Why world leaders can’t fulfil Zelenskyy’s one big ask

Plus, Canada's need to boost military spending and a WHO hurdle for a made-in-Canada COVID vaccine [The Star] First Up [By Lex Harvey] By Lex Harvey Good morning. Here’s the latest on Zelenskyy’s appeal to Congress, Canada’s plans for military spending and why a made-in-Canada vaccine is running into trouble at the WHO. DON’T MISS Drew Angerer/Getty Images war in ukraine [Ukraine’s Zelenskyy appealed to U.S. Congress to do more]( One day after addressing Canadian lawmakers, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy delivered a speech to the U.S. Congress that invoked Americans’ sense of their global role, citing past U.S. tragedies like Pearl Harbour and 9/11, with a direct appeal to President Joe Biden: “I wish you to be the leader of the world.” Biden called it a “convincing and significant speech,” and said more humanitarian military aid was on the way — but the U.S. will not send fighter jets to engage directly with Russians in Ukraine. [Read Edward Keenan’s report from Washington](. - No-fly zone, explained: Here’s why Ukraine’s asking for it — [and why world leaders fear it could lead to WWIII](. - More: Zelenskyy knows what’s at stake. He followed his renewed no-fly zone ask with another plea: “If this is too much to ask, we offer an alternative,” he said. “I have a dream. I have a need. I need to protect our skies. I need your help,” he said. - Meanwhile in Ukraine: Authorities are struggling to determine the fate of hundreds of [civilians sheltering in a theatre smashed by a Russian airstrike](. Read the Associated Press’s [dispatch from the besieged city of Mariupol](. (It is horrifying, but important.) Canadian Press/Adrian Wyld military spending [Canada’s military needs to buy more — and faster, experts say]( After NATO defence ministers met in Brussels Wednesday, the alliance’s head Jens Stoltenberg said members agreed to boost military spending to bolster forces in Eastern Europe. Stoltenberg said NATO members need to invest a minimum of two per cent of GDP on defence — a ratio members had pledged to hit by 2024 — but Canada still lags behind at about 1.4 per cent, Jacques Gallant reports. Here’s more on Canada’s plans for military spending and why hitting the two per cent target would mean a [“massive shift in Canada’s stance on defence.”]( - What we know: Defence Minister Anita Anand said more spending is in the cards. She will present cabinet with “aggressive options which would see, potentially, exceeding the two per cent level, hitting the two per cent level, and then below the two per cent level.” - Go deeper: Canada has been on a more than a decade-long search for a new fleet of fighter jets — something experts say we’ve slacked on because “we haven’t felt the urgency.” A contract for 88 new jets is expected to be awarded this year. - Althia Raj’s take: Our national security has a price. [Is Canada willing to pay it?]( Medicago/Supplied Photo the rollout [The WHO is likely to reject a Canadian-developed COVID vaccine over its tobacco ties]( It’s an effective vaccine that’s already been greenlit by Health Canada — but Alex Boyd reports Quebec-based Medicago is raising eyebrows in Geneva because it is partially owned by tobacco giant Philip Morris International. There’s no tobacco in the shot and the average recipient would never go near the plants used to make it, but the link is the reason Medicago’s application is “on hold” and unlikely to be accepted at all, reviving an old debate: what matters more — a medicine that could save lives, or the company that funded it? [Here’s what you need to know](. - What we know: The majority stake (79 per cent) in Medicago is held by Japanese pharmaceutical company Mitsubishi Tanabe, while tobacco company Philip Morris International owns 21 per cent. - Why it matters: This won’t affect the shot’s availability in Canada, but will likely curb its use overseas, since the WHO vets drugs on behalf of countries unable to do so for themselves. It also casts doubts on Canada’s efforts to bolster our domestic production of vaccines. WHAT ELSE Tory called for a [review of a $144-million contract]( given to a company partly owned by a sanctioned Russian oligarch. Ottawa is [ending pre-arrival COVID-19 testing]( for vaccinated travellers entering Canada. Justin Trudeau and Doug Ford agreed a [$10-a-day child care]( for Ontario parents is coming “soon.” [Ottawa’s buyback program]( marks another round in the political battle over gun control. Nine are dead and [two Canadian students are critically injured]( after a crash on a Texas highway. The Raptors held on to their lead over the Clippers to clinch their [fifth win in a row](. ICYMI Rene Johnston/The Star [Why an investigation into cheating on Ontario bar exams may point to a $15 billion online industry.]( CLOSE-UP Evgeniy Maloletka/AP MARIUPOL: Anastasia Erashova cries as she hugs her child in a corridor of a hospital in Mariupol, eastern Ukraine on Friday. Anastasia’s other child was killed during one of the rounds of Russian shelling.  Thanks for reading. You can reach me and the First Up team at [firstup@thestar.ca](mailto:firstup@thestar.ca?source=newsletter&utm_source=ts_nl&utm_medium=emailutm_email=6C53B63A8E3FAD70AD4EF13004527437&utm_campaign=frst_112553). I’ll see you back here tomorrow. [The Star]( If you're not enjoying these emails, please tell us how we can make them better by emailing newsletterfeedback@thestar.ca. Or, if you'd prefer, you can unsubscribe from this newsletter by clicking the first link below. [Unsubscribe From This Newsletter]( [Sign Up for More Newsletters and Email Alerts]( [Become a Star Subscriber]( [View in Browser]( [Facebook]( [Instagram]( [Twitter]( Toronto Star Newspapers Limited. One Yonge Street, 4th Floor, Toronto, ON M5E 1E6. 416-367-2000 [PRIVACY POLICY](