Live: Russia again promises safe passage for Ukrainians fleeing battered cities

 Kyiv residents awoke Wednesday to an air raid alert urging them to get to bomb shelters as quickly as possible over fears of incoming Russian missiles, while the strategic port city of Mariupol remained encircled as a humanitarian crisis grew. Moscow said it was ready to provide humanitarian corridors on Wednesday for people fleeing the capital and four other Ukrainian cities. Mikhail Mizintsev, head of Russia's National Defence Control Centre, said that Russian forces would "observe a regime of silence" from 10 am Moscow time to ensure safe passage for civilians wishing to leave Kyiv, Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv and Mariupol. Follow our live blog for the day’s latest developments.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky 

US President Joe Biden announced a ban on US imports of oil from Russia in response to Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. The UK also said they would phase out Russian oil imports by the end of the year. 

The UN said the number of refugees fleeing Ukraine since the start of the Russian invasion on February 24 surged past 2 million.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky vowed to "fight to the end" in a virtual speech to UK lawmakers that earned him a standing ovation. "We will not give up and we will not lose," he said. 
Moscow has announced a humanitarian ceasefire in Ukraine for Wednesday morning from 10 am local time (7am GMT), Russian news agencies reported. Moscow also proposed discussing the routes and other details of humanitarian corridors with Ukraine early Wednesday.