“… [T]here will be critically important issues that the U.S. and Ukrainian presidents will need to discuss — above all, that of U.S. and Ukrainian strategies and goals when it comes to negotiations with Russia. … [S]ince this issue is extremely painful and difficult, the strong temptation for both administrations will be to kick it down the road as far […]
» Read more
“Muscovites go about their daily lives with little major disruption. But the war’s effects are evident — in the stores, at the movies and in the increasingly repressive environment.” “… Muscovites are experiencing dual realities: The war has faded into background noise … yet … remains ever-present in … daily lives. … Advertisements to join the military are … on […]
» Read more
“There is no alternative to slowly and methodically reducing Russian forces in Ukraine.” “… The idea that there is a shortcut to victory raises expectations for a quick end to the carnage that Ukraine is unlikely to fulfill. After more than 18 months of grinding, attritional war, it should be obvious that there are no miracle weapons and that there […]
» Read more
“[Ukrainian foreign minister] Dmytro Kuleba … is a smooth[, unruffled] and affable diplomat …. But on August 31st his patience snapped. ‘Criticising the slow pace of the counter-offensive equals … spitting into the face of the Ukrainian soldier who sacrifices his life every day,’ he told journalists. ‘I would recommend all critics to shut up, come to Ukraine and try […]
» Read more
“… New developments … may threaten [a previous] dynamic. Russia’s campaign against Ukrainian grain infrastructure and surging Ukrainian attacks within Russia threaten to expand the geographical scope of conflict. The mutiny and subsequent death of Wagner mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin suggest that Russia’s domestic political situation is dynamic and could shift in ways that may encourage Putin to escalate. Ukraine’s […]
» Read more
“… Last year, the 27-nation [EU] … declared Ukraine an official candidate for admission. [European] [p]olicymakers … are now butting heads over whether to set a [membership] timetable …. Some are pushing for 2030 … others suggest an association short of full membership. An array of complex problems would need to be ironed out …. [Ukraine] would be by far […]
» Read more
“It wastes money on fancy helicopters and target-only frigates while not doing what responsible countries near Russia must do.” “… [S]tation[ing] U.S. troops in Poland … would legitimate and perpetuate the irresponsible Polish policy that wastes money on fancy helicopters and target-only frigates in the Baltic Sea, while not doing what responsible countries near Russia must do. That is, to […]
» Read more
“The war in Ukraine is being waged on the battlefield but also globally … [T]he latter theater might be the more decisive … the financial and commercial terrain where the West’s sanctions have been deployed … [T]he effort to subvert Russia’s economy might eventually do more to end the war than any new weapons system or fresh breakthrough along the […]
» Read more
“A coalition of the world’s wealthiest and most technologically advanced countries gives Ukraine a major structural advantage. Russia, by contrast, has only two countries—Iran and North Korea — openly assisting it … although China has been … an important economic backstop … and a provider of nonlethal military aid. … Western military support comes with its own risks and challenges[] […]
» Read more
“The country’s military is enjoying some success but it will be slow-going and requires allies to increase ammunition supplies.” “… Some U.S. officials have complained privately … that Ukraine … failed during training to master modern operations … combin[ing] mechanised infantry, artillery and air defence and [is] too risk averse …. Ukrainian officials … have pointed out that American forces […]
» Read more
“It would make life harder for Ukraine — and heighten nuclear risks in Asia.” “… Both men are throwbacks. [] Kim is the grandson of a tyrant imposed on North Korea by Stalin. [] Putin waxes nostalgic about Russia’s imperial past. Yet the threat they pose today is clear and present. An alliance … could alter … the war in […]
» Read more
“Moscow’s missile production now exceeds prewar levels, officials say, leaving Ukraine especially vulnerable this coming winter.” “… Russia subverted American export controls using its intelligence services and ministry of defense to run illicit networks of people who smuggle key components by exporting them to other countries from which they can be shipped to Russia more easily. … [S]ince the war […]
» Read more
“Ukrainian president’s visit next week coincides with the United Nations General Assembly.” “… Zelensky is scheduled to travel to the U.S. for the annual United Nations General Assembly in New York, where he will appear in person for the first time since Russia’s February 2022 invasion, to make a case for continued support of Ukraine and isolation of Moscow. … […]
