Russia-Ukraine updates: 2 US veterans who joined Ukrainian forces missing

Boris Bondarev, Russia’s counselor to the United Nations in Geneva, has resigned, becoming the Kremlin's most senior diplomat to defect since his country's invasion of Ukraine began in February, according to a report from U.N. Watch, a nongovernment organization based in Geneva.

“Never have I been so ashamed of my country,” Bondarev wrote in a statement shared with diplomats in Geneva and published by U.N. Watch.

He said he started his diplomatic career in Russia's ministry of foreign affairs in 2002 and began his most recent role at the U.N. in 2019.

"I regret to admit that over all these twenty years the level of lies and unprofessionalism in the work of the Foreign Ministry has been increasing all the time," Bondarev said in his statement. "However, in most recent years, this has become simply catastrophic."

He added, "Today, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is not about diplomacy. It is all about warmongering, lies and hatred. It serves interests of few, the very few people thus contributing to further isolation and degradation of my country. Russia no longer has allies, and there is no one to blame but its reckless and ill-conceived policy."

ABC News has not independently verified the statement's authenticity with Bondarev. The Associated Press spoke with him by phone and he confirmed his statement.

Kira Yarmysh, a spokesperson for imprisoned Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny, shared the statement on her verified Twitter account and wrote, "It seems that there was one honest person in the entire Ministry of Foreign Affairs."

-ABC News' Josh Margolin

Canadian artist Ivanka Siolkowsky is trying to restore some beauty to the war-ravaged Ukrainian city of Bucha.

A former school teacher, Silokowsky has been painting flowers and butterflies around bullet holes she finds in fences, walls of buildings and homes, frequently soliciting children and other local residents to help her.

"The project began a few weeks ago. I only painted 5 fences, but my hope is that the people of Bucha and other formerly occupied cities in Ukraine will continue this project further," Siolkowsky recently wrote on her Instagram page.

Bucha, which is northwest of Kyiv, is one of the most heavily bomb cities in Ukraine, where residents have told ABC News of witnessing numerous killings and torture at the hands of Russian forces.

Siolkowsky conceded that her paintings are not masterpieces and said someone commented on one of the Instagram posts, writing, “the paintings aren’t even good.”

"Believe me, I’m aware," she wrote on Instagram. "But the point of this wasn’t to create masterpieces -- it was to bring joy back into a city filled with darkness after the Russian occupation."

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin convened the second monthly meeting of the Ukraine Contact Group Monday morning, during which more than 40 nations participated virtually.

"This gathering is virtual, but our efforts together are making a very concrete difference on the battlefield," Austin told the group as he faced two large monitors showing the virtual participants. "We're all here today because of the extraordinary valor and resilience of Ukraine soldiers and citizens."

The group was formed last month to help coordinate international efforts to support Ukraine in its fight against the Russian invaders.

"For three months, Ukraine has been fighting with grit and tactical ingenuity against an entirely unprovoked invasion by its far larger neighbor," Austin said. "And we're here to help Ukraine for the long haul."

Defense leaders from 44 countries and representatives of NATO and the European Union participated in the meeting. Several new nations joined the group since its first meeting, including Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Colombia, Ireland and Kosovo.

Ukrainian officials, including Minister of Defense Oleksii Reznikov, also logged on to the virtual meeting.

"My friends, we've got your back -- all of us," Austin told the Ukrainian representatives. "President Zelenskyy and Ukraine's leaders have made history, and your forces have inspired the free world with their courage and skill."

-ABC News' Matt Seyler

Starbucks announced on Monday its decision to exit the market in Russia.

"We continue to watch the tragic events unfold and, today, we have decided to suspend all business activity in Russia, including shipment of all Starbucks products," Starbuck CEO Kevin Johnson said in a statement. "Our licensed partner has agreed to immediately pause store operations and will provide support to the nearly 2,000 partners in Russia who depend on Starbucks for their livelihood."

The announcement comes after the company suspended all business activity in Russia on March 8. Going forward, Starbucks said it will continue to pay its employees in Russia for six months.

Starbucks is one of multiple major U.S. and international companies that have put operations on hold in Russia because of the invasion of Ukraine. Other companies that have suspended operations there include Pfizer, Apple, FedEx, McDonald's and Amazon.

-ABC News' Christine Theodorou