Russian troops advance in Ukraine as Kyiv runs low on air defenses
KYIV — As Ukrainian officials plead for more Western arms and a U.S. aid package remains stalled in Congress, Russia is advancing on the battlefield in eastern Ukraine, seizing new territory and intensifying attacks to capture the town of Chasiv Yar and others in the Donetsk region.
Away from the front line, Ukraine’s dwindling air defense capabilities are showing vulnerabilities, as more Russian missiles and drones are able to hit targets such as critical infrastructure facilities.
Outside Kyiv — considered Ukraine’s best-protected city — the largest power plant serving the capital was destroyed Thursday, stoking concerns that Ukraine might be running out of surface-to-air missiles to counter the Russian airstrikes.
Read the full story here.
KYIV — As Ukrainian officials plead for more Western arms and a U.S. aid package remains stalled in Congress, Russia is advancing on the battlefield in eastern Ukraine, seizing new territory and intensifying attacks to capture the town of Chasiv Yar and others in the Donetsk region.
Away from the front line, Ukraine’s dwindling air defense capabilities are showing vulnerabilities, as more Russian missiles and drones are able to hit targets such as critical infrastructure facilities.
Outside Kyiv — considered Ukraine’s best-protected city — the largest power plant serving the capital was destroyed Thursday, stoking concerns that Ukraine might be running out of surface-to-air missiles to counter the Russian airstrikes.
Read the full story here.
Forces intercepted nearly all 300 Iranian drones and missiles, Israel says
Iran launched more than 300 drones and missiles toward Israel in its first full-scale military assault against the country. Israeli war cabinet member Benny Gantz made his military’s intentions clear Sunday: “We will exact a price on Iran, in the manner and at the time that is right for us.”
U.S. military forces in the region helped Israel intercept the strikes, President Biden said. President Biden condemned the Iranian attacks and spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to reiterate the United States’ commitment to Israeli security.
Iranian media said the attack was in retaliation for an Israeli strike this month on an Iranian consular building in Damascus, Syria, which killed members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Stay tuned to live updates here.
Iran launched more than 300 drones and missiles toward Israel in its first full-scale military assault against the country. Israeli war cabinet member Benny Gantz made his military’s intentions clear Sunday: “We will exact a price on Iran, in the manner and at the time that is right for us.”
U.S. military forces in the region helped Israel intercept the strikes, President Biden said. President Biden condemned the Iranian attacks and spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to reiterate the United States’ commitment to Israeli security.
Iranian media said the attack was in retaliation for an Israeli strike this month on an Iranian consular building in Damascus, Syria, which killed members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Stay tuned to live updates here.
Why did Iran attack Israel? What to know about the strikes, U.S. response.
Iran launched a wave of missiles and drones toward Israel late Saturday as regional tensions continued to mount over the war in Gaza.
Iranian state media said the missile and drone assault was in retaliation to a deadly Israeli strike on an Iranian diplomatic compound in Syria on April 1.
Here's what you need to know about the assault.
Iran launched a wave of missiles and drones toward Israel late Saturday as regional tensions continued to mount over the war in Gaza.
Iranian state media said the missile and drone assault was in retaliation to a deadly Israeli strike on an Iranian diplomatic compound in Syria on April 1.
Here's what you need to know about the assault.
Arab nations call for restraint as Israel-Iran conflict intensifies
After Iran launched a retaliatory wave of missiles and drones toward Israel, a rare direct attack by Tehran, much of the Middle East found itself in uncharted territory: bracing for further violence while scrambling to interpret the new rules of confrontation between the region’s most powerful adversaries.
Iranian-backed militant groups that have participated in attacks on Israel over the last six months — in Yemen, Lebanon, and Iraq — congratulated Iran for the barrage but indicated that, this time, they had largely stayed out of the fray.
Arab governments, already struggling to contain popular fury at Israel’s deadly military offensive in Gaza, pleaded for calm.
Read the full story here.
