Inside Ukraine’s Effort to Fortify Hundreds of Miles of Defensive Lines Kyiv must install hundreds of lines of defense fast enough to outpace Russia’s advance. But the effort faces increasingly long odds.

200 miles of antitank ditches & barbed wire cut through fields across Ukraine’s battle-scarred east - fortifications that Kyiv is trying to lay fast & far enough to halt Russia’s advance. But, it's proving to be like building an airplane while flying it. My latest www.wsj.com/world/europe...

Russia Counters Ukrainian Drones by Turning Off Russians’ Mobile Internet The same data networks that enable phone apps and web surfing help drones navigate, so officials are imposing daily, patchwork shutdowns. The actions can be very disruptive to daily life.

Good piece by @nataliyavasilyeva.bsky.social. The Kremlin has tried hard to shield ordinary Russians from the war but that is now impossible. Regular internet shutdowns, texts warning of possible drone attacks, cyber attacks on airports - all have brought the war home
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/28/w...

I visited 4 different POW jails in Ukraine & interviewed soldiers from both sides who took part in the battles I describe. I reviewed video footage & audio intercepts. I’m lucky to work for a paper willing to finance such work, and talented photographers like Sasha Maslov www.wsj.com/world/europe...

Russia is able to continue this war because thousands of men like Simdyankin are willing to fight in it - without any real sese of what they’re fighting for. I have spoken to dozens of Russian POWs in Ukrainian captivity - his story is far from unusual

Mikhail Simdyankin was living a middle-class life in Russia’s cultural capital when he enlisted for money in August 2024. He was swayed by TV propaganda and had no clue about life on the frontlines - until he learned first-hand how little a Russian soldier’s life is worth.

‘Commanders Saw Us as Expendable’: A Russian Soldier’s View of the War Mikhail Simdyankin was lured into the military by a generous sign-on bonus and was stunned by what he found in Ukraine. ‘If I could, I would rewind and give all that money back.’

We often hear Ukraine’s side of this war. But we rarely hear from Russian soldiers.

I spent months on this piece about a young Russian man who abandoned a decent life in St. Petersburg to join Moscow’s brutal war machine.

His story is hard to believe - but it’s true. www.wsj.com/world/europe...

Russia’s Top Peace Negotiator Is a Historian Who Justified the War Vladimir Medinsky warned, in an interview, that Ukraine would lose more territory if it doesn’t agree to Moscow’s list of demands.

My interview with Vladimir Medinsky, Putin's chief negotiator on Ukraine and a man who has spent decades cementing a Kremlin narrative on history that paved the way for the invasion of Ukraine. He said Russia is willing to fight as long as is necessary to win www.wsj.com/world/russia...

Ukraine Is Offering Money and Perks for Gen Z to Fight The country’s leaders hope that the program will help chase down a demographic they have largely sought to spare from the front lines of the conflict with Russia.

I spoke to fresh recruits to the Ukrainian army’s 18-24 program, which targets Gen Z with perks including an interest-free mortgage, trips abroad & a $24,000 sign-on bonus that exceeds many soldiers’ yearly pay. “Who is going to fight, if not us?” www.wsj.com/world/ukrain...

How Putin Keeps Russia’s Battle-Hardened Veterans on His Side A growing crop of Russian soldiers have been tapped to fill a wave of government positions after serving in Ukraine, raising the prestige of military service and encouraging more people to enlist.

Among the war veterans who stood on Red Square today was Amyr Argamakov, part of a crop of Russian soldiers whom Putin is elevating to government positions to pacify dissent. He told me how he rose from service in Chechnya to a seat in Russia's parliament www.wsj.com/world/russia...

A Battlefield Death That Spelled the End for Russia’s Opposition Ildar Dadin spent years arguing that nonviolent resistance was the best way to unseat Putin, until he took up arms against Russia.

My piece on Ildar Dadin, an extraordinary Putin critic who spent a decade protesting inside Russia and then traveled to Ukraine to fight his own country in war. His battlefield death in October is a symbol of the challenge Russia's divided opposition faces www.wsj.com/world/russia...

Oleg Gordievsky: the loneliest and bravest man I ever met The KGB double agent, who died on Friday, was steely, intelligent and could charm anyone — including Angelina Jolie — writes Ben Macintyre, author of a book about the spy

Ben Macintyre on Gordievsky: “…I got to know Gordievsky well, spending more than 100 hours in his overheated living room. His neighbours had no idea that the bearded, diminutive man living next door, under an assumed name, had averted World War Three” www.thetimes.com/world/europe...

Putin’s response to a ceasefire offer: don military fatigues, head to embattled Kursk region and announce Russia will keep fighting till Ukraine is ousted from its land.

Pretty clear message about what he thinks of Zelensky’s overture

Putin Played a Long Game. It’s Starting to Pay Off. Advisers to the Russian leader have been surprised by the sudden change in tone from the White House in recent weeks.

Putin won’t be rushed into a quick peace deal of the sort Trump is advocating because he has spent decades calling for the kind of global reorganization that he thinks might now be finally emerging. My latest for @wsj.com www.wsj.com/world/russia...

Putin ally pushes deal to restart Nord Stream 2 with US backing Ex-spy Warnig’s plan to involve American investors shows breadth of Trump’s rapprochement with Russian president

💥 Former Stasi agent and close friend of Putin, Matthias Warnig has been engineering a deal with US investors to restart Russia’s Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline to Europe, a once unthinkable move that shows the breadth of Donald Trump’s rapprochement with Moscow.

www.ft.com/content/dc9c...

