Exclusives
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Tanks couldn't take Chasiv Yar. So Russia's reaching for the playbook that took Pokrovsk.. Chasiv Yar is one of the last big obstacles to a Russian march on Kramatorsk. Russian plans for getting past Chasiv Yar are becoming clearer. |
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Russia's mercenaries left Malian city under escort by rebels they came to fight. Mali broke ties with Ukraine in 2024 to keep its Russian protectors. Those protectors just retreated from a strategic northern city under escort by the same rebels Bamako accused Kyiv of backing. |
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Russia's military spending hits $190 billion in 2025. Ukraine's reached $84 billion at 40% of GDP. Russia increased military expenditure by 5.9% to $190 billion, consuming 7.5% of GDP, one of the highest shares globally, while its oil revenues continue funding the war machine. |
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Ukraine's new B-2 drone is a mystery. Its kills aren't.. Russian air defenses are collapsing as more and more different Ukrainian drones strike as far as 200 km. |
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NATO's top military officer: Russia is trying to reclaim Soviet territory, and threat extends beyond Baltics. Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Hungary, Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Romania, Moldova, Albania, and Slovakia were Soviet satellite states. |
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The arms Ukraine outgrew in two years are now its potential export catalogue. Budanov listed older FPVs, 2022-2023 long-range drones, sea drones, and bombers as candidates for sale to Asia and Africa. |
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24 February 2022 was the West's chance. It chose comfort instead.. The West had a duty. It lacked the civilizational stamina to honor it. |
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"We have done everything": Ukraine's EU membership talks expected to start in June, Zelenskyy says. Kyiv says it has completed all preparations and is now awaiting a decision from EU leaders. |
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Sanctions on Russia: Do they work? Why? Why not? Blame? Changes?. For the past 50 months, the West has steadily increased its sanctions on Russia – at least on paper. A conference in Kyiv this weekend is analyzing sanctions roll back, accountability, the role of civil society, war profiteering, Putin's enablers, and which sanctions have worked and not. |
Military
Ukraine drone forces expand kill zone into occupied regions, commander says: Russia's trains, comms towers, and depots struck. FP-2 mid-range drones did the work across occupied Donetsk, Luhansk, and Zaporizhzhia oblasts between 23 and 25 April, the SBS commander said.
Intelligence and technology
One Ukrainian drone maker carried out 11,473 strikes in March, and took out 43% of Russia's Molniya drones. General Chereshnia" UAVs carried out 11,473 strikes in the latest reporting period.
Beijing's new project 956EM takes Soviet ship design and strips every Russian weapon from it. New 324 mm torpedo tubes and modern Chinese electronic countermeasure systems further upgrade the ship's survivability in modern combat.
International
Ukraine just uncovered Russian-coordinated plot to assassinate Russian dissident and Ukrainian supporter in Lithuania. The network conducted long-term covert surveillance of two targets in Lithuania. One of them is a Russian opposition figure living in exile and other is a Lithuanian citizen who publicly supported Ukraine.
Trump claims ongoing "good conversations" with Putin and Zelenskyy, won't say when. In a Fox News interview, the US president groundlessly reiterated that the personal animosity between the two leaders is the obstacle to peace.
Humanitarian and social impact
Ukraine summons Israeli ambassador — for second Russian stolen-grain vessel to reach Haifa. Russia loots Ukrainian grain and then loads in onto ships. Israel unloads it at port and calls it trade.
Russia's overnight target list in Odesa: a hotel, the funicular, the port, three districts, 14 civilians. Air defense downed 74 of 94 drones, but 20 hit 15 locations across the country, the Air Force says.
Russia blacked out Europe's largest nuclear plant 15 times since occupying it in 2022. The latest outage hit on the 40th anniversary of the Chornobyl disaster, with Energoatom saying external power failed for 90 minutes.
Political and legal developments
Russia's nuclear sector remains unsanctioned, helping turn Ukraine's nuclear sites into war zones – Zelenskyy. Zelenskyy called for tougher sanctions on Russia, including its nuclear sector, saying Moscow is using Chornobyl and Zaporizhzhia nuclear sites in its war.
Read our earlier daily review here.
