blinken: mr. chairman, ranking member, it is good to be with you, to be with every member of this committee. thank you for the opportunity to speak with you about the administration's proposed budget for the state department. kyiv with defense secretary lloyd austin where we demonstrated the united states' commitment to the government and to the people of ukraine. i have to tell you, the trip left an indelible impression a. we had a chance to talk about it before the hearing. as we took the train across the border and rode westward, we saw mile after mile of ukrainian countryside, territory that a couple of months ago the russian government thought that it could cease in a matter of weeks, today, firmly ukraine's. in kyiv, we saw the signs of a vibrant city coming back to life, people eating outside, sitting on benches, strolling. it was right in front of us. ukrainians have won the battle for kyiv. for all the suffering they have endured, for all the carnage that russia's brutal invasion continue

secretary blinken said something that stood out to me. he said a sovereign ukraine, christiane, will be around much longer than putin will be on the scene. in terms of deliverables of what president zelenskyy was hoping to get out of the meeting, he said i hope my guests will not come empty-handed which secretary blinken said we never come empty-handed. we know us diplomats will be starting their way to ukraine this week. they will be making day trips in and out of ukraine primarily coming to the city where i am, in lviv. we also know that president biden is expected to nominate a new ambassador to ukraine, the current ambassador to slovakia. of course, ukraine hasn't had an ambassador since 2009. on the question of military, financial support as well, we know biden intends to over that $730 million, $730 million and additional support to ukraine as well as 50 allied partners. in the last few minutes we have heard from president zelenskyy following that meeting with the top officials from the united states. i want to read out part of what

i asked secretary of state blinken about the big loopholes.inst china and india and others who are still trading and buying oil from russia. he told me that they're trying to close them but that, you know, he thinks that one by one they're doing something important. does this new wave of sanctions address these loopholes? >> not all of the loopholes but some big ones. there are two banks here, spare bank and alta bank that we had not been able to convince europe in the previous round of sanctions to apply full blocking sanctions. we've done that today. europe is seeing the same images that we are of war crimes being committed inside ukraine, using the tactics of a terrorist state to butcher civilians to try to pressure zelenskyy to the negotiating table. we're glad europe has now joined us on these complete absolute sanctions on these two banks that were able to work around the first set of sanctions. with respect to china and india, i think it's important to recognize that there's a limit to what those two countries can provide to russia. rus

blinken and austin met with ukraine's president for 90

presidents lansky revealed anthony blinken along with the us l anthony blinken along with the us defencebegan. —— presidents lansky. 0desa sits on the coast. while most of the fighting has focused on the east of the country, the city started to reduce its curfew. it has come as a shock to residents who have experience relative calm over recent weeks, promising and hoping that west was behind them. on saturday's attack shows russia's attack was random, part of the calculation to wear ukrainians down to keep them in constant fear. last night while the russian president was at a service for 0rthodox easter, president zelensky called for a direct meeting with them to bring this war to an end. peace talks have not taken place for several weeks and vladimir putin seems in no mood to repent for his aggressive information. with no sign of the west easing its support for ukraine, might he be ready to resurrect those feedstocks? —— piece talks. 0ur correspondent, joe inwood, is in kyiv. no confirmation of the us of that visit by anthony blinken and lloyd austin but obviously presidents lansky has

secretaries of state and defense antony blinken and lloyd austin. this as russian shells rained down across the country over the weekend, including in odesa. here a video of what ukraine called a russian missile hitting an apartment building killing eight according to authorities, an infant and her mother among them. inside that building a camera captured the strike's horrific impact. and in a town northwest of kyiv there is utter destruction. russian shells shattered homes and lives, there is nothing left here but pain and an eerie silence. ukraine is of course pushing for all of the new weapons to try to avoid other towns ending up like this one. this playground now littered with bullet holes, the remnants of ukrainian fighting position to my left and to my right there is a sign warning of all the land mines that are in this area. it's going to be a long time before children can use this playground once again. the secretaries of state and defense are not the only u.s. officials interested in the future of ukraine. we met up with two members of the

