Live: Ukraine And Russia Set To Meet As Russian Troops Reportedly Seize Key Southern City

by · Forbes

Follow real-time updates on Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

TOPSHOT - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy attends a meeting with Britain's Prime Minister ... [+] during the Munich Security Conference in Munich, southern Germany, on February 19, 2022. - During the 58th Munich Security Conference running from February 18-20, 2022, international diplomats and experts meet to discuss topics such as global order, human and transnational security, defense or sustainability. (Photo by Matt Dunham / POOL / AFP) (Photo by MATT DUNHAM/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)POOL/AFP via Getty Images

March 2, 2022 5:18 PM EST

Key Developments: Ukraine And Russia Plan To Meet Amid Intense Fighting, U.S. Cancels Missile Test

  • Ukrainian negotiators are set to meet with a Russian delegation, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s office told the Eastern European news outlet NEXTA Wednesday.
  • Russian troops have taken control of the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson, the New York Times reported Wednesday, citing Kherson’s mayor and a senior Ukrainian official, marking the first major city to fall to Russia since the invasion started last week.
  • Russia has continued its aerial attacks on the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, reportedly hitting a railway station Wednesday, but Russian ground forces are largely stalled north of Kyiv amid logistical problems and intense Ukrainian resistance, a senior U.S. defense official told reporters.
  • Russia's defense ministry announced via state-run media outlets Wednesday 498 troops have died and 1,597 have been injured in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, its first casualty update of the war—though Zelensky says nearly 6,000 Russian personnel have died.
  • The United States has canceled an intercontinental ballistic missile test launch scheduled for this week to avoid escalating “heightened tensions” with Russia, Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby announced Wednesday, three days after Russia put its nuclear weapons on high alert.
  • Senior Chinese officials asked Russia not to invade Ukraine until after the 2022 Olympics in Beijing ended on February 20, the New York Times reports, citing anonymous U.S. officials and an anonymous European official, who told the Times an intelligence report indicated the request came in early February.
  • The United States has hit Belarus with the same export controls that Russia is now facing, after U.S. officials said Belarus—a key Russian ally—is “enabling” the invasion.