Ukraine, Briefly

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• Russian forces commenced airstrikes on Ukrainian positions inside the besieged city of Mariupol early Wednesday, a day after Russian President Vladimir Putin said that peace negotiations with Kyiv had failed, while troops from both sides exchanged fire ahead of an expected escalation of bloodshed, according to the Wall Street Journal. In anticipation of that escalation, the United States will send another $800 million in military assistance to Ukraine for its fight against Russia, Reuters wrote.

• More than 1,000 Ukrainian marines surrendered to Russian forces in Mariupol, according to Russia’s Ministry of Defense, a development that could be a major blow to Ukraine’s efforts to hold the city if Moscow’s claim is true, Radio Free Europe reported. Ukrainian officials have neither confirmed nor denied the allegations.

• Russia violated international humanitarian law by deliberately targeting civilians during its invasion of Ukraine, according to a fact-finding report by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the Washington Post noted. Meanwhile, Putin called the reports about war crimes in the town of Bucha “fake” and blamed British intelligence agents for the atrocities, CNBC added.

• The OSCE report came a day after US President Joe Biden accused Putin of committing genocide in Ukraine, the Hill wrote. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy praised Biden for his statements, but French President Emmanuel Macron warned that such verbal escalations will not end the war, Agence France-Presse added.