putin has been blind to reality and has badly miscalculated what we would do in response. i hope it's a miscalculation as opposed to a miss appropriation of this chain of i developments because i would hate he would use this pretext with ukraine with an existential conflict with nay noe. >> is there any hope that talks will help? >> ukrainian refugees by the hundreds of thousands fleeing to safety how are they managing, and are

they getting any assistance? >> president biden is working on his state of the union that will be delivered tomorrow night. one of his key themes, american national security and our economy. we've got a prejund as masks and vaccines fall away, we've got new information on the origins of where the pandemic started. this on the first day of the week, final day of february. "early today" starts right now good morning, i'm vinita nair. >> good to be with you i'm frances rivera here's what we know at this hour canada is accusing a russian airline on violating its airspace this comes just hours after canada joined the uk and european union in shutting their skies to russian planes. satellite images from sunday show hundreds of convoys heading toward ukraine's capital

overnight a senior u.s. defense official pointed out they were 30 millimeters from kyiv their president says the ukrainian delegation has arrived near the border with belarus for a meeting, but it's unclear if talks will have an impact. nbc's tom llamas has more from ukraine. >> reporter: as ukraine tries to fend off missile attacks and relentless shelling, a possible shift between the two sides. ukraine and russia agreeing to hold negotiations on the border of belarus, their security guaranteed by russianal lye alexander luke schenn cove vladimir zelenskyy doubting the outcome, but hoping for peace. for now ukrainian soldiers managing to stop russian advances on kyiv, but new images appear to show growing russian ground forces pushing toward the capital. russia still targeting ukraine's

infrastructure a missile strike near an oil reserve never kharkiv lit up the night sky. more heavy fighting broke out in the streets, tanks burning along provide the roads. the path of war marked by bombed out vehicles, charred roads, and buildings blown out. this man says my friend lived here i came out to check. it is very bad innocent civilians caught in the cross larrys this nine-story pant building shelled. civilians helping civilians any way they can their homes destroyed. one woman died 20 people were rescued from the rubble as dozens more hid out in safety the death toll is rising at least 350 people have been killed, more than 1,500 people injured. still the citizens of ukraine are resolute the mayor of lviv said even his

wife will take up arms if need be. >> as a leader, how does that feel have you felt pride for your people >> it's a great honor for me my people today like lions, and millions of millions of people in different countries support other position we fight for democracy >> reporter: so many ukrainians spent another night underground n-bomb shelters and sunway stations with more international help rolling in in the forms of supplies and weapons ukrainians are bracing for another bloody night as you saw right there, more and more ukrainians are being forced to live with this as the humanitarian crisis continues. the families trying to flee the war-torn countries at least 400,000 ukrainians have

left there are hundreds of thousands of more still trying to get out. reporting from lviv, tom llamas, nbc news. as we await potential talks between russia and ukraine this morning, the u.s. is calling on china to condemn russia's invasion in an interview with msnbc, white house press secretary jen psaki said china has been abiding by some of the sanctions u.s. hand allies have imposed on russia sweerch solidarity with ukraine, but what would it mean for china's global standing if it doesn't speak out further against russia's actions >> reporter: well, china has found itself in an awkward position trying to balance its ties with moscow with potential for blowback from much of the world. so far officially the statements have been very generic saying they're urging all sides to calm down, to go to dialogue, nothing that's condoning russian

actions, but certainly nothing that's condemning them either. it's why the white house believes that china could be doing more and saying more to pressure vladimir putin. here's jen psaki. >> this is a time to be vocal and condemn the actions of president trump and russian in invading a sovereign country this is really a moment for every country to decide what part of history they want to stand on >> reporter: at least two banks appear to be complying but china is allowing more russian imports of wheat they're not calling it an invasion of ukraine let alone a war. china is walking a fine line because of the risks to its economy. it needs its trade ties with the eu and what it has with the u.s.

