Russia-Ukraine updates: Putin says 'certain positive movements' in negotiations

A third round of talks between Russia and Ukraine ended without any resolution.

Russian forces are continuing their attempted push through Ukraine from multiple directions, while Ukrainians, led by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, are putting up "stiff resistance," according to U.S. officials.

The attack began Feb. 24, when Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a "special military operation."

Russian forces moving from neighboring Belarus toward Ukraine's capital, Kyiv, have advanced closer to the city center in recent days despite the resistance, coming within about 9 miles as of Friday.

Russia has been met by sanctions from the United States, Canada and countries throughout Europe, targeting the Russian economy as well as Putin himself.

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Ukrainian foreign minister addresses reports of racism

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba addressed the accounts of racism at the border by people of color attempting to flee, tweeting Tuesday, "Ukraine’s government spares no effort to solve the problem."

Germany Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock also addressed the reports of racism and discrimination during a powerful speech at the U.N. Assembly on Tuesday.

"Every refugee must receive protection, no matter what their nationality, no matter what their religion, no matter of the color of their skin," Baerbock said.

-ABC News' Kirit Radia and Zoha Qamar


Putin will 'put Ukraine in a vice grip,' US official says

Despite debate within the U.S. administration on whether Russia is suffering military setbacks in Ukraine, a senior U.S. official reiterated to ABC News that the invasion will be devastating for Ukraine.

"Putin is going to put Ukraine in a vice grip," the official said, adding that Putin has ratcheted up his determination to carry on.

The dominant analysis within the administration involves Putin acting out with incredible ferocity and intent, believing this is his destiny, the official said.

The massive Russian convoy heading toward Ukraine is just as mighty as it looks from satellite imagery, the official added.

Taking out just half a dozen of those tanks would seriously slow down the convoy, because the roads are surrounded by mud in many places, so it would be difficult for the tanks to maneuver around the crippled vehicles, the official said.

President Joe Biden is under pressure to act, but the U.S. military is wary about any proposals that would bring American troops into open conflict with Russia. The U.S. military is also adamant that about avoiding anything that would trigger conflict, the official said.

-ABC News Chief Global Affairs Correspondent Martha Raddatz


ExxonMobil to stop Russian investments

Oil giant ExxonMobil announced Tuesday it will be ending current and future investments in Russia.

Specifically, it will cease operations at its Sakhalin-1 venture, which the company operates on behalf Japanese, Indian and Russian companies.

"As operator of Sakhalin-1, we have an obligation to ensure the safety of people, protection of the environment and integrity of operations. Our role as operator goes beyond an equity investment," the company said in a statement.

ExxonMobil said its stoppage of investments in Sakhalin-1 will "need to be carefully managed and closely coordinated with the co-venturers."

The company added that it wouldn't invest in future developments in Russia.


Jewish groups condemn attack on Ukrainian Holocaust memorial

Several Jewish groups condemned Russia for a missile attack that struck a Ukrainian Holocaust memorial.

The missiles struck the site of the Babyn Yar massacre where 33,000 Jewish men, women and children were killed in September 1941.

The Auschwitz Memorial and Museum in Poland tweeted, "It’s hard to expect the Russian army to respect the dead if it is not capable of respecting human lives."

The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum noted that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited the site last year to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the event.

"We stand with him and the Ukrainian people during these critical times," the museum said in a statement.

Israel’s Yad Vashem, the World Holocaust Remembrance Center, called on the international community to protect sites such as Babyn Yar as well as the innocent civilians caught in the crossfire.

"Rather than being subjected to blatant violence, sacred sites like Babi Yar must be protected," Yad Vashem said in a statement.

-ABC News' Conor Finnegan


Russia claims US launched campaign to recruit private military contractors

Russia's Foreign Ministry claimed U.S. military intelligence launched a massive campaign to recruit contractors from private military companies to send to Ukraine.

"They recruit primarily those employed by Academi, CUBIC and DynCorp [International]," Russian Defense Ministry spokesperson Igor Konashenkov said in a press briefing on Thursday.

Foreign mercenaries who have arrived in Ukraine are performing acts of sabotage and attacking Russian convoys of motor vehicles and aviation, Konashenkov said.

"Foreign mercenaries who earlier arrived in Ukraine are carrying out acts of sabotage and raids on Russian convoys of [military] vehicles and materiel supplies, and on the aviation supporting them," Konashenkov said.

Konashenkov claimed Britain, Denmark, Latvia, Poland and Croatia have legally permitted their citizens to take part in Ukraine hostilities and that the command of the French Foreign Legion plans to send its ethnic Ukrainian troops to aid the Kyiv regime.

Mercenaries from other countries in Ukraine will not receive prisoner-of-war status and will be subject to criminal liability, Konashenkov said.

"I want to officially emphasize that all mercenaries sent by the West to help the Kyiv nationalist regime are not combatants under international humanitarian law. They are not entitled to POW status," Konashenkov said.

Russia said it hopes its current talks with Ukraine on Belarusian soil will soon lead to a peaceful settlement, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said.

"We hope the [talks] will lead to a swift conclusion of this situation, the restoration of peace in Donbas, and the return of all peoples of Ukraine to a peaceful and equitable life," she told a briefing in Moscow on Thursday.

- ABC News' Tanya Stukalova