Axios

India's refusal to condemn the invasion of Ukraine and efforts to protect trade with Russia mean one of Washington's most valued strategic partners is actively undercutting its efforts to isolate Moscow.

The big picture: Vladimir Putin's invasion has become a stress test for America's global partnerships. America's treaty allies are all onside, including those outside NATO such as Japan and South Korea. India, for reasons of history and geopolitical pragmatism, is very much not.

Russia has avoided defaulting on its debt, as some creditors received their dollar bond coupon payments on Thursday, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Why it matters: Russia owes a series of interest payments to bondholders in the months ahead and a default on its debt could have the potential to ripple outward.

As countries quickly mobilize to respond to the deepening crisis in Ukraine, UN leaders are urging them to not forget about the ongoing crises in places like Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Myanmar and Yemen.

Driving the news: While the heightened focus on Ukraine is understandable and necessary, advocates say, there's growing concern dire humanitarian crises elsewhere may be neglected.

The House on Thursday passed a bill to suspend normal trade relations with Russia and Belarus in response to Vladimir Putin's unprovoked attack on Ukraine.

Why it matters: The bill would raise tariffs on goods from Russia and Belarus and give President Biden power to impose even stricter import taxes on their exports.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said at a press briefing Thursday that he agrees with President Biden's assessment that Russian President Vladimir Putin is a war criminal and that Russia's targeting of civilians constitutes a war crime.

Driving the news: Blinken's comments come a day after Biden went on the record for the first time to explicitly call Putin a war criminal.

Russian government websites and state media are facing an "unprecedented" level of hacking attempts, the Washington Post reported.

Why it matters: Since the start of its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, Russia has passed a new "fake news" law and blocked social media networks like Facebook in order to clamp down on the ability of regular Russians to get unfiltered information about the war.

The European Space Agency suspended its Mars rover mission on Thursday in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, after Russia's state-run space agency halted its operations at Europe's spaceport.

Why it matters: ESA's ExoMars rover mission, Europe's first-ever rover mission to the Red Planet to search for signs of life, was set to launch from Guiana Space Centre aboard a Russian Soyuz rocket this year.

Activists are rushing to preserve a Texas school that educated Mexican American students during desegregation efforts and later became one of the models for the federal Head Start program.

The big picture: The property that's home to the Stephen F. Austin/Minnie Mae Hopper Elementary School — one of the last remaining "Little Schools of the 400" — is slated to be redeveloped into a housing complex in Wharton, Texas.

Koch Industries will continue operating in Russia amid the country's invasion of Ukraine, the company’s president and chief operating officer said in a statement Thursday.

Driving the news: Koch’s Guardian Industries runs two manufacturing plants with roughly 600 employees. Ceasing operations would “hand over these manufacturing facilities to the Russian government so it can operate and benefit from them,” according to the statement from Dave Robertson.

Peru is expanding its fight against animal trafficking, with the hopes of substantially reducing the illegal wildlife trade by 2027.

Why it matters: Peru is one of the most biodiverse countries in the world, but illegal trafficking and poaching that endanger species are rampant.

President Biden will speak to Chinese President Xi Jinping Friday as "part of our ongoing efforts to maintain open lines of communication between the United States and the PRC," press secretary Jen Psaki said in a statement Thursday.

Why it matters: Biden and Xi will in part discuss Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine after reports indicated that Moscow had asked China's government for military ​equipment and other assistance to support its war.

Russia’s status with its creditors is turning into a matter of he said/she said.

Why it matters: A default by the Russian government on its bond payments would cement its status as an outsider of the global financial system.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, during his virtual address to the Bundestag on Thursday, accused Germany of putting its economic interests ahead of its response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, telling the lawmakers their support "came too late to stop war," according to the BBC.

Why it matters: Germany, which is heavily reliant on Russian petroleum products and imports in general, was hesitant to raise harsh sanctions on Russia for fear it could hurt the economy.

U.S. intelligence officials are privately bracing for a massive influx of more than 170,000 migrants at the Mexico border if COVID-era policies that allow instant expulsions during the public health emergency are ended, sources with direct knowledge of the discussions tell Axios.

• The response under way includes a newly created — and previously unreported — Southwest Border Coordination Center (SBCC), essentially a war room to coordinate an interagency response.

The fate of hundreds of Ukrainians who were sheltering in a Mariupol theater bombed by Russian forces was still unknown, President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a televised address late Wednesday.

The latest: Over 1,000 people were believed to have taken refuge in the shelter when it was hit earlier Wednesday, the Mariupol City Council said on Telegram. An official in the city's mayor's office told Reuters Thursday that the shelter under withstood the strike and said there are survivors still trapped in it.

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and Anousheh Ashouri, two British-Iranian dual nationals, arrived in the U.K. on Thursday, after being released from Iran following years in detention.

Why it matters: Their release comes amid reports that an agreement to restore the 2015 Iran nuclear deal could be close.

Russian journalist Marina Ovsyannikova told Reuters Wednesday she's "extremely concerned" for her safety but hopes her anti-war protest live on state TV this week will help people "open their eyes" to the invasion of Ukraine.

Why it matters: The Channel One editor's on-air demonstration to "millions of viewers" that the Kremlin isn't telling the truth about the invasion "broke the state propaganda machine" and along with it a "long silence" among Russia's journalists — several of whom have since resigned or plan to, writes Russian journalist Denis Kataev in the Guardian.

Honduras' former President Juan Orlando Hernández can be extradited to the U.S. to face drug trafficking and weapons charges, a judge in the Central American country ruled on Wednesday night.

Why it matters: Hernández, who denies any wrongdoing, has since 2017 been accused of electoral fraud and was named as a co-conspirator in a New York drug trafficking case last year.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is prompting American CEOs anew to build their own mini-State Departments as they navigate the uncertainties of a war and world increasingly unbound by norms and institutions.

Why it matters: Executives traditionally rise to power by creating successful products and business lines, managing expectations and turning profits — not mastering foreign policy. With little margin for error, many are turning to D.C. experts with heightened urgency.

The outlines of a potential deal to end the war in Ukraine are coming into focus, but sources on the Ukrainian side tell Axios they fear Moscow's newfound enthusiasm for diplomacy is a ruse.

Why it matters: Kyiv has gained unexpected leverage by withstanding the Russian advance for three weeks, though the humanitarian crisis is deepening daily as Russia shells major cities.

Almost everything about today's Volodymyr Zelensky speech would have been inconceivable on the day Russia invaded Ukraine.

The big picture: Zelensky is bursting through an era of peak cynicism.