Jill Biden Will Spend Mother's Day Overseas

Jill Biden will spend Mother's Day meeting with Ukrainian mothers and children who have fled the Russian invasion. The Sunday meeting will take place in Slovakia, one of two eastern European countries the first lady plans to visit during a five-day trip that starts Thursday, per the AP. She also will be stopping in Romania. The two nations share borders with Ukraine, and both also are members of NATO. Throughout the trip, Biden also will meet with US service members, embassy personnel, humanitarian aid workers, and educators, the White House said.

The trip will be the first lady's second overseas by herself, following her journey to Tokyo last year for the opening of the delayed 2020 Olympic Games. The trip also will mark her latest gesture of solidarity with Ukraine. Four days after Russia's Feb. 24 invasion began, the first lady appeared at a White House event wearing a face mask embroidered with a sunflower, Ukraine's national flower. Nearly 5.5 million Ukrainians, mostly women and children, have fled Ukraine since the war began, according to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. Many have resettled in neighboring countries or relocated elsewhere in Europe. (UNHCR special envoy Angelina Jolie made a surprise visit over the weekend.)

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