Tensions rose over the weekend as Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered nuclear deterrent forces to be on high alert, and the United States advising that Americans should leave Russia as soon as possible.

As fighting continued across Ukraine overnight into Monday morning, Ukraine and Russia prepared to meet at the border of Belarus, where Kyiv said it would push for a cease-fire during the talks with officials from Moscow. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he had agreed to meet with the Russians on the border of Belarus “without preconditions” after speaking with that country’s president, Alexander Lukashenko, but added that he did not expect those ‘talks to be fruitful.’

Meanwhile, the European Union made a historic move to finance the purchase and delivery of lethal weapons to aid the Ukrainian resistance.  FedEx and UPS announced they were suspending shipments to Russia, further isolating Russia’s economy from the rest of the world.  And Google will no longer allow Russian state media outlets to run ads, following a similar decision over the weekend from YouTube, and from Meta — Facebook’s parent — saying it would suspend Russian state media’s ability to run ads and monetize them on its platforms.

For full, in-depth coverage of the Russia-Ukraine crisis, head to NBC News at the link here, or click the link to ABC news below.

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