McConnell leads GOP visit to Kyiv; Mariupol rescue talks 'difficult ...

“It is not collateral damage, it is an instrument in a hybrid war that is intended to weaken cohesion against Russia’s war.”Baerbock, who hosted the three-day gathering of top diplomats in Weissenhaus, Germany, said the group was searching for alternative routes to transport grain out of Ukraine as the threat of a global hunger crisis mounts.Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met with a U.S. Senate delegation led by Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) on Saturday in Kyiv, calling the visit “a powerful signal of bipartisan support for Ukraine from the U.S. Congress and the American people,” his presidential office said.In a video posted by Politico journalist Christopher Miller, McConnell and fellow Republican Sens. “They only ask for the tools they need for self-defense.”World leaders were quick to respond to the victory by the Ukrainian band Kalush Orchestra at the Eurovision Song Contest on Saturday, a win that gives Ukraine the right to host the hugely popular spectacle in 2023.Ukraine’s government tweeted on its official account: “you have melted our hearts, friends” adding that the win “matters the world to us during this time.”Here’s how the world has responded:European Council President Charles Michel congratulated the Ukrainian band on Twitter and expressed hope that next year’s contest can be hosted by Kyiv in a “free and united Ukraine.”British Foreign Minister Liz Truss described it as a “great result” — even as the fan vote bumped her country’s entry into the second spot in a competition that more typically evokes a strong sense of patriotism among die-hard fans.British Prime Minister Boris Johnson tweeted that the win “is a clear reflection of not just your talent, but of the unwavering support for your fight for freedom.”“Our courage impresses the world, our music conquers Europe!” wrote Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on his official Telegram channel.Next year, Ukraine is expected to host the competition, an occasion Zelensky said he believed won’t be the last. He added that 375 pharmacies in the country had been destroyed, according to Interfax.“Therefore, according to preliminary estimates, 32 billion hryvnias are needed to restore these hospitals,” he said.The health minister vowed that Ukraine would rebuild a medical system “that meets European requirements to ensure access to health care for all at their place of residence.” He said that “expert and political level of discussions” on how to rebuild medical institutions in the Kyiv region had been completed and that other discussions on restoring the institutions in Sumy and Chernihiv Oblasts were underway, Interfax reported.“We are determining which hospitals in a certain district should be, which departments they should have, what material and technical base they should have, and we will equip and restore them immediately in this direction,” he said.Turkey has proposed carrying out evacuations of hundreds of wounded fighters trapped in the besieged Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol, a spokesman for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Saturday.Ibrahim Kalin, Erdogan’s top foreign policy adviser, told Reuters that an evacuation plan he recently discussed with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was “on the table.” As part of the plan, which he said Russia has not agreed to, evacuees from the steel plant would be transported to the port of Berdyansk and then picked up by a Turkish vessel that would take them to Istanbul.“If it can be done that way, we are happy to do it. “In fact our ship is ready to go and bring the injured soldiers and other civilians to Turkey.”Turkey has been evaluating the plan since last month, when Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said the country was exerting “significant efforts for the evacuation of all civilians struggling in Ukraine, including Turkish citizens,” according to the pro-Turkish newspaper the Daily Sabah.Ukrainian officials are continuing to negotiate with Russia to evacuate 60 medics and “seriously wounded” people from the besieged Azovstal steel plant, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said Saturday.Kalin’s remarks came one day after Erdogan voiced skepticism about Sweden and Finland potentially joining the NATO defense alliance, a sign of dissension in efforts to revamp Europe’s security architecture after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.As Europe prepares for the final of its most popular song contest on Saturday, a Ukrainian folk-rap group may give Ukraine a reason to celebrate amid the Russian invasion.When Ukrainian band Kalush Orchestra takes the stage in Turin, Italy, its members will have more eyeballs than ever on them at a time when the war back home has reached 80 days.