Ukraine officials report attack on airport, humanitarian corridor fails again: LIVE UPDATES
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Foreign Affairs Minister Dmytro Kuleba denounced the attack Sunday on the town of Vinnytsia and its civilian airport, with Russian officials claiming the airport served a 'dual purpose' as a military base
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Russian authorities have arrested over 13,000 anti-war protesters as its crackdown on dissidents within the country continues.
People across the country are protesting Russian President Vladimir Putin's decision to invade Ukraine, beginning a war that has killed at least 331, according to the United Nations.
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Tesla co-founder and CEO Elon Musk on Sunday said Europe must reboot its nuclear power stations for the sake of national and international security.
"Hopefully, it is now extremely obvious that Europe should restart dormant nuclear power stations and increase power output of existing ones," Musk tweeted. "This is critical to national and international security."
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On Monday, South Korea said it intends to suspend transactions with Russia's central bank, the Yonhap News Agency reported.
The U.S. and the European Union have announced similar sanctions.
"When the dust settles, despite the very real bravery on display by the Ukrainian people, deterrence in this case failed," Rep. Gallagher said.
"The Biden Administration thought that sanctions and tweets would be enough to deter, but they failed to apply the kind of hard power that would have deterred Putin from launching this war in the first place. By the way, a war that could still escalate and involve us at any moment," he added.
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Oil prices surged to a 13-year high on Sunday as U.S. officials signaled an openness to a ban on Russian oil imports amid Putin's invasion of Ukraine.
West Texas Intermediate Crude, the U.S. benchmark, rose 9.5% to $126.64 a barrel as of 7:00 PM on Sunday evening. Brent Crude, the international benchmark, shot up 12% to $130.98 a barrel.
WTI hit an all-time high of $147.27 and Brent hit $147.50 in July 2008.
Foreign residents of Ukraine who successfully evacuated the country amid the ongoing Russian attacks on Ukraine are asking embassies for help while they assist other ex-pats with their own escapes from the war-torn country.
Almost 80,000 third-country nationals from 138 countries have fled, the U.N.'s International Organization for Migration (IOM) said on Friday.
The show of resilience, however, comes amid reports of racism and discrimination, which some African, Asian and Latin American evacuees have claimed, according to the Associated Press. That situation that has drawn criticism from international organizations, the Associated Press also reported.
NATO members have a "green light" to send fighter jets as part of their military aid to support Ukraine against the Russian invasion, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Sunday.
"That gets a green light," Blinken said in an interview with CBS News' "Face the Nation."
"In fact, we're talking with our Polish friends right now about what we might be able to do to backfill their needs if in fact they choose to provide these fighter jets to the Ukrainians," Blinken added.
Russia is recruiting Syrians experienced in urban combat to help with its invasion of Ukraine, according to reporting from the Wall Street Journal.
Russia has had troops in Syria since 2015 in support of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
An American assessment claims that Russia is now looking to recruit fighters from the country who have gained expertise in urban combat to help in the fight to take the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv in their ongoing invasion of the country.
Netflix has suspended its service in Russia following the country's invasion of Ukraine.
"Given the circumstances on the ground, we have decided to suspend our service in Russia," a Netflix spokesperson told Fox News Digital on Sunday.
The move comes after the streaming service, which first launched in the country in 2016, previously paused all future projects and acquisitions from Russia.
Variety reported that Netflix had four originals in the work, one of which was filming but has now been put on hold.
Professional services network KPMG announced its decision to pull out of Russia and Belarus as a result of the invasion of Ukraine.
“We believe we have a responsibility, along with other global businesses, to respond to the Russian government’s ongoing military attack on Ukraine," the firm said in a statement. "As a result, our Russia and Belarus firms will leave the KPMG network.
"KPMG has over 4,500 people in Russia and Belarus, and ending our working relationship with them, many of whom have been a part of KPMG for many decades, is incredibly difficult. This decision is not about them – it is a consequence of the actions of the Russian Government.
"We are a purpose-led and values-driven organization that believes in doing the right thing. We will seek to do all we can to ensure we provide transitional support for former colleagues impacted by this decision.”
A senior defense official estimates that Russia has launched about 600 missiles at Ukrainian targets since the war began, though the attacks have so far not resulted in civilians losing the ability to communicate.
The official also said that Ukrainian air space remains contested, noting that Ukraine's air and missile defense has so far been effective and remains in use.
