First and second, Associated Press and Reuters summaries of events related to the war in Ukraine. Next, a seasoned commentator’s look at Vladimir Putin and the war at this stage. Fourth, a brief update this afternoon by the French newspaper Le Monde. And last, teleSUR reports that economist Jeffrey Sachs frowns on the U.S. expecting that extensive Western sanctions against Russia will achieve hoped-for political aims. — MCM

–   –   –

Rescuers search for survivors in smashed Mariupol theater, By Andrea Rosa | The Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine — Rescuers searched for survivors Thursday in the ruins of a theater ripped apart by a Russian airstrike in the besieged city of Mariupol, while a ferocious bombardment left dozens dead in a northern city over the past day, authorities said. Hundreds of civilians had been living in the grand, columned theater in central Mariupol after their homes were destroyed in three weeks of fighting in the strategic port city. Nearly a day after the attack . . . READ MORE . . . 

–   –   –

Russia getting bogged down in Ukraine, Western nations say, By James MacKenzie, Natalia Zinets and Oleksanr Kozhukhar | Reuters * Theatre blown up in besieged Mariupol * 53 civilians killed in Chernihiv, governor says * Putin lashes out at “traitors and scum” at home * War enters fourth week | KYIV/LVIV, Ukraine — Russian forces in Ukraine are blasting cities and killing civilians but no longer making progress on the ground, Western countries said on Thursday, as a war Moscow was thought to have hoped to win within days entered its fourth week. Local officials said rescuers in the besieged southern port of Mariupol were combing the rubble of a theatre .   .   .    READ MORE . . .

–   –   –

Putin Can’t Afford to Win War, Can’t Afford to Lose It, by Max Boot | The Washington Post Here’s the central dilemma of the Ukraine invasion: This is a war Russian dictator Vladimir Putin believes he “cannot afford to lose” (in the words of U.S. Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines), but it’s also one he cannot seem to win. It took . . . READ MORE . . .

–   –   –

Negotiations cease, 100,000 more refugees in 24 hours, the E.U. Accuses Russia of ‘war crimes‘ From Le Monde Accused of “war crimes” by the European Union and the United States, the Kremlin has rejected the decision by the International Court of Justice ordering it to suspend its offensive. At Mariupol, 30,000 persons have been evacuated in a week. And at least 27 were killed Thursday by Russian strikes in the Kharkiv region. The number of refugees exceeds 3 million.

–   –   –

Sachs: Sanctions ‘unlikely’ to succeed in achieving political aims. From teleSUR, one of five items in a package. “The United States and the EU are very energetic in the imposition of sanctions, trade barriers, technology barriers, and financial barriers towards Russia… I do not agree with this,” said Jeffrey Sachs, director of the Center for Sustainable Development at Columbia University and a senior United Nations advisor. Perceiving sanctions as Washington’s widely used instrument, Sachs said, “the rampant use of extra-territorial sanctions and secondary sanctions . . . READ MORE . . .