» Read more
“… The World Aquatics Bureau announced … athletes from Russia and Belarus would be allowed to compete in international events … as ‘neutrals’ …. the cop-out … most athletic governing bodies have taken since Russia invaded Ukraine …. At least Wimbledon — in 2022 — actually banned Russian and Belarusian players …. [T]he men’s and women’s governing bodies of tennis […]
» Read more
(Russia Matters – russiamatters.org – Simon Saradzhyan – Sept. 13, 2023) The Levada Center has just released the latest installment in its series of polls on which countries Russians consider to be “great” as well as on their general attitudes toward certain countries. The polls show that the share of Russians who view their own country as great has almost […]
» Read more
“… [E]ventually the war will end. What happens to Ukraine then? … Will it revert to the oligarchical model that typified its early years[] [o]r … make good on its promise of genuine modernity? That process … require[s] a renovated ethical culture to undergird a strong rule of law and a political class bound by … public duty and personal […]
» Read more
“… [DIA Director Trent] Maul … notes that Sergei Surovikin, the Russian general who built [Russia’s] defensive lines [in Ukraine], and Yevgeny Prigozhin, whose Wagner Group mercenaries achieved Russia’s most tangible gains of the past year, are both off the battlefield — the former sacked and the latter dead …. [] Maul … says … Ukraine’s recent successes are ‘significant’ […]
» Read more
“Warren calls on Pentagon to look into decision over attack Musk, other tech chiefs will meet with senators on Wednesday” “… Warren is demanding an investigation into SpaceX after Elon Musk acknowledged he had blocked Ukraine from extending the private Starlink satellite network for an attack on Russian warships near the Crimean coast. … Musk said. ‘… If I had […]
» Read more
“… Kupyansk was captured by Russia without a fight in February 2022 …. Ukrainian forces reclaimed the city in a lightning offensive a year ago … oust[ing] Russia from nearly all of Kharkiv and parts of [the] nearby Donetsk and Luhansk regions. …. Russian troops have remained within artillery range of Kupyansk … [launching] nearly daily barrages. In [recent] weeks, […]
» Read more
“… I don’t think [President Joe] Biden and Vice President Harris should run for reelection. … Biden … would be 82 when he began a second term. According to a recent [AP]-NORC poll, 77 percent …, including 69 percent of Democrats, think he’s too old to be effective for four more years. … Because of their concerns about Biden’s age, […]
» Read more
“… Russia initially cultivated lively debate and flamboyantly welcomed the world, then gradually choked off freedoms and closed itself off while its citizens fled and uneasy foreigners felt compelled to leave. In 2022, it launched a war against Ukraine that sharply intensified the growing isolation. I spent 24 years … as a Moscow-based [AP] correspondent … cheered by Russia’s steps […]
» Read more
“The auto market is one of the few areas in Russia where Western sanctions had an immediate effect. Today, Russia’s car industry has been transformed, with new players, foreign and domestic, stepping to the fore.” “… When Russia’s war against Ukraine began last year, virtually all Western automakers pulled out of the country, abandoning … investments, closing dealerships, and shredding […]
» Read more
“Ukraine’s counteroffensive … will continue through the onset of cold and wet weather later this year …, Kyiv’s intelligence chief Kyrylo Budanov said[:] …. ‘Combat actions will continue in one way or another. In the cold, wet and mud, it is more difficult to fight. Fighting will continue. The counteroffensive will continue’ …. Apart from the huge concentration of Russian […]
» Read more
“The U.N. Special Rapporteur on torture said Moscow’s refusal to address the issue represented tacit approval of its use. Russia has denied it practices torture.” “Torture perpetrated by Russian officers against Ukrainian civilians and prisoners of war has reached such a level that it is clearly a systematic, state-endorsed policy, [according to Alice Jill Edwards, U.N. Special Rapporteur on torture […]
» Read more
“But Ukraine’s president fears that some of his country’s Western backers are losing faith.” “… Having failed to overwhelm Ukraine quickly, [] Putin seems determined to exhaust the country and to wear out its partners’ resolve to keep funding and supplying it with arms. … But [] Zelensky says Russia itself is fragile. … [suggesting that Russia itself will suffer […]
» Read more
