Ukraine and Russia latest headlines on Friday evening as nuclear catastrophe 'narrowly averted'

Chelsea owner and Russian-Israeli billionaire Roman Abramovich has been sanctioned by the British government and his assets frozen.

Boris Johnson will personally attend the Scottish Tory conference next week to burnish his “war leader” image in an attempt to bury the sleaze of partygate allegations against him.

Russia has branded the Ukrainian claims that it carried out the horrifying bombing of a children's hospital in Mariupol as "fake news", stating that the building was no longer a maternity hospital and that it had long been taken over by armed forces.

Chelsea are set to hold talks with UK Government on Thursday evening over the sanctions imposed on Roman Abramovich.Abramovich was added to the UK's sanctions list on Thursday morning - and the action has major repercussions for the Blues. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said: “There can be no safe havens for those who have supported Putin’s vicious assault on Ukraine.

Russia and Ukraine, but on Thursday it was announced that his assets have been frozen, and he will be prohibited from making any transactions in the UK.Chelsea are also unable to sell match-day tickets, merchandise or renegotiate contracts as part of the sanctions, essentially pausing all activity at the club away from the matters on the field.Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the move was a demonstration of the UK’s "unwavering support for the Ukrainian people," although the consequences lead to lots of potential issues that could arise at Chelsea.But a takeover at the club can 'still go ahead' if Abramovich meets certain terms.According to inews, Chelsea can still be sold by Abramovich if it is guaranteed that none of the proceeds will benefit the Russian oligarch in any way.Abramovich's accounts will be closely monitored by Government officials should he look to go through with a sale, but the Russian would have to apply for a special licence to do so, declaring that he will not benefit from the sale.The Chelsea owner has already announced that any net profits of a sale would have been donated to a charity that supports the victims of the war in Ukraine, but Abramovich did not specify if any of the proceeds would go to Russian people.So if Abramovich hands over the process to the UK Government, Chelsea can still be sold, and Telegraph Sport have also confirmed that potential buyers have not been put off despite the sanctions made on Thursday.The report states that if Abramovich agrees to allow the Government to take control and decide where the funds go, a sale can be made, and one of the potential buyers was contacted and remained interested in a deal.American billionaire Todd Boehly and Swiss billionaire Hansjorg

Russian forces have reportedly bombed a maternity hospital in the Ukrainian city of Mariupol leaving children trapped under the wreckage, the country's president Volodymyr Zelensky stated.

Boris Johnson led a packed House in a rare standing ovation following President Zelenskyy’s rousing speech.President Zelenskyy was described on US TV as "Churchill With A Social Media Account" for his stirring rhetoric and there's enormous support for him here in the UK.London Mayor Sadiq Khan has backed a campaign which could force the Russian Embassy to change its address to Zelenskyy Avenue. after Kensington council is being petitioned to rename Kensington Palace Gardens in honour of the Ukrainian president."Britain must shame Putin at every possible opportunity," said Layla Moran MP, the Lib Dems' foreign affairs spokesperson.

The royals are celebrating Queen Elizabeth II on International Women’s Day.

The Queen made a subtle tribute to Ukraine's people amid the brutal invasion of the country by Russian forces - and royal fans love her sweet gesture. Yesterday morning the Monarch met with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at Windsor Castle marking her first in-person engagement since recovering from Covid.

Queen Elizabeth, 95, made her first in-person appearance on Monday, March 7 after recovering from COVID-19. The British monarch was pictured graciously shaking hands with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, 50, at her residence at Windsor Castle in England. The Queen looked healthy and had a big smile on her face. She was dressed in a stylish blue floral dress for the meeting.

The Queen has finally returned to face-to-face engagements as she met the Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, 50.The 95 year old monarch had been avoiding all in-person plans on her royal schedule due to an extended bout of COVID-19. Aides and medics did their best to help the Queen isolate, as she continued to present with "mild symptoms" of Covid, and she hosted a number of official figures via Zoom and video link.

Queen Elizabeth II is back at work in a big way. On Monday, the 95-year-old monarch appeared in person for the first time since recovering from COVID-19.The queen received Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in audience at Windsor Castle.

On Monday, Queen Elizabeth II held an audience with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Ukraine is asking NATO to "close the skies" in a bid to end Russia's air attacks.

Ukraine, laying bare the horrors of war. With Russia preparing to storm the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, the bombing and shelling across many towns and cities in the country have intensified, leading to a growing number of civilian casualties.Ukrainian President Vlodomyr Zelensky has vowed revenge after photos of a fleeing family lying dead in the street as Russian forces shelled Irpin shocked the world.His Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has taken to Twitter to post a picture of a giant Russian bomb that landed on a residential building in Chernihiv, less than 100 miles from Kyiv.Kuleba mentions that luckily the bomb didn't detonate, but claims other bombs have and is calling on the West to do more to help Ukrainians in their struggle.He wrote: "This horrific 500kg Russian bomb fell on a residential building in Chernihiv and didn’t explode.

