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4 days ago | 
observer.co.uk | Nina Kuryata
Donald Trump yesterday revealed a flash of anger when he was asked about alleged ceasefire violations by Iran and Israel. He said the two countries had been fighting “so long and so hard” that they “don’t know what the fuck they’re doing”. So what? Trump is impatient, and his impatience has consequences.
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2 weeks ago | 
observer.co.uk | Nina Kuryata
The daring raids on Putin’s bomber force were a slap in the face of the Kremlin, say Ukraine’s jubilant commanders Two weeks ago Aleksandr Z, a lorry driver from Chelyabinsk in the Urals, was hired by someone he took to be a local businessman to deliver two prefabricated wooden huts to an address near Murmansk, a three-day drive away in the Russian Arctic. Having agreed a price, he loaded the cargo on to his lorry.
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1 month 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.
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1 month 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.
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1 month 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.
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1 month 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”.
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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.
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2 months ago | 
tortoisemedia.com | Nina Kuryata
Denmark plans to send unarmed troops to Ukraine to learn how to use attack drones. The idea came to the country’s army chief, Major General Peter Boysen, after he watched a training session with a reconnaissance regiment using advanced attack drones similar to those used in Ukraine. “In my 42 years of service in the armed forces, I have never seen events develop so quickly,” he told Denmark’s TV2 channel.
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2 months ago | 
tortoisemedia.com | Nina Kuryata
Spare a thought for Bridget Brink as she thinks about what to do next having resigned last week as US ambassador to Ukraine because of what the FT calls policy disagreements with Donald Trump. She’s a career diplomat reportedly pressured by administration officials who “questioned her willingness” to support their Ukraine strategy – to end the war as soon as possible and to normalise US relations with Russia.
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2 months ago | 
tortoisemedia.com | Nina Kuryata
Far from seeking a ceasefire, he’s waging hybrid war on all of Europe Last Friday, Steve Witkoff made his third trip to Moscow as Donald Trump’s envoy in search of progress towards an end to Russia’s war on Ukraine, and Trump evinced frustration that there isn’t any. So what? He shouldn’t be surprised. There is little evidence Putin wants to stop fighting and plenty that he wants to carry on. Almost as troubling is the evidence that he’s already engaged in a hybrid war on Europe as a whole. Hot war.
