Russia-Ukraine updates: Putin says 'certain positive movements' in negotiations

A third round of talks between Russia and Ukraine ended without any resolution.

Russian forces are continuing their attempted push through Ukraine from multiple directions, while Ukrainians, led by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, are putting up "stiff resistance," according to U.S. officials.

The attack began Feb. 24, when Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a "special military operation."

Russian forces moving from neighboring Belarus toward Ukraine's capital, Kyiv, have advanced closer to the city center in recent days despite the resistance, coming within about 9 miles as of Friday.

Russia has been met by sanctions from the United States, Canada and countries throughout Europe, targeting the Russian economy as well as Putin himself.

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Two Men at War

A look at the two leaders at the center of the war in Ukraine and how they both rose to power, the difference in their leadership and what led to this moment in history.

Mar 03, 2022, 10:58 AM EST

Macron says the 'worst is yet to come' after call with Putin: Source

After a call between France President Emmanuel Macron and Russia President Vladimir Putin on Thursday, an Elysée source said the risk of Russia's war extending beyond Ukraine to neighboring countries exists.

"The worst is yet to come," the source told reporters, saying France takes this under consideration in its exchanges with its partners

The Elysée source told reporters that the reality of Ukrainian power has nothing to do with Nazism and that Macron told Putin how much of a "lie" that is.

The two leaders spoke on the phone for an hour and a half, according to the Elysée.

The French president insisted this war will plunge Russia into isolation and that it will be under sanctions for a long time, according to the Elysée.

According to the Elysée source, Putin wants the neutralization and the demilitarization of Ukraine. He is ready to obtain it through negotiation if the Ukrainians are ready to do so, or continue the war until he achieves these objectives.

Firefighters work to extinguish a fire at a damaged logistic center after shelling in Kyiv, Ukraine, March 3, 2022.
Efrem Lukatsky/AP

The Kremlin echoed this in its statement.

"Putin set out in detail the principled approaches and conditions in the context of the talks with Kyiv's representatives. It was confirmed that [the talks] focused primarily on the demilitarization and neutral status of Ukraine, so that no threat would ever emanate from its territory to the Russian Federation," the Kremlin said in a statement.

The Kremlin said the "objectives of the special military operation will be fulfilled any way, and that the attempts to play for time by dragging out the talks will only lead to our negotiating position presenting Kyiv with further demands."

Regarding the Ukrainian request for a 'no-fly' zone, the Elysée source said that the answer is not necessarily in the sky. These are tanks that deploy on Ukrainian soil. A no fly zone requires considerable resources and is not enough to prevent the risk of ground warfare.

“I know of only one case of a no fly zone that was effectively implemented, it was in Iraq after the first Gulf War to protect the Kurdish populations," said the Elysée source. "But you can see that we are in a different situation”.

- ABC News' Christine Theodorou and Ibtissem Guenfoud

Mar 03, 2022, 10:24 AM EST

China dismisses reports it told Russia not to act until after Olympics

The Chinese Foreign Ministry dismissed reports by the New York Times and South China Morning Post that Chinese officials told Russian officials not to act until after the Winter Olympics were over.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin called the reports "fake news" in a press conference and went on to blame U.S. and NATO for pushing Russia to act against Ukraine.

Wang called the U.S. and NATO troublemakers and said they should shoulder the responsibility to end the war.

- ABC News' Karson Yiu

Mar 03, 2022, 8:51 AM EST

Zelenskyy warns Putin: 'You will repay everything you did against Ukraine'

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy issued a warning to his Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday, as Russian forces continued their offensive.

"You will repay everything you did against Ukraine -- in full," Zelenskyy said in a televised statement. "And we will not forget those who perished -- and God won't."

This handout video grab taken and released by the Ukraine Presidency press service on March 3, 2022 shows Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky delivering an address in Kyiv.
Ukraine Presidency/AFP via Getty Images

Zelenskyy noted that his country receives "more and more powerful weapons everyday" from "partners" and "real friends." He also likened the Russian invasion to being "attacked by another virus."

"Exactly two years ago, the first case of COVID-19 was recorded in Ukraine. The first weeks of fighting it were extremely difficult, but we were united and therefore strong and therefore we withstood," he said. "Exactly a week ago, Ukraine was attacked by another virus, another disease, by those who suffer from severe annexation and occupation of foreign lands. The first hours and days of full-scale war were extremely difficult, but we were united and therefore strong and therefore we withstood. And it will be so and we will continue to stand."

Mar 03, 2022, 8:22 AM EST

Russia freezes supplies of rocket engines to US

Russia's state space corporation Roscosmos announced Thursday its decision to suspend supplies of Russian-made rocket engines to the United States.

"In this situation, we can no longer supply the U.S. with our rocket engines that are the best in the world," Roscosmos CEO Dmitry Rogozin said on state-owned television channel Russia-24. "Let them fly on something else, like their brooms or whatever. But at least we are freezing our shipments."

-ABC News' Tanya Stukalova

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