Pollution by states and companies is contributing to more deaths globally than Covid-19, a UN environmental report said, calling for “immediate and ambitious action” to ban some toxic chemicals.

The Kremlin and senior officials yesterday made fun of Western media for running with February 16 as the “invasion date” when Russia might attack Ukraine, some even went further suggesting western leaders should see a doctor for their war “paranoia”.

Russia said more of its forces surrounding Ukraine were withdrawing yesterday but Nato urged Moscow to prove it was pulling back, saying there were signs that more troops were on the way.

Russia said yesterday some of its military units were returning to their bases after exercises near Ukraine and mocked repeated Western warnings about a looming invasion, but Nato said it had yet to see any sign of de-escalation on the ground.

We’ve got Russian field hospitals being constructed near the border with Ukraine in Belarus, for what only can be construed as a preparation for an invasion.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Monday invoked rarely used emergency powers to bring an end to trucker-led protests against Covid health rules, after police arrested 11 people with a “cache of firearms” blocking a border crossing with the United States.

President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that Russia does not want a war in Europe, but described the situation in east Ukraine's breakaway regions as "genocide" and called for the conflict there to be resolved through the Minsk peace progress.

The stakes in the fight against global warming are higher than ever, the UN’s climate science chief said yesterday as nearly 200 nations met to finalise what is sure to be a harrowing report on climate impacts.

Russia said yesterday that a diplomatic solution to Moscow’s standoff with the West was still possible and that some of its military drills were ending, after tensions over Ukraine reached fever pitch.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz landed in Kyiv today before visiting Moscow to try to head off a “very critical” threat of a Russian invasion that could spark the worst crisis since the Cold War.

Efforts to defuse the crisis in Ukraine via a frenzy of telephone diplomacy failed to ease tensions, with US President Joe Biden warning that Russia faces “swift and severe costs” if its troops carry out an invasion.

Paris police said they arrested 97 people who defied a ban on a Canada-style protest convoy over coronavirus regulations to try block traffic in the capital, with 81 still in custody yesterday.

The Swiss yesterday voted to tighten their notoriously lax tobacco laws by banning virtually all advertising of the hazardous products, partial results showed.

Tunisian President Kais Saied yesterday officially replaced a key judicial watchdog and gave himself powers to sack judges, as well as banning them from going on strike.

The Kremlin yesterday denounced US “peak hysteria” surrounding the Ukraine conflict but said Russian President Vladimir Putin and US leader Joe Biden had agreed to continue dialogue.

Some airlines have canceled or diverted flights to Ukraine amid warnings from the West that an invasion by Russia is imminent despite intensive weekend talks between Moscow and Washington.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is set to speak with his US and French counterparts yesterday after the United States warned that Moscow could invade Ukraine in days.

The Ukrainian government yesterday urged citizens to stay calm and united, saying the armed forces are ready to repel any attack on the country amid concern that Russia may be poised to invade.

Russia is now massing yet more troops near Ukraine and an invasion could come at any time, perhaps before the end of this month’s Winter Olympics, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said yesterday.

Australia officially listed koalas across a swathe of its eastern coast as “endangered” yesterday, with the marsupials fighting to survive the impact of bushfires, land-clearing, drought and disease.