it's thursday, march 24th. >> president biden begins his most consequential day yet in nato meetings where more troops and fears of chemical warfare dominates. the headlines read ukraine pushes russian forces back near kyiv as moskow excels more u.s. diplomats. we'll pause to acknowledge a trailblazing woman who thrived in the arena of foreign policy remembering madeleine albright in her own words pop singer mily cyrus and

her midair scare could children under 6 years of age be the next group authorized for covid vaccines "early today" starts right now >> good morning on this thursday i'm cori coffin. >> glad you can be with us we begin this morning with a pivotal summit between president biden and our nato partners and allies in brussels mr. biden landed hours ago for a strategy session on the war in ukraine. brie, good morning what can we expect today >> good morning, frances well, president biden will assert his leadership on a global stage and push for tougher sanctions against russia and over 300 members of russian parliament nato says it's doubling its military presence near ukraine and sending more equipment to help protect against potential use of chemical, biological and nuclear weapons.

we also expect to hear from ukrainian president volodyomyr zelenskyy who will plead for more intensive military assistance nato's chief warned against escalating tensions with russia. >> you have a responsibility to ensure that the war does not escalate beyond ukraine and a common conflict between nato and russia >> president biden will also meet with g7 leaders and the european council before traveling to poland on friday. saturday he'll have a bilateral meeting the polish president sources tell nbc news the biden administration and u.s. allies are discussing whether russia should be removed from the g20 group of nations that tackle global issues. "the washington post" reports putin does plan on attending had economic forum in a show of support china called russia an important member of the g20. any move to exclude russia could be vetoed by other nations

and ukrainian president zelenskyy plans to address by video today as mentioned but overnight he released a message to the world tonight marks one month since the war began, he urged people to take to the streets and demand an end to the war molly, what do we know about the progress ukraine's military has made so far around the capital >> reporter: part of the story is russia has not lived up to what many analysts thought they would and ukraine's military is overperforming, doing better than what many people thought. according to a defense official the ukrainian military has pushed back russian troops 25 to 35 kilometers away from the capital. that is almost double what it was 36 hours ago russian forces are digging into defensive positions. that allows the ukrainian troops

to go on offense what's happening down south the russians troops have been trying desperately to move from mariupol to odesa. they're unable to advance past mykolaiv because of their failures and some of the troubles to the northwest of kyiv they're now heavily focused on the east of the country. >> you mentioned this a little bit. a new estimate from nato suggests russian forces have seen heavy losses this month how quantifiable is that >> yeah, we've been togging about that as generals are killed and senior officers are killed, we're shocked by the high number of russian troops that have been killed between nato they say between 5,000 and 7,000 russian troops were killed. they're warning russia might gnaw recruit conscripts, may now get people from the reserves,

foreign mercenaries and fighters to start to back fill because of their heavy losses the other thing we're following this morning is to the nrgt of kyiv a senior u.s. official says a russian assault in chernihiv has also stalled >> some slightly hopeful updates. molly, thank you as refugees continue to flee ukraine, poland is seeing a massive influx to its population the capital city of warsaw is taking in more people than any of the country's other cities. and according to its mayors, resources are being stretched thin what are you seeing? >> reporter: frances, and we're in the central train station here, a kind of way point for so many escaping this violence. you can see in this area people sitting and getting a charge

something that's vital here. on the back wall people catching a couple hours of sleep, trying to rest. and downstairs, the ticket counter where people are deciding how and where they'll go next. the toll from a full month of war stretches across so much of ukraine right now. cities and lives torn apart by russian bombs and missiles hitting civilian targets including hospitals, shopping malls, apartments and homes leaving 10 million without a place to live or necessities to survive. >> we don't have food, electricity, food, water we're in-houses ssho it's terrible for now >> reporter: more than 3.5 million have escaped across the border, most traveling to poland warsaw taking on more than any other city >> we have accepted 300,000 people in warsaw alone, which means that the population of our

city has increased by almost 20% in another three weeks >> reporter: refugees receiving free education and health care, that support stretching city services to their limits >> we cannot impvise anymore a week ago i had to call other mayors of polish and european cities in the middle of the night to help us out >> reporter: a plea warsaw's mayor will share with president biden during his visit friday. >> we need some american help in dealing with refugees, some relocation, financial help >> reporter: with a second wave, millions of refugees already rushing toward the border. the white house has said they are working on a way to help as far as bringing more people into the u.s. and plan to announce a new plan perhaps as early as this week. frances? >> all right, jay, thank you moderna, has released data on its covid-19 vaccine for young kids the drugmaker says for its covid

