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

The Americans, Andy Tai Ngoc Huynh and Alexander Drueke, are both from Alabama.

Russian President Vladimir Putin's "special military operation" into neighboring Ukraine began on Feb. 24, with Russian forces invading from Belarus, to the north, and Russia, to the east. Ukrainian troops have offered "stiff resistance," according to U.S. officials.

The Russian military has since launched a full-scale ground offensive in eastern Ukraine's disputed Donbas region, capturing the strategic port city of Mariupol and securing a coastal corridor to the Moscow-annexed Crimean Peninsula.

For previous coverage, please click here.

Two Men at War
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.
Stream On Hulu

0

Zelenskyy marks 100th day of war: 'The people of our state are here'

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy marked the 100th day of the war by posting a video of himself outside his office in Kyiv with his defense minister, prime minister and parliamentary leader.

"Our team is much bigger. The Armed Forces of Ukraine are here. The most important thing is our people, the people of our state are here," Zelenskyy said. "We have been defending Ukraine for 100 days. Victory will be ours."

The video was notably shot in the same location with the same people as one posted after the first day of the Russian invasion, on the evening of Feb. 25. "We are here," Zelenskyy said in that video.

-ABC News' Kerem Inal and Max Uzol


IAEA concludes mission to Chornobyl nuclear power plant

The International Atomic Energy Agency said Friday that it has concluded its mission at the Chornobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine. The IAEA team worked with their Ukrainian counterparts on radiation protection, safety of waste management and security.

IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi is now continuing efforts to organize an IAEA mission to Ukraine's largest Nuclear Power Plant, Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhya, to carry out nuclear safety, security and safeguards activities at the site.

-ABC News' Alexandra Faul


EU issues latest package of sanctions

The European Union announced a new package of sanctions targeting Russia on Friday. The EU is banning all sea transfers of crude oil from Russia after a six-month transitory period, to allow for the market to adjust.

The EU will also ban imports (sea transfers) of refined petroleum products from Russia, after an eight-month transitory period.

The EU also added 65 new individuals to its sanctions list, including retired Olympic gymnast Alina Kabaeva. She became chair of the board of the National Media Group and previously sat as a deputy in Russia's State Duma.

Kabaeva was sanctioned by the U.K. on May 13, which said she is alleged to have a close personal relationship with Putin, but has not been sanctioned by the U.S.

-ABC News' Christine Theodorou


Marriott suspends all operations in Russia

Marriott International announced Friday that it will suspend all its operations in Russia, after operating there for 25 years, due to the conflict in Ukraine.

It said the suspension comes as newly announced U.S., U.K. and EU restrictions will make it impossible for it to operate or franchise hotels in Russia.

Marriott closed its corporate office in Moscow and all upcoming hotels and future developments and investments were paused on March 10.

The company also announced it has given $1 million in disaster relief funds for associates and their families who have been directly affected by the war. Lodging is being offered to refugees from Ukraine at 85 hotels in neighboring countries.

-ABC News' Alexandra Faul


New sanctions target enablers of forced adoptions

The United Kingdom announced a new wave of sanctions on Thursday targeting Russians involved in the barbaric treatment of children in Ukraine.

Maria Lvova-Belova, Russia's Children Rights Commissioner, tops the new list of sanctioned individuals for her alleged involvement in the forced transfer and adoption of Ukrainian children. She has been accused of enabling 2,000 vulnerable children being violently taken from the Luhansk and Donetsk regions and orchestrating a new policy to facilitate their forced adoptions in Russia.

“Today we are targeting the enablers and perpetrators of [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s war who have brought untold suffering to Ukraine, including the forced transfer and adoption of children,” U.K. Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said in a press release.

More than 900 children were injured in Ukraine as a result of the full-scale armed aggression by the Russian Federation, according to the Ukrainian Prosecutor General’s latest report. Over 320 children were killed and more than 580 were injured.

These figures are far from being final, with more information slowly trickling in from places of active hostilities, as well as the temporarily occupied and liberated territories.

The UK's sanction list also includes Patriarch Kirill, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, for his support and endorsement of Putin’s war.

Several members of Putin's political elite, along with four Military Colonels from a unit known to have killed, raped and tortured civilians in the Ukrainian town of Bucha, appear on the list too.

“Putin’s allies continue to choose to turn a blind eye to alleged war crimes and support his bloody offensive,” the U.K. government said. With Putin’s aggression reaching beyond Ukraine as Russian exports fuel conflict across the globe, the official press release read, the new sanctions also hit Myanmar’s military Junta.

The Junta relies heavily on Russian air assets and limiting it will cut Putin off from profiting from sales that fund his war machine, the U.K. said.

-ABC News' Edward Szekeres, Yuriy Zaliznyak, Yulia Drozd and Max Uzol