Russian air passengers face peril as planes show strain of sanctions
MOSCOW — Over the first eight days of December, civilian Russian airplanes experienced at least eight serious mechanical failures, terrifying many passengers as pilots were forced to make emergency landings in cities across the country.
The incidents did not kill anyone, but they illustrate the rising peril of air travel in Russia. Nearly two years of sanctions over the war in Ukraine have left airlines struggling to obtain vital spare parts and, as a result, shortcutting safety standards — in some cases with government approval.
Read the full story here.
MOSCOW — Over the first eight days of December, civilian Russian airplanes experienced at least eight serious mechanical failures, terrifying many passengers as pilots were forced to make emergency landings in cities across the country.
The incidents did not kill anyone, but they illustrate the rising peril of air travel in Russia. Nearly two years of sanctions over the war in Ukraine have left airlines struggling to obtain vital spare parts and, as a result, shortcutting safety standards — in some cases with government approval.
Read the full story here.
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Breaking protection pledge, Russian regions reinstate animal kill shelters
RIGA, Latvia — Nearly every day, volunteers in Buryatia, a Russian republic in east Siberia, carry terrified and malnourished dogs in their hands to the Ulan-Ude train station. For more than 3,000 canines held in the region’s shelters, the mass evacuation to cities thousands of miles away may be their last chance to avoid being killed.
In November, Buryatia became the first region to adopt laws reinstating a “kill-shelter” approach to controlling the population of stray dogs after President Vladimir Putin signed a law giving regional heads authority to deal with the issue independently.
Read the full story here.
RIGA, Latvia — Nearly every day, volunteers in Buryatia, a Russian republic in east Siberia, carry terrified and malnourished dogs in their hands to the Ulan-Ude train station. For more than 3,000 canines held in the region’s shelters, the mass evacuation to cities thousands of miles away may be their last chance to avoid being killed.
In November, Buryatia became the first region to adopt laws reinstating a “kill-shelter” approach to controlling the population of stray dogs after President Vladimir Putin signed a law giving regional heads authority to deal with the issue independently.
Read the full story here.
Shelling in eastern Ukraine kills 27, Russian-backed authorities say
At least 27 people were killed Sunday when shells slammed into a Russian-controlled region of eastern Ukraine, local officials and Russia’s Foreign Ministry said.
Authorities in the city of Donetsk blamed the strikes on Ukraine’s military, saying the shells landed in a busy shopping area in the Tekstilshchik quarter. Twenty-five people were injured in the attack, according to Denis Pushilin, the Moscow-installed head of the separatist Donetsk People’s Republic, or DPR.
In a post on Telegram, Pushilin said 155mm and 152mm artillery rounds were fired at Donetsk from two regions west of the city, near the front line. There was no immediate comment from Kyiv, and The Washington Post could not immediately verify the claims.
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At least 27 people were killed Sunday when shells slammed into a Russian-controlled region of eastern Ukraine, local officials and Russia’s Foreign Ministry said.
Authorities in the city of Donetsk blamed the strikes on Ukraine’s military, saying the shells landed in a busy shopping area in the Tekstilshchik quarter. Twenty-five people were injured in the attack, according to Denis Pushilin, the Moscow-installed head of the separatist Donetsk People’s Republic, or DPR.
In a post on Telegram, Pushilin said 155mm and 152mm artillery rounds were fired at Donetsk from two regions west of the city, near the front line. There was no immediate comment from Kyiv, and The Washington Post could not immediately verify the claims.
Read the full story here.
In Ukraine’s northeast, fears rise of second Russian occupation
For nearly a year after Ukraine liberated towns along the war-scarred road to Kupyansk in the northeast Kharkiv region, residents hardly whispered fears of a second Russian occupation. They are now speaking them aloud.
For months, Russia has pummeled Kupyansk, a strategic rail hub that it seized in early 2022 and that Ukraine retook seven months later. From positions east of the Oskil River, which bisects the city, Russia never fully lost sight of its target.
In recent months, Ukraine has urged civilians to evacuate — again — and not just from Kupyansk but also from dozens of villages to the west, a grim sign that Kyiv fears the Russians could push forward. On Saturday, they took control of the small settlement of Krokhmalne, southeast of the city, bringing them slightly closer to the river.