“Amid increasingly frequent strikes by Kyiv’s forces, some Crimeans show new faith in a return to Ukrainian rule.” “Every few days, Russian occupation authorities on Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula parade newly caught ‘traitors’ …. For some, the crime consisted of playing Ukrainian songs in public, running a pro-Ukrainian social-media account or tying yellow cloth strips, a sign of resistance to Russian […]
» Read more
“Three months into Ukraine’s … counteroffensive, Russian occupying forces have largely been able to hold their positions, often by learning from past mistakes. They have reconstituted decimated units, swapped in new ones and turned from sweeping attacks to the defense of heavily fortified front lines, showing that despite heavy losses, Moscow is willing to dig in for the long haul […]
» Read more
“Ukraine’s new defense minister, Rustem Umerov, has called on foreign allies to provide ‘heavy weaponry, heavy weaponry and, again, heavy weaponry’ …. On Friday, Umerov told the Yalta European Strategy summit in Kyiv that Ukraine is ‘grateful’ for … Western support … but warned that Kyiv’s forces will need more to overcome … ‘big challenges’ … driving Russian troops out […]
» Read more
“Billions are pouring into a clubby, secretive arms market. With Pentagon cash and unusually close Ukrainian military ties, Marc Morales has few peers.” “… The [Biden] administration has sent Ukraine more than $40 billion in security aid, including advanced weapons …. But the Pentagon also relies heavily on little-known arms dealers like [Florida-based Marc] Morales … [with] connections … to […]
» Read more
“A Russian Agricultural Bank subsidiary in Luxembourg could immediately apply to SWIFT to ‘effectively enable access’ for the bank to the international payments system within 30 days, the United Nations told Russia in a letter …. ‘SWIFT has confirmed that RSHB Capital S.A. would be eligible to apply for membership and access to SWIFT for food and fertilizer transactions, based […]
» Read more
“[According to] General Mark Milley, … Chairman[,] … Joint Chiefs of Staff[,] … Ukraine’s forces have … 30 to 45 days left … before … fall weather … stop[s] their advance. … ‘There’s still heavy fighting going on,’ Milley said, adding that Ukraine was ‘still plugging away with steady progress.’ … [W]ith progress slow, and the counteroffensive launched later than […]
» Read more
“A new defense minister, an encouraging visit from the U.S. secretary of state and another $1 billion in aid have fueled optimism in Ukraine this week. But will they have an impact on the war? Ukraine and U.S. officials says yes. Some experts are not convinced. …” Click here for: “Ukraine ‘in deep trouble’: Some experts say $1B more from […]
» Read more
“Volodymyr Zelensky removes his defence minister and goes after an oligarch” “… At face value [Ukraine’s latest corruption stories] show the government wresting back the initiative on reform. … Zelensky said he would replace … defence minister[] Oleksii Reznikov … following months of corruption scandals …. [T]he SBU … detained [oligarch] Ihor Kolomoisky … on suspicion of fraud and money-laundering. […]
» Read more
“Armenia turns toward West after accusing Russia of failing as a partner.” “… Armenia is having second thoughts about its longtime partnership with Russia and is beginning to shift … toward the West, … an embarrassing setback for the Kremlin in the strategic region. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said … his country’s reliance on Russia wasn’t paying off, particularly […]
» Read more
“… [After] Zelenskyy announced … that he replaced his defense minister … a group of senior U.S. generals met with Ukrainian generals on the border with Poland …. Ukraine’s strategy has been brilliant, especially in the early stages …. distribut[ing] its force into small units … [with] a high degree of freedom. … [K]nowledge and familiarity with the terrain … […]
» Read more
“… After … record volumes in recent months, despite Western embargoes, dwindling production and the [Black Sea navigational] risks … Russia’s crude shipments fell to 3m barrels a day (b/d) in August … 800,000 lower than … April-May … and below pre-war levels. …. On September 5th Russia said it would extend a ‘voluntary’ 300,000 b/d cut … to the […]
» Read more
“Mines have hindered Kyiv’s counteroffensive and threaten civilians living in reclaimed areas; as much as a third of the country affected.” “[In] painstakingly slow [work,] [t]wo explosives specialists armed with metal detectors can take over a month to clear a plot of Ukrainian farmland around half the size of a football field riddled with mortars, artillery shells and unexploded fuses. […]
» Read more
“Its agents have become expert in dark revenge. But some worry a clear strategy is absent.” “… Over 18 months of war, dozens of people like [Yevhen ] Yunakov have been targeted in clinical operations across occupied Ukraine and inside Russia itself. They have been shot, blown up, hanged and even, on occasion, poisoned with doctored brandy. Ukraine is tight-lipped […]
