

Another EU official said the mooted compromise raised questions of fairness on the sanctions burden shouldered by member states.

The numerous videos on social media of Russian helicopter gunships being shot down are very public evidence of the extent of the losses.

Mastercard suspended operations in Russia - a market that accounted for roughly 4% its net revenue in 2021 - in March, over its invasion of Ukraine.

Some 25 million tonnes of corn and grains are stuck in Black Sea ports because of the war in the Ukraine and Russian grains and fertilisers exports are also disrupted by sanctions.

A study last year found around five percent of farmland in Brazil used remineralizers.

"The focus in oil markets is on the EU summit taking place next week, at which another attempt will be made to agree on an EU-wide embargo on Russian oil,"

Ukraine's Infrastructure Minister Oleksander Kubrakov said that the two neighbours were working on easing transport of Ukraine's goods to the European Union.

Market gains have been capped, however, by concerns about China's efforts to crush COVID with lockdowns, even with Shanghai due to reopen on June 1.

On the business agenda, discussions are likely to focus on the souring state of financial markets and the global economy.

Pakistan-born British billionaire Mohammad Zahoor, who is married to a famous Ukrainian singer, has reportedly brought two warplanes to help Ukraine in its fight against Russia.

Mexico, Ecuador, Colombia and Peru are also, to a greater or lesser extent, dependent on Russian fertilizers.

President Vladimir Putin spoke at the online meeting last year, but organisers decided to exclude Russians this time as Western powers have imposed sanctions on Moscow over the Ukraine conflict.

Yellen said that funding pledges to Ukraine during the meeting exceeded the $15 billion that Kiev has estimated it needs over the next three months

The UN chief also said that Russian food and fertilizers "must have full and unrestricted access to world markets."

Sweden and Finland were both neutral throughout the Cold War, and their decision to join NATO is one of the most significant changes in Europe's security architecture for decades

McDonald's has decided to shut shop in Russia more than 30 years after it first opened its operations in the country. It has now joined the list of firms that have stopped offering their services in the country.

Russian President Vladimir Putin appeared on Monday to climb down from threats to retaliate against Sweden and Finland for announcing plans to join the U.S.-led NATO military alliance.

The conflict has also disrupted shipping in the Black Sea, throttling exports from Ukraine and Russia