February 24, 2024 - Russia-Ukraine news

Our live coverage of the war in Ukraine has moved here.

Early voting has begun in some areas of Russia ahead of the upcoming presidential election, according to state news agency TASS.

“Early voting in hard-to-reach and remote areas for the Russian presidential elections began in the regions of the Far Eastern Federal District,” TASS reported, citing regional election commissions.

Approximately 70,000 people will be able to vote early in the district, according to TASS.

The early voting begins just after the second anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine and amid controversy surrounding the death of Vladimir Putin’s long-time opponent Alexey Navalny, who had been incarcerated since returning to Russia in 2021.

Voting in the presidential election is scheduled to take place from March 15 to 17. It will be the first three-day presidential election in the history of the Russian Federation, according to TASS.

Oleksandr’s prosthetic eye twinkles, damaged from the siege of the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol, one of the more savage battles of the invasion’s first three months. The 38-year-old exudes gratitude in each breath, having survived the threat of hanging or firing squad while held as a prisoner of war by Russia for more than four months in 2022.

His control over his emotions has tightened after last summer’s bitter counteroffensive, where he fought in Urozhaine, in the south. And now, he’s talking to CNN in Kherson city during a brief break from the battle across the river – where Ukraine seized a foothold after a madcap amphibious dash by Ukrainian forces last summer, which Russia claimed Tuesday it had ended.

He is fond of punctuating his story with the phrases, “I am no politician” and “it is in our hands” — perhaps a reflection of how the Western aid that kept Ukraine in the fight for the last two years now partially looks in doubt.

“Of course, the situation at the front is related to the supply of ammunition and related to personnel,” he said. The Russians are “well zombified … (they) win in number. … They take land with numbers and drive them forward. We take it with intelligence and tactics. People … just get tired and that’s it. It will be difficult, but we will try.”

“This is a difficult freedom, I don’t argue,” he said, as shelling reverberated around the liberated yet bombarded city. “But I don’t want to lose it.”

“I don’t want to bend over for some senile idiot,” he said of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Read about how Oleksandr and Ukraine as a whole have survived during the war.

Two years ago, when Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, I was among the many longtime observers of the Kremlin who got it wrong.

Few could fathom why President Vladimir Putin, Russia’s calculating leader, would embark on such a risky military adventure, especially when the mere threat of a Russian invasion was already yielding results.

There were others, though, who rightly saw the invasion as inevitable, better reading the Kremlin’s intentions and confidently predicting a swift Russian victory at the hands of Moscow’s vastly superior forces.

Two years on, I like to think that those of us who doubted the Kremlin’s resolve were wrong for the right reasons.

What Moscow still euphemistically calls a “special military operation” has been a bloodbath of catastrophic proportions, unseen in Europe for generations. Even conservative estimates put the number of dead and injured at hundreds of thousands of people on each side. Small gains, such as the recent capture of the town of Avdiivka, have come at enormous cost.

Russia’s once revered military has shown itself painfully unprepared and vulnerable to modern weapons in the hands of a determined Ukrainian resistance. Even if the war ends tomorrow, it is likely to take many years for its strength and numbers to recover.

And the past two years of brutal war have twisted and distorted Russia internally too.

Read more of Chance’s view from Moscow.

In the past two years, about 28,000 frontline soldiers have been brought to Mechnikov Hospital in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro, hospital director Serhiy Ryzhenko tells CNN’s Christiane Amanpour.

Now, 50 to 100 patients from around the town of Avdiivka in the eastern Donetsk region arrive every day in “very serious” condition, according to Ryzhenko. Last week, Ukraine announced the withdrawal of its forces from Avdiivka, which in recent months became one of the most fiercely contested battles on the eastern front.

There is a 95% survival rate in the hospital’s operating rooms — which conduct surgeries nonstop — as years of war in eastern Ukraine has led to improved combat surgery techniques, Ryzhenko added.

A wounded army sergeant, Vasily, recently had surgery that left him without three of his limbs.

He says there are not enough troops or ammunition on the ground, but resolve is still strong.

“We’re on our own lands,” he says. “We fight to the last and do not give up. If they get past us, our families will be next. We have no right to lose.”

He says despite his lost limbs, he is eager to get back to the eastern front, to possibly be a trainer for others.

Watch Amanpour’s report from Dnipro:

Video Ad Feedback

eba83fe3-4f5c-4730-9e13-ccdf5686b7b6.mp4

04:11 - Source: cnn

Artem spends a lot of time thinking about the shots he can’t afford to take.

As a battery commander in the 26th Artillery Brigade of the Ukrainian military, he decides when his gunners fire and when they need to hold off.

Lately, it’s been a lot more of the latter.

