>> and a good evening to you. i'm richard louis. it's 10 pm here in new york city. that makes it 5 am in kyiv. and that is where we start. russian forces are moving in on key cities there. tonight, there are about 15 miles on the outskirts of kyiv, the capital. the southern port city of mariupol has largely been pounded into dust. its citizens are under naval blockade right now, amid

constant shelling from russian heavy artillery. the mayor is saying more than 1500 people have lost their lives they are so far. now, the few humanitarian safety corridors established, largely ignored by russian forces. today, seven people, including women and children, were killed, when russian soldiers attacked their evacuation convoy near kyiv. the un says at least 41 children have been killed so far. and as of this hour, no end in sight today. dogs tween glamour putin and the leaders of france and germany, that went nowhere. reports suggest putin showed no willingness to end his war on ukraine. and the russian people continue to pay the price for the presidents aggression. ebay today becoming the latest company to halt operations inside russia. as ukrainians were out of the country to escape the oncoming assault, the refugee crisis, that keeps getting worse. >> there was like not comfortable to stay there, because every night we heard --

>> it's okay. it's okay. -- >> very horrible sounds every night. >> more than 1 million and a half ukrainians have already fled to poland. and romania opening its borders to over 84,000 more. and as a russian convoy inches towards the ukrainian capital, neighboring countries are preparing for a fresh flood of refugees. let's turn now to nbc news correspondent, ali arouzi, who's on the ground for us in lviv, in the western part of the ukraine. ali, good morning to you. day 18 is what we are looking at. and when you are last on air, you were mentioning that air raid sirens have gone off. what's happened? >> that's right, richard. about an hour and a half ago, a raid sirens went off. this is for the third day in a row, they're going off and around this time. and the sirens went off across the country. that could be an indication

that more attacks, i can't confirm that, but that's the pattern that's been followed. so the air raid sirens that go off here, all the people that have fled the war torn areas of eastern ukraine, and are staying in lviv, have to get about their apartments, hotel rooms, whatever they're staying, and hunker down in basements. they're still there right now, because you can't come out of those basements, until the second siren goes off to tell you, danger has been averted. it doesn't look like there is any imminent danger here, but everybody has to be very precautions. and richard, you can just imagine how stressful it is for a mother with her children, possibly with some pets, that have made the crossing from the east. they're in relative safety in live eve, and every morning, they have to scramble out of that, and go into an underground shelter. >> i like that interview we saw earlier. on that note there, ali, many displaced ukrainians have found a way, you are alluding to that, there in lviv, as they make their way east, potentially

into poland. whatever you heard so far from those that are getting away from the violence? >> that's right. a lot of people are coming here. i mean, the bulk of the refugees have arrived here in lviv. you know, they're confused, they're uncertain about what the future holds for them. but they're still being very resilient. we spoke to a young man yesterday who had fled kharkiv very badly hit city kharkiv, he left with his wife and mother-in-law. let's take a listen to what he had to say to us. >> i didn't recognize my city. when i was driving out of there, it was kind of a terrible feeling to see what happened to my hometown. and i guess the situation is getting worrisome. many, many historical places, i

guess, we've lost them, forever. >> can you imagine how awful it is not to recognize your city, because it's been bombed so badly? eugene, the man that was speaking there, then showed me a video later, after he had to escape kharkiv. it was his apartment building that had been bombed and smoldering away. he was visibly upset. he was shaken. but still showing a lot of resolve. he's coming here in lviv, he's living in an office building with his wife, but he's carrying on working their. and he says it's so important for all ukrainians to do their bit, to contribute to the economy, to make sure the economy doesn't flatline, because that's gonna help fight the russians. so incredible fortitude. people you meet, they all have these tragic stories, where they keep pushing along. there's real sense of community amongst the ukrainian people here. >> great stories. ali arouzi, thank you so much

for us, live there in lviv. let's begin with eye on your null and ana recipient, jack jacobs. he's an msnbc analyst. also with us, general ben capri. he's also an msnbc national security commentator. evening to both of you. gentlemen, let's start with this. ali, reporting for us, last three nights, aerates going off. what does this tell us about potentially, with the russian forces are thinking in dealing with lviv, so far east? >> apparently the war has widened. the center of gravity is still the capital city of kyiv. people are still there. it will be the primary objective. the russians are hammering cities, all over the nation, with military objectives, like air fields, or simply terrorizing the civil populations. it's gonna get worse. we're gonna see, in the big city of kyiv, what we're seeing in mariupol right now.

