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Russian Journalist Arrested In Absentia On Charge Of Justifying Terrorism
A Moscow court on November 28 ordered the arrest of journalist Anna Loiko in absentia for at least one month on a charge of "publicly justifying terrorism." Loiko, who currently resides in Georgia, works for the online media outlet SOTA. The charge stems from Loiko's 2021 article about the Hizb ut-Tahrir Islamic group, which is banned as "terrorist" in Russia. Last month, police searched Loiko's Moscow apartment and briefly detained her mother for questioning. Loiko has insisted the story in question has nothing to do with justifying terrorism and is about abuse of Russian citizens' rights by the authorities.
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- By RFE/RL
Trump Withdraws U.S. From UN Human Rights Council, Aid Agency For Palestinians
U.S. President Donald Trump announced the U.S. withdrawal from the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) and said Washington will not renew funding for the UN agency helping Palestinian refugees.
Trump signed an executive order on February 4 just before meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose country has long accused both UNHRC and the Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) of bias against Israel and antisemitism.
The executive order said the United States helped found the United Nations after World War II to prevent future global conflicts and promote international peace and security. But some UN agencies “have drifted from this mission and instead act contrary to the interests of the United States while attacking our allies and propagating anti-Semitism,” it said.
UNRWA has reportedly been infiltrated by members of groups long designated as foreign terrorist organizations, according to the order, while UNHRC has protected human rights abusers by allowing them to use the organization to shield themselves from scrutiny.
The executive order also said the United States would review involvement in the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
The executive order said UNESCO has demonstrated failure to reform itself, continually demonstrated anti-Israel sentiment over the past decade, and failed to address concerns over mounting debts.
The order also set up a broad review of U.S. funding for multilateral organizations to be completed within 180 days. The review is to determine in part which organizations, conventions, and treaties “are contrary to the interests of the United States" and whether they can be reformed.
Trump also pulled the United States out of the Human Rights Council during his first term in office. The U.S. ambassador to the UN at the time, Nikki Haley, accused the council of “chronic bias against Israel” and pointed to what she said were human rights abusers among its members.
President Joe Biden renewed support for the 47-member UNHRC, but announced in September that the United States would not seek a second consecutive term.
The council's activities include reviews of countries' human rights records and specific allegations of rights abuses.
UNRWA is currently providing humanitarian assistance to many of the 1.9 million people displaced by the war in Gaza who depend on its deliveries for survival.
U.S. funding of UNRWA was halted in January 2024 by Biden after Israel accused 12 of its employees of involvement in Hamas's October 7, 2023, attack.
A series of probes found some "neutrality related issues" at UNRWA, but no evidence for Israel's chief allegations, and most other donors that had similarly suspended funding resumed their financial support.
Trump said based on the UN's “great potential” the United States would “continue to go along with it,” but added that the primary purpose of the United Nations should be settling conflicts.
A spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Guterres has worked tirelessly to implement many reforms and increase efficiency and innovation.
Stephane Dujarric added that U.S. support for the United Nations has saved countless lives and advanced global security.
"The secretary-general looks forward to continuing his productive relationship with President Trump and the U.S. government to strengthen that relationship in today’s turbulent world," Dujarric said.
With reporting by Reuters and AP
- By RFE/RL
Trump Proposes Palestinians Leave Gaza To Clear Way For U.S. 'Ownership'
U.S. President Donald Trump announced a proposal on February 4 under which displaced Palestinians would leave the Gaza Strip, allowing the United States to take ownership of the coastal territory and develop it economically into a “phenomenal” place where many nationalities could live in peace.
Trump said this would occur after the resettlement of the Palestinian people to other countries to get them out of what he said was a “hell hole” of demolished buildings following more than a year of war between Israel and Hamas, which has been designated a terrorist organization by the United States and the European Union.
Trump made the surprise proposal at a joint news conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying such a drastic move is necessary because other ideas to end decades of conflict between the Palestinian people and Israelis have not worked.
His proposal on the Gaza Strip would see the United States taking it over and would appear to upend years of U.S. policy calling for a two-state solution to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Trump said the United States would work to dismantle all unexploded bombs and other weapons in the territory and clear away destroyed buildings before economically developing the area.
"If it's necessary, we'll do that, we're going to take over that piece, we're going to develop it, create thousands and thousands of jobs, and it'll be something that the entire Middle East can be very proud of," Trump added.
The president did not immediately offer details on where the Palestinians would be resettled, but said he would support resettling them "permanently" in other countries. Earlier in the day he repeated his call for Jordan, Egypt, and other Arab states to take in Gazans. Hamas has adamantly insisted it wants to remain in Gaza.
Mark Dubowitz, CEO of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, said Trump may have floated this idea to raise the stakes after Arab countries refused his request to take in Palestinians.
"Now, he’s cranking up the pressure: If you won't take them, we’ll remove them ourselves and take control of Gaza," Dubowitz said on X. "Classic Trump: Go to the extreme, making what once seemed outrageous suddenly look like the reasonable middle ground."
The Saudi Foreign Ministry issued a statement that its call for an independent Palestinian state was a "firm, steadfast, and unwavering position."
The statement noted Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the country's de facto ruler, has said Saudi Arabia will not stop working toward the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with east Jerusalem as its capital.
Trump said he had discussed his proposal with Netanyahu during their meeting at the White House. He also said he had raised it with other leaders of countries in the Middle East and claimed it had been met favorably.
Netanyahu said Trump sees a different future for the Gaza Strip, which he said has been the source of so many "trials and tribulations" for the Israeli people.
"He has a different idea," Netanyahu said. "It's something that could change history and it's worthwhile really pursuing this avenue.”
Just two weeks into his second term, Trump was hosting Netanyahu to discuss the future of the Gaza cease-fire, the release of hostages, and a renewed push for a normalization deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia.
With reporting by Reuters and AP
Trump Signs Memo Reinstating 'Maximum Pressure' Campaign Against Iran
U.S. President Donald Trump signed an order on February 4 to restore his "maximum economic pressure" policy on Iran aimed at hurting its oil exports and slowing its nuclear program.
Ahead of a meeting at the White House with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump signed a presidential memorandum reinstating a policy that Trump imposed during his first administration.
Trump's memo orders the U.S. Treasury Department to impose "maximum economic pressure" on Iran through sanctions and enforcement mechanisms on individuals and entities that violate existing sanctions.
It also directs the Treasury and State departments to implement a campaign aimed at "driving Iran's oil exports to zero."
U.S. sanctions on Iran's energy sector have been in place since 2018, when Trump during his first term in office withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal and reimposed sanctions that had been lifted under its terms. Iranian oil sales plummeted as a result.
But in recent years, a combination of Iran mastering sanctions-evading tactics and Washington's reluctance under the Biden administration to strictly enforce the sanctions led to Iran increasing its exports.
"I would expect tougher U.S. action against countries involved in the movement, or where tankers engage in ship-to-ship transfers of Iranian crude," said Gregory Brew, an Iran and energy analyst at the U.S.-based Eurasia Group.
The rise in Iran's oil sale is in part due to China's appetite for Iranian oil. Tehran offers Beijing a steep discount to take its sanctioned oil, making it worthwhile for China to take on the risk of bypassing U.S. sanctions.
"On paper, China doesn't take any Iranian oil, it's always camouflaged in China's customs data as Malaysian or [Emirati] crude oil," said Brew.
"But China is likely to respond negatively to any sanctions that touch its own banks, refiners, or ports. If the sanctions are limited to tankers or intermediaries, I doubt we'll see much of a reaction from Beijing."
As he signed the memo, Trump described it as very tough but also said he was open to a deal with Iran and expressed a willingness to talk to the Iranian leadership.