It’s a horrible feeling, Artem told CNN sitting at a makeshift desk in a narrow dugout just a few miles from the front line in eastern Ukraine. He sees what is happening on the battlefield on the screens in front of him and often receives requests for support directly from infantry units there.

“Last summer, we used 100 shells per day. The enemy infantry did not even think about moving here. They had no plans to advance because they knew that every unit that was here would use everything they had to repel their attack,” the 24-year-old, whose call sign is “Shaman,” said. He asked for his last name to not be published, for safety reasons.

These days, his men are forced to make do with a fraction of the amount of ammunition they used to have. That means they can only strike top priority targets, a limitation that is allowing Russian troops to slip through.

It’s a scenario that’s playing out up and down the front lines in Ukraine. As the United States Congress stalls on US President Joe Biden’s request for an additional $60 billion in security assistance for Kyiv, Ukrainian commanders are facing tough choices on how to use the dwindling stockpiles of ammunition.

Keep reading about Ukraine’s ammunition issues as the war enters its third year.

At least 49 people have been detained in demonstrations across Russia, the Russian human rights group OVD-Info reported Saturday. 

Rallies have been held nationwide today — both protesting the war in Ukraine on its second anniversary, and commemorating the life of Alexey Navalny, the Kremlin critic who died earlier this month in a Russian penal colony.

Thirty-eight people have been detained at rallies honoring Navalny, and six have been apprehended at anti-war protests, OVD-Info said. Moscow has so far recorded 13 detentions, the most of any city, the group said.

At least nine people have had their phones confiscated, eight have been released with a criminal record, and five people were held overnight, the group added.

The body of Russian opposition figure Alexey Navalny has been given to his mother more than a week after he died, Navalny’s spokesperson Kira Yarmysh said Saturday.

“Many thanks to all those who demanded this with us,” Yarmysh posted to X, formerly Twitter.

Yarmysh added that Navalny’s mother, Lyudmila Navalnaya, is still in Salekhard, the Arctic town where her son’s body was being held. Funeral plans have not yet been made, Yarmysh said.

“We do not know if the authorities will interfere to carry it out as the family wants and as Alexey deserves. We will inform you as soon as there is news,” she added.

Some background: Navalny died on February 16 behind bars in a nearby penal colony. The Russian prison service said he “felt unwell after a walk” and “almost immediately” lost consciousness. Navalny’s family and colleagues have blamed Russian President Vladimir Putin for the opposition figure’s death.

Navalny’s widow, Yulia Navalnaya, accused Putin of ordering the body held in order to hide Navalny’s cause of death, and out of fear that his funeral would draw large crowds. The Kremlin has denied the allegations.

Navalny’s family had for several days pleaded for Russian authorities to release his body. Yarmysh said Friday that Navalnaya was given an ultimatum to agree to a secret funeral or see her son buried in the Arctic penal colony where he died.

Navalny had opposed Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine from prison.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine counts on G7 countries’ continued support during a speech on the second anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Zelensky thanked G7 countries for their leadership via video conference on Saturday, saying:

“You know very well all we need to keep our sky protected, to strengthen our military on land. And you know all we need to sustain and continue our success in the sea. And you know perfectly well that we need all this in time, and we count on you.”

Zelensky spoke alongside Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv.

Zelensky also said victory over Russia would mean the entire global community of nations and international law would prevail. “Please remember that imperial ambitions and revanchism can be defeated only together with those infected by them and this is what opens the space for true security and the development of democracy,” he said.

G7 statement: The leaders of the G7 said they remained committed to supporting Ukraine for “as long as it takes” following the call. The statement, released by the White House, comes as continued funding from the US remains in question.

The leaders also called out Russian President Vladimir Putin for “forcing his own people to pay a heavy price for his government’s reckless actions.” 

CNN’s Samantha Waldenberg contributed reporting to this post.

The book “Ukraine: A War Crime,” published by FotoEvidence, features powerful images from more than 90 photojournalists.

Telling Ukrainians’ stories, providing a visual record of the horrors they face every day, has become an important part of the war effort and shaped public perceptions around the world. Many of these photojournalists — some Ukrainian, some foreign — were among the first to enter liberated cities and collect evidence of atrocities that had taken place.

Below is a selection of some of their work.

Hear from the photographers and see more photos from two years of war.

Ukrainian officials said Saturday they had received reassurances from European leaders that new aid would be forthcoming, amid concerns in Ukraine about wavering Western support.

In a statement on X, Ukrainian Foreign Affairs Minister Dmytro Kuleba said he had had a call Saturday with European Union Foreign Affairs Chief Josep Borrell and received assurances that European states would step up deliveries of critically needed artillery ammunition. 

