British Defense Ministry says Russian troops likely to redeploy from Mariupol. Ukraine hopes for prisoner exchange deal as Russian state TV distributes video showing what it says are wounded Ukrainian soldiers from the Azovstal plant. Top US, Russian generals speak for first time since invasion began.
Russian army Sergeant Vadim Shishimarin faces life in prison after pleading guilty to killing a civilian. Red Cross registers hundreds of Ukrainian POWs from Mariupol. Turkey demands Finland and Sweden halt support for Kurdish groups and lift bans on some sales of arms to Ankara after the two Nordic countries apply to join NATO.
The Kremlin's decision affects a host of European countries, including France, Italy, and Spain.
Sweden and Finland officially apply to join NATO, overshadowing Russia's advances in Mariupol. Ukraine hopes to exchange the last bastion of resistance in the besieged city for Russian prisoners of war.
Sweden decides to seek NATO membership following a similar decision by neighboring Finland. Western Ukrainian city of Lviv rocked by loud explosions. Israeli ambassador to Ukraine and staff return to Kyiv for first time since evacuation on Feb. 21.
"Despite small-scale initial advances, Russia has failed to achieve substantial territorial gains over the past month whilst sustaining consistently high levels of attrition," the British defense ministry says on Twitter.
NATO says Russia's war falters as Britain reports that Moscow has lost a third of its forces in Ukraine. Kyiv hails Eurovision win. Missile said to hit military infrastructure in western Ukraine.
To evade a Russian blockade of Black Sea ports, EU plans to export Ukrainian grains by rail, road, and river to regions at risk of food insecurity. The new routes could also help get goods and humanitarian aid into the country.
Such an expansion of the military alliance would leave Russia surrounded by NATO countries in the Baltic Sea and the Arctic and would amount to a stinging setback for Putin, whose efforts to divide and roll back NATO in Europe have backfired.
Pushback could signal shift in the momentum of the war. Ukraine shuts down pipeline carrying Russian gas across country to Western Europe, disrupting the westward flow of one of Moscow's most lucrative exports.
