March 11, 2022 Russia-Ukraine news

Melitopol mayor Ivan Fedorov.

The mayor of Melitopol, Ivan Fedorov, was seen on video being led away by armed men from a government building in the city on Friday, and the prosecutor’s office for the separatist Russia-backed Luhansk region now says they are weighing terrorism charges against him. 

Fedorov’s detention by the armed men is the first known instance of a Ukrainian political official being detained and investigated by Russian or Russian-backed forces since the invasion began.

According to a message on the Luhansk prosecutor’s website, Fedorov is being accused of assisting and financing terrorist activities and being part of a criminal community.

The Luhansk prosecutor’s office claimed that Fedorov was a member of the “Right Sector.” CNN has previously reported that the group is a Ukrainian nationalist paramilitary and political group that operates in Ukraine. It has an anti-Russian stance, but independent observers say it’s not the fascist threat that Russian President Vladimir Putin claims it to be.

The prosecutor’s office claims “Right Sector” has conducted terroristic acts against civilians in the Donbas region without providing any details. 

Local media, citing conversations with the Melitopol City Council, confirmed that the man being led away in the video was Fedorov. 

CNN has geolocated and verified the authenticity of the video. 

CNN has not been able to identify an attorney for Fedorov on the charges.

Alex Dayrabekov

Alex Dayrabekov, the father of a one-month-old baby, told CNN what it was like to live in a war zone.

Dayrabekov said he has gone through a roller coaster of emotions since Russia invaded just over two weeks ago.

“Millions of Ukrainians are in the same situation now. … And we share the same emotions. The emotion I felt on the second or third day of the war couldn’t be called anger; it is not anger, it’s fury. I was furious. On the first and second day, I cried like baby. I cried, my wife cried, but on the third day, I got really, really furious, and I wanted to do something. And now I know that every single Ukrainian feels the same,” he told told CNN’s Anderson Cooper from Cherkasy, Ukraine.  

He said he was able to evacuate his home on the second day of the war and has gone back to help other families leave. But he was stopped by the army from entering the area last Thursday.

He said he “cannot just sit and read the news,” so he created a volunteer group to deliver supplies to those in hiding in Kyiv bomb shelters.

Dayrabekov said he even tells his son now that “this is a historical moment.”

“It is a historical moment for Ukraine, historical moment for Europe. … I don’t want to leave.  I want to stay here and I want to fight,” he said.

Watch the interview:

YouTube said on Friday it is blocking Russian state-funded media channels globally “effective immediately.”

The tech company said today on Twitter it began blocking RT and Sputnik’s YouTube channels across Europe. It added that it has already taken other steps since Russia began its invasion in Ukraine.

“We paused monetization and significantly limited recommendations for Russian state-funded media channels. Both actions are global & indefinite. Our Trust & Safety team has worked to quickly remove violative content. We’ve removed hundreds of channels & thousands of videos for violating our Community Guidelines, including our policies around deceptive practices and misinformation,” it said on Twitter.

YouTube added that when people search for topics on Russia and Ukraine, “our systems prominently surface authoritative news content in both our Top News and Breaking News shelves, and will continue to as needed.” It also displays information panels underneath videos from news publishers with government funding.

G7 agriculture ministers have called on all countries to keep their food and agricultural markets open as food security concerns rise following Russian’s invasion of Ukraine.

“We call on all countries to keep their food and agricultural markets open and to guard against any unjustified restrictive measures on their exports. Any further increase in food price levels and volatility in international markets could threaten food security and nutrition at a global scale, especially among the most vulnerable living in environments of low food security,” they said in a joint statement.

The G7 consists of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States.

In the statement, the agriculture ministers also condemned Russia’s aggression of Ukraine and expressed their solidarity with the country.

The ministers voiced their concerns over the impacts on food security and “the rising number of people suffering from hunger and all forms of malnutrition, caused by the unprovoked and unjustifiable Russian war of aggression, adding to the already severe situation caused by COVID-19, climate change and biodiversity loss.”

“We call on international organisations to support food production in Ukraine during this crisis and ensure food security in affected areas. We remain determined to do what is necessary to prevent and respond to a food crisis, including with humanitarian aid, and stand ready to act as needed to address potential disruptions,” the ministers said.

The Ukrainian government is banning exports on key agricultural goods including wheat, corn, grains, salt, and meat, according to a cabinet resolution that passed Tuesday.

Russia is the world’s top exporter of wheat, and Ukraine is also a significant exporter of both wheat and corn.

Ekaterina Kryshtal's underground shelter in her home.

In the small village of Nemeshaevo, located about 25 miles from Kyiv, residents have had to huddle underground in cold cellars usually used to store potatoes and beets in order to protect themselves from shelling and bombs.

There have been no evacuation corridors, according to resident Ekaterina Kryshtal.

Kryshtal, along with her husband and their two children, aged 4 and 11, used an electric heater to warm themselves in their rural home for a few days. But then the electricity went out, and they were also left with no gas or supplies, she said.

Several times, she went outside, despite the pleas from her family. And often she came under fire, she said, but survived.

Two days ago, some of the villagers took a chance to evacuate by themselves. They had no escort or guards, but they formed a column of about 70 cars and set off. Kryshtal’s husband was not able to join them, as there were nine people in one car.

On the way, the column was fired upon, she said, despite white flags and signs that had “children” written on them. Kryshtal and her children managed to escape and are now in a safe area near Khmelnytskyi.

President Joe Biden speaks at the House Democratic Caucus Issues Conference on March 11 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

US President Joe Biden emphasized once again on Friday that the US will not send ground troops into Ukraine. 

“We will not fight the third world war in Ukraine,” Biden said after reiterating the United States’ full support to its NATO allies and promising that the US will defend “every inch” of NATO territory. 

Biden also thanked the House of Representatives members for their support of Ukraine, noting he spoke to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky today for about an hour. Biden added that he speaks to the Ukrainian president “almost daily.”

Biden also stressed the importance that the US and its allies move together on any moves to counteract the Kremlin.

“I know I’ve occasionally frustrated you, but more important than us moving when we want to is making sure all of NATO is together … They have different vulnerabilities than we do,” Biden said. 

When Ukrainian Olga Batochka told her Russian friend that her hometown Kharkiv was being bombed, he didn’t believe she was in danger and told her to go back home instead of staying underground.

“People in Russia don’t know what [has] happened in Ukraine,” she told CNN, adding that the friend told her that Russia is doing this to “free us.”

Batochka fled to Romania with her 14-year-old daughter. They are two of the UN-estimated 2.5 million people who have fled Ukraine since the Russian invasion began.

She told CNN she believes she will return home some day, and she wished good luck to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelesnky, whom she voted for.

For now, volunteers in Romania are taking care of the mother and daughter, who plan to go to Portugal once they have their paperwork, where they have family waiting for them.

A Ukrainian serviceman walks down a road in the Luhansk region on March 11.

As Russian forces expand their offensive in Ukraine with new strikes in the western part of the country, here’s a look at the latest developments unfolding on the ground:

Where Russian forces have made further advances: There’s growing evidence that the town of Volnovakha in eastern Ukraine has fallen to Russian forces and their allies in the self-declared Donetsk People’s Republic.

Additionally, according to a senior US defense official:

Where recent attacks have happened, according to Ukrainian authorities:

An update on the more than 40-miles-long Russian convoy: The convoy that had sat for nearly two weeks outside Kyiv has now largely dispersed, according to Maxar satellite imagery from Thursday. The forces appear to be regrouping.

New actions against Russia by the United States: US President Joe Biden announced that the US, along with the G7 and EU, will call for revoking “most favored nation” status for Russia, referred to as permanent normal trade relations in the US. Additionally, he said Russian imports of seafood, vodka and diamonds will be banned. Meanwhile, the G7 is also adding sanctions to more Russian oligarchs and their families as the invasion of Ukraine continues.

Russia says it has received applications from foreigners asking to join fight: The Kremlin has said volunteers from the “Middle East and Syria” can be sent to fight for Russia in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine, claiming that over 16,000 applications have been received from abroad. The US has not seen the “actual arrival” of foreign fighters from the Middle East to fight alongside Russian forces in Ukraine, but it does believe that Russia is moving in the direction of recruiting and using foreign fighters.

Here’s a map of Russian-occupied Ukrainian territory known to CNN:

Pressed on a path toward resolution of the war in Ukraine, the White House said Friday that Russia’s current strategy is “escalation without an endgame,” echoing US President Joe Biden’s assessment that an ultimate Russian victory is “impossible.” 

He continued, “Putin’s only strategy has been escalation at every turn, but it’s becoming increasingly clear that it’s escalation without an endgame, and his erratic brutality, which comes at the expense of the Russian people, and again, his own demoralized troops, is proving to be a disaster for his country.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin has a “clear plan to be savage toward Ukraine,” but his strategy, Bates added, “will make effective long term Russian control of Ukraine impossible.” 

Asked to elaborate on future off-ramps, Bates declined to weigh in, but detailed the costs to Russian troops and the Russian economy.

“That is not going to stop until he stops,” Bates said, referring to Putin.

More background: The White House’s comments come after Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo predicted a “messy” and “extremely long term” conflict in Ukraine, telling CNN’s MJ Lee and Kaitlan Collins earlier this week that the export controls that have been leveled against Russia by the United States and its allies in response to Putin’s invasion of Ukraine have “no expiration date.”

“We’re in it for the long haul and our allies are in it for the long haul,” she said, adding that the Biden administration was prepared to stick with the measures designed to inflict economic pain on Russia for “as long as it takes.”

Western officials say a third Russian general has been killed by Ukrainian forces.

He was identified as Major General Andriy Kolesnikov. 

According to the Russian Ministry of Defense’s website, Kolesnikov was commander of the Eastern Military District.

A western defense official noted for context that only three Russian general staff officers were killed during the whole Syrian conflict and estimated that Russia would maintain a total of 20 generals in theatre in Ukraine at this time.

The official paid tribute to the strength of the Ukrainian resistance, particularly around Kyiv and Mykolaiv, where Russian attempts to circle the cities have been frustrated.

More context: Kolesnikov is the third Russian general to be killed during the invasion of Ukraine.

On Thursday, CNN reported that Russian Maj. Gen. Andrey Sukhovetsky was also killed while fighting in Ukraine, according to a statement from the Novorossiysk city government in Russia on March 3.

In the statement, the government said Sukhovetsky — the deputy commander of the 41st Combined Arms Army of the Russian Ground Forces — died on Feb. 28 “while performing a combat mission during a special operation in Ukraine.”

Sukhovetsky had previously served in the Russian military during operations in the North Caucasus region and Syria, the statement said. 

On Tuesday, Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense said a Russian general — Maj. Gen. Vitaly Gerasimov — was killed in battle near Kharkiv.

The Russian Ministry of Defense has not commented.

A fourth package of sanctions against Russia over its “ruthless” invasion of Ukraine, will be imposed tomorrow by the European Union, the head of the European Commission said Friday.

