Russia arrests Japanese journalist on espionage charges
Detention of Hokkaido Shimbun reporter follows series of arrests denounced as politically motivated
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Detention of Hokkaido Shimbun reporter follows series of arrests denounced as politically motivated
France seizes tanker suspected of belonging to Russia’s shadow fleet
While some viral online graphs suggest less bot activity, Zelenskyy’s claims of improved social media discourse do not entirely pass musterOver the weekend, Ukraine carried out at least three airstrikes on datacentres belonging to the Russian search engine company Yandex. Reports suggest at least two of these datacentres took significant damage, with Telegram footage appearing to show one on fire.
Yandex acknowledged the strikes, and Russian media reported that several websites appeared affected by the downed datacentres.On Monday, Volodymyr Zelenskyy suggested the strikes had dampened Russia’s massive disinformation operation, saying: “It suddenly became a little easier to breathe on many social platforms. There was less hate, less division and fewer provocations.”
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Russian forces launched a drone attack on Pavlohrad, killing one person and injuring two on Tuesday, Oct. 13. According to Head of the Dnipropetrovsk Regional Military Administration Oleksandr Hanzha, Russian drones and artillery struck four districts of the region nearly 40 times, injuring two people in the Nikopol area and causing fires in Dnipro earlier in the afternoon.
The overall number of casualties in the region on Tuesday is one dead, five wounded.
Zelensky said he had begun consultations on urgent security and administrative measures to address the situation and accelerate the implementation of Kyiv's resilience plan.
Welcome to The Ukraine Compass, a weekly digest of Ukrainian commentary and analysis from across the political spectrum only for War on the Rocks members. Each week, we bring you a curated selection of articles from Ukrainian media offering insight into how Ukrainians themselves debate the issues shaping their country.Western coverage often narrows the view to the battlefield — these pieces widen it, revealing the texture of daily life, politics, and public argument in a nation at war.
The perspectives gathered here are varied, candid, and often surprising, together forming a more complete picture of Ukraine as it really is.Frontline The post Doubts Grow Over the Terms of Ukraine’s European Union Accession appeared first on War on the Rocks.
Russia launched about 32 Rassvet low-orbit satellites in 2026 as it works to build its own, domestic alternative to Starlink. Speaking to Interfax-Ukraine, former deputy head of the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine (HUR) Ilya Pavlenko warned that the network could give Russian drones real-time satellite control, deepen Moscow’s reliance on Chinese technology and further threaten Europe.
Rafael Behr | Russian meddling probably didn’t affect the referendum result – but the Kremlin’s motives for wanting to undermine the EU still matterRussian territorial aggression against Ukraine didn’t feature much in the Brexit referendum campaign. It made headlines briefly when Boris Johnson blamed Moscow’s 2014 annexation of Crimea on the European Union.According to the Vote Leave frontman, Vladimir Putin’s land grab was a consequence of Brussels making foreign policy “on the hoof” and having “pretensions to running a defence policy”.Rafael Behr is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...
He praised energy ceasefire and then condemned U.S. plan to buy Russian diesel
The Russian army entered its full-scale war against Ukraine with a reputation as one of the strongest in the world, but the first weeks of the invasion showed that this assessment was wrong. The reasons were sought in logistics, equipment, training, and motivation, but most of the failures stemmed from
The French Navy intercepted the DF Peak in the Indian Ocean over suspicions it was sailing under a false flag. Russia relies on shadow fleet tankers to keep oil revenues flowing despite Western sanctions.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk said that German Police had arrested two suspects on behalf of Polish services and called the attack “another act of hybrid warfare” in a post on X.
The Iskander-M is one of Russia's principal ballistic weapons. Since the beginning of 2026, Moscow has launched more than 500 ballistic missiles against Ukraine.
Ukraine and Germany have also agreed to hold a meeting of national security advisers in the E3 format.
Aerial reconnaissance footage recorded casualties among a group that included two women and a child, according to Khartiia. The Ukrainian corps says Russian media could use the incident to accuse Kyiv of attacking civilians.
Kyiv says it is ready for energy, food-security, and full ceasefires—and that Moscow has to be forced to agree.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Tuesday, Oct. 13 that Kyiv trails every other region, including frontline areas, in implementing its resilience plan. It was his second rebuke of Kyiv’s authorities in a week, and he said he is preparing decisions that include changing how the capital is managed, although no additional details were provided.
NATO's top commander says he is revealing a plan to stop a Russian invasion of Europe.
This week's letters come from readers questioning the Trump administration's decision to purchase Russian diesel fuel amid rising prices in the United States. An American reader argues the deal benefits Russian President Vladimir Putin at Ukraine's expense, a scholar questions whether a U.S.
The Kyiv Independent's War Crimes Investigations Unit has released Last Seen in Crimea, a new documentary investigating a system of detention in Russian-occupied Crimea where Ukrainian civilians have been held without contact with the outside world, often without formal charges, and subjected to torture and other forms of abuse.
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Oil-soaked seabirds found dead and dying on Black Sea beaches dozens of km from the Aframax Rio tanker, struck and set ablaze by Ukrainian drones off Sochi on Oct 6. Russian claims of no structural damage or oil leak are contradicted by evidence of pollution and wildlife harm; Greenpeace warns of serious environmental impact.
Russian disinformation yet again targets the sensitive topic of mobilization in Ukraine — this time, pushing falsehoods about an alleged forced draft of women.Pro-Kremlin social media accounts and Russian media have spread AI-generated images alleging that Ukrainian women are being lured to join the Armed Forces by targeted recruitment
Strike on cargo ship marks latest escalation in Russia-Ukraine war in the Black Sea
Despite the recent failure of Kyiv's early warning system and threats to halt U.S. intelligence sharing with Ukraine, Washington made no such decision, Ukrainian and American sources told the Kyiv Independent.Five Russian S-400 missiles struck the Ukrainian capital shortly after 10 p.m. local time on
The group included two women, a child, and several men who were being led toward the Shebelinka–Ostrogozhsk gas pipeline by Russian forces, according to Ukraine's 13th Khartia Corps.
Head of MI5 Sir Ken McCallum waded into the row today after the Prime Minister said in a podcast he had been told 'clearly' on arriving in No10 that Vladimir Putin had meddled in the 2016 vote.
After a glide bomb killed his wife and younger daughter, Yevhen Ovcharov was determined to prevent other Ukrainians from dying the same way.
Trump calls for Zelenskyy to be replaced, while Europe devotes summit to funding Ukraine.
The Rostov-on-Don site, which loads oil products onto river and sea tankers, burned for two days and was still smoking on the third.
Donald Trump’s demands that Ukraine hold elections during active hostilities have become a recurring feature of the US leader’s thinking whenever he fails to secure concessions from Ukraine. In response to a question from journalist Tetiana Kozyrieva about what he would like to say to people in Ukraine who suffer from Russian missile strikes every day and are starving under occupation, US President Donald Trump suggested on October 10 that Ukrainians elect a “new leader” who ...
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explicare.deUkraine’s part of that exchange was to stop striking Russia’s oil plants, a request Kushner repeated at the Miami meeting.
The EBRD is raising the capacity of its war-risk insurance facility to $168 million. Two new insurers are set to join the scheme and will also cover gas-related assets and goods in temporary storage.
Two ships were hit in the attack, including the Ukrainian-owned Chelsea 3, which sustained damage.
On Monday, US Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker said that he knew of no change to Washington’s weapon policies to Ukraine via NATO, saying he does not wish to comment on “unconfirmed reports.” Whitaker also acknowledged Kyiv’s air defense shortage but said he viewed it as a “short-term challenge,” with “a lot of companies” working on alternatives to fill the gap.
In this week's briefing, RFE/RL Europe Editor Rikard Jozwiak drills down on one issue: the upcoming EU summit, with a focus on Ukraine, Russia sanctions, and EU enlargement.
Finland is urging the EU to stop issuing tourist visas to Russian citizens until Moscow ends its war against Ukraine. Helsinki is also seeking restrictions targeting Vladimir Putin’s inner circle, Russian athletes linked to the state, and any former combatants.
European governments have criticized US President Donald Trump’s Russian diesel agreement and pledged to maintain pressure on Moscow. Their initial responses combine opposition to sanctions relief with calls to preserve US cooperation and secure a reciprocal halt to attacks on energy infrastructure.
The French Navy intercepted and boarded the sanctioned oil tanker DF Peak more than 450 nautical miles south of Réunion. France suspects the vessel of using a false flag and participating in illegal fuel transportation linked to Russia’s shadow fleet.
Bulgaria plans to summon Russia’s ambassador following attacks on commercial vessels near its territorial waters. All crew members aboard the Chelsea 3 survived and were rescued, while Ukraine said Ukrainian and Azerbaijani citizens were injured.
Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev called the attacks "absolutely unacceptable" and said Bulgaria had informed its permanent representatives to NATO and the European Union.