"With me, it's very simple: Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon," Trump said. Asked how close Tehran is to a weapon, Trump said, "They're too close."
Aside from abrogating the nuclear deal, Trump in his first term ordered the killing of one of Iran's top generals in 2020, for which Iran has vowed vengeance.
After signing the memo, Trump commented on Iranian threats against him that were revealed by the Justice Department last year during the U.S. presidential campaign. Trump said there would be a drastic response if he were assassinated.
"I’ve left instructions if they do it, they get obliterated. There won’t be anything left,” he said.
Vice President J.D. Vance would become president if Trump died, and he would not necessarily be bound by any instructions left by Trump.
Later on February 4, during a joint news conference with Netanyahu, Trump said he wanted Iran to be peaceful and successful, praising Iranians as an “unbelievable group of people.”
He said he hated imposing the maximum pressure campaign during his first term in office and “hate to do it just as much now.”
But he reiterated his staunch opposition to Tehran developing a nuclear weapon and said if Iran becomes a nuclear-armed nation, that would be “very unfortunate” for them.
"I say this to Iran, who's listening very intently: I would love to be able to make a great deal. A deal where you can get on with your lives," Trump said at the news conference.
The president said Iran would find it very beneficial if it can convince him that they won’t develop a nuclear weapon, saying if that were the case, “I think they are going to have an unbelievable future.”
Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei last week appeared to green-light talks with Trump's administration in the hopes of lifting sanctions. Iranian Vice President for Strategic Affairs Mohammad Javad Zarif earlier appealed to Trump to "choose rationality" and resume nuclear negotiations.
Ukraine Open To Diplomatic Path To End War, Zelenskyy Says
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he would agree to direct talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin to end almost three years of war, but he would do so if that is the only way to bring peace to Ukraine.
Zelenskyy also warned against lifting sanctions against Russia and raised the question of whether nuclear weapons would be the answer to Ukraine's need for security guarantees. The Ukrainian president made the comments in an interview with British journalist Piers Morgan posted on February 4 on YouTube.
On holding talks to end the war, Zelenskyy said: "If people believe we must move to the diplomatic track, and I believe we are ready to move to the diplomatic track, there must be the U.S., Europe, Ukraine, and Russia."
Asked how he would feel sitting opposite Putin at a negotiating table, Zelenskyy said: “If that is the only setup in which we can bring peace to the citizens of Ukraine and not lose people, definitely we will go for this setup."
He added: "I will not be kind to him, I consider him an enemy. To be honest, I think he considers me an enemy, too."
The interview comes as U.S. President Donald Trump -- who has pledged to end the war -- pushes for a solution to end the fighting. Trump has said he is ready to talk with Putin about a cease-fire in Ukraine, while Putin has said he is open to discussions with Trump on issues such as the Ukraine war and energy prices, but ruled out speaking directly to Zelenskyy.
Trump’s special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, Keith Kellogg, on February 2 warned both sides will have to make concessions if they hope to negotiate a settlement to the war.
Zelenskyy "has already indicated he will soften his position on land," Kellogg said. "And Putin is going to have to soften his positions as well."
In the interview released on February 4, the Ukrainian president also said that offering Russia any respite from sanctions would increase the risk of a second invasion.
His comments on Ukraine having nuclear weapons arose in response to a question about security guarantees. He said if Ukraine's accession to NATO drags on for years or decades, allowing Ukraine to have nuclear weapons could be a sufficient guarantee of security to deter Putin from another attack.
Zelenskyy reiterated that a roadmap for Ukraine to join NATO is still Kyiv's favored way to end the fighting and get security guarantees. But he said it was “absolutely fair” to raise a question about nuclear missiles.
“Will they give us missiles in such quantity that we can stop Russia? I am not sure about this, but I think it would help. Otherwise, what missiles can stop Russia's nuclear missiles?” he said.
Kyiv has struggled on the battlefield to hold back Russian forces, and Zelenskyy conceded in the interview that Ukraine is unlikely to recapture some of the territory it lost to Russia.
"Regrettably, the support that is provided by our partners is insufficient to push Putin fully out of our territories," he said.
With reporting by Reuters and AFP
At Least 5 Killed In Russian Strike On Izyum In Eastern Ukraine
Russian forces have launched a deadly missile strike on the eastern frontline city of Izyum in the Kharkiv region, killing at least five and injuring dozens, the head of the regional military administration said.
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"Enemy strike on Izyum. According to preliminary data, the occupiers used a ballistic missile," Oleh Synyehubov wrote on Telegram. He initially said that four civilians had been killed, but later updated the death toll to five.
According to Synyehubov, Russian forces struck the central part of the strategically important city, which links up key road networks and supply routes.
Initially, 17 people were reported injured, five of whom were hospitalized. The number of injured has now increased to 38 people, including one 15-year-old girl.
According to preliminary data, Russia used ballistic missiles in the attack.
Local authorities reported that the strike hit an administrative building and damaged another administrative facility nearby, as well as multistory residential buildings. The regional military administration said there are no military facilities in this area.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said rescue operations are still ongoing at the site of the incident and offered condolences to the families of the dead.
"Such brutality is intolerable," he said on Telegram. "We must put pressure on Russia by using every available means -- military force, sanctions, and diplomatic efforts -- to stop this terror and protect lives."
The Russian military regularly attacks Ukrainian regions, causing widespread destruction in civilian areas with drones, rockets, artillery, and various types of bombs.
The Kremlin has denied it targets civilian areas despite evidence of such attacks.
- By RFE/RL
China Strikes Back With Tariffs As Trade War With Trump Heats Up
Within minutes of U.S. tariffs taking effect, China responded with measures of its own on American imports, opening a new chapter in trade tensions between the two countries.
The rapid-fire response from Beijing was announced after Trump's 10 percent tariff across all Chinese imports came into effect on February 4. The Chinese tariffs will impose 15 percent levies on U.S. coal and liquefied natural gas (LNG), as well as 10 percent tariffs for crude oil, farm equipment, and some cars. China's Finance Ministry said that the measures will start on February 10.
China's Commerce Ministry and its Customs Administration also announced separate moves that impose export controls on critical minerals tungsten, tellurium, ruthenium, and molybdenum based on national security grounds. Beijing also announced an antitrust probe into Google.
The tit-for-tat tariffs mark a renewal of the trade war waged by Beijing and Washington during U.S. President Donald Trump's first term in office.
During the first trade war, Trump deployed tariffs to try to get China to bend on trade issues and China replied with tariffs of its own. U.S. tariff rates on Chinese goods rose sixfold to 19 percent, while Chinese tariffs on U.S. goods nearly tripled to 21 percent, shaking markets as the world's two largest economies ramped up economic tensions.
Washington says the current U.S. tariffs were levied on China for not halting the flow of illicit drugs into the United States. When the measures were first announced on February 2, Beijing said that it would file a legal case against the United States at the World Trade Organization (WTO) and “take corresponding countermeasures,” without elaborating further.
China is the main source of the supply of many leading critical minerals and many of those banned for export in the new Chinese measures are used in the production of electronics and high-tech devices.
The exchange of tariffs between Beijing and Washington comes after Trump suspended his threat of 25 percent tariffs on Mexico and Canada. Those agreements were reached on February 3 and include a 30-day pause in return for concessions on border and crime enforcement with the two neighboring countries.
No such agreement was reached with Xi, and the White House said that Trump does not plan to speak with the Chinese leader until later this week.
- By RFE/RL
U.S. Lawmakers Vow To Defend USAID After Agency's Employees Locked Out
Democratic members of Congress have challenged the Trump administration's apparent attempt to fold the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) into the State Department, a move that calls into question funding for aid programs around the world, including billions of dollars in development aid to Ukraine.