“Artillery shells are the absolute priority right now,” Kuleba wrote. “By the end of March, the EU plans to deliver almost 170.000 rounds to Ukraine and is working to further increase the volume of deliveries.”

The EU has fallen short on previous commitments to boost ammunition production to supply Ukrainian forces, who have been significantly outgunned by Russian artillery. 

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal also said in a statement he had met with Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, during her visit to Kyiv.

The European Union recently agreed a funding deal worth more than $50 billion for Ukraine after funds had been blocked by Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban. 

Smyhal said von der Leyen informed him that a first tranche of EUR 4.5 billion ($4.9 billion) from that package would be disbursed in March.

The Ukrainian prime minister said the two also discussed the situation on the Ukrainian-Polish border, where Polish farmers have blockaded the border to protest cheap Ukrainian agricultural imports. 

On the second anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Saturday, a group of women held a rally on Kyiv’s Sofiivska square to draw attention to call for the release of Ukrainian POWs – in particular, the soldiers who held out in Mariupol’s Azovstal factory under relentless Russian bombardment until their surrender in May 2022. 

CNN spoke with some of them.

Kira, 30, originally from Kherson

Yana, 28, from Kyiv

Vladyslava, 35, from Kremenchuk, Poltava region

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has marked the second anniversary of Russia’s invasion by saying his country “will succeed.”

Foreign leaders have been arriving in Ukraine to show solidarity on the anniversary. As the war enters its third year, the future of the conflict remains uncertain.

Below are the latest developments:

The Ukrainian presidential office released video on Saturday of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau laying flowers at the Wall of Memory at St. Michael’s Square in Kyiv, to mark the second anniversary of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine.

“Together with our partners, we honored our bravest people who fought for Ukraine and freedom and gave their lives so that Ukraine could live,” a statement accompanying the video read. “Eternal glory and gratitude to our heroes!”

The Western leaders also met Zelensky at the Hostomel airport, which had been seized by Russian helicopter-borne troops in the early hours of the invasion and the scene of fierce fighting. Russian troops abandoned the airport during their withdrawal from around Kyiv.

The Western show of solidarity with Kyiv comes amid concerns about waning support for Ukraine and the stalling in the US Congress of an aid package for Ukraine. 

“The only way to win is to increase our military support,” De Croo said in a statement on X. “As President Zelensky says: ‘We will win this war together.’”

Russian forces struck targets across Ukraine overnight using missiles and drones, the Ukrainian military said in a statement on Saturday.

During the salvo, Ukrainian forces shot down two X-59 guided missiles and 12 drones flying over the Kirovohrad, Odesa and Mykolaiv regions.

One person was killed after a residential building was struck in Odesa, Ukrainian national police said. Three people were taken to the hospital, while one was rescued from the rubble.

In a separate statement, Mykola Oleshchuk, the commander of the Ukrainian Air Force, expressed gratitude to troops for their “excellent combat work” during the attacks.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said the battlefield situation in Ukraine “remains extremely serious,” but underscored the commitment of allies to continue delivery of weapons and economic support for Kyiv in comments marking two years since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

“The situation on the battlefield remains extremely serious,” he said. “[Russian] President [Vladimir] Putin’s aim to dominate Ukraine has not changed.
“And there are no indications that he is preparing for peace. But we must not lose heart.”

A counteroffensive last summer by Ukrainian forces stalled and Russian forces this month captured the eastern Ukrainian town of Avdiivka and have gone on the attack at several points along the front lines.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba recently told CNN that Avdiivka would not have been fallen if Ukraine “had received all the artillery ammunition that we needed to defend it,” particularly amid a hold-up of critical aid to Ukraine in the US Congress.

“Just in the past days and weeks, NATO Allies have announced new packages of aid worth billions of dollars,” Stoltenberg said.
“These cover key capabilities like artillery ammunition, air defense and combat boats. As well as F16 equipment and spare parts, drones and spare parts, drones and demining equipment. More support is on the way.”

Stoltenberg said Putin had miscalculated in his aim to keep Ukraine out of NATO, saying the Kremlin leader “has achieved the exact opposite: Ukraine is now closer to NATO than ever before … Ukraine will join NATO. It is not a question of IF, but of WHEN.” 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has insisted that Ukraine will succeed and urged his countrymen to remain hopeful of victory during in a speech marking the second anniversary of Russia’s invasion.

“Today, unfortunately, each of us has someone to keep a moment of silence and honour the memory of. Together we bow our heads. 730 days of pain. But at the same time, 730 days of hope,” Zelensky said in the video, which was recorded from the Hostomel airport.

The Ukrainian president went on to encourage his fellow countrymen by reminding them of what has been achieved over the past two years. 

“Remembering what Ukrainians have already done, you know that we can definitely do it. We are capable. We will succeed. And here, in this place (Hostomel airport), you realize it in the best way possible: the metal may fail, but not the Ukrainians,” he said. 

