As recently summarized at The Daily Beast, “Russia’s Vladimir Putin, famous for his rumored reliance on Botox, looks set to be cut off from the popular wrinkle treatment thanks to his war against Ukraine.” The pharmaceutical company known as AbbVie, which owns Botox, recently “said it has temporarily suspended operations for all its aesthetics products in” Russia, according to Reuters. The latter outlet also noted that “Western companies have come under pressure to leave Russia, but the healthcare sector has not pulled out because medicine and medical devices and equipment are considered necessary for humanitarian reasons and are excluded from sanctions.”
At the end of his address to the U.S. Congress, Zelensky switched to English:
"Today the Ukrainian people are defending not only Ukraine. We are fighting for the values of Europe and the world, sacrificing our lives in the name of the future."
— The Kyiv Independent (@KyivIndependent) March 16, 2022
Russia has faced increasing economic isolation over the presently unfolding war, which Russian forces began weeks ago and has already claimed the lives of thousands of civilians across Ukraine. In remarks this week to members of the U.S. Congress, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy asked for further economic action against Russia, including sanctions against Russian legislators who are behind the actions of the Putin regime. The U.S. has announced steps including an end to the most favored nation trade status designation that Russia held in the United States; the designation, which other countries were also lifting in their relations with Russia, allowed for relatively free trade. The U.S. has also announced that it would be blocking imports from Russia of energy and goods such as seafood and alcohol.
At the St. Patrick's lunch on Capitol Hill, President Biden notes he'll be speaking to President Xi tomorrow, calls President Putin a "murderous dictator" and "pure thug" and says the Kremlin is waging "an immoral war" against the people of Ukraine.
— Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) March 17, 2022
As President Biden recently explained: “Shipments of defensive weapons are arriving in Ukraine every day from the United States, and we, the United States, are the ones coordinating the delivery from our allies and partners of similar weapons — from Germany to Finland to the Netherlands… We are enforcing the most significant package of economic sanctions in history, and it’s causing significant damage to Russia’s economy… Putin’s war has caused enormous suffering and needless loss of life… Putin seems determined to continue on his murderous path, no matter the cost… Russia may continue to grind out its advance at a horrible price, but this much is already clear: Ukraine will never be a victory for Putin. Putin may be able to take a city. But he’ll never be able to hold the country.” Zelenskyy said in those recent remarks to Congress that his country “is grateful to the United States for its overwhelming support, for everything that your government and your people have done for us — for weapons and ammunition, for training, for finances, for leadership in the free world, which helps us to pressure the aggressor economically.”
We will make sure Ukraine has weapons to defend against the invading Russian force.
We will send money and food and aid to save Ukrainian lives.
We will welcome Ukrainian refugees with open arms.
— President Biden (@POTUS) March 14, 2022