The lawmakers gathered outside the main office of the USAID in downtown Washington on February 3 to criticize what they called an “illegal maneuver” by Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, who has been tasked by President Donald Trump with downsizing the government.
The Democratic lawmakers held the gathering as a protest after reports that agency employees had been told not to report to work on February 3 and subsequently were locked out of their government e-mail and other accounts as a gutting of the agency appeared to be under way.
“We spent the weekend feeding USAID into the wood chipper,” Musk said on X on February 3.
The lawmakers who spoke outside the agency’s main office in Washington defended the work of the USAID and said the actions interfered with congressional power.
“We don’t have a fourth branch of government called Elon Musk. And that’s going to become real clear,” said Representative Jamie Raskin (Democrat-Maryland).
He added that he didn’t know what Musk’s motivations were, “but they’ve got nothing to do with what has been lawfully adopted by the people of the United States of America through the Congress of the United States. We’re going to defend USAID all the way.”
Senator Chris Murphy (Democrat-Connecticut) said the move created a constitutional crisis and vowed to fight it.
“The people get to decide how their taxpayer money is spent. Elon Musk does not get to decide,” he said, also speaking alongside Raskin at the USAID building.
Murphy called the move an attempt to “turn this government over to a handful of unelected billionaires and corporate interests, and we are not going to let them do that.”
USAID is an independent government agency established by Congress in 1961 and has a workforce of approximately 10,000 people around the world. It is the U.S. government’s main international aid arm and receives tens of billions of dollars from Congress annually to fund programs in some of the world's poorest countries.
These include anti-poverty programs, health programs, disaster relief, and programs to promote democracy and defend human rights.
A recent report from the Congressional Research Service (CRS) said USAID in fiscal year 2023 managed more than $40 billion in combined appropriations to support projects in around 130 countries. The top three recipients of aid were Ukraine, Ethiopia, and Jordan. Afghanistan is also one of the top 10 recipients of USAID funding.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed that he is the acting director of USAID but said he has delegated that authority so he would not be running its day-to-day operations. He informed Congress of the reorganization of the agency in a letter, saying some parts of USAID might be absorbed by the State Department and the remainder may be abolished.
The move is “not about ending the programs that USAID does,” but about taking policy direction from the State Department, Rubio said.
Speaking in El Salvador during a visit to South America, Rubio said he has been frustrated with USAID for years by what he said was the agency’s refusal to respond to State Department policy directives. The agency “has to be aligned with American foreign policy,” he said.
Rubio stressed that the money that USAID receives are taxpayer dollars, but the agency has become a “global charity separate from the national interest.”
In an interview with Fox News later on February 3, he said: “I think we’re going to be the most generous nation on Earth in a way that makes sense, that’s in our national interest.” The State Department posted a transcript of the interview at its website.
Members of Congress took aim at Musk, the world's richest man, when news broke early on February 3 that employees had been sent e-mails on February 2 telling them not to report to work the next day.
Senator Patty Murray (Democrat-Washington) accused Musk of taking the actions against USAID while SpaceX stands to make millions of dollars in profit from government contracts with the Pentagon.
Murray told a news conference at the Capitol that the freeze of already approved funds for USAID is putting “trust at the lowest level” seen in a lifetime and asked what funds would be seized next.
But the White House was adamant that the agency must be reformed, publishing a statement highlighting the "waste and abuse" it said existed at USAID, including $1.5 million to "advance diversity equity and inclusion in Serbia's workplaces and business communities."
It also singled out funding for the production of a “transgender opera" in Colombia, a “transgender comic book” in Peru, and for “sex changes and LGBT activism” in Guatemala.
“The list literally goes on and on -- and it has all been happening for decades,” the statement said. “Under President Trump, the waste, fraud, and abuse ENDS NOW.”
With reporting by Reuters, AP, and AFP
- By RFE/RL
British Ex-Soldier Daniel Khalife Sentenced To 14 Years For Spying For Iran
A British court has sentenced former soldier Daniel Khalife to 14 years and three months in prison for spying for Iran and escaping prison.
Khalife, whose prison break in 2023 made international headlines, was found guilty of spying for Tehran last November.
The judge, Parmjit Kaur Cheema-Grubb, described Khalife during his sentencing on February 3 as a "dangerous fool" who was initially driven by "a selfish desire to show off" rather than intending to harm the interests of the United Kingdom.
"The mere fact you started on this dangerous and fantastical plan demonstrates your immaturity and lack of wisdom," Cheema-Grubb said.
London-born Khalife, 23, joined the British Army in 2017, and it was not long before he started collecting sensitive information and sharing it with Iranian agents. He was paid in cash and insisted to his handlers that he would rise through the army ranks "very easily."
Khalife escaped from London’s Wandsworth Prison in September 2023 while awaiting trial and spent three days on the run, sparking a massive manhunt.
With reporting by the BBC
Explosion At Luxury Moscow Residence Kills Founder Of Battalion Fighting in Ukraine
A bomb exploded at a Moscow apartment complex, authorities said, killing and wounding several people, including the founder of a battalion fighting alongside Russian forces in Ukraine.
The February 3 incident was the latest in a string of unusual explosions and shootings, which have raised fears of a return to the gangland violence that plagued the Russian capital in the 1990s.
Russian authorities were quoted by the state news agency TASS as saying that the device detonated around 9:45 a.m. local time and may have been delivered to the Alye Parusa complex by courier.
Among the casualties was Armen Sarkisian, the founder of an ethnic Armenian military unit that has been fighting in Ukraine alongside Russian troops. The Interfax and TASS quoted unnamed officials as saying he died after being hospitalized in critical condition.
Eyewitnesses said that at the time of the explosion Sarkisian was seen walking down a hall in the building toward a parking lot.
TASS quoted an unnamed law enforcement official saying it was likely an intentional act. There was no immediate claim of responsibility.
The newspaper Kommersant said Sarkisian's bodyguard, Oleg Kasperovich, was killed and another bodyguard seriously injured.
The unit Sarkisian is credited with founding is called ArBat, now formally a part of Redut, a Russian military intelligence-backed mercenary network.
Ukrainian authorities have accused him of involvement in the violence during the 2014 Maidan street protests in Kyiv.
According to Ukrainian media, he is also a close acquaintance of former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, who fled to Russia following the Maidan protests.
In April 2018, Sarkisian was detained in France, where he was awaiting extradition to Ukraine. However, he was released after two days "on personal recognizance."
The bombing occurred just over a month after a top general in Russia's chemical and biological weapons protection forces was killed when an electric scooter detonated on the sidewalk outside his building.
- By RFE/RL
Ukraine Rejects U.S. Peace Push As Putin Refuses To Talk To Zelenskyy
Kyiv called a proposal that Washington has developed thus far for peace in Ukraine a "failed plan," saying a push for a cease-fire and elections in Ukraine isn't enough to "intimidate" Russian President Vladimir Putin.
U.S. President Donald Trump's special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, Keith Kellogg, on February 2 warned that both sides will have to make concessions if they hope to negotiate a settlement to the war.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy "has already indicated he will soften his position on land," Kellogg said. "And Putin is going to have to soften his positions as well."
"We're going to have discussions with everybody over time, and probably in the near term," he added. "And it's good for both sides."
Kellogg told Reuters in an interview that Washington wants Ukraine to hold elections, potentially by the end of this year, especially if a truce is reached to stop the fighting.
Dmytro Lytvyn, an aide to Zelenskyy, on February 2 said that "we haven't seen Mr. Kellogg's full interview, only a few quotes about the elections, so it's hard to fully assess his position."
