FOX News Staff
The United Nations is estimating Monday that 1,735,068 people overall have fled Ukraine since Feb. 24.
Poland has welcomed the bulk of the refugees -- around 1 million -- followed by Hungary with just over 180,000 and Slovakia with around 128,000.
The overall number of estimated refugees increased around 250,000 from the estimated 1.5 million on Sunday.
By David Aaro | Fox News
NATO members have a "green light" to send fighter jets as part of their military aid to support Ukraine against the Russian invasion, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Sunday.
"That gets a green light," Blinken said in an interview with CBS News' "Face the Nation."
"In fact, we're talking with our Polish friends right now about what we might be able to do to backfill their needs if in fact they choose to provide these fighter jets to the Ukrainians," Blinken added.
The decision comes amid a push to provide weapons for Ukrainian forces as they continue to fight against the superior firepower of the Russians.
The U.S. has been reportedly considering a deal with Poland to send U.S. warplanes to Warsaw to replace any Soviet-era fighter jets the NATO country sends to Ukraine.
Under the proposal, the Ukrainians would receive Russian-made MiGs that Poland inherited after the Cold War ended, according to the Wall Street Journal.
During a Saturday Zoom call with more than 280 U.S. lawmakers, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Ukraine needed fighter jets more than the anti-aircraft missiles the U.S. had agreed to, the paper reported.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. referenced that plea on Sunday. Schumer said he supported the U.S. giving other nations – like Poland -- help if they decide to supply Ukraine with Soviet-era jets.
Schumer noted the jets are owned by Poland and other countries in Eastern Europe and that Ukrainian pilots are trained to use them.
"These planes and other capabilities are very much needed," Schumer said, according to the New York Post. "Today, I am urging the administration to explore all feasible options for the transfer of these specific aircraft to Ukraine."
"The US could commit to helping restore a donor country’s fleet in return for the transfer, and I offer up full support for this to happen," he added. "We must help Ukraine from the ongoing Russian bombardment and siege with planes, and other capabilities."
Meanwhile, Zelenskyy's call for a no-fly zone over Ukraine continues to draw no support.
In a video posted to Twitter Sunday morning, Zelenskyy delivered a message bearing subtitles in English that said, "We repeat everyday: ‘Close the sky over Ukraine!'"
The White House said it has not agreed to the no-fly restrictions because they want to keep the U.S. out of direct conflict with Russia. Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Moscow will view any attempt by other countries to establish a no-fly zone as active "participation in the armed conflict."
"The reason why that has not been a step the President has been willing to take or we have been interested in taking is because a no-fly zone requires implementation. It would require, essentially, the U.S. military shooting down Russian planes and causing a — prompting a potential direct war with Russia, something — the exact step that we want to avoid," White House press secretary Jen Psaki said during a briefing Thursday.
On "Fox News Sunday," Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn, and Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa echoed that belief, arguing that a no-fly zone would not be in the best interest of the U.S., even if it was understandable for Ukraine to want one.
"I think we need to be clear that we are not going to go to war with Russia, that would be the beginning of WWIII, and it would drag all of Europe into a much broader war," Murphy said.
"We do not want to engage directly with Russians," Ernst noted. "But what we can do … is provide all the defensive mechanisms for President Zelenskyy and his armed services to provide their own protected airspace."
On Sunday, Blinken also said that the U.S. was considering a ban on Russian oil imports "in coordination" with European and NATO allies -- amid bipartisan calls for a full embargo.
Blinken added that Ukrainian officials also have a plan ready in the event Zelenskyy is killed.
"The Ukrainians have plans in place, that I'm not going to talk about or get into any details on, to make sure that there is what we would call 'continuity of government' one way or another," Blinken said. "And let me leave it at that."
Godfather (03-08-2022), lost in melb. (03-08-2022)
BY JOSEPH TREVITHICK - The Warzone
After 10 days, it remains clear that the skies over Ukraine are very much contested, with a notable spike in reported Russian aircraft losses just in the past day or so. In general, Ukrainian forces, as well average civilians, continue to resist the invading forces and the Kremlin increasingly lays siege to major population centers. Before getting into the latest news, you can get up to speed on the state of the conflict in our previous rolling coverage here.
The Latest
POSTED: 1:30 PM EST—
While it remains difficult to independently verify losses of any kind, personnel or materiel, on either side of Russia's war in Ukraine, it's fairly clear that the Russian military has lost numerous combat jets, helicopters, and at least one small drone since yesterday. The team of researchers at the Oryx blog are confident based on the open-source information available that the past day or so has seen Russia lose a number of combat jets - one Su-30SM Flanker, two Su-34 Fullbacks, two Su-25 Frogfoots - as well as two Mi-24/Mi-35 Hind and two Mi-8 Hip helicopters, and an Orlan unmanned aircraft. There could be more, of course, and these are on top of already steady reported losses. Even if these numbers are off a bit one way or the other, it's clear Russia is rapidly shedding its air combat force over Ukraine.
Various videos and pictures have emerged online of these reported shootdowns.
