Russia’s Putin to remove Sergei Shoigu as defence minister
Russian President Vladimir Putin plans to remove Sergei Shoigu as defence minister as part of a cabinet reshuffle, making him secretary of the Security Council instead. Andrei Belousov, a former deputy prime minister who specialises in economics, will become the new defence minister, the Kremlin said on Sunday. The shake-up comes as Putin begins his fifth term in office. […]
Russian forces sharing base with US troops in Niger
Russian troops have been deployed to an airbase in Niger where American soldiers are located, US officials say. The move comes after Niger’s military rulers ordered the US to withdraw troops who had been countering Islamic insurgents in the region. BBC reports that Russian forces were present at the base in Niger’s capital Niamey, but […]
Russia arrests 2 more journalists – reports
Russia has reportedly arrested two journalists who have been working with international news outlets. Sergei Karelin – a Russian and Israeli citizen – was detained on Friday, the Associated Press reported. He has previously worked with the news agency. He is accused of “extremism” in connection with alleged work for the late opposition leader Alexei […]
Ukraine war: Russian missile attack targets Kyiv
Ukraine has intercepted 31 missiles launched by Russia at Kyiv overnight, Ukraine’s air force said. At least 17 people, including a child, were injured by falling debris, four of whom are in hospital, authorities said. It is the largest Russian attack in weeks and follows a vow from Moscow for revenge over recent attacks by […]
Zelensky says 31,000 troops killed since Russia’s full-scale invasion
Volodymyr Zelensky says 31,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed during Russia’s full-scale invasion. The Ukrainian president said he would not give the number of wounded as that would help Russian military planning. Typically, Ukrainian officials do not make casualty figures public, and other estimates are much higher. It comes after the defence minister said half […]
Trump says he would encourage Russia to attack Nato allies who do not pay their bills
Donald Trump has said he would “encourage” Russia to attack any NATO member that fails to pay its bills as part of the Western military alliance. At a rally on Saturday, he said he had once told a leader he would not protect a nation behind on its payments, and would “encourage” the aggressors to […]
Russian journalist who protested invasion of Ukraine gets jail sentence
Former Russian TV journalist Marina Ovsyannikova, who captured world attention when she burst into a news broadcast with a placard that read “Stop the war” and “They’re lying to you”, was sentenced in absentia on Wednesday to eight and half years in jail. Ovsyannikova was fined for her original protest, less than three weeks after […]