"But if his plan is just a cease-fire and elections, it is a failed plan -- Putin won't be intimidated by just those two things," he told Reuters.
Ukraine remains under martial law and has not held elections since Russia's invasion -- something Kellogg said was permitted under the Ukrainian Constitution.
Putin has called Zelenskyy "illegitimate" because his presidential term has officially expired.
Late on February 2, following Kellogg's comments, Trump said talks with Ukraine and Russia were going "pretty well."
"We have meetings and talks scheduled with various parties, including Ukraine and Russia. And I think those discussions are actually going pretty well," he added without being specific.
Zelenskyy has rejected any deal that would require him to make territorial concessions to Russia, which controls large portions of southeastern Ukraine and the Crimean Peninsula.
Some of the territory was taken during a previous invasion in 2014, while the rest was captured following Russia's full-scale invasion of February 2022.
However, Ukraine -- outgunned and outmanned by Russian forces -- has suffered increasing battlefield losses in recent months, leading to pressure on Zelenskyy to ease his opposition to the loss of land, even temporarily.
Russia has also suffered massive casualties on the battlefield and its economy has been left in ruins through military spending and Western-imposed sanctions.
The future of U.S. military aid to Ukraine is also unclear. Trump has criticized the amount of assistance provided to Kyiv by the previous administration.
Trump said on February 3 that he wants Ukraine to supply the United States with rare earth minerals as a form of payment for U.S. financial support.
"We're telling Ukraine they have very valuable rare earths," Trump told reporters at the White House. "We're looking to do a deal with Ukraine where they're going to secure what we're giving them with their rare earths and other things."
More than four dozen minerals, including several types of rare earths, nickel, and lithium, are considered critical to the U.S. economy and national defense. Ukraine has large deposits of uranium, lithium, and titanium.
Trump has vowed to quickly end the war but has not provided details of any potential plans to bring the sides together.
Kellogg on January 31 said Trump has a "solid" strategy to end the war in Ukraine within months, also without providing details.
Kellogg's assertion came amid behind-the-scenes talks and back-channel negotiations to find a way to bring the nearly 3-year-old Russian invasion to an end.
Putin for his part has complimented Trump and signaled a willingness to meet. But he's also ruled out holding talks with Zelenskyy, which would potentially complicate any upcoming negotiations.
Ukraine has sought long-term security guarantees, including the potential for Western peacekeeping forces, to prevent Russia from rebuilding its forces and attacking again following a cease-fire.
On the battlefield, Ukraine continued to target fuel and energy facilities inside Russia. Drones ignited a fire in the Astrakhan region and forced the suspension of flights at several airports, Russian officials and media said early on February 3.
"Ukrainian armed forces attempted a drone attack on objects located in the region, including fuel and energy facilities," Astrakhan Governor Igor Babushkin said on Telegram.
"The attack was successfully repelled. Falling drone sparked a fire. There were no casualties," he wrote from the southern Russian region near the Kazakh border.
He did not specify what was on fire, but the Baza Telegram channel said it was a gas-processing plant near Astrakhan city.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian authorities on February 2 said the toll of the Russian missile strike the day before in Poltava reached 14 dead, including three children, with at least 20 injured.
With reporting by Reuters
- By RFE/RL
U.S. Tariffs On Canada, Mexico Suspended For 30 Days
Tariffs announced by U.S. President Donald Trump on Canada and Mexico will be paused for 30 days, the leaders of the two countries said on February 3 after calls with Trump in which they pledged stronger border measures to stop migrant crossings and illicit drugs.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on X that Canada would deploy nearly 10,000 officers to help secure the border, list drug cartels as terrorists, appoint a Fentanyl Czar, and crack down on money laundering.
"I have also signed a new intelligence directive on organized crime and fentanyl and we will be backing it with $200 million," he said. "Proposed tariffs will be paused for at least 30 days while we work together."
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum also agreed to send 10,000 members of her country's national guard to the border to address drug trafficking.
Sheinbaum said on X the deployment would begin immediately. She added that the United States committed to work to stop the trafficking of high-powered weapons to Mexico.
"Our teams will begin working today on two fronts: security and trade," she said. "They are pausing tariffs for one month from now."
Trump had warned Americans earlier on February 3 that they may face economic “pain” because of the trade tariffs he announced over the weekend on Canada, Mexico, and China -- the top three U.S. trading partners.
"Will there be some pain? Yes, maybe (and maybe not!)" Trump wrote on February 2 on his social media platform in regard to the effect tariffs could have on U.S. consumers.
"But...it will all be worth the price that must be paid," he added.
Experts have said that the tariffs could roil the world economy. They also have pointed out that U.S. consumers would actually pay the tariffs in the form of higher prices for imports from the three countries.
Trump has also threatened tariffs on goods from the EU, saying they would “definitely happen" and that it would be "pretty soon." He also suggested the United Kingdom could be the target of tariffs.
The EU on February 2 said it would "firmly" retaliate if Trump imposes tariffs, although it said it hopes to avoid a trade war through talks.
"The European Union regrets the U.S. decision to impose tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China," a spokesman for the European Commission said.
Trump announced the long-promised economic policy on February 1, saying Washington would hit Canada and Mexico with tariffs of 25 percent on all goods, although Canadian energy products will face a 10 percent tariff. The new tariffs also include a 10 percent levy on goods from China, on top of those previously set.
The tariffs imposed on Chinese goods remained poised to begin on February 4.
All three countries targeted by the initial announcement had threatened retaliatory measures while also urging trade talks instead of tariffs.
Trump said he was imposing them on the U.S. neighbors until the flow of migrants and illegal fentanyl into the United States was stopped, although the cause of those issues is widely debated and involves a number of complex factors.
He has also said they would help reduce trade deficits with leading partners and spur industrial output in the United States.
He also indicated that more tariffs could be coming against China, saying if Washington can’t make a deal with China, "then the tariffs will be very, very substantial.”
With reporting by AFP, AP, and Reuters
- By RFE/RL
Panama Plans To Leave China's Belt And Road After Rubio's Canal Visit
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio visited the Panama Canal on February 2, warning the host country that Washington will "take measures necessary" if it doesn’t curb Chinese involvement in the crucial waterway.
Following the threats, Panamanian President Jose Raul Mulino seemed to take that to heart as he said he addressed Washington's concerns over Beijing's purported influence by not renewing Panama's deal to join China's flagship Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
Mulino also announced further steps to cooperate on immigration, a major policy matter with the U.S. administration.
The decision to not renew the 2017 memorandum of understanding to join the BRI marks an early move to calm Washington's concerns over Chinese influence in Panama. The BRI is Chinese leader Xi Jinping's signature foreign policy initiative, and the globe-spanning infrastructure project has led to hundreds of billions of dollars worth of Chinese investment around the world.
State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said Rubio delivered a message from President Donald Trump stating that China's presence was a threat to the waterway and a violation of the U.S.-Panama treaty.
"Secretary Rubio made clear that this status quo is unacceptable and that absent immediate changes, it would require the United States to take measures necessary to protect its rights under the treaty," Bruce said.
Rubio did not specify the steps Panama needed to take or suggest what moves the United States might take in retaliation if measures were not taken.
Mulino told reporters that Panama will seek to work with the United States on new investments, including infrastructure projects.
"I think this visit opens the door to build new relations…and try to increase as much as possible U.S. investments in Panama," he said.
Trump has said he does not rule out military force over Panama -- remarks that irked many U.S. allies in Latin America and elsewhere.
In comments on February 2, Trump claimed that "China's running the Panama Canal."