On Saturday, the bloc “will take a fourth package of measures to further isolate Russia and drain the resources it uses to finance this barbaric war,” EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in a statement.

The bloc will also make sure that “the Russian state and its elites cannot use crypto assets to circumvent the sanctions,” and will ban exports to Russia of EU luxury goods and import of iron and steel goods, she said.

The G7 finance, justice and home affairs ministers will meet next week to “coordinate the task force we set up targeting Putin’s cronies,” she added.

Earlier on Friday, G7 nations announced they would take action to deny Russia a so-called “most favored nation” status, which would revoke benefits of Russia’s membership of the World Trade Organization.

“In addition to announced plans, we will make further efforts to reduce our reliance on Russian energy, while ensuring that we do so in an orderly fashion and in ways that provide time for the world to secure alternative and sustainable supplies. In addition, private sector companies are leaving Russia with unprecedented speed and solidarity. We stand with our companies that are seeking an orderly withdrawal from the Russian market,” the G7 nations said in a statement.

Russian forces have continued to make some additional advances over the last 24 hours, a senior US defense official told reporters on Friday.

Russian forces that are the closest to Kyiv, about 15 kilometers (about 9 miles) outside of the city center, have not moved any closer since yesterday, the official said.

There are two other groups of Russian forces outside of Kyiv that are potentially moving towards Kyiv. To the north of Kyiv, a group of Russian forces are “somewhere between 20 and 30 kilometers” (or between more than 12 and 18 miles) from Kyiv’s city center. This group has “moved closer” to Kyiv over the last 24 hours, the official said.

A separate group of Russian forces closer to Sumy, to the east of Kyiv, have stalled and are repositioning around Sumy, the official said.

Chernihiv, another Ukrainian city, remains isolated. Russian forces are “right outside the city,” and there is “obviously some fighting in the city,” but the US does not assess that Russian forces have “moved beyond Chernihiv,” the official said.

“They’re still in and around Chernihiv, and again we assess Chernihiv is isolated, and under increasing pressure,” the official said.

In Kharkiv, Russian forces are “on the outskirsts” of the city,” the official said. The US is seeing reports of internet outages in the city, “which seems to be part of the playbook,” the official said, but there’s still “a lot of fighting there.”

“They haven’t taken Kharkiv, it’s being well-defended but they are closing in on it if you will from a geographic perspective,” the official said. 

The southern city of Mariupol is under “increasing pressure,” the official said. 

“Mariupol is also being defended, they’re fighting back, and we continue to see heavy bombardment there as the Russians try to increase their pressure,” the official said.

The US continues to assess that Russian forces have captured Kherson.

In Mykolaiv, Russian forces have not taken the city yet but it is coming under “increasing pressure,” the official said.

“We’ve observed the Ukrainians are continuing to defend the city, and the Russians are just outside the city, again mostly to the northeast, so again not a lot of change there from yesterday, but continues to be heavily fought over,” the official said.

There’s growing evidence that the town of Volnovakha in eastern Ukraine has fallen to Russian forces and their allies in the self-declared Donetsk People’s Republic.

The city had been surrounded almost since the beginning of Russia’s invasion but had been fiercely defended by Ukrainian forces.

The Russian defense ministry’s spokesperson, Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov, said that a “group of troops of the Donetsk People’s Republic liberated the city of Volnovakha” and several surrounding settlements.

Konashenkov said that the militia had advanced about six kilometers (about 3.7 miles) and continued to tighten the encirclement of the besieged city of Mariupol.

Some social media videos from the city showed Russian soldiers and vehicles in several neighborhoods, as well as abandoned Ukrainian tanks. Other videos showed widespread destruction in Volnovakha.

The apparent fall of Volnovakha — which is halfway between Donetsk and Mariupol — allows Russian forces to consolidate their control of the Donbas region.

Earlier Friday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Volnovakha remained completely blocked to humanitarian relief convoys, but the Ukrainian authorities have not acknowledged that the city has fallen under Russian control. 

French President Emmanuel Macron holds a press conference following an EU leaders summit in Versailles, France on March 11.

European and African food supplies will be “profoundly destabilized” by the war in Ukraine, warned French President Emmanuel Macron.

He warned that both Europe and Africa “will be very profoundly destabilized in food supplies.” 

The French leader said he will speak with the Russian President Vladimir Putin in “several hours” alongside the German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

He added that “nothing is taboo” as far as sanctions against Russia are concerned, adding that European leaders “will do everything that we consider effective and useful to stop Russia in this path of aggression.”

Russia and Ukraine are key players in the global agricultural trade, with both nations accounting for a quarter of the world’s wheat exports, including at least 14% of corn exports in 2020, and a joint 58% of global sunflower oil exports in the same year, analyses show.

Read more about how war could impact Africa here.

Senior Soldier Andrii Stefanyshyn, 39, Senior Lieutenant Taras Didukh, 25, and Sergeant Dmytro Kabakov, 58, were laid to rest in a service at the Saints Peter and Paul Garrysin Church in Lviv, Ukraine, on Friday, March 11.

Three members of the Ukrainian military — Senior Soldier Andrii Stefanyshyn, 39, Senior Lt. Taras Didukh, 25, and Sgt. Dmytro Kabakov, 58 — were laid to rest in a service at the Saints Peter and Paul Garrison Church in the city of Lviv.

Even in this sacred space, the sounds of war intruded: an air raid siren audible under the sound of prayer and weeping. Yet no one stirred. Residents are now inured to the near daily warnings of an air attack. Everyone is asked to stay inside for safety. Mourners held captive to their grief.

The mother of Didukh collapsed on his coffin, weeping. A soldier approached to gently lift her up as three others removed the coffin’s cover revealing her son inside, a purple bruise visible on his temple.

As the coffins were opened, the crowd of mourners surged forward for a final goodbye, caressing the cheeks of the departed.

Senior Soldier Andrii Stafanyshyn, 39, Senior Lieutenant Taras Didukh, 25, and Sergeant Dmytro Kabakov, 58, were laid to rest in a service at the Saints Peter and Paul Garrysin Church in Lviv, Ukraine, on Friday, March 11.

In this war, the Ukrainian military has proven itself resilient, outmaneuvering the might of Russia’s war machine. But the cost has been high.

The Ukrainian military will not give out the number of Ukrainian soldiers killed — though officials insist that civilian casualties far outweigh the military’s.

“As of March 10th, the number of Ukrainian civilians killed by Russian interventionists is bigger than the number of our military personnel from all our defense corps killed in action,” said Oleksii Reznikov, Ukraine’s Minister of Defense, “I want this to be heard not only in Ukraine, but in the whole world.”

Details of how and where these soldiers died are kept secret. All their families know is that they were killed in the opening days of the war.

Though Lviv is far from the fighting in eastern and central Ukraine, military units based here have been on the frontline. Now those killed are coming home. This church in Lviv has nearly three funerals a dayAs the funeral procession moved towards the military cemetery, Myroslava Stefanyshyn held a framed photo of her son Andrii.

“Two days into the war. And my kid was gone,” she said breaking into tears. “Unspeakable regret. Longing. Heartache. I cannot bear it. I feel so awful that I cannot find the words to explain it to you.”

Dabbing at tears with a handkerchief, Maria Solohun watched the funeral procession pass by. She is a stranger to these families in mourning, but she still grieves for them.

“They all are ours. They all are our children. They are our rescuers, forging our victory,” Solohun said, “Even if it is impossible to bear, impossible to bear this blood flowing as a river.”

Senior Soldier Andrii Stefanyshyn, 39, Senior Lieutenant Taras Didukh, 25, and Sergeant Dmytro Kabakov, 58, were laid to rest in a service at the Saints Peter and Paul Garrysin Church in Lviv, Ukraine, on Friday, March 11.

A shipment of security assistance from the United States for Ukraine will arrive in Europe in the next 24 hours, a senior US defense official told reporters on Friday.

The US is also working to “coordinate” shipments of security assistance from other nations contributing to Ukraine, the official added. 

“It’s not just us. 14 other nations are also providing — on a bilateral basis — providing resources to Ukraine. We are helping coordinate that,” the official said. 

“We are working to get them the kinds of things that … we know they need most, and that is largely right now, air defense and anti-armor in terms of munitions,” the official added.

US President Joe Biden said Friday that the US would ban imports of seafood, vodka and diamonds from the nation as part of an effort to ramp up economic pressure on Russia for invading Ukraine.

In remarks from the White House, Biden also called for revoking Russia’s “most favored nation” status, known as permanent normal trade relations in the US. The move, which has been coordinated with G7 and EU allies, will require an act of Congress.

The United States’ ban of exporting of luxury goods to Russia, which Biden referenced in his speech, will also include items like tobacco, clothing, jewelry, cars and antiques, an administration official tells CNN.

The idea behind this, the official explains, is to continue hurting Russian oligarchs and the country’s wealthiest by depriving them of their creature comforts, as the US continues to try to put pressure around those close to Vladimir Putin. It is also aimed at removing ways for these oligarchs to shelter their money, as they are already increasingly closed off from traditional financial avenues, the official said. 

So how much alcohol and seafood does the US import from Russia? The US imported 48,867 metric tons of seafood from Russia in 2021, worth about $1.2 billion, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Crab accounted for the largest portion of those imports, with the US buying more than $900 million worth of frozen snow and red king crab last year.

The US does not sell any seafood directly to Russia, as the country banned US exports of seafood and fish in 2014.

CNN is still tracking down overall alcohol figures but according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States, imports of Russian vodka to the United States accounted for only 1.3% of total vodka imports in in 2021.

The total amounts to $18.5 million dollars in 2021, the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States said. 

The Ukrainian air force has about 56 fighter aircraft remaining on the ground, which is about 80% of the fixed-wing capabilities the Ukrainian air force had before Russia attacked, a senior US defense official said Friday.

The official told reporters that Ukraine hasn’t had to rely much on their fixed-wing fighter aircraft in the war against Russia, because they’ve used other capabilities, including drones and surface-to-air missiles, to fight back against the Russian air force. The Ukrainians are flying about five to 10 sorties per day, the official said, compared to roughly 200 from the Russians.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has urged NATO countries to provide Ukraine with more fighter jets. Poland had proposed sending its MiG-29 fighters to Ukraine by giving them to the US via a German air base, but the Pentagon rejected that plan earlier this week.

The defense official said that beyond Ukraine’s fixed-wing fighters, the Ukrainians have made effective use of drones, noting they are “cheap” and can fly below radar coverage. “It’s a very nimble platform, and they’re using them with terrific effect, particularly against Russian ground units,” the official said.

The Ukrainians are using surface-to-air missiles “with great effect” against Russian forces, the official said. “They’re being careful at what they’re shooting at, they’re moving stuff around, they’re being very nimble. And it’s proven effective,” the official said. “And I’m not just talking about mobile launchers, I’m talking about use of shoulder fire surface-to-air capability as well.”