secretary of state antony blinken and defense secretary lloyd austin met with president zelenskyy in kyiv yesterday. it was the first high level visit by an american delegation since the start of the russian invasion. details of the trip were kept under wraps until it was well under way. the u.s. government declined to even confirm the meeting had happened until late last night, when the u.s. delegation was safely out of ukraine. this morning, blinken and osteo written back in poland where they discussed the visit, including new promises of military and diplomatic support. >> we had an opportunity to demonstrate directly our strong support, our strong ongoing support, for the ukrainian government, and for the ukrainian people. part of our commitment, going forward, involves a number of things that i was able to share with president zelenskyy yesterday. including the return of american diplomats to ukraine starting next week, including president biden's intent to nominate a new ambassador to ukraine. >> our focus in the meeting was to talk about those things that would enable us to wi

secretary blinken has the opportunity to speak to his ukrainian counterparts. he ends up speaking to the foreign minister several times a week and we have ended up seeing the foreign minister in person as well. >> you spoke about diplomatic presence in ukraine. any update on the diplomatic presence in russia? are you guys in contact with question ambassadors? >> that is the point of our diplomatic presence in russia and around the world, to be in contact with the host government. we do have a functioning embassy in moscow, and that is where sullivan is as are ambassador sullivan's deputies and partners in regular contact with russian counterparts on issues of bilateral interest. we have spoken not only in recent months but throughout the course of this administration about the unfortunate actions that the russian federation has taken that limits our diplomatic presence on the ground in russia. in terms of the level of diplomatic staffing we are able to have in our embassy in russia , our embassy in moscow and what the russians have here in the united states. we

both blinken and austin. meanwhile here on the ground in ukraine, air strikes in odesa as you mentioned off the top, with at least eight killed, including a 3-month-old child during this press conference, president zelenskyy got emotional at least two times. one in which talking about the death in odesa saying he feels the pain of every parent in ukraine. this is important as these two leaders set to make an important visit. >> these are deliberate attacks on shrivcivilian targets by rus forces, happening on easter weekend. orthodox easter weekend. thanks so much. >>> let's go to washington. cnn's senior washington correspondent, joe johns, at the white house. as you know, this kind of information about senior level visits to war torn countries kept very secret for operational security yet the ukrainian president revealing this in advance. have you gotten any comment from the white house or the defense department? any indication that because of the security concerns this trip might be reconsidered? >> jim, th

going back to the rand paul video, talking to blinken. my question, the last statement, and really perhaps what happened to mr. blinken yesterday, a lot of times diplomats get too wordy and too long, and go on and on and on. rand paul's question was basically, did russia attack ukraine because nato is trying to claw up next to russia? you would hear from a number of people. at the time you are the head of nato, was the process for nato to go to countries and say, "hey, do you want to join us?" was the process for the countries to approach nato and say, "hey, we would like to go with you guys because you could help defend us?" if the countries coming to nato, what is the problem with that echo -- that? nato is not seeking member to try to overwhelm russia, is it? host: thanks, mark. guest: that is a good question. it is the latter. countries in eastern and central europe requested membership of nato. they asked us, "couldn't we join nato?" back in 2008, already we had a heated discussion at a summit in nato on wishes from ukraine and georg

i also hope that secretary blinken will come and open up the embassy back. i don't think that there's anything we can do more clearly to demonstrate our faith in the freedom of independence of kyiv then by having a permit in american presence. as so many of our allies have done, now in kyiv. it demonstrates we're behind, you we want you to succeed in this. as jane rightly said this is the front line, not just of the defense of kyiv or ukraine, it's the defense of the west in the civilization, given the barbarism that latimer putin and his henchmen are inflicting on the people of ukraine. >> ambassador daalder, real fast. with all your sources in the diplomatic community, have you heard anything about that being something that secretary blinken could announce today if they are indeed going to visit kyiv? that the american embassy will reopen? >> i have not. i've been pressing for it, quite publicly. i think we underestimate how much our diplomats are willing to serve in the most dangerous places, to make sure that the interest of the united states are protect

