The Dispatch

Putin won’t make peace in Ukraine before 2024 US election

BRUSSELS/WASHINGTON(Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin will not make peace in Ukraine before he knows the results of the November 2024 U.S. election, a senior U.S. State Department official sai,…

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“No sense of fatigue” when it comes to support for Ukraine, Blinken says

BRUSSELS, Nov 29 (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said there was "no sense of fatigue" among NATO allies when it comes to helping Ukraine, adding that the…

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Kremlin, on reported Polish plan to send troops to Finnish border, says it will stoke tensions

MOSCOW, Nov 29 (Reuters) - The Kremlin, commenting on media reports that Poland plans to send troops to Finland's border with Russia, said on Wednesday that such a move could…

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UPDATED: OSCE meeting causes rift over whether to share stage with Russia’s Lavrov

By Andrew Gray, Francois Murphy and Ingrid Melander BRUSSELS/VIENNA, Nov 29 (Reuters) - The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe's annual foreign ministers' meeting on Thursday has split member…

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Ukraine says wife of spymaster Budanov was poisoned

By Tom Balmforth and Max Hunder KYIV (Reuters) - The wife of Ukraine's military spy chief has been poisoned with heavy metals and is undergoing treatment in a hospital, a…

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UPDATED: Draft bill seeks ‘loyalty agreement’ from foreigners entering Russia

By Guy Faulconbridge and Lidia Kelly MOSCOW, Nov 29 (Reuters) - Russia's interior ministry has prepared draft legislation that would force foreigners to sign a "loyalty agreement" forbidding them from…

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Russia destroys Ukraine drone flying towards Moscow, Ukraine’s military infrastructure hit with cruise missiles

Nov 29 (Reuters) - Russian air defence forces destroyed a Ukraine-launched drone flying towards Moscow, the mayor of the capital, Sergei Sobyanin, said on Wednesday. The drone was destroyed over…

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Russia’s Lavrov says some in West requested meetings at OSCE council

By Guy Faulconbridge MOSCOW, Nov 27 (Reuters) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Monday that he would take part in an OSCE meeting in North Macedonia if Bulgaria…

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Zelenskiy praises Ukrainians for battles with Russia and the weather

KYIV (Reuters) - President Volodymyr Zelenskiy thanked Ukraine's military for fighting Russian attacks and its rescue services for tackling the consequences of extreme winter weather that he said had deprived…

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Zelenskiy names ‘three victories’ Ukraine needs on international front

By Anna Voitenko President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Friday said that Ukraine needed to secure three key "victories" abroad, including the approval of major aid packages from the U.S. Congress and…

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Moldova angers Russia with decision to join EU sanctions

Russia views Moldova's decision to join EU sanctions against it as a hostile step aimed at destroying ties with Moscow and will retaliate, the Russian foreign ministry said. The Russian…

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UPDATED: Flights delayed at Moscow’s main airports due to the drone attack

MOSCOW, Nov 26 (Reuters) - Russia thwarted a major Ukrainian drone attack involving at least 24 unmanned aerial vehicles on five regions including Moscow, the Russian defence ministry said on Sunday. The…

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Kremlin says NATO’s desire for a ‘military Schengen’ zone in Europe ratchets up tensions

MOSCOW, Nov 24 (Reuters) - The Kremlin said on Friday that NATO's desire to have a military analogue of the Schengen Zone in Europe to allow the alliance's armed forces…

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Ukrainian strike kills Russian actress performing in Ukraine, theatre says

MOSCOW, Nov 23 (Reuters) - A Russian actress has been killed in a Ukrainian attack while performing to Russian troops in a Russian-controlled area of eastern Ukraine, according to her…

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Putin says we must think how to stop ‘the tragedy’ of war in Ukraine

By Guy Faulconbridge and Vladimir Soldatkin Putin: colleagues raised "Russian aggression" Putin: we should think of how to end the tragedy Putin: Russia didn't decline peace talks with Ukraine Putin…

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Ukraine troops face ‘difficult defence’ in east as bitter cold sets in – Zelenskiy

Ukrainian troops face "difficult" defensive operations on parts of the eastern front with bitter winter cold setting in, but forces in the south are still conducting offensive actions, President Volodymyr…

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Russia hits port infrastructure in Odesa – governor

Russian forces hit port infrastructure in Ukraine's southern city of Odesa on Tuesday evening, the regional governor said. Russia, which invaded Ukraine in February 2022, stepped up its attacks on…

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Russia says co-existence not possible with Ukraine’s current ‘regime’

Russia cannot co-exist with the current "regime" in Kyiv but Moscow can resist the might of NATO for as long as it needs to fully demilitarise Ukraine, a senior Russian…

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Kyiv hopes for talks with Poland and EU on border blocks this week

