Alex Raufoglu is RFE/RL's senior correspondent in Washington, D.C.
For much of Russia's full-scale invasion, Ukrainian officials arrived in Washington seeking weapons, ammunition, and financial support. Last week, however, the message was markedly different as Kyiv looked to be more a partner than a beggar.
Ukraine's failure to intercept a single Russian missile during a large-scale overnight attack this week has raised fresh concerns over Kyiv's dwindling supply of air-defense interceptors as Moscow escalates its ballistic missile strikes on the nearly defenseless capital and other regions.
A bipartisan coalition in the US Senate is working to keep momentum behind a sweeping sanctions package targeting Russia and Iran, with lawmakers from both parties arguing that the legislation would send a broader message about American resolve against authoritarian powers.
Influential Republican Senator Rick Scott talks to RFE/RL about why he believes sanctions against Russia should be passed immediately, why Ukraine's military innovations matter for the United States, and why defeating Russia is central to deterring an increasingly coordinated authoritarian bloc.
The growing strategic partnership between China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea is a defining security challenge facing the US and its allies. Rear Admiral (Ret.) Mark Montgomery speaks to RFE/RL about says the West continues to underestimate both the scale of this alignment and the risks it poses.
Retired Vice Admiral Robert Harward, a former deputy commander of US Central Command, tells RFE/RL that Iran is playing for time as it draws out talks to end the war with the United States.
A renewed exchange of military strikes and threats between the US and Iran has raised fresh fears of a wider Middle East war. But Jacob Stoil, research professor of Middle East security studies at the US Army War College, argues the more important story may be what has not happened.
US President Donald Trump's decision to step back from his earlier pledge to allow Ukraine to manufacture Patriot missile interceptors has prompted renewed debate in Washington over the future direction of US military support for Kyiv.
US President Donald Trump has confirmed that he will send his envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, to Kyiv in the coming weeks. RFE/RL spoke with Kurt Volker about the significance of their visit.
Former Trump White House official Allison Minor says Iran's latest attacks exposed the limits of the traditional US security guarantee in the Gulf. She argues Washington should shift toward a regional security model built on shared capabilities, integration, and stronger partnerships.
A day after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited the Senate, lawmakers overwhelmingly advanced legislation to tighten sanctions on Russia and extend key Iran sanctions for another five years.
Ahead of the US Senate's vote on legislation aimed at tightening economic pressure on Russia, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke alongside senators and said the bill carries significance far beyond its direct economic impact.
As Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited the US Capitol, a majority of senators from both parties voted to advance legislation intended to strike at the economic foundations of Russia's war.
Ahead of a Senate vote on a sanctions package targeting Russia and Iran, Democratic Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, a co-sponsor of the legislation, told RFE/RL that the legislation sends a strong message that the United States is committed to supporting Ukraine.
As the US Senate prepared to vote on a sweeping bipartisan sanctions package targeting Russia and Iran, Democratic Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, a co-sponsor of the legislation, said the measure reflects renewed bipartisan resolve to squeeze the Kremlin war machine and reinforce support for Ukraine.
Russia and Iran's expanding partnership in drones, intelligence, sanctions evasion and internal security is increasingly linking the conflicts in Ukraine and the Persian Gulf, says Nicole Grajewski, an expert on Russian-Iranian relations.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had "a good meeting" with US President Donald Trump on July 28. The meeting, which had been expected to be one of the most consequential moments in US-Ukraine relations since Donald Trump's return to the White House, lasted about a hour.
In an interview with RFE/RL, Ken Moriyasu, a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, said the countries of Central Asia appear to be giving up on Iran as a gateway to global trade, a situation which is driving new approaches to cooperation with China and Pakistan.
Has the Iran conflict permanently reshaped Central Asia's strategic map? Hudson Institute senior fellow Ken Moriyasu explains why governments across the region are increasingly looking beyond Iran toward Pakistan, Afghanistan and China for trade, connectivity, and access to global markets.
Russia's deepening partnerships with China, Iran, and North Korea represent one of the most significant geopolitical realignments driven by the war in Ukraine. Yet according to Andrea Kendall-Taylor, viewing this grouping through the lens of a traditional military alliance misses the bigger picture.
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