Russia says it proposed resuming direct flights with U.S. — Meduza At the U.S.-Russia talks in Istanbul on February 27, Russian representatives proposed restoring direct flights between the two countries, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Friday.

Russia says it proposed resuming direct flights with the U.S. at the two countries' talks in Istanbul on Thursday.

Exclusive | Captured North Koreans Describe Fighting for Russia in a War They Didn’t Understand The two soldiers thought they would be fighting South Korean troops and were told to kill themselves rather than be captured.

We spoke exclusively to the only two North Korean soldiers Ukraine has captured in battle. They were told they’d be fighting South Korean troops, and knew nothing about the war they were thrown into. Their ideological indoctrination did not stop even on the frontlines www.wsj.com/world/north-...

Trying to access Truth Social from Kyiv

The line about Zelensky’s illegitimacy has been a core element of Putin’s narrative on Ukraine for months

Libyans say Boris Johnson 'doesn't know what he's talking about' after 'cruel and unacceptable' joke Politician calls remarks ‘cruel and unacceptable’ amid calls for Foreign Secretary to be sacked

Having flashbacks to when Boris Johnson said this about the war-torn Libyan city of Sirte

“There’s a group of UK business people who have got a brilliant vision to turn it into the next Dubai. The only thing they have got to do is clear the dead bodies away.”

www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/poli...

The Russian TV Star Who Became the Voice of the Kremlin Dmitry Kiselyov rose through the aftershocks of the Cold War and emerged as Vladimir Putin’s propagandist-in-chief

Read my WSJ profile of the Kremlin’s chief propagandist Dmitry Kiselyov, who gave me a two-hour interview for this piece.

“In the West they’ll curse and denounce me,” he said. In Russia, “I’ll be fondly remembered for giving my people support in difficult times.” www.wsj.com/world/russia...

A bombing at a luxury apartment complex in Moscow today; authorities say appears to be assassination attempt, targeting Armen Sarkisian, and his bodyguard. Sarkisian created a militia/battalion that fought in Ukraine alongside separatists. (source: t.me/sledcom_press)

The Day DeepSeek Turned Tech and Wall Street Upside Down Monday’s bloodbath in Nvidia and other AI stocks wiped out some $1 trillion from the stock market’s value.

“This is kind of classic in our industry... The pioneers are not the ones who end up being the victors.” Amazing quote from our deep-dive on DeepSeek today www.wsj.com/finance/stoc...

YouTube video by CSSPR InFocus With Ejaz Haider Episode 55: Russia's Ontological Insecurity?

How does history impact Putin's decision-making? What are the sources of Russia's insecurity? What is all the fuss about NATO's expansion? These and other important themes are delved into in this riveting discussion between Ejaz Haider and @radchenko.bsky.social.

youtu.be/5n6Sz32ol6o?...

ЗАРУБИН СРОЧНЫЕ НОВОСТИ СПРОСИЛ У ПУТИНА ПРО ЗАЯВЛЕНИЯ ТРАМПА Подписывайтесь на канал «Зарубин», чтобы раньше видеть больше остальных

Putin today says Trump had the 2020 election stolen from him, in effect denying the legitimacy of Biden’s presidency. An effort to curry favor with Trump as Putin angles for a summit to hash out a Ukraine deal on Moscow’s terms t.me/zarubinrepor...

Putin is increasingly concerned about Russia’s economy and believes key war goals have been met, sources tell Reuters — Meduza Russian President Vladimir Putin reportedly “believes key war goals have already been met,” Reuters reported on Thursday, citing a source familiar with Kremlin thinking as saying. These goals…

Vladimir Putin “believes key war goals have already been met,” a source familiar with Kremlin thinking told Reuters. The Russian president is also reportedly “increasingly concerned about distortions in Russia’s wartime economy.”

I'm reading Karaganov/Trenin book. It's quite something, I must say. Very deeply confused. I'll try to write more, but right now, enjoy this gem of recommendation: "Sending the last warning signal by carrying out a ground test of an ultra-high-yield nuclear warhead (of over 50 megatons)"

"China recently displaced Russia as the largest arms exporter to countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. Beijing has captured a 10% share of an arms market that is increasingly crowded & competitive...Approximately 70% of all African armies now operate Chinese armoured vehicles" (IISS)

Inside an Elite Ukrainian Unit’s Mission to Capture a North Korean Soldier Ukraine wanted to show that North Korean troops are fighting alongside Russian troops. It took a high-stakes mission to prove it.

Ukrainian troops are taking risks to capture North Koreans on the battlefield to prove their involvement, but Russian and North Korean troops are doing everything possible to hide and eliminate wounded North Korean soldiers www.wsj.com/world/inside...

‘Navalny’s death wasn’t enough’ Colleagues of Alexey Navalny’s former lawyers comment on prison sentences for acting as his attorney — Meduza On Friday, a court in Russia’s Vladimir region issued sentences against three former lawyers of Alexey Navalny, convicting the attorneys of participation in the late opposition leader’s “extremist…

On Friday, a Russian court sentenced 3 former lawyers of Alexey Navalny, convicting the attorneys of participation in the late opposition leader’s “extremist organization.” Meduza asked four lawyers what they think Friday’s verdict means for the future of their profession.

A heavy night in Kyiv with at least four dead following combined drone and ballistic missile attacks early in the morning. One of the targets appears to have been a defence facility. But much more - water pipes, McDonalds etc - hit besides.