On day 31 of Russia’s invasion in Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukrainian president, once again urged Russia to negotiate an end to the war. Ukraine asserted that it would not agree to give up any of its territory.

Nearly 3.7 million people have fled Ukraine, which had a population of 44 million before the invasion began.

While in a shift of goalposts, the Kremlin said that the first phase of its military operation in Ukraine was mostly complete and it would now focus on “liberating” the Donbas region. Analysts claim this shift may likely make it easier for Russian President Vladimir Putin to claim a face-saving victory.

HERE’S WHAT WE KNOW:

1. US President Joe Biden risks Vladimir Putin’s wrath by offering Ukraine extra military support even as Russian troops appear to struggle to hold the territories that they had secured. Biden visited a Polish town close to the Ukrainian border, in a show of support for eastern European states that are witnessing Russia’s aggression in their neighbourhood.

2. The city of Lviv was struck with several rockets while President Joe Biden was visiting the capital of Poland, whose border is just 45 miles away. The powerful explosions frightened a city that had been a haven for hundreds of thousands of people fleeing the Russian assault on other parts of Ukraine.

3. In this week’s meetings of NATO and G7 major economies and the European Union, President Biden and other leaders offered unified support, boosting military, financial and humanitarian assistance to Ukraine.

4. The Kremlin once again raised the issue of the use of nuclear weapons in the war with Ukraine. Dmitry Medvedev, a former Russian president who is deputy chairman of the country’s security council, said Moscow could strike against an enemy that only used conventional weapons. In response, Zelenskyy in an online appearance at Qatar’s Doha Forum, warned that Moscow was a direct threat to the world.

5. NATO Deputy-General Secretary Mircea Geoana said Putin cannot win the “barbaric war” against Ukraine. In an interview with The Associated Press, the former Romanian foreign minister said that NATO would be “forced to take appropriate measures” in the event of a chemical or nuclear attack.

6. Putin’s forces are purportedly under great strain, and western countries have accelerated their transfer of arms and supplies to Ukraine. The incident of a Russian commander being run over by mutinous forces is being described as a “morale challenges” faced by the Russian forces.

7. Russia says 1,351 of its soldiers have died since the war began on February 24, while the United Nations says it has confirmed 1,081 civilian deaths in Ukraine.

8. The United Nations is looking into allegations that civilians were forcibly moved from the besieged southern city of Mariupol to Russia.