Mariana Vishegirskaya walks downstairs to exit the maternity and children's hospital that was bombed in Mariupol, Ukraine, on Wednesday.

Mariana Vishegirskaya was among the women at the Mariupol maternity hospital that was bombed earlier this week.

She survived the shelling and delivered a baby girl in another hospital on Friday.

Vishegirskaya lies in a hospital bed after giving birth to her daughter Veronika on Friday in Mariupol.

Vishegirskaya's husband, Yuri, holds their newborn daughter on Friday.

The White House said Friday that there are “strong indications” that Russia is committing war crimes in Ukraine, stopping short of a declaration, which legally requires an investigation before such an assessment can be made.

“We have all seen the devastating images coming out of Ukraine and are appalled by Russia’s brutal tactics. Pregnant women on stretchers, apartment buildings shelled, families killed while seeking safety from this terrible violence. We are also seeing reports of other types of potential abuses, including sexual and gender-based violence,” White House deputy press secretary Andrew Bates told reporters aboard Air Force One.

The US, he added, supports the human rights activists, civil society, and independent media documenting, collecting and exposing evidence of possible war crimes, human rights abuses and violations of international humanitarian law. 

The US will share that evidence with allies and partners and will “support accountability” with every tool available, “including prosecutions when appropriate,” Bates said.

US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield became the highest-ranking US official to say that actions committed by Russia against the Ukrainian people constitute war crimes, telling the BBC Thursday, “They constitute war crimes; there are attacks on civilians that cannot be justified by any — in any way whatsoever.”

Bates also said that US President Joe Biden’s warning to Russia over any potential use of chemical weapons was “unmistakable.”

Bates also pointed to the recent warnings from US officials, including press secretary Jen Psaki, that Russia could use chemical weapons as part of a false flag operation to justify further violence. 

“The truth is Russia is the only question in the equation with a chemical and biological weapons program in violation of international law,” Bates said. 

As the United Nations estimates at least 2.5 million people have fled Ukraine, a Romanian family is hosting nearly three dozen Ukrainian refugees in Adunații-Copăceni, which is outside of the capital city of Bucharest.

One of them, 14-year-old Alyona Batochka, told CNN about her family’s journey to leave Kharkiv, Ukraine.

She said she feels very supported in Romania.

“Please stop war,” Batochka said she would tell Russian President Vladimir Putin right now.

She said unequivocally that she will return to Ukraine, but she doesn’t know when exactly that will happen.

“I’ll return to my home, to my father. I really hope, I really hope,” she said.

Marquez also spoke to a Nigerian student in the house who played for a local Ukrainian soccer club.

He said the situation was “incomprehensible” and “everything is just hopes and prayers” right now. He has been at the house for four days and is planning on getting on a plane to reunite with his family tomorrow.

He lauded the generosity of the Romanians housing him and 30 other people.

Here’s a look at where Ukrainian refugees are going:

Russian forces have launched more than 800 missiles of “all stripes, wide varieties, and sizes” since the beginning of their invasion of Ukraine, a senior US defense official told reporters Friday.

About half of the missile launches have come from locations inside Ukraine, and about half have come from Russia and Belarus combined, the official added.

Rosemary DiCarlo, UN undersecretary-general for political affairs, briefed the Security Council Friday and delivered a jarring report of civilian casualties while also citing credible reports of Russian forces using “cluster munitions” in “indiscriminate attacks.”

The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) has marked 1,546 civilian casualties, including 564 killed 982 injured, though they estimate the number is higher, DiCarlo said.

WHO has verified 26 attacks on health facilities, causing 12 deaths and 34 injuries, she added, saying, “we condemn such attacks without reservation.”

 “We cannot emphasize it enough: The targeting of civilians, of residential buildings, hospitals, schools, kindergartens, is inexcusable and intolerable … we are scaling up humanitarian aid in areas where security permits,” said DiCarlo.

Safe passage “must continue,” she said, noting that more than 51,000 people have reportedly passed through five of the six agreed-upon passages.

“Civilians should be duly and timely informed of the possibility to leave the concerned areas and on a voluntary basis and in the direction they choose,” she said.

The number of refugees from Ukraine has reached 2.5 million people and is increasing by the day, she said.

Finnish President Sauli Niinistö attends a press conference in Helsinki, Finland on February 24.

On Friday, Russian President Vladimir discussed the Ukraine war with Finnish President Sauli Niinistö.

According to the Kremlin, Putin “explained in detail the reasons for the Russian special military operation to protect Donbas, its goals and objectives, and also informed Niinistö of the ongoing negotiations with Ukrainian representatives.

Niinistö, meanwhile, told Putin that an immediate ceasefire is needed to safely evacuate civilians through evacuation corridors in Ukraine.

During the hour-long conversation, Niinistö warned that the “worsening catastrophe and the deep human suffering in Ukraine,” is strongly influencing western public opinion, according to Finland’s presidential office. 

“In addition, President Niinistö drew attention on the safety and security of the nuclear energy facilities in Ukraine,” the office said.

Niinistö also relayed the Ukrainian President’s preparedness to talk directly with Putin following a conversation he had earlier Friday with Volodymyr Zelensky. 

The Finnish president has been referred to as the “Putin Whisperer” by western media because of the neutral relationship he has maintained with Russia while sharing a border.

The leaders agreed to remain in touch on Ukraine and the “Russian-Finnish agenda.”

US President Joe Biden speaks at the White House in Washington, DC on March 11.

US President Joe Biden announced Friday that the US, along with the G7 and European Union, will call for revoking “most favored nation” status for Russia, referred to as permanent normal trade relations in the US.

Biden said the move would hold Russian President Vladimir Putin “even more accountable for his aggression against Ukraine.”

“Each of our nations will take steps to deny ‘most favored nation’ status to Russia. A most favored nation status designation means two countries have agreed to trade with each other under the best possible terms — low tariffs, few barriers to trade and the highest possible imports allowed,” Biden said.

The US President explained what the move means: “In the United States, we call this permanent normal trade relations, PNTR, but it’s the same thing. Revoking PNTR for Russia is going to make it harder for Russia to do business with the United States and doing it in unison with other nations that make up half of the global economy will be another crushing blow to the Russian economy that’s already suffering very badly from our sanctions.”

The step requires an act of Congress. Following Biden’s announcement, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the House will take the legislation next week “to formalize this revocation, and it is our hope that it will receive a strong, bipartisan vote.”

The move was one of multiple new actions on trade expected to be made by the Biden administration toward Russia. The United States will also ban imports of alcohol and seafood, such as vodka and caviar, from Russia, a White House official told CNN.

Each country is expected to implement this measure based on its own national processes. Sources familiar with the move made note of congressional efforts to revoke Russia’s permanent normal trade relations. Congress is expected to introduce legislation following Biden’s announcement.

CNN reported Thursday that bipartisan talks in the Senate had been taking shape to take more aggressive action on Russia’s trade status — after the White House effectively watered down the House-passed bill banning importing Russian oil, natural gas and coal into the US.

Read more about the announcement here.

US President Joe Biden warned on Friday that Russia will pay a “severe price” if the country uses chemical weapons in Ukraine. 

The US government has previously found that the Russian government used chemical weapons in both the 2020 poisoning of Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny and in 2018 against Sergei and Yulia Skripal in England. 

Both determinations by the US led to sanctions under the Chemical and Biological Weapons Control and Warfare Elimination Act, which requires the President to impose economic and diplomatic sanctions if a country is found to have used chemical weapons. 

Additionally, Syria’s Bashar al-Assad, whose regime is supported by Russia, used chemical weapons in an attack in 2017.

US President Joe Biden speaks at the White House in Washington, DC on March 11.

US President Joe Biden said the G7 is adding sanctions to more Russian oligarchs and their families as the invasion of Ukraine continues.

“The G7 also stepping up pressure on corrupt Russian billionaires. We’re adding new names to the list of oligarchs and their families that we’re targeting, and we’re increasing coordination among the G7 countries to target and capture their ill-begotten gains,” Biden said at the White House.

Biden said Russian imports of seafood, vodka and diamonds will be banned.

“While we’re going after their super-yachts and their vacation homes, and worth hundreds of millions of dollars, we’re also going to make it harder for them to buy high-end products manufactured in our country, banning the export of luxury goods to Russia. They’re also the latest steps we’re taking, but they’re not the last steps we’re going to take,” he continued.  

US President Joe Biden said he spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky today.

“I told him, as I have each and every time we’ve spoken, that the United States stands with the people of Ukraine and as they bravely fight to defend their country, and they are doing that,” he said at the White House.

“As Putin continues his merciless assault, the United States and allies and partners continue to work in lockstep to ramp up the economic pressures on Putin and to further isolate Russia on the global stage. Later today, together with other NATO allies and the G7, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, as well as European Union, we’re going to jointly announce several new steps to squeeze [Russian President] Putin and hold him even more accountable for his aggression against Ukraine,” Biden said.

Zelensky also tweeted: “Had a substantive conversation with @POTUS. Gave him the assessment of the situation on the battlefield, informed about the crimes of Russia against the civilian population. We agreed on further steps to support the defense of Ukraine and increase sanctions against Russia.”

US President Joe Biden speaks about trade and Russia in Washington, DC on March 11.

US President Joe Biden is speaking from the White House and is expected to announce that the US, along with the G7 and European Union, will call for revoking “most favored nation” status for Russia, referred to as permanent normal trade relations in the US, sources familiar with the move tell CNN.

The move requires an act of Congress.

Each country is expected to implement this measure based on its own national processes. The sources made note of congressional efforts to revoke Russia’s permanent normal trade relations.

More background: CNN reported Thursday that bipartisan talks in the Senate had been taking shape to take more aggressive action on Russia’s trade status — after the White House effectively watered down the House-passed bill banning importing Russian oil, natural gas and coal into the US.

The earlier version of the legislation had included a provision that would suspend permanent normal trade relations for Russia and Belarus. But the White House expressed concerns over that part of the bill, and ultimately it was excised. The bill banning Russian energy imports that passed the House Wednesday night instead simply called for a review of Russia’s status in the World Trade Organization.

The Kremlin has said volunteers from the “Middle East and Syria” can be sent to fight for Russia in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine, claiming that over 16,000 applications have been received from abroad.

At a televised meeting of Russia’s Security Council on Friday, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu told President Vladimir Putin that his ministry has received “a huge number of applications” from volunteers in various countries to “participate in what they consider to be a liberation movement.” 

Putin supported Shoigu’s suggestion of helping to transfer volunteers willing to fight in the self-declared Luhansk and Donetsk People’s Republics, the separatist-held territories in eastern Ukraine.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said later on Friday that there were no plans to send Russian volunteers to fight, and that Shoigu “mainly spoke about volunteers and applicants from the Middle East and Syria.”

The United States has not seen the “actual arrival” of foreign fighters from the Middle East to fight alongside Russian forces in Ukraine, a senior US defense official told reporters on Friday.