Fox News' Jennifer Griffin contributed to this report.
As war in Ukraine rages on, it's time the U.S. holds Russia accountable by withholding investment in Russian oil, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley told "Sunday Morning Futures."
NIKKI HALEY: Stop reacting and start leading. First of all, work with Ukraine on real-time intelligence so that we can tell them everything that's happening that they can't see. Make sure that we send anti-tank, anti-air missiles immediately. Make sure that we are telling Poland and NATO that they've got to supply these planes to Ukraine. They need them right away so they can cover their own airspace. We've got to make sure we sanction these energy companies, all of them. We've got to make sure that we pull them out of the international banking system, and we need to stop taking any Russian oil. The idea that we would give our money to an enemy is unthinkable, and it's absolute lunacy. We can't allow this to continue…
More than 280 Russian Orthodox clergy signed an open letter urging for an end to the "fratricidal war" in Ukraine.
"We mourn the ordeal to which our brothers and sisters in Ukraine were undeservedly subjected," the letter read, according to a translation in The Christian Post.
"The Last Judgment awaits every person," continued the letter, which has garnered the signatures of 284 Russian Orthodox priests, archpriests and deacons, as of Sunday.
As the war between Russia and Ukraine rages on, Ukraine is urging the international community to impose a no-fly zone over their country, but the Biden administration and lawmakers from both parties are firmly against such a move.
In a video posted to Twitter Sunday morning, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy delivered a message bearing subtitles in English that said, "We repeat everyday: ‘Close the sky over Ukraine!'"
Former Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko on Sunday asserted that Russian President Vladimir Putin is a "war criminal" for the "disastrous humanitarian situation" inflicted on the Ukrainian people, arguing the now 11-day conflict should be considered "a common war" as the risk to global security rises each day.
Speaking from the ground in Kyiv, Poroshenko, who served as president of Ukraine from 2014 to 2019, described to FOX Business' "Sunday Morning Futures" the "disastrous humanitarian situation" in several Ukrainian cities, as dozens were killed overnight despite efforts to evacuate civilians.
"We definitely proud to be the brave Ukrainian soldiers of the unity of Ukrainian people who demonstrate in and ruined all this scenario of Putin," Poroshenko said. "First, he wanted captured Ukraine for 48 hours, then in 72 hours. But today's 11th day of our fighting."
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Ukrainian officials have a plan ready in the event President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is killed.
"The Ukrainians have plans in place that I'm not going to talk about or get into any details on to make sure that there is what we would call continuity of government one way or another. And let me leave it at that," Blinken said on CBS' "Face the Nation" Sunday.
Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., said Sunday he believed the option of declaring a no-fly zone above Ukraine should not be taken off the table, a move that NATO allies so far have avoided despite repeated pleas by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy due to the risk of broader conflict with Russia.
On Saturday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a conference call with a bipartisan group of more than 280 congressional lawmakers, including Manchin.
"It was surreal to have a person on the front lines," Manchin said about the call Sunday on NBC’s "Meet The Press," basically, seeing his people being slaughtered and willing to withstand all of this and fight back and all he asks for was basically just help me, I’ll fight my own fight, just give me the tools to do it. And for us to hesitate or for anyone to hesitate in the free world is wrong. And he said that. He said if Ukraine falls, Europe may fall."
American Express announced Sunday that it will suspend all operations in Russia.
The credit card company follows Visa and Mastercard in providing its own sanctions against the country following its invasion of Ukraine.
As with Visa, all cards issued by Russian banks will no longer work outside of the country.
The move will apply additional pressure to the already fragile Russian economy as inflation continues to spiral upward.
Russian authorities reportedly detained 559 people at nearly two dozen anti-war protests on Sunday. "Respected citizens, you are taking part in an unsanctioned public event.
We demand you disperse," police in Khabarovsk reportedly told protesters over a loudspeaker, Reuters reported.
OVD-Info, an independent human rights project focused on political persecution in Russia, reported the figures Sunday after protests formed in 21 cities, including in the port city of Vladivostok and the Siberian city of Irkutsk.
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The United States and allied nations are reportedly discussing the line of succession for Ukraine government leadership in the event President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is captured or killed.
The Ukrainian Constitution outlines that the speaker of parliament succeeds the president if anything should happen to them in office, the New York Times reported. Ruslan Stefanchuk currently serves as speaker and has been photographed with Zelenskyy and attended key virtual meetings with European leaders since Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24.
