Russia-Ukraine updates: US sanctions Russian military shipbuilder, diamond miner

President Joe Biden announced new steps Friday to "squeeze Putin" for his invasion of Ukraine and warned that Russia would pay a "severe price" if it uses chemical weapons in Ukraine.

Biden also called Russian President Vladimir Putin an aggressor, saying he "must pay the price."

Biden announced that the U.S., along with the G7 and EU partners, are revoking the favored nations status for Russia, bringing an end to normal trade relations with the Kremlin.

"He cannot pursue a war that threatens … the very foundations of international peace and stability and then ask for financial help from the international community," Biden said.

The move is the latest highlighting the unity of the West against Putin.

"The free world is coming together to confront Putin," Biden said, adding that sanctions already imposed are "crushing" the Russian economy. He also hinted that these are just the latest steps, but not the "last steps" allies will take against Russia.

Biden said he spoke to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for "some time" telling him that the U.S. stands with Ukraine "as they bravely fight to defend their country."

Biden also said he looks forward to signing Congress' bipartisan spending bill, which includes an additional $13.5 billion in aid to Ukraine, "immediately."

“We will make sure Ukraine has weapons to defend against an invading Russian force. We will send money and food and aid to save the Ukrainian people. And I will welcome Ukrainian refugees—we should welcome them here with open arms if they need access,” Biden said.

-ABC News' Justin Gomez and Molly Nagle

Russia's Defense Ministry on Friday claimed more than 34,500 people were evacuated from Ukraine to Russia in the last 24 hours, without help from Kyiv authorities.

People were evacuated from various Ukrainian regions, including Luhansk and Donetsk regions, the head of the Russian National Defense Control Center, Mikhail Mizintsev, said at a press briefing.

"In the past 24 hours, 34,555 people, including 3,562 children, were evacuated from dangerous zones in various Ukrainian regions and the Luhansk and Donetsk People's Republics without Ukraine's involvement," Mizintsev said.

He added, "In total, more than 223,000 people, including 50,258 children, have already been evacuated since the launch of the special military operation."

Mizintsev claimed Ukrainian authorities are refusing humanitarian corridors in Russia's direction and prohibiting local authorities from having contacts with the Russian side.

According to Mizintsev, the city of Volnovakha is under control of the Donetsk militia and residents are reluctant to evacuate. He claimed the troops "are already establishing a return to peaceful life in Volnovakha."

"Relevant humanitarian events involving the population are underway, and none of the residents are going to leave their homes," Mizintsev said.

Russia's Defense Ministry also claimed that Ukrainian officials are disrupting evacuations from Izium to Lozova.

"The travel itineraries are planted with landmines, and parts of the road are being shelled with small arms and mortars by Ukrainian territorial defense units on approaches to Lozova," he said.

Mizintsev claimed Mariupol is blocked. "All bridges and approaches to it are destroyed, the main roads have been mined by nationalists, and gunmen are roaming the streets, firing indiscriminately, thereby forcing the civilian population to stay in," he said.

Mizintsev also claimed Ukrainian forces blew up "a building of the institute of physics and technology in Kharkiv to hide nuclear research" and that up to 50 of its employees might be missing.

Ukraine's air force claimed Friday that Russia carried out an alleged false flag airstrike in a Belarusian village near the border with Ukraine.

In a post on Facebook, Ukraine's air force claimed Russian jets took off from a base in Belarus and entered Ukraine's airspace, then a fire started in the village of Kopani.

Ukraine's Defense Minister Oleksy Reznikov earlier claimed in a Facebook post that Russian forces would launch a strike against Kopani to "pull the armed forces of the Republic of Belarus into the war with Ukraine."

-ABC News' Patrick Reevell

The U.S. Department of Commerce announced Friday that it will restrict the export of U.S. luxury goods to Russia and Belarus, as well as "certain Russian and Belarusian oligarchs and malign actors located worldwide," as a result of their actions in Ukraine.

The Department of Commerce said it will impose restrictions on the export, reexport and transfer of luxury items including certain spirits, tobacco products, clothing items, jewelry, vehicles and antique goods.

"Putin’s war of choice in Ukraine continues to take a devastating toll on innocent civilians in Ukraine, fueling one of the worst humanitarian crises Europe has seen in decades," Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo said in a statement.

Raimondo added, "Putin and the oligarchs who fund him have gotten rich off of Putin’s rampant corruption and the exploitation of the Russian people. We will not allow Putin and his cronies to continue living in opulence while causing tremendous suffering throughout Eastern Europe. Today’s action takes away another source of comfort and reminds them that Russia is increasingly isolated."

-ABC News' Luke Barr