The US believes Russia is moving in the direction of recruiting and using foreign fighters, and Russia has publicly acknowledged they want to do this, but the US has not seen evidence of foreign fighters coming to fight alongside Russian forces at this point, the official said.

CNN’s Ellie Kaufman contributed reporting to this post.

Ukraine’s defense ministry has alleged that Russia plans to carry out some sort of terrorist attack at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, which is now under the control of Russian forces. 

It is the latest in a series of claims made by Ukrainian authorities about the risks to Ukraine’s nuclear power infrastructure because of Russia’s invasion, none of which has come to pass. 

The Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defence claimed on its Facebook page Friday that “the available intelligence says Putin has ordered that his troops to prepare a terror attack at Chernobyl for which the Russian invaders will try to blame Ukraine.” 

The directorate also repeated that the plant “remains completely disconnected from the monitoring systems run by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).” 

The IAEA said last week that it had not been able to re-establish communication with systems installed to monitor nuclear material and activities at either the Chernobyl or Zaporizhzhia plants following the loss of remote data transmissions from those systems. 

IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi said Thursday that the situation at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, occupied by the Russian forces, was degrading as the IAEA was losing “a significant amount of information” on safeguarding monitoring systems. 

Grossi met the foreign ministers of both Russia and Ukraine on Thursday. 

The Ukrainian nuclear regulatory authority has alleged that personnel at the Chernobyl site “have limited opportunities to communicate, move and carry out full-fledged maintenance and repair work.”

The IAEA said Thursday it had been unable to confirm that power has been restored at the plant.  

On Friday, Ukraine’s nuclear power regulator repeated that the electricity supply to the Chernobyl nuclear power station had not been restored, despite claims by Russia and Belarus it was restored on Thursday.

But it noted that a reserve supply of diesel fuel had been provided “to secure emergency power supply to spent nuclear fuel storage facilities.”

The IAEA said earlier this week that there has been “no critical impact” to the safety of Chernobyl, despite loss of power. It tweeted that the “heat load of spent fuel storage pool and volume of cooling water at #Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant sufficient for effective heat removal without need for electrical supply.” 

The site has backup emergency diesel generators available should there be a total loss of power.

And he stressed the “utmost importance that the staff working at the Specialized Enterprise Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant are able to do their job safely and effectively, and that their personal well-being is guaranteed by those who have taken control.”

The Ukrainian Ministry of Defence also alleged Friday that Russian forces had denied a Ukrainian repair team access to Chernobyl. It claimed without offering evidence that “Belarusian specialists” went there posing as nuclear power experts and that Russian saboteurs were arriving to set up a terror attack. 

The ministry claimed that “without receiving the desired result from the ground military operation and direct talks, Putin is ready to resort to nuclear blackmail of the international community.”  

Both Russia and Ukraine have repeatedly claimed without substantiation that the other side is planning to provoke an incident involving nuclear, chemical or biological agents.  

US Vice President Kamala Harris said Vladimir Putin isn’t interested in “serious diplomacy.”

Speaking in Romania, Harris said the United States is committed to finding a diplomatic solution. But she didn’t sound optimistic that Moscow was currently seeking one.

She said Russia was engaging in “lies” and “misinformation,” a playbook she said the US had long identified.

She said that as efforts for diplomacy proceed, Russia should be held accountable for its actions.

“We maintain that diplomacy is the way to resolve these issues,” she said, saying that should “coexist with our commitment to ensure that our alliances are strong, and that there must be serious consequence and accountability for what Russia is doing.”

An Indian student who was evacuated from Ukraine meets his family upon arrival at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi, India on March 11.

Three flights carrying at least 600 Indian students who were evacuated from the city of Sumy in northeastern Ukraine landed in New Delhi from Poland on Friday.

The students were trapped in the northeastern city since the beginning of Russia’s military invasion in Ukraine and had sent out several appeals for their evacuation to the Indian mission and government.

On Monday, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke with the presidents of Russia and Ukraine to try and speed up their safe exit. 

The Indian government has operated 90 evacuation flights from Ukraine — both commercial and military — since Russia’s invasion began, and over 20,000 Indians have left the country. 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky records a video address to the nation in Kyiv, Ukraine on March 11.

Ukraine has organized 12 new evacuation corridors, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a video address from the streets of Kyiv on Friday.

He added that cargo with food and medication is on the way to the cities and towns of Izyum, Enerhodar, Volnovakha, Polohy, Bucha, Hostomel, Borodyanka, Andriivka, Mykulychi Makariv, Kozarovychi and Mariupol. 

The Ukrainian military have “ensured a ceasefire” for these corridors “to work,” the president said, warning that if Russia starts “firing again and disrupts the rescues of people they will receive a response from the world.”

“The kind of response that they will need” evacuation corridors themselves, Zelensky said. 

Routes from Mariupol and Volnovakha have been repeatedly blocked or inaccessible over the past week. There has been more success in enabling people to leave Izium, which has seen widespread destruction. These routes have not been agreed with Russia, which announced different routes.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen attends a press conference after the EU summit on Friday, March 11, in Versailles, France.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Friday that the European Union plans to present proposals by mid-May on eliminating its dependency on Russian energy by 2027.

Von der Leyen also added that by the end of March, the commission will present “options to limit the contagion effect of the rise of gas prices to electricity prices,” and that the EU plans to set up a task force that will design a refilling plan for the next winter.

“The European Union needs to define a longer-term EU gas storage policy, and therefore the commission will table a proposal to fill up underground gas storage to at least 90% by the first of October each year,” she said.

“This will be our insurance policy against supply disruption,” she added. 

Earlier this week, the EU said it will cut Russian gas imports by two-thirds this year and eliminate its overall need for Russian oil and gas “well before 2030.”

A day after calling for an international investigation into whether Russia was committing war crimes in Ukraine, US Vice President Kamala Harris offered a brisker answer to the question of whether the atrocities could be given that designation.

US President Joe Biden’s administration has said that before an official designation on war crimes can be made, an investigation must proceed.

But officials have been clear that Russia is targeting civilians and made plain they believe such an action would constitute a war crime.

Some background: US Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield said Thursday that actions committed by Russia against the Ukrainian people constitute war crimes, marking the first time a senior US official has directly accused Moscow of war crimes since last month’s attack on Ukraine began. Later on Thursday, State Department spokesperson Ned Price said the US has “seen very credible reports” of Russian actions that would constitute war crimes, echoing comments made by Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Sunday. Last week, Biden said “it’s too early to say” that Russia is committing war crimes.

If Russia continues its shelling campaign in Ukraine, then the sanctions that have been imposed are “not enough,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Friday.

In a video address from the streets of Kyiv, Zelensky said European Union sanctions against Russia “need to be stronger.” 

Referring to Thursday’s meeting of EU leaders in Versailles, Zelensky said Ukraine knows the leaders “who supported us” and those “who kept silent … and tried to water down the wording to make it insufficient for Ukraine, for Europe and for our joint freedom.”  

“The European Union must do more for us, for Ukraine and for itself. We are waiting for it,” he said.

US Vice President Kamala Harris holds a press conference in Bucharest, Romania on March 11.

US Vice President Kamala Harris called the United States’ commitment to defending NATO members “ironclad” in remarks along the alliance’s eastern edge.

“We take very seriously our role and the relationships that we have within the NATO alliance,” Harris said at a joint news conference with Romanian President Klaus Iohannis. “We take seriously and are prepared to act on the words we speak when we say an attack against one is an attack against all.”

“We are firm in our commitment,” she went on. “When I say and we say over and over again, President Joe Biden says, ‘We will defend every inch of NATO territory.’”

Harris said that responding to the Russian invasion of Ukraine means reaffirming the NATO commitment.

Harris hailed Romania’s support for Ukrainian refugees, saying the humanitarian needs are “significant and immediate.”

She said the US would commit more funding to help alleviate the humanitarian crisis in Europe.

Harris was also asked about the possibility of the war extending into Romania.

“As it relates to what might be the future conduct of Putin, I cannot speculate,” Harris said. “But we are clear in our position, which is that as a member of NATO, an attack against one is an attack against all.”

Her host, the Romanian president, sought to downplay fears that Putin could have his sights set on Romania next.

“We do not have information that Romania would represent a target of aggression,” he said through a translator. “On the other hand, it is very clear it is very clear that this Russian action, this war started against Ukraine, definitely created a difficult to produce result, a visible firm, a clear result. And it’s represented by the unity of NATO.”

Hackers disrupted a Ukrainian internet service provider Thursday, and engineers were still working on restoring service as of Friday afternoon Ukraine time. 

It wasn’t immediately clear who carried out the hack. The internet provider did not explicitly blame Russian hackers for the incident, but said “the enemy” was responsible, a term that Ukrainian officials have used to refer to Russia during the war. 

The hack caused outages across Triolan’s service areas on Thursday, according to Doug Madory, director of internet analysis at network monitoring firm Kentik. 

Triolan said Thursday that 70% of the network “nodes” that support internet services were restored. 

“We are trying to stop the hackers as quickly as possible and restore network operation in all areas,” the Triolan statement said. The provider told CNN through its Facebook account on Friday that its engineers were still working on recovering from the hack.

Cyberattacks have played a supporting role in the war in Ukraine, with hacks on Ukrainian government websites and agencies occurring hours before Russian tanks rolled across the border.

The Meta headquarters is seen on Menlo Park, California in 2021.

Russia’s Investigative Committee has opened a criminal case against Meta, accusing the company’s employees of “illegal calls for murder and violence” against Russian citizens, according to a statement published Friday. 

“A criminal case has been initiated in the Main Investigation Department of the Russian Investigative Committee in connection with illegal calls for murder and violence against citizens of the Russian Federation by employees of the American company Meta, which owns the social networks Facebook and Instagram,” according to a statement from the committee.

The Investigative Committee of Russia cited Meta’s decision to temporarily remove a ban on its platforms on incitement to violence against the Russian military. 

“These actions contain signs of crimes under Articles 280 and 205.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation - public calls for extremist activities; assistance to terrorist activities,” the committee’s statement said.

CNN has reached out to Meta for comment.

Reuters reported Thursday on getting access to internal Meta emails that allege the company will allow Facebook and Instagram users in some countries to call for violence against the Russian military invading Ukraine. 

Roskonadzor, Russia’s information watchdog, said Friday it will restrict access to Instagram, saying the “social network distributes informational materials containing calls to commit violent acts against citizens of the Russian Federation, including military personnel.”

As evening approaches in Ukraine’s capital, Russian forces are expanding their offensive with new strikes in the western part of the country.

Where attacks have happened: There was substantial damage to the airport at Lutsk in northwestern Ukraine, which is only about 70 miles from the Polish border. The governor of the Volyn region said four missiles had been fired from a Russian bomber and two people were killed. Plumes of smoke also rose from the military airfield at Ivano-Frankivsk in western Ukraine, which was struck by missiles.