The succession line for president beyond Stefanchuk, however, is unclear under the constitution. The country’s parliament may need to take additional steps to validate succession measures that extend beyond just top leaders, The Hill reported last month.
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European Union President Ursula von der Leyen said it is difficult to say how long the process to admit Ukraine will take, but that it will take "due time" to complete.
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy officially signed an EU membership application on Feb. 28, four days after Russia invaded his country. Eight member states signed a letter supporting an accelerated ascension process for Ukraine, which could further speed up its integration of economic and energy systems with Europe.
But von der Leyen cautioned that the process will still take time to complete.
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Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal announced that his country has officially appealed to members of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to terminate membership for Russia and Belarus.
“These countries violated their commitments and turned their policies to war,” Shmyhal tweeted. “Let's stop them together!”
A Ukraine-based brewery that went viral for converting its craft operations to the production of Molotov cocktails is now calling on brewers around the world to help in the Ukrainian fight against Russian aggression in a very different way - by brewing beer.
In an announcement Sunday morning on its Instagram page, Pravda declared it would be opening its recipes, and graphic art, to any international brewer who wishes to take part in the effort. And it's urging anyone - anywhere - to share the announcement with their favorite brewers, big or small.
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A Russian defense ministry spokesman said Sunday that any country that offers its airfields to Ukraine for attacks on Russia may consider itself as having “involved” in the war.
“We would like to point out that the use of the network of airfields of those countries for the stationing of Ukrainian combat aviation for the further use against the Russian Armed Forces could be viewed as the involvement of those countries in the armed conflict,” spokesman Igor Konashenkov told Interfax news agency.
The warning follows Ukraine’s efforts to obtain MiG fighters from neighboring countries, including NATO allies such as Poland.
The national average for regular unleaded gas crossed the $4 per gallon mark for only the second time ever and sits just 10 cents from the all-time record high seen in July 2008.
The nationwide average sits at $4.009, according to AAA gas prices, up roughly 9 cents a gallon over Saturday’s average.
The price has risen 47 cents since Russia invaded Ukraine 11 days ago. Premium gas costs an average of $4.571, which is up 10 cents from Saturday’s average.
The record high for regular unleaded was $4.114 in July 2008.
Fox News' Ralph Giordano and Dagen McDowell contributed to this report.
Poland’s ambassador to the United States told Fox News he believes Russia has military ambitions beyond Ukraine and called for economic sanctions to potentially last for decades against the Putin regime.
"I believe Ukraine is not the last item on Mr. Putin's menu," said Ambassador Marek Magierowski, who spoke with Fox News from the Polish Embassy in Washington, D.C.
"We have to be ready and determined to uphold the sanctions. Perhaps even for a decade or for 15 years or for 20 years, in order to see to the real effects," Magierowski said.
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Russian state-aligned media published documents it claims "confirm" that Ukraine was developing components for biological weapons.
Russian news outlet RIA cited the Russian defense ministry, which in turn claimed that it obtained the documents from the Ukrainian health ministry.
China’s agriculture minister reported over the weekend that the recent winter wheat harvest could be the “worst in history,” providing further justification to buy from Russia.
Minister of Agriculture and Rural Affairs Tang Renjian said rare heavy rainfall last year delayed the planting of about one-third the normal wheat supply, leading to a roughly 20% shortage in crop yield.
The war between Russia and Ukraine, which together produce roughly 29% of global wheat exports, had already pushed wheat prices to an incredible 14-year high.
The shortage could create food security issues for China, driving it to buy wheat from Russia. The two countries worked out a deal on Feb. 24 that allowed China to import wheat from all regions of Russia, which could provide Russia with greater funds for its war and further relief from devastating sanctions on its economy.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Foreign Affairs Minister Dmytro Kuleba reported Sunday that Russian forces attacked a civilian airport with eight cruise missiles.
“Against our city, against our peaceful Vinnytsia which never posed a threat to Russia in any way,” Zelenskyy said in a video posted on Twitter. “A brutal, cynical missile strike has completely destroyed the airport.”
Kuleba labelled the attack as “barbaric,” and both officials renewed their calls for a no-fly zone over Ukraine.
