Live updates: Official: Thousands evacuated from Sumy

“This mission was set to expire next year and in light of the situation in Europe, we decided to renew it ahead of schedule,” Trudeau said. He says 130 more Canadian personnel would join it in coming weeks.

Trudeau also defended Canada’s decision to supply lethal aid to Ukraine, including rocket launchers and hand grenades, despite some weapons shortfalls at home.

“All those weapons are much more useful right now and in the coming weeks, in the hands of Ukrainian soldiers fighting for their lives than they would be in Canadian hands,” he said.

Speaking alongside Trudeau at the Adazi military base in Latvia, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said that Spain is also set to send around 150 more troops to the Baltic state to bolster its presence there.

WASHINGTON — President Biden announced Tuesday that the U.S. is “targeting the main artery of Russia’s economy” by banning imports of Russian oil, the latest sanction intended to punish Moscow for its invasion of Ukraine.

“We will not be part of subsidizing Putin’s war,” he said in the Roosevelt Room at the White House.

Biden’s announcement came amid rising pressure from Democrats and Republicans, and it reflects a willingness to accept the political risk of rising gas prices to economically retaliate against Russia.