Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba called on all members of the United Nations to vote for a peace resolution to end the war and preserve his country’s sovereignty, ahead of the Russian invasion’s first anniversary.
President Biden, on the last day of his three-day diplomatic trip to Poland, on Wednesday affirmed the United States’ support for NATO territory in case of an attack by Russia, saying: “We will defend literally every inch of NATO. Every inch of NATO.”
Here’s the latest on the war and its ripple effects across the globe.
Key developments
- The draft resolution calls on Russia to leave Ukrainian territory and highlights the need for accountability for war crimes. The vote on the nonbinding resolution is expected to take place this week. The war in Ukraine is not a “European issue” but involves the whole world and is “a blatant violation of international law,” the European Union’s top diplomat, Josep Borrell, said.
- Russia’s U.N. ambassador, Vassily Nebenzia, hit back on the proposed resolution, which calls for an immediate cease-fire. “Moscow is ready for a solution,” he said. “The draft resolution submitted here will not help this at all. It will rather encourage the West, which will continue its militaristic line, using the U.N. as a cover.”
- In the coming year, Russia will put on combat duty the first launchers equipped with the Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile, which have the potential to carry a large nuclear payload, President Vladimir Putin said Thursday in an address marking the Defender of the Fatherland Day. He also said Moscow would begin the mass deployment of sea-launched hypersonic missiles.
- There “will certainly be consequences for China” if it sends lethal military aid to Russia for its war in Ukraine, the Pentagon said Wednesday, after China’s top diplomat, Wang Yi, visited Moscow. “We haven’t seen them give lethal aid to Russia at this time, for the war, but they haven’t also taken that off the table,” the Pentagon’s deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh said at a briefing.
Battleground updates
- The commander of Russia’s Eastern Group of forces is likely facing “intense pressure” to take the town of Vuhledar in southern Donetsk oblast, Britain’s Defense Ministry said Thursday. The area is under heavy fire and “there is a realistic possibility that Russia is preparing for another offensive effort” in the region despite recent losses there, the ministry said.
- Wagner Group head Yevgeniy Prigozhin said in a Thursday morning Telegram post that an ammunition shipment is on its way to his mercenaries, days after he launched a bitter attack claiming that the Russian military was depriving his fighters of ammunition.
- Several hundred foreign troops will soon join German military instructors teaching Ukrainian forces how to use Western tanks and other arms, the head of the European Union’s Special Training Command, Lt. Gen. Andreas Marlow, said in an interview with Reuters. The specialists will come from Norway and the Netherlands and will arrive by the end of March, he said.
- Ukrainian authorities in Kherson announced additional security measures ahead of the war’s anniversary, citing a possible escalation. In a Facebook post, the administration asked people to switch to remote work and announced patrols at gatherings.
Global impact
- The war in Ukraine could rage on for another year, British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace told LBC radio on Thursday, saying of Putin: “I think he’s not going to stop.” Wallace noted that there were clear signs Moscow’s invasion had failed. Putin’s “three-day offensive is turned into his 365-day offensive and he has still not captured or held single one of objectives.”
- Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez arrived in Kyiv on Thursday, saying in a tweet that Spain will stand with Ukraine “until peace returns to Europe.”
- Chinese President Xi Jinping could visit Russia soon, Putin suggested in a meeting with China’s Wang in Moscow. “We are expecting the President of the People’s Republic of China in Russia — we have agreed on his visit earlier,” Putin said, according to a Kremlin statement.
- President Biden said it was a “big mistake” for Putin to temporarily suspend Russia’s participation in the New START nuclear arms control accord. In an interview with ABC News, Biden said: “It’s a big mistake to do that. Not very responsible.” But he said he doesn’t believe Putin is “thinking of using nuclear weapons.”
- Ukraine’s grain export initiative has sent 22 million tons of food in seven months to 43 countries, President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his nightly address, hailing it as a significant contribution by Ukraine to global food security.
From our correspondents
A year of war seen through the eyes of ordinary Ukrainians: Since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine one year ago, every Ukrainian’s life has changed in ways both big and small. Families have been torn apart, homes have been destroyed and dreams have been shattered. Some civilians picked up arms, while others are helping as volunteers delivering aid.
With photography by Ed Ram, Wojciech Grzedzinski, Kasia Strek and Heidi Levine, The Post’s Olivier Laurent and Siobhán O’Grady report on how no one has been left untouched as Ukrainians reflect on a year of loss, resilience and fear.
“It won’t be easier now, it’s going to get harder and I’m prepared for the worst time,” a drama student in Kyiv said.
A doctor in Kherson said he was hopeful. “I believe in a positive future … people who stayed here don’t intend to leave. That gives me energy.”