"That was not given to China, that was given to Panama -- foolishly -- but they violated the agreement, and we're going to take it back, or something very powerful is going to happen," Trump told reporters.
Trump has also made remarks about the United States potentially purchasing the island of Greenland from Denmark -- which says it's not for sale -- and suggested Canada should annex itself to the United States, although the seriousness of those comments was not clear.
China's business with the canal is mainly carried out through Hong-Kong based Hutchison Holdings, which operates two ports near the entrances to the waterway under a 25-year concession renewed in 2021.
Rubio last week said that under the current status, China could theoretically use the ports to shut down the canal should a conflict break out between the United States and the Asian giant.
The Panamanian president said his meeting with Rubio was cordial and respectful. He indicated it was possible to review some Chinese businesses in Panama, including the port concession.
China has denied it plays any role in the operation of the canal and that it respects Panama's control over the waterway.
"Never ever has China interfered," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning said last month and added that Beijing recognizes the canal as "a permanently neutral international waterway.”
The Panama Canal was built in a U.S.-led project, and Washington maintained control when it began operation in 1914, also holding the surrounding Canal Zone.
In 1964, it began to negotiate the situation following deadly riots by Panamanians angered over foreign control of the waterway.
After long, contentious negotiations, President Jimmy Carter signed the deal that gave the canal to Panama at the end of 1999.
With reporting by Reuters, AP, and AFP
'Brutal Crackdown' Continues In Georgia As Protesters Rally In Tbilisi
TBILISI -- Georgian authorities arrested several opposition figures during anti-government protests on the streets of Tbilisi on February 2, prompting the European Union to again condemn what it termed the "brutal crackdown" on dissent.
At least one of the detained protesters -- Nika Melia, a leader of the Coalition for Change -- was later released but said he was subject to physical violence while being held by the police.
The Interior Ministry did not immediately respond to RFE/RL's request for comment on the reported arrests from the protest -- held on and around the Tbilisi Mall -- as anti-government demonstrators rallied for the 67th consecutive night.
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas condemned the latest action against demonstrators, journalists, and opposition politicians.
"The brutal crackdown on peaceful protesters, journalists, and politicians tonight in Tbilisi is unacceptable," she wrote on X.
"Georgia falls short of any expectation from a candidate country. The EU stands with the people of Georgia in their fight for freedom and democracy."
Video from the February 2 protest shows Melia being held and forcibly led away by black-clad security personnel.
Melia later told opposition TV Pirveli that at least 25 others were arrested during the day and that some were also subject to physical violence while being held.
Former Tbilisi Mayor Gigi Ugulava, another opposition figure, was also arrested, an AFP journalist on the scene reported.
Also held was Tamar Tevzadze, a student activist from Tbilisi's Ilia State University. Video from her arrest appears to show her screaming as multiple security personnel hold her on the ground.
Claims of violence carried out by police cannot immediately be verified, but many protesters detained over recent months have reported being physically beaten while under detention and during the demonstrations themselves, often by masked men wielding baseball bats.
The government has denied any wrongdoing during the protests.
Georgia received EU candidate status in December 2023, but ties with Brussels first became tense following the adoption in May 2024 of a controversial Russian-style "foreign agent" law pushed through parliament by the Georgian Dream party, which has been in power since 2012.
Relations with the West deteriorated further amid the government's violent crackdown on protesters angered by Georgian Dream’s distancing itself from the EU, its perceived tilt toward Russia, and in reaction to last year's disputed election in the Caucasus nation.
Georgian Dream claimed victory in the October parliamentary vote, which the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) said was marred by instances of vote-buying, double-voting, physical violence, and intimidation.
The authorities responded violently to the anti-government demonstrations, arresting hundreds of people and surveilling participants with Chinese-made cameras with facial-recognition capabilities.
Former President Salome Zurabishvili -- who broke with the government during her term and sided with protesters -- on January 18 told Fox News that the United States and Europe have a "stake" in defending Georgian democracy against both an "unconstitutional" government in Tbilisi and potential Russian interference.
On December 29, Georgian Dream pushed through its candidate, Mikheil Kavelashvili, a former soccer player and right-wing populist, as the country's new president.
However, Zurabishvili, his predecessor, continues to call herself Georgia's "only legitimate president" and is recognized as president by Georgia’s opposition amid widespread claims the country’s parliamentary elections were not free and fair.
With reporting by AFP
Death Toll In Poltava Strike Rises To 14 As More Bodies Pulled From Rubble
The death toll from a Russian missile strike on a residential building in the central Ukrainian city of Poltava has risen to 14, including two children, according to the State Emergency Service.
The Ukrainian government agency also said on Telegram on February 2 that "17 people were injured, including four children. 22 were rescued," adding that 194 people, including 11 children, were being helped by psychologists and that "emergency and rescue operations are ongoing."
According to local authorities, Russian forces launched a missile strike on Poltava on February 1, hitting a high-rise apartment block in the city.
A section of the building from the first to fifth floor was destroyed in the strike, reducing much it to rubble and causing a fire to break out. Eighteen apartment buildings and a kindergarten located nearby were also damaged.
The Prosecutor-General's Office reported that, according to preliminary data, the strike was carried out by a Kh-22 supersonic cruise missile.
The Russian military regularly attacks Ukrainian regions with various types of weapons, causing widespread destruction of Ukrainian civilian sites with drones, rockets, artillery, and various types of bombs.
The Kremlin has denied it targets civilian areas despite evidence of such attacks.
- By RFE/RL
Trump Orders First Military Action Of New Term, Targets IS Affiliates In Somalia
U.S. President Donald Trump said he ordered military strikes on a senior “attack planner” of the Islamic State (IS) extremist group in Somalia who had been hiding with other members in the impoverished East African nation.
The action on February 1 marked the first military action carried out by Trump since he took office for his second term on January 20.
“These killers, who we found hiding in caves, threatened the United States and our Allies,” Trump said in a statement.
“The strikes destroyed the caves they live in, and killed many terrorists without, in any way, harming civilians.”
Trump added that the U.S. military had targeted the attack planner for years but that it was not able to take the person out until his term. The target was not identified by name.
Defense chief Pete Hegseth said an initial assessment indicated "multiple" militants were killed in the attacks. No civilians were hurt, he added.
Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said he was informed of the air strike and that he extended his “deepest gratitude for the unwavering support of the United States in our shared fight against terrorism.”
Mohamud said U.S. counterterrorism efforts are “highly valued and welcomed in Somalia” and he praised what he called Trump’s “bold and decisive leadership.”
The Puntland state information minister, Mohamud Aidid Dirir, told Reuters that the strike took place in the Cal Miskaad Mountains within the Golis range.
"The number of casualties is still unknown as it was dark. But our forces on the front line could hear the sound of explosions,” he said.
The IS affiliate in Somalia has faced counterterrorism actions in the form of U.S. air strikes and attacks by Somali security forces, but it still remains active, mainly in the Puntland region.
The U.S. military -- under both Republican and Democratic administrations -- has carried out air strikes in Somalia in the past, targeting terrorist hideouts.
U.S. action in Somalia is perhaps best known from the 2001 movie “Black Hawk Down,” the story about a U.S. helicopter shot down in Mogadishu during the country's civil war in 1993.
Some of the U.S. counterterrorism efforts in Africa have suffered as Chad and Niger -- two former partners -- demanded that U.S. forces exit their countries. Russia has in recent years moved to increase its influence in the region.
With reporting by Reuters and AP
Serbian Protesters Mark Tragedy, Vow 24-Hour Blockade In Novi Sad
NOVI SAD, Serbia -- Thousands of student protesters and others marked three months since the fatal November 1 collapse of a concrete roof at a rail station in Novi Sad, blocking three bridges in Serbia’s second-largest city as pressure mounted on President Aleksandar Vucic’s government.