Zelensky praised his nation for surviving the beginning of the war and even thriving against all odds. 

“A nation that survived the first three days. And did not fall on the fourth. And won on the fifth day. And then a month. And then - six months. And now - two years,” Zelensky said.   

“We are fighting for it. For 730 days of our lives. And we will win. On the best day of our lives,” he concluded.

Russian forces claim that they have captured “some 200” Ukrainian troops during the fight for Avdiivka, the country’s defense ministry (MOD) said Saturday.

“We have already taken out some 200 prisoners after the clearing, and as per incoming reports, we plan to pull out about a 100 more in the coming days,” the MOD said quoting the commander of the grouping, Russian Colonel-General Andrei Mordvichev.

Russian Defense Minister, Sergei Shoigu, who visited Russia’s Center military grouping of troops in the “special operation zone” on Saturday, emphasized on the humane treatment of the captured troops from the Ukrainian Armed Forces (AFU).

“You heard what the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Armed Forces said – to treat them humanely, as it has always been,” Shoigu said as per the MOD.

Russia advances: Hours after Russian troops raised their flags over Avdiivka, reports emerged of several injured soldiers who failed to escape – and were later killed as Russian troops reached their position.

Avdiivka has been on the front lines since pro-Moscow separatists seized large portions of the Donbas region, including the nearby city of Donetsk, in 2014.

The town is Russia’s most significant victory since it captured Bakhmut last year.

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko called for continued US support as Ukraine enters the third year of war against the Russian invasion.

In an interview with CNN on Saturday, Klitschko addressed US lawmakers, saying, “We are fighting for our democratic future, if you have the same values please still support us.”
He added that the choice was simple. “Today’s world is black and white, you are for the war or you are against the war, you [are] for democracy or for dictatorship,” Klitschko said.

Thanking the US for its financial and military support, Klitschko said that while the country is better protected than before receiving the anti-missile system from the US, “we still need much more protection” because “no one feels safe in Ukraine.”

Kyiv citizens, including children, have suffered over the past two years of war, Klitschko said and alleged that Russia stands in clear violation of the rules of warfare that call for sparing civilian women and children.

Remember: A constant drip feed of aid from Western countries, particularly the US, as well as the provision of modern weaponry, has proved a vital lifeline for Ukraine in its war.

But in early 2024, a US aid package for Ukraine stalled. The US Senate passed with bipartisan backing a $95.3 billion foreign aid bill, which includes $60 billion to support Ukraine. However, Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson has resisted moves for a quick vote, which would likely face a revolt from members of his own party.

Ukraine’s army chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said on Saturday that “no one in the world believed that we would stand” in an emotional post marking the second anniversary of Russian’s war on Ukraine.

“When thousands of columns of Russian invaders moved from all directions into Ukraine, when thousands of rockets and bombs fell on our land, no one in the world believed that we would stand,” Syrskyi said. 

In the post, Syrskyi reiterated his praise for the thousands of Ukrainians who volunteered to help the military, many taking up weapons and serving in the frontlines.  

Syrskyi listed a series of highlights of the two years of the war, such as the battle for Kyiv and the liberation of Kherson.
“Today, we continue to fight the enemy along the entire front line. We pay the highest price for our freedom so that every Ukrainian city or village does not become another Bucha, Bakhmut or Avdiivka,” he said.

Syrskyi also paid tribute to those who lost their lives for Ukraine, vowing to “take revenge” and commended volunteers working closely with the emergency services for their work in bringing “victory closer.”

“Today, more than ever, we need unity. I am convinced that unity is our victory. And it will definitely be. Because light always defeats darkness!” Syrskyi added.

Russia’s war in Ukraine has so far cost the lives of over 10,300 civilians, according to the United Nations.

Ukrainian First Lady Olena Zelenska has highlighted the illegal abduction of Ukrainian children by Russia in comments marking two years since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

In a statement posted on X on Saturday, she wrote: “Two years. For children, this is like a whole eternity that should have been full of discoveries, laughter in the school corridors, and happy moments with loved ones.
“Instead, it became a tragedy. Russia killed 528 Ukrainian children, wounded more than 1,230, abducted more than 19,000, and forced more than 2 million to leave their homes.”
Russia, Zelenska added, “is deliberately targeting our children. For two years now, Ukraine has been rescuing and returning its children, giving them families and new homes. We will not allow their future to be ruined.” 

The International Criminal Court last year issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russian official Maria Lvova-Belova for an alleged scheme to deport Ukrainian children to Russia.

The Russian government has defended the practice, saying they are saving the children and deny that the deportations are forced. The Kremlin has labeled the ICC’s actions as “outrageous and unacceptable.”

