U.S. wants Russia 'weakened,' sees critical phase in east - The ...

Russia boosted military spending ahead of Ukraine war, report says Biden praises top officials’ visit to Kyiv to meet with Zelensky Agony, endurance and escape: Ukraine in picturesFear and dislocation: Ukrainian students in U.S. warily watch the war Analysis: Russia’s war in Ukraine a ‘watershed moment’ for climate crisisUkraine asks U.S. for $2 billion per month in emergency economic aidVideo: Easter in destroyed Chernihiv, with message of hope and peaceAs bombs fall, a Ukrainian professor teaches economics — and survivalInternational nuclear watchdog to inspect Chernobyl siteRussia investigating fire at oil depot near borderSatellite images show third mass gravesite near MariupolTop Russian diplomat: War to end in treaty, but ‘stage of hostilities’ will determine termsThe latest on key battlegrounds: Kyiv curfew, train stations under fireU.S. gathering information on alleged war crimes in UkraineWhich countries have expelled Russian diplomats over Ukraine? American officials say they are rushing equipment to Ukraine for a potentially critical battle over the country’s east and seeking to weaken Russia long term as Moscow’s invasion enters its third month.Speaking Monday after a trip to Kyiv, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said the United States wants to see Russia “weakened to the point where it can’t do things like invade Ukraine.” Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who also traveled to Ukraine this weekend, expressed confidence the Kremlin has “failed” in its original goal to “totally subjugate” its neighbor.But Ukrainian leaders continue to report fierce fighting in the eastern Donbas region — home to pro-Russian separatists — where Moscow’s forces have spent weeks refocusing. … The amount of humanitarian cargo the Russians bring here is not enough, so people have to do this”Archie Dolina and Paulina Firozi contributed to this report.Russia’s top diplomat said Monday that the war in Ukraine would probably end in a treaty, but acknowledged the terms would depend on the military situation in the country at the time, a potentially ominous, if vague, preview of Moscow’s negotiation stance as peace talks remain stalled and fighting continues.“As in any situation where armed forces are used, everything will end with a treaty,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in an interview with state television. She said no agreements were reached on “humanitarian corridors” out of the Azovstal plant Monday.María Paúl contributed to this report.The Biden administration is compiling information about alleged war crimes in Ukraine that may be used to hold Russian leaders accountable, as federal prosecutors lay the groundwork for trials in European courts or what could be the first trial for the senior officials of a major global power at the world criminal court.While it is unlikely that President Vladimir Putin would end up at the International Criminal Court in The Hague, even an indictment of the Russian leader or his aides would represent a landmark moment for efforts to hold senior officials accountable for atrocities committed under their watch, officials and analysts said.“It would be an enormous development in the field, harking back to the World War II Nuremberg era,” Beth Van Schaack, the American ambassador at large for global criminal justice, said in an interview. Moscow’s official military spending in 2021 increased by 2.9 percent, to $65.9 billion, or just over 4 percent of Russia’s gross domestic product, according to SIPRI.The trip that Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin made to Kyiv to pledge the United States’ continued support to Ukraine went well, Biden said Monday.The officials briefly visited the Ukrainian capital Sunday and informed President Volodymyr Zelensky that the Biden administration would be sending new military aid to the embattled country.“We want to see Russia weakened to the degree that it can’t do the kinds of things that it has done in invading Ukraine,” Austin said.Biden told reporters that he was planning to discuss the visit with Blinken and Austin.“I’m going to be doing that now,” he said.