G7 Germany 2022: We, the G7 Foreign Ministers of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States of America, and the High Representative of the European Union, have met today in a fundamentally changed strategic and security environment. The Russian war of aggression against Ukraine is a watershed moment for the 21st century and carries dramatic consequences far beyond Europe. We, the G7, want to make abundantly clear that we will not sit by whilst countries flagrantly disregard the international rulebook, on which we all depend for peace, prosperity, security and stability. We condemn, in the strongest possible terms, Russia’s unjustifiable, unprovoked and illegal war of aggression against Ukraine. Russia has blatantly violated the rules-based international order, international law and humanitarian principles and it has breached universally agreed and legally binding fundamental principles such as peaceful cooperation, sovereignty, self-determination and territorial integrity. We remain steadfast in our commitment to defend peace, human rights, the rule of law, human security and gender equality, as recognized by international law including the UN Charter and conventions, and call on our partners to join us in these efforts. Our success will depend on stronger defence, economic security, and deeper global alliances with friends and partners.

Biden seeks $33B for Ukraine, signaling long-term commitment: President Joe Biden asked Congress on Thursday for $33 billion to bolster Ukraine’s fight against Russia, signaling a burgeoning and long-haul American commitment as Moscow’s invasion and the international tensions it has inflamed show no signs of receding. The package has about $20 billion in defense spending for Ukraine and U.S. allies in the region and $8.5 billion to keep Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s government providing services and paying salaries. There’s $3 billion in global food and humanitarian programs, including money to help Ukrainian refugees who’ve fled to the U.S. and to prod American farmers to grow wheat and other crops to replace the vast amounts of food Ukraine normally produces. The package, which administration officials estimated would last five months, is more than twice the size of the initial $13.6 billion aid measure that Congress enacted early last month and now is almost drained. With the bloody war dragging into its third month, the measure was designed to signal to Russian President Vladimir Putin that U.S. weaponry and other streams of assistance are not going away.

International Day of Multilateralism and Diplomacy for Peace, 24 April: The International Day of Multilateralism and Diplomacy for Peace was established on 12 December, 2018 through resolution A/RES/73/127. Preserving the values of multilateralism and international cooperation, which underpin the UN Charter and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, is fundamental to promote and support the three pillars of the UN - peace and security, development and human rights. The international norms and rules-based system that have steered nations through seven decades must rise to meet the mounting challenges of protectionism and isolationism. Global issues such as climate change, geopolitical tensions, humanitarian and migratory crises are cross-cutting, implicating the values and interests of nations and necessitate collective attention and action. Technological advancement has also impacted the political and socio-economic landscape and inter-state relations. As emphasized in the resolution, the International Day is a reaffirmation of the UN Charter and its principles of resolving disputes among countries through peaceful means. It acknowledges the use of multilateral decision-making and diplomacy in achieving peaceful resolutions to conflicts among nations.

International Day of Multilateralism and Diplomacy for Peace, 24 April: The International Day of Multilateralism and Diplomacy for Peace was established on 12 December, 2018 through resolution A/RES/73/127. Preserving the values of multilateralism and international cooperation, which underpin the UN Charter and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, is fundamental to promote and support the three pillars of the UN - peace and security, development and human rights. The international norms and rules-based system that have steered nations through seven decades must rise to meet the mounting challenges of protectionism and isolationism. Global issues such as climate change, geopolitical tensions, humanitarian and migratory crises are cross-cutting, implicating the values and interests of nations and necessitate collective attention and action. Technological advancement has also impacted the political and socio-economic landscape and inter-state relations. As emphasized in the resolution, the International Day is a reaffirmation of the UN Charter and its principles of resolving disputes among countries through peaceful means. It acknowledges the use of multilateral decision-making and diplomacy in achieving peaceful resolutions to conflicts among nations.

Russia-Ukraine War: Russia has pulled troops away from Kyiv and shifted most of the focus of its war to eastern Ukraine, after a series of defeats near the capital. This push into the area known as Donbas could mean a protracted conflict. What would Vladimir Putin need before he could claim his goal of "liberating" Ukraine's old industrial heart and is that possible? Russian forces have already triggered a humanitarian catastrophe in the east, reducing Mariupol to ruins, but they have failed to inflict defeat on Ukraine's military. Ukraine's best-trained forces were already posted in the east because of an eight-year war with Russian-backed separatists. They are thought to have suffered heavy losses, but are still a significant challenge to Russia's invading army.