There are unconfirmed reports that one of the pilots of one of the downed Su-34s was an individual with combat experience from the conflict in Syria. This aviator, who survived the shootdown and is now in Ukrainian custody, may be one of those arrayed around Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Syrian counterpart Bashar Al Assad in a picture previously taken at Russia's Khmeimim Air Base outpost in Syria.
It's not clear how Ukrainian forces have been shooting these aircraft down in each instance, but shoulder-fired surface-to-air missiles, also known as man-portable air defense systems (MANPADS), appear to have been a major factor. A video, seen below, is circulating online now that reportedly shows one of these weapons hitting one of the Hind attack helicopters that was shot down recently. Former Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko also recorded a video today with a Ukrainian soldier named Albert who reportedly brought down the Su-30SM with an Igla-series MANPADS.
MANPADS, including U.S.-made Stingers, have been important components of recent shipments of weapons and other materiel to Ukraine. A total of 14 cargo planes loaded with military assistance from various countries landed in areas bordering Ukraine on Friday, according to The New York Times.
MANPADS have also been seen in the hands of Ukrainian troops providing cover for today's evacuations from the city of Irpin, which lies just to the west of Kyiv.
At negotiations earlier this week, Russia has agreed to allow the safe passage of civilians out Irpin, as well as Volnovakha and the port city of Mariupol, both in the southeastern portion of the country. Ukrainian officials have accused Russia of failing to uphold the planned ceasefires, which led to the complete collapse of the evacuation from Mariupol. Russian shelling also reportedly cut a rail line leading out of Irpin, forcing many to flee on foot instead of by train as had been planned.
The Kremlin, for its part, has claimed Ukrainian authorities in Mariupol of preventing civilians from leaving, ostensibly accusing them, without evidence, of holding them hostage for use as human shields against Russia's continued bombardment of that city. British authorities have already assessed this to be nothing more than an attempt to deflect from criticism its increasingly indiscriminate attacks in Ukraine that have led to mounting civilian causalities.
Fighting is ongoing elsewhere across Ukraine. The negotiations this past week did not produce any plans for a more general ceasefire. There are also continuing reports of protests and other civil disobedience in cities that Russian forces now occupy, such as Kherson and Melitopol in the south, even in the face of possibly violent crackdowns.
Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has reportedly met Putin in Moscow over the conflict in Ukraine. There are reports that Ukrainian authorities asked Bennett to try to act as a mediator.
Earlier in the day, Putin had a televised sitdown with flight attendants from the country's airlines, which have now been hit with massive international sanctions. The Russian President said that those sanctions and others that have been slapped on Russia were tantamount to a declaration of war. In the course of his remarks, he added there are no plans currently to impose martial law in Russia and that he would consider any country or international organization, such as NATO, imposing a no-fly zone over Ukraine as being a party to the conflict. Yesterday, NATO formally ruled out enforcing a no-fly zone over Ukraine in spite of repeated appeals from Ukrainian officials.
Putin also took this opportunity to reiterate the completely unsubstantiated claim that Ukraine is seeking to develop nuclear weapons. This is one of the Kremlin's arguments for why the invasion was necessary.
KevinD (03-07-2022), lost in melb. (03-08-2022)
Poland has really stepped up..Originally Posted by Teh One Who Knocks
FOX News Staff
The United Nations is estimating Monday that 1,735,068 people overall have fled Ukraine since Feb. 24.
Poland has welcomed the bulk of the refugees -- around 1 million -- followed by Hungary with just over 180,000 and Slovakia with around 128,000.
The overall number of estimated refugees increased around 250,000 from the estimated 1.5 million on Sunday.
They aren't letting the blacks in though
Cancel them. If they don't take the blacks then they cant have any fleeing refugees..
That train's never late.
I wanted to be a Monk, but I never got the chants.
Muddy (03-08-2022)
Wow what's with the video above surrounded by young women?? He's gone all Kim.
Great updates too, Lance. Thank you
Teh One Who Knocks (03-08-2022)
Wow... 70% of the world's neon comes from Ukraine. I had no idea. Should be good for the supply chain and chip shortages:
https://www.motor1.com/news/571764/u...p-crisis-neon/
lost in melb. (03-08-2022), Teh One Who Knocks (03-08-2022)
A top Royal Navy admiral claimed Vladimir Putin may have cancer, making him a “man in a hurry” to invade Ukraine
https://www.nationalworld.com/news/....immune-3598600
While his sanity has been questioned over the decision to invade Ukraine, the physical health of Vladimir Putin has also been a subject of intense debate over recent days.
Retired Royal Navy Admiral Chris Parry said that he believed President Putin could be battling cancer, and suggested it could be this alleged medical condition that prompted the decision to press ahead with war.
Teh One Who Knocks (03-08-2022)
Teh One Who Knocks (03-08-2022)
By Emma Colton | Fox News
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has pleaded with U.S. leaders and NATO to impose a no-fly zone over his country as it continues warring with Russia, setting off a debate about the consequences such a move would have.