it also has good relations with ukraine as well as significant investments there. at the same time they're trying to balance this strategic partnership they have with moscow in that they don't consider themselves allies, per se, with a formal pact, but they're certainly aligned with common trs, and the main interests are confrontation of nato expansion as well as repelling power by the u.s vini vinita. >> it is a fine line as you mention. thank you. president biden will be presenting his state of the union address tomorrow night ahead of possible protests that could collide with the speech. brie jackson is live this could be more than what it was a year ago. >> it's not just a far kai from a year ago it's a stark contrast fro fr. a month ago. the president is expected to address the threat of vladimir

putin head on and what it means for the future of our country. the white house say mrs. biden will outline the high high stakn ukraine. >> what they do is lead the world in crises. you can expect, american people can expect go hear him talk about that as well, standing up against president putin and autocracies. that will also be a part of his speech. >> reporter: domestically on top of every american's mind is inflation especially as there are pushes to push gas prices even higher. it will be a chance to talk about his historic pick for the supreme court also if confirmed, ketanji brown jackson will be the first woman of color on the high court he touts his achievements in the fight against covid. just yesterday it was announced

masks will be optional for lawmakers attending the speech on the republican side a governor kim reynolds will deliver the party's official response president biden will take the stage at 9:00 p.m. eastern tomorrow back to you. >> so much to watch on the world stage and here at home. as the days go on, ukrainian president zelenskyy continues to update the world demonstrating much resilience and strength in the face of war. n nbc's molly hunter has more on his stance with fellow soldiers and their ongoing efforts. >> reporter: standing directly into the camera, exhausted, unshaven, in a t-shirt, this is how we're starting to see president zelenskyy at all hours since the invasion started, taking the time to update the world and his country. last night was harsh, he says.

they are fighting against everyone and everything alive. in another post last thursday walking through the capital, good morning, he said, there are a lot of fakes out there, but i'm here one standup comedian miami came to stand up. he played an unlikely president on tv. three years later 44-year-old father of two has emerged as a convincing war-time leader he reported i need ammunition, not a ride while his adversary in moscow talks about getting rid of the nazis, president zelenskyy from a russian s-speaking jewish faml has announced even louder.

at the munich security conference earlier this month the world met a different leader. >> i think that is all, not for me but for ukraine and its soldiers. >> reporter: a leader taking front and center stage fighting for his country's survival molly hunter, nbc news. let's turn now to weather. bill karins, how are we going to end the month. >> february is a winter month and that's how it feels even heading into march the last day is going to be bitterly cold. windchill values right now, single digits. in a few cases like vermont, it feels like negative 7 out there in d.c. all the way to new york. bundle the kids up and yourself up one of those mornings you've got to start your car up all the troublesome weather is

in the pacific and northwest avalanche threat flood warnings on a few rivers things are getting diezier as heavy rain moves in. it stays soggy in the northwest. we'll see somnowflakes developig mild conditions from texas to oklahoma right from st. louis into areas of the midwest. it does look like march is going to start off chilly, but we warm up as we head into it. so not bad. >> all right, bill thank you. up next, the supreme court set to hear a major climate change case. and two major studies may

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leading the news, a week from now new yorkers may not need to show their vaccine cards when going to stores, restaurants, gyms, or indoor entertainment events mayor eric adams announced if covid case numbers keep going down, the vaccine mandate will be lifted. they'll monitor public schools if it remains low, the indoor mask wearing will be lifted. a new study has shown that the covid-19 started in a wet market in wuhan. the new analyses found that the virus was likely in animals and passed on to humans at the market the supreme court is gearing up to hear the biggest climate

change case in a decade. a coalition is seeking to rimt federal regulation, putting in jeopardy president biden's climate change agenda. the dispute dates back to an obama-era legislation that was nullified. it could limit the epa's authority in cutting back on greenhouse gases it could throw a wrench in president biden's plans to have the nation's emissions by the end of the decade. today is the deadline for the mb to come together on an agreement or end the season. they'll meet for an eighth straight day to try to come to a deal it's resulted in spring training games being canceled through next monday. they're still apart on key issues like the luxury tax threshold and salaries >> ukrainians fight to defend their country. and a global effort to support the citizens of ukraine from international sports to