The Russian column that had sat for nearly two weeks outside Kyiv has now dispersed, according to Maxar satellite imagery from Thursday. The forces appear to be regrouping.

According to Ukraine’s Operational Command East, a missile strike on the outskirts of Dnipro killed one civilian and damaged a primary school building, apartment buildings and a shoe factory. 

There were also overnight airstrikes in the Brovary district just east of Kyiv and a missile strike in the town of Baryshivka, some 45 miles east of the capital. A soccer stadium and library in Chernihiv, a city in northern Ukraine, have been badly damaged by an airstrike. And civilians have been left with no heating in sub-zero temperatures amid relentless shelling and missile strikes, the mayor of Kharkiv said Friday. 

Biden to address US: President Joe Biden is expected to announce Friday morning that the US, along with the G7 and European Union, will call for revoking “most favored nation” status for Russia, referred to as permanent normal trade relations in the US, sources familiar with the move tell CNN.

EU to vote on more financial support for Ukraine: European Union leaders at a summit in Versailles, France, will vote Friday on doubling financial support for the Ukrainian Armed Forces, the bloc’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said Friday. If approved by the leaders, this will bring the bloc’s financial support to the Ukrainian military to over $1 billion.

Bioweapons conspiracy: The UN Security Council will hold a meeting Friday at the request of Russia about the unfounded allegation the US is developing bioweapons in Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said no chemical weapon or weapons of mass destruction were developed in the country. Meanwhile, the United States’ UN Mission spokesperson Olivia Dalton said Russia has a track record of falsely accusing the West of the very violations that Russia itself is perpetuating and warned Russia is “gaslighting the world.”

Refugee numbers keep climbing: The UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said Friday that the number of people who have fled from Ukraine has now hit 2.5 million.

Trenches are dug by the side of the road as a precaution against Russian attacks, in Kyiv, Ukraine on March 10.

Wladimir Klitschko, a member of Ukraine’s territorial defense forces, former boxing champion and brother of Kyiv’s mayor, told CNN that Russian troops have been attacking areas in the entire country of Ukraine today, with their main target being the capital of Kyiv. 

He said the will of the Ukrainian people remains strong but they need support.

“We have lot of equipment, military equipment, and we’ll do anything possible, we’re trying to outsmart the Russian army as much as we can. I don’t know how long we’re going to hold up, but we’re going to hold up as long as we can. What’s really necessary is international support. You guys need to isolate Russia and Russian economy,” he said.

“This is important to understand to the Western world and our allies to act now. We cannot wait for weeks or months for certain decisions. It’s about hours and minutes. We need support — financial, humanitarian, military equipment. We’re going to take care of ourselves, trust us,” he added.

Russian forces launched multiple missile attacks early Friday on a wide range of targets across Ukraine, causing substantial damage in and around the central city of Dnipro, and also attacking airports in the far west of the country, which had previously been spared from the conflict.

There was substantial damage to the airport at Lutsk in northwestern Ukraine, some 70 miles from the Polish border. The Governor of Volyn region said four missiles had been fired from a Russian bomber and two people were killed. Plumes of smoke also rose from the military airfield at Ivano-Frankivsk, western Ukraine, which was struck by missiles. 

The Russian Defense Ministry said Friday: “high-precision long-range weapons attacked Ukraine’s military infrastructure.

Closer to Kyiv, fighting has intensified to the northeast and east of the capital, after the Ukrainians successfully intercepted and attacked an advancing Russian tank column on Thursday. That front is still very active.  

An overnight airstrike in the Brovary district just east of Kyiv caused no casualties, according to Kyiv authorities.

Ukrainian authorities also reported a missile strike in the town of Baryshivka overnight, some 45 miles east of the capital. According to authorities, 60 apartments were damaged along with four apartment buildings and 10 houses. 

According to Ukraine’s Operational Command East, a missile strike on the outskirts of Dnipro killed one civilian and damaged a primary school building, apartment buildings and a shoe factory.  

“All components of Ukraine’s defense forces, state authorities and local governments are working to eliminate the consequences of another missile attack on Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure and provide assistance to the victims,” it said.

The Russian column that had sat for nearly two weeks outside Kyiv has now dispersed, according to Maxar satellite imagery from Thursday. The forces appear to be regrouping.

Thomas Bullock, senior analyst at Janes, told CNN that, “Ukraine’s tactic of targeting supply lines has worked well especially during the first 5-10 days of the war. This was partially down to Ukrainian tactics and partially down to how Russia was operating.”

“This effectively allowed Ukrainian forces to slip behind Russia’s advanced mechanized units and attack logistics columns traveling on unsecured roads in the rear.

“It’s unclear how effective this tactic will be as Russia begins to reorient its forces for a longer war following their failure to secure a quick victory,” Bullock added.

US President Joe Biden speaks in Washington, DC, on Thursday, March 10.

US President Joe Biden will announce Friday that the US, along with the G7 and European Union, will call for revoking “most favored nation” status for Russia, referred to as permanent normal trade relations in the US, sources familiar with the move tell CNN.

Biden is set to deliver remarks at 10:15 a.m. ET from the White House.

The move requires an act of Congress.

Each country is expected to implement this measure based on its own national processes. The sources made note of congressional efforts to revoke Russia’s permanent normal trade relations.

CNN reported Thursday that bipartisan talks in the Senate had been taking shape to take more aggressive action on Russia’s trade status — after the White House effectively watered down the House-passed bill banning importing Russian oil, natural gas and coal into the US.

The earlier version of the legislation had included a provision that would suspend permanent normal trade relations for Russia and Belarus. But the White House expressed concerns over that part of the bill, and ultimately it was excised. The bill banning Russian energy imports that passed the House Wednesday night instead simply called for a review of Russia’s status in the World Trade Organization.

Senate Finance Chairman Ron Wyden, a Democrat of Oregon, told CNN that he was engaging in talks with the top tax writers in Congress and the Biden administration about the matter, as pressure grew to include tougher language in the House bill when the Senate takes it up — as soon as next week.

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and Russian President Vladimir Putin meet in Moscow, Russia on March 11.

Western sanctions are an opportunity for Russia to strengthen its technological and economic sovereignty, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday.

“Recent years have shown that where Westerners imposed restrictions against us, we acquired new competencies and restored old ones at a new technological level,” Putin said in opening remarks of his in-person meeting with Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko in Moscow.

“This is a time of opportunity to move towards strengthening technological and economic sovereignty,” Putin added.

Putin also said he believes Russia and Belarus will get through these difficulties and will even “acquire more competencies, more opportunities to feel independent, self-sufficient, and ultimately benefit [from them], as it was the case in previous years.”

Lukashenko echoed Putin’s sentiment, saying Belarus has everything it needs for restoring its economy under sanctions.

“We need to rebuild our economy. And we have all we need to restore our own economy, we can do without them. We have everything to continue normal life and work,” the Belarusian President said.

Lukashenko also said he was glad the war in Ukraine started, citing false allegations regarding biological weapons and nuclear power stations being at risk if Russia did not invade. Lukashenko also made an unfounded claim that Ukraine was “preparing to attack not only Donbas, but also placed positions to attack Belarus.”

Some key context: Western sanctions against Russia have been devastating for the country’s economy.

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen yesterday outlined the economic and financial damage caused by sanctions imposed by the United States, United Kingdom and European Union in recent weeks.

“We have isolated Russia financially. The ruble has been in a free fall. The Russian stock market is closed. Russia has been effectively shut out of the international financial system,” Yellen said, adding that the Russian central bank’s access to its reserves has been largely cut off.

On Wednesday, one US dollar could buy 117 rubles in Moscow after the currency fell 10% and hit a new record low.

Fitch Ratings slashed Russia’s credit rating on Tuesday and warned that a default was “imminent.”

Britain has added 386 Russian lawmakers to a raft of sanctions it has imposed on Moscow since Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24.

Under the measures, politicians who supported Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine face travel bans and asset freezes, UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said in a statement Friday. 

The lawmakers are members of Russia’s Duma, the lower house of the Russian parliament, which recognized the independence of the eastern Ukrainian regions of Luhansk and Donetsk regions and authorized the permanent presence of Russian military there, “acting as a pretext for Russia’s invasion.”

Britain has now sanctioned 800 of Russia’s most “significant and high-value individuals, entities and subsidiaries,” including banks, Putin’s inner circle and oligarchs, she said.

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BAKU, AZERBAIJAN - MAY 29: Owner of Chelsea Roman Abramovich watches the action during the UEFA Europa League Final between Chelsea and Arsenal at Baku Olimpiya Stadionu on May 29, 2019 in Baku, Azerbaijan. (Photo by Chris Brunskill/Fantasista/Getty Images)

Related article UK sanctions Russian oligarch and Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich

As Russia continues its invasion, the World Health Organization has “strongly recommended” to the Ministry of Health in Ukraine to safely destroy “high-threat pathogens” that might be housed within the country’s public health labs in order to prevent “any potential spills,” WHO confirmed to CNN in an email Friday.

WHO’s recommendation was first reported by Reuters.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine puts public health facilities at risk of damage. Similar to other nations, scientists in Ukraine sometimes conduct research involving pathogens to better understand their biology, how they spread and how they might cause illness in humans.

“WHO also promotes biosecurity at laboratories, e.g. prevention of accidental or deliberate release of pathogens. As part of this work, WHO has strongly recommended to the Ministry of Health in Ukraine and other responsible bodies to destroy high-threat pathogens to prevent any potential spills,” Jašarević said.

WHO noted in its email that it encourages “the safe and secure disposal of any pathogens” and would assist as needed and wherever possible. 

“WHO’s country office in Ukraine has been working for several years with the Ministry of Health and other partners, including other WHO Member States, to support the enhancing of biosafety and biosecurity of labs, as well as the capacity of lab personnel, in particular to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic,” Jašarević said.

A soccer stadium and library in Chernihiv, a city in northern Ukraine, have been badly damaged by an airstrike.

Video footage circulating on Telegram Friday shows debris scattered outside the gates of the city’s Olympic sports training center, which was built in 1936, and is where the local soccer team FC Desna Chernihiv and the women’s national team play their home games. 

Large holes can be seen blown into a nearby library, where hundreds of books are scattered across the ground. A large crater, similar to the ones seen in the aftermath of strikes in Mariupol, lies between the two sites.

Chernihiv is surrounded by Russian forces and parts of the city have sustained significant damage, new satellite images from Maxar Technologies show.

The Ukrainian football association confirmed the strikes in a statement and released pictures showing damage to the stands and pitch. 

“But we will be able to rebuild all this, we will only become stronger and better, and you, ‘neighbors,’ will live with it all your life,” it added.

A worker hangs street signs reading “Ukrainian Heroes Street” on the section of road where the Russian embassy is located in Vilnius, Lithuania on March 9.

Authorities in the Lithuanian of capital Vilnius have renamed the section of road where the Russian embassy is located to “Ukrainian Heroes Street” in an act of support for the people of Ukraine.