. >> carley: secretary of state antony blinken and lloyd austin just speaking out after meeting with president zelenskyy in kyiv. the pair announcing u.s. embassy officials will begin making day trips to ukraine with the goal of returning to kyiv as soon as possible. they pledge $713 million in additional aid to ukraine and surrounding countries in the region. you are watching "fox and friends first," i'm carley shimkus. >> joey: and i'm joey jones. new attacks on ukrainian train stations, matt finn is in lviv with this breaking news, what do you got for us? >> matt: reported strikes in western and central ukraine, including here in the lviv region, where the air raid sirens have been going off. we are under an active alert right now. the railway is reporting five train stations were attacked this morning with unconfirmed reports of casualties. lviv -- train station just outside of lviv to the east. that state governor saying within the past 24 hours in lviv, the air defense shot down a russian missile he says came from a plane and threat of a russian missile from the caspian sea. sh

antony blinken and lloyd austin traveled by plane to members of the cabinet in kyiv. stalwart support for ukraine ensuring president biden will nominate current u.s. ambassador to slovakia as ambassador to ukraine. >> when it comes to russia, it is failing. ukraine is succeeding. russia has sought to totally subjugate ukraine to take away its sovereignty, to take away its independence. that has failed. >> a short while ago ukrainian president zelenskyy posted to social media at the u.s. delegation of high officials to kyiv is very valuable and important and grateful to the united states of america for unprecedented l. american diplomats will return to ukraine in a couple of days at the u.s. embassy and expected to reopen in kyiv in the coming weeks, back to you. >> carley: alive and lviv, thank you, matt. >> joey: well, this is a war that keeps dragging on. it is one of those things where the casualties may not be what they were a couple of weeks ago but calming train stations now so the idea that they keep russia two attacks that remind you what they are capable of.

where he made the announcement about blinken and austin. the state and defense departments declining to comment. they would be the most senior u.s. officials to visit since the war began. today the strategic port city of odesa coming under missile attack. these images circulating on social media. a 3-month-old baby among the dead. this after a russian military commander suggested moscow wants to seize full control of the south and east of the country. those attacks as the fate of ukrainian fighters and civilians holed up in that steel plant in mariupol is unclear tonight after renewed shelling by kremlin forces. about a thousand civilians thought to be sheltering underground at that plant. these images believed to be taken this week, released by members of a far-right battalion which is now part of the ukrainian army. abc's marcus moore leading us off from kyiv tonight. >> reporter: tonight, in the face of new and deadly russian missile strikes in southern ukraine, a defiant president volodymyr zelenskyy holding a rare and highly orchestrat

blinken and austin. i'm wondering how ukrainians are reacting to it. >> reporter: gratitude, no doubt about it. a very positive reaction from ukrainian officials including from president zelenskyy himself who issued a statement after the meeting, thanking both men for coming, personally thanking president biden for what he called the united states' unprecedented support for ukraine and also thanking, quote, the american people as well as congress for their bipartisan support. he says we see it and we feel it. so, ukrainian officials clearly very happy that this meeting took place. and a meeting that, frankly, they wanted to have happen for a long time now after a series of other leaders from uk prime minister boris johnson to the leaders of other eastern europe came. also what we heard from u.s. officials, including u.s. secretary of defense lloyd austin who said they believe ukraine can win and the united states is going to do everything they can to get them the kind of weapons they need in order to be

secretary entity blinken and lloyd also met with zelenskyy today and kyiv.loyd austin is a genius when he was head of centcom called isis a flash in the pan i thought were just be helping ukraine question a good evening kevin buckley next revolution. so tonight we have just learned the president of france is going to stay an officer of the five-year site may not like micron you may not agree with his policies he was an interesting fact. at the end of his

and we're minutes away from my full, exclusive interview with secretary of state, tony blinken. we begin with the need get aid to the besieged people in mariupol. these images released by the red cross, rescuing 500 mariupol residents after they've endured more than a month of constant shelling and starvation from russian forces. humanitarian groups getting through the russian lines still hoping to evacuate thousands more. thousands more civilians along 11 separate corridors. they're going to try again today. while some are are moving to safety, the bombardment of kharkiv in northeast ukraine is continuing with more than two dozen strikes reported on residential areas overnight and blocking entry from multiple points. and officials say 10 million people, 10 million, nearly one in every four ukrainian citizens, have been displaced inside ukraine or outside by refugee along with those who -- now refugees fleeing the borders since the russian invasion began february 24th. and now to my exclusive interview with sec is reitary of state, tony blinken, here in brussels. i asked the sec

blinken, and the defense secretary.