Italy is closing its ports to Russian ships from April 17 as part of expanded EU sanctions against Russia: "Italy is barring all Russian ships from its ports starting Sunday, as part of expanded EU sanctions announced earlier this month," the news agency said. Ships already in Italian ports must leave immediately "after completing their commercial activity," the statement said. From April 17, Russian-flagged ships will also be banned from entering Romanian ports in the Black Sea and the Danube. Exceptions are humanitarian vessels, as well as those transporting some goods to EU countries or in need of assistance.

'Fill the silence with your music,' Ukraine's Zelenskyy tells Grammys: Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy appeared in a video message at the Grammy Awards to ask for support in telling the story of Ukraine's invasion by Russia. During the message that aired on the show Sunday, he likened the invasion to a deadly silence threatening to extinguish the dreams and lives of the Ukrainian people, including children. Our musicians wear body armor instead of tuxedos. They sing to the wounded in hospitals, even to those who can't hear them, he said. But the music will break through anyway. The Recording Academy, with its partner Global Citizen, prior to the ceremony highlighted a social media campaign called Stand Up For Ukraine to raise money and support during the humanitarian crisis.

An air alert was declared Wednesday morning in and around Kyiv, with residents urged to get to bomb shelters as quickly as possible. “Kyiv region air alert. Threat of a missile attack. Everyone immediately went to shelters,” regional administration head Oleksiy Kuleba said on Telegram. Nearly two weeks into the invasion, Russian troops have advanced deep along Ukraine’s coastline. The city of Mariupol, which sits on the Azov Sea, has been surrounded by Russian soldiers for days and a humanitarian crisis is unfolding in the encircled city of 430,000 For days, as Moscow’s forces have laid siege to Ukrainian cities, attempts to create corridors to safely evacuate civilians have stumbled amid continuing fighting.

The conflict in Ukraine and the humanitarian crisis in Europe has caused unspeakable suffering to innocent people. As a System, we join the world in condemning aggression and violence and praying for peace. Our number one priority from the start of this crisis has been – and will remain – our people. McDonald's Corporation has provided immediate financial support to our team in Ukraine, paying full salaries, donating $5 million to our Employee Assistance Fund & continues to support relief efforts led by the International Red Cross in the region. In Russia, we employ 62,000 people who have poured their hearts and souls into our McDonald’s brand to serve their communities. We work with hundreds of local Russian suppliers and partners who produce the food for our menu and support our brand. And we serve millions of Russian customers each day who count on McDonald’s. In the thirty-plus years that McDonald’s has operated in Russia, we’ve become an essential part of the 850 communities in which we operate. At the same time, our values mean we cannot ignore the needless human suffering unfolding in Ukraine. Years ago, when confronted with his own difficult decision, Fred Turner explained his approach quite simply: “Do the right thing.” That philosophy is enshrined as one of our five guiding values, and there are countless examples over the years of McDonald’s Corporation living up to Fred’s simple ideal. Today is also one of those days. Working in close consultation with our Chairman, Rick Hernandez, and the rest of McDonald’s Board of Directors over the last week, McDonald’s has decided to temporarily close all our restaurants in Russia and pause all operations in the market. We understand the impact this will have on our Russian colleagues and partners, which is why we are prepared to support all three legs of the stool in Ukraine and Russia. This includes salary continuation for all McDonald’s employees in Russia. For the entirety of the message I shared with McDonald’s employees and franchisees today, please see the link below. http://McD.to/6047KguQ1

Russian-backed separatist leader expects his forces to surround Mariupol on Tuesday The leader of the self-declared separatist region in Donetsk, Denis Pushilin, says he expects his forces to surround the port city of Mariupol on Tuesday, adding in a television interview that the town of Volnovakha – which is half-way between Mariupol and Donetsk – was almost completely surrounded. “Our task for today is encircle Mariupol,” he said. Pushilin claimed without offering any evidence that nationalist elements in Mariupol were terrorizing the civilian population and were using them as a human shield. The city has a population of some 400,000. Separately, the deputy head of the Donetsk People’s Militia, Eduard Basurin, said the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), along with Russian forces, would organize humanitarian corridors to allow civilians to leave Mariupol. The corridors would be open through Wednesday, he said. Basurin said several towns in the region had already fallen to the militia of the DPR. Vadym Boichenko, the mayor of Mariupol, said on Ukrainian television that residential areas had been shelled for five days – with heavy artillery, rockets and aircraft. “There are many wounded, dead local residents, women, children.” “But today, the best sons of their fatherland on the borders of our city are doing everything, not to give Mariupol away,” Boichenko said. “They have destroyed important infrastructure, there is no electricity in the city, there is no heat. We are fighting to [the] last bullet."