>> you know, each time we were on air, and now that you are on day 18 here, colonel, the question is when might something change? now, when we pull up them off today, we can see that it is uninterrupted. a language from rush all the way to crimea, it appears now with the issue of mariupol, for instance the city i was mentioning. now it is largely in russian control of the moment. is this an actual milestone, potentially a military off ramp for putin here? these accomplish something? >> i think this objective is clear, and i think he's gonna be undeterred, and no matter what happens, in order to ag, and take over the entire country. in the process, isolate the city's, lay siege to them, link his forces up north and south. isolate the ukrainian army in the east, making it impossible for the west to resupply them. and eventually, take over the entire country.

one of the things that he is working on doing is completely sealing off the black sea approaches to ukraine, so that there can't be any evacuations, and there won't be any resupply and the south. and trying to do exactly the same thing and the east. i think he single-minded about achieving that. one of the reasons is, he is participating and unrelenting bombardment of the cities is that the russian army was unsuccessful in marching and on opposed. and so, he just unleashed the entire army on the entire country, and as general mccaffrey said, just blasted all the cities, until there is nothing but trouble. >> you know, the word blast every city that you bring up, colonel, gonna turn to you, general now. you brought this in last week. just a couple of days ago, chemical weapons. and the week before, it was nuclear weapons, you remember the conversations here, general. is putin doing the, i'm gonna

accuse who i'm attacking, so that when i have my first strike of chemical weapons, i am justifying it. is that with vladimir putin is trying to do here? >> he may well be. look, we gotta put this in context. russia has committed over 60% of ground combat forces trying to take down ukraine. over half their air force is out of options. there would be no employment of nuclear weapons by putin. you cannot win a nuclear exchange. his officers know that. i think he'd get shocked if he told them to launch an unprovoked attack. he clearly doesn't have the combat power to take on nato. but he does have on his hands, he's launched operational control of his military forces and ukraine. the ukrainians are beating them at the tactical level. but as jack says, he's now

turning to and aleppo terror campaign, that before it's done, will destroy much of the country. i think down the line, we're gonna find nato, and is gonna find this unbearable to sit and watch this happen. >> unbearable, and you're saying that they've not had much success, at least at the speed that you would think vladimir putin might want. and colonel jack, president zelenskyy today said that we have now hardened the empty buildings in our capital of kyiv. if they want to take over kyiv, they're gonna have to carpet bomb the city to get it. what do you make of his comments? and is he right? >> well, that's not gonna help the russians very much. the russians know better than anybody when it's like to attack, to defend a city that's been completely turned into rubble, as they did successfully against the nazis during the second world war. excuse me.

in russia -- i'm sorry. one of the things to keep in mind that general min mccaffrey brought up, and suggested, was the inability of the russian army to operate effectively. and one of the reasons we believe is that the middle level management, the brigade commanders, the general officers, division commanders and so on, are very poorly trained. they did not have very much idea how to operate with our forces, in that kind of environment. they didn't take the simplest kind of precautions that a little wrecking officer, or and ceo, would take, that is to secure his flanks, leaving the ukrainians the ability to pick off tanks, armed vehicles and trucks, at will. so as general mccaffrey says, putin's out of options. he's at scorched earth, and they're gonna have a very hard time fighting inside the city's, if they continue to turn into rubble, richard. >> general, one of the options,

it appears, that vladimir putin has decided to do, according to the world health organization, rather, is that now at least two dozen hospitals and medical facilities have been hit by russian forces. does this say -- vladimir putin will not stop at anything? >> well, of course, they did that in syria. he did that in grozny. this is not surprising. i also say they're running out of position. to some extent, they're just firing rocket artillery and shell artillery into the cities randomly. these are not targeting a checkpoint. this is terrorizing the population. richard, i didn't respond to questions on the chemicals. i think he was hinting at a false flag operation. i don't believe he's gonna do it. if he employs chemicals -- chemicals on very good against u.s. army. we're prepared to fight and operate in a chemical environment, with nearly the same effect as we would without