Kyiv hopes to hold talks with Poland and the European Commission this week, as thousands of trucks queue at the border due to Polish blocks, in a protest that may affect…

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Top Ukrainian cyber defence officials sacked amid corruption probe

KYIV, Nov 20 (Reuters) - Ukraine on Monday sacked two high-ranking cyber defence officials amid a probe into alleged embezzlement, a senior government official said. Yurii Shchyhol, head of the…

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Russia puts Ukrainian Eurovision winner Jamala on wanted list

Susana Jamaladinova, a Ukrainian of Crimean Tatar origin known professionally as Jamala, is now on Russia’s wanted list, state news agencies RIA and TASS reported Monday. The ministry of internal…

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US’s Austin visits wartime Kyiv in gesture of support for Ukraine

KYIV, Nov 20 (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin arrived in wartime Kyiv on Monday in a gesture of "unwavering" support as questions swirled over the sustainability of…

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Moldovan president’s allies score well in local polls

By Alexander Tanas CHISINAU (Reuters) - Voters in Moldova on Sunday returned a large number of town councils friendly towards President Maia Sandu's drive to join the European Union, but…

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In wartime Russia, soaring prices bite as election looms

SREDNEURALSK, Russia, (Reuters) - For Darya Stepanova, a mother of two who lives in a small town on the eastern side of the Ural mountains, soaring prices for everything from…

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Ukrainian group says more than 30,000 troops have died in Russia’s invasion

KYI (Reuters) - A Ukrainian civic group said it has confirmed the deaths of nearly 25,000 Ukrainian soldiers since Russia's February 2022 invasion by using open sources, and puts the…

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Russia says it heavily bombed Ukrainian forces around the River Dnipro

MOSCOW, Nov 18 (Reuters) - The Russian military said on Saturday it had heavily bombed Ukrainian forces around the River Dnipro in southern Ukraine and killed up to 75 Ukrainian…

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Armenia and Azerbaijan have agreed on basic peace treaty principles

Nov 18 (Reuters) - Armenia and Azerbaijan have been able to agree on the basic principles for a peace treaty but are still "speaking different diplomatic languages", Armenian Prime Minister…

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Russia launches major drone attack on Ukraine, infrastructure hit

KYIV, Nov 18 (Reuters) - Russia launched a major drone attack on Ukraine overnight, hitting infrastructure facilities in the south and north of the country, the Ukrainian military said on…

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World Court: Azerbaijan must let ethnic Armenians return to Nagorno-Karabakh

Judges at the World Court ordered Azerbaijan to let ethnic Armenians who fled Nagorno-Karabakh in September return, and to keep the Armenians remaining in the enclave safe, as part of…

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Russia says first free grain shipments to Africa are on their way

MOSCOW, Nov 17 (Reuters) - Russia's agriculture minister said on Friday that Moscow had begun free shipments of grain totalling up to 200,000 tonnes to six African countries, as promised…

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Ukraine establishes ‘several bridgeheads’ on eastern bank of Dnipro

KYIV, Nov 17 (Reuters) - Ukrainian troops have conducted a "series of successful operations" on the eastern bank of the River Dnipro in the Russian-occupied part of Kherson region and…

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Kremlin dismisses claims that Russia is stoking nuclear rhetoric

MOSCOW, Nov 17 (Reuters) - The Kremlin on Friday said claims that Russia was ready to unleash nuclear war were "unacceptable madness" and part of what it cast as a…

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Thousands of Ukrainian children taken to Belarus -Yale research

By Anthony Deutsch More than 2,400 children from Ukraine aged between six and 17 years old have been taken to 13 facilities across Belarus since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, research…

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Azerbaijan snubs Armenia meeting in Washington

Azerbaijan's foreign ministry said it could not take part in a meeting with Armenia's foreign minister planned for Nov. 20 in Washington because of the "one-sided approach of the United…

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Armenian PM says to intensify efforts to agree peace treaty with Azerbaijan

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said he intended to intensify political and diplomatic efforts to sign a peace treaty with Azerbaijan, Russia's TASS news agency reported on Thursday. In late…

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Russia loads missile with nuclear-capable glide vehicle into launch silo

MOSCOW, Nov 16 (Reuters) - Russia's rocket forces loaded an intercontinental ballistic missile equipped with the nuclear-capable "Avangard" hypersonic glide vehicle into a launch silo in southern Russia, according to…

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UK Foreign Secretary Cameron meets Zelenskiy in Kyiv on first foreign trip

KYIV, Nov 16 (Reuters) - Britain's Foreign Secretary David Cameron travelled to wartime Kyiv and met President Volodymyr Zelenskiy for talks on his first working trip abroad, the Ukrainian leader…

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Ukrainian troops operate in occupied Kherson region after crossing river