After Iran launched a retaliatory wave of missiles and drones toward Israel, a rare direct attack by Tehran, much of the Middle East found itself in uncharted territory: bracing for further violence while scrambling to interpret the new rules of confrontation between the region’s most powerful adversaries.
Iranian-backed militant groups that have participated in attacks on Israel over the last six months — in Yemen, Lebanon, and Iraq — congratulated Iran for the barrage but indicated that, this time, they had largely stayed out of the fray.
Arab governments, already struggling to contain popular fury at Israel’s deadly military offensive in Gaza, pleaded for calm.
Read the full story here.
Ukraine’s attacks on Russian oil refineries deepen tensions with U.S.
BRUSSELS — When Vice President Harris met privately with Volodymyr Zelensky at the Munich Security Conference in February, she told the Ukrainian leader something he didn’t want to hear: Refrain from attacking Russian oil refineries, a tactic U.S. officials believed would raise global energy prices and invite more aggressive Russian retaliation inside Ukraine.
The request, according to officials familiar with the matter, irritated Zelensky and his top aides, who view Kyiv’s string of drone strikes on Russian energy facilities as a rare bright spot in a grinding war with a bigger and better equipped foe.
Zelensky brushed off the recommendation, uncertain whether it reflected the consensus position of the Biden administration, these people said. But in subsequent weeks, Washington reinforced the warning in multiple conversations with Kyiv.
Read the full story here.
BRUSSELS — When Vice President Harris met privately with Volodymyr Zelensky at the Munich Security Conference in February, she told the Ukrainian leader something he didn’t want to hear: Refrain from attacking Russian oil refineries, a tactic U.S. officials believed would raise global energy prices and invite more aggressive Russian retaliation inside Ukraine.
The request, according to officials familiar with the matter, irritated Zelensky and his top aides, who view Kyiv’s string of drone strikes on Russian energy facilities as a rare bright spot in a grinding war with a bigger and better equipped foe.
Zelensky brushed off the recommendation, uncertain whether it reflected the consensus position of the Biden administration, these people said. But in subsequent weeks, Washington reinforced the warning in multiple conversations with Kyiv.
Read the full story here.
Drones are crowding Ukraine’s skies, largely paralyzing battlefield
DONETSK REGION, Ukraine — So many drones patrol the skies over Ukraine’s front lines — hunting for any signs of movement — that Ukrainian and Russian troops have little ability to move on the battlefield without being spotted, and blown up.
Instead, on missions, they rush from one foxhole to another, hoping the pilots manning the enemy drones overhead are not skilled enough to find them inside. Expert drone operators, their abilities honed on the front, can stalk just a single foot soldier to their death, diving after them into hideouts and trenches.
The surge in small drones in Ukraine has turned the area beyond either side of the zero line — normally known as “the gray zone” — into “the death zone,” said Oleksandr Nastenko, commander of Code 9.2, a drone unit in Ukraine’s 92nd brigade. Those who dare to move day or night under the prying eyes of enemy drones “are dead immediately,” he said.
Read the full story here.
DONETSK REGION, Ukraine — So many drones patrol the skies over Ukraine’s front lines — hunting for any signs of movement — that Ukrainian and Russian troops have little ability to move on the battlefield without being spotted, and blown up.
Instead, on missions, they rush from one foxhole to another, hoping the pilots manning the enemy drones overhead are not skilled enough to find them inside. Expert drone operators, their abilities honed on the front, can stalk just a single foot soldier to their death, diving after them into hideouts and trenches.
The surge in small drones in Ukraine has turned the area beyond either side of the zero line — normally known as “the gray zone” — into “the death zone,” said Oleksandr Nastenko, commander of Code 9.2, a drone unit in Ukraine’s 92nd brigade. Those who dare to move day or night under the prying eyes of enemy drones “are dead immediately,” he said.
Read the full story here.
Russia hits Chernihiv, killing at least 14 as Ukraine pleads for air defense
KYIV — At least 14 people were killed and more than 60 wounded in the northern Ukrainian city of Chernihiv on Wednesday when Russian missiles struck the downtown area during morning rush hour — an attack officials said could have been stopped if Ukraine had adequate air defenses.
