An Update on Russia & Ukraine

🇺🇦 The second round of peace talks yesterday afternoon ended without a cease-fire deal, though negotiators agreed to organize “humanitarian corridors" through which civilians can be evacuated, and food and medication can be delivered.

• Russian forces continued to bombard Kyiv and Kharkiv with airstrikes, along with Chernihiv in the north (pop. ~310,000). The 40-mile-long Russian convoy heading to Kyiv stalled out for a third straight day, remaining ~20 miles from the capital city.
• Several Russian warships appeared near the southern port city of Odesa, which Ukrainian officials said could be the opening stages of an amphibious assault.
• More than 1 million people have fled Ukraine over the past week, per the UN’s refugee agency; that’s over 2% of the country’s population, with a majority of them ending up in Poland.
• The US unveiled a new round of sanctions against Russian oligarchs and their family members; such measures, along with the collapse of the Russian ruble, have combined to erase ~⅓ of the wealth of Russia’s 20 richest billionaires according to Bloomberg.
• The Biden administration said it’s now seeking $10 billion in aid for Ukraine – up from $6.4 billion – as part of a fiscal 2022 spending bill that Congress aims to pass by next week.

🚨 Breaking: Russian forces "occupied" Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant earlier this morning after a fire broke out at the facility.

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+Bonus: How Might the War in Ukraine End? Five Factors Will Shape the Outcome → (WSJ)