Here are the top developments of the day on the Russia-Ukraine crisis:

  1. Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday told neighbouring countries not to “escalate tensions”, as the invasion of Ukraine entered its ninth day, reported Reuters. Putin said that Russia has no bad intentions towards its neighbours. “We don’t see any need here to aggravate or worsen our relations,” he added. The Russian president also said any “actions” taken by the country were in response to “unfriendly actions” against it.
  2. Europe’s biggest nuclear power plant in Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia was captured in an attack by Russian forces that led to a fire on the facility on Friday, reported Reuters. The Russian defence ministry said the plant was under its control and functioning normally, but said Ukrainian “saboteurs” are responsible for the blaze. An official from the Ukrainian state nuclear plant operator said his organisation was no longer in contact with the managers of the plant or control over its material.
  3. With the return of thousands of Indian students, most of whom were studying medicine in Ukraine, the Indian Medical Association has asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to consider accommodating them in different institutes in the country, reported PTI. The association said that as a “one-time measure”, these students could be allowed to join colleges in India for the remainder of their degrees. “Resultantly, on passing out they will be as good as Indian medical graduates and not foreign medical graduates,” it said.
  4. Russian air strikes in a rural residential area in the Kyiv region killed seven people, two of them children, reported The Guardian. According to the police, air strikes hit Markhalivka, a village around 10 km from the capital Kyiv. Ukrainian parliamentarian Rustem Umerov posted a photo of Markhalivka and claimed three children had been killed in the attack.
  5. The besieged port city of Mariupol in Ukraine has no water, heat or electricity while food is set to run out, reported The Guardian. The city has been under attack for five days now. The mayor, Vadym Boychenko, appealed for a humanitarian corridor to be set up so that civilians could be evacuated from the city. According an American official, the city remains under the control of Ukraine but has faced heavy attack from Russian forces.