Thursday morning news: December 22, 2022

For WORLD Radio, I'm Kent Covington. 

Zelenskyy in Washington » History at the Capitol last night

CONGRESS: Madam Speaker, the president of Ukraine...

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addressed a joint meeting of Congress in his first trip outside of Ukraine since Russia invaded in February.

He told lawmakers that relentless Russian attacks on civilian targets have not and will not break the spirit of the Ukrainian people.

ZELENKSYY: If they attack us with Iranian drones and our people will have to go to bomb shelters on Christmas Eve, Ukrainians will still sit down at the holiday table and cheer up each other.

And he said every Ukrainian has one wish this Christmas…

ZELENSKYY: Victory. Only victory!

Ukraine assistance » Hours earlier, Zelenskyy met with President Biden at the White House.

During a joint press conference, Biden officially announced a new aid package to Ukraine, nearly $2 billion in weapons and equipment.

BIDEN: Critically, in addition to these new capabilities, like precision aerial munitions, the package will include a Patriot missile battery, which we’ll train Ukrainian forces to operate.

Both presidents said the Patriot system will significantly upgrade Ukraine’s air defenses.

Putin remarks » Meantime, in Moscow, Vladimir Putin sought to justify the invasion of Ukraine.

PUTIN: [Russian]

He said, "Of course, military operations are always associated with tragedy and loss of life.” But he claimed the conflict was inevitable, adding, it's better today than tomorrow."

During a meeting with military commanders, Putin said Russia is still ramping up its military capabilities, including the combat readiness of its nuclear forces.

He highlighted the new Zircon hypersonic cruise missile, which he said Russian troops will be able to use beginning next month.

Taliban women's rights crackdown » Afghanistan's Taliban rulers on Tuesday banned female students from attending universities. WORLD’s Kristen Flavin has that story.

KRISTEN FLAVIN, REPORTER: When the Taliban again seized control of the country last year, the group initially promised a more moderate stance—by its standards—regarding women’s rights.

But instead, they banned girls from middle school and high school. They banned women from parks and gyms and restricted them from most employment.

Now comes word that women can no longer attend college classes. The higher education minister has instructed universities to implement the ban as soon as possible.

For WORLD, I’m Kristen Flavin.

Weather » Severe winter weather is greeting holiday travelers this week.

The blast of frigid weather began hammering the Pacific Northwest Tuesday. And tomorrow, the arctic front will spread bone-chilling cold as far south as Florida.

The heaviest snow is expected in Idaho, Montana and Wyoming, but Bob Orevec with the National Weather Service says…

OREVEC: We do anticipate a potential for a foot to 2 feet of snow across a good part of Michigan, portions of New York states, any areas that are downwind of the Great Lakes.

Authorities across the country are worried about the potential for power outages and warned people to take precautions to protect the elderly, the homeless and livestock.

Denver Mayor Michael Hancock says his city is trying to help residents without warm housing. But he said an influx of migrants into the city has stretched resources thin and he’s not alone.

HANCOCK: I have talked to no less than 10 mayors this week who are raising the red flag saying we are at a breaking point.

The northernmost regions of the U.S. could see wind chills approaching 70 degrees below zero.

Home sales drop again » The housing market slump deepened in November. Sales of existing homes slowed for the tenth straight month.

Existing home sales fell 7.7% last month from October to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of just over 4 million. And sales plunged 35% from this time last year.

Still, the national median home sales price rose 3.5% in November from a year earlier, to $370,000.

I’m Kent Covington. For more news, features, and analysis, visit us at wng.org.

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