The action -- labeled "Three Months, Three Bridges" -- on February 1 caused a kilometer-long line of cars attempting to enter the city as students from Novi Sad University and their supporters announced a 24-hour blockade on the city’s Freedom Bridge, due to last until 3 p.m. on February 2.
Hundreds of the participating students had arrived after a two-day protest march of some 80 kilometers from Belgrade to Novi Sad. The demonstrations come amid months of anti-government protests following the deadly infrastructure collapse in Novi Sad that killed 15 people.
Protesters have demanded accountability for those responsible for the roof collapse -- which many blame on government corruption and incompetence.
Serbian farmers on tractors joined students on the main thoroughfares of the capital, Belgrade, on January 27 for a similar 24-hour protest blockade against Vucic’s handling of the aftermath of a deadly railway station disaster.
Although rallies initially focused on the Novi Sad tragedy, the mounting anger could also pose a longer-term threat to Vucic's government, which has attempted to maintain close ties to traditional ally Russia while also promoting the country's European Union membership hopes.
On January 28, Prime Minister Milos Vucevic resigned following weeks of mass protests demanding accountability for the deadly accident. Vucic said he accepted the resignation reluctantly because, he insisted, Vucevic “did nothing wrong.”
During the February 1 rally, thousands of people marched through Novi Sad – a city of some 380,000 people -- waving flags and signs as they occupied the three main bridges before converging on Freedom Bridge, the largest.
Farmers on tractors once again joined the rallies.
"I don't think anything like this has ever happened in Novi Sad before. And I am certain that Gen Z will bring change because I believe in all these young people," law student Nedeljka Mijanovic told AFP.
Local resident Slavica Nikolic told AP, “After long time, we can feel positive energy in the air, on the streets, among the people."
“When I talk to people, it feels like hope has woken up. We remember well some uglier times. This is finally some sort of new hope, that something good is going to happen in this country.”
Student Vasilije Pantic told RFE/RL that "I have mixed emotions: People are here for the tragedy in which 15 people lost their lives. I feel said for them."
"But I'm also proud of myself and my colleagues for the journey that we've made here," referring to the march from the capital.
With reporting by AP and AFP
Trump Able To End Ukraine War In 'Months, Not Years,' Aide Keith Kellogg Says
U.S. President Donald Trump has a “solid” strategy to end the war in Ukraine within months, the president’s special representative for Ukraine and Russia has said.
Keith Kellogg's assertion comes amid behind-the-scenes talks and back-channel negotiations to find a way to bring the nearly 3-year-old Russian invasion to an end.
Trump has insisted he wants to end the war quickly, and said he wants to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin as soon possible.
Putin for his part has complimented Trump and signaled a willingness to meet. But he's also ruled out holding talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, which would potentially complicate any upcoming negotiations.
In an interview published on February 1 by AP, Zelenskyy said that direct talks between Washington and Moscow without including Ukraine could be "very dangerous."
Trump and Putin "may have their own relations, but talking about Ukraine without us — it is dangerous for everyone,” Zelenskyy said.
Zelenskyy also said his team has been in contact with the Trump administration at a “general level,” but he said he believes face-to-face meetings will take place soon.
Kellogg told Fox News on January 31 that "I would say it's months [for a deal]. It's not years we are talking about. We have a solid action plan,”
Calling Trump a “great dealmaker,” Kellogg said the U.S. president is "creating leverage for both Kyiv and Moscow" because he "knows where to apply pressure, and where not to apply pressure."
Ukraine Invasion: News & Analysis
RFE/RL's Ukraine Live Briefing gives you the latest developments on Russia's invasion, Western military aid, the plight of civilians, and territorial control maps. For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war, click here.
Kellogg, a retired lieutenant-general tasked with leading negotiations to end the war, emphasized that "resolving the Russia-Ukraine war is in the national-security interests of the United States."
Trump said on January 31 that he and Putin could soon talk and announce something significant toward ending the conflict in Ukraine.
“We will be speaking, and I think will perhaps do something that will be significant,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “We want to end that war.”
He added that his administration has already had “very serious discussions about that war” in an attempt to end it. “It’s just a senseless situation and it’s got to stop.”
Trump did not say who from his administration had been in contact with the Russians but insisted the two sides were “already talking." He declined to say whether he had been involved in those conversations.
Trump said last week that he would like to meet with Putin immediately to secure an end to Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Based on what he has heard, Putin would like to see him, he said.
"Every day we don't meet, soldiers are being killed in the battlefield," he said on January 23.
Trump said during last year’s election campaign he could end the conflict in Ukraine within 24 hours of taking office. He now says he hopes to end the fighting within six months.
He also claimed during the campaign that Russia never would have invaded Ukraine if he had been president and repeated that claim in his remarks on January 31.
Trump has been highly critical of the aid Washington has disbursed to Kyiv and has said Ukraine should have made concessions to Putin in the months before Russia launched the invasion nearly three years ago.
In a recent interview with Russian state television, Putin praised Trump as a “clever and pragmatic man” who is focused on U.S. interests.
“We always had a businesslike, pragmatic but also trusting relationship with the current U.S. president,” Putin said.
Putin on January 29 ruled out direct peace talks with Zelenskyy, saying he does not consider the Ukrainian president to be the legitimate leader of Ukraine.
An election was to have taken place on March 31, 2024, but was postponed because the country is still under martial law due to the war.
In his AP interview, Zelenskyy said the U.S. leader could bring Putin to the table through the threat of further sanctions on Russia’s energy and banking sectors, along with continuing U.S. aid to Ukraine's military.
- By RFE/RL
Thousands Of Supporters And Opponents Of Far-Right Figure Tommy Robinson Protest In London
Thousands of supporters of jailed British far-right figurehead Tommy Robinson marched through central London on February 1, with anti-racism demonstrators staging a counterprotest nearby.
Robinson supporters chanted “We Want Tommy Out” and “We Want Our Country Back,” as they crossed London’s Westminster Bridge during what the organizers call a "Uniting the Kingdom" demonstration.
Some protesters were wearing “MEGA -- Make England Great Again” hats, while others carried a “Stop the Boats” sign, a reference to illegal migrants crossing the English Channel in small boats to enter Britain.
Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, is one of the most influential far-right figures in Britain. He has co-founded the now-defunct nationalist and anti-Islamist English Defense League.
Robinson, 42, was jailed for 18 months in October after breaching a court order imposed over his repeated libeling of a Syrian teenage refugee. Robinson has in the past also been convicted of several other crimes, including assault and mortgage fraud.
Robinson was also blamed for stirring up riots across Britain in July last year after social media users falsely identified the suspect in a stabbing rampage as a Muslim immigrant. A British national, Axel Rudakubana, 18, was convicted of carrying out that attack, which killed three young girls in the seaside town of Southport.
The Uniting the Kingdom demonstration on February 1 was countered by a rally organized by the Stand Up to Racism movement.
“We stopped the far right from attacking communities in the summer and we stand in a powerful tradition of challenging the far right and fascism,” the movement’s joint secretary Sabby Dhalu told the rally, adding: “Now we have a big job to do.”
Supported By Elon Musk
Robinson’s representatives claimed in January that Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, has agreed to pay some of the legal fees racked up by their client.
There was no comment from Musk on the claim. But Musk, the Tesla CEO and close ally of U.S. President Donald Trump, has regularly used his social media platform X to call for Robinson's release from prison, claiming that he was jailed for telling the "truth."
In a post on X, Musk has demanded the ouster of Reform UK leader Nigel Farage after the populist politician distanced his right-wing challenger party from Robinson and said he would refuse to admit him as a member. Farage had been widely known as a Musk ally.
