Today’s Russia/Ukraine Update

🇺🇦 Ukrainian officials said their forces retook control of Irpin, a southern suburb of Kyiv, along with the eastern town of Trostyanets, as negotiators on both sides prepared to meet in Turkey this morning.

• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky outlined the conditions under which Ukraine might accept neutrality as part of a peace deal; any such agreement would need to be validated by a nationwide referendum after Russian troops have fully withdrawn.
• In his budget proposal unveiled yesterday, President Biden called for $6.9 billion to be directed towards NATO, European defense, Ukraine and countering Russian aggression.
• Brewing giants Heineken and Carlsberg announced they’re leaving the Russian market; Heineken expects to write down a loss of $439 million, while Carlsberg didn’t provide a specific number; Carlsberg controls 25% of the local market and generates 10% of its revenue there.
• Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich and Ukrainian peace negotiators suffered symptoms of suspected poisoning after a meeting in Kyiv earlier this month, sources told the WSJ; they’ve since improved and their lives aren’t in danger.

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