 Notting Hill actor Hugh Grant blasted Nigel Farage on Twitter last night.The angry tweet came after the former Brexit Party leader called the Prime Minister’s Net Zero plans “ruinous”, demanding a referendum on the matter. Hugh, 61, pulled no punches as he told Nigel, 57, exactly what he thought of his proposal. In view of his 721,900 Twitter followers, he simply wrote: “Russian warship - go f**k yourself.”The tweet came in response to another Nigel had posted an hour earlier in regards to his views on Net Zero.Last night he wrote: “I am launching a new campaign to kill off Boris Johnson’s ruinous green agenda. “We demand a referendum on Net Zero.“Read all about it in the Mail on Sunday,” he added with a screenshot of the article attached.

Russia will not forget Britain's desire to co-operate with ultra-nationalist forces in Ukraine and the supply of British weapons to the Kyiv regime," The Mirror reports. She continued: "The sanctions hysteria in which London plays one of the leading, if not the main, roles, leaves us no choice but to take proportionately tough retaliatory measures.

Ulrika Jonsson has lashed out at former Strictly Come Dancing star Kristina Rihanoff accusing her of being "incapable of reading a room." The comments came after the professional dancer sent an "insensitive" tweet about the conflict in Ukraine last week where she claimed she didn't "give a s**t about the war".Ulrika, 54, addressed the since-deleted tweet in her column in The Sun as she criticised the stance taken by Kristina.She wrote: "Apparently she cares more about her failing yoga business, which was forced to shut during the lockdowns."She swiftly showered social media with apologies if she had upset anyone. Shame on her."Ulrika continued to devalue the apology Kristina posted after facing a backlash online.She said: "How are some people so painfully incapable of reading the room? And the moment an apology includes the word 'if', you know the antagonist meant every word they said."Former Strictly star Kristina sparked outrage last week over an "insensitive" tweet about Russia's ongoing attack on Ukraine.

Strictly Come Dancing star Kristina Rihanoff "incapable of reading a room" following her "insensitive" tweet about the war in Ukraine last week.The Swedish TV personality, 54, didn't hold back as she slammed the former dance pro for saying that she didn't "give a s**t about the war" in a now-deleted tweet.Taking to her column in The Sun, Ulrika addressed Kristina's comments, taking aim at her apology following the backlash her tweet ensued.Revealing that the crisis in Ukraine has deeply affected her, the mother-of-four told how shocked she was to hear Kristina exclaiming she didn't "give a s**t about war".Ulrika wrote: "Apparently she cares more about her failing yoga business, which was forced to shut during the lockdowns."She swiftly showered social media with apologies if she had upset anyone."Shame on her," she added.Ulrika went on: "How are some people so painfully incapable of reading the room?"The star went on to sarcastically address Kristina's apology, which saw her question the sincerity of the statement.She added: "And the moment an apology includes the word 'if', you know the antagonist meant every word they said."Former Strictly star Kristina sparked outrage last week over an "insensitive" tweet about Russia's ongoing attack on Ukraine.According to the MailOnline, the professional dancer told her 148,000 followers in a now-deleted tweet: “I do want to focus on what sort of punishment Boris Johnson will have for destroying my family run business and 1000 of others.“Many of my friends LOST businesses because of government lockdowns."Don't give a s**t about the war but I do about the debt because of NO TRADING for 2yrs.” (sic)After deleting the tweet, the dancer issued a lengthy apology claiming that it wasn't

Vladimir Putin about a weapon "worse than a nuclear bomb" have added to fears around Russia looking set to take the invasion of Ukraine to a dangerous next level. His comments, from a October 2017 youth festival in Sochi, may have been a signal of his early intent to go to any extreme on the battlefield.The Russian President seemed convinced the world would soon witness super-human soldiers who cannot feel pain or fear.He said: “A man has the opportunity to get into the genetic code created by either nature, or as religious people would say, by God.“All kinds of practical consequences may follow.

Ukraine as the conflict continues to worsen amid Vladimir Putin's invasion.Experts have warned that the Russian President could be ready to take the war to a new level as Ukrainian forces have managed to largely repel his force's advances. There are fears that the power-mad ruler has sarin gas, one of the most toxic and fast-acting chemical weapons ever created.The concerns follow news that Sergei Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister, said that the US was developing “biological materials” in Ukraine, reports the Telegraph.Mr Lavrov said Moscow had information that the US was “worried it would lose control” over alleged chemical weapons sites in Ukraine.One expert, Washington’s ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, said "nothing is off the table with this guy," referring to the Russian president.