>>> breaking overnight secretaries blinken and austin speaking to reporters hours ago after a face-to-face meeting with ukraine's president details just moments away. >>> france's emmanuel macron appears to have held off a tgh challenge from far right candidate marine le pen. >>> fire and ice a rare and deadly wildfire surging towards tornado alley in nebraska, while a blizzard is taking hold in the dakotas >>> jaw-dropping rent increases for homes and apartments u.s. places doubling for some residents. our morgan chesky with news you need to know >>> the heart stopping moment. a baby dropped from the apartment of a burning building. >>> and the bad guys deliver big-time at the weekend box office as we kick off a new week "early today" starts right now good morning i'm vinita nair. >> glad you're starting your week with us i'm frances rivera secretary of state antony blinken and lloyd austin took an unplan trip to ukraine to meet with zelimkahn yandarbiyev they are the highest level to meet with ukraine since the war began in february. the pair spoke in poland after their meeting. >> the b

secretary of staltd antony blinken said russia has "already failed" in its original goals for the war, and announced more assistance, including over $322 million in new military aid for ukraine. not a we dsovereign,o independent ukraine will be around a lot longer than vladimir putin is on the scene. >> reporter: today, president biden said he would nominate veteran u.s. diplomat bridget brink to serve as the next u.s. ambassador to ukraine. for its part, russia unleashed new attacks on at least five railway stations and fuel sites across central and western ukraine.pbut inside russia, a m fire engulfed fuel depot in bryansk, 60 miles from the border, seen in video circulating online. it's not clear how the inferno started. outside the capital in kyiv, some fear the russians might return. the heaviest fighting has moved to the east, but amidst of devastation here in irpin, locals tell me they are concerned that the russians might try to come back to the t sreti and blinken's visit to ukraine. [ speaking foreign language ] both said they're grateful, and that without support from the u

for years. >> secretary of blinken coming past you there? or just fire engines? >> no, that's just other motorcades. a lot of people are arriving here for meetings tomorrow. i mean, how can this go on for years? >> i think we as outsiders were watching the heroic events, truly heroic and witnessing truly horrific killings around kyiv. i think that's on purpose. i think putin wants us to know what a killer he is as a method of deterrent. but i think we also need to be aware that the russians have a lot of capacity to fight. even if they've lost the numbers the ukrainians claim, that means 80% of their forces are available. they're redeploying to donbas. it's obvious that's the next front of this war and that could be a protracted war for months, if not years. putin wants to connect crimea to donbas, capturing mariupol and connecting and maybe beginning to negotiate but maybe starting to move against in kharkiv and i think it's too early to assume we're in the end game of the horrible, protracted war. >> i take your assessment that we should not be misguided or foo

i'm going to talk to secretary of state antony blinken in a moment. we're going to start first with richard engle who is in kharkiv. big success in and around kyiv for the russians. where do we go from here? >> reporter: massive success from a territory perspective. a push from the entire region around kyiv. but as russian troops pull back, and as you said, they're saying this was a withdrawal in order to allow diplomacy in order to have more success, they were pushed back, and it allowed ukranian troops to go in. but what they saw was evidence of atrocities. there were bodies on the street, many of them with their hands tied behind their backs, mass graves, it appears, according to witnesses, the president's office, the mayor's office, that some of them were shot at front range execution style. these are consistent with victims' accounts we've been hearing in other battle locations where there are these -- seem to be accounts of rape, looting and executions. >> richard, is the ukranian military capable of going on offense and pushing the russians out

we heard from secretary blinken pine will no, ma'am ukraine. of course, raerk hasn't had an archipelago here since 2009. on top of that, the support president zelenskyy was looking for, $730 million in military support coming this way. important given the brutal offensive we have seen today and the last 60 days right here in ukraine, laura. >> isa, thank you so much. a lot to digest. joining me now, senior affairs contributor kim dozier. as you heard isa just mention, blinken promised the return of diplomats and the president apparently nominating an ambassador to ukraine after so much time. how important are these types of steps? are they symbolic or do they go further? >> they're both. this trip was all about, it's a massive confidence marker. the u.s., the biden administration are not going to let ukraine fall to a russian invasion. it might look like russia is on the back foot right now, but russia is a country of more than 140 million people. if vladimir putin decides to have a massive recruitment drive and declare this a war, change. the

