Most important news at a glance:
– NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg to stay on for an extra year. The extension until September next year will be announced on Thursday at the NATO summit, two NATO sources say. The military alliance could use a trained foreman in the middle of a heated conflict with Russia, the NATO countries think.
– 4,554 people were evacuated from Ukrainian cities besieged by Russian troops on Wednesday, a senior Ukrainian official reported. That is significantly fewer than were able to leave via so-called humanitarian corridors on Tuesday.
– US President Joe Biden has arrived in Brussels for summit talks on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He is Thursday at meetings of NATO, European Union and G7 (seven major economies).
– The Russians are now waging a war of attrition in neighboring Ukraine after numerous setbacks, says a senior British defense official. The Moscow regime would not have achieved its original objectives. It is estimated that the invasion will increasingly become a war of wear and tear.
– The Russian media watchdog has blocked Google News from the American company Alphabet. According to the Russian news agency Interfax, Google News had access to “false” information about the Russian “military operation” in Ukraine.
– The Ukrainian army has pushed back Russian troops in a number of areas around Kiev, says Mayor Vitali Klitschko of the Ukrainian capital. He reiterated that every building and every street will be defended and surrender is not an option.