The Russian Embassy in Israel pushed back on the reports by writing that the airport is “dual-purpose” and serves as a base of operations for the aviation brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
Rating agency Moody’s delivered another body-blow to Russia as it set the nation’s credit rating at its second-lowest rung, putting the country in danger of default.
Moody's said its decision to cut Russia's rating was "driven by severe concerns around Russia's willingness and ability to pay its debt obligations".
Russia has kept its stock market closed over fears of a sell-off, which would crater the already vulnerable economy. The ruble dropped over 20% in the past week, with $1 equal to 124 RUB. Prior to Russia’s invasion, $1 was equal to 83.53 RUB.
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Sunday that Russian forces have bombed the town of Vinnytsia.
He described the town as “peaceful” and appealed to the West to do more to help Ukraine push back the Russian forces.
“Provide us with at least jets so that we can hit Russian missiles,” Zelenskyy said in his video. “If we will not receive help now I will be convinced that the West is also interested in elimination of Ukrainians.”
Poland’s border guard agency said over 922,000 refugees have crossed into the country from Ukraine since the start of Russia’s invasion.
The agency said around 129,000 people crossed the border for a one-day record in that ten day timeframe. Almost 40,000 crossed the border in the first hours of Sunday alone.
The U.N.’s refugee agency said Sunday that 1.5 million people have fled Ukraine for neighboring countries to escape Russia’s attack.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Russia and Ukraine once again accused each other of failing to maintain a humanitarian corridor Sunday, the second day in a row that the effort has failed.
Russian news agency Interfax cited a Donetsk separatist official who accused Ukrainian forces of not upholding the temporary ceasefire. Ukrainian National Guard members said that pro-Russian forces encircled the port and continued to shell the area.
The separatist official said only about 300 people of a planned 200,000 had evacuated the area, Reuters reported.
The two countries had agreed to a temporary ceasefire Saturday to allow civilians to escape the city of Mariupol, but Ukrainian officials accused Russia of continuing to assault the city during that time. Russia in turn blamed Ukrainian nationalists of instigating the fighting.
The U.N. high commissioner for refugees announced Sunday that the number of Ukrainians fleeing to neighboring countries has surpassed 1.5 million since the start of Russia’s invasion.
Filippo Grandi tweeted Sunday that this constitutes “the fastest-growing refugee crisis in Europe since World War II,” a fact he has continued to press over the past week as the numbers continued to climb at an alarming rate.
Refugees have fled to the neighboring countries of Poland, Moldova, Lithuania, Romania, and more.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Historic corruption in Russia may have hit its military and eroded its ability to maintain its war efforts in Ukraine.
Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, and the war has not unfolded the way Russian President Vladimir Putin would have wanted. The British Ministry of Defense and U.S. officials regularly note that the Russian military has made slow progress, taking several days to even address day-one targets.
But more troubling for Russian troops would be the shortcomings in supplies and equipment: Pictures on social media indicate that troops carried rations that had expired in 2015, and the equipment appears dated, with radio communications transmitting over open channels and lacking long-range capabilities. Tanks and vehicles abandoned during combat show evidence of poor maintenance and care.
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Prime Minister Naftali Bennett addressed his recent calls with world leaders, including Russia’s Vladimir Putin and Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy, at the start of his weekly cabinet meeting.
“As you all know, the situation on the ground is not good,” Bennett said. “The human suffering is great and is liable to be much greater.”
“Even if the chance is not great – as soon as there is even a small opening, and we have access to all sides and the capability – I see this as our moral obligation to make every effort,” he added.
Bennett said that Israel is prepared for “a significant wave of immigration” as a result of the war.
Fox News' Yonat Friling contributed to this post.
This Auschwitz Memorial put out a statement this weekend, urging UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) to move its upcoming World Heritage Committee session from Kaza, Russia, saying their presence would make a "mockery of innocent Ukrainian victims."
The World Heritage Committee plans to meet this June, according to its website, the memorial said.
The Auschwitz-Bikenau Nazi concentration and extermination camp is listed a UNESCO World Heritage site.
"Given the unjustifiable Russian military aggression in independent and sovereign Ukraine, planning a discussion on World Heritage in Russia sounds like a mockery of innocent Ukrainian victims," the statement said.
It noted that UNESCO's 1972 convention states that cultural heritage is sometimes threatened by "more formidable phenomena of damage or destruction" compared to traditional causes of decay.
