Russia-Ukraine live updates: Ukraine says Russia still disrupting evacuations; U.N. says 2 million have fled

The U.S. government is buckling in for a long and arduous effort to counter the role Russian hackers might play in the Ukraine invasion.

An emergency $32.5 billion funding request the White House sent to Congress tells the story. It includes hundreds of millions of dollars for the Pentagon and State Department to aid Ukrainian cyber defenses, counter Russian disinformation and ramp up cyber protections among U.S. forces in Europe.

One big target for the funding is shoring up the cyber defenses of Ukrainian electrical infrastructure and integrating its electrical grid with Europe.

The request also includes: $28 million to bolster the FBI’s response to “cyber threats stemming from the Russia threat and war on Ukraine” and $1 million for Justice Department attorneys to handle Ukraine and Russia-related sanctions, export control and cyber cases.

But funding for those efforts is far from guaranteed.

Residents of the besieged Ukrainian city of Sumy boarded buses to leave Tuesday through an evacuation corridor after shelling had thwarted attempts to shuttle Ukrainians out of cities under attack.

Regional governor Dmytro Zhivitsky said in a video that the first buses left Sumy for the city of Poltava, including some students from India and China, and that the disabled, pregnant women and children would have priority. He said the only route available was southwest to Poltava and noted there may not be enough space for all those who want to leave.

The buses arriving to pick up people would also bring supplies to Sumy, he said. While the corridor stemmed from an agreement between Ukraine and Russia, the governor said, he warned there was still a “very high risk of provocation.”

Russia said Tuesday it was opening humanitarian corridors to evacuate civilians from a number of besieged cities after Ukraine accused Moscow of violating cease-fires in recent days. “Let’s try again,” tweeted Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak.

But a planned evacuation from the southern coastal city of Mariupol could not start Tuesday morning, according to Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk, who accused Russian shelling of preventing the route from opening again. The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said a fleet of 30 buses and eight trucks were ready to deliver aid to the besieged port city and carry civilians out from the seaside hub northwest toward another region, but also accused Russian forces of violating the cease-fire and shelling the corridor.

The national average gas price in the United States climbed to over $4 this week, according to the AAA Gas Prices website, a record high since July 2008.

This is largely a consequence of the upward march in global oil prices, following the Ukraine crisis that had already inflated what drivers in the United States pay at the pump.

The national average gas price stood at $4.173 per gallon Tuesday, according to AAA data, while in California it was over $5.

U.S. officials are looking for ways to take the pressure off global energy markets and ease the pocket pain of consumers, but analysts warn there is no supplier that could easily supplant Russia, the world’s third-largest energy producer. Oil prices hit their highest point in over a decade on Monday at $120 a barrel as it appeared increasingly likely that Western sanctions would not spare the Russian energy industry.

Global energy giant Shell said in a statement on Tuesday that it intends to “withdraw from its involvement in all Russian hydrocarbons, including crude oil, petroleum products, gas and liquefied natural gas (LNG) in a phased manner,” in a move likely to further impact consumer prices.

Negotiators from the United States, Russia and China have been working on a renewed Iran nuclear deal that could return Iranian crude oil to the markets. A group of U.S. officials flew to Venezuela on Saturday to discuss that nation’s oil exports, The Washington Post reported.

This week, Russia threatened to cut the flow of gas to Europe through a major pipeline, which could leave countries facing oil prices of more than $300 per barrel, according to a Russian official.

“It is absolutely clear that a rejection of Russian oil would lead to catastrophic consequences for the global market,” Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said in a statement Monday on state television. “The surge in prices would be unpredictable. It would be $300 per barrel, if not more,” he said.

The Biden administration has pushed its allies to support a ban on Russian oil imports. European Union leaders will meet in Versailles, France, on Thursday to discuss the possibility of phasing out the bloc’s dependency on Russian energy.

Dow slides nearly 800 points as oil hits $120 a barrel while Russia conflict rattles investors

A man drove a truck through the gates of the Russian Embassy in Ireland on Monday, leading to a heated back-and-forth with Russian authorities, who accused Irish law enforcement of failing to respond — the latest incident highlighting the precarious role of Russian diplomatic as they have become the targets of protesters since the invasion of Ukraine.