Russia launched three Iskander cruise missiles at the city, which is just 60 miles from the Russian border and was nearly encircled by Russian troops in early 2022.
“This would not have happened if Ukraine had received enough air defense equipment and if the world’s determination to counter Russian terror was also sufficient,” President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote on Telegram. “There needs to be sufficient commitment from partners and sufficient support to reflect it.”
Read the full story here.
KYIV — At least 14 people were killed and more than 60 wounded in the northern Ukrainian city of Chernihiv on Wednesday when Russian missiles struck the downtown area during morning rush hour — an attack officials said could have been stopped if Ukraine had adequate air defenses.
Russia launched three Iskander cruise missiles at the city, which is just 60 miles from the Russian border and was nearly encircled by Russian troops in early 2022.
“This would not have happened if Ukraine had received enough air defense equipment and if the world’s determination to counter Russian terror was also sufficient,” President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote on Telegram. “There needs to be sufficient commitment from partners and sufficient support to reflect it.”
Read the full story here.
Secret Russian foreign policy document urges action to weaken the U.S.
Russia’s Foreign Ministry has been drawing up plans to try to weaken its Western adversaries, including the United States, and leverage the Ukraine war to forge a global order free from what it sees as American dominance, according to a secret Foreign Ministry document.
In a classified addendum to Russia’s official — and public — “Foreign Policy Concept of the Russian Federation,” the ministry calls for an “offensive information campaign” and other measures spanning “the military-political, economic and trade and informational psychological spheres” against a “coalition of unfriendly countries” led by the United States.
Read the full story here.
Russia’s Foreign Ministry has been drawing up plans to try to weaken its Western adversaries, including the United States, and leverage the Ukraine war to forge a global order free from what it sees as American dominance, according to a secret Foreign Ministry document.
In a classified addendum to Russia’s official — and public — “Foreign Policy Concept of the Russian Federation,” the ministry calls for an “offensive information campaign” and other measures spanning “the military-political, economic and trade and informational psychological spheres” against a “coalition of unfriendly countries” led by the United States.
Read the full story here.
Russia ramps up weapons production, using mass quantity to outgun Ukraine
Russia has ramped up military production by replenishing stocks of standard weapons and ammunition and probably can sustain its onslaught in Ukraine for at least the next two years, analysts say — a sobering assessment for Kyiv, which is short on weapons and soldiers and losing ground on the battlefield.
While the Kremlin is struggling to expand capacity and to develop modern arms that could improve its army’s battlefield performance, it has capitalized on its overwhelming advantage in numbers of soldiers, its ability to arm them with old but reliable weaponry and a willingness to endure heavy casualties.
Read the full story here.
Russia has ramped up military production by replenishing stocks of standard weapons and ammunition and probably can sustain its onslaught in Ukraine for at least the next two years, analysts say — a sobering assessment for Kyiv, which is short on weapons and soldiers and losing ground on the battlefield.
While the Kremlin is struggling to expand capacity and to develop modern arms that could improve its army’s battlefield performance, it has capitalized on its overwhelming advantage in numbers of soldiers, its ability to arm them with old but reliable weaponry and a willingness to endure heavy casualties.
Read the full story here.
Zelensky urges U.S. to send weapons quickly ahead of Russian offensive
Following passage in the House of a major military aid package for Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Sunday that his country will only be able to repel an anticipated Russian offensive if the U.S. weapons arrive quickly.
Zelensky said his forces are preparing for a significant battle in the east of the country, where Russia aims to capture the city of Chasiv Yar by May 9, the holiday when Russia marks the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi forces in World War II.
Zelensky told NBC’s “Meet the Press” that Ukrainian forces lack long-range weapons of their own, as well as adequate air defenses, and indicated that while U.S. lawmakers debated the aid package, Ukraine lost time and momentum.
Read the full story here.
Following passage in the House of a major military aid package for Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Sunday that his country will only be able to repel an anticipated Russian offensive if the U.S. weapons arrive quickly.