Read the full story here.
For nearly a year after Ukraine liberated towns along the war-scarred road to Kupyansk in the northeast Kharkiv region, residents hardly whispered fears of a second Russian occupation. They are now speaking them aloud.
For months, Russia has pummeled Kupyansk, a strategic rail hub that it seized in early 2022 and that Ukraine retook seven months later. From positions east of the Oskil River, which bisects the city, Russia never fully lost sight of its target.
In recent months, Ukraine has urged civilians to evacuate — again — and not just from Kupyansk but also from dozens of villages to the west, a grim sign that Kyiv fears the Russians could push forward. On Saturday, they took control of the small settlement of Krokhmalne, southeast of the city, bringing them slightly closer to the river.
Read the full story here.
Turkey votes in favor of Sweden’s NATO membership after months of delay
ISTANBUL — After 20 months of demands, obstruction and delay, the Turkish parliament on Tuesday night voted in favor of Sweden joining NATO, clearing one of the final hurdles for a major expansion of the military alliance set in motion by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan still needs to sign the document into law.
Assuming he does, Hungary would be the last remaining holdout. Officials there have previously signaled they would not, ultimately, stand in the way. On Tuesday, Prime Minister Viktor Orban announced, somewhat cryptically, that he had invited the Swedish prime minister to visit to “negotiate on Sweden’s NATO accession.”
If both Turkey and Hungary get on board, the alliance could formally welcome its 32nd member, potentially sealing the deal before its 75th anniversary this spring.
Read the full story here.
ISTANBUL — After 20 months of demands, obstruction and delay, the Turkish parliament on Tuesday night voted in favor of Sweden joining NATO, clearing one of the final hurdles for a major expansion of the military alliance set in motion by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan still needs to sign the document into law.
Assuming he does, Hungary would be the last remaining holdout. Officials there have previously signaled they would not, ultimately, stand in the way. On Tuesday, Prime Minister Viktor Orban announced, somewhat cryptically, that he had invited the Swedish prime minister to visit to “negotiate on Sweden’s NATO accession.”
If both Turkey and Hungary get on board, the alliance could formally welcome its 32nd member, potentially sealing the deal before its 75th anniversary this spring.
Read the full story here.
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Russian military jet crashes near Belgorod, killing 74, officials say
RIGA, Latvia — A Russian military plane crashed on Wednesday in the western Belgorod region near the border with Ukraine, killing 74 people on board, Russian state media reported.
Immediately after the 11 a.m. crash, there were conflicting reports about who was on the Ilyushin Il-76 aircraft.
The Russian Defense Ministry said it was carrying 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war who were being transferred to the region for a subsequent swap. Ukrainska Pravda, a Ukrainian news outlet, citing unnamed military officials, reported that the plane was transporting missiles.
Read the full story here.
RIGA, Latvia — A Russian military plane crashed on Wednesday in the western Belgorod region near the border with Ukraine, killing 74 people on board, Russian state media reported.
Immediately after the 11 a.m. crash, there were conflicting reports about who was on the Ilyushin Il-76 aircraft.
The Russian Defense Ministry said it was carrying 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war who were being transferred to the region for a subsequent swap. Ukrainska Pravda, a Ukrainian news outlet, citing unnamed military officials, reported that the plane was transporting missiles.
Read the full story here.
Ukraine alleges Russian disinformation in downing of military plane
KYIV — Russia and Ukraine traded blame and pushed dueling narratives Thursday over the downing of a Russian military plane, which Moscow said was carrying 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war who were about to be exchanged and returned home to their families. Everyone aboard was killed, Russia said.
Ukraine has not confirmed whether POWs were on board. Nor has it directly confirmed that it shot down the Ilyushin Il-76 transport plane, which crashed Wednesday in Russia’s Belgorod region, just north of the Ukrainian border.
But in their statements about the incident, senior Ukrainian officials, including President Volodymyr Zelensky, have not denied shooting down the plane, and some have emphasized Ukraine’s right — and urgent need — to target Russian military aircraft given Moscow’s ongoing invasion, constant airstrikes on Ukrainian cities and push to seize more territory.
Read the full story here.
