Closed-door espionage trial of U.S. journalist kicks off in Russia
The closed-door trial of American journalist Evan Gershkovich began in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg on Wednesday, 15 months after he was arrested and charged with espionage while on a reporting trip.
The case marks the first time since the Cold War that an American journalist has been put on trial for espionage in Russia. Gershkovich appeared calm in court Wednesday, smiling and nodding at colleagues who had traveled to Yekaterinburg — almost 900 miles to the east of Moscow — to report on the opening moments of the trial. Gershkovich’s head had been shaved, as is typical for prisoners in the Russian penitentiary system.
Russian prosecutors announced earlier this month that they had finalized an indictment and had “established and documented” that Gershkovich had “collected secret information” about the Uralvagonzavod military factory in the Sverdlovsk region in Russia while “on assignment from the CIA.”
Read the full story here.
The closed-door trial of American journalist Evan Gershkovich began in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg on Wednesday, 15 months after he was arrested and charged with espionage while on a reporting trip.
The case marks the first time since the Cold War that an American journalist has been put on trial for espionage in Russia. Gershkovich appeared calm in court Wednesday, smiling and nodding at colleagues who had traveled to Yekaterinburg — almost 900 miles to the east of Moscow — to report on the opening moments of the trial. Gershkovich’s head had been shaved, as is typical for prisoners in the Russian penitentiary system.
Russian prosecutors announced earlier this month that they had finalized an indictment and had “established and documented” that Gershkovich had “collected secret information” about the Uralvagonzavod military factory in the Sverdlovsk region in Russia while “on assignment from the CIA.”
Read the full story here.
During CNN's 2024 presidential debate, former president Donald Trump was trying to undercut President Biden’s key foreign policy argument: that Biden has restored alliances and united the world against despots and dictators.
Trump argued that these conflicts would have never happened if he were president. And now he’s arguing that, if elected, he’d “get it settled and get it settled fast.”
Read more here: https://wapo.st/4eB27VH
Trump argued that these conflicts would have never happened if he were president. And now he’s arguing that, if elected, he’d “get it settled and get it settled fast.”
Read more here: https://wapo.st/4eB27VH
Russia’s devastating glide bombs keep falling on its own territory
The powerful glide-bombs that Russia has used to such great effect to pound Ukrainian cities into rubble have also been falling on its own territory, an internal Russian document has revealed.
At least 38 of the bombs, which have been credited with helping drive Russia’s recent territorial advances, crashed into the Belgorod region on the border with Ukraine between April 2023 and April 2024, according to the document obtained by The Washington Post, though most did not detonate.
Roughly comparable to the more advanced American JDAM guided bombs, these glide bombs are large Soviet-era munitions retrofitted with guidance systems that experts say often fail — resulting in impacts on Russian territory.
Read the full story here.
The powerful glide-bombs that Russia has used to such great effect to pound Ukrainian cities into rubble have also been falling on its own territory, an internal Russian document has revealed.
At least 38 of the bombs, which have been credited with helping drive Russia’s recent territorial advances, crashed into the Belgorod region on the border with Ukraine between April 2023 and April 2024, according to the document obtained by The Washington Post, though most did not detonate.
Roughly comparable to the more advanced American JDAM guided bombs, these glide bombs are large Soviet-era munitions retrofitted with guidance systems that experts say often fail — resulting in impacts on Russian territory.
Read the full story here.
Hungarian leader and Putin ally Viktor Orban visits Ukraine
KYIV — Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, the European Union’s most prominent critic of providing Ukraine with military aid, arrived in Kyiv on Tuesday in his first visit since Russia’s invasion more than two years ago.
His meeting with President Volodymyr Zelensky comes just a day after Hungary took over the six-month rotating presidency of the Council of the E.U. and is a rare gesture in what has been a fraught relationship between the leaders.
Orban has repeatedly blocked or weakened European efforts to provide Ukraine with security assistance throughout the war, frustrating Zelensky. He does not permit donated Western weapons to be transferred to Ukraine over the two countries’ shared border.
Read the full story here.
KYIV — Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, the European Union’s most prominent critic of providing Ukraine with military aid, arrived in Kyiv on Tuesday in his first visit since Russia’s invasion more than two years ago.
His meeting with President Volodymyr Zelensky comes just a day after Hungary took over the six-month rotating presidency of the Council of the E.U. and is a rare gesture in what has been a fraught relationship between the leaders.
Orban has repeatedly blocked or weakened European efforts to provide Ukraine with security assistance throughout the war, frustrating Zelensky. He does not permit donated Western weapons to be transferred to Ukraine over the two countries’ shared border.