In July 2023, Ukrainian prosecutors said Ukraine has opened more than 3,000 criminal cases over Russia’s alleged crimes against children in the country, including dozens of torture cases.

Ukrainian security services were behind an overnight drone strike that caused a fire at a major metal plant in south-central Russia, a Ukrainian source said. 

According to the source, a drone strike on the Novolipetsk Metallurgical Plant was organized by two Ukrainian intelligence services, the Security Service of Ukraine and Defence Intelligence of Ukraine.

“This is one of the largest metallurgical plants in Russia,” the source said.
“The plant operates for the Russian military-industrial sector and executes a large number of government orders. Its raw materials are used to manufacture Russian missiles, artillery, drones, etc. Therefore, it is a legitimate target for Ukraine.”

Video that surfaced on social media appeared to show a fire at the plant. According to the Ukrainian security services, drones hit the facilities intended for primary cooling of untreated coke oven gas.

Russian state news agencies quoted the governor of the Lipetsk region as saying that fire broke out in one of the plant’s workshops and had been extinguished with no casualties. There was no threat of release of hazardous substances, the governor added, according to RIA-Novosti.

The governor cited preliminary information from Russian intelligence services saying the fall of an aircraft caused the fire, and said information and videos posted on social networks were being verified, RIA reported.

Foreign leaders have begun arriving in Kyiv on Saturday to mark the second anniversary of Russia’s war on Ukraine.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau arrived in the Ukrainian capital on Saturday morning, according to a government source traveling with Trudeau.

Writing on X, Trudeau said Canada’s support for the Ukrainian people remains “steadfast.”

“To reaffirm that support, I’m in Kyiv with @CAFreeland [Canadian Deputy Prime Minister & Minister of Finance Chrystia Freeland] and @BillBlair [Canadian Minister of National Defence Bill Blair].”

Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson – who developed a close relationship with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky during his time in power – is also there.

“On this grim second anniversary of Putin’s invasion I am honoured to be here in Ukraine. With their indomitable courage I have no doubt that the Ukrainians will win and expel Putin’s forces - provided we give them the military, political and economic help that they need,” Johnson wrote on X.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni also travelled to Kyiv on Saturday to express her solidarity with the Ukrainian people, the Embassy of Ukraine to Italy posted on X.

This post has been updated with details on other foreign arrivals.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Saturday that Germany and Europe need to beef up its defense capabilities and make sure it can weather any military attack from outside.

“Russia is not only attacking Ukraine, it is also destroying peace in Europe,” Scholz said in a podcast on the second anniversary of Russia’s war on Ukraine.
”And we in Germany and Europe, are doing more - and must do even more - so that we can defend ourselves effectively,” Scholz said.

NATO was the best guarantee of defense “on both sides of the Atlantic,” Scholz said. ”Together with our allies, we must be so strong that nobody dares to attack us.”

Scholz added that Ukraine would be supported in its self-defense “for as long as necessary.”  

Earlier this month, Germany met the NATO alliance target to spend 2% of its gross domestic product on defense for the first time since the Cold War. In his address, Scholz said that Germany - Europe’s largest economy - will continue to hit that target in future decades.

Germany was once largely reluctant to get involved in foreign conflicts but shifted its defense policy in the wake of Russia’s invasion.

Russian drone strikes killed one person and injured three on Friday evening, according to Ukraine’s National Police.

The strikes caused a fire at a residential building in Odesa, the police said on Saturday, adding that the blaze had since been extinguished.

One of the injured was rescued from the rubble of the building; all three were hospitalized.

Oleh Kiper, head of the Odesa region military administration, said that a 72-year-old woman suffered severe burns and fractured limbs after remaining under the rubble for almost two hours.

The other two injured were a mother and a daughter, he said.

The mother, over the age of 60, suffered severe burns over 70% of her body, while her daughter, who is in her thirties, also suffered severe burns along with numerous fractures.

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu visited his country’s “Center” group troops who are involved in the fighting in Ukraine on Saturday, according to the Russian Defense Ministry, in a trip that comes on the second anniversary of Moscow’s invasion. 

Shoigu “listened to reports from the commander of the Center group and staff officers on the current situation, the nature of the enemy’s actions and how Russian troops are performing combat tasks in the operational area,” the defense ministry said.

Russian Colonel-General Andrei Mordvichev, commander of the “Center” group of troops, reported to Shoigu that during the operation to “liberate” Avdiivka, Ukrainian forces had been pushed back more than 10 kilometers (6.2 miles), the ministry said.

Shoigu also noted the role of drones in the fighting. Full-time units tasked with drone operations have been created, Mordvichev reportedly told Shoigu.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen arrived in Kyiv on Saturday to mark the second anniversary of Russia’s war on Ukraine.

