Rusia invade Ucrania. Hilo general

Morning Update, February 27, 2022:

The Ukrainian army continues to hold Kyiv, which US defense officials attribute to Ukrainian resistance and Russian fuel supply issues. An attempt earlier today to take Kharkiv, supposedly by elite Russian spetsnatz units, was repelled, as was as an attack on Sumy with armor. The US assessment continues to be that the Russian army has failed to take any major cities, though it continues to advance and has made progress in the South, where they are now in position to besiege the city of Mariupol from 3 directions. The US also believes that Russia has now committed 2/3 of the forces it had massed for this offensive, and that Russia has still not secured air superiority. While Russia still retains a clear advantage militarily and numerically (with rumors that Belarusian soldiers might supplement), a series of equipment failures and destroyed tanks and armored vehicles today (including a column allegedly destroyed by a Ukrainian drone) underscore evidence that Russian losses have mounted.

Ukrainian officials also announced that talks would commence after the two countries agreed to meet on the Belarusian-Ukrainian border without preconditions. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signaled he did not have much hope for the result, and Ukraine's foreign minister stated that Ukraine did not intend to cede territory or security at this meeting. Still, the conflict has taken a more ominous turn from an international perspective after President Putin met with his defense minister and announced a heightened readiness for Russia's nuclear deterrence systems. Russia's state council also announced that it would consider precision airstrikes against individuals who transport arms to assist Kyiv in Ukrainian territory, potentially a threat to arms shipments that NATO nations, particularly Poland and the Baltic states, have been sending to Ukraine which risks further escalation with the alliance.

The EU also formally announced the airspace ban against Russian planes, including those owned by oligarchs, as well as a ban on Russian state media Sputnik News across the EU. In a sign of concerns for sanctions, there are stories across Russia that individuals are rushing to ATMs to withdraw cash, though how widespread this is is unknown. Russian prosecutors also announced that providing monetary support to foreign countries could amount to treason, apparently in response to a number of Russian celebrities announcing donations to Ukrainian nonprofits. There are also signs that Russia has continued to crack down on anti-war protests, and state media has apparently continued to frame the conflict in limited terms to the Donbas region.