Russia-Ukraine updates: 2 US veterans who joined Ukrainian forces missing

The Americans, Andy Tai Ngoc Huynh and Alexander Drueke, are both from Alabama.

Russian President Vladimir Putin's "special military operation" into neighboring Ukraine began on Feb. 24, with Russian forces invading from Belarus, to the north, and Russia, to the east. Ukrainian troops have offered "stiff resistance," according to U.S. officials.

The Russian military has since launched a full-scale ground offensive in eastern Ukraine's disputed Donbas region, capturing the strategic port city of Mariupol and securing a coastal corridor to the Moscow-annexed Crimean Peninsula.

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Two Men at War
Two Men at War
A look at the two leaders at the center of the war in Ukraine and how they both rose to power, the difference in their leadership and what led to this moment in history.
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Sweden's ruling party supports a NATO bid

Sweden's ruling Social Democratic party announced Sunday that its board has decided to support the historically neutral country's bid to join NATO.

The party said it will now work to advance Sweden's application for membership to NATO.

If the application is approved by NATO, the Social Democratic Party said it will express unilateral reservations against the deployment of nuclear weapons and permanent bases on Swedish territory.

"We Social Democrats believe that the best for Sweden's and the Swedish people's security is that we join NATO," Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson said at a news conference Sunday. "This is a decision that was taken after careful deliberations. A position in favor of NATO means that we are prepared to abandon a security policy that Sweden has had in different forms over 200 years."

Andersson added, "For us Social Democrats it is clear that the military non-alignment has served Sweden well, but our conclusion is that it won't serve us as well in the future."

Leaders of Finland, another historically neutral Nordic country, also announced on Sunday that it will also apply for NATO membership.

-ABC News' Christine Theodorou


More people returning to Ukraine than fleeing: Ukrainian officials

Figures show the number of people returning to Ukraine in the past three days is higher than the number of people trying to flee, the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine said on Sunday.

Of the nearly 84,000 people traveling in and out of Ukraine on Saturday, more than half were Ukrainian nationals returning to the country, the Ukrainian authorities said.

More than 46,000 people returned to Ukraine on Saturday while 37,000 people left the country, the Border Guard Service said.

At least 22,000 of those who left the country traveled to Poland while the rest went to Slovakia, Hungary, Romania and Moldova, officials said.

Since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, more than 6 million Ukrainians have fled the country. Since then, more than 1.6 million people have returned to Ukraine, officials said.

-ABC News' Christine Theodorou


Finland confirms it will seek NATO membership

Finland's leaders on Sunday said the Nordic country would apply for NATO membership.

"It is a historic day -- of course, we have, for years, been in close partnership with NATO," Prime Minister Sanna Marin said on Sunday.

Marin and President Sauli Niinistö made the official announcement at a press conference in Helsinki, the capital. The Finnish Parliament is now expected to vote on whether to apply.

Marin said she hoped neighboring Sweden would also decide to join the military bloc in the coming days. Decisions made by both countries "will influence and affect the whole of Nordic countries," she said.

Niinistö said Finland has been discussing NATO membership internally for "at least 30 years."

"We have to keep in mind that NATO membership does not change geography, so we will always have that big border -- land and sea -- with Russians behind it," Niinistö said on Sunday.


Russia 'lost momentum' in eastern offensive: UK

Russia has "lost momentum and fallen significantly behind schedule" in its offensive on eastern Ukraine's Donbas region, the U.K. Ministry of Defense said.

"Despite small-scale initial advances, Russia has failed to achieve substantial territorial gains over the past month whilst sustaining consistently high levels of attrition," the ministry said on Sunday. "Russia has now likely suffered losses of one third of the ground combat force it committed in February."

Russian forces in late March pulled out of the suburbs north of Kyiv and collected in eastern Ukraine. They began an offensive in April, but have since foundered, the U.K. said.

Low troop morale, reduced combat effectiveness and loss of equipment have all played a role in slowing the Russian advance, the ministry said.


Journalist killed by Russian bombardment in Kyiv

At least one person -- a journalist -- was killed in a rocket attack on a residential building in Kyiv on Thursday evening, ABC News has learned.

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Kilitschko said Friday that rescuers had found the body of a victim amid the rubble.

Radio Liberty, a service of the U.S.-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, reported that one of its employees, Vira Gyrych, was killed when a Russian missile hit her apartment in the Ukrainian capital on Thursday. Her body was found beneath the wreckage Friday morning, according to the report.

Gyrych had worked as a journalist and producer for Radio Liberty's Kyiv bureau since 2018. Prior to that, she worked for leading Ukrainian television channels, according to Radio Liberty.

"The editorial staff of Radio Liberty expresses its condolences to the family of Vira Gyrych and will remember her as a bright and kind person, a true professional," Radio Liberty said in its report.

Israeli Ambassador to Ukraine Michael Brodsky also confirmed Gyrych's death in a Twitter post, saying she was a former employee of the Israeli embassy in Kyiv.

Thursday's rocket attack came as United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres visited Kyiv. Five Russian missiles flew into the city, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. At least 10 people were injured, including four who were hospitalized, according to the Kyiv City Council.