Today, the President and his top national security advisors are skeptical that a Russian pledge to scale back could mean that the war in Ukraine maybe a step closer to being over. But there was a positive development today as negotiators from Russia and Ukraine met in Turkey for a day of peace talks aimed at ending Russia’s deadly invasion. And in an address tonight, President Z said the talks were positive, but that doesn’t drown out of the sound of Russian attacks. The Russian negotiators raise the possibility of meeting between the President Z and Putin that could occur after a draft agreement was ready. And there’s this new development tonight in the effort to target Russian oligarchs we’re learning tonight that the British seized their first superyacht, a fifty-million-dollar ship.

The Pentagon confirmed there has been some movements by a small number of Russian forces pulling back from Kiev, but it’s calling this a repositioning not retreat. And indiscriminate of shelling of cities to the South and East continues. This maybe the first real sign of progress but it certainly falls short of a cease fire so desperately need. Russian negotiator V said Ukraine’s proposal to remain neutral by not joining any military alliance would be put to President P. But it’s early days and there is skepticism in the US. Boardroom negotiations far away from the battlefield have yet to make any difference for Ukrainians enduring the mounting horrors of this war. The port city of Mariupol has all but collapsed. An apocalyptic scene of rubble, twisted metal and the disfigured outlines of the homes with people once lived. Nearby in Mykolaiv, a Russian rocket ripped through a government building leaving a gaping hole and fresh trauma.

:::tip disfigure

• : to impair (as in beauty) by deep and persistent injuries. 损毁外形

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