Nina Kuryata

1 week ago | observer.co.uk | Nina Kuryata |Fred Harter

But Ukraine now depends on Europe for its survival Welcome to the Sensemaker, our daily newsletter. It features calm and clear analysis on the stories driving the news across tech, politics, finance, culture and more. The Sensemaker will appear here every morning, but to receive it in your email inbox, sign up on our newsletters page. At least 12 people were killed at the weekend in one of the largest Russian drone attacks on Ukrainian cities of the war so far.

1 week ago | observer.co.uk | Nina Kuryata |Fred Harter

US funds to Kyiv might be dwindling, but with the bloc’s support, it can still exploit Russia’s weakness After Donald Trump’s two-hour call to Vladimir Putin last Monday, the White House claimed a breakthrough, officially stating that Ukraine and Russia would “immediately” start talks towards a ceasefire and “an end to the war”. It did not happen.

2 weeks ago | theneweuropean.co.uk | Nina Kuryata

The Ukrainian and Russian delegations failed to achieve any major result in Istanbul last Friday, except for a prisoner swap and so, Donald Trump, obsessed with the idea of being a peacemaker and a dealmaker, decided to intervene in person and called Russian president Vladimir Putin for the third time. His hope was that he could “stop this bloodbath”. But it looks like Putin has outplayed him – once again. The talks in Istanbul were a success for Russia.

3 weeks ago | observer.co.uk | Nina Kuryata |Fred Harter

Donald Trump and Europe were on the same page on Saturday when Keir Starmer’s ‘coalition of the willing’ urged Russia to agree to a 30-day ceasefire with Ukraine. By Sunday, the US president was “starting to doubt” whether a deal would happen at all. So what? Trump is losing interest and exhibit A is the Pentagon. His defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, is planning the biggest shake-up of the military for a generation. But this is not just to build a “leaner, more lethal force”.

1 month ago | observer.co.uk | Alexi Mostrous |Nina Kuryata |Catherine Neilan

Experts say the government needs to prepare for possible attacks on infrastructure after a string of operations in Europe linked to Russia On the morning in March after a huge substation fire shut down Europe’s busiest airport, Russia’s former president posted a message to his 1.4 million followers on X. “I’m looking forward to Russia being blamed for the Heathrow fire,” he wrote. “What are you waiting for, Starmer?”Dmitry Medvedev’s sarcasm was apposite.