'Russia is failing. Ukraine is succeeding,' Blinken says after secretive Kyiv visit

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MONDAY, APRIL 25, 2022

Good morning, NBC News readers.

A visit by top officials to Kyiv shows U.S.-Ukraine relationship is "stronger than ever." French President Emmanuel Macron has won re-election, staving off his far-right challenger. And China is hunting down Uyghurs around the world with some surprising help, according to a new report.

Here's what we're watching this Monday morning.

U.S. officials pledge new diplomatic, military support on secretive Kyiv visit

Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin slipped into Ukraine on Sunday for an extraordinary wartime meeting with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, bringing new promises of military and diplomatic support and defying grave safety concerns.

The trip, the highest-level American visit since Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, was designed to show steadfast U.S. support for Ukraine and its defense as the war enters a new, worrying phase expected to be marked by a major Russian offensive in Ukraine’s south and east.

Speaking to reporters in Poland on Monday morning following the meeting, Blinken said that "Russia is failing" to achieve its war aims, while "Ukraine is succeeding."

Austin added that Washington wants "to see Russia weakened to the degree that it can’t do the kinds of things that it has done in invading Ukraine."

Follow Monday's live blog and NBC News Now for all the latest developments.

Read more of our in-depth coverage:

Monday's Top Stories

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Read more about the big festival starting this Thursday here.

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