volodymyr zelenskyy says he is meeting with antony blinken and lloyd austin in person today, inside the war-torn country. we'll have the latest. and in a sunday exclusive, we spoke with ukrainian prime minister denys shmyhal at the end of his trip to washington. then confusion and chaos over mask mandates on planes and public transportation being lifted by a federal judge. plus, what is taking so long getting vaccines for the very youngest. we'll check in with former f.d.a. commissioner dr. scott gottlieb. with inflation sky-high, interest rates creeping up, and the stock market showing some stress, are we looking at more economic turbulence ahead because of the war in ukraine? we'll talk to the head of the european central bank, christina lagarde. democratic senator lis liz senatorelizabeth warren is here. and republicans face more internal turmoil after the house minority leader criticizes former president trump in a leaked audio tape. it is all just ahead on "face the nation." ♪♪ >> brennan: good morning. welcome to "face the nation." we have been told repeatedly that the next few we

with russia attacking ukraine, secretary of state, antony blinken and defense secretary lloyd austin are expected in kyiv to meet face to face with volodymyr zelenskyy, an american first since russia's invasion. this as orthodox christians mark a solemn easter sunday. >> reporter: i'm chris livesay in ukraine, where the easter bells have been interrupted by shelling. >> duncan: avoiding a term to the far right. >> reporter: i'm in parse, where early results give emmanuel macron a second term as president. >> duncan: plus covid whiplash, infections rise again amid mass confusion over masks. we'll get a checkup with our doctor david agus. remembering orrin hatch, a seven term senator and national republican force. special skills, how a u.s. spy agency views autism as an asset. >> sometimes i can take what it would take a week for somebody to do in a couple of hours. >> duncan: and later, an out of this world video challenge, how tech savvy children are helping to design airports of the future. >> this is the cbs weekend news from new york, with jericka duncan. , with j >> duncan: good

i agree with secretary blinken, the president did express his deep appreciation along with minister of defense and chief of defense, they are deep appreciation for what the american people have continued to do to ensure that we get as much assistance as possible as quickly as possible. our focus in the meeting was to talk about those things that would enable us to win the current fight, and also built for tomorrow. again, a very productive discussion. we talked about security forces assistance, we talked about training, we also talked about key things that we are going to discuss in the session that i will conduct tomorrow with a number of ministers of defense and chiefs of defense. this nation is focused on doing things to generate additional capability, capacity for ukrainian forces. and so, it is a great opportunity to get a good update from the minister of defense, from the president on the things they are focused on, the things that they need that will enable us to have a more productive discussion with the administration of defense tomorrow. >> secretary austin, secretary blinken

that meeting between antony blinken and lloyd austin, u.s. secretary of state and u.s.ense secretary, very important. >> that's right. at rhetoric ratcheted up with sergey lavrov speaking of world war iii. it is not looking very peaceful or like any resolution is in sight. to focus on that meeting, the highest-ranking u.s. officials to visit ukraine since the beginning of the conflict. it was meant to be a secret meeting, but latimer zelenskyy -- i suppose -- volodymyr zelenskyy, i suppose he was excited, he gave it away before they arrived in kyiv. what it did signal is the americans are there and very much present and it is a show of force and confidence. we are hearing there will be a new u.s. ambassador in kyiv and diplomats back in the country, particularly in the west of the country, lviv, more military equipment, also former soviet ammunition. ukrainians more accustomed to soviet munitions. that is on top of the $323 million pumped in. we will see an increase in the shelling back-and-forth particularly in donbas, reminiscent of world war i with bunkers. 400,000 u