those weapons. but if they use them against civilians inside ukraine, it will cause mass casualties. and i will think that will trigger, very likely, intervention on the ground and in the air by nato. >> okay, colonel jack jacobs, general barry mccaffrey, thank you both is always. appreciate your time. >> next, i wanna go inside a humanitarian crisis unfolding across ukraine, and show you what life is like for droves seeking shelter and bomb shelters. plus, nato allies pressing putin to end this war. he won't even consider a cease-fire, so what does progress look like, when forging diplomacy with a dictator? and stories of humanities unfolding along ukraine's borders. stories of strangers helping strangers, for the greater good, ahead on msnbc. ahead on msnbc hey, i get it, commitment can be scary. but not when you're saving up to 15%

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assault on ukraine on the

ground and in the skies, ukrainians unable to escape are moving underground in order to escape through bump shelters. anderson bradley went to check many across ukraine and found many innocent people caught in the crosshairs of war holding on to every ounce of hope they could find. >> under constant shelling from above, life and ukraine has moved down below. for two weeks, this family in kyiv made this their new home. >> we give him a hug, a kiss, we say, it will come to an end soon, she says. we are staying nearby our house, we are not leaving the city. they sleep on mats, their food isn't jars, they're water in bottles. for some, this is the only life they've ever known. these babies were born in a shelter in the southern city of kherson. and there's other system to live underground. and even a bit of drama.

actors in the city of love jonathan kissed play a play on war. other bomb shelters are improvised like here, in kharkiv, ukraine's largest -- second largest city. we were here when the bomb started falling. yesterday, this was a subway station and today, the trains have stopped, and people have flooded here seeking refuge and safety. they're terrified and they don't know what's next. veronica woke up to the sound of bombs, she didn't want to go. she heard about the metro from her friends on instagram. are you going to spend the night down here in the subway? >> yes, i have a child 1.7 years old, and a sister, 3.5 years old. we don't feel safe risking our kids living anywhere. so for now, we are here. veronica has left ukraine, she told us she is in berlin. the trains here don't run anymore but you can still get around town underground. dark days but ukrainians hope will soon be a light at the end

of the tunnel. matt bradley, nbc news, ukraine. >> and matt, thank you so much for. that next, diplomacy and action, putin holds calls with two nato powers and ukraine's president opens the door to meeting putin face to face, as russian forces intensify attacks around the ukrainian capital. as alex crawford of sky news reports, kyiv is waiting for the worst. >> they are digging trenches and this is in the middle of the city, although we are not showing the location for security reasons. either, weighs soldiers and civilians are preparing for either attack or siege. they have created a whole network of these trenches, as much as protection, but also from where they can mount fine tune positions. they've been taken on russian

troops along several points along the edges of the capital. but there's a growing expectation that the city is headed into a very grim few days or weeks. alex crawford, sky news, give. it's the number one doctor recommended brand that is scientifically designed to help manage your blood sugar. live every moment. glucerna. live every moment. as a main street bank, pnc has helped over 7 million kids develop their passion for learning through our grow up great initiative. and now, we're providing billions of dollars for affordable home lending programs... as part of 88 billion to support underserved communities... including loans for small businesses in low and moderate income areas. so everyone has a chance to move forward financially. pnc bank: see how we can make a difference for you.