Read the full story here.
Kyiv’s shrouded and absent statues tell a story of war and defiance
As Russian troops rolled toward Kyiv in February 2022, millions of Ukrainians fled, but many of those who stayed rushed to protect the country’s cultural heritage. Statues were encased in sandbags, monuments boarded up, sculptures wrapped, and framed paintings taped over.
Nearly 2½ years later, away from the front lines but still under constant threat of bombardment, many statues remain covered, some have been removed and others have been freed from their sandbags. This incongruous mix has taken on new meaning for some Kyiv residents as the country grapples with a changing sense of identity, a gasping economy and an unrelenting foe.
Read the full story here.
As Russian troops rolled toward Kyiv in February 2022, millions of Ukrainians fled, but many of those who stayed rushed to protect the country’s cultural heritage. Statues were encased in sandbags, monuments boarded up, sculptures wrapped, and framed paintings taped over.
Nearly 2½ years later, away from the front lines but still under constant threat of bombardment, many statues remain covered, some have been removed and others have been freed from their sandbags. This incongruous mix has taken on new meaning for some Kyiv residents as the country grapples with a changing sense of identity, a gasping economy and an unrelenting foe.
Read the full story here.
Hungarian leader Viktor Orban visits Moscow, angering E.U. allies
Fresh off his first visit to Ukraine since Russia invaded, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban arrived in Moscow on Friday to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin — a striking break with the European Union’s collective foreign policy just days after Hungary took over the bloc’s rotating presidency.
Even before Orban’s plane touched down Friday, the trip drew sharp disavowals from Brussels.
Josep Borrell, the E.U.’s top diplomat, preemptively noted that the Hungarian leader’s travel is not official E.U. business and “takes place exclusively in the framework of bilateral relations between Hungary and Russia.”
But with Hungary now holding the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union, the trip represented a diplomatic triumph for Putin, who has repeatedly accused NATO nations, particularly the United States, of prolonging the war he started.
Read the full story here.
Fresh off his first visit to Ukraine since Russia invaded, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban arrived in Moscow on Friday to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin — a striking break with the European Union’s collective foreign policy just days after Hungary took over the bloc’s rotating presidency.
Even before Orban’s plane touched down Friday, the trip drew sharp disavowals from Brussels.
Josep Borrell, the E.U.’s top diplomat, preemptively noted that the Hungarian leader’s travel is not official E.U. business and “takes place exclusively in the framework of bilateral relations between Hungary and Russia.”
But with Hungary now holding the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union, the trip represented a diplomatic triumph for Putin, who has repeatedly accused NATO nations, particularly the United States, of prolonging the war he started.
Read the full story here.
Russia destroyed Ukraine’s energy sector, so it’s being rebuilt green
By relentlessly attacking Ukraine’s power sector for the past two years with missiles and drones, Russian President Vladimir Putin has inadvertently accelerated the country’s shift to greener energy options.
Even as Ukrainians look toward one of the coldest and darkest winters in their history, authorities see a potential upside: Ukraine can now begin anew and create a cleaner, eco-friendly energy sector.
“The war, of course, is a tragedy, but it depends on you, how you react to it,” said Volodymyr Kudrytskyi, CEO of Ukraine’s state electricity distributor, Ukrenergo. “You can say ‘Okay, it’s a horrible situation, and we are just victims’ — or we can try to build back better, to come back in better shape.”
The plan is to switch from large smoke-belching thermal power facilities to a mix of renewable energy like wind and solar, battery storage and biofuel installations.
Read the full story here.
By relentlessly attacking Ukraine’s power sector for the past two years with missiles and drones, Russian President Vladimir Putin has inadvertently accelerated the country’s shift to greener energy options.
Even as Ukrainians look toward one of the coldest and darkest winters in their history, authorities see a potential upside: Ukraine can now begin anew and create a cleaner, eco-friendly energy sector.
“The war, of course, is a tragedy, but it depends on you, how you react to it,” said Volodymyr Kudrytskyi, CEO of Ukraine’s state electricity distributor, Ukrenergo. “You can say ‘Okay, it’s a horrible situation, and we are just victims’ — or we can try to build back better, to come back in better shape.”
The plan is to switch from large smoke-belching thermal power facilities to a mix of renewable energy like wind and solar, battery storage and biofuel installations.
Read the full story here.
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Russian strike hits Kyiv's main children's hospital
In Kyiv, Ohmatdyt Children’s Hospital was hit, killing two people, including a doctor. At least 16 others, including seven children were injured, according to Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko, and patients were forced to evacuate into the street. In the city of Kryvyi Rih, at least 10 people were killed, officials said.
