Armenia Might Quit Russia-Led Military Bloc – PM

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said Monday that his country could withdraw from Moscow-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), in a fresh show of discontent over the lack of support from its ally Russia. Yerevan has grown increasingly frustrated over what it calls Russia’s failure to protect Armenia in the face of military threats from…

Russian Border Region Says Ukrainian ‘Sabotage’ Unit Carried Out Incursion

The head of Russia’s Belgorod region which borders Ukraine, claimed Monday that a Ukrainian “sabotage group” had infiltrated the region, while anti-Kremlin Russians fighting alongside Ukraine’s forces appeared to take responsibility.  “A VSU [armed forces of Ukraine] sabotage group entered the territory of Grayvoron district,” Belgorod Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov wrote on Telegram, referring to a…

Belarus ‘Pardons’ Dissident Blogger Protasevich

Belarusian authorities have pardoned dissident journalist Roman Protasevich, the state-run Belta news agency reported Monday.  “I have signed all the documents about my pardon literally just now. This is, of course, simply wonderful news,” Belta quoted Protasevich as saying.  Protasevich, 27, was arrested in 2021 when Belarusian authorities forced his EU-bound plane to land in Minsk,…

Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Plant Reconnected to Ukraine Grid

The occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant has been reconnected to Ukraine’s electricity grid again after being offline for several hours, officials in Kyiv said on Monday. Earlier Monday Ukraine’s nuclear agency Energoatom had accused Russia of carrying out attacks that caused a power cut.  It said it was the seventh time the plant entered “blackout mode”…

Russia Targets Ukraine’s Dnipro With Drones, Missiles

Russian forces targeted the eastern Ukrainian city of Dnipro overnight with 16 missiles and 20 attack drones, Ukraine’s army said Monday. The attacks on troops and infrastructure were carried out by various types of missiles and Iranian-made Shahed drones, the general staff wrote on Facebook, saying its air defenses had destroyed all the drones and…

Senior Russian Official Dies After Privately Bemoaning ‘Fascist’ Invasion

Russia’s Deputy Science Minister Pyotr Kucherenko has died months after a prominent journalist recalled him criticizing the invasion of Ukraine in private conversations. Kucherenko, 46, fell seriously ill on board a flight returning from Cuba on Saturday, Russia’s Science and Higher Education Ministry said Sunday.  The flight made an emergency landing in southern Russia but doctors who…