"If there were a no-fly zone, and we had to enforce it, that would mean U.S. planes flying concurrently with Russian ones. And you'd run the risk of U.S. planes downing Russians or vice versa," Dan Hoffman, a Fox News contributor and former CIA station chief in Moscow, told Fox News Digital.
A no-fly zone bans aircraft from a specific area and is sometimes used over government buildings for security reasons. The zones have also been imposed during times of conflict to prevent military aircraft from attacking the area.
Hoffman told Fox News Digital that going back to the Cold War, U.S. strategy has dictated "no direct, kinetic engagement with the Soviet Union or with Russia."
"That means our soldiers aren't raising their firearms to go shoot them in the face and vice versa," he said.
Instead, the U.S. has fought proxy wars with Russia since the end of World War II, including currently in Ukraine. A no-fly zone, however, could change that and put U.S. soldiers in direct conflict with Russians.
Zelenskyy held a Zoom call with more than 280 U.S. lawmakers Saturday and pleaded for "urgent" military support and humanitarian aid, including "control of the skies" to combat Russia. He also called on NATO and President Biden last week to impose a no-fly zone over "significant parts" of the country.
"We repeat every day: ‘Close the sky over Ukraine!'" Zelenskyy said in a video posted to Twitter Sunday, accompanied by English subtitles.
But his appeals have hit a brick wall.
NATO and the White House have denied imposing the no-fly zone, while some U.S. leaders have described such a move as coming with disastrous consequences.
"The only way to implement a no-fly zone is to send NATO fighter planes into Ukrainian airspace, and then impose that no-fly zone by shooting down Russian planes," NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said. "We understand the desperation, but we also believe that if we did that, we would end up with something that could end in a full-fledged war in Europe."
A no-fly zone risks a direct military conflict with Russia. It has the potential of escalating to a third world war, pitting nuclear power countries such as the U.S., France and the U.K. against fellow nuclear power Russia.
A recent Reuters/Ipsos poll found that 74% of Americans across the political spectrum support a no-fly zone. But some U.S. leaders say the issue is far more complicated than just prohibiting aircraft over Ukraine.
"If people understand what it means, it means World War III. It means starting World War III," Republican Florida Sen. Marco Rubio said Saturday on ABC's "This Week." "It's not some rule you pass that everybody has to oblige by. It's the willingness to shoot down the aircrafts of the Russian Federation, which is basically the beginning of World War III."
Democrats have also sounded the alarm on imposing a no-fly zone, including Connecticut Sen. Chris Murphy.
"I think we need to be clear that we are not going to go to war with Russia, that would be the beginning of WWIII, and it would drag all of Europe into a much broader war," Murphy said on "Fox News Sunday."
Zelenskyy addressed such concerns Monday and said that Russian aircraft bombing his country, including schools, "need to be shot down" to "preserve lives."
"I'm sure that the brave American soldiers who would be shooting it down knowing that it is flying towards the students — I'm sure that they had no doubt in doing so," he told ABC News.
Some U.S. lawmakers, such as Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin, however, have signaled that the no-fly zone option should remain on the table, while retired NATO supreme commander U.S. Air Force Gen. Philip Breedlove said that a humanitarian no-fly zone could allow for relief trains to get into the country and for the wounded to be cared for.
People cross an improvised path under a destroyed bridge while fleeing the town of Irpin close to Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 7, 2022.
Residents carrying supplies walk back from the direction of Bucha, amid the debris of battle with Russian forces, on the outskirts of Irpin, Ukraine, Tuesday,
March 1, 2022. (MARCUS YAM / LOS ANGELES TIMES)
Hoffman told Fox News Digital that he understands why Zelenskyy is asking for the no-fly zone as it rings the alarm bells that the Ukraine leader is saying "help me or else I'm dead."
Hoffman said that instead, the U.S. could offer assistance in the form of halting Russian oil and gas from being imported and getting Ukraine air-defense systems and anti-tank missiles.
Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, and the battles have continued raging in various ports and major cities. Zelenskyy addressed European leaders Friday and said that if Ukraine is victorious, "this will be the victory for the whole democratic world."
"If we will fall, you will fall, so please don't be silent, do not turn the blind on eye on this," he added.
lost in melb. (03-09-2022)
Amy Kellogg - FOX News
Former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich, who is considered to be Vladimir Putin's choice for a puppet leader if Russia can overthrow Ukraine's government, has penned a letter to Volodymyr Zelenskyy urging him to refrain from "fighting until the last drop of blood."
Yanukovich, who has been taking refuge in Russia's Rostov region after being ousted from Ukraine in 2014, wrote to Zelenskyy that "you probably dream of being a real hero. But heroism is not for show, nor about fighting until the last drop of blood. It is some self-sacrifice, victory over one’s pride and ambition to save lives.”
He goes on to ask Zelenskyy to make the conflict stop -- as if Kyiv's government started the war -- and says Ukraine, the rebel-held Donbas region and Russia all expect that of him and Western partners would be glad too.
lost in melb. (03-09-2022), RBP (03-08-2022)
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