Read the full story here.
In Kyiv, Ohmatdyt Children’s Hospital was hit, killing two people, including a doctor. At least 16 others, including seven children were injured, according to Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko, and patients were forced to evacuate into the street. In the city of Kryvyi Rih, at least 10 people were killed, officials said.
Read the full story here.
Ukrainian attacks on supply lines slowed Russians in Kharkiv, intercepts show
Ukrainian attacks on Russian supply lines have left Russian units scrambling for food, water and ammunition, blunting Moscow’s renewed invasion into Ukraine’s northeast Kharkiv region, according to Ukrainian field commanders who shared radio and phone intercepts.
The intercepts and extensive interviews with 10 Ukrainian commanders and troops operating across the front line in Kharkiv paint a picture of increasingly desperate Russian ground troops who are losing personnel and momentum after reinvading across the border in May.
In the transcript of one radio conversation, intercepted in June and shared with The Post, a Russian soldier orders another to ensure incoming troops responsible for carrying supplies understand that there is a dire shortage of food and water.
Read the full story here.
Ukrainian attacks on Russian supply lines have left Russian units scrambling for food, water and ammunition, blunting Moscow’s renewed invasion into Ukraine’s northeast Kharkiv region, according to Ukrainian field commanders who shared radio and phone intercepts.
The intercepts and extensive interviews with 10 Ukrainian commanders and troops operating across the front line in Kharkiv paint a picture of increasingly desperate Russian ground troops who are losing personnel and momentum after reinvading across the border in May.
In the transcript of one radio conversation, intercepted in June and shared with The Post, a Russian soldier orders another to ensure incoming troops responsible for carrying supplies understand that there is a dire shortage of food and water.
Read the full story here.
Missile strike on Kyiv children’s hospital sparks call for more air defenses
Devastating Russian missile attacks Monday that killed at least 37 people across Ukraine and destroyed a Kyiv children’s hospital have intensified fears that Ukraine’s air defenses remain insufficient and that Moscow will continue exploiting weaknesses, officials said Tuesday.
“Ukraine needs more weapons. We don’t have enough,” Yuriy Ignat, head of the press office of Ukraine’s air force, said in a telephone interview. “The fact that rockets are hitting Kyiv from all different directions is because we need enough equipment to shoot them down.”
“Air defense is a theme that is discussed every day with our partners as something that must be strengthened,” he added.
According to Ukrainian authorities, 33 out of 44 missiles were intercepted during Monday’s attack.
Read the full story here.
Devastating Russian missile attacks Monday that killed at least 37 people across Ukraine and destroyed a Kyiv children’s hospital have intensified fears that Ukraine’s air defenses remain insufficient and that Moscow will continue exploiting weaknesses, officials said Tuesday.
“Ukraine needs more weapons. We don’t have enough,” Yuriy Ignat, head of the press office of Ukraine’s air force, said in a telephone interview. “The fact that rockets are hitting Kyiv from all different directions is because we need enough equipment to shoot them down.”
“Air defense is a theme that is discussed every day with our partners as something that must be strengthened,” he added.
According to Ukrainian authorities, 33 out of 44 missiles were intercepted during Monday’s attack.
Read the full story here.
NATO vows lasting support for Ukraine, but won’t promise membership
NATO leaders will unveil new steps to train and arm Ukraine at an alliance summit this week but will stop short of concrete advances toward its membership in the Western bloc, underscoring questions about how Kyiv can prevail in its grinding war against Russia.
President Biden will host leaders from more than 30 nations in the U.S. capital for a gathering marking the 75th anniversary of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, as he and other leaders try to refocus attention away from Ukraine’s gloomy battlefield outlook and their own domestic challenges by highlighting ongoing alliance support for Kyiv.
The urgency of NATO’s task was starkly visible on Monday when Russian missiles slammed into a pediatric hospital and other sites in Kyiv, illustrating the need for air defense assets and other military hardware Ukraine requires to hold off a much larger, better-armed adversary.
Read the full story here.
NATO leaders will unveil new steps to train and arm Ukraine at an alliance summit this week but will stop short of concrete advances toward its membership in the Western bloc, underscoring questions about how Kyiv can prevail in its grinding war against Russia.
President Biden will host leaders from more than 30 nations in the U.S. capital for a gathering marking the 75th anniversary of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, as he and other leaders try to refocus attention away from Ukraine’s gloomy battlefield outlook and their own domestic challenges by highlighting ongoing alliance support for Kyiv.