Musk has used X to unleash a barrage of attacks on the U.K. government and Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
Robinson was banned from Twitter in 2018 for violating the platform's rules regarding "hateful conduct," but his account was reinstated after Musk bought the social network and renamed it X.
Pakistan Says 18 Paramilitary Soldiers Killed In Fighting Overnight
Pakistani military and police authorities say 18 paramilitary troops and two dozen militants were killed overnight in fighting in the restive Balochistan Province in the country’s southwest.
Militants blocked a highway near the town of Mangochar and attacked a vehicle "carrying unarmed Frontier Corps paramilitaries,” according to local police officials. A police official said, the attack was carried out by up 80 “armed assailants.”
The military said in a statement on February 1 that three paramilitaries sustained serious injuries in the attack.
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif issued a statement condemning the attack, which was claimed by the Baloch National Army separatist group.
The military vowed that “the perpetrators, facilitators, and abettors of this heinous and cowardly act, will be brought to justice."
Mineral-rich but impoverished Balochistan, which borders Afghanistan and Iran, has been the scene of ethnic, sectarian, and separatist violence for decades, with Baloch separatist groups and an array of Islamist militants operating in the region.
Members of the province’s ethnic Baluch minority say they face discrimination and exploitation by the central government.
Six people were killed in a bombing in January, claimed by the separatist Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) as authorities reported an uptick in violence in recent months.
The BLA often targets Pakistani security forces, civilians, and foreigners, most notably Chinese working on multibillion dollar projects in Pakistan. The group accuses outsiders of exploiting the province’s resources while excluding the local people.
In November 2024, the militant group claimed responsibility for a bombing at the main railway station in the provincial capital, Quetta that killed 26 people, including 14 soldiers.
The group has also claimed it was behind coordinated attacks by dozens of assailants in August that killed at least 39 people, one of the deadliest assaults in the region. The attacks prompted retaliatory operations by security forces.
With reporting by AFP and Reuters
Russia Accused Of Killing Own Citizens In Bombing Of Boarding School In Kursk
The Ukrainian military and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russian forces had struck a boarding school in the Ukrainian-occupied Russian region of Kursk, killing at least four of “their own citizens” and injuring dozens as the civilian death toll continues to mount in the war.
The attack late on February 1 came hours after Kyiv reported that at least 10 people had been killed in a Russian attack on a residential area in the central Ukrainian city of Poltava.
"Russian aviation struck a boarding school in the town of Sudzha, Kursk region, with a guided aerial bomb. The strike was carried out on purpose," the Ukrainian General Staff said.
Unconfirmed reports indicated many of the victims were elderly people being temporarily housed in the building.
"At the time of the attack, dozens of local residents were inside the building preparing to evacuate. Everything possible is being done to rescue the survivors," the General Staff said, adding that at least 84 civilians “were rescued and provided with medical aid."
Zelenskyy wrote on X that "this is how Russia wages war -- Sudzha, Kursk region, Russian territory, a boarding school with civilians preparing to evacuate."
"A Russian aerial bomb. They destroyed the building even though dozens of civilians were there...Russian bombs destroy Ukrainian homes the same way. And even against their own civilians, the Russian army uses similar tactics.”
Russia's Defense Ministry later claimed that Ukrainian forces had carried out the attack.
"On February 1, the Ukrainian Armed Forces committed another war crime by launching a targeted missile strike on a boarding school in the city of Sudzha," a ministry statement said.
The claims could not independently be verified.
Ukraine in August seized a chunk of Russian territory in Kursk region as part of a successful surprise attack. After giving up nearly half those gains since then, Ukraine has recently launched a small-scale offensive in the region to take back territory.
Ukraine Invasion: News & Analysis
RFE/RL's Ukraine Live Briefing gives you the latest developments on Russia's invasion, Western military aid, the plight of civilians, and territorial control maps. For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war, click here.
Russian forces have utilized many of the estimated 11,000 North Korean troops deployed by Pyongyang to fight alongside the Kremlin’s forces in the Kursk region, although they have sufferied heavy losses, according to Western and Ukrainian officials.
Earlier, Ukrainian authorities said at least 10 people had been killed on a Russian attack on a residential building in the central Ukrainian city of Poltava
Images from AFP showed firefighters searching through the ruins of a building at the site.
"God saved us," Olena Svyryd, a resident of a neighboring building, told AFP.
"Opposite us on the fifth floor, a woman, my friend, was taken out. No, she's not alive. She was crushed by the wall. There were a lot of casualties," she said.
The United Nations on February 1 condemned a Russian air strike on the historic center of the southern Ukrainian city of Odesa. Buildings on the UNESCO World Heritage list were damaged and at least seven people were injured.
Deadly Russian air strikes were also reported in the large Ukrainian cities of Kharkiv and Sumy.
Fear And Hope As Battle For Ukraine’s Pokrovsk Looms
Also on February 1, the General Staff of Ukraine's armed forces reported 134 combat encounters over the previous 24 hours.
According to Ukraine's Energy Ministry, Russia has launched more than 1,000 strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure facilities since October 2022. In 2024 alone, nine gigawatts of generating capacity were reportedly lost due to the strikes, amounting to roughly half of Ukraine's peak winter demand.
With reporting by AFP
Russian Missile Attack Injures 7 In Odesa, Causes Serious Damage To Historic City Center
Russian troops on January 31 attacked the historical center of the Ukrainian Black Sea port city of Odesa, damaging buildings on the UNESCO World Heritage list and injuring seven people, local officials said.
Regional Governor Oleh Kiper said three large explosions were heard in the early evening at intervals, which he described as a "well-established practice" by the Russian military of repeated attacks on the same target.
"However, in this case a missile capable of penetrating concrete was used," he said on national television while standing in a street near emergency crews engaged in a rescue operation.
"This means it was deliberately aimed at a civilian hotel to destroy the floors and structures inside, causing destruction and, of course killing civilians staying there at the time."
The Prosecutor-General's Office said Russian armed forces used ballistic missiles in the attack.
“In the central part of the city, a hotel building was destroyed, windows were broken, and facades in nearby buildings and premises were damaged," the Prosecutor-General’s Office said. Law enforcement officers have opened criminal proceedings, it added.
Kiper also posted photos on social media showing rescuers wheeling an injured woman on a gurney outside the Hotel Bristol, a luxury hotel built at the end of the 19th century, and debris on the street in front of the nearby opulent opera house built in the same era.
The photos also show damage to the building's ornate facade and interior, including a grand staircase.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the attack underscored the importance of improving Ukraine’s air defenses.
"Strikes directly on the city, on ordinary civilian buildings," Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address. "Again and again, air defense is the top priority. We are working with all our partners to provide more protection for our country."
Zelenskyy said a meeting of Ukraine's command had focused on improving weapons systems and speeding up deliveries.
"We need faster deliveries and greater numbers of systems and weapons which will enable us to save the lives of more of our soldiers, our people," he said.
"More orders for drones. More investments for the development of robotic systems. And more orders for basic weapons."
Zelenskyy called the attack "a completely deliberate strike by Russian terrorists" in a post on X. He added that among those caught in the epicenter of the attack were Norwegian diplomatic representatives.
Mayor Hennadiy Trukhanov said there was a lot of damage and destruction in the UNESCO-protected area, including a building that is under enhanced protection.
Odesa has been regularly targeted by strikes, including many on its port area.
The Russian leadership denies that the Russian army has launched targeted strikes on the civilian infrastructure in Ukrainian cities and villages. The Ukrainian authorities and international organizations have gathered evidence to the contrary.
