Summary and Key Points: Russia’s Tu-22M has been forced into a new reality in Ukraine: modern air defenses make “classic” bomber operations inside contested airspace increasingly dangerous. -That pressure is pushing the Tu-22M3 toward a stand-off role—launching long-range weapons rather than penetrating to deliver conventional massed strikes the way Cold War planning imagined.

Putin has long wanted to extract concessions from NATO. The three factors deterring Russia from an attack—a war in Ukraine, military capacity, and NATO strength

After its largest winter mass attack on Feb. 3, Russia's Defense Ministry said the strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure were carried out "in response to terrorist attacks by Kyiv on civilian

Which means that the EU’s fertilizer sanctions directed at Russia will potentially have a deleterious economic impact well beyond it, including within the richest country on earth. Stop and think about this, particularly with Ukraine’s health and wellbeing very much in mind.

When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, it exposed a critical weakness at the heart of Europe’s energy system. Within weeks gas flows were cut, prices surged and governments were forced into emergency measures to keep the lights on and homes heated.

Peskov said the Russian delegation at the upcoming talks will be broadened and that negotiators plan to address a “wider range of issues” compared with meetings in Abu Dhabi, including territories. Putin aide Vladimir Medinsky will continue to head the Russian delegation.

Russia says Ukraine has launched a counteroffensive in Zaporizhzhia. The claim surfaced just as new limits on Russian access to Starlink began disrupting frontline communications.