Zelensky said his forces are preparing for a significant battle in the east of the country, where Russia aims to capture the city of Chasiv Yar by May 9, the holiday when Russia marks the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi forces in World War II.
Zelensky told NBC’s “Meet the Press” that Ukrainian forces lack long-range weapons of their own, as well as adequate air defenses, and indicated that while U.S. lawmakers debated the aid package, Ukraine lost time and momentum.
Read the full story here.
Russian man sentenced to 5 years of labor for criticizing war in Ukraine
A Moscow court on Monday sentenced a man to five years of compulsory labor for giving an antiwar comment to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) two years ago — a criminal prosecution that showed the Russian government intensifying its crackdown on dissent and that could have a chilling effect on international media still operating in the country.
The man, Yuri Kokhovets, 38, made a brief comment critical of Russia’s war in Ukraine in July 2022, when reporters from RFE/RL were conducting “vox pops” — quick interviews surveying public opinion — outside a subway station in the Russian capital.
Read the full story here.
A Moscow court on Monday sentenced a man to five years of compulsory labor for giving an antiwar comment to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) two years ago — a criminal prosecution that showed the Russian government intensifying its crackdown on dissent and that could have a chilling effect on international media still operating in the country.
The man, Yuri Kokhovets, 38, made a brief comment critical of Russia’s war in Ukraine in July 2022, when reporters from RFE/RL were conducting “vox pops” — quick interviews surveying public opinion — outside a subway station in the Russian capital.
Read the full story here.
Ukraine moves to cut off consular services for military-age men abroad
KYIV — Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry said Tuesday that it would restrict consular services for Ukrainian men of military fighting age who have left the country, potentially cutting off their ability to renew passports or access other essential citizen services.
Thousands of Ukrainian men are believed to have left their country rather than risk being drafted to help defend against Russia’s continuing invasion, even though martial law bars men age 18 and over from traveling abroad. Thousands of others were already living abroad, typically to work or study, when Russia invaded in February 2022.
The restriction in consular services is in keeping with a recently adopted law on military mobilization, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba posted on X, formerly Twitter.
Read the full story here.
KYIV — Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry said Tuesday that it would restrict consular services for Ukrainian men of military fighting age who have left the country, potentially cutting off their ability to renew passports or access other essential citizen services.
Thousands of Ukrainian men are believed to have left their country rather than risk being drafted to help defend against Russia’s continuing invasion, even though martial law bars men age 18 and over from traveling abroad. Thousands of others were already living abroad, typically to work or study, when Russia invaded in February 2022.
The restriction in consular services is in keeping with a recently adopted law on military mobilization, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba posted on X, formerly Twitter.
Read the full story here.
U.S. unveils $1 billion Ukraine weapons package
The United States will send a substantial security package to Ukraine, including badly needed air defense systems and artillery rounds, the White House said Wednesday, as the administration — its war chest replenished after months of gridlock in Congress — moves quickly to help Kyiv counter a resurgent Russian campaign.
The weapons package, valued at up to $1 billion, restarts an expansive U.S. effort to sustain Ukraine’s embattled military as the war with Russia bleeds into its third year. The Pentagon, having anticipated lawmakers would end their impasse, signaled in recent days it was prepared to rush at least some of this resupply to the battlefield within days.
President Biden, in remarks on Wednesday morning, announced the shipments would begin in the “next few hours.”
Read the full story here.
The United States will send a substantial security package to Ukraine, including badly needed air defense systems and artillery rounds, the White House said Wednesday, as the administration — its war chest replenished after months of gridlock in Congress — moves quickly to help Kyiv counter a resurgent Russian campaign.
The weapons package, valued at up to $1 billion, restarts an expansive U.S. effort to sustain Ukraine’s embattled military as the war with Russia bleeds into its third year. The Pentagon, having anticipated lawmakers would end their impasse, signaled in recent days it was prepared to rush at least some of this resupply to the battlefield within days.
President Biden, in remarks on Wednesday morning, announced the shipments would begin in the “next few hours.”
Read the full story here.