"It can be understand that the term 'more formidable phenomena of damage or destruction' includes Russian artillery shelling, bombing, and other forms of wartime destruction," the memorial wrote.
The memorial said it is requesting the meeting move to another country because it is "morally impossible -- without violating the spirit of the Convention -- to hold it in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kazan, or any other Russian city."
Several senior Biden administration officials from the White House and State Department traveled to Venezuela on Saturday to meet with the Russian ally as Moscow’s economy begins to crater under the weight of sanctions, according to a report.
The U.S. is hoping to capitalize on Russia’s economic weakness three years after the Kremlin – along with China and Iran – came to Venezuela’s financial aid when the Trump administration cut diplomatic ties with Caracas and imposed sanctions on oil exports in the Latin American country amid Western accusations of an illegitimate election, The New York Times reported, citing sources familiar with the matter.
Most of Venezuela’s oil exports went to the U.S. before the sanctions.
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Ukrainians in Kherson rally against Russian forces after city's seizure. (Armed Forces of Ukraine via Reuters)
Undaunted by the presence of Russian troops in their city, as many as 2,000 residents of Kherson, Ukraine, took to the streets Saturday in a show of defiance and national unity, according to reports.
"Russians go home!" and "Kherson is Ukraine!" were among the shouted slogans, the BBC reported.
Kherson, located in southern Ukraine along the Black Sea, fell to the Russians last week, with the city’s mayor estimating as many as 300 people were killed, with many of the bodies rendered unrecognizable because of the power of the invaders’ weapons.
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U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks during a meeting with Moldovan Prime Minister Natalia Gavrilita at the Government House in Chisinau, Moldova, Sunday, March 6, 2022. (Olivier Douliery/Pool Photo via AP)
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was in Moldova on Sunday, where he was scheduled to meet with Moldovan leaders dealing with the arrival of more than 120,000 refugees from neighboring Ukraine.
In all, more than 230,000 Ukrainians had crossed into Moldova since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began 11 days ago, The Associated Press reported.
Moldova was also seeking security assurances from the West as it dealt with its own fears of a Russian invasion, the AP reported. Russia already has troops inside the country, the report said.
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A view of MIG-29 of Polish Air Forces at 22nd Air Base Command in Malbork, Poland on August 27, 2021. (Photo by Cuneyt Karadag/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
The United States is considering a deal with Poland to send U.S. warplanes to Warsaw to replace any Soviet-era fighter jets the NATO country sends to Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy – during a Saturday Zoom call with more than 280 U.S. lawmakers – said the country needs fighter jets more than the anti-aircraft missiles the U.S. had agreed to, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Under the proposal, the Ukrainians would receive Russian-made MiGs that Poland inherited after the Cold War ended.
But the U.S. has not signed off on the deal yet over concerns it would be seen as an escalation, a source told Fox News.
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Ret. Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg reflected on the Biden administration's inaction and forecasted the Russian advance into Ukraine on Saturday on "Lawrence Jones Cross Country."
KEITH KELLOGG: It's pretty simple. We are heading into act II of a multi-act play. It's probably a Greek tragedy when you look at it. And what I mean by that is, we're going to reach a point where [Putin's] got to go into the city of Kyiv, into the built-up areas. He's probably going to have to go back to the old Soviet-style use of artillery, which will be massive, and start to take down that city. And he's going to use every weapon he has … which will include cluster-bombs to take down that city. It's a city of about 3 million.
Putin does not bluff. When he said he was coming to Ukraine, he's going to go into Ukraine. And we should have been building up armaments back then. We didn't. We waited. And part of the reason we said, is because we believed if we did, it was going to be escalatory. Well, now we're too late. But if we had been reacting, let's say, six weeks ago … we could have trained up pilots [who] are current pilots in the Ukrainian Air Force on things like the A-10 and then transfer those weapons systems to … Ukraine. It doesn't take a year to train a new pilot. You're taking a pilot, putting him on a new platform, or giving him more ammunition, doing something. … Earlier on, we delayed.
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TEL AVIV — Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett held talks with President Vladimir Putin Saturday in the Kremlin over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and then spoke with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky, an attempt to mediate a conflict that has caused growing civilian casualties and refugees.
Before Mr. Bennett’s visit, diplomacy by President Biden and European leaders failed to stop Mr. Putin from invading Ukraine or rolling back his tanks. In the face of massive Western sanctions, Mr. Putin has found himself increasingly cut off from the world, with few avenues for diplomacy and with his country’s economy unplugged from much of global commerce.
