Actors Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher pledge $3 million in donations to aid Ukraine



Ukrainian-born actress Mila Kunis and her husband, Ashton Kutcher, have pledged to donate up to $3 million to aid Ukrainian citizens fleeing from their war-torn country as Russia continues its deadly invasion.

What are the details?

In a Thursday video shared to his Twitter account, Kutcher and Kunis said that they were "proud" of Kunis's heritage and intended to provide aid for Ukrainian refugees.

“I was born in Chernivtsi, Ukraine in 1983. I came to America in 1991," Kunis explained. "I have always considered myself American, a proud American, I love everything that this country has done for myself and my family. But today, I have never been more proud to be a Ukrainian."

Kutcher added, “And I’ve never been more proud to be married to a Ukrainian."

“The events that have unfolded in Ukraine are devastating. There is no place in this world for this kind of unjust attack on humanity,” Kunis continued, and vowed to match up to $3 million in donations for refugee relief via GoFundMe.

Fox News reported that the funds will be distributed to necessary causes through Flexport.org and Airbnb.org, which have been assisting needy and fleeing Ukrainians.

“While we witness the bravery of the people of the country that she was born in we’re also witness to the needs of those who have chosen safety," Kutcher explained. "We’re raising funds to support a relief effort that will have immediate impact and supply much needed refugee and humanitarian aid in the area. The principal challenge right now is logistics. We need to get housing, and we need to get supplies and resources into the area."

Kunis added, "The people of Ukraine are strong and brave but being strong and brave doesn’t mean you’re not worthy of support. We need to support the people of Ukraine. Please help us."

Standing with Ukraine means supporting Ukrainians. #StandWithUkraine (1/2)https://www.gofundme.com/f/stand-with-ukraine\u00a0\u2026
— ashton kutcher (@ashton kutcher) 1646350981
#StandWithUkraine (2/2)pic.twitter.com/3njMN01dHJ
— ashton kutcher (@ashton kutcher) 1646351693

Russian TV channel condemns war as staff walk out while live on air



Staff at an independent Russian television station signed off their final broadcast by decrying war and walking out of the studio in protest.

According to a report from Newsweek, Russian authorities ordered the station to cease broadcasting over its coverage of the country's invasion of Ukraine. The reported noted that Russian authorities demanded media refrain from referring to President Vladimir Putin's invasion as a "war" and instead insisted they use the term "special military operation." Those in violation of the newly authorized law face up to 15 years in prison.

What are the details?

Station staffers signed off their final show on Thursday and walked out of the studio

"No to war," Natalia Sindeyeva, the station's general director, said on Thursday as staff left the studio and made the decision to air Tchaikovsky's "Swan Lake," which according to the report, "was aired on Soviet state TV during the collapse of the Soviet Union."

"We need strength to exhale and understand how to work further," Sindeyeva said in a statement shared on the channel's website. "We really hope that we will return to the air and continue our work."

Ukraine News UK tweeted video footage of the walkout and captioned it, "The Entire staff of the Russian TV channel 'the rain' resigned during a live stream with last words: 'no war' and then played 'swan lake' ballet video (just like they did on all USSR tv channels when it suddenly collapsed)."

The Entire staff of the Russian TV channel \u201cthe rain\u201d resigned during a live stream with last words: \u201cno war\u201d and then played \u201cswan lake\u201d ballet video (just like they did on all USSR tv channels when it suddenly collapsed) #Ukriane #UkraineRussiaWar #Russia #StandWithUkraine\ufe0fpic.twitter.com/o4LzUqnWLc
— Ukraine News UK (@Ukraine News UK) 1646354157

What else is there to know about this?

Independent Russian radio station Ekho Moskvy this week also shut down.

"The Ekho Moskvy board of directors has decided by a majority of votes to liquidate the radio channel and the website of Ekho Moskvy," editor in chief Alexei Venediktov said in a statement on the closure.

Russia's prosecutor general in a statement said that such "fake news" — or "information known to be false regarding the actions of Russian servicemen" as "part of a special operation to protect the Donetsk People's Republic and the Luhansk People's Republic" is illegal and will not be tolerated.

The statement added that accused outlets were guilty of spreading information calling for "extremism, violence against citizens of the Russian Federation, mass violations of public order and public security."

Bars and liquor stores yank Russian vodka off shelves, governors of Texas and Ohio boycott products from Russia to protest Ukraine invasion



Numerous countries, including the United States, have launched sanctions against Russia for the invasion of Ukraine. Now, there will be local and state boycotts on one of Russia's most iconic exports – vodka.

In Canada, Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy ordered the provincial Liquor Control Board of Ontario to have stores remove vodka and other alcoholic products from Russia.

"Ontario joins Canada’s allies in condemning the Russian government’s act of aggression against the Ukrainian people, and will direct the LCBO to withdraw all products produced in Russia from store shelves," tweeted on Friday with the hashtag #StandwithUkraine.

"Ontario and the LCBO can’t say it’s truly standing with Ukraine while continuing to be Putin’s customer," said Steven Del Duca, leader of the Ontario Liberal Party, according to Fox News.

Russian products will be removed from nearly 700 stores across Ontario.

Canada's Newfoundland Labrador Liquor Corporation (NLC) also declared that it would yank Russian products off the shelves.

"The Newfoundland and Labrador Liquor Corporation, along with other Liquor jurisdictions throughout Canada, has made the decision to remove products of Russian origin from its shelves. These include Russian Standard Vodka and Russian Standard Platinum Vodka," the NLC Liquor Store wrote on Twitter.

In the United States, liquor stores and bars in Kansas, Michigan, Oregon, and Vermont plan on removing bottles of Russian vodka from their shelves as a "protest against the aggression," according to The Hill. The stores also planned on promoting Ukrainian vodka more prominently.

Virginia State Sen. L. Louise Lucas (D) called on Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) to "order the removal of all Russian vodka and any other Russian products from our ABC stores immediately."

On Saturday, Gov. Mike DeWine (R) directed the Ohio Department of Commerce to "cease both the purchase and sale of all vodka made by Russian Standard, the only overseas, Russian-owned distillery with vodka sold in Ohio."

The Ohio Division of Liquor Control estimates that there are roughly 6,400 bottles of vodka made by Russian Standard currently for sale in Ohio's 487 liquor agencies across the state.

DeWine also said that retailers had been asked to immediately take Russian vodkas from their shelves.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott requested retailers in the Lone Star state to voluntarily remove all Russian products from their stores as a protest against Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine.

"I've asked the members of the Texas Restaurant Association, Texas Package Stores Association & all Texas retailers to voluntarily remove all Russian products from their shelves. Texas stands with Ukraine," Abbott wrote on Twitter.