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Ukraine ‘was and will continue to be a free and independent country’ the secretary of state tells US senatorsBiden seeks to boost racial justice resume with pardonsRussia-Ukraine war – follow live updatesSign up to receive First Thing – our daily briefing by emailUkraine “was and will continue to be a free and independent country” Antony Blinken has told US senators, reflecting on his weekend trip to the country with the defense secretary, Lloyd Austin, which he says “left an indelible impression.”Addressing the Senate’s foreign relations committee, the secretary of states also said the US “must not let up” in its support for Ukraine, having already committed almost $15bn in humanitarian and military aid and with Joe Biden set to ask Congress for more this week.For all the carnage that Russia’s brutal invasion continues to inflict, Ukraine was and will continue to be a free and independent country. It’s impossible not to be moved by what the Ukrainians have achieved.It’s also impossible not to believe that they will keep succeeding because they know why they fight. I have to tell you, I felt some pride in what the United States has done to support the Ukrainian government and its people and an even firmer conviction that we must not let up. As we took the train across the border, and rode westward into Ukraine, we saw mile after mile of Ukrainian countryside, territory that just a couple of months ago the Russian government thought that it could seize 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 around, it was right in front of us. The Ukrainians have won the battle for Kyiv. Continue reading...