KYIV — Russia and Ukraine traded blame and pushed dueling narratives Thursday over the downing of a Russian military plane, which Moscow said was carrying 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war who were about to be exchanged and returned home to their families. Everyone aboard was killed, Russia said.
Ukraine has not confirmed whether POWs were on board. Nor has it directly confirmed that it shot down the Ilyushin Il-76 transport plane, which crashed Wednesday in Russia’s Belgorod region, just north of the Ukrainian border.
But in their statements about the incident, senior Ukrainian officials, including President Volodymyr Zelensky, have not denied shooting down the plane, and some have emphasized Ukraine’s right — and urgent need — to target Russian military aircraft given Moscow’s ongoing invasion, constant airstrikes on Ukrainian cities and push to seize more territory.
Read the full story here.
Russia sentences woman to 27 years in bomb assassination of blogger
Russian courts on Thursday imposed prison sentences in two telling cases connected to the war in Ukraine, with one serving as a threat to pro-war Russians who criticize the military’s performance on the battlefield and another, much harsher sentence, as warning that Russians aiding Kyiv in this war will see no mercy.
In St. Petersburg, a military court sentenced Daria Trepova, a young antiwar activist, to 27 years in prison on terrorism charges connected to the killing of a prominent pro-war blogger in a cafe, the harshest known sentence for a woman in modern Russian history.
Trepova, 26, was arrested last spring and accused of giving a statuette with a bomb inside to Maxim Fomin, a pro-war commentator and Telegram blogger with over half a million followers, better known by his pen name Vladlen Tatarsky. Fomin died in the blast.
Read the full story here.
Russian courts on Thursday imposed prison sentences in two telling cases connected to the war in Ukraine, with one serving as a threat to pro-war Russians who criticize the military’s performance on the battlefield and another, much harsher sentence, as warning that Russians aiding Kyiv in this war will see no mercy.
In St. Petersburg, a military court sentenced Daria Trepova, a young antiwar activist, to 27 years in prison on terrorism charges connected to the killing of a prominent pro-war blogger in a cafe, the harshest known sentence for a woman in modern Russian history.
Trepova, 26, was arrested last spring and accused of giving a statuette with a bomb inside to Maxim Fomin, a pro-war commentator and Telegram blogger with over half a million followers, better known by his pen name Vladlen Tatarsky. Fomin died in the blast.
Read the full story here.
Kharkiv’s air defense struggles to halt nonstop Russian missiles
NORTH OF KHARKIV, Ukraine — Russia hit Kharkiv, which sits just 19 miles south of the border, three times on Tuesday. The barrages were the latest in a series of recent strikes that appear aimed in part to exploit weak points in Ukraine’s air defense systems.
The missile strikes show that Russian President Vladimir Putin is prepared to destroy Ukraine rather than allow the country to pursue an independent, democratic future in the European Union. They also show that Ukraine still does not have enough air defenses even after the West supplied Kyiv with an array of systems.
Read the full story here.
NORTH OF KHARKIV, Ukraine — Russia hit Kharkiv, which sits just 19 miles south of the border, three times on Tuesday. The barrages were the latest in a series of recent strikes that appear aimed in part to exploit weak points in Ukraine’s air defense systems.
The missile strikes show that Russian President Vladimir Putin is prepared to destroy Ukraine rather than allow the country to pursue an independent, democratic future in the European Union. They also show that Ukraine still does not have enough air defenses even after the West supplied Kyiv with an array of systems.
Read the full story here.
This man wants to run against Putin. Thousands of Russians are helping him.
RIGA, Latvia — Boris Nadezhdin claims he wants to do the unthinkable: unseat Vladimir Putin in Russia’s March presidential election by campaigning against the war in Ukraine. Many Putin critics suspect that Nadezhdin, a former member of parliament, is playing by the Kremlin’s rules — and is the latest to join a cast of approved opposition candidates used to create a sheen of democracy in a ruthless, authoritarian state where true dissent is crushed and genuine challengers are jailed or exiled.
Despite these misgivings, tens of thousands of antiwar Russians have flocked to help Nadezhdin get on the ballot. They don’t believe he will win, and some even dislike him, citing his appearances on propagandist state television programs and his previous job as an aide to Sergei Kiriyenko, who is now Putin’s domestic policy czar. Nonetheless, they view Nadezhdin, 60, as their own tool.
