Russia

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France: We Intercepted Tanker in Russia's 'Shadow Fleet'

'We won't let this happen,' says Macron after French navy boarded tanker in the Mediterranean

(Newser) - The French navy on Friday intercepted and boarded a tanker in the Mediterranean Sea that President Emmanuel Macron said is linked to Russia's sanctioned shadow fleet shipping oil in violation of international sanctions over Moscow's war on Ukraine. According to the French maritime authorities for the Mediterranean, the...

Russian Oil Tanker May Test US Cuba Blockade

Sanctioned tanker is expected to arrive Monday

(Newser) - A Russian oil tanker is quietly cutting through the Atlantic, and its next move could trigger a fresh US–Russia clash over Cuba. The Anatoly Kolodkin , a Russian state-owned vessel under US sanctions and carrying roughly 730,000 barrels of crude, left Primorsk on March 9 and exited the English...

Russia Agrees to Stop Sending Kenyans to War

Countries agree to halt controversial wartime recruitment amid Kenyan protests

(Newser) - Kenya says it has struck a deal with Moscow to shut down a controversial pipeline sending its citizens to fight for Russia in Ukraine. Foreign Minister Musalia Mudavadi, speaking alongside his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov in Moscow on Monday, said the two governments agreed that Kenyans "will no longer be...

Ukraine's New Leverage With US: Drone Expertise

Zelensky sends interceptor drones, experts after request from US in the Iranian war

(Newser) - Perhaps no country on earth has become as adept at shooting down enemy drones as Ukraine because of its war with Russia. Now that the US is facing essentially the same drones in the Iran war, Volodymyr Zelensky's nation is sending interceptor drones and a team of experts to...

Hegseth: Iran War Is 'Bringing Your Enemy to Their Knees'

Defense secretary says US strikes will intensify until Iran's capabilities collapse

(Newser) - Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says the outcome in Iran is already set: capitulation, whether Tehran says the word or not. In an interview with CBS' 60 Minutes , Hegseth said US strikes had hit roughly 3,000 targets in Iran as of Friday and warned the campaign is "only just...

Russia May Be Helping Iran Target US Forces

Insider says Russia is happy to get 'payback' for US support for Ukraine

(Newser) - Russia isn't just watching the US-Iran war from the sidelines, US officials say—it's feeding Iran data on where to aim. The Washington Post , citing "three officials familiar with the intelligence," reports that since fighting erupted Saturday, Moscow has been supplying Tehran with locations of US...

Macron: Next 50 Years 'Will Be an Age of Nuclear Weapons'

French leader to boost nation's nuclear arsenal amid Russia aggression, US retreat

(Newser) - France's president is recasting his country's nuclear role, as well as asking Europe to step closer to it. Emmanuel Macron on Monday announced plans to enlarge France's nuclear arsenal and knit it more tightly into European defense, arguing that the continent must "regain control of [its]...

The War With Iran Could Be a Financial Lifeline for Putin

Middle East turmoil may boost Russian oil sales, so long as it lasts long enough

(Newser) - "For our budget, the attack on Iran is a big plus," a Russian TV host proclaimed Monday. The Guardian digs into the potential truth of that statement. Russia's oil and gas revenues are a linchpin of its war financing, and they hit a five-year low last year...

World Leaders React to US-Israel Attack on Iran

Nations voice concern as some back strikes, others condemn escalation

(Newser) - World leaders are lining up to assess, condemn, or cautiously back US and Israeli strikes on Iran as fears of a wider Middle East conflict grow. What some are saying as updates continue to trickle out of the region, per CNN , Reuters , and the New York Times :
  • Antonio Costa, president
...

Neutral Ireland Ramps Up Sea Surveillance

Plan includes new radar, subsea surveillance, and NATO coordination

(Newser) - Ireland is putting more eyes and ears on the water—and in the water—without dropping its neutral status. In its first-ever national maritime security strategy, Dublin says it will upgrade radar and undersea surveillance and work more closely with neighboring NATO states as it confronts what it calls rising...