. >> my guest today secretary of state antony blinken and russia putin expert. >> and one-on-one with hillary clinton. >> to let an autocrat do what putin decided to do is something that everybody has a stake in trying to stop. >> i'll talk to the former seth of state about putin, the war, and the democrats midterm head winds. and the democrats look at a policy that limited immigration. >> every day it is more and more difficult for the administration's claim that they're entitled whatsoever. >> and donald trump asked putin for information on president biden's son hunter. >> i would think pute wouldn't know the answer to that. i think we should see. >> why is the former president again asking for help from a man waging war on an ally? >> joining me from insider analysis are amy walter editor and chief and publisher of the political report. democratic pollster cornell, and leigh ann caldwell and republican strategist brandon todd. welcome to sunday. it's "meet the press." >> from nbc news in washington, the longest-running show in television history, this is "meet the press," with chuc

secretary state entity at blinken.t is scheduled for tomorrow in ukraine's capitol for this of course it follows that visit by prime minister boris johnson. president zelenskyy has invited president biden to visit him in kyiv which be a huge and major stand of solidarity with ukrainian people. but for now, tomorrow he'll be visited by the secretary of state and by the secretary of defense for lot more on that in just a moment. but first a tragic update from the southern border that search for a missing texas national guard soldier is now a recovery mission but we are told he never surfaced yesterday. after heroically diving into the russian current of the rio grande river to rescue illegal immigrants were struggling to cross into our country from mexico across the other side. hello everyone welcome to fox to slide by eric shawn, hi arthel. arthel: hello everyone i am arthel neville by the crisis of the southern border continues with no end in sight. latest numbers from customs and border protection show agents encounte

and for secretary blinken, i understand you have spoken with the u.n. secretary general about his upcoming visits. what is his strategy for his engagement or world engagement with moscow or kyiv to see into this thing? >> as you heard us talk, or say in the past, recent past, the nature of the fight has evolved because the terrain that they're now focused on is a different type of terrain. so they need long-range fires. you've heard them express a need for tanks. and we're doing everything that we can to get them the types of support, the types of artillery and munitions that will be effective in this stage of the fight. and so we'll get a chance. we've done a lot. as you know, you've seen what we've done here in recent pasts with a recent $800 million authorization provided by the president. allows us to provide five battalions of 155 howitzers, hundreds of thousands of rounds of artillery, and so we're also engaging our colleagues in other countries for the same type of capability. and we see indications early on that they're going to -- many countrie

blinken, they will be here. we will be waiting for the time for the president of the united states to come here and support the ukrainian people as well. eric: former u.s. ambassador to ukraine. ambassador, the anticipated visit by blinken and austin, is it merely symbolic, dog and pony show or is it much much substantial or punch in the nose to vladimir putin? >> it is a punch in the nose. it does symbolize the u.s. support for ukraine and that's support but it also demonstrates that the united states is not just there in economic support or in rhetorical support, no, it's there and they will have a good conversation about the military support. the 3 and a half billion dollars worth of equipment since the russians invaded on the 24th of february is a number but it now is translating into real capacity. we are talking about howitzers long-range artillery and new drones and serious capacity that allows the ukrainian military to actually defeat the russian military and that can happen. so it's more than just symbo

next i am pleased to announce it earlier today secretary blinken formally launches and of the bureau of cyber and policy that that news to bureau in a major step in realizing the modernization of american diplomacy and department of state. event this point the secretary introduced jennifer bacchus senior foreign service officer principal deputy assistant secretary for europe. principal secretary bacchus will lead as a senior official until ambassador at large is nominated and confirmed by the senate. the bureau include policy units focused on international cyberspace security, international communications and information policy and digital freedom as well part acting deputy assistant secretary michelle and steven anderson and acting digital freedom coordinator blake peterson are leading those three policy units respectively. the bureau will report directly to deputy secretary sherman for at least the first year. as we said when secretary announced his intent to announce the bert late lester the bureau is a key piece of a broader effort to orient state department for fundamentally new

that assessment comes from tony blinken. as the u.s. reprepares to reopen its embassy in kyiv, which we noted at the stop of the show. with life outside of the capital city is drastically different with russia continuing its assault on major cities. joining me now is ukraine's former minister of infrastructure, who enlisted when the war began. thank you for joining us. i want to ask you about something we were discussing in our last block here. this idea that russia seems to be targeting the railway stations. the rail infrastructure, how concerning is that to you? how much does that affect the ability to fight back? >> good afternoon, the pleasure is mine. thank you for inviting me to your show today. yaush is focused on that. 90% of the military supplies comes with railway. i hope they will be sanctioned and banned from the western of many other things they enjoy. but taking into account the situation in ukraine, it's very simple. it's hitting us, but i believe it was a clear message to the united states that the next time you come to

