Russia warned that the United States was developing biological weapons with Ukraine, and that these soon would be released. They set up an emergency meeting at the United Nations to address this. American officials dismissed these claims as “laughable.”
Ukrainian President Zelensky, however, did not find anything funny about this report. He said that the Russians had a habit of blaming others for what they themselves are guilty of. That could mean, he suggested, that they plan to use chemical or biological weapons in the conflict in Ukraine.
American officials have suggested that Russia's invasion is not going as well as the Kremlin suggests, and that it has apparently stalled. However, they also acknowledged that a number of Ukrainian cities have been encircled and face increasing bombardment. Not surprisingly, civilian casualties continue to grow with each day of the war.
Meanwhile, Russia launched an attack on western Ukraine yesterday. They hit targets near the city of L'viv and at a Yavoriv military base close to the border of Poland, which is a NATO country. In the past, this base has held joint military exercises with NATO personnel, including Americans. According to a news report that I heard earlier this morning, there were Americans present at that base as recently as February. This attack came just one day after Russia warned that it would attack shipments of military supplies from the West aimed at helping out the Ukrainian cause.
The fears of the war escalating are increasing. Earlier today, the parliament of one NATO country, Estonia, voted to establish an immediate no-fly zone over Ukrainian skies. It is the first NATO country to call for such an action. There are also reports that Estonia is strengthening it's eastern military presence, where it shares a border with Russia.
Putin is trying to recruit fighters from foreign countries, particularly the Syrian conflict, to help out the Russian cause in Ukraine. Zelensky suggested that these guys were “mercenaries.” Putin also seems to be hinting at trying to get China to help Russia in the war effort. The United States has warned China against getting involved with Russia's war in Ukraine, suggesting that it might face similar sanctions to the ones that Russia has been facing since it invaded Ukraine.
In Russia, Putin’s approval ratings spiked up in the weeks leading up to the invasion of Ukraine. The official numbers went from 69 percent approval ratings in January of 2022 to 71 percent approval ratings in February. His all-time high came in May of 2018 when he reached a whopping 79 percent. How accurate those numbers are, and how reflective they are, I do not know, personally. They seem unusually high, although with government censorship there, it certainly is not impossible that his approval ratings maty indeed be as high as those numbers suggest. Numbers for his approval ratings since have yet to come out, apparently. It should be noted that his approval ratings soared after Russia annexed Crimea, which a vast majority of Russians consider part of Russia by right.
Ukraine crisis: US warns China against helping Russia by BBC News, March 14, 2022:
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-60732486
Dozens killed as Russian forces strike targets in western Ukraine by Tim Lister, Mohammed Tawfeeq, Olga Voitovych, Simone McCarthy and Tara John, CNN Updated , Sun March 13, 2022:
https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/13/europe/russia-invasion-ukraine-03-13-intl-hnk/index.html
Russia assault stalls, US officials says; Zelenskyy to address Congress on Wednesday: Live Ukraine updates by John Bacon, Tom Vanden Brook, and Terry Collins of USA TODAY, March 14, 2022:
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2022/03/14/ukraine-russia-invasion-live-updates/7031496001/
Russia-Ukraine: the Parliament of Estonia, a NATO country, calls for the “immediate” creation of a no-fly zone by William, March 14, 2022:
https://goodwordnews.com/russia-ukraine-the-parliament-of-estonia-a-nato-country-calls-for-the-immediate-creation-of-a-no-fly-zone/
Vladimir Putin’s Approval Rating Gets Boost: Poll by Gerrard Kaonga, March 13, 2022:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/vladimir-putins-approval-rating-gets-boost-poll/ar-AAV0fiA?ocid=ientp
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