Days before the third anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion, Ukrainians are as somber and tense as they were right before Moscow launched the war.

A U.S. official says Secretary of State Marco Rubio is leading a delegation to Saudi Arabia for direct talks with Russian officials in the coming days to seek an end to Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

A dolphin rescue center in Russia says 32 dolphins have died since fuel oil spilled out of two storm-stricken tankers three weeks ago in the Kerch Strait near the Russia-occupied Crimean Peninsula.

Russia-appointed officials in Moscow-occupied Crimea have announced a regional emergency after oil was detected on the coast of Sevastopol.

Signing an agreement with Russia to stop the war with Ukraine would amount to signing a deal with the devil.

A senior Ukrainian official says Russia is using decoy missiles to fool Ukraine’s air defenses and deploying balloons.

A top aide to Ukraine's president says Kyiv and its Western allies are engaged in “fast-track” talks on the possibility of equipping the invaded country with long-range missiles and military aircraft.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has warned that Ukraine must meet Moscow’s demand for “demilitarization” and the removal of the military threat to Russia.

U.S. officials say the Pentagon will expand military combat training for Ukrainian forces, using the slower winter months to instruct larger units in more complex battle skills.

Civilians are fleeing eastern Ukraine where Russian and Ukrainian forces are engaged in a grinding war off attrition.

The capture of the ruined seaside city of Mariupol is a key Russian objective.

It was among the most worrying developments on an already shocking day, as Russia invaded Ukraine on Thursday.