War in Ukraine live updates: Finland abandons neutrality and will move to immediately join NATO

Published May 12, 2022 at 8:11 AM EDT
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Heikki Saukkomaa
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Lehtikuva/AFP via Getty Images
Finnish soldiers participate in the Arrow 22 exercise May 4 at the Niinisalo garrison in Kankaanpää, western Finland.

Finland's prime minister and president said Thursday that the country must apply to the military alliance without delay. The announcement was widely expected and is broadly supported among the Finnish public, with nearly three-fourths in favor in a recent poll. Finland’s neighbor Sweden is also considering joining NATO.

Here's what we're following:

The Russian-installed government in the Ukrainian port city of Kherson reportedly will ask Russian President Vladimir Putin to annex the area, according to Russian state media. It's the latest evidence that Russia wants to claim more territory in Ukraine.

An estimated 4.8 million jobs have been lost in Ukraine since the start of the war, according to a brief published Wednesday. The International Labor Organization says the refugee crisis is also creating labor disruptions in neighboring countries.

The European Union would like to ban imports of Russian oil in retaliation for the invasion of Ukraine, but there's one major obstacle to that effort: Hungary and its prime minister, Viktor Orban.