U.S. finds Russian forces have committed war crimes; Biden arrives ...

Then he withdrew from politics to go fight in Ukraine.They’ve never held a gun, but they’re joining the fight against RussiaU.N. Security Council votes down Russian resolution on humanitarian crisisRussia launches cruise missiles from near SevastopolFBI trolls Russian Embassy for disgruntled would-be spies Map: Russia’s latest advances in UkraineTop Russian military leaders repeatedly decline calls from U.S., prompting fears of ‘sleepwalking into war’ Russia gives U.S. list of diplomats being expelledZelensky marks one month of war and calls for a global protest of the Russian invasionHere’s the status of Ukrainian cities under Russian attackBiden arrives in Brussels for third overseas journey in officeA Mariupol family’s nightmare only deepened as they fledPentagon won’t rule out additional deployments to Eastern Europe Seven of nine humanitarian corridors successfully evacuate thousandsFirst round of $800 million military aid package arriving ‘very soon,’ Pentagon saysHe was a congressional candidate in Minnesota. Then he withdrew from politics to go fight in Ukraine.They’ve never held a gun, but they’re joining the fight against RussiaU.N. Security Council votes down Russian resolution on humanitarian crisisRussia launches cruise missiles from near SevastopolFBI trolls Russian Embassy for disgruntled would-be spies Map: Russia’s latest advances in UkraineTop Russian military leaders repeatedly decline calls from U.S., prompting fears of ‘sleepwalking into war’ Russia gives U.S. list of diplomats being expelledZelensky marks one month of war and calls for a global protest of the Russian invasionHere’s the status of Ukrainian cities under Russian attackBiden arrives in Brussels for third overseas journey in officeA Mariupol family’s nightmare only deepened as they fledPentagon won’t rule out additional deployments to Eastern Europe Seven of nine humanitarian corridors successfully evacuate thousandsFirst round of $800 million military aid package arriving ‘very soon,’ Pentagon saysThis live coverage has ended. The U.S. government has determined that members of Russia’s military committed war crimes in Ukraine, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday, as President Biden arrived in Brussels for a trip meant to bolster the NATO alliance.Blinken said that assessment is based in part on U.S. intelligence and pointed to the suffering of civilians in Mariupol, a key port city that Russian forces cut off early in their invasion and then bombarded.Biden and other leaders are expected to announce an initiative to reduce Europe’s dependence on Russian energy by directing natural gas shipments to the region. But the ads did not appear in the feed when the reporter stood on the other side of Wisconsin Avenue NW, in the District’s Glover Park neighborhood.The ads are designed to capitalize on any dissatisfaction or anger within Russian diplomatic or spy services — or among Russian emigres to the United States — over the invasion of Ukraine, an event that counterintelligence experts call a huge opportunity for the U.S. intelligence community to recruit new sources.Russian-held areas and troop movementBELARUSRUSSIAPOL.Separatist-controlledareaKyivLvivKharkivUKRAINEMariupolOdessaROMANIA200 MILESUkrainian forces are conducting counterattacks to prevent Russian attempts to encircle Kyiv.At least 100,000 people are still living under worsening humanitarian conditions in the besieged southern port city of Mariupol.Suspected Russian strikes damaged residential buildings in Odessa.Control areas as of March 23Sources: Institute for the Study of War,AEI's Critical Threats Project, Post reportingRussian-held areasand troop movementRUSSIABELARUSChernihivPOLANDChernobylSumyUkrainian forces are conducting counterattacks to prevent Russian attempts to encircle Kyiv.KyivLvivKharkivUKRAINESeparatist-controlledareaROMANIASuspected Russian strikes damaged residential buildings in Odessa.KhersonOdessaMariupolAt least 100,000 people are still living under worsening humanitarian conditions in the besieged southern port city of Mariupol.Sea ofAzovCrimeaAnnexed by Russiain 2014100 MILESBlack SeaActive nuclear power plants with power-generating capabilitiesControl areas as of March 23Sources: Institute for the Study of War, AEI's Critical Threats Project, Post reportingRussian-held areasand troop movementBELARUSRUSSIAChernihivPOLANDChernobylSumyKyivUkrainian forces are conducting counterattacks to prevent Russian attempts to encircle Kyiv.LvivKharkivSeparatist-controlledareaUKRAINEMykolaivMariupolSuspected Russian strikes damaged residential buildings in Odessa.At least 100,000 people are still living under worsening humanitarian conditions in the besieged southern port city of Mariupol.KhersonROMANIAOdessaSea ofAzovCrimeaAnnexed by Russiain 2014Active nuclear power plants with power-generating capabilitiesBlackSeaControl areas as of March 23100 MILESSources: Institute for the Study of War, AEI's Critical Threats Project, Post reportingUkrainian forces on Wednesday continued to conduct counterattacks in an attempt to prevent Russian attempts to encircle Kyiv, according to the Institute for the Study of War. Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said at least 100,000 people are still living under worsening humanitarian conditions in the besieged southern port city of Mariupol.Repeated attempts by the United States’ top defense and military leaders to speak with their Russian counterparts have been rejected by Moscow for the last month, leaving the world’s two largest nuclear powers in the dark about explanations for military movements and raising fears of a major miscalculation or battlefield accident.Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Gen. Mark A. Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, have tried to set up phone calls with Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Gen. Valery Gerasimov but the Russians “have so far declined to engage,” said Pentagon spokesman John Kirby in a statement Wednesday.The attempted calls by Austin and Milley, which have not previously been reported, come as Russia conducts operations near the borders of NATO members Poland and Romania while the United States and its European allies conduct air-policing operations over the Baltic Sea and pour weapons and equipment into Ukraine by ground transport.Russia has given the United States a list of American diplomats being expelled from the country, officials from both nations said Wednesday.Russia’s Foreign Ministry said the expulsion was a response to U.S. actions against the Kremlin over its invasion of Ukraine — specifically, “Washington’s expulsion of diplomats from the Russian Permanent Mission to the U.N. in New York, as well as a Russian employee of the U.N. secretariat,” the Foreign Ministry said on its website.A State department spokesperson confirmed the U.S. Embassy “received a list of diplomats declared “persona non grata” from the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on March 23.”“This is Russia’s latest unhelpful and unproductive step in our bilateral relationship. They were wrong,” he said of Russia, adding later: “A month has passed — we withstood six times longer than the enemy had planned.”Zelensky also addressed Russians directly, saying he knows that many are tired of Moscow’s propaganda about the war and encouraged them to continue speaking out.“Save your sons from the war, tell the truth about the war,” he said.Rachel Pannett and Paulina Firozi contributed to this report.President Biden landed Wednesday in Brussels, the first stop on a European trip meant to bolster the NATO alliance amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.Biden was received at the airport by the prime minister of Belgium, Alexander De Croo.