We need you right now, Zelenskyy tells US; invokes Pearl Harbor, 9/11

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy summoned the memory of Pearl Harbour and the September 11, 2001, terror attacks on Wednesday as he appealed to the US Congress to do more to help Ukraine’s fight against Russia.

Meanwhile, Ukraine and Russia drew up a tentative peace plan to end the war. The deal includes a ceasefire and Russian troop withdrawal if Kyiv renounces Nato membership ambitions and accepts limits on its armed forces, the Financial Times reported.

In his address, Zelenskyy acknowledged the no-fly zone he has sought to “close the sky” to the Russians over his country may not happen. Livestreamed into the Capitol complex, he said the US must sanction Russian lawmakers and block imports. But rather than an enforced no-fly zone, he instead sought other military aid to stop Russian airstrikes.

“We need you right now,” Zelenskyy said. “I call on you to do more.” Lawmakers gave him a standing ovation, before and after his short remarks, which Zelenskyy began in Ukrainian through an interpreter .

New talk of compromise from both Moscow and Kyiv on a status for Ukraine outside of Nato lifted hope on Wednesday for a potential breakthrough after three weeks of war.

Zelenskyy said negotiations were becoming “more realistic”, while Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said proposals now being discussed were “in my view close to an agreement”.  The Kremlin said the sides were discussing status for Ukraine similar to that of Austria or Sweden, both members of the European Union that are outside the Nato military alliance.

Ukraine's chief negotiator said Kyiv was still demanding a ceasefire, the withdrawal of Russian troops, and binding international security guarantees to protect Ukraine in future.

1st high-level US-Russia contact since invasion

US national security adviser Jake Sullivan spoke on Wednesday with Nikolay Patrushev, the secretary of Russia’s Security Council, in the first high-level contact publicly disclosed between the two countries since the invasion of Ukraine, and warned Patrushev about the consequences “of any possible Russian decision to use chemical or biological weapons in Ukraine.” The White House statement after the call between the two officials did not specify what those consequences would be. 

World court orders Russia to stop military operation

The United Nations’ top court on Wednesday ordered Russia to stop hostilities in Ukraine granting measures requested by Kyiv, although many remain sceptical that Russia would comply. Ukraine had two weeks ago asked the International Court of Justice, also known as the World Court, to intervene, arguing Russia violated the 1948 Genocide Convention by falsely accusing Ukraine of committing genocide and using that as a pretext for the ongoing invasion. 

Nato starts planning to adapt to ‘new reality’

The United States and other Nato members said on Wednesday they would keep helping Ukraine fight off Russia’s invasion. “We need to reset our military posture for this new reality,”  Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on Tuesday. Diplomats and military analysts estimate that Nato allies have sent more than 20,000 anti-tank and other weapons to Ukraine since the invasion started on February 24. “We remain united in our support of Ukraine,” US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said.