NATO condemned Russia's "irresponsible nuclear rhetoric" after Moscow warned it would deploy its entire arsenal if the alliance threatens Kaliningrad. The warning followed a British TV miniseries that war-gamed a strike on the Russian exclave, prompting Russia to send a diplomatic note to NATO.
Russia's Moscow Oil Refinery, owned by Gazprom Neft, completely halted crude oil processing after Ukrainian drones struck both primary distillation units on September 20, causing fires. Russia's total oil refining capacity has reportedly fallen 45% following the attack.
Ukraine fired over 1,000 drones at Russia on the final day of parliamentary elections, with hundreds targeting Moscow and surrounding areas. The attack killed at least three people, damaged a major oil refinery in the capital, and marked the largest drone assault on Moscow to date.
British defense officials announced that an estimated 500,000 Russian troops have been killed since Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022. The announcement comes amid ongoing Russian strikes across Ukraine that have killed at least 15 people in recent days.
Ukrainian officials announced that three-way negotiations between Ukraine, the United States, and Russia could resume in early October, following recent visits by US special envoys to both Kyiv and Moscow with new peace proposals. The talks come after a phone call between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Russia ordered the closure of German diplomatic offices in a tit-for-tat move after Germany accused Moscow of a hybrid attack involving a drone incident at Leipzig Airport and closed Russian consular facilities. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov accused Germany of moving toward direct confrontation with Russia.
Trump administration envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner arrived in Moscow on September 5 to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in a renewed push to end the Russia-Ukraine war. Both Russia and Ukraine agreed to a 72-hour pause on strikes against each other's capitals during the diplomatic talks.
Russia announced it will shut down branches of Germany's Goethe-Institut cultural centers in response to Germany's closure of the Russian House in Berlin and a Russian consulate in Bonn. The escalating tensions come after Berlin blamed Moscow for an airport drone plot, part of broader Western accusations of Russian sabotage campaigns.
President Donald Trump announced the US will ask European nations to pay back the United States for military aid and munitions previously sent to Ukraine, while appearing to signal a halt in weapons sales to allies. The statement comes as US envoys prepare to visit Kyiv and Moscow for peace negotiations.
CIA Director John Ratcliffe reportedly floated a trilateral summit between President Donald Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky during a secret visit to Moscow. The proposal came as Washington seeks to restart stalled Russia-Ukraine peace talks, though Putin has rejected similar meeting formats in the past.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced a goal to increase long-range drone strikes against Russia to 1,000 per day, up from the current average of over 300 daily strikes. The announcement came during a meeting of Ukraine's Supreme Commander-in-Chief Staff, following a Moscow visit by a US spy chief.
Russia is preparing to intensify strikes on Ukraine, including targeting Kyiv's city center, after concluding that peace negotiations have stalled. Moscow is considering escalating conventional ballistic missile attacks as diplomatic efforts fail to produce results.
CIA Director John Ratcliffe held talks in Moscow with Russian intelligence counterparts on Tuesday in a rare secretive visit aimed at easing regional tensions and warning against attacks on NATO allies and cooperation with Iran. Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda confirmed his country had been informed of the visit in advance.
CIA Director John Ratcliffe arrived in Moscow on Tuesday aboard a US military C-17 Globemaster transport plane from Riga, Latvia, for a series of meetings with Russian officials. The unusual visit comes amid stalled diplomatic efforts over Ukraine, with the Kremlin initially stating it had no information about the aircraft's mission.
Armenian authorities detained former President Robert Kocharyan, his son, and four others in raids on family businesses as part of a corruption investigation. The move targets the Moscow-friendly opposition leader amid Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's pivot toward the EU and away from Russia's sphere of influence.
Russian authorities arrested eight people for allegedly planning an attack on a defense enterprise in the Moscow region and separately detained one foreign national for scouting government buildings and strategic infrastructure. State agencies reported the arrests on Friday.
A Russian missile attack killed at least 10 people in a village in Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region on Tuesday, while Ukrainian forces staged one of their largest drone attacks on Russia since the invasion began, firing nearly 800 drones at Moscow just days after a similar assault.
Russia conducted deadly missile and drone strikes across Ukraine, killing at least 18 people in the Kyiv region and 10 in Kharkiv, while Ukraine responded with one of its largest drone attacks on Russia, firing nearly 800 drones at Moscow over recent days.
Russia summoned Japan's ambassador to Moscow to protest Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's 'anti-Russian' remarks following President Vladimir Putin's first-ever visit to the disputed Kuril Islands. Japan had issued a sharp protest over Putin's visit to the Russian-controlled islands, which Japan claims as its Northern Territories.
Ukraine conducted one of its largest aerial attacks of the war, launching between 600-822 drones overnight targeting Russian territory including Moscow and a major warehouse facility. Russian authorities reported shooting down the drones and confirmed at least six deaths, as the assault came amid escalating long-range attacks by Ukrainian forces on Russian military-industrial and energy infrastructure.
Bitcoin's network hashrate has fallen 17% from its record high as Moscow banned crypto mining through 2032 under government decree and publicly listed miners redirect resources toward artificial intelligence data centers.
Russia is deploying its Rassvet satellite communication system faster than planned, with the network already providing two daily communication windows over Ukraine of more than an hour each. Ukrainian intelligence reports Moscow aims to have nearly 300 satellites in orbit by 2027, creating a Starlink-like capability for military communications.
Russia imported nearly 30,000 metric tons of refined fuels from South Korea in late July and record-high volumes from Belarus, as Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian oil refineries have caused widespread fuel shortages and forced Moscow to seek emergency imports.
Russia's Federal Security Service raided nine unregistered cryptocurrency exchange offices in Moscow City, detaining more than 20 people accused of laundering money stolen from Russian scam victims and transferring proceeds to Ukraine-based operations.
Russian ballistic missiles struck Kyiv overnight on August 16, 2026, killing at least 17 people and sparking fires across multiple districts. The attacks came as Ukraine launched what Russian officials described as the largest-scale drone assault of 2026, with Moscow reporting at least seven killed and over 100 drones intercepted.
A North Korean ballistic missile unit has begun deploying to Russia's Voronezh Oblast with plans to field up to 120 ballistic missiles and six launchers for strikes against Ukraine, according to Ukrainian military intelligence. The deployment represents a significant expansion of military cooperation between Moscow and Pyongyang.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that Ukraine will seek to generate sufficient diplomatic, economic, and military pressure on Moscow to end the war before winter 2026 begins. The announcement comes amid continued Ukrainian strikes on Russian infrastructure, including oil refineries and warehouses.
Russia's government will prohibit cryptocurrency mining in Moscow, Moscow Oblast, and parts of Kursk Oblast starting August 15, 2026, with the ban extending through December 31, 2032. The restrictions cite energy concerns and wartime power shortages as justification.
Ukrainian drone attacks targeted industrial facilities in the Russian city of Ryazan, approximately 120 miles southeast of Moscow, igniting fires at a Wildberries warehouse and an oil refinery. Russia's largest online retailer confirmed it evacuated warehