Ukraine's military on Tuesday vowed to continue defending Bakhmut as Russian officials claim Russian forces now control nearly 90% of the eastern Donbas city. Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi, the commander of Ukraine's ground forces, made the pledge while visiting troops on...
Biden Says ‘Journalism Is Not a Crime’ as He Seeks Assange’s Extradition
Over the weekend, President Biden declared "journalism is not a crime" at the White House Correspondents' Dinner, a statement that rings hollow as his Justice Department is seeking the extradition of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange for exposing US war crimes. Biden...
Kremlin Says US Estimate on Russian Losses ‘Plucked from Thin Air’
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Tuesday that US estimates of Russian losses in Ukraine had no basis and were "plucked from thin air." His comments came after the White House estimated Russia suffered 100,000 casualties over the last five months, including 20,000...
Ukraine Says Waiting for Better Weather for Spring Counteroffensive
Ukraine is waiting for better weather before it launches its long-awaited spring counteroffensive, the Ukrainian ambassador to the UK told Sky News on Tuesday. Ambassador Vadim Pristayko said heavy tanks that Ukraine received from its Western backers cannot move in...
Biden Tells Marcos US Commitment to Defense of the Philippines Is ‘Iron Clad’
President Biden hosted Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. at the White House on Monday amid heightened tensions with China and told him that the US commitment to defending the Philippines is "ironclad." In comments ahead of a meeting with Marcos, Biden said the...
Lawmakers Introduce Bill to Make Law Authorizing Iran Sanctions Permanent
A bipartisan group of lawmakers in the House and the Senate on Monday introduced a bill that would make a law authorizing sanctions on Iran permanent. The 1996 Iran Sanctions Act (ISA) gives the president the authority to impose sanctions on Iran and needs to be...
Israeli Airstrikes Again Target Syria’s Aleppo Airport
Israeli airstrikes put Syria's Aleppo airport out of service and hit other targets on the outskirts of the city on Monday night, Syria's SANA news agency reported. The strikes killed one Syrian soldier and wounded five more soldiers and two civilians. "At around 11:35...
Russia’s Wagner Head Renews Call for More Ammunition for Bakhmut Battle
Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of the Russian mercenary group Wagner, renewed a call on Monday for Russia to provide more ammunition to his forces who are fighting for control of the Donbas city of Bakhmut. Prigozhin made the comments in a video on his Telegram channel...
Arab Ministers Call for Syria to Regain Control of Its Territory
The foreign ministers of Syria, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and Egypt met in Amman on Monday to discuss a solution to the crisis in Syria in the latest step towards Damascus fully normalizing with regional countries. The ministers released a joint statement expressing...
US ‘Ready’ to Help Philippines Resupply Ship in the South China Sea
The head of the US Pacific Fleet has said the US is "ready" to help the Philippines resupply a grounded naval ship in the South China Sea, Nikkei Asia reported on Monday. In 1999, the Philippines intentionally ran a World War II-era ship aground on Second Thomas...