The World Bank has lowered its annual global growth forecast for 2022 by nearly a full percentage point, from 4.1% down to 3.2%, citing the pressure that Russia's invasion of Ukraine has placed on the global economy.
The Ukrainian military says Russia's long-expected offensive push into eastern Ukraine has started, with intensified assaults Monday in the Slobozhansky and Donetsk operational districts in the north and east of the country.
Increased attacks were also recorded near the cities of Izyum in the Kharkiv district and Sloviansk in the Donetsk district, as well as around Severodonetsk and Popasna in the Luhansk region, farther east.
Meanwhile, the U.S. has flown four military cargo aircraft of security assistance into the region in the last 24 hours, with another flight into the theater expected before Tuesday afternoon, a defense official said.
The weapons are part of President Joe Biden's $800 million assistance package announced last week, a package that includes heavy artillery directly from the stockpiles of the U.S. Army and Marine Corps.
American military specialists will begin training Ukrainian troops on how to operate the howitzer artillery systems in "the next several days," Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said during a daily briefing.