City of Sydney, AustraliaMOSCOW, Mar 20The Australian authorities, in the light of the Russian military operation in Ukraine, have imposed a ban on the export of alumina and aluminum ores to the Russian Federation, which, in their opinion, will limit Moscow's ability to produce aluminum, the press service of the Australian Foreign Ministry reports. It is noted that to date, Canberra has imposed 476 sanctions against 443 individuals from the Russian Federation, «including many oligarchs», as well as against 33 organizations.» The Australian government overnight imposed an immediate ban on Australian exports of alumina and aluminum ores to Russia, including bauxite, which will limit its ability to produce aluminum — the most important an export commodity for Russia,» the message says. It also states that almost 20% of Russia's alumina needs are met by supplies from Australia. The document emphasizes that aluminum is needed in the automotive, aerospace, engineering and construction industries, as well as in the production of weapons. Then, the night before, the Australian government prepared an additional $15.5 million military aid package for Ukraine, and will additionally allocate more $22 million in emergency humanitarian assistance to the civilian population of Ukraine. Russia launched a special military operation in Ukraine on February 24. President Vladimir Putin called its goal «the protection of people who have been subjected to bullying and genocide by the Kiev regime for eight years.» For this, according to him, it is planned to carry out «demilitarization and denazification of Ukraine.» According to the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, the Armed Forces strike only at the military infrastructure and Ukrainian troops. With the support of the Russian Armed Forces, the DPR and LPR forces are developing an offensive, but there is no talk of the occupation of Ukraine, the Russian President emphasized. Ukraine