He added that “everyone will have to think about the cruelty of the Russian regime against the peaceful Ukrainian nation when writing this street name.”

This follows a similar move by neighboring Baltic country Latvia, whose capital also changed the address of the Russian embassy in Riga to “Independent Ukraine Street.”

Kaspars Līcītis from Riga’s city council told CNN the renaming of the street was to support the “heroic struggle of the Ukrainian people against the hostilities launched by the Russian Federation on the territory of Ukraine.” 

Damaged buildings are seen in Kharkiv, Ukraine on March 10.

Civilians have been left with no heating in sub-zero temperatures amid relentless shelling and missile strikes, the mayor of Kharkiv said Friday. 

Ihor Terekhov said that for “all 16 days of war the Russian army has been mercilessly shelling Kharkiv with air strikes. But we are holding up and we will win.”

He added that a lot of apartment blocks have been destroyed and that heating systems cannot be restored in more than 400 houses.

He said that 48 schools had been destroyed so far.

Separately, the State Emergency Service said that a residential home for the disabled near Izium was hit by an airstrike. There were no casualties among the 30 staff and 300 patients, most of whom are elderly, it said.

The casing of a Russian rocket capable of carrying cluster munitions is seen east of the strategic Ukrainian port city of Mykolaiv, on March 10. NATO says Russia is using cluster bombs during its assault on Ukraine.

The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said Friday it remains “gravely concerned by the rising death toll and human suffering in Ukraine” and called “for an immediate end to the attacks.”

“Civilians are being killed and maimed in what appear to be indiscriminate attacks, with Russian forces using explosive weapons with wide area effects in or near populated areas. These include missiles, heavy artillery shells and rockets, as well as airstrikes,” spokesperson Liz Throssell said in a statement.

The OHCHR said it had recorded 549 civilian deaths and 957 injuries since the invasion began, “although the actual figure could be much higher.”

On March 3, 47 civilians were killed when Russian airstrikes hit two schools and several apartment blocks in Chernihiv and on March 9, a Russian airstrike hit a Mariupol hospital injuring at least 17 civilians, she added.

“We are still investigating reports that at least three civilians may have been killed in the airstrike.”

Sources in Mariupol, Throssell added, said the hospital was “both clearly identifiable and operational when it was hit.”

The OHCHR also received “credible reports of several cases of Russian forces using cluster munitions, including in populated areas,” said Throssell.

The use of one cluster munition was reported on February 24 in the Central City Hospital in Vuhledar, in Donetsk, killing four civilians and injuring t10. At least nine other civilians were killed and 37 injured in “other cluster munition attacks” in several districts of Kharkiv, she said.

“Due to their wide area effects, the use of cluster munitions in populated areas is incompatible with the international humanitarian law principles governing the conduct of hostilities,” Throssell said. 

The OHCHR, she added, was also concerned by reports of “arbitrary arrests and detention” of Ukrainians who voiced opposition to the Russian attack, including in peaceful protests.

“We believe that those detained are at risk of torture or other ill-treatment and call for their immediate and unconditional release.”

OHCHR is also concerned “by the pejorative use of labels such as ‘saboteurs’ and ‘mercenaries,’ with the intent or effect of exposing certain individuals to higher risks of harm,” she said.

“We call on the parties to fully respect the rights of everyone under their control,” Throssell said. “Those who have laid down their weapons … including prisoners of war, must be treated humanely, and be protected from any form of torture or degrading treatment.”

The Finnish President Sauli Niinistö arrives for a meeting in Helsinki, Finland, on March 5.

The Finnish President Sauli Niinistö spoke to Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelensky on Friday and is also expected to speak to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“The Presidents discussed the situation of the war in Ukraine and Finland’s support and aid for Ukraine. Particular themes were the need to secure a safe evacuation of civilians through humanitarian corridors and the safety of nuclear facilities. The Presidents agreed to continue their contact,” a Finnish government statement said. 

A conversation between Niinistö and Putin is planned for later Friday, it added.

Finland borders Russia and the two countries have long had a neutral relationship. Finland is not a member of NATO.

However, Niinistö expressed his sympathy for the Ukrainian people “fighting bravely for their country” during a meeting with US President Joe Biden on March 4 in the Oval Office.

Russia’s defense minister has said that its invasion of Ukraine is being carried out successfully, despite claims from Western leaders that Russia’s military has encountered unplanned obstacles and resistance. 

Shoigu also claimed that the Russian army has received over 16,000 applications from volunteers in the Middle East wanting to join the war in Ukraine.

The defense minister also asked Putin for more weapons to arm the separatist regions of Donbas; in particular, air defense systems, including MANPADS, along with light anti-tank missile launchers.

Shoigu added: “We have accumulated a large number of Ukrainian weapons: tanks, armored vehicles and all types of small arms, quite a lot of artillery. In addition, there are many Javelin and Stinger complexes. It is also proposed to transfer this to the Luhansk and Donetsk republics, to the militia, so that they can more effectively carry out the defense of their republics.”

Putin supported both suggestions saying Russia needs to help volunteers willing to fight in Donbas get transferred to the front lines.

“If you see that there are people who want on a voluntary basis, especially not for money, to come and help people living in Donbas, well, we need to welcome them and help them move to the war zone,” Putin said.

Read more on the situation on the ground here:

A member of the Ukrainian Territorial Defence Forces walks past destroyed Russian military vehicles in a forest outside Ukraine's second-biggest city of Kharkiv on March 7, 2022.

Related article Analysis: Two weeks of war have revealed cracks in Putin's master plan for Ukraine

Refugees fleeing the conflict in Ukraine wait for free accommodation offered by residents, at a railway station in Budapest, Hungary on March 9.

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, said Friday that the number of people who have fled from Ukraine has now hit 2.5 million.

“We also estimate that about two million people are displaced inside Ukraine. Millions forced to leave their homes by this senseless war,” he said. 

More than 1.5 million of those who have left have gone to Poland, Polish President Andrzej Duda said on Thursday.

Over 110,000 refugees have also arrived in Germany from Ukraine since the beginning of the Russian invasion just over two weeks ago, according to Germany’s interior ministry.

German Federal Police registered 109,183 refugees – including more than 13,270 people from the day before, Germany’s interior ministry said in a statement on Friday.

However, due the absence of border checks between Poland and Germany, where most Ukrainian refugees are coming from, the actual number of incoming people could be significantly higher, the ministry added.

European Union leaders will vote Friday on doubling the bloc’s financial support for the Ukrainian Armed Forces, its foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said Friday. He was speaking to journalists ahead of the second day of an EU leaders’ summit in Versailles, France. If approved by the leaders, this will bring the bloc’s financial support to the Ukrainian military to over $1 billion.

It wasn’t difficult to convince EU leaders to take the step, he said, which will come via the European Peace Facility scheme. Borrell said he is sure that the European Union Council will confirm the proposal this morning. 

The financial support will be “immediate,” Borrell said, “now the money flows quickly.”

On February 28, the Council of the European Union agreed to help fund the Ukrainian Armed Forces, including lethal equipment, for the first time.

The Russian army was poorly prepared for its invasion of Ukraine and is now facing many difficulties on the ground, “particularly in the logistical field and in the field of intelligence,” French armed forces spokesperson Pascal Ianni told French TV station France2 on Friday. 

“It is possible that an attack on Kyiv will be carried out in the next few days, but actually taking control of Kyiv is a whole other matter and will take a long, long time,” he said, pointing to the Russian army’s “reserve problem.”

A 40-mile-long Russian convoy had previously been advancing on the capital for days, but new satellite images released on Thursday showed that it had largely dispersed and been redeployed.

A street damaged by shelling in Mariupol, Ukraine on March 10.

Ukraine is trying to open evacuation corridors in several regions on Friday, according to the country’s Minister of Reintegration Iryna Vereshchuk.

The planned routes include:

Routes from Mariupol and Volnovakha have been repeatedly blocked or inaccessible over the past week amid heavy fighting and shelling by Russian forces. There has been more success in evacuating people from Izium, which has seen widespread destruction.

These routes have not been agreed with Moscow, which announced different routes leading into Russia.

Vereshchuk said further attempts would be made to allow people to escape fighting around Kyiv, with routes from the capital to destinations including Bucha, Hostomel, Kozarovychi and Mykulychi.

Routes were also announced near Zhytomyr, west of Kyiv, opening corridors to Andriyivka, Makariv, and Borodianka.

Some context: About 100,000 people were evacuated via evacuation corridors in several parts of Ukraine over the past two days, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Thursday.

The United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defense said on Friday that Russian forces continue to make “limited progress” in advancing toward Kyiv — but could be preparing for a fresh attack against the Ukrainian capital in the coming days.

“It remains highly unlikely that Russia has successfully achieved the objectives outlined in its pre-invasion plan,” the ministry said in an intelligence update. “Logistical issues that have hampered the Russian advance persist, as does strong Ukrainian resistance.”

Massive convoy dispersed: New satellite images taken on Thursday show a Russian military convoy northwest of Kyiv that stretched more than 40 miles (64 kilometers) has “largely dispersed and redeployed,” Maxar Technologies says.

The images show that some elements of the convoy have “repositioned” into forests and treelined areas near Lubyanka, Ukraine, according to Maxar.

Brittney Griner during media day for the Phoenix Mercury, in Phoenix, Arizona, in 2019. 

The detention of basketball player Brittney Griner in Russia — where she has been held for three weeks on allegations of drug smuggling — is really “unusual and extremely concerning,” US Representative Colin Allred of Texas said Thursday.

Allred said the US Embassy has requested consular access to the WNBA star, “the same way they would for any American who’s detained or incarcerated overseas, and that has been denied now for three weeks.”

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine “does loom over the entire issue” of getting Griner back to the United States, Allred added.

“For Brittany’s sake, we don’t want her to become a part of this kind of political battle that’s going on, and we want to make sure that her rights are respected and that we are able to get access to her, and that she can … get home as quickly as possible,” Allred said.

Limited contact: Griner has been in contact with her Russian lawyer, who is “in touch with her agent and her family back home — so we do know that she’s OK,” Allred said. He said he has also been in contact with Griner’s family through the player’s agent.

CNN has reached out to Russian officials, the US Embassy in Moscow, and the US State Department for comment on Griner’s consular access but has not heard back.

Read more about Griner’s detention in Russia here.

At least one person was killed by explosions in the Ukrainian city of Lutsk on Friday, the city’s mayor Ihor Polishchuk said on his official Facebook page.

The city’s alert system “did not work at all,” and the “military administration and the military will work on this issue,” he added.

In the western city of Ivano-Frankivsk, an airfield was also hit and the warning system didn’t work, Polishchuk said.

“The Armed Forces of Ukraine did not turn it on. Why didn’t they turn it on? Because the missiles were flying at ultra-low speeds or for some other reason, the military will work on it.”