“In Kyiv to mark the anniversary of the 2nd year of Russia’s war on Ukraine. And to celebrate the extraordinary resistance of the Ukrainian people,” von der Leyen wrote on X.

“More than ever, we stand firmly by Ukraine. Financially, economically, militarily, morally.

“Until the country is finally free,” von der Leyen added.

As Ukraine enters its third year of war today, leaders across the world are determined to continue standing with President Volodymyr Zelensky and are urging countries to renew their commitment to supporting Ukraine in its fight against Russia.

Meanwhile, President Joe Biden urged Speaker Mike Johnson and members of Congress to return and pass much-needed aid for Ukraine. The speaker has resisted calls to bring a Senate-passed aid package up for a quick vote – a move that would almost certainly spark a revolt from his right flank. While visiting Ukraine, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer also called on House Republicans to pass the aid bill.

Here are the latest headlines:

As Russia’s war in Ukraine nears its second anniversary, world leaders continue to urge for support and aid in Ukraine.

Here’s what officials around the world are saying:

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said stopping support for Ukraine is “not an option for us in Europe,” and that it would be “the best thing we could do for (Russian President Vladimir) Putin.” Baerbock said that is why military support needs to continue, especially from the United States.

“We have learned, unfortunately, over the two years, this is not only a war against Ukraine, it’s a war against the European peace order. It’s a war against the charter of the United Nations. So Ukrainians are fighting this war for us,” Baerbock said. 

United Kingdom Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said the free world must renew its determination to stand behind Ukraine.

“When Putin launched his illegal invasion two years ago, the free world was united in its response. We stood together behind Ukraine. And on this grim anniversary, we must renew our determination,” Sunak said, according to a statement released late Friday. 

Laurent Bili, French Ambassador to the United States, said that when the European Union countries help Ukraine, they are helping themselves, and the same goes for the US. He added that the “clock is ticking” to get aid to Kyiv.

“What is at stake at the moment is really about the legacy of the greatest generations, the world that we’ve been living in, 75 years of peace thanks to NATO,” he said, adding that right now is “a key moment” to help Ukraine.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau issued a statement on Friday calling Canada’s support for Ukraine “unwavering and unequivocal.” 

According to Trudeau, Canada has imposed a “total of over 2,400 sanctions” on Russia since the beginning of the invasion and is working with international partners “to secure long-term security commitments for Ukraine and ensure the safe return of Ukrainian children abducted by Russia.”

Canada has introduced a ban on exporting goods to Russia that “could be used to make weapons,” Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly said in a statement on Friday.

“Canada is also announcing a prohibition on the export to Russia of designated goods that could be used to make weapons and serve its war against Ukraine,” the statement said.

The prohibition applies to “explosives, including detonators, that are used in the mining and construction industry,” according to the statement.

The foreign affairs minister said Canada is imposing additional sanctions on 10 individuals and 153 entities. The sanctions — placed in coordination with the US and the UK governments — “focus on areas that impact the Russian government’s ability to continue its illegal and unjustifiable invasion of Ukraine,” the statement said.

Individuals listed in the sanctions include an aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin and senior officials of private and state-owned companies registered in Russia and Cyprus, it said.

“Canada’s sanctions can now target anyone outside Canada, who is not Canadian, who violates Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” the statement read, adding that “this includes those who help Russia and its proxies to avoid or get around sanctions.”

Most of the sanctioned entities are “part of the Russian military-industrial complex, providing research and development, production, repairs, and other goods and services to Russia’s Ministry of Defense,” the statement noted, citing “components for Kalibr missiles and drones, insurance and retail services to Russian soldiers and to the Russian Ministry of Defense.”

On the second anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the United Kingdom announced a 245-million-pound munitions package to boost Ukraine’s artillery reserves.

“The UK will spend nearly a quarter of a billion pounds throughout the next year to procure and invigorate supply chains to produce urgently needed artillery ammunition to boost Ukraine’s reserves,” the UK government said in a statement Saturday.

This comes as a new round of funding for Ukraine from the US appears to be mired in uncertainties. Last week, the US senate passed with bipartisan support a $95.3 billion foreign aid bill, which includes $60 billion to support Ukraine. However, GOP House Speaker Mike Johnson has said he does not plan to bring the bill to the floor, and the House is on a two-week break.

The United Nations chief called for peace and justice as the UN Security Council convened on Friday to mark the second anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. António Guterres told the council that Russia’s aggression directly violated the United Nations Charter and international law.

“Two years on — and a decade since Russia’s attempted illegal annexation of Ukraine’s Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol — the war in Ukraine remains an open wound at the heart of Europe,” Guterres said. 

