Live updates: Lavrov: Russia is facing ''total war'' from West

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov says Russia is facing total war declared by the West.

Lavrov said at a meeting on Friday that “a real hybrid war, total war was declared on us.” He said the goal was “to destroy, break, annihilate, strangle the Russian economy, and Russia on the whole.” During the first month of what Russia describes as a “special military operation” in Ukraine, the West imposed tough measures targeting Russia's economy and financial system as well as President Vladimir Putin and Russian oligarchs.

Despite that, Lavrov said Russia was not isolated.

“We have many friends, allies, partners in the world, a huge number of associations in which Russia is working with countries of all continents, and we will continue to do so,” Lavrov said. He added that the vast majority of states won't join the Western sanctions policy against Russia.

___ KEY DEVELOPMENTS IN THE RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR: — Officials say 300 dead in airstrike on theater in Mariupol — Biden to visit Poland, a complex ally on Ukraine's doorstep — Some prominent Russians quit jobs, refuse to support war.

___ OTHER DEVELOPMENTS: KYIV, Ukraine — Mariupol's city government says the Kremlin's main political party has opened a political office in a shopping mall on the outskirts of the besieged city.

According to the post on the city's Telegram channel, the United Russia office is distributing promotional materials as well as mobile phone cards for an operator that functions in the nearby Russia-backed separatist regions.

Mariupol's communication links have been all but severed since the siege began in early March. Cell phone, television and radio towers have been targeted in Russian airstrikes and artillery barrages.

___ COPENHAGEN, Denmark — NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg says that any use of chemical or nuclear weapons “will totally change the nature of the war in Ukraine. It will be absolutely unacceptable.” Stoltenberg spoke during a visit to the long-planned Cold Response drill in his native Norway and called Russia's war in Ukraine “a watershed moment.'' He also regretted that Moscow had declined to observe the drill, saying that NATO “always invite other countries to observe.” The drill taking place in southeastern, central and northern Norway includes around 30,000 troops from 27 countries. Non-NATO members Finland and Sweden are also participating. The exercise started March 14 and ends April 1.

The first Cold Response exercise was held in 2006. It is conducted every two years.

___ KYIV, Ukraine — The government of the Ukrainian city of Mariupol says 300 people died in a Russian airstrike on March 16 on a theater being used as a bomb shelter.

The post Friday on the city government Telegram channel cited eyewitnesses for the toll of “about 300.” It was not immediately clear whether emergency workers had finished excavating the site or how the eyewitnesses arrived at the horrific death toll.

When the theater was struck, an enormous inscription reading “CHILDREN” was posted outside in Russian, intended to be visible from the skies above.

Soon after the airstrike, Ludmyla Denisova, the Ukrainian Parliament's human rights commissioner, said more than 1,300 people had been sheltering in the building.

___ BRUSSELS — The United States and the European Union have announced a new partnership to reduce Europe's reliance on Russian energy. Top officials characterized the step as the start of a years-long initiative to further isolate Moscow after its invasion of Ukraine.

U.S. President Joe Biden asserted Friday that Russian President Vladimir Putin uses energy to “coerce and manipulate his neighbors” and uses the profits from its sale to “drive his war machine.” Biden said the partnership he announced jointly with a top European Union official will turn that dynamic on its head by reducing Europe's dependence on Russian energy sources, as well as the continent's demand for gas overall.

Under the plan, the U.S. and other nations will increase liquified natural gas exports to Europe by 15 billion cubic meters this year. Even larger shipments would be delivered in the future.

At the same time, they will try to keep their climate goals on track by powering gas infrastructure with clean energy and reducing methane leaks that can worsen global warming.

___ ANKARA, Turkey — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says Ukraine and Russia appear to be making progress on four issues being negotiated for an end of the fighting but differences remain on two other key issues.

Speaking to reporters on his return from a NATO summit late Thursday, Erdogan said Kyiv has expressed readiness to give up on its wish to join NATO, is ready to accept Russian as an official language, and can also accept “certain concessions” concerning disarmament and “collective security.” But Erdogan said Ukraine ''is not so comfortable“ regarding Russian demands on Crimea, which Moscow annexed in 2014, and the eastern Donbas region, where it has recognized separatist entities as independent. His comments were reported by Hurriyet newspaper and other Turkish media on Friday.

NATO member Turkey has been trying to balance its relations with both Ukraine and Russia, positioning itself as a mediator between the two. It has hosted a meeting between the two countries' foreign ministers earlier this month.

___ BERLIN — Germany's economy minister says his country has forged contracts with new suppliers that will allow it to significantly reduce its reliance on Russian coal, gas and oil in the coming weeks.

Robert Habeck told reporters in Berlin on Friday that Russian oil will account for about 25% of Germany's imports in the coming weeks, from currently about 35%.

Habeck said imports of Russian coal will be halved from about 50% of Germany's total to 25% in the coming weeks.

He said Germany also expects to be able to become almost entirely independent of Russian gas by mid-2024. To do this the government has secured the use of three “floating” terminals capable of regasifying LNG brought in by ship and is working hard to build permanent LNG terminals for long-term imports.

___ JERUSALEM — A Ukrainian who fled the country with her daughter has finished first among women in this year's Jerusalem marathon.

Valentyna Veretska, 31, competed in Friday's race after fleeing with her 11-year-old daughter shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24. Her husband stayed behind.

Organizers say Veretska finished the 26.2-mile (42.2-kilometer) race in two hours, 45 minutes and 54 seconds. Ageze Guadie, 33, from Israel, finished first in the men's category with a time of 2:37:17.