secretary of state antony blinken and defense secretary lloyd austin met with zelenskyy in the capital of kyiv as the u.s. announced new military assistance for ukraine. american diplomats who left ukraine before russia invaded will also start returning to the country. bradley blackburn is in new york with the latest on all of this. good morning. >> reporter: hey, good morning. these are the highest level u.s. officials to meet with president zelenskyy face to face since before the invasion began, and after his visit to kyiv, secretary blinken said russia is failing in this war, and ukraine is succeeding. secretary of state antony blinken and defense secretary lloyd austin met with ukrainian president volodymyr zelenskyy in kyiv this weekend. >> we expressed deep admiration for his leadership, for the extraordinary courage of ukrainians in standing up to and pushing back this russian aggression. >> reporter: the two officials are the highest ranking americans to visit since russia invaded two months ago and bring news of additional military funding and renewed diplomatic relations. pre

but it is very good new secretary blinken is there.s you say boris johnson was or the other day princess side of support for president zelensky and the ukrainian people. was he sort of thing that resistance groups draw strength from gets on the courage to carry on knowing the west and other countries around the world met is all symbolized by secretary blinken's visit. eric: that is not yet been confirmed as you say but the state department for the prime ministers visit we saw him walking in the streets with president zelensky, it was amazing. what did he get out of it? how is his support and the support of blinken helping the ukrainian people and showing this around the world? post wealthy prime minister talk to president zelensky every day on the phone. so he wanted to go in person to show that support and resolve in person, president zelensky we are on his side and that we are rooting for ukraine to be able to push the russians back. he also brought practical sport he announced more anti- tank missiles, more money for ukraine in term

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antony blinken and lloyd austin have wrapped up a visit in kyiv. applies to step up military aid. including more advanced weapons. a turkish court has sentenced this man to life in prison and a case that has caused tension. he was found guilty of attempting to overthrow the government by organizing antigovernment protests. the french born businessman had been held without trial, earning condemnation from the european court of human rights. germany has already demanded his immediate release. they have made a tactical retreat. they have withdrawn all of their forces from the neighboring or far region. they hope the withdrawal will allow aid to reach ukraine. samuel says this was the only way the government would allow much needed food into the region. >> you can only agree to some kind of cease fire if a terrorist organization -- this is to protect any kind of attack that might come their way and it does not seem to be any end in sight. they have been trained by a vote to end this conflict. they have been going back and forth. even speaking to the kenya president, there does not see

secretary of state blinken is going to testify before your committee tomorrow.do you have for him following his trip to ukraine? >> well, jake, good to be with you. i want to hear what he heard from president zelenskyy. i want to hear specifically what is the type of assistance that president zelenskyy is looking for. what is our ability to provide that? what is the success of the overwhelming lethal equipment that we have provided the ukrainians, and how are they using that? so i want to get a clear picture from the state department about what has happened in terms of that which we provided. hot is the plan for that which we will provide so the ukrainians can continue to successfully fight for their country and defeat the russians at the end of the day. so while tomorrow's hearing is a bigger hearing. it's about the budget, but obviously, this is the issue of the moment, and i'm sure there will be many questions along those lines. >> a senior state department official tells cnn that secretary blinken said american diplomats are going to start to return to kyiv

secretary of state anthony blinken and austin left with ukraine.t a sovereign, independent ukraine will be around a lot longer than vladimir putin is on the scene. our support for ukraine going forward will continue. it will continue until we see final success. >> and a short while ago ukrainian president zelenskyy posted to social media that the u.s. delegation of high officials to kyiv is, quote: very valuable and important and he is grateful to the united states of america for, quote: unprecedented help. the secretary of state says american diplomatics will begin returning to this country of ukraine within the coming days, making stops here in lviv and eventually our u.s. embassy in kyiv will reopen at a later date. back to you guys in new york. >> steve: matt, a real quick question. last week we were talking about how there were a couple thousand ukrainians still hold up at that steel plant in mariupol. it is believed there are 2,000 army men and like a thousand or two civilians as well. and last week it was news because putin essentially stopp