Blinken will urge China to stop sending military supplies to Russia
SHANGHAI — Amid growing U.S. worries that Russia’s war on Ukraine is being made possible by Chinese support for Moscow’s defense industry, Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in China on Wednesday on a three-day mission to push leaders to cut ties with the Kremlin.
The conversations in Shanghai and Beijing will be aimed at managing an increasingly thorny and contentious relationship, with ongoing disputes about China’s role in the war in Ukraine, Beijing’s broad claims over the South China Sea and U.S. efforts to reduce dependence on China’s technology manufacturing sector.
Read the full story here.
SHANGHAI — Amid growing U.S. worries that Russia’s war on Ukraine is being made possible by Chinese support for Moscow’s defense industry, Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in China on Wednesday on a three-day mission to push leaders to cut ties with the Kremlin.
The conversations in Shanghai and Beijing will be aimed at managing an increasingly thorny and contentious relationship, with ongoing disputes about China’s role in the war in Ukraine, Beijing’s broad claims over the South China Sea and U.S. efforts to reduce dependence on China’s technology manufacturing sector.
Read the full story here.
Opinion | This defiant Ukrainian general has no smile — and surprising remarks on Trump
KYIV — Lt. Gen. Kyrylo Budanov is the dark prince of the Ukraine war. His drop-dead stare has become an icon for Ukrainians — a symbol of bravery and defiance in this third year of conflict with Russia. Ukraine’s NV news outlet calls him the man “without a smile.” A meme that circulates on the internet shows nine identical pictures of his scowling face, labeled “happy,” “angry,” “troubled,” “excited” and so on.
Budanov spoke with me for 90 minutes last month in his forbidding office on what Ukrainians call “the Island,” a derelict string of buildings on a peninsula on the Dnieper River. He was, as always, the voice of resistance — promising to take the fight into Russia with drones and special operations, confirming reports that he’s battling with Wagner mercenaries in Africa and scoffing at a Korea-style negotiated settlement.
Read David Ignatius’s full opinion essay here.
KYIV — Lt. Gen. Kyrylo Budanov is the dark prince of the Ukraine war. His drop-dead stare has become an icon for Ukrainians — a symbol of bravery and defiance in this third year of conflict with Russia. Ukraine’s NV news outlet calls him the man “without a smile.” A meme that circulates on the internet shows nine identical pictures of his scowling face, labeled “happy,” “angry,” “troubled,” “excited” and so on.
Budanov spoke with me for 90 minutes last month in his forbidding office on what Ukrainians call “the Island,” a derelict string of buildings on a peninsula on the Dnieper River. He was, as always, the voice of resistance — promising to take the fight into Russia with drones and special operations, confirming reports that he’s battling with Wagner mercenaries in Africa and scoffing at a Korea-style negotiated settlement.
Read David Ignatius’s full opinion essay here.
Hospitals evacuated in Kyiv after threat from Belarus
KYIV — Kyiv city authorities in Kyiv on Friday urgently evacuated two hospitals, including a children’s hospital, after the head of the Belarusian KGB claimed “terrorists” were being treated there — an accusation which Ukrainian officials called “a lie and provocation” but set off fears of an imminent attack.
Speaking before a meeting of the All-Belarusian People’s Assembly — a political gathering headed by the Belarusian strongman leader Aleksandr Lukashenko — the KGB head, Ivan Teretel, specified the addresses of the hospitals, which are located next to each other in the Ukrainian capital. Teretel promised to “impose punishment.”
Read the full story here.
KYIV — Kyiv city authorities in Kyiv on Friday urgently evacuated two hospitals, including a children’s hospital, after the head of the Belarusian KGB claimed “terrorists” were being treated there — an accusation which Ukrainian officials called “a lie and provocation” but set off fears of an imminent attack.
Speaking before a meeting of the All-Belarusian People’s Assembly — a political gathering headed by the Belarusian strongman leader Aleksandr Lukashenko — the KGB head, Ivan Teretel, specified the addresses of the hospitals, which are located next to each other in the Ukrainian capital. Teretel promised to “impose punishment.”
Read the full story here.