“It is high time for peace — a just peace, based on the United Nations Charter, international law and General Assembly resolutions,” Guterres said.

The secretary-general also said that “all perpetrators must be held to account” for reports of torture and sexual violence inflicted on civilians and prisoners. Nearly four million Ukrainians have been internally displaced, and over 14.5 million people inside the country need humanitarian assistance, he said.

Guterres also warned of the conflict expanding and “fanning regional instability.”

After analyzing the TikTok profiles of 10 Nepali men who traveled to Russia to join the army, CNN used satellite imagery to geolocate them to the Avangard training center, a military academy outside of Moscow.

What to know about the academy: The academy was designed as a youth military academy and describes itself as a “patriotic education” center. It has been re-outfitted into a training academy for foreign mercenaries entering the ranks of the Russian army.

Other nationalities: A Nepali soldier in Russia, who did not want to be named for security reasons, described his fellow academy cadets as coming from across the global south. He cited Afghan, Indian, Congolese and Egyptian classmates, among others. Class photos from Avangard posted on social media show dozens of what appear to be South Asian soldiers with native Russian instructors.

Language barrier: Multiple Nepalis enlisting in the Russian army have stated that they don’t speak Russian but explain that instructors at Avangard seek to accommodate this by training the men in English. That language barrier has played a large part in the deaths of many Nepalis on the front lines, said Ramchandra Khadka, a fighter who returned to Nepal.

Brief training: Several of the Nepalis who fought for Russia said they had received only brief training before being sent into combat. Such a short training period before sending Nepali soldiers to fight “shows the desperation of the Russian government and their need for human resources on the frontline,” said Binoj Basnyat, a retired major general from the Nepali army, who now works as a strategic analyst.

Life for children in the northern city of Kharkiv — just miles from the Russian border — changed immeasurably since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

None of the city’s schools are still used for lessons as it’s too dangerous. The city has looked underground, to the subway and newly built bunker schools to protect children as they learn.

Nearly 2,200 children attend classes in the metro school’s five sites in stations across Kharkiv, up from 1,000 in September when they opened, according to Kharkiv’s city hall, solely at their parents’ request.

In total, 106 classes of children through grades 1-11 rotate through the 19 metro classrooms. That’s a fraction of the tens of thousands of school age children in the city, according to the city’s mayor.

But studying underground means a school day without disruption, safe from the bombs and the fear of the sirens.

“The kids are probably getting used to it by now,” said Olena Rudakova, a teacher. “They get used to it somehow.”

Read more about these underground schools in Kharkiv.

Ramchandra Khadka, 37, recently returned to Nepal after suffering injuries on the front lines in the Russia-Ukraine war. He told CNN he regrets his decision to join the Kremlin’s army as a foreign mercenary.

Russia’s war in Ukraine is not the first battle Khadka has fought. He was among Nepal’s Maoist rebels, who fought a bloody war with the country’s forces for 10 years from the mid-1990s. He then went to Afghanistan after being hired by a private military contractor to assist NATO forces in the country. He thought he had experienced it all in his lifetime – bloodshed, death and pain. But, some 17 years after the Maoist war ended, with no hope of a job in Nepal, he decided to fly to Russia to join the country’s military for money.

“I didn’t join the Russian military for pleasure. I didn’t have any job opportunities in Nepal. But in hindsight, it wasn’t the right decision. We didn’t realize we would be sent to the frontlines that quickly and how horrible the situation would be,” Khadka said.

He arrived in Moscow in September last year. After only two weeks of training, he said, he was sent to the front lines in Bakhmut – a town in eastern Ukraine that saw some of the heaviest fighting between Russian and Ukrainian forces – with a gun and a basic kit.

He is one of as many as 15,000 Nepali men to have joined the Russian military, multiple sources have told CNN, after the Russian government last year announced a lucrative package for foreign fighters to join the country’s military.

The package included at least $2,000 salary a month and a fast-tracked process to obtain a Russian passport.

A one-year contract is signed and the men get a Russian bank account, where at least $2,000 monthly salary is deposited. Many fighters say bonuses were also given – and the longer they stay on the front lines, the more bonuses they receive. Some say they made up to $4,000 a month. But many don’t know how to withdraw this money.

US politics is now split by a fault line over Russia that could have far graver global implications even than condemning Ukraine to defeat after President Vladimir Putin’s invasion.

The refusal of pro-Donald Trump Republicans in Congress to extend a military lifeline for Ukraine reflects shifting political forces in the US, partly dictated by former President Donald Trump’s “America first” nationalism. But public sentiment has also been molded by an exhausting first two decades of the 21st Century, that were scarred by bloody wars abroad and several financial and domestic crises.

President Joe Biden framed it as a breach of America’s historic leadership role, and he laid blame with GOP lawmakers for recent Ukrainian battlefield reversals.