4 Years of War in Ukraine, by the Numbers

As the fight grinds into its 5th year, AP breaks down the heavy cost on both nations

(Newser) - Russia's invasion of Ukraine four years ago launched Europe's biggest conflict since World War II, causing immense suffering for civilians and harrowing ordeals for soldiers while rewriting the post-Cold War security order. The fighting enters its fifth year on Tuesday, and it shows no signs of stopping....

Musk's Starlink Cut Leaves Russian Forces Scrambling

Ukraine has gained the advantage in some sectors

(Newser) - A flip of a switch from Elon Musk may have flipped the dynamics on parts of Ukraine's front line. After Ukraine's defense minister asked SpaceX to block Russian access to Starlink, the company on Feb. 1 shut down all terminals in Ukraine except those cleared on a government...

Russian Soldiers Allegedly Shot Themselves for Payout

$2.6M fraud scheme allegedly led by a commander formerly described as a war hero

(Newser) - Russian state media once cast a paratroop officer nicknamed "Executioner" as a war hero. Now Lt. Col. Konstantin Frolov stands accused of masterminding a scheme in which more than 30 soldiers and medics allegedly shot themselves to cash in on wartime injury payouts—and then kicked back a cut...

Russia Inches Its Way Back Onto the World Sports Stage

Committee allows Russians to represent their nation at Paralympics next month, for first time since 2014

(Newser) - Russia is about to step back onto one of sports' biggest stages, and not everyone is cheering. More than 10 years after a massive state-backed doping scandal pushed it to the sidelines, and amid its ongoing war in Ukraine, Russia will send six skiers to next month's Paralympic Games...

Report Flags a Major Jump in Ukraine's Civilian Casualties

AOAV links rising Ukrainian toll to eroding norms in modern warfare

(Newser) - Civilian deaths and injuries from bombing in Ukraine climbed sharply last year, the fourth year of Russia's war, a new analysis finds. Action on Armed Violence reports that 2025 saw a 26% rise in Ukrainian civilian casualties from explosive weapons, with English-language accounts reporting 2,248 people killed and...

Rubio Reassures Europe While Digging In on Criticism

Leaders at security conference like shift in tone, but seem skeptical about fundamental changes

(Newser) - Secretary of State Marco Rubio used a high-profile security gathering in Munich on Saturday to argue that the US and Europe are fundamentally linked, even as he backed Trump administration policies that have strained those ties. In a keynote address to the Munich Security Conference, Rubio told European leaders that...

UK Reveals What Killed Alexei Navalny

Toxin from poison dart frog was used to kill Russia opposition leader, officials say, blaming the Kremlin

(Newser) - British officials say a toxin derived from a poison dart frog was used to kill Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny in prison, and they're now directly accusing the Kremlin. The UK's Foreign Office identified the substance as epibatidine, saying there's no innocent reason for the chemical's...

US Says Nuclear Tests by China, Russia Compel It to Act

Allegation in Geneva reflects apparent weakening of a global taboo

(Newser) - The US has shaken a disarmament conference by charging that China carried out at least one clandestine nuclear explosive test—on June 22, 2020—and is preparing others with yields in the "hundreds of tons." China answered that the Americans are looking for cover to resume their own...

Zelensky: Ukraine, Russia Have June Deadline From US

Ukrainian leader says trilateral talks among US, Ukraine, Russia may take place in Miami next

(Newser) - The US has given Ukraine and Russia a June deadline to reach a deal to end the nearly four-year war, President Volodymyr Zelensky told reporters, as Russian strikes on energy infrastructure forced nuclear power plants to cut output on Saturday. If the June deadline isn't met, the Trump administration...

Musk Helps Ukraine Hit Russia in Its 'Achilles' Heel'

SpaceX's Starlink cuts off satellite internet access to Russia on the war's battlefields

(Newser) - Russian soldiers on the front lines in Ukraine are suddenly finding their Starlink connections dark, and Moscow's pro-war bloggers say it's no glitch. At Ukraine's request, Elon Musk's SpaceX has tightened control of its satellite internet service, blocking unregistered terminals inside Ukraine and cutting off what...

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