Kremlin Warns Of Retaliation After Finland Moves Toward NATO

He could get up to life in prison.The killing occurred in the early days of the war, when Russian tanks advancing on Kyiv were unexpectedly routed and tank crew retreated.Shyshimarin, a member of a tank unit that was captured by Ukrainian forces, admitted that he shot the civilian in a video posted by the Security Service of Ukraine.“I was ordered to shoot,” said Shyshimarin, of the killing on Feb. 28. He had hoped to divide and roll back NATO in Europe but is instead seeing the opposite happen.NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has said the alliance would welcome Finland and Sweden with open arms.NATO’s funneling of weapons and other military support to Ukraine has been critical to Kyiv’s surprising ability to stymie the invasion, and the Kremlin warned anew that the aid could lead to direct conflict between NATO and Russia.“There is always a risk of such conflict turning into a full-scale nuclear war, a scenario that will be catastrophic for all,” said Dmitry Medvedev, deputy head of Russia’s Security Council.On the ground, Britain’s Defense Ministry said Friday that Russia has not made any significant advances despite concentrating forces in the Donbas after withdrawing troops from other areas.British military officials said Russia lost “significant” elements of at least one battalion tactical group — about 1,000 troops — and equipment that were used to quickly deploy a makeshift floating bridge while trying to cross the Siverskyi Donets River west of Severodonetsk.“Conducting river crossings in a contested environment is a highly risky maneuver and speaks to the pressure the Russian commanders are under to make progress in their operations in eastern Ukraine,” the ministry said in its daily intelligence update.As the fighting and Russian strikes persisted, teachers were trying to restore some sense of normalcy after the war shuttered Ukraine’s schools and devastated the lives of millions of children.