Major Ukrainian cities including Dnipro and Lutsk are being “subjected to devastating blows,” said Mykhailo Podoliak, an adviser to the head of the Ukrainian President’s office on Friday.

Explosions shut down two boiler houses in Lutsk, located in the far west near the Polish border, while three major explosions were reported in the western city of Ivano-Frankivsk, he wrote on Twitter.

“Dnipro is also under attack,” he added. “Russia’s destructive war against civilians and major cities continues.”

The Lutsk mayor reported explosions at an airfield in the city, according to the Ukrainian news agency UNIAN. Lutsk has not been attacked before. 

Cities under siege: Ukraine’s Emergency Service said one person in the city of Dnipro died on Friday after three airstrikes in the early morning that hit a kindergarten, an apartment building and a two-story shoe factory.

The airstrikes happened at around 6:10 a.m. local time in the Novokodatskyi district of the city, the Emergency Service said. 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is ready to talk to Russian President Vladimir Putin directly — but “will not make any compromise to the Russian position during these negotiations,” his deputy told CNN.

Though talks between the Ukrainian and Russian foreign ministers, held Thursday in the Turkish city of Antalya, did not yield any major breakthrough, Ukraine hadn’t been too optimistic from the start, said Igor Zhovkva, Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine.

“This is a really good thing that they met, but unfortunately we can say that the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia is not the one making the final decision. The final decision to stop war, to make a ceasefire, to withdraw troops is made by one person only,” he said, apparently referring to Putin.

Zelensky ready to talk: Zhovkva said that though Zelensky was ready for a diplomatic solution, he has not heard from the Russian President personally or his aides.

“The last thing I heard from them was we have to still work under the format of two delegations … But, look, even the agreements reached during these negotiations are not held,” Zhovkva said, pointing to humanitarian corridors in Ukraine that are “being kept in custody by Russian forces.”

What Ukraine is willing to give: Zhovkva said Ukraine was open to neutrality “if the NATO bloc is not ready for the time being to accept Ukraine.”

“But at the same time, we do need hard security guarantees for Ukraine so these awful wars, this awful aggression does not repeat in the future,” he added. 

Zhovkva said Ukraine wanted to work with Putin and its neighbors to establish a system he called “the renewed security system of Europe.”

Rescuers sift through the remains of buildings damaged by an airstrike in Dnipro, Ukraine, in this handout picture released on March 11.

One person was killed in airstrikes Friday morning near civilian structures in the central Ukrainian city of Dnipro, the State Emergency Service of Ukraine said in an official Telegram channel. 

Earlier this week, a Ukrainian official said Russia is mounting resources to “encircle” Dnipro, adding that Russia’s plan was to “encircle the major cities, exsanguinate the Ukrainian Armed Forces and create a situation of humanitarian catastrophe for civilians.” 

The Russian assault on Ukraine is not just an unprovoked attack on a sovereign nation that is producing horrific destruction and civilian torment. It’s also the biggest war of the modern misinformation era.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and his mouthpieces are weaving the most audacious and fatuous alternative reality surrounding any 21st-century conflict — one that renders current diplomatic efforts aimed at ending the war meaningless and futile.

Denying a Russian attack: On Thursday, for instance, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov claimed with a straight face after talks with his Ukrainian counterpart in Turkey —  which, not surprisingly, failed — that Russia “did not attack Ukraine.”

Not only was Lavrov’s claim a lie, as the world knows, it was especially offensive since it came a day after a horrific Russian attack on a children’s and maternity hospital in Ukraine that has been widely denounced as a war crime. And it coincided with unfounded claims from Moscow, which were even picked up by China in its efforts to boost Russian propaganda, that the United States had a bioweapons program in Ukraine, which officials in Washington fear could be laying a pretext for Russia’s own use of chemical or biological weapons against civilians.

Misinformation warfare: This has long been a weapon of the Russian state. Moscow spun multiple conspiracy theories about the shooting down of a Malaysian airliner over eastern Ukraine in 2014, apparently by a Russian missile system, for instance.

And Russian state media aired an interview in which two alleged spies blamed for using a nerve agent to poison a Russian defector in England in 2018 absurdly claimed they were in the country to visit a famed cathedral spire in the city of Salisbury.

But the misinformation offensive has hit a new peak in the war on Ukraine.

Read the full analysis here.

US Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a joint news conference with Poland's President Andrzej Duda at Belwelder Palace, in Warsaw, Poland, Thursday, March 10.

US Vice President Kamala Harris ventures farther toward NATO’s eastern edge Friday with a stop in Romania, a country suddenly thrust into priority position for the United States as fighting rages over its border in Ukraine.

President Joe Biden has already dispatched 1,000 troops to Romania and pledged support for the country as it accommodates a major influx of migrants fleeing the war next door. But a visit by his No. 2 is meant to demonstrate American commitment at a deeply uncertain moment for the region.

Unlike Ukraine, Romania is a member of NATO and an attack on the country by Russia would trigger the alliance’s collective defense treaty, which says an attack on one is an attack on all.

But even the protection of NATO, a system of alliance bases and a missile defense system can’t entirely calm nerves in this former Soviet satellite state that’s been invaded by Russia repeatedly over the course of its history.

Diplomatic test: Harris will meet Romanian President Klaus Iohannis on Friday before convening a news conference and returning to Washington.

Her trip has been a test both of her diplomatic abilities and the resolve of the broader Western allies to forcefully confront Russian President Vladimir Putin for launching the largest ground invasion in Europe since World War II.

Harris arrives in Bucharest from Poland, where she reinforced American commitment to another NATO ally that is watching warily for Putin’s next move.

Read more here.

In a Twitter thread Thursday night, White House press secretary Jen Psaki addressed reports that Russia could seize the assets of Western companies that have suspended operations in the country.

The decision to withdraw or suspend services in Russia is “ultimately up to companies,” Psaki said. “As President Biden said earlier this week, we welcome the decisions of companies to exit Russia because they want no part of Russia’s war of choice against Ukraine.”

Some context: Dozens of American, European and Japanese companies from almost every sector of the economy have abandoned joint ventures, factories, stores and offices in the past two weeks in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the ensuring sanctions.

The sanctions have hit most of Russia’s financial sector, including its central bank, trashed the Russian currency and are likely to trigger a sovereign debt default and deep recession. And there may be more to come.

Russia’s threat: Speaking Thursday at a meeting with government officials, Russian President Vladimir Putin backed a plan to introduce “external management” of foreign companies leaving Russia.

Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said earlier that legislation had been drafted.

Kazakhstan’s Air Astana and Turkey’s Pegasus Airlines are suspending all flights to and from Russia.

In a statement tweeted Thursday, Air Astana said it “sincerely regrets to advise that due the withdrawal of insurance coverage for commercial flights to, from and over the Russian Federation, all flights to the Russian Federation are suspended with immediate effect.” 

Pegasus Airlines said it is suspending flights from March 13-27, citing operational risks and limitations under European sanctions.

The bigger picture: Airlines and countries are increasingly taking moves that leave Russia more isolated.

Earlier this month, US-based United Airlines said its flights will now avoid Russian airspace. Airbus suspended support to Russian airlines, while Boeing said it had suspended major operations in Moscow and temporarily closed its office in Kyiv.

Most of the Western world has now closed airspace to Russian aircraft, including the United States.

What’s happening in Russia: Moscow has also banned flights for carriers from dozens of countries.

Aeroflot, Russia’s largest airline, has suspended all flights abroad — except to Minsk, Belarus — according to Russian state news agency RIA Novosti. It comes after the majority government-owned carrier’s ability to sell seats was crippled after being removed from the global distribution system.

CNN's International Diplomatic Editor Nic Robertson.

I leave Moscow angry and sad.

It feels like a passage out of darkness to light, but left behind are friends trapped in one man’s tunnel vision.

Russian President Vladimir Putin isn’t just destroying Ukraine, but two nations, condemning Russians to an isolation they didn’t necessarily choose.

Over the past couple of months while I’ve been reporting from Moscow, I’ve met many people who have been horrified, shocked and numbed by Putin’s wanton aggression. Some of them believed him when he said he wouldn’t invade Ukraine. Some even knew players in the Kremlin inner circle and thought they understood the President’s red lines, but now that trust is blown and they fear he has no limits at all.

What makes Putin’s actions all the more galling is how he executed his plot in plain sight. Distracting with one hand, transfixing attention on diplomacy, even while insisting falsely that his massed troops were carrying out exercises on Ukraine’s borders.

Ordinary Muscovites didn’t even flinch as he perpetrated this betrayal by marching the nation to war on a cocktail of carefully stewed grievances.

Putin’s empire: Putin spent years building a false narrative along with his empire. The wishes that he was denied, such as NATO withdrawing to 1997 lines or barring Ukraine from membership, was the West’s fault, he claimed.

But if Putin did believe Russia’s security was threatened, and that the modern Western world was pitted against him, the truth was that he never adjusted to the changing dynamics of the 21st century.

This year, while I have been in Moscow covering the buildup and outbreak of war in neighboring Ukraine, it became painfully clear to me that, just as the Nazis did in Germany during the 1930s and 40s, Putin has had laws made to his order. And like many a strongman before him, the Russian President is ruthlessly unleashing the compliant and complicit state apparatus that he himself built, to obediently enforce them.

In short, his every wish is readily executed.

Read the full analysis here.

Within 24 hours of reading a news story about Ukrainian refugees sleeping in a train station, Aaron Jackson left his Florida home for an area near the border between Poland and Ukraine.

Right away, he got to work helping refugees secure emergency housing.

Jackson is a 2007 CNN Hero and the founder of Planting Peace, a humanitarian and environmental non-profit 

While walking through a packed refugee center near the Krakovets border crossing, Jackson spotted a little girl playing with a toy. Speaking through a translator, he learned her parents were originally from Congo and had lived in Ukraine for the last 12 years.

The father, Donatien Tshikele Mubabinge, said that when Russian bombs fell too close to their home, he, his wife, Ngalula, and their 2-year-old daughter, Tushike, left everything behind, including their savings. They tried taking a taxi to the border, but when traffic got too backed up, he says they had to walk nearly 40 miles (about 60 km), much of it with Tushike on his back.

After learning of their ordeal, Jackson booked a hotel room for the family and began searching for more permanent housing.

Read the full story:

Related article They fled their house in Ukraine, but a CNN Hero helped make Poland their new home

Russia’s 40-mile convoy near Ukraine’s capital Kyiv has largely dispersed, and the UN nuclear watchdog says Kyiv has lost all communications with the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.

Meanwhile, Russia and China are pushing a conspiracy theory about an alleged American bioweapons lab in Ukraine, and President Joe Biden is expected to announce Friday that the US will revoke “most favored nation” status for Russia.

Here’s the latest developments:

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has hit back at widely discredited Russian disinformation suggesting Ukraine is preparing a chemical attack. 

In a video message posted to Facebook late Thursday, Zelensky said no chemical weapon or weapons of mass destruction were developed in Ukraine, and Moscow’s accusations that Kyiv was developing biological weapons and preparing a chemical attack made him “really worried.”

