Hungary has extended temporary legal protection to Ukrainians fleeing the Russian invasion, as countries in eastern Europe prepare for the arrival of refugees at their borders.
Hungary, which borders Ukraine to the west, has in the past taken a firm stance against all forms of immigration. It has controversially refused to accept refugees and asylum seekers from the Middle East, Africa and Asia.
But in a decree published late Thursday, Hungary's government announced that all Ukrainian citizens arriving from Ukraine, and all third-country nationals legally residing there, would be entitled to protection.
The section applying to third-country nationals makes it possible for non-Ukrainians for example, Belarussian refugees living in Ukraine to receive protection in the European Union.
Prime Minister Viktor Orban has said that Hungary will play no part in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, but that it would accept refugees arriving at its borders.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has expressed his solidarity with Ukraine in telephone call with the country's leader.
Johnson's Downing Street office said Friday that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy offered an update on Russian military advances, including missile and artillery strikes.
The prime minister assured President Zelenskyy that the world is united in its horror at what Putin his doing,'' Johnson's office said in a statement. He paid tribute to the bravery and heroism of the Ukrainian people in standing up to Russia's campaign of violence and expressed his deep condolences for those who have been killed.''
The German government says it has suspended the granting of export credit and investment guarantees for business with Russia.
The Economy Ministry said Friday that the granting of new export credit guarantees and investment guarantees for Russia was suspended on Thursday.
The so-called Hermes credit export guarantees protect German companies from losses when exports aren't paid for. Investment guarantees are granted by the German government to protect direct investments by German companies from political risk in the countries where they are made.
The Economy Ministry said that new export credit guarantees to the tune of 1.49 billion euros ($1.67 billion) were granted last year for business with Russia. New investment guarantees came in at a fraction of that amount, at 3.75 million euros ($4.2 million).
Poland's Border Guard says that some 29,000 people were cleared to enter through the country's land border with neighboring Ukraine on Thursday, the day Russia's invasion of Ukraine began.
Before that, there were some 12,000 average daily entries from Ukraine into European Union and NATO member Poland, through land, sea and airport checkpoints, according to Border Guard statistics.
Poland has lifted the requirement of COVID-19 quarantine or vaccination certificates for refugees from Ukraine. A number of reception centers with camp beds, soup kitchens and medical care have been organized in locations close to the border with Ukraine.
China is holding back from labeling Russia's attack on Ukraine an invasion.
At the same time, it is upholding the sanctity of territorial sovereignty, in a nod to its own insistence that Taiwan is part of China.
The sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries should be respected and maintained, China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Wang Wenbin said Friday.
At the same time, we also see that the issue of Ukraine has its own complex and special historical merits, and we understand Russia's legitimate concerns on security issues, he added.
Wang did not answer questions about whether China would recognize the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics, in Ukrainian territory claimed by Russia, as independent states.
Russia's civil aviation authority has banned U.K. flights to and over Russia in retaliation against the British government's ban on Aeroflot flights.
Rosaviatsiya said that all flights by the U.K. carriers to Russia as well as transit flights are banned starting Friday.
It said the measure was taken in response to the unfriendly decisions by the British authorities who banned flights to the U.K. by the Russian flag carrier Aeroflot as part of sanctions over Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
The Russian military claims it has destroyed 118 Ukrainian military assets since the beginning of its assault on its neighbor and as it pushes into the outskirts of Kyiv.
The claim could not be independently verified and was not confirmed by Ukraine amid a flurry of claims and counterclaims by each side.
Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said Friday that among the targets were 11 Ukrainian air bases, 13 command facilities, 36 air defense radars, 14 air defense missile systems, 5 warplanes, 18 tanks and warships.
However, U.K. Defense Secretary Ben Wallace rejected Russian claims of success on the first day of its invasion of Ukraine, saying it had failed to deliver on its day one objectives.
Wallace told Sky News that the Western assessment is that Russia had failed to take its major objectives and is behind on its timetable for advance.
They've lost over 450 personnel,'' he said.
Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel has condemned Russia's attack on Ukraine, calling it a deep cut in European history after the end of the Cold War. Germany's dpa news agency quoted Merkel saying Friday that there was no justification for this blatant attack of international law. I condemn it in the sharpest possible manner.
Merkel, who grew up in East Germany and speaks Russian, was heavily engaged in negotiations with Russian President Vladimir Putin throughout her 16 years in office, which ended in December.
