Morning brief: Russian forces surround Mariupol, S.Jaishankar-Anthony Blinken's virtual meet, and more

The Russian offensive on Ukraine is now moving toward theDonbas region, with the United Statesclaiming that Russia is"repositioning" and "refocusing". As stories of the invading Russian military, employing rape as a punishment method increase, the United Nations' women's agency has raised an alarm, Moscow however has refuted these claims. In other news, the US has now begun issuing gender-neutral passports to all its citizens.

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Pentagon said Russian forces were amassed in Donbas region but hadn't launched an offensive as yet amid indications of renewed fighting in the area.

Top UN officials have called for a probe of Russia's aggression against women during its invasion of Ukraine, as well as the protection of children caught up in the conflict.

Just hours after US President Joe Biden spoke to India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a virtual summit, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said,"It is important that all countries, especially those with leverage, press Putin to end the war" referring to the Ukraine war.

At a time when many states, and Republican lawmakers across the United States have been passing laws that as per critics are infringing upon LGBTQ rights, US President Joe Biden’s administration has come up with something no less than a boon. From Monday citizens in the US can now receive a passport with the gender designation “X”.

Watch |'Tackling Ukraine crisis' key focus of Modi-Biden's virtual talks