Lviv/Kyiv/Moscow - Russia's offensive in Ukraine continued but at a significantly slower pace on Tuesday as hopes of opening safe corridors to let Ukrainian civilians escape the Russian onslaught as said by Kremlin officials.

Major General Vitaly Gerasimov, first deputy commander of Russia's 41st army, was reported to be killed by Ukrainian military and intelligence, the second such senior Russian commander to be killed during the onslaught.

Russia’s invasion has created 1.7 million refugees, a raft of sanctions on Moscow, and fears of wider conflict as the West pours military aid into Ukraine.

Kyiv has rejected Moscow's offer of possible humanitarian corridors to Russia and Belarus. Moscow has since proposed giving the residents of the cities of Sumy and Mariupol the choice of moving elsewhere in Ukraine on Tuesday, setting a deadline in the early hours for Kyiv to agree, Russian news agencies reported.

Energy war feared
Fears of an energy war between Russia and the West grew on Tuesday after the United States pushed its allies to ban Russian oil imports as punishment for Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

Russia warned it could stop the flow of gas through pipelines from Russia to Germany in response to Berlin's decision last month to halt the opening of the controversial new Nord Stream 2 pipeline. Russia supplies 40% of Europe's gas.

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak on Monday warned that oil prices could more than double to $300 a barrel if the United States and its allies banned imports of Russian oil.

Analysts at Bank of America however said that if most of Russia's oil exports were cut off there could be a shortfall of 5 million barrels per day (bpd) or more, pushing prices as high as $200. 

Oil prices see-sawed near 14-year highs on Tuesday, with Brent crude futures up $1.06, or 0.9%, at $124.27 a barrel at 0223 GMT, after trading as high as $125.19. 

Japan tightened its sanctions on Tuesday, freezing assets of an additional 32 Russian and Belarusian officials and executives of companies with close ties to the government. 

Estee Lauder  joined the list of firms exiting Russia, suspending all commercial activities and closing all its stores in the country.
-Reuters