US in "active talks" on Russian oil import ban

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Washington was in "very active talks" with its European partners about a ban on oil imports from Russia while Ukraine prepared for a widening offensive against its urban centers.

Restrictions on Russian oil would be a major step in the West's response to Moscow for invading Ukraine and could have a potentially serious impact on the global economy. It would also mark a reversal by the White House, which had rejected bipartisan calls for a ban on Russian oil imports to the US on the grounds that an embargo would limit global supply and raise prices for consumers.

The move would further isolate Russia's economy, already suffering from heavy sanctions and a mounting corporate boycott. This weekend, payment networks Mastercard, Visa and American Express, accounting firm PwC, streaming service <a class="tvreplink" target="_blank" href="https://www.tradingview.com/chart/?symbol=Nasdaq%3ANFLX">Netflix and social video app TikTok joined a long list of companies pulling out of Russia.

Blinken told NBC on Sunday he had spoken to US President Joe Biden and the cabinet about the oil change. His comments came at a time when Ukrainian civilians were bearing the brunt of the widening Kremlin offensive, which drew thousands of Russians to the streets of Moscow and other cities in protest.

"We are now in very active talks with our European partners about a ban on imports of Russian oil into our countries, while of course maintaining a steady global oil supply," Blinken said.

The US wanted a coordinated response with its partners, but Blinken added: "I'm not ruling out that we'll take action one way or another, regardless of what they do."

Asked about Blinken's comments, a senior French official said further sanctions would be considered by European and "other" partners, without specifying how far the discussions had progressed.

"The question that arises today is how we can draw on strategic reserves to prevent further price increases in the oil and gas markets, and also how we can manage our stocks and supplies in the longer term," the official said.

British officials aren't ruling out a total ban on Russian oil, but one called the idea a "drastic move."

British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has asked British officials to explore the idea of ​​a "cap" on Russian energy imports, which could be lowered over time to mitigate the likely economic shock.

Russian forces continued to attack populated areas and civilian infrastructure in Ukraine on Sunday, the 11th day of Vladimir Putin's invasion. An attempt to evacuate 200,000 people from the besieged port city of Mariupol, where many have been living in freezing basements without basic services and under heavy Russian shelling for the past week, has failed for the second straight day.

In Irpin, west of Kyiv, Russian forces reportedly fired on people fleeing the city, killing eight people.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia was planning an attack on Ukraine's third-largest city, Odesa, which defense officials expected as Putin's troops advance along the coast and threaten Ukraine's access to the Black Sea and Sea of ​​Azov.

After Russia fired cruise missiles deep into western Ukraine and hit Vinnyitsa airport, Zelensky again appealed to the international community to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine - an idea dismissed by NATO as unrealistic, as it entailed a direct confrontation between the Alliance and Russia would risk.

If it is not possible to block Ukrainian airspace for Russian jets, Zelensky said in a video briefing, there would only be one conclusion: "You want us to be killed very slowly".

In a two-hour phone call with French President Emmanuel Macron, Putin denied that Russian forces had targeted civilians in their bombing of Ukrainian cities, the French official said.

According to defense analysts, while Russia tried to consolidate its hold in southern Ukraine, Russian troops faced unexpectedly strong resistance from the Ukrainian military and angry local residents in the captured cities.

In Kherson, the largest occupied city, videos posted to the internet on Saturday showed residents gathering in large numbers and facing Russian troops head-on. Protests were also reported from Melitopol, Berdyansk and other Russian-held cities over the weekend.

"People are driving the Russians out of our territory and blocking the roads for them," Zelensky said. "Every meter of Ukrainian land gained by protesting and humiliating the invaders is a step towards the victory of our entire state."

Thousands of people protested across Russia on Sunday against the war, defying the threat of lengthy prison terms for anyone who spoke out. More than 4,300 people were arrested in 56 cities, according to the independent monitoring organization OVD Info, which also published videos of aggressive arrests by riot police armed with batons. The demonstrations also included those that took place near the Kremlin walls in Moscow and in central St. Petersburg.

The British Ministry of Defense said Russia had attacked inhabited areas in several locations, including Kharkiv, Chernihiv and Mariupol. The attack was "an attempt to break Ukrainian morale," similar to Moscow's devastating bombings in Chechnya in 1999 and Syria in 2016, it said.

Russia has bombed civilian targets, including residential buildings, schools and health facilities.

The World Health Organization said it had confirmed six cases of Russian attacks on health facilities causing "several deaths and injuries" and was reviewing additional reports.

Filippo Grandi, the head of the UN refugee agency, said the conflict had resulted in more than 1.5 million people migrating to neighboring countries in 10 days, making the situation "the fastest growing refugee crisis in Europe since World War II World War".