Veretska, 31, is ranked 444th worldwide among female marathon runners and most recently finished first in the October 2021 Tirana Marathon, according to World Athletics. Ahead of the Jerusalem race, she told reporters that she would “run for peace.” She and her daughter fled from the southern city of Mykolaiv with only their travel documents, making their way to neighboring Poland. She was invited to take part in the Jerusalem marathon earlier this month.

Marathon organizers say around 40 Ukrainian immigrants and refugees competed among thousands of runners.

___ BUDAPEST, Hungary — Hungary's prime minister on Friday rejected an emotional appeal from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to supply Ukraine with weapons and support sanctions on Russia's energy sector.

Prime Minister Viktor Orban said in a video posted to social media that Zelenskyy's requests were “against Hungary's interests,” and that sanctions on Russian energy “would mean that the Hungarian economy would slow down and then stop within moments.” The rejection came after Zelenskyy on Thursday addressed a meeting of European Union leaders in Brussels where he specifically addressed Orban, who is widely considered Russian President Vladimir Putin's closest ally in the EU.

“Listen, Viktor, do you know what is happening in Mariupol?” Zelenskyy said. “I want to be open once and for all — you should decide for yourself, who you are for.” Hungary, alone among EU countries bordering Ukraine, has declined to supply its neighbor with weapons and refused to allow weapons shipments to cross its border into Ukraine.

On Friday, Orban said that 85% of Hungary's gas and more than 60% of its oil comes from Russia, and that blocking Russian energy exports would force Hungarians to “pay the price of the war.” ___ KHARKIV, Ukraine — About half the population of the eastern city of Kharkiv has left, and food and other essentials are dwindling for those who stay behind. A line formed Thursday at an apartment block as neighbors waited for aid from the Red Cross.

“Among those who stayed, there are people who can walk on their own, but many who cannot walk, the elderly,” said Hanna Spitsyna, who distributed the food to the sound of explosions behind her.

Kharkiv has been under siege by Russian forces since the start of the invasion, with relentless shelling that has forced people to sleep in metro stations and in basements.

Ukraine's government said shelling on a group of people awaiting aid elsewhere in the city killed six people on Thursday. It was not immediately possible to verify the allegation.

___ DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Satellite photos from Planet Labs PBC analyzed by The Associated Press show thick black smoke rising Thursday over the port in the Ukrainian city of Berdyansk, with a large ship on fire.

The timing of the photos correspond with what the Ukrainian navy described as a successful attack that saw a Russian landing craft ferrying armored vehicles to the city sink off the port.

The image also corresponds to online videos purportedly showing the attack at the port in the city held by Russia on the Sea of Azov.

___ LVIV, Ukraine – Russian forces fired two missiles late Thursday at a Ukrainian military unit on the outskirts of Dnipro, the fourth-largest city in the country, regional emergency services said.

The strikes destroyed buildings and set off two fires, it said, while the number of those killed and wounded was still being established.

Dnipro is west of the regions along the Russian border that have been controlled by Russian-backed separatists since 2014.

___ LVIV, Ukraine — With the war headed into its second month, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke of hope and determination in his nighttime video address to the nation late Thursday.

“It is already night. But we are working,” he said in a quiet voice. “The country must move toward peace, move forward. With every day of our defense, we are getting closer to the peace that we need so much. We are getting closer to victory. … We can't stop even for a minute. For every minute determines our fate, our future, whether we will live.” He reported on his conversations that day with leaders of NATO and European Union countries gathered in Brussels, and their promises of even more sanctions on Russia.

“We need to look for peace,” he said. “Russia also needs to look for peace.” ___ LVIV, Ukraine — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy thanked EU leaders for working together to support Ukraine and impose sanctions on Russia, including Germany's decision to block Russia from delivering natural gas to Europe through the new Nord Stream 2 pipeline.

But he lamented that these steps weren't taken earlier, saying there was a chance Russia would have thought twice about invading.

He then appealed to the EU leaders, who had gathered Thursday in Brussels, to move quickly on Ukraine's application to join the bloc. “Here I ask you, do not delay. Please,” Zelenskyy said by video from Kyiv. “For us this is a chance.” He then listed the 27 member countries, noting those he said were “for us.” He appealed to Germany and particularly to Hungary not to block Ukraine's bid.

“Listen, Viktor, do you know what is happening in Mariupol?” Zelenskyy said, addressing Hungarian President Viktor Orban. “I want to be open once and for all — you should decide for yourself, who you are for.” Orban is widely considered to be Russian President Vladimir Putin's closest ally among EU leaders.

Zelenskyy said Ukraine is certain that “in the decisive moment, Germany also will be with us.” ___ BRUSSELS — President Vladimir Putin's threat to have “unfriendly” countries pay for Russian natural gas exports only in rubles from now on has got the not-so-friendly treatment from European Union nations.

Several EU leaders have come out saying it would be a gross violation of their contracts. From German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, they said they would not meet such demands.

The Russian threat is potent since the EU imports 90% of the natural gas used to generate electricity, heat homes and supply industry, with Russia supplying almost 40% of EU gas.

Economists say such a move seems designed to try to support the ruble, which has collapsed against other currencies since Russia invaded Ukraine and Western countries responded with far-reaching sanctions against Moscow.

Making such demands though, would fundamentally change contracts and render them null and void, several European leaders said during the first day of their EU summit.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)