By Tom Balmforth and Yuliia Dysa KYIV, (Reuters) - Ukrainian troops have crossed the vast River Dnipro into occupied areas of Kherson region and are operating in small groups, Russia…

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Blast kills 3 Russian officers in occupied town -Ukrainian intelligence

Ukraine's intelligence directorate said on Sunday that an explosion in the Russian-occupied town of Melitopol killed at least three Russian servicemen in an attack it described as an "act of…

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Germany set to double Ukraine military aid under Scholz plan

German chancellor Olaf Scholz's governing coalition has agreed in principle to double the country's military aid for Ukraine next year to 8 billion euros ($8.5 billion), a political source in…

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Wagner mercenaries likely serving in Russian national guard; Ukrainian Special Forces engage Wagner fighters in Sudan

Large elements of the Wagner mercenary group have likely been assimilated into the command structure of Russian national guard (Rosgvardiya), the UK defence ministry said in its daily intelligence briefing.…

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Russia to limit only VPN services which pose a ‘threat’ to security – RIA

MOSCOW, Nov 12 (Reuters) - Russia plans to block certain Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) and protocols which are deemed by a commission of experts to pose a threat, state news…

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Senior Ukrainian officer coordinated Nord Stream attack: Washington Post

KYIV, Nov 12 (Reuters) - A Ukrainian military officer coordinated last year's attack on the Nord Stream natural gas pipeline, the Washington Post reported, citing anonymous sources in Ukraine and…

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Belarus musicians symbol of mass protests given long jail terms

The songs of Tor Band have become a symbol of mass protests that spread across Belarus like wildfire when authoritarian leader Alexander Lukashenko remained in power after 2020 elections condemned…

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Ukraine military says onslaught on Avdiivka in the east intensifies

Russian troops are intensifying their attacks on the key eastern town of Avdiivka, a senior Ukraine officer said, while the country's general staff reported its military repelled many Russian assaults…

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Ukraine says global ‘peace summit’ may take place next year

By Tom Balmforth A global "peace summit" for Ukraine may now take place in February 2024, a top Kyiv official said amid concerns in the West that the war in…

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Russia’s depleted workforce threatening economic growth, says central bank

This content was produced in Russia where the law restricts coverage of Russian military operations in Ukraine By Elena Fabrichnaya and Alexander Marrow MOSCOW, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Russia's depleted…

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Ukrainian forces hold line in shattered eastern town of Avdiivka -military

Russian forces, their numbers swelled by reserves, tightened their vise around the shattered eastern city of Avdiivka on Wednesday, but Ukrainian forces are holding defensive lines, Ukrainian military officials said.…

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Chechen leader Kadyrov says ex-Wagner fighters are training with his forces

A large group of Russia's former Wagner mercenaries has started training with special forces from the southern Russian region of Chechnya, Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov said. Wagner played a prominent…

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UPDATED: Kremlin says West is aggressive but we stick to our nuclear doctrine

MOSCOW, Nov 8 (Reuters) - The Kremlin said on Wednesday that the West had demonstrated its aggression towards Russia but said that when it came to nuclear weapons, Moscow had…

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Ukraine says troops repel Russian attacks along front line

By Nick Starkov and Ronald Popeski LVIV, Ukraine, (Reuters) - Ukraine's military said its troops had repelled Russian assaults in widely separated sectors of the war and braced for a…

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NATO allies condemn Russia’s withdrawal from CFE treaty, will suspend its operation

BRUSSELS, (Reuters) - NATO allies condemned a decision by Russia to withdraw from the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe, a key post-Cold War agreement, and said they would…

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Russia says destroys 17 Ukraine-launched drones over Black Sea, Crimea

Russia's air defence systems destroyed and intercepted a total of 17 Ukraine-launched drones early on Tuesday over the Black Sea and the Crimean Peninsula territory, the Russian defence ministry said. Nine…

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UPDATED: Pro-Europe party of Moldova’s president wins local elections, sees setbacks in big cities

By Alexander Tanas CHISINAU, Nov 6 (Reuters) - The party of Moldova's pro-European president came first in hundreds of weekend local elections but was unable to win mayoral seats in…

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Sources say Russia’s Putin to stay in power past 2024

MOSCOW, Nov 6 (Reuters) - Vladimir Putin has decided to run in the March presidential election, a move that will keep him in power until least 2030, as the Kremlin…

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How Ukraine’s counteroffensive has struggled so far

(Reuters) - Here is a snapshot of the main battlefield developments in Ukraine since the start of Kyiv's latest counteroffensive in early June. After Ukraine made spectacular territorial gains in…

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Moldova president says Orthodox church must work for European integration

By Alexander Tanas CHISINAU (Reuters) - Moldova's president waded carefully on Monday into a row pitting the ex-Soviet state's two rival Orthodox churches against each other over Russian influence, saying…

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