Five Things to Know, Feb. 27, 2023

1.   Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine has triggered “the most massive violations of human rights” in the world today, the head of the United Nations said Monday, as the war pushed into its second year with no end in sight. The Russian invasion “has unleashed widespread death, destruction and displacement,” U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres said in a speech to the U.N.-backed Human Rights Council in Geneva.

2.   China on Monday accused the U.S. of “outright bullying and double standards” in leveling what it called “illegal” sanctions on Chinese companies as part of U.S. actions against Russia’s Wagner Group and related companies and individuals. The entities were targeted for their role in the war in Ukraine and mercenary activities, including human rights abuses, in Africa.

3.   China said it closely monitored the flight of a U.S. surveillance plane through the Taiwan Strait on Monday, accusing the U.S. of having “deliberately disrupted and undermined the regional situation.” Chinese forces organized to keep an eye on the passage of the P-8A Poseidon anti-submarine patrol plane and “all matters were in hand,” the People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command said in a social media posting.

4.   Russian President Vladimir Putin said in an interview broadcast Sunday that after Russia suspended its participation in the last arms control agreement with Washington, it would “take into account” the nuclear weapons capabilities not only of the United States but of other NATO countries such as France and Britain.

5.   Just days after the one-year anniversary of the start of fighting in Eastern Europe, Ukraine will be the focus of multiple congressional hearings as lawmakers return to Capitol Hill this week. On Tuesday, Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Colin Kahl will appear before the House Armed Services Committee to talk about military support for Ukraine from the United States, and how that equipment is being used. At the same time, outside think tank experts will testify before the Senate Armed Services Committee to provide an update on the latest developments in the conflict, and what it could mean for long-term resolution of the fighting.

6.   The Navy plans to permanently assign chaplains to all destroyers by fiscal year 2025 in hopes they can fill a shortage of emotional, mental and spiritual counselors aboard those ships. Having access to mental health resources remains an important topic to sailors, given a spate of at least 10 suicides and two suicide attempts since April aboard aircraft carriers such as the USS Ronald Reagan, USS Theodore Roosevelt and USS George Washington.