“Ukraine’s military was forced to withdraw from Avdiivka after Ukrainian soldiers had to ration ammunition due to dwindling supplies as a result of congressional inaction, resulting in Russia’s first notable gains in months,” the White House said last Saturday.

Biden also assured Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky of continuing US support ahead of the second anniversary of the invasion. But given hardening GOP sentiment against more aid, including the refusal by House Speaker Mike Johnson to bring a Senate-passed aid package up for a vote, that assurance that looks increasingly shaky.

And more broadly, if only one of America’s two governing parties fully opposes Russian expansionism and supports NATO security guarantees that have endured for decades, the US will forfeit its position as a bulwark of Western security, alarming its allies and offering multiple openings for adversaries in the Kremlin.

In two years of war, Ukraine has endured ground invasions and relentless missile attacks that have killed thousands and destroyed villages, towns and cities. Yet, despite all the upheaval, violence and chaos, the trains are still running.

Ukraine’s rail network, known as Ukrzaliznytsia or UZ for short, has always been a source of pride and practicality in the eastern European nation. Now, with air travel impossible, trains have once again become the primary mode of long-distance travel. Although rail services were disrupted in the early stages of the war, passenger numbers are now back to pre-invasion levels, with 24.9 million passengers carried in 2023. This year, UZ expects that to jump to 27.5 million.

Here’s some of UZ’s efforts to keep running and modernize for the future:

For UZ employees: Operations continue at the risk of lives, said Yarema Dul, project manager at UZ’s Strategy and Transformation Department. “Long hours, tough conditions and the constant threat of attacks are having a detrimental effect on their physical and mental health,” he said.

Improving accessibility: UZ is also actively planning for a future where it will have to cater for the ever-increasing number of disabled veterans.

Oleksandr Pertsovskyi, head of UZ’s Passenger Division, told CNN Travel: “We’re not just fighting, we’re setting positive goals too.”

Russia is entering its third year of war in Ukraine with an unprecedented amount of cash in government coffers, bolstered by a record $37 billion of crude oil sales to India last year — over 13 times its pre-war amounts, according to the analysis by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), exclusively shared with CNN.

Some of the crude is refined into oil products at refineries on India’s western coast, and then exported to the US and other countries signed up to sanctions on Russian oil. Products refined outside of Russia are not covered by sanctions, an omission critics call a “refinery loophole.”

The analysis by the CREA estimated the US was the biggest buyer of refined products from India made from Russian crude last year, worth $1.3 billion between early December 2022 and the end of 2023. The organization’s estimates are based on publicly available shipping and energy data.

Russia’s federal revenues ballooned to a record $320 billion in 2023 and are set to rise further still. Roughly a third of the money was spent on the war in Ukraine last year, according to some analysts, and a greater proportion still is set to finance the conflict in 2024.

India has justified its purchases from Russia as a means of keeping global prices lower as it’s not competing with Western nations for Middle Eastern oil. India’s Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri told CNBC last week: “If we start buying more of the Middle Eastern oil, the oil price will not be at $75 or $76. It will be $150.”

Read more.

As the world prepares to mark the second anniversary of Vladimir Putin’s Ukraine invasion Saturday, Europe must ask itself some searching questions about the war that unexpectedly erupted on its borders – and how it will approach the next 12 months.

Arguably most important among those questions: How long can it practically sustain such draining financial support for Ukraine?

That thought is not new, but is increasingly echoed privately in some corners of officialdom. It also reflects several current grim truths.

No serious Western voices want to abandon Kyiv, but it’s undeniable that fatigue is setting in as the bills grow.

Earlier this month, European Union leaders agreed to a $54 billion package for Ukraine between now and 2027. The United Kingdom, arguably the major security player in the region, has also pledged more than $15 billion to Ukraine since 2022. For context, according to the Kiel Institute the US has spent $66 billion, with another $60 billion in the pipeline.

While the West’s resounding support for Ukraine since 2022 has surprised many in the diplomatic world, the longer the war drags on, the more the fatigue grows.

Read more.

Two years ago, Kherson became the first major Ukrainian city to fall, as Russian forces swept in from Crimea. It was liberated by Kyiv’s forces nine months later.

Yet, as the war enters its third year, Kherson feels as if it is under remote occupation. Its residents describe the shelling from Russian forces under a mile away across the Dnipro River as the worst yet.

Drones and artillery pound the city at a remarkable frequency, suggesting Russian forces are not burdened with the same ammunition shortages that Ukrainian troops say they face.

And despite the icy Dnipro lying between Ukrainian forces and a Russian assault, freshly dug trenches line parts of the riverside.

Read more about how Russia’s invasion has changed Kherson.