President Joe Biden to discuss North Korea, Russian invasion on Asia trip: White House

White House press secretary Jen Psaki on Thursday said US President Joe Biden is all set to discuss North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs with his counterparts in South Korea and Japan during a trip to those two countries later this month.

Psaki said the US President will also discuss holding Russia accountable for its invasion of Ukraine during the trip, which will also include talks in Tokyo with the leaders of the Quad grouping of nations, the United States, Australia, Japan and India.

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Meanwhile, Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby was quoted as saying in reports, Moscow’s forces are still making only “plodding” and incremental progress as the main fight presses on in the eastern Donbas region.

Currently, the world is staring at a food crisis with Russia and Ukraine together producing 30% of the global wheat supply and the UN chief, according to an AFP report.

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Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday said that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has devastated hundreds of hospitals and other institutions and left doctors without drugs to tackle cancer or the ability to perform surgery.

In a video address to a medical charity group, the Ukrainian President said many places lacked even basic antibiotics in eastern and southern Ukraine, the focal points of the fighting.

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“If you consider just medical infrastructure, as of today Russian troops have destroyed or damaged nearly 400 healthcare institutions: hospitals, maternity wards, outpatient clinics,” the Ukrainian President told the gathering.