European Union leaders agreed to a sixth sanctions package that would immediately hit 75% of Russian oil imports, European Council President Charles Michel said, adding that embargo would expand to encompass 90% of imports by year end.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told Russia's Vladimir Putin he is ready to meet with officials from Russia, Ukraine, and the United Nations in Istanbul to help bring about an end to the war, the Turkish government said.
Meanwhile, Russian forces continue to pound Ukrainian positions in the country's Donbas, which Moscow has described as an "unconditional priority."
A French journalist was killed by Russian artillery in the Donbas area, a local official said.
And Russia has likely suffered "devastating losses" among its officers, the U.K.'s Ministry of Defence said in a daily intelligence update, while fears of a global food crisis mount as Ukraine's vital grain exports are stuck behind blockaded ports.