Some context: The United Nations Security Council will hold a meeting Friday at the request of Russia about its false claim the US is developing chemical weapons in Ukraine. The US’ UN Mission spokeswoman Olivia Dalton said the move was “exactly the kind of false flag effort we have warned Russia might initiate to justify a biological or chemical weapons attack.”

Russian Maj. Gen. Andrei Sukhovetsky seen in March of 2021.

Russian Maj. Gen. Andrei Sukhovetsky was killed while fighting in Ukraine, according to a statement from the Novorossiysk city government in Russia on March 3.

In the statement, the government said Sukhovetsky — the deputy commander of the 41st Combined Arms Army of the Russian Ground Forces — died on Feb. 28 “while performing a combat mission during a special operation in Ukraine.”

Sukhovetsky had previously served in the Russian military during operations in the North Caucasus region and Syria, the statement said. 

President Joe Biden will announce Friday that the US, along with the G7 and European Union, will call for revoking “most favored nation” status for Russia, referred to as permanent normal trade relations in the US, sources familiar with the move tell CNN.

The move requires an act of Congress.

Each country is expected to implement this measure based on its own national processes. The sources made note of congressional efforts to revoke Russia’s permanent normal trade relations.

Biden will make the announcement Friday and Congress then is expected to introduce legislation.

Read more:

US President Joe Biden speaks about trade and Russia in Washington, DC on March 11, 2022.

Related article Biden to announce Friday that US will move to revoke 'most favored nation' status for Russia | CNN Politics

Ukraine has lost all communications with the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said in a statement Thursday.

The statement comes a day after the Russian-controlled site lost external power supplies.

Power to the site: IAEA chief Rafael Mariano Grossi said the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog is aware of reports that power has been restored to the site and is looking for confirmation.

Earlier on Thursday, Ukraine’s regulatory authority told the IAEA that emergency generators were providing electricity to the Chernobyl plant.

IAEA cited the Ukrainian regulatory authority, saying: “According to the information received before the loss of communication, both of the site’s power lines had been damaged, in effect disconnecting it from the grid.”

Effect of the disconnection: The IAEA statement said the disconnection from the grid “will not have a critical impact on essential safety functions at the site, where various radioactive waste management facilities are located, as the volume of cooling water in the spent fuel facility is sufficient to maintain heat removal without a supply of electricity.” 

According to the IAEA, Ukraine’s regulator said eight of the country’s 15 reactors remained operating, including two at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, three at Rivne, one at Khmelnytsky and two at South Ukraine. Radiation levels at the four sites were normal, it said.

Grossi also said the IAEA is in touch with Ukrainian authorities about radiation monitoring systems in Ukraine.

The IAEA has not been able to re-establish communication with the monitoring systems installed to monitor nuclear material and activities at the Chernobyl and Zaporizhzhia facilities following the loss of remote data transmissions from those systems.

Fuel storage tanks are seen on fire at the Russian-controlled Antonov Airbase in Hostomel,Ukraine.

The northwest suburbs of the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, and parts of the northern city of Chernihiv have sustained significant damage, new satellite images from Maxar Technologies show.

Satellite images taken on Thursday show fuel storage tanks on fire at the Russian-controlled Antonov Airbase in Hostomel, a northwest suburb of Kyiv. A thick black plume of smoke can be seen rising from the tanks, which are located on the southern end of the airbase.

A series of apartment buildings demolished are seen in Borodyanka, Ukraine, a town just northwest of Kyiv.

The images also show a series of apartment buildings demolished in Borodyanka, a town just northwest of Kyiv. CNN has previously reported that these apartment buildings were damaged by Russian military strikes. 

A burned out warehouse in Stoyanka, Ukraine.

A satellite image shows a warehouse just outside Kyiv’s city limits in Stoyanka completely gutted by fire. 

The Epicenter K supermarket destroyed by fire n Chernihiv, Ukraine.

In Chernihiv, roughly 80 miles (130 kilometers) northeast of Kyiv, the Epicenter K supermarket has also been destroyed by fire, the images show. The charred remains of the building can be seen — but there is no roof.

A fire burning in an industrial district in Chernihiv, Ukraine.

A fire is also seen burning in one of Chernihiv’s industrial districts, located on its south side.

Russian military vehicles are seen sitting on roadways in residential areas in the town of Ozera, Ukraine, 17 miles northwest of Kyiv.

With the clouds temporarily clearing around the Ukrainian capital, new satellite images taken earlier on Thursday show that the Russian military convoy northwest of Kyiv that stretched more than 40 miles (64 kilometers) has “largely dispersed and redeployed,” Maxar Technologies says.

The satellite images show that some elements of the convoy have “repositioned” into forests and treelined areas near Lubyanka, Ukraine, according to Maxar. The satellite images were taken at 11:37 a.m. Kyiv time (4.37 a.m. ET) on Thursday.

According to Maxar, the satellite images show that some elements of the convoy have "repositioned" into forests and treelined areas near Lubyanka, Ukraine.

Just north of the Antonov Airbase in Hostomel, Ukraine, Russian military vehicles are seen sitting on roadways in residential areas in the town of Ozera — 17 miles northwest of Kyiv. 

Towed artillery and other vehicles are seen taking cover in a sparse patches of trees near Lubyanka — about 3 miles northwest of the Antonov Airbase.

In Berestyanka, 10 miles west of the airbase, a number of fuel trucks and what Maxar says appears to be multiple rocket launchers are seen positioned in a field near trees.

In Berestyanka — 10 miles west of the airbase — a number of fuel trucks and, what Maxar says, appears to be multiple rocket launchers are seen positioned in a field near trees.

Southeast of Ivankiv — the end of what was the 40+ mile convoy — a number of trucks and equipment are still seen on the roadway.

Southeast of Ivankiv, the end of what was the 40+ mile convoy, a number of trucks and equipment are still seen on the roadway.

Karolina, who fled Poltava, waits with her son at a distribution center in Przemysl, Poland on March 10, to board a bus heading to Pforzheim.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Thursday about 100,000 people have been evacuated via humanitarian corridors over the past two days.

“One of the main tasks for us today was the organization of humanitarian corridors,” Zelensky said in a video address posted to Facebook late Thursday night. “Sumy, Trostyanets, Krasnopillya, Irpin, Bucha, Hostomel, Izium. Almost 40,000 people have already been evacuated this day. They were given safety at last. In Poltava, Kyiv, Cherkasy, Zaporizhzhia, Dnipro, Lviv.”

He said humanitarian aid, food and medicine was delivered.

Mariupol and Volnovakha, however, remain completely blocked, he said, adding that despite Ukrainian officials’ best efforts to make the corridor work, “Russian troops did not cease fire.” Regardless of this, Zelensky said he still decided to send a convoy of trucks carrying food, water and medicine.

“But the invaders started a tank attack exactly in the area where this corridor was supposed to be. Corridor of life. For the people of Mariupol,” the president said.

Earlier on Thursday: Local authorities in the besieged Ukrainian city of Mariupol said Russian forces have begun dropping bombs on the “green corridor” designated to evacuate Mariupol residents.

“Right now, the air bombardment of Mariupol is underway,” said Petro Andryushchenko, the adviser to the mayor of Mariupol.

He added: “Today they destroyed the building of the main department of the State Emergency Service in the Donetsk region. Right next to this building was the place where Mariupol residents were to gather for evacuation”

Earlier in the day, the mayor of Mariupol, Vadym Boychenko, also issued a furious video message condemning what he calls Russia’s “cynical and destructive war against humanity” and said every 30 minutes the city was invaded by Russian forces. The mayor said humanitarian aid cannot get through to Mariupol for the sixth day in a row.

Zelensky noted that the state would continue trying to bring Mariupol the aid its people “so desperately need.”

Vice President Kamala Harris sought to reinforce cooperative ties between the United States and Poland as she met with the country’s President in the wake of an apparent disconnect between the two NATO members over providing Ukraine with fighter jets.

It was a diplomatic response to a situation that had angered some US officials and complicated Harris’ visit. In Warsaw, Harris is acting as an emissary of US resolve to protecting its NATO allies on the eastern flank, and she underscored that commitment to the region’s security by announcing the delivery of two new Patriot missile systems to Poland.

She also pledged more humanitarian support, announcing $53 million in new assistance and saying the US would help countries like Poland where massive numbers of refugees have fled the fighting. She met later in the day with seven people the White House described as “displaced” and said the conversation would inform policy decisions back home.

But at least in terms of military assistance to Ukraine, Harris didn’t offer any commitments beyond what the United States is already providing, including Javelin and Stinger missiles.

The dust-up over providing fighter jets to Ukraine ultimately became moot when the Pentagon flat-out rejected the idea of transferring them at all, citing logistical and strategic concerns. But that was only after the awkward episode of Poland’s offer to deliver the jets to the US — who could then provide them to Ukraine — left White House officials surprised and, to some extent, annoyed.

Read more:

US Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a press conference with the Polish President at Belwelder Palace in Warsaw, Poland, March 10, 2022. - Harris pays a three-day trip to Poland and Romania for meetings about the war in Ukraine. (Photo by JANEK SKARZYNSKI / AFP) (Photo by JANEK SKARZYNSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

Related article Kamala Harris to meet with Poland's President after US rejects Polish proposal to get jets to Ukraine

An injured woman, heavily pregnant, is carried on a stretcher past the smoldering wreckage of Mariupol’s maternity and children’s hospital. Her face is pale, one hand cradles her belly in a protective gesture. Every window on that side of the building appears to be blown out; wreckage litters the ground around it.

The searing image was taken following a Russian airstrike on the hospital Wednesday that injured 17 people, including children, women and doctors, according to Mariupol city officials. “Three died, among them one child, a girl,” the city council said Thursday.

The city in southeastern Ukraine has been besieged by Russian forces for days, its trapped residents forced to shelter underground, melt snow for water and scavenge for food. Now, even a hospital caring for pregnant women, newborns and children is not safe.

Mariupol’s hospital wasn’t the only children’s medical facility that was damaged by Russian forces on Wednesday. Two hospitals in Zhytomyr, west of the capital, Kyiv, had their windows blown out in a Russian airstrike on a thermal power plant and civilian building in the city, the mayor said. One of them was a children’s hospital. There were no casualties and everyone was in a bomb shelter, according to the city’s mayor, Serhii Sukhomlyn.

The rules of war specify that civilians should not be targeted and that medical workers, medical vehicles and hospitals dedicated to humanitarian work cannot be attacked.

But in the past two weeks Russian forces have repeatedly struck medical facilities in Ukraine, prompting claims they are being systematically targeted, despite Russian denials.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), there have been 24 verified attacks on health care facilities in Ukraine so far.

Read more:

A woman walks outside a maternity hospital that was damaged by shelling in Mariupol, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 9, 2022. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

Related article Russia condemned over repeated strikes on Ukraine hospitals