Read the full story here.
RIGA, Latvia — Boris Nadezhdin claims he wants to do the unthinkable: unseat Vladimir Putin in Russia’s March presidential election by campaigning against the war in Ukraine. Many Putin critics suspect that Nadezhdin, a former member of parliament, is playing by the Kremlin’s rules — and is the latest to join a cast of approved opposition candidates used to create a sheen of democracy in a ruthless, authoritarian state where true dissent is crushed and genuine challengers are jailed or exiled.
Despite these misgivings, tens of thousands of antiwar Russians have flocked to help Nadezhdin get on the ballot. They don’t believe he will win, and some even dislike him, citing his appearances on propagandist state television programs and his previous job as an aide to Sergei Kiriyenko, who is now Putin’s domestic policy czar. Nonetheless, they view Nadezhdin, 60, as their own tool.
Read the full story here.
Exclusive: U.S. war plans for Ukraine don’t foresee retaking lost territory
Still smarting from last year’s failed counteroffensive in Ukraine, the Biden administration is putting together a new strategy that will de-emphasize winning back territory and focus instead on helping Ukraine fend off new Russian advances while moving toward a long-term goal of strengthening its fighting force and economy.
The emerging plan is a sharp change from last year, when the U.S. and allied militaries rushed training and sophisticated equipment to Kyiv in hopes that it could quickly push back Russian forces occupying eastern and southern Ukraine. That effort foundered, largely on Russia’s heavily fortified minefields and front-line trenches.
Read the full story here.
Still smarting from last year’s failed counteroffensive in Ukraine, the Biden administration is putting together a new strategy that will de-emphasize winning back territory and focus instead on helping Ukraine fend off new Russian advances while moving toward a long-term goal of strengthening its fighting force and economy.
The emerging plan is a sharp change from last year, when the U.S. and allied militaries rushed training and sophisticated equipment to Kyiv in hopes that it could quickly push back Russian forces occupying eastern and southern Ukraine. That effort foundered, largely on Russia’s heavily fortified minefields and front-line trenches.
Read the full story here.
Russia projects confidence as it pursues alliances to undermine West
Russia is increasingly confident that deepening economic and diplomatic ties with China and the Global South will allow it to challenge the international financial system dominated by the United States and undermine the West, according to Kremlin documents and interviews with Russian officials and business executives.
Russia has been buoyed by its success in holding off a Western-backed Ukrainian counteroffensive followed by political stalemates in Washington and Brussels over continued funding for Kyiv. In Moscow’s view, the U.S. backing of Israel’s invasion of Gaza has damaged Washington’s standing in many parts of the world. The confluence of events has led to a surge of optimism about Russia’s global position.
Read the full story here.
Russia is increasingly confident that deepening economic and diplomatic ties with China and the Global South will allow it to challenge the international financial system dominated by the United States and undermine the West, according to Kremlin documents and interviews with Russian officials and business executives.
Russia has been buoyed by its success in holding off a Western-backed Ukrainian counteroffensive followed by political stalemates in Washington and Brussels over continued funding for Kyiv. In Moscow’s view, the U.S. backing of Israel’s invasion of Gaza has damaged Washington’s standing in many parts of the world. The confluence of events has led to a surge of optimism about Russia’s global position.
Read the full story here.
Ukraine says defense officials stole $40 million meant for ammunition
KYIV — Ukrainian officials stole about $40 million meant for the purchase of ammunition for the military, the country’s internal security service said Saturday — confirming a massive procurement fraud as Kyiv seeks to assure international backers that it is cracking down on corruption.
Though it was state money — not foreign aid — that was embezzled, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said in a statement, the scheme is likely to resonate in both Washington and Brussels, where European Union membership and continued financial and military assistance hang in the balance.
Read the full story here.
KYIV — Ukrainian officials stole about $40 million meant for the purchase of ammunition for the military, the country’s internal security service said Saturday — confirming a massive procurement fraud as Kyiv seeks to assure international backers that it is cracking down on corruption.
Though it was state money — not foreign aid — that was embezzled, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said in a statement, the scheme is likely to resonate in both Washington and Brussels, where European Union membership and continued financial and military assistance hang in the balance.
Read the full story here.