A video of the incident shared by Irish broadcaster RTÉ News shows a large truck reversing into the gates of the embassy on Orwell Road in Dublin, as some onlookers cheer. Other videos posted on social media show the driver, who identifies himself as Desmond Wisley, handing out photographs of what he describes as victims of Russian forces in Ukraine, including a woman and two children, and saying, “I done it for her.”

The Garda said in a statement that they are investigating the incident and that a man was arrested and “taken to Rathfarnham Garda Station where he is currently detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984.″ The man is expected to face charges at a hearing in Tallaght District Court on Tuesday, the Garda said.

The Russian Embassy in a statement Monday afternoon said Irish police officers “stood idle” as this happened, and accused Ireland of violating the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, which says that nations have a “special duty” to protect foreign diplomatic missions.

A spokesperson for the Irish Police, or Garda, said in an email to The Washington Post that it “does not comment on statements or remarks made by 3rd parties,” and said its officer acted quickly to arrest the driver.

Other Russian embassies and their staff around the world have become the target of protesters’ discontent since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. On Saturday, Russia’s Foreign Ministry in a statement said “hoodlums have attacked Russian diplomatic missions in Canada, Estonia, Iceland, Ireland, Lithuania, Poland and Sweden.”

A day full of “the brightest feelings.” A day to “to wish that your loved ones surround you with attention and warmth.” A day for “sincere words of admiration and gratitude” to wives, mothers, grandmothers, sisters, daughters and girlfriends.

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s video message of congratulations “from all my heart” to Russian women on International Women’s Day — one of Russia’s favorite holidays — struck an awkward note, as Russia shells civilian areas in Ukraine, mothers and newborns in a maternity hospital shelter in a Kyiv basement, and Human Rights Watch reports that Russian forces bombarded a road with fleeing civilians for hours Sunday, killing a couple and their two children.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky also mentioned International Women’s Day briefly in a speech Tuesday in which he pressed the West to do more to stop Russian “genocide” against Ukrainian civilians. He said he could not congratulate women over the holiday “when there are so many deaths.”

In Putin’s message, he said “we live in difficult times” and pointed to Russia’s “inevitable need to protect our people and our country.” He spoke of “global economic challenges,” implying that the crash of Russia’s ruble and job losses as Western companies pull out of the country were due to widespread problems, rather than a Russian economic crisis triggered by sanctions over the invasion of Ukraine.

“I would like to address the mothers, wives, sisters, brides and girlfriends of our soldiers and officers who are now in battle, defending Russia during a special military operation,” he said. “You can be proud of them just as the whole country is proud of them and worries about them with you.”

He also revived memories of World War II, known in Russia as the Great Patriotic War, amid Russian propaganda that has recast the invasion of Ukraine as a defensive battle against “neo-Nazis.”

“Even during the most difficult trials of the Great Patriotic War, nothing could prevent the men of Russia from confessing their love to their women, and this love served as a support and inspiration,” Putin said.

The global cosmetics firm Estée Lauder on Monday said it will stop doing business in Russia, the latest in a long and growing list of Western companies cutting ties with the country as a show of support for Ukraine.

In a statement, the company said it is “closing every store we own and operate” in Russia and no longer exporting products to consumers and retailers there in response to “the tragic invasion of Ukraine.”

The company’s latest move builds on its decision last week to “suspend The Estée Lauder Companies’ business investments and initiatives in Russia,” the statement said.

Below is a non-exhaustive list of some of the other boycotts launched globally since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

TALLINN, Estonia — For years, Europe’s Baltic states sounded the alarm about the looming threat from Russia and urged NATO to strengthen its eastern defenses.

On Monday, Lithuania’s leader issued another grim warning: Russian President Vladimir Putin may “not stop” in Ukraine.

“Deterrence is no longer enough, and we need more defense,” President Gitanas Nauseda said ahead of talks with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius.

“Because otherwise, it will be too late here, Mr. Secretary,” he said. “Putin will not stop in Ukraine; he will not stop.”