vaccine 6 and under was up to 44% effective at preventing infections from omicron and adding it plans to ask the fda to grant emergency authorization for the age group as soon as possible and asking the administration to lift mask mandates on travel and other covid restrictions an outbreak of bird flu is hitting american farms hard. millions of birds have had to be slaughtered. the outbreak could drive food prices up even more. >> reporter: it's happening at poultry farms across the country, a massive slaughter under way that could send food prices soaring 190,000 birds culled in north dakota 570,000 broiler chickens in nebraska, 6.2 million in iowa with farmers fearful of losing their entire flocks. from kansas -- >> eeoc take all the precautions

that you want to and you might still have a backyard flock that could catch this virus >> reporter: to long island, new york >> one little case and could spread to the others >> reporter: the map shows bird flu cases have already spread across at least a third of the country often carried by wild geese and ducks, sometimes drinking or eating from the same source even zoo birds are at risk >> now it's a little closer we're going to have to move them indoor >> reporter: unlike covid experts say there's little risk of bird flu jumping to humans. this virus is devastating for birds and can go from flock to flock but it doesn't easily transmit to humans and doesn't go human to human at this point. during a previous outbreak i had to suit up in a suit and decontaminate my shoes before going inside a poultry farmhouse. now experts warn this latest outbreak is the worst since 2015

when 50 million birds were sloth slaughtered or killed by the virus. experts say poultry and eggs safe to eat but expect prices will go higher deadly tornados hitting the south this week leaving destruction in their wake. at least 60 were reported within 48 hours louisiana's governor declaring a state of emergency after two tornados ravaged the new orleans area one being categorized an ef-1, another as an ef-3 25-year-old conor lambert died in the storm and several others were also injured. let's turn to bill karins for a look at your day good morning >> yeah, good morning. that storm is still plaguing us in the southeast and we're already watching some

rain and a few thunderstorms plaguing us in that area so it'll be a slow drive in the northeast, the air was cold enough and dry enough that when this storm moved in, it's produced some snow and freezing rain, even sleet in some cases the cities are all rain, and that's fine. and it's really ominl the burkesures or higher terrain you'll deal with some snow in northern new england and ice as far as the forecast goes, the temperatures will be warming up during the day today so areas that are kind of wintery will be returning over more rain. by 6:00 p.m. just some rain along the coastline in new jersey and through the midatlantic. by the time we get to friday that storm is gone, but it will

day. the sun is back out. and florida still dealing with some rain and storms weekend forecast is still to come, and i think a lot of people are going to like it. you guys may not but everyone else is going to smile >> that's right. we're still smiling. "early today" back in a minute with a midair scare for m mylie cyrus and her fans for . with our signature blend of health and beauty nutrients to bring out more of your inner beauty. nature's bounty. live bountifully. when they're sick, they get comfortable anywhere and spread germs everywhere. nature's bounty. wherever they rest protection nothing kills more viruses, including the covid-19 virus, on more surfaces than lysol disinfectant spray. lysol. what it takes to protect.

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in the caption cyrus wrote in part, quote, my band, my crew, friends and family who were all traveling with me are all safe california's is getting much closer to becoming the fourth state to ban ainsurainsurance f abortion procedures enan attempt to make reproductive care more accessible this is in preparation for a potential u.s. supreme court decision this summer that could overturn roe v. wade it is the final day of confirmation hearings for judge ketanji brown jackson. today will focus on outside witnesses after two days of questioning with judge jackson here's chris pollone day two of questioning before the senate judiciary committee had judge ketanji brown jackson once again reflecting on the historic nature of her appointment. >> what my being here i think is about at some level is about the progress that we've made in this country. >> reporter: the judge also

underscoring the importance of having a diverse group of justices on the bench. >> it lends and bolsters public confidence in our system >> reporter: in their second round of questions republicans sharpened their attacks trying to pin the judge down on abortion and honing in once again on jackson's sentencing record in child porn cases >> you think it is a bigger deterrent to take somebody who's on a computer looking at sexual images of children in the most disgusting way is to supervise their computer habits versus putting them in jail >> no, senator, i didn't say -- >> that's exactly what you said. >> senator, every person in all of these charts and documents i sent to jail because i know how serious this crime is. >> reporter: democrats point out jackson's sentences are consistent with other judges >> 70% of the federal judges face the same dilemma and wonder why congress has failed to act

and when it will act >> this is our fault >> pardon? partially it is, senator >> reporter: democrats can confirm her without it chris pollone, nbc news. still to come, stylers get ready for harry's house. plus paying a forward. the surprise to a toronto mom. night! that's when we started using swiffer. in just a few minutes, duster captures dust before it gets airborne. it traps and locks dust in one swipe. yes! for our floors, sweeper's heavy duty cloths easily trap dust, dirt and hair... locking it in. see ya, dust! and swiffer partners with the american lung association to support clean air. i don't just play someone brainy on tv - i'm an actual neuroscientist. and i love the science behind neuriva plus. unlike ordinary memory supplements, neuriva plus fuels six key indicators of brain performance.

