We have put together a round-up of all the latest news, weather and travel information for Sunday, March 6, that will get you caught up and ready for the day.
Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab has said that Ukrainian forces have "proved a far tougher prospect than Putin expected" and that the conflict in Ukraine could last "months, if not years".
Speaking to Trevor Phillips on Sunday on Sky News, the UK minister said the UK will have to show "strategic stamina".
He said economic sanctions had "put the squeeze on Putin" and therefore "what he's now doing is responding with evermore brutal tactics".
"I think the bottom line is none of the major cities have yet fallen," he said.
"I think we ought to be under no doubt that our mission with our allies is to ensure Putin fails in Ukraine, and it's going to take some time.
"We're talking about months, if not years, and therefore we will have to show some strategic stamina because this is not going to be over in days."
He also warned Russian commanders and those around Vladimir Putin that they also risked being prosecuted for war crimes at the International Criminal Court (ICC).
Justice Secretary Mr Raab said the "reckless and frankly applying tactics by the Putin regime must be held to account".
He told the broadcaster this applied "not just (to) Putin himself, but also anyone taking illegal orders".
"My point, the here and now in all of this, is I want, and we want, and the ICC is making clear, that for all of those commanders on the ground right through to the people around Putin in the Kremlin, what they do now, whether they give or whether they follow illegal orders to commit war crimes, they will be held to account for it, and they need to know that."
Wales news headlines
People in Wales raise £5.3m for Ukraine appeal in just one day
People in Wales raised over £5m to help aid Ukraine just 24-hours after a Disasters Emergency Appeal was launched.
In what has been described as an “extraordinary outpouring of public support”, over £55m was raised by the UK in the first day after the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) launched their Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal on Thursday March 3.
The appeal has seen donations by members of the royal family, the public as well as UK governments.
Of the £55m million raised in the first day, £20 million was donated by the UK Government as part of its UK Aid Match scheme and £4m was also donated by The Welsh Government.
The DEC confirmed on Friday March 4 that in the first 24-hours after the appeal was launched, Wales had already donated £5.3m to the appeal. This figure is now likely to be higher.
The DEC brings together 15 leading UK aid charities to raise funds quickly and efficiently at times of crisis overseas. These include Oxfam. Save the Children and The British Red Cross among others.
The Welsh Government announced on March 1 that it was committed to providing £4m in financial and humanitarian aid to Ukraine amid the turmoil of an "unprovoked and brutal act of war" by Russia.
Body found in search for 96-year-old woman
A body has been found in the search for a missing 96-year-old woman.
Police have confirmed that officers searching for Rita, whose surname has not been released, have found a body in the Brecon area.
Rita, from Brecon, was last seen at 10.20am on Saturday, February 26 and police have made several public appeals for help in efforts to find her.
An extensive, large scale multi-agency search has been taking place in the area since the report was received, involving the police search team, Brecon Mountain Rescue, Mid and West Wales Fire Service and the National Police Air Service.
A spokesperson for Dyfed-Powys Police said on Saturday: "Police searching for a missing 96-year-old woman in the Brecon area have today found a body.
"Her family have been informed and are being supported by specialist officers."
Today's forecast
There will be isolated showers in the south while it will be dry elsewhere in Wales today, according to the Met Office.
Today:
A fine and dry start in the north and west, with sunny spells. Cloudier elsewhere with some light showers in the far south, but brightening up here in the afternoon, although with an isolated light shower is still possible Maximum temperature 9 °C.
Tonight:
Any showers will fade away to leave a dry night with occasional clear spells. Breezy near the coasts, with a frost developing in many inland areas by morning. Minimum temperature -2 °C.
Here is how the roads and rail are affected at 9am:
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Advance Warning - M4 Eastbound exit slip road closed due to resurfacing work during the night at J37 A4229 ( Pyle / Porthcawl).
Between 20:00 and 6:00 Mondays to Sundays from 20:00 on the 5th to 6:00 on 7th March.
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Advance Warning - A465 Heads Of The Valleys Road in both directions closed due to roadworks during the night between A4047 King Street ( Brynmawr roundabout, Brynmawr ) and A4077 Abergavenny Road (Govilon Roundabout, Gilwern).
Between 20:30 and 6:00 Mondays to Sundays from 20:30 on the 5th to 6:00 on 7th March.
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Overrunning engineering works between Abergavenny and Shrewsbury are resulting in all lines being blocked. Trains running through these stations may be cancelled or delayed. Disruption expected until approximately 12:00.
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Flood damage following recent storms has closed the line between Shrewsbury and Newtown. Buses are replacing trains between Shrewsbury and Newtown, calling at Welshpool, until further notice. A bus timetable is available here.
National news headlines
Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab has again ruled out imposing a no-fly zone over Ukraine
Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab has again ruled out imposing a no-fly zone over Ukraine, saying this would lead to a "massive escalation" and would feed into the Russian president's narrative.
He told Sky News's Trevor Phillips on Sunday programme: "We're not going to get ourselves into a direct military conflict with Putin because that would be a massive escalation, but also that feeds Putin's narrative.
"Putin wants to say that he's actually in a struggle with the west - he's not".
He called no-fly zones "very difficult, very challenging" and said "we will do everything short of that to support Ukrainians".