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♪ in case you missed it. that's the ukrainian chorus dumka. they opened up "saturday night live." >> so fitting and so well done. several committees have taken to show their support for ukrainians and refugees. they're offering a matchup for the displaced ukrainians and heartfelt tributes were also announced at the s.a.g. awards. >> we're at the same time holding a place in our hearts to

those in ukraine and our thoughts and prayers >> we have a fellow act never zelensky who deserves some credit tonight for fighting the fight. >> several actors -- michael keaton there brian cox referenced the invasion in their speeches >> fifa said it is not allowing the russian flag or "national anthem" to be associated with the team the squad will still be allowed to compete in a spot for the world cup, but fifa will not allow matches to be played in russia despite the sanctions, czech republic's national team joined poland and sweden in refusing to play the russian squad in world cup qualifying matches next month. and green day is canceling a concert in moscow following the invasion they were set to play at a stadium in the capital city in may. we're used to seeing him in

studio, but steven sedgwick is where thousands of ukrainian are pouring over the border in poland good to see you, steve. >> reporter: good morning. we're 40 kilometers over the border from the main transition point where ukrainians are fleeing to poland, hungary, and slovakia we understand that over 368,000 ukrainians have fled into poland, slovakia, hungary this is the main transit point from here they're trying to find routes all over europe i'm hearing extraordinary stories. we were down at the border [ no audio ]

>> all right we lost steve's audio. >> reporter: we already heard from ton and others. >> go ahead, steve. >> reporter: frances, i thought you lost my audio. i was speaking to samantha power, the former u.n. ambassador i spoke to her in krakow she's leading the u.s. response to this crisis there's a $27 million agency and the d.a.r.t. team is here. there's a lot going on you can see there's a lot going on a lot of volunteers and chaos involved in the situation close to the border. >> thank you so much. we'll take a look at your forecast coming up next. and also jay gray joins us live from the ukrainian border with theat lest on the humanitarian crisis. see it on the 4th of july.

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febreze. ukrainians are putting up an impressive fight to protect their home land. marco rubio is thought to have sent up two-thirds of its troops in ukraine so far, but a senior official says putin's forces have not been able to take control of any cities and their mission has been slowed by stiff resistance jay gray is at the border of ukraine and poland. >> reporter: overnight the fighting intensifies u.s. officials acknowledging russian troops appear to be gaining ground in southern ukraine but continue to face stiff resistance to the north

including the capital city of kiev >> it's so weird to actually hear the explosions in a city day by day and shootings and seeing all the images all around the country where people suffer. >> reporter: horrific images of a country battered by five days of war, burned out military vehicles, blood-stained snow evidence of a fire fight buildings ripped apart by the attack and families ripped apart by the violence. hundreds of thousands scrambling to escape, overwhelmed and unsure of where they'll go and what will happen to loved ones left behind to fight delegations from russia and ukraine are meeting face-to-face along the belarus border today ukrainian leaders making it clear the discussions will not include any talk of surrender.

>> our thanks to jay gray for that report. the european union says lit back the russian state-backed broadcasting stations. they say the outlets will, quote, no longer be able to spread their lies to justify putin's war sputnik are controlled by the russian government and widely regarded as problem bpaganda ou. it's the first time the eu will arm a country at war. european countries have committed to supplies ukraine with weapons germany, sweden, denmark, and belgium have also pledged to send anti-tank weapons, body armor and funding to the embattled country. this is how we're starting the week, ending the month to

headlines out there, but we're continuing to cover it for you here on "early today." we thank you for watching. i'm frances rivera. >> and i'm vinita nair. coming up on the "today" show, continuing coverage of

it will be economic aid and it will be security aid. >> breaking now at 4:30, sending help to ukraine. a new push to send billions of dollars in humanitarian aid. also, how companies are taking action against russian aggression. >> back at home, major changes in the fight against covid. the new updated mask guidance set to take effect and the new guidance governor newsom is expected to unveil. >> and it's a new workweek and we're tracking your weather. meteorologist rob mayeda is tracking how our workweek is going to shape up. this is