The urgency of NATO’s task was starkly visible on Monday when Russian missiles slammed into a pediatric hospital and other sites in Kyiv, illustrating the need for air defense assets and other military hardware Ukraine requires to hold off a much larger, better-armed adversary.
Read the full story here.
U.S. to provide more air defenses after missile strike on Kyiv children’s hospital
The United States and its allies have agreed to provide additional air defenses to Ukraine following devastating Russian missile attacks Monday that killed at least 38 people across Ukraine and destroyed a Kyiv children’s hospital.
On the first day of a NATO summit in Washington, President Biden unveiled plans to provide Ukraine with dozens of tactical air defense systems to protect Ukrainian cities, including Patriot batteries and components and other advanced defense systems.
“I am grateful to our partners — the United States, Germany, the Netherlands, Italy, and Romania — for adopting a strong declaration in support of Ukraine’s air defense system to protect its people, cities, and critical infrastructure,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a social media post as he joined the NATO summit.
Read the full story here,
The United States and its allies have agreed to provide additional air defenses to Ukraine following devastating Russian missile attacks Monday that killed at least 38 people across Ukraine and destroyed a Kyiv children’s hospital.
On the first day of a NATO summit in Washington, President Biden unveiled plans to provide Ukraine with dozens of tactical air defense systems to protect Ukrainian cities, including Patriot batteries and components and other advanced defense systems.
“I am grateful to our partners — the United States, Germany, the Netherlands, Italy, and Romania — for adopting a strong declaration in support of Ukraine’s air defense system to protect its people, cities, and critical infrastructure,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a social media post as he joined the NATO summit.
Read the full story here,
Russia orders arrest of Yulia Navalnaya, widow of Putin’s nemesis
In a display of defiance by Russia’s largely obliterated political opposition, Yulia Navalnaya, the wife of the late opposition leader, Alexei Navalny, has called for President Vladimir Putin to be held accountable for her husband’s death, and lawyers for jailed Putin critic, Vladimir Kara-Murza, demanded that he be released from prison because of his failing health.
A Russian court on Tuesday ordered the arrest of Navalnaya — an unlikely prospect given that she no longer lives in Russia and has not returned to the country since her husband died suddenly in an Arctic prison in February.
Navalnaya has accused Russian President Vladimir Putin personally of murdering her husband and repeated that charge in responding to her arrest order.
“When you write about this, please do not forget to write the main thing: Vladimir Putin is a murderer and a war criminal,” Navalnaya posted on X, formerly Twitter.
Read the full story here.
In a display of defiance by Russia’s largely obliterated political opposition, Yulia Navalnaya, the wife of the late opposition leader, Alexei Navalny, has called for President Vladimir Putin to be held accountable for her husband’s death, and lawyers for jailed Putin critic, Vladimir Kara-Murza, demanded that he be released from prison because of his failing health.
A Russian court on Tuesday ordered the arrest of Navalnaya — an unlikely prospect given that she no longer lives in Russia and has not returned to the country since her husband died suddenly in an Arctic prison in February.
Navalnaya has accused Russian President Vladimir Putin personally of murdering her husband and repeated that charge in responding to her arrest order.
“When you write about this, please do not forget to write the main thing: Vladimir Putin is a murderer and a war criminal,” Navalnaya posted on X, formerly Twitter.
Read the full story here.
Ukraine’s first F-16s will see combat this summer, officials say
The first American-made F-16 fighter jets committed to Ukraine are being transferred and are expected to take to the skies this summer, U.S. and European officials announced Wednesday, saying the advanced warplanes soon will provide another tool for Kyiv’s beleaguered defense in the face of relentless Russian attacks.
An unspecified number of aircraft are en route from the Netherlands and Denmark, the nations’ leaders said in a joint statement with President Biden. The statement noted that the governments of Belgium and Norway have committed to donate others.
Ukraine is expected to field 60 F-16s eventually, officials have said, with a host of nations banding together to provide pilot training, weapons and logistical support.
Read the full story here.
The first American-made F-16 fighter jets committed to Ukraine are being transferred and are expected to take to the skies this summer, U.S. and European officials announced Wednesday, saying the advanced warplanes soon will provide another tool for Kyiv’s beleaguered defense in the face of relentless Russian attacks.
An unspecified number of aircraft are en route from the Netherlands and Denmark, the nations’ leaders said in a joint statement with President Biden. The statement noted that the governments of Belgium and Norway have committed to donate others.
Ukraine is expected to field 60 F-16s eventually, officials have said, with a host of nations banding together to provide pilot training, weapons and logistical support.
Read the full story here.