The Minister has also defied Vladimir Putin's claim that the sanctions levelled against him and Russia were a declaration of war.
The Deputy Prime Minister told Trevor Phillips on Sky News: "Just to be clear, sanctions are not an act of war, international law (is) very clear about that.
"Our sanctions are entirely both legally justified but also proportionate to what we're trying to deal with."
Mr Raab said he thought Mr Putin's nuclear posturing was "rhetoric and brinkmanship", and accused the Russian leader of having "a track record as long as anyone's arm of misinformation and propaganda".
He added: "This is a distraction from what the real issues are at hand, which is that it's an illegal invasion and it is not going according to plan."
Mr Raab also called on China and India to take a more active role to put on diplomatic pressure.
Ukraine's President Zelensky has consistently called on Western allies to declare a no-fly zone over Ukraine.
Mastercard and Visa suspend operations in Russia after invasion of Ukraine
Mastercard and Visa are suspending their operations in Russia in the latest blow to the country’s financial system after its invasion of Ukraine. Mastercard said cards issued by Russian banks will no longer be supported by its network and any card issued outside the country will not work at Russian stores or ATMs.
“We don’t take this decision lightly,” Mastercard said in a statement, adding that it made the move after discussions with customers, partners and governments.
Mastercard and Visa are suspending their operations in Russia in the latest blow to the country’s financial system after its invasion of Ukraine. Mastercard said cards issued by Russian banks will no longer be supported by its network and any card issued outside the country will not work at Russian stores or ATMs.
“We don’t take this decision lightly,” Mastercard said in a statement, adding that it made the move after discussions with customers, partners and governments.
Since the invasion of Ukraine, the value of the Russian currency, the ruble, has plunged by more than a third to a record low. That’s pushing up inflation for Russian households, and all the fear has helped cause long queues at ATMs.
Many other companies around the world have also made moves to increase the financial pressure on Russia and its people because of its attack on Ukraine. Some are selling their stakes in Russian companies, such as energy giant BP, while others like Harley-Davidson halted product shipments to the country.
“This war and the ongoing threat to peace and stability demand we respond in line with our values,” Visa’s Mr Kelly said.
Sport headlines
Wales captain Dan Biggar admits future is unclear
Wales captain Dan Biggar has revealed he has no firm plans for when his Northampton Saints contract expires next year.
The 32-year-old former Osprey joined the East Midlands club in the summer of 2018 and is a pivotal figure in both his club and international environments.
But Biggar, who featured in Saturday's 35-30 defeat to Gloucester, knows he will have to be looking ahead to what is next in the not too distant future.
"I think over the summer we’ll probably sit down and have some conversations and think what we want to do as family,” he told Rugby Journal.
"It’s not like I’m a young guy who’s got no commitments anymore, now it’s the other way around, your family decide for you.
"I’ve got another year left, and I absolutely love it in Northampton and owe them a huge, huge amount, because they’ve invested a lot in me on the field and I feel like I’ve grown as a person and as a player here.
"I honestly don’t know what I’m what I’m going do. But I’m also really relaxed about it.
"I want to just see where we’re at in a year’s time and go from there."
He added: "We need to stop talking about lots of potential in the squad and growth and we need to start delivering."
Northampton Saints are currently eighth in the Gallagher Premiership table out of 13.
Read the full interview in the new issue of Rugby Journal - which also features Wales star Jasmine Joyce. It is available to order via therugbyjournal.com/subscribe
Swansea City 3-1 Coventry City: Michael Obafemi brace sees Swans ease to victory
Swansea City secured back-to-back Championship wins for the first time since November after easing to a 3-1 win over Coventry City at the Swansea.com Stadium.
A brace from Michael Obafemi was at the heart of the victory for Russell Martin's men, who have also now claimed three consecutive home wins.
Jamie Paterson's superb early opener set the tone for the contest, before Obafemi slotted home a second just before the break.
The former Southampton man then doubled his tally shortly after the break, coolly driving an effort past former Cardiff City goalkeeper Simon Moore following a superb Matt Grimes pass.
Gustavo Hamer netted late on for the visitors, but it was too late to show any real sign of an unlikely comeback.
The Swans stay in 16th on the back of this result, but will feel that they have set themselves up for a strong finish to a largely transitional campaign.
Meanwhile Cardiff City also beat QPR as Isaak Davies and Rubin Colwill ensued a complete stunning comeback win.
A dramatic second-half comeback from Cardiff City saw the Bluebirds beat QPR 2-1 courtesy of goals from academy products Isaak Davies and Rubin Colwill.
Cardiff looked far more threatening and it was indeed the youngster Davies who made the telling contribution. He was played in down the left by Joel Bagan before muscling Rob Dickie to the ground. He picked the ball up and drove into the box before employing a couple of stepovers to trick his opposite number. He did just that before hammering it at Marshall, who looked to have saved it as the ball spooned over his head.
The away end had barely stopped singing before Davies was causing trouble again just minutes later, winning a free-kick 20 yards from goal.
Up stepped Rubin Colwill and, bang, his crisply-struck free-kick was rifled into the top corner to completely tip the game on its head within the space of five minutes. The almost 1,500 travelling fans erupted into singsong euphoria.
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