» Read more
“X’s failure to slow the spread of disinformation on the Internet would have violated E.U. social media law, had it been in effect.” “… The E.U. has taken a far more aggressive regulatory approach to government-backed disinformation than the United States …. The Digital Services Act … requires [so-called social media companies] to assess the risk of false information, stop […]
» Read more
“The removal of the defense minister highlights the enduring challenge of corruption in Ukraine, which has emerged as a rare area of criticism of … Zelensky’s leadership.” “… Zelensky’s announcement Sunday night that he was replacing the defense minister, Oleksii Reznikov, elevated the [corruption] issue to the highest level of Ukrainian politics. … Ukrainian media reports have pointed to overpayments […]
» Read more
“… Zelensky said on Saturday[] ‘Ukrainian forces are moving forward. Despite everything and no matter what anyone says, we are advancing, and that is the most important thing. We are on the move’ …. By the end of [July], Ukraine had committed more troops to the southeast … a sign that it had identified potential weaknesses in Russian defensive lines. […]
» Read more
“More than 500 days after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, there are signs that some of Ukraine’s supporters in the West want to prepare the ground for negotiations. Such a shift in policy would be catastrophic.” “… The counteroffensive has not stalled … but Ukraine would have made more progress had the U.S. not displayed … timidity over supplying … […]
» Read more
“… He adds, ‘The collapse of the Soviet Union was not an event, but a process.’ For the Russian Federation, the process is already under way. He points to the cascade of poor decisions that have characterized Russia’s military campaign. ‘This war has produced absolutely the opposite results from what Putin imagined’: not only Ukraine’s forceful resistance, but renewed unity […]
» Read more
“… Ukraine’s well-being runs through global networks, which Russia … seeks to disrupt and damage. The Kremlin’s ultimate goal is clear: strangling the Ukrainian economy, society, and state by whatever means necessary. … [I] it is essential to preserve Ukraine’s integration into the global economy, which Russia is deliberately attempting to degrade. The United States’ most immediate challenge is food […]
» Read more
“The Ukraine Defense Ministry asked for ‘ammunition, not advice’ in a new video … following recent criticism from U.S. officials over Kyiv’s strategy amid a slow-moving counteroffensive. ‘It seems like everyone is now an expert on Ukrainian warfare,” the Defense Ministry [stated] …. The White House [recently] announced another $250 million security package for Kyiv … bringing total U.S. assistance […]
» Read more
“The chairman of the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee said Friday [that regarding] a partnership between the Russian and Chinese leaders … ‘We have never seen a threat this large scale to Europe and the Pacific … since World War II.’ An alliance between … Xi Jinping and … Putin ‘provides a very big challenge I think for the free […]
» Read more
“Weapons shortages, domestic political pressures hamper Western efforts.” “The [U.S.] and … European allies are laying plans for long-term military assistance to Ukraine to ensure Russia won’t be able to win on the battlefield and persuade the Kremlin that Western support … won’t waver. The effort, building on [G7] commitments … on the sidelines of … [July’s NATO] summit … […]
» Read more
“Shunned by the West over its war in Ukraine, Russia is looking to Africa to find new international partners. And, lacking colonial history on the continent, Moscow is finding a more welcoming audience.” “… [A] military coup in the Sahel nation of Niger, supported by crowds waving Russian flags, … [overthrew] yet another pro-Western African leader … attempting to curb […]
» Read more
“… Russia’s army is at the end of its tether. With Russia’s modern tanks and armored vehicles largely gone or inoperative, Russia is pulling late 1940’s vintage T-10 tanks and other mechanized relics out of storage. Russian leaders are virtually begging North Korea, Iran, China and other former client states for help. Russian conscripts are arriving on the front under-equipped […]
» Read more
“The very public death of Putin henchman Yevgeny Prigozhin highlights the evolution of Russia into a mafia state held together by violence and incapable of global leadership.” “… Prigozhin had come to symbolize the criminal trajectory of the Russian state[,] [i]n the 1980s, … imprisoned in the Soviet Union, … [then] a rags-to-riches transformation from [post-Soviet] street vendor … to […]
» Read more