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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Latest headlines:
- Ukrainian air force claims Russia carried out false flag airstrike in Belarus
- UN has credible reports of Russian cluster bomb use, attacks on health care
- Putin claims 'certain positive movements' in Ukraine negotiations
- Russian general prosecutor wants Meta declared 'extremist organization'
- Putin orders Russian military to help volunteer fighters from Middle East travel to Ukraine
Inflation will be higher in coming months because of Russian invasion, Psaki says
Inflation rates in coming months will be higher than they would have been had Russia not invaded Ukraine, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Thursday.
When asked by ABC News White House correspondent Mary Bruce how high the Biden Administration expects inflation rates to climb, Psaki said the energy and fuel prices will go up, but the increase will be "temporary and long-lasting."
While inflation rates are expected to decrease by the end of the year, "There is also no question that inflation may be higher for the next few months than it would have been without the Russia," Psaki said.
"What our focus is on now is doing everything we can to mitigate and reduce those prices and ensure there isn't a longer-term impact," Psaki said. "So I can't make new projections for you from here other than to convey that, yes, it is accurate that the invasion by President Putin into Ukraine has impacted global inflation, inflation in the United States, because of the impact it's had on energy prices -- and that is a significant contributor to inflation."
-ABC News' Molly Nagle
Biden speaks to Turkey's Erdogan to discuss invasion of Ukraine
President Joe Biden spoke to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan Thursday to discuss the Russian invasion of Ukraine, after Turkey hosted talks between Russia and Ukraine's foreign ministers.
"President Biden expressed appreciation for Turkey’s efforts to support a diplomatic resolution to the conflict, as well as Turkey’s recent engagements with regional leaders that help promote peace and stability," the White House said in a statement.
The two leaders also discussed opportunities to strengthen their bilateral ties. In a press briefing, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said the call was "constructive" and confirmed it was lengthy, lasting around an hour or more.
"It is important that [Turkey] is in a facilitator position in search for a solution, in case the Russia-Ukraine crisis deepens further," Erdogan told Biden, according to Turkey's Anadolu, a state-run news agency.
"Even organizing a tripartite meeting of foreign ministers of [Turkey], Russia, and Ukraine in Antalya is a diplomatic victory by itself," he told Biden, according to the news service.
According to Anadolu, Erdogan also told Biden "it is time to lift all unjust sanctions" on Turkey's defense industry.
-ABC News' Christine Theodorou and Molly Nagle
Children with cancer evacuated on 'Train of Hope'
Urgent efforts are continuing to evacuate the most medically vulnerable populations out of Ukraine.
Dubbed in European media as the "Train of Hope," essentially a rolling hospital with several cars filled with beds and medical equipment, the locomotive carried child cancer patients Thursday after it left an obscure train stop along Poland’s border with Ukraine.
The children, who were visibly exhausted and accompanied by parents clearly in distress, will travel on an eight-hour journey to Gdynia, a city in northern Poland.
The train was initially set up by Poland's Ministry of Health to transport the wounded from fighting in Ukraine to hospitals in Poland. Instead, it has been used to carry hundreds of refugees, along with sick children and pregnant mothers, to Poland.
One medic told ABC News that the maiden trip two weeks ago was intended to be a training mission. But when they arrived to a sea of people, the crew decided to evacuate 600 refugees — the majority of whom were children fighting cancer, the medic said.
-ABC News' Chris Donato and Marcus Moore
Russian Defense Ministry claims Mariupol hospital attack was staged despite earlier confirming the strike
Russia's Defense Ministry spokesman on Thursday claimed it did not carry out the attack on a children's hospital in Mariupol, which Ukrainian officials said killed 3 people and injured 17.
Russian officials, including its foreign minister, had earlier said they targeted the hospital, claiming it was being used as a firing position by Ukrainian nationalists.
Russia’s Defense Ministry spokesman claimed that the devastating bombing was staged.
-ABC News' Patrick Reevell
Senate approves $1.5 trillion funding bill with supplemental aid to Ukraine
The Senate passed a $1.5 trillion government funding bill late Thursday that includes $13.6 billion in supplemental aid to Ukraine by a vote of 68-31.
The legislation will now head to President Joe Biden's desk for his signature.
In a statement, White House press secretary Jen Psaki thanked leaders for "getting this bill done" and said Biden "looks forward to signing it into law."
"With these resources, we will be able to deliver historic support for the Ukrainian people as they defend their country and democracy," she said in part.
The supplemental Ukrainian aid is split between defense and nondefense funding. The $1.5 trillion also includes funding for many of the administration's priorities as well as sizable amounts for defense spending.
-ABC News' Allie Pecorin and Justin Gomez