With reporting by Reuters and AFP
Russian Missile Attack Hits Historic Center Of Odesa
Russian troops on January 31 attacked the historical center of the Ukrainian Black Sea port city of Odesa, damaging buildings and injuring two people, local officials said.
Regional Governor Oleh Kiper said two large explosions were heard in the early evening, and the historical city center, a UNESCO World Heritage site, was hit.
An air raid alert was announced in the Odesa region at about 7:20 p.m. local time. The Ukrainian Air Force warned of the threat of the use of ballistic weapons from the south.
The two injured people were women, who have been hospitalized in moderate condition, Kiper said. Kiper also posted photos on social media showing rescuers wheeling a woman on a gurney outside the Hotel Bristol, a luxury hotel built at the end of the 19th century, and debris on the street near the opulent opera house built in the same era.
The photos also show damage to the building's ornate facade and interior, including a grand staircase.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the attack underscored the importance of improving Ukraine’s air defenses.
"Strikes directly on the city, on ordinary civilian buildings," Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address. "Again and again, air defense is the top priority. We are working with all our partners to provide more protection for our country."
Zelenskyy said a meeting of Ukraine's command had focused on improving weapons systems and speeding up deliveries.
"We need faster deliveries and greater numbers of systems and weapons which will enable us to save the lives of more of our soldiers, our people," he said.
"More orders for drones. More investments for the development of robotic systems. And more orders for basic weapons."
Zelenskyy called the attack "a completely deliberate strike by Russian terrorists" in a post on X. He added that among those caught in the epicenter of the attack were Norwegian diplomatic representatives.
Mayor Hennadiy Trukhanov said there was a lot of damage and destruction in the UNESCO-protected area, including a building that is under enhanced protection.
Odesa has been regularly targeted by strikes, including many on its port area.
The Russian leadership denies that the Russian army has launched targeted strikes on the civilian infrastructure in Ukrainian cities and villages. The Ukrainian authorities and international organizations have gathered evidence to the contrary.
With reporting by Reuters and AFP
Russia Designates 2 RFE/RL Journalists And 5 Others As ‘Foreign Agents’
Russia has added seven people including two Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty journalists to its long and growing list of “foreign agents,” a move RFE/RL’s president said was part of a “brutal assault on independent media.”
The Russian Justice Ministry said on January 31 that the seven were designated for participating in foreign media platforms and in some cases for what it claimed was the dissemination of "false information" about Russia's electoral system. It did not provide evidence.
The broader accusation tying all seven together was what the ministry said was their opposition to Russia's war against Ukraine, which is raging nearly three years after President Vladimir Putin ordered the full-scale invasion in February 2022. His government tolerates no criticism of the war and has used its increasingly restrictive “foreign agent” legislation as one of many instruments to suppress dissent.
The new designees include Dmitry Sukharev, a journalist with Systema, RFE/RL’s Russian investigative unit; and Andrei Novashov, a contributor to RFE/RL’s Russian Service and North Caucasus Service. Both live outside Russia. The others are Elizaveta Fokht and Ilya Abishev of the BBC Russian Service; Meduza contributor Vladimir Rayevsky; educator, writer, and blogger Dima Zitser; and Anton Suvorkin, a video blogger covering Russian show business.
Russia introduced the "foreign agent" label in 2012 and has expanded legislation pertaining to the designation since then. Kremlin critics, rights defenders, and Western governments say the Russian state uses it as a tool to persecute independent journalists, media outlets, activists, and civil society groups.
"The designation of RFE/RL journalists as foreign agents is the latest evidence of Russia's brutal assault on independent media,” RFE/RL President and CEO Stephen Capus said in a statement on January 31. “Despite the Kremlin's attempts to criminalize freedom of speech at home and abroad, our brave journalists will not be intimidated."
Three correspondents for Current Time, the Russian-language TV and digital network run by RFE/RL -- Iryna Romaliyska, Oleksiy Prodayvoda, and Oryna Fedorovykh -- were labeled foreign agents earlier in January. Current Time, RFE/RL’s Russian Service, and several other RFE/RL Russian-language news services were designated in 2017.
- By RFE/RL
Norway Seizes Ship Suspected In Baltic Cable Damage
Norwegian police said they have seized a locally owned ship with an all-Russian crew that is suspected of being involved in sabotaging an underwater telecoms cable in the Baltic Sea linking Sweden and Latvia.
Police in the city of Tromso said on January 31 that the Norwegian-registered and Norwegian-owned ship Silver Dania was detained based on a legal request from Latvian authorities and an order from the Nord-Troms and Senja District Court in Norway.
The ship is the second to be seized in the past week in connection with the damaging of the cable. Swedish police detained the Maltese-flagged cargo ship Vezhen on suspicion it caused the damage.
"There is suspicion that the ship has been involved in serious damage to a fiber cable in the Baltic Sea between Latvia and Sweden," the police said in a statement.
"The police are conducting an operation on the ship to search, conduct interviews, and secure evidence."
Several undersea telecommunications and power cables have been damaged in the Baltic Sea since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Experts and politicians have blamed vessels in Russia's so-called shadow fleet of aging oil tankers. The Kremlin denies any involvement.
With the recent spate of sabotage events in the region, NATO and EU leaders agreed to launch a monitoring mission of the Baltic Sea.
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte has said that "such hostile actions" will not go unanswered, promising to strengthen NATO's military presence in the region.
The first major incidence of sabotage of infrastructure occurred in September 2022 when a series of underwater blasts ruptured the Nord Stream pipelines built to carry Russian gas to Europe. The cause has yet to be determined.
An undersea gas pipeline between Finland and Estonia was shut down in October 2023 after it was damaged by the anchor of a Chinese cargo ship.
The most recent incident occurred January 26 with the severing of the cable linking telecommunications between Sweden and Lativa.
A month earlier, in another incident, the Estlink 2 electricity cable and four telecom cables linking Finland and Estonia were damaged.
That came just weeks after two telecom cables in Swedish waters were severed on November 17-18.
Suspicion over the December 25 incident has fallen on the Eagle S, a Cook Island-flagged oil tanker believed to be part of Russia’s "shadow fleet." Investigators suspect the cables were damaged when the tanker dragged its anchor over them.
Ukraine Says It Hit Russian Refinery In Volograd
Ukraine says it struck a major oil refinery in the Volograd region as part of its drive to target Russian infrastructure tied to Moscow's war effort.
Ukraine's armed forces said in a statement on January 31 that the strikes targeted Lukoil-Volgogradneftoperobka, one of the 10 largest oil refineries in Russia in terms of capacity and a major supplier of oil products to the Russian Army.
"Combat work on strategic infrastructure, which directly affects the ability of the Russian Armed Forces to continue fighting against Ukraine, will continue," the General Staff of the Armed Forces said in a social media post.
Video and photographs posted on social media that have been verified by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty showed explosions and a large fire in the area of the refinery, which processes around 14 million tons of oil annually to produce gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel.
Volograd regional Governor Andrei Bocharov confirmed the refinery was hit by a Ukrainian drone attack, saying the fire was caused by falling debris from defense systems knocking the drones out of the sky.
The refinery has been the site of previous attacks, including one in May last year.
Ukraine has increased the intensity of its drone attacks at Russian refineries in recent months. Earlier this week, Ukrainian drones struck an oil refinery in the Nizhny Novgorod region.
Analysts say the move hits Moscow's ability to supply troops with fuel to fight its almost three-year-long war against Ukraine, as well as cutting into its use of oil and fuel exports that are used to help fund the war effort.
Ukraine also claimed to have destroyed a Russian Army command post in the Kursk region overnight in the drone attacks.
Russia has not commented on the claim.
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