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♪ pop superstar harry styles has announced a new upcoming album called harry's house it's from a 2019 project fine line . . . use will be released on may 20th. plus later this year styles is set to headline the 2022 coachella music festival and harry styles having some out

there outfits, totally fashion forward basic. >> you see these artists do this once they've reinvent themselves enough times they're like, okay, let's wipe the slate clean again. canadian singer songwriter jake and lebron james gave a mother and son from toronto the surprise of a lifetime they recently won a large amount of money and decided to pay a forward. drake and drai invited student athlete to dinner. they gifted he and his mother $100,000 in cash >> the look on her face you can see it beyond the mask >> when you have somebody's life change like that that's so amazing. >> it's incredible >> after a few days off the men's ncaa tournament is back with tweet 16 action tonight 11 seed michigan looks to keep their hot streak going against villanova. and tries to extent his career

another game as duke takes on texas tech, and arizona battles houston. after a quick break bill karins is back with a look at your ekd rest > weenfoca>>and madeleine albrit describes her own experiences as the female's first secretary of state in her own words next it's time to make your move to help reduce your risk of fracture with prolia®. only prolia® is proven to help strengthen and protect bones from fracture with 1 shot every 6 months. do not take prolia® if you have low blood calcium, are pregnant, are allergic to it, or take xgeva®. serious allergic reactions like low blood pressure, trouble breathing, throat tightness, face, lip or tongue swelling, rash, itching or hives have happened. tell your doctor about dental problems, as severe jaw bone problems may happen or new or unusual pain in your hip, groin, or thigh, as unusual thigh bone fractures have occurred. speak to your doctor before stopping, skipping or delaying prolia®, as spine and other bone fractures have occurred. prolia® can cause serious side effects, like low blood calcium,

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this morning we're remembering a political trailblazer, the nation's first female secretary of state madeleine albright has died after a battle with cancer a look back at her incredible career in her own words. >> nothing makes me prouder than to have represented the united states abroad and to sit behind the sign that said united states and to be an american. i was not born in the united states i was a child in europe where i lived in fear because my native czechoslovakia had been taken over by communists

but within a few months my family found refuge in america i think my value system is what my parents taught me, and it did make me realize that one had to care about people in far away places with unpronounceable names. my life reflects both the turbulence of europe in the middle of the century and the tolerance and generosity of america throughout its existence. >> arriving on our shores is a refugee from tyranny and oppression she worked her way in determination and character to attain our nation's highest diplomatic office. she knows from her life's experience that freedom has its price and democracy its rewards. her story is the best of america's story told with courage, compassion and conviction >> how significant is it that a woman is now secretary of state for the united states of america? >> well, i think it's very

important that that glass ceiling has been smashed but i think that what is important here that i am dedicating myself to pursuing national interests for the american citizen, and a lot of the issues that people don't think are usually foreign policy issues, i'm going to make sure that people understand that they are. what i'm really proudest of is what we did in kosovo. i really found it very difficult to watch when people were being killed for what they were, what religion they were and to be in a position to have something to do with the united states making a difference there is what i think was very, very important. and the people of kosovo now it's an independent country, and there's a whole generation of little girls whose first name is madeleine. >> madeleine albright was 84 years old. after an incredible life of service. >> and the landscape has changed and a little spunk to her, too,

saying there's a special place in hell for women who don't support each other >> pointed words thank you for starting your day with "early today. coming up on "today" we'll have live team coverage from brussels lester holt ankristed

. you're going to have a lot of questions. it's important for parents to sit down and really talk to their kids after school. >> right now at 4:30, moving you forward. could wearing masks throughout this pandemic be having an effect on children's speech and development? we talk to an expert. and pain at the pump. relief may be on the way for californians. breaking the bank to fill up. the way governor newsom plans to get money back in your pocket. >> what president biden is expected to say at the emergency nateors meeting and the all new action that the u.s. is taking to he have ukranian refugees. this is "today in the ba