Europe doubles its arms imports to counter Russia’s threat and reduce reliance on the US
Washington remains the world’s main exporter, while Moscow loses steam and falls to third place behind France
With dissent stifled, some Russians help political prisoners by writing them letters of support
The number of prosecutions grew rapidly after Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022 and public criticism of the war was outlawed
Putin’s thorny foe: Chess Grandmaster Garry Kasparov
Russia places the former world chess champion on its list of terrorists and extremists, more than 10 years after moving to New York when targeted by the Russian president for his political dissension
Biden asks for aid to Ukraine to halt Putin and says Israel must not use humanitarian aid as a bargaining chip
The president called on Congress to approve military aid for Kyiv and officially announced the US army would help construct a temporary port on the coast of the Strip
Sweden officially joins NATO, ending decades of post-World War II neutrality
Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson and Secretary of State Antony Blinken presided at a ceremony in which Sweden’s ‘instrument of accession’ to the alliance was officially deposited at the State Department
In a new art exhibition, the Kremlin’s brainwashing methods are revealed
Eight Russian creators in exile have participated in a collective exhibition, which highlights the invasion of Ukraine and the Putin administration’s indoctrinating propaganda
International court seeks the arrest of two Russian officers over attacks on Ukraine’s infrastructure
They are wanted for the war crime of directing attacks at civilian objects, and causing excessive incidental harm to civilians or damage to civilian objects, and the crime against humanity of inhumane acts
UN nuclear watchdog expresses ‘extreme concern’ over safety of Zaporizhzhia power plant
The facility has been occupied by Russian forces for two years with barely any power supply to cool the reactors. The director of the IAEA is expected to meet with Vladimir Putin on Tuesday
The 6,000 nuclear warheads that Russia uses to deter Western support for Ukraine
Moscow’s official doctrine allows these weapons to be used if ‘the very existence of the Russian Federation is under threat’
Europe gets ready for war
The EU is going through a metamorphosis that seeks to dissuade Putin from undertaking new aggression and guarantee its autonomy in a turbulent world
Navalny’s mother brings flowers to his grave a day after thousands attended his funeral in Moscow
AP|
Thousands bid farewell to Navalny on Friday after his still-unexplained death two weeks ago in an Arctic penal colony. The crowds chanted slogans against Russian President Vladimir Putin and the war in Ukraine
Putin foe Alexei Navalny is buried in Moscow as thousands attend under heavy police presence
AP|
Western diplomats, including U.S. Ambassador Lynn Tracy, were among those who attended, along with presidential hopefuls Boris Nadezhdin and Yekaterina Duntsova
NATO’s number two official: ‘Putin’s nuclear threat is in the logic of psychological intimidation rather than in real intentions’
Mircea Geoană, deputy secretary general of the North Atlantic Alliance, notes that the US needs its European allies as much as Europe needs America
Putin warns that sending Western troops to Ukraine risks a global nuclear war
Earlier this week French President Emmanuel Macron said that the future deployment of Western ground troops to Ukraine should not be ‘ruled out’
The funeral of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny will be on Friday
AP|
Navalny’s widow, Yulia Navalnaya, speaking at the European Parliament, expressed fears that the police might interfere. ‘I’m not sure yet whether it will be peaceful or whether police will arrest those who have come to say goodbye to my husband,’ she said
Scholz’s refusal to send Taurus missiles to Ukraine divides German government
The Chancellor argues that the delivery of this long-range weaponry heightens the risk of Germany being dragged into the war
The ‘war of monuments’ strains relations between Russia and Baltic republics to the limit
Kremlin propaganda links Nazism to purge of Soviet mark in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, where fears of Russian aggression mount
Ukrainian President Zelenskiy lands in Saudi Arabia to push for peace and a POW exchange with Russia
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has sought to position himself as a potential mediator to end the war between Ukraine and Russia
The Kremlin has a plan: confiscate and conquer
Putin threatens to keep numerous Western assets while accelerating privatization and bestowing his blessing on the new millionaires who support him
Pro-Russian separatists in Transnistria, a possible new front for Moldova and Ukraine
A dissident politician believes a congress of deputies in the secessionist Moldovan region will request incorporation into the Russian Federation this week
A swap for Navalny was in the final stages before the opposition leader’s death, an associate says
AP|
Alexei Navalny and two U.S. citizens held in Russia were supposed to be swapped for Vadim Krasikov, who was serving a life sentence in Germany, according to his ally
Josep Borrell: ‘Trump has not won yet, just as Putin has not won yet, but Europe has to wake up’
The EU High Representative for Foreign Policy calls on member states to increase and accelerate aid to Ukraine
31,000 Ukrainian troops killed since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, Zelenskiy says
AP|
Independent Russian news outlet Mediazona said Saturday that about 75,000 Russian men died in 2022 and 2023 fighting in the war
A humanity whose words do not fail the human
Radu Vancu|
Taking Ukraine’s side means truly believing that the human species has a future. Not only as a species, but as a species characterized by humanity
Ukraine, year three: The moment of survival
Western leaders are showing their support for Zelenskiy in Kyiv, but without major economic or military aid announcements. Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, continues to praise the Ukrainian military: ‘You saved your country, you saved all of Europe’
Two years after Russia invaded, the war in Ukraine has stalled
Russia has taken the initiative with timid advances in the face of ammunition shortages for Kiev’s troops, lack of additional soldiers and doubts about Washington’s support. Analysts predict a long conflict
The body of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny has been handed over to his mother, aide says
AP|
Earlier Saturday, Yulia Navalnaya, Navalny’s widow, accused President Vladimir Putin of mocking Christianity by trying to force his mother to agree to a secret funeral after his death in an Arctic penal colony
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