Today’s Russia/Ukraine Update

🇺🇦 Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky addressed Congress virtually yesterday, urging lawmakers to recall Pearl Harbor and 9/11 as a comparison for what his country is going through each day.

• Zelensky renewed his appeal for a no-fly zone over Ukraine – which NATO has explicitly ruled out – and said absent such a move, anti-aircraft weapons should be provided to his troops.
• Following Zelensky’s address, President Biden pledged an additional $800 million in military assistance to Ukraine, including 100 drones, 800 Stinger anti-aircraft systems, and 2,000 anti-armor missiles, and also called Russian President Vladimir Putin a “war criminal.”
• Ukraine’s military has launched a counteroffensive in the north pushing outwards from the capital of Kyiv. In the south, Ukrainian forces advanced towards Kherson, the only regional capital captured and occupied by Russia.
• Melitopol Mayor Ivan Fedorov, who was abducted by Russian forces last week, was freed as the result of a "special operation" carried out by Ukraine.
• The UN confirmed at least 724 Ukrainian civilians have been killed and 1,174 injured since the invasion began, but said the actual numbers for both are likely much higher.

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