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intuit quickbooks helps you easily send your first invoice in 3 steps. simple. >> war is how. and you can see proof and the growing death toll reported tonight from putin's war on ukraine. president zelenskyy announcing a short time ago that at least 1300 ukrainian soldiers have been lost. and the most sobering statistic to report comes from the associated press. 79 ukrainian children, and counting, have been killed. among the dead are everyday citizens, uprooted by this war. fathers, brothers forced in the battle for the country's freedom. knowing full and well the death is sometimes the cost of standing up to dictators. that report tonight from nbc news foreign correspondent, molly hunter. >> reporter: tonight, as a intensify around ukraine's

capital, at least 1600 people were able to escape the suburbs of kyiv, and 3000 from the embattled city of sumy, which lies on a strategic route from the russian border to ukraine's capital. but they were the lucky ones. of the 14 humanitarian corridors at the beginning of the day, few we are successful. according to the ministry of defense, while trying to escape on their own, seven people were shot and killed by russian troops, including a child in the suburb of kyiv. today, vladimir putin spoke with french president macron, and german can chill or scholes, but the call ended with no indication that the russian president had any intent of stopping the war. and his soldiers aren't holding their fire. 14 year old katerina was shot in friday, trying to escape -- we were driving, she says, and they just started shooting. and that 40-mile long russian convoy just north of kyiv has started to disperse, according to uk defense officials, possibly getting into position to encircle the capital. in the besieged city of

mariupol, the foreign ministry says a mosque has seen 80 civilians was attacked this morning. yesterday, a residential building. today, ukrainian president zelenskyy, making a plea to russian mothers not to send their sons to war. also today, russia sending a new warning to the u.s.. russia's deputy foreign minister, u.s. sending weapons to ukraine, turns convoys into legitimate targets. the white house announcing saturday that the u.s. is sending an additional $200 million in arms and equipment, including missiles for taking out war planes and tanks. >> we have enough anti-tank missiles, things that we got from the united kingdom, the united states. so they will -- they will lose stance on every street, on every block, every crossroad. >> reporter: president zelenskyy, for the first time, announcing 1300 ukrainian soldiers have been killed.

while also demanding the russians release the mayor of melitopol, who he claims russian troops abducted. and in melitopol today, these protesters, demanding their mayors release, in the face of russian occupation, they're chanting, go home! >> and our thanks to nbc's molly hunter for that report. as putin intensifies attacks on ukraine, the global community is not giving up on finding a diplomatic solution. today, french president emmanuel macron, german chancellor, olaf scholes, spoke to putin by phone, reportedly making no headway in convincing russia's president of calling off his troops. as of this hour, he will not even consider a cease-fire, we are hearing. joining me now, joel reuben. president of washington, and strategist -- secretary of state in the obama administration. joel, thank you for joining us. let's start with what the president said today. $200 million more. what does that say about the presidents position on helping

ukraine? >> richard, it's great to be with you. and what this means is that president biden is leaning to support ukrainian military, and the ukrainian people right now, because he understands, as the global community understands, this is a moment of clarity. this is a moment to pick sides. and who this might end with? dictators are trying to destroy our prosperity, our freedoms, take away our ability to have a future for ourselves, independent and sovereign. or does he stand with those who are fighting on the sides, and pushing back against that. i think we've seen president biden being very resolute, and this is only accelerating that resolution. >> trying to get your resolution here, germany and france, on that audio meeting today, it didn't sound like much came out of it. what do you think of their progress, or lack thereof, and are they in the right country? should it be israel, turkey instead, leaning on this? >> richard, this diplomacy is

always needed. it's always needed to try to prod and pry and see what vladimir putin is reacting to, and how he's thinking. and unfortunately, these efforts by our allies seem to be falling flat. we've seen israel come up shortly. we've seen france and germany come up short lee. we've seen president zelenskyy speaking to putin, but clearly putin is lying about his interests and having diplomacy, because when they make an agreement about humanitarian corridors, for example, they then bomb those people fleeing, to try to save their own lives. so really in many ways, diplomacy right now in the american decision, with my discussions and folks in the administration, escaping the pressure on. it's isolating russia, it's trying to force putin to change the way he thinks. all these engagements matter, but putin has to understand that he has sunk to global pariah, as quickly, if not

quicker than any country has, in post world war ii, iran national relations. he has to actually take this diplomacy seriously, which he hasn't up to this point. >> should question for you here, joel. secretary blinken, what's great do you give him so far? >> i give secretary blinken an a+. i think he has orchestrated. our leadership right now along with our allies and partners, in the manner that has responded forcefully. we've seen america leadership around the world, that partnership, it is affecting russia directly. it's gonna take time. this is not an easy solution by any stretch. we see the united states rallying the world right now against russia, as it should be. >> joel i saw this, but i'm gonna share to our audience. this is going to a kremlin, vis-à-vis the ap. and i'm gonna read, according to the kremlin, their demands are, quote, according to the kremlin, putin laid out terms for ending hostilities, moscow has demanded that ukraine

