Welcome to the news hour.

Russian President Vladimir Putin picked up more support today during his trip to Asia,

signing a series of deals with Vietnam.

But his visit to the region is as much about the war in Ukraine as it is about bilateral agreements.

Earlier this week, Putin was in North Korea where he and Kim Jong-un pledged to come to each

other's aid.

That led South Korea to say it would consider supplying

arms to Ukraine. Putin told reporters in Vietnam today that the country's

leaders would be making a big mistake if they did so. Meantime in Washington Senate Republicans and Democrats

banded together in pushing to designate Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism.

In my view, this message to the world is as important in a moral sense as any

practical consequence Russia deserves to be in this small selective club of

atrocity committing killers.

Also today, the White House said it would redirect deliveries of air defense missiles to Ukraine

instead of sending them to other U.S. allies.

A spokesperson described the decision as, quote,

difficult but necessary given Russia's ongoing attacks on Ukraine.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Ruta is all but certain

to be the next NATO Secretary General, after his last rival

for the job, Romanian President Klaus Johannis withdrew from the race. Ruta would succeed

current NATO Chief Jan Stoltenberg in October.

He's a longtime supporter of Ukraine's war effort against Russia.

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