Russian President Vladimir Putin promised financial help to ordinary Russians and the country's businesses Wednesday, calling on the nation to come together to overcome the West's "economic blitzkrieg." 

Putin made an impassioned defense of his military actions in Ukraine, saying his tactics were "completely justified" and that he had no other

Prima ballerina Olga Smirnova has quit the Bolshoi in Moscow to join the Dutch National Ballet, it was announced Wednesday, becoming the biggest star to leave Russia over the war in Ukraine.

The 30-year-old's departure from Russia's most prestigious cultural institution carries echoes of defections during the Cold War.

Smirnova, considered one of

Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill and Pope Francis held talks on Wednesday about the conflict in Ukraine and urged negotiations to continue to reach a "just peace."

"The sides emphasized the crucial importance of continuing negotiations and expressed hope for reaching a just peace as soon as possible," the Patriarch's office said in a statement.

The

Ukraine's besieged leader invoked September 11 and Pearl Harbor in an impassioned address Wednesday to the U.S. Congress, imploring Washington to step up military aid and impose a no-fly zone to counter the Russian invasion closing in on Kyiv.

Paraphrasing civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. and presenting a chilling video of the death and