Mr. Bennett’s meeting with Mr. Putin took place "with the blessing of the U.S. administration," said Mr. Bennett’s office, which also noted that it coordinated with Germany and France. After seeing Mr. Putin, Mr. Bennett left Moscow for Berlin, where he met with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, the prime minister’s office said. Mr. Bennett was joined by Housing Minister Zeev Elkin, who was born in the now Ukrainian city of Kharkiv and assisted with the translation.
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Former U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates told "One Nation with Brian Kilmeade" on Saturday what Russian President Vladimir Putin would need to achieve to secure Ukraine and install a puppet government.
ROBERT GATES: He has nowhere near enough troops to put down a rebellion among millions of people in Ukraine, so he's going to have to keep a significant military force in Ukraine. He's probably going to have to increase it if he wants to hold on to that country, even if he imposes a puppet government, he's going to have to keep forces there to keep that government in power. So I think between having his hands full in Ukraine and the risk of a true war with NATO, I think he'll be very cautious about doing anything that crosses borders of NATO countries.
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Smoke rises after shelling by Russian forces in Mariupol, Ukraine, Friday, March 4, 2022.(AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)
In war-torn areas of Ukraine, residents fled on footpaths and grief-stricken parents mourned dead children as Russian troops continued to shell encircled cities.
A promised cease-fire in the port city of Mariupol collapsed Saturday amid scenes of terror in the besieged town, where a stream of residents with pets and children crossed the Irpin River on an improvised path under a bridge destroyed by a Russian airstrike.
In comments carried on Ukrainian television, Mariupol Mayor Vadym Boychenko said thousands of residents had gathered for safe passage out of the city when shelling began that morning.
Ten days into Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, 1.45 million people have fled the battered country, according to the U.N.-affiliated Organization for Migration in Geneva.
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Phoenix Mercury center Brittney Griner (42) looks to pass as Chicago Sky center Candace Parker defends during the first half of game 1 of the WNBA basketball Finals , Sunday, Oct. 10, 2021, in Phoenix. Griner was arrested in Russia last month at a Moscow airport after a search of her luggage revealed vape cartridges. The Russian Customs Service said Saturday, March 5, 2022, that the cartridges were identified as containing oil derived from cannabis, which could carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. The customs service identified the person arrested as a female player for the U.S. national team and did not specify the date of her arrest. (AP Photo/Ralph Freso, File)
U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas, is demanding the release of WNBA star Brittney Griner, who has been detained by authorities in Russia for allegedly possessing a vape with cannabis oil.
"We know that there were some issues dealing with vape cartridges and other items," Lee said Saturday, "but let me be very clear: Brittney Griner is a United States citizen, she was a guest in Russia…and I will be demanding her release."
Lee's 18th Congressional District is located in Houston, which is Griner’s hometown. The congresswoman added that she had spoken with the State Department to "try and get them to focus on [Griner's] circumstances."
"I don’t want to disregard a sovereign nation but Putin has disregarded sovereign nations his entire service in this world," Lee said. "Anyone that is killing and attacking and destroying Ukraine, a neighboring country that is not bothering them, has no right to hold Ms. Griner. Period."
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U.S. President Joe Biden talks on the phone with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky from the Oval Office at the White House on December 09, 2021 in Washington, DC. According to the White House, Biden and Zelensky discussed Russia’s military build-up on Ukraine’s borders. (Photo by Doug Mills-Pool/Getty Images)
President Biden talked with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Saturday, and discussed additional assistance to Ukraine.
Biden and Zelenskyy also discussed actions that the private sector is taking against Russia.
According to the White House:
"President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. spoke this evening with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine. President Biden highlighted the ongoing actions undertaken by the United States, its Allies and partners, and private industry to raise the costs on Russia for its aggression in Ukraine. In particular, he welcomed the decision this evening by Visa and Mastercard to suspend service in Russia. President Biden noted his administration is surging security, humanitarian, and economic assistance to Ukraine and is working closely with Congress to secure additional funding. President Biden reiterated his concern about the recent Russian attack on a Ukrainian nuclear power plant, and he commended the skill and bravery of the Ukrainian operators who have kept the reactors in safe condition. The leaders also discussed the recent talks between Russia and Ukraine."
Click here for Fox News’ earlier coverage of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
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