blinken and the defense secretary. and we will be waiting for the time when the security situation allows for the president to come and talk to us. >> reporter: the u.s. state department and white house declined to comment on the matter. but skenlsky said talks alone won't help ukraine. >> why is it important for leaders to come to you? i will give you a pragmatic answer. because they should not come here with empty hands now. we are waiting not just for presents or cakes. we are expecting specific things and specific weapons. >> on friday a russian general made clear one of moscow's goals in ukraine by saying russia intends to seize southern parts of the country, to create a land corridor between the eastern donbas region and crimea. on saturday, for the first time in weeks, russia launched major strikes on the southern port city of odesa, which ukrainian officials say hit a residential building, killing at least eight, including an infant. the russian defense ministry said it was targeting a trm nall which housed wea

defense secretary lloyd austin and secretary of state antony blinken made the risky journey to visit ukrainian president zelenskyy in the capital kyiv. there the u.s. promised the return of diplomats to ukraine and new military aid. president biden also finally announced a nominee for ambassador to ukraine. the current ambassador to slovakia, bridget brink. >> we don't know how the rest of this war will unfold, but we do know that a sovereign, independent ukraine will be around a lot longer than vladimir putin's on the scene. and our support for ukraine going forward will continue. it wi it will continue until we see final success. >> reporter: saying it intends to see russia, quote, weaken. >> we want to see russia weakened to the degree that it can't do the kinds of things that it has done in invading ukraine. so it has already lost a lot of military capability, and a lot of its troops quite frankly. and we want to see them not have the capability to very quickly reproduce that capability. >> reporter: austin and blinken as well as other world leaders traveled in and out of the ukr

secretary of state blinken said during the summit, and i'm quoting him, he's regional peace agreementsan't be a substitute between progress with israelis and palestinians. is he right? amb. herzog: that certainly was a topic that was discussed at the summit. i certainly believe that it offers benefits for israeli palestinian relations because our involvement could open more space for both parties to engage. i believe stakeholders in some of the court issues separating israelis and palestinians like security and other issues. i hope we find a way to operationalize that intentional so that it also benefits the israeli-palestinian relations. souad: israel was able to cut deals with other areas, why is it so difficult to find agreement with the palestinians? amb. herzog: i could give you a lecture all day long, i spent well over 20 years of my life negotiating peace with the palestinians. i started beginning in 1993, with secretary kerry, you name it. essentially we are talking about to national movements with claims to the same piece of territory with conflicting narratives, and it is ext

secretary blinken said that is something that is being looked at.take a few weeks for them to make that determination, but they are going to be resuming going into ukraine at least during the days. and when it comes to the biden administration and how they view this war at this moment in time, secretary austin said that the united states hopes that russia will be weakened to the degree that it can't carry out this type of invasion into ukraine after this war has concluded. and, of course, we have heard from biden administration officials that they believe ukraine must win, that russia is losing at this point they are failing in their objective to take over the entire country, but it is significant that secretary austin said the united states wants to see russia weakened, essentially so it doesn't have the military capability to invade other european countries. and that appears to have longer-term implications for russia that the united states would like to see outside the c confines of just the ukraine war. >> yeah. kylie, and it's noteworthy that t

antony blinken was giving evidence to a senate committee. the matter of time in which iran could develop a nuclear weapon has dropped from a year to weeks. this he said is also a consequence of then-president trump's decision to pull out of the jcpoa. antony blinken using this opportunity to make this public to the senate. no doubt as well with an eye for getting domestic support for the biden administration's intention to resuscitate that joint comprehensive plan of action. it is not necessarily popular among congress and blinken using this example as a way to encourage and increase support for the biden administration's attempts to get the jcpoa back on track. lauren: thank you. a female suicide bomber has killed four and injured seven in southern pakistan. the blast ripped through a minibus going through the university of karachi. three chinese nationals were killed. a separatist group known as the baloch liberation army claimed responsibility. a former cabinet minister was freed on bail from a sudan prison. this was four months after a t