dropped its bid to join nato, and adopt and neutral status, acknowledge the russian sovereignty over crimea, which it annexed from ukraine in 2014, and recognize the independence of separatist regions in the country's east, and final kremlin demand, agree to demilitarize. >> all their asking for is for every single ukrainian to stop speaking ukrainian, and speak question, and basically moved to moscow. this is essentially an argument to no longer have ukraine as a sovereign and independent republic, and will make sure that what you get everything at once through brutal military force. it's not negotiation. that's not serious diplomacy. that's just a validation of what we are all concerned about, which is that vladimir putin is trying to take over another country, to reinforce and has no interest in stopping. and that's why diplomacy right now is very focused on punishing in, isolating russia,

in making sure that they understand that there is a real cost, as we're seeing every day, in this fight. >> joel, thank you so much for spending the time. joel rubin, appreciate it. >> thanks. >> next, with threats from putin, we examine how the west can help ukraine. plus, we take you to the hungarian border with ukraine, where there is a relentless rush of refugees looking for safety. that's from as msnbc's ali velshi, right after this. >> rations knocked it our door, and they said, you better go out, because it will be. in two hours, it will be held here. they didn't allow us to have pictures of which was destroyed by them. anyone who had pictures, they smashed the phone. from time to time, they smashed the faces of these people because they had some pictures of what they've done. >> the damage -- >> the damage --

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and a half million people have fled ukraine in the past two weeks, as russian shelling flattens entire cities. msnbc's aly valerie spoke to ukrainian refugee in hungary, who says she's grateful to be alive, after escaping kyiv. -- >> all right as i've been telling, you i've been at it during station at the border in ukraine. people have come to stop in

ukraine, they go to some formalities, and then they get here into ukraine. i'm joined now by a woman who has just come off one of these trains. her name is enough, and she comes from a place called, hostomel, in ukraine, which is near, we've been hearing, irpin, which is outside of kyiv. you are from nearby there. there is a big airport there that is well known. >> first, they started to throw bombs on the airport. and we were just very, very close to the airport. our house is also where destroyed. then, they destroyed roads, shops, oh, everything, i will say everything. hostomel doesn't exist anymore. >> we were told that it's about 40,000 people who live there, and most of them have now left. >> yes, yes. >> we have no houses, and it was very cold outside. they used to hide in basements,

anywhere, they tried to hide in the forest. but all our forests are filled with russians. >> oh wow! >> they are behind every bush. >> when you came up here a few moments ago, just before we were on tv, i asked you how you're doing? and you said, you're alive -- >> i'm alive, this is the best. >> you're grateful just for that. who have you come with? and who has been left behind? >> i am alone. >> your kids are back there? >> mike it's -- they are still there. >> what is their plan? >> they will join me later. they will join me later. they're waiting now in gostroluchcha, a small town close to the hungarian border. >> tell me about your journey. you started from kyiv station, or from your town?

>> no. -- this was fantastic journey. russians knocked at our door, and they said, you better go out, because it will be hell in two hours. >> what is your plan now? where will you go because this is a small town? do you know people here? are you going to budapest? >> i know no one here. we're going to budapest first, and then, i think i can find a job. >> what do you do? what's work due to? >> anything to survive. >> wow. >> i mean, i have a profession. i have a small business, an american marketplace, electronic marketplace. i'm a crafter. >> oh wow! >> i have my craft. i will survive. >> i have zero doubt that he

will survive. thank you for talking to us and we wish you good luck on the rest of your journey, and i hope that as i'm standing here on one of these days, i will see your family come in, on their way to be reunited with you. >> we have to be reunited -- >> that was msnbc anchor ali velshi, reporting for us from hungry. while ukrainians are leaving everything behind to escape violence, president zelenskyy is demanding more from the west. and a new message tonight, i did find zelenskyy, once again told the u.s. and european allies, that to simply do more to help. the ukrainian president also referenced the horrific images of war, across the world. so lewinsky says, quote, the evil that is shooting even at ambulances, and bombs, hospitals, must be stopped, or it won't stop just in ukraine. joining me now to discuss, washington post national security reporter, thank you so much dan lamothe for being with us. dan, how is zelenskyy doing on day 18? >> remarkable, for the most

part. the fact that they've held there for this long, that these rallying his people, that he's kept pressure on the international community. if i'm a ukrainian, i would be very proud of him. >> one thing about zelenskyy asking for more help, he had got president biden saying $200 million more in support for ukraine. how does military aid from the ukraine help ukraine right now fight of russian forces? does that issue of a supply chain, and what we heard from the russian side is, by the way, your supply chain, it's not one of our targets, potentially, if you get involved there? >> yes, and that's targeting, certainly anticipated for sometime. they've been very big on the west side and the nato side about how these arms shipments are gonna get into the country. obviously, we know it's overground, but in terms of

where and how that is largely being left in the dark, to try and keep that under the veil of secrecy, and hopefully allow those shipments to get to the hands that they need to. >> with the progress that russia has so far, or lack thereof, kyiv is an example on the lack. but if you look at the southern and western regions of ukraine, i was just mentioning earlier whether general and the colonel, that now they have a language from russia to crimea. how is putin doing? what is a win for him? >> when you go in with the initial plan of taking care of, and you struggle to do that, he's gonna have to look for things that he can call a win. the possibility that he continues to make some hands in the southern part of the country. mykolaiv, i think, is a significant concern in the coming days, and if you can take that city, then the concern grows about odessa, which is obviously a major port.

>> what is the off ramp? we have heard that word over the last 18 days, and i was mentioning earlier, lack of progress from the discussions with the president of france and the leader from germany, with putin, what does an off ramp look like right now? >> i think that's one of their key struggles right now. it simply does not appear to be many off-ramps. you know, there's no signs here that the russians are looking for a way out. you know, they've shifted the bombardment. they've shifted the killing of civilians. and-seat warfare takes a lot of time. and sanctions take a lot of time. it really takes deep cold and really draws out the pain, economically at home. so for the short term, weeks, possibly months, this could continue to play out, sort of in slow motion. >> slow motion in escalation at the same time, right, dan? because we're hearing from putin that he is now considering, not only targeting potentially the supply chain,

which could mean non-ukrainian forces. he brought up chemical weapons this week as well. what other options might people out? and for that matter, what are the responses that the west can do, in response to what he is saying? >> in terms of things that are still, you know, seemingly in the tool back for him, i mean, he has more russian forces at his disposal. there's been discussion whether or not belarusian forces could be part of this as well. that would also increase his force here. they're recruiting from the middle east, syria and particular. that might be a way that he can also increase his influence on the ground. from the western perspective, there is an ongoing discussion about other kinds of weapons that can be sent. there's $200 million in aid, at this point, the belief would be that the same sort of things we seen. there is a discussion of, do you said more powerful air defenses, or something else

that might, you know, make things that much harder on the russians? >> dan, thanks so much. washington post down law mauve, thank you, appreciate it. >> ahead, wnba player brittney griner remains jailed in russia. you hear next from the washington post jason resign, who is detained for more than 500 days in iran. he says he's worried about going on and explains why. at the top of the hour, and a big lie from ukraine, as the russians ramp up attacks. and in the south, the historic city of odessa, preparing for a russian invasion. here's sky news nick martin. >> reporter: i know this is 20 food hall, it turned into an eight station. a lawyer is organizing the effort. what's your message to vladimir putin? >> my message is, just do anything with your russia, everything you want, but never come again to ukraine. we hate you. we don't need your support. 't need your support

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developments on wnba star, britney griner, who has been detained in russia for nearly a month now. russia claims griner was detained for possession of vape cartridges containing hashish oil. earlier tonight, alicia menendez spoke with jason rezaian. he's an opinion writer for the washington post, and a former hostage in iran for nearly two years. and in his latest piece, he details his concerns for the wnba star, well taking aim at the americas governments response. here's some of that interviews. >> as soon as the russian government puts out images and news of her arrest, they have taken control of this narrative. and i think that the government, you know of the u.s., while i'm sure that they're working to try and win her release, my concern is that in the past, we've taken a flat-footed approach these kinds of cases.

mine, as one example, and many others that have followed. >> to a point you make, there are lot of unanswered questions about her detention at this point, what's your greatest concern for her? >> i think first and foremost, her legal rights. i understand that she hasn't had access to a lawyer and russia, but the fact that she hasn't been given consular access, access to the embassy, is left blank, right? congresswoman jackson-lee talked about the legal process that she would go through. but there are diplomatic processes. and one of those has been able to speak to representatives in the countries of her citizenship. when that is being denied, it is one indicator for the state department there might be something fishy about this case. so for me, i think, as soon as she's able to speak with representatives of the u.s. government, and really, get our

voice back, my fears would be lessened. which right now, there's just so little that we know. and they can be anything that they want to her at this moment. >> you're right, the u.s. needs a robust approach to cases like these, wrongful detentions of americans and other countries. i want to know what that looks like. based on your experience, what message does that send? >> first, we have to come out defense their sly, and say that these people are being held unjustly. and the case of britney griner, there's still a lot of information to be gathered. and i don't think that the u.s. government has made the indications that she is necessarily a wrongful detainee. but when that happens, first of all, i want to change the vocabulary on this. wrongful detainees hostage. it means someone who's being held at leverage against the united states and its interest. i think the short term response needs to be one that actually raises stakes for bilateral

relationships between the u.s. and the country is they're doing this. whether it's russia, iran, china, venezuela, or even some allies, saudi arabia, turkey, egypt, all of these countries have taken citizens and help them hostages in recent years. and then there has to be actual, credible deterrence on the back and, to make this kind of hostage taking harder for governments to do in the future, to make them think twice about making americans, you know, political leverage in their negotiations with the united states. >> many thanks to jason rezaian they are from the washington post. >> now to a story of those lost fighting for freedom. nbc's matt bradley on the sons and fathers of ukraine, who stood for their country, and are now are laid to rest as heroes. >> after two weeks of war, ukraine is burying its dead.

the number of slain soldiers as unknown so far. but today, the safety of lviv, there's three of them. 39-year-old senior soldier andre. 58-year-old's arnold dmytro. and senior lieutenant who was only 25, and close to marrying his girlfriend, tatiana. these men were killed in the early days of fighting in the southern city of kherson. relatives told us that the russians held there remains for nearly two weeks, releasing them only days ago. andre's son, vitally, is just a few months shy of fighting age. >> once you turn 18, you plan to pick up a gun? >> reporter: he says he is. a decision, he says, he made on his own. >> many soldiers buried here were killed in 2014. the last time russia invaded. now, you've been ukrainians are having to dig fresh greats. >> reporter: her son is among the dead. she's a widow. which was the last thing you set your son?

>> [interpreter] he said to me, mother, maybe this is our last conversation. these were his last words. i was shocked. i said, you're my only one. let's take care of yourself. i don't have anyone else. [end of translation] >> reporter: having sacrificed so much, many here expect more from the west. would you have to say to the american people? >> [interpreter] please, help us to close the sky. our children are dying in this war. [end of translation] >> reporter: it's been said that only didn't have seen the end of war. for ukraine's living, this latest one is only beginning. matt bradley, nbc news, lviv, ukraine. >> and with that, that is it for us this hour. i'm richard louis. thanks for spending time with us. our coverage for the ukraine invasion continues with ayman mohyeldin, right after this short break. t break. liberty mutual customizes your car insurance so you only pay for what you need. only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪

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ayman mohyeldin. you are seeing the continuing coverage of the crisis in ukraine for nearly three weeks, now ukrainian forces have stymied russian efforts to topple its government and bomb its citizens into submission, but now, russian troops are making progress in their push to take the capital city of kyiv. they are about 15 miles away from the city center. a senior defense official tells nbc news those forces could fully encircled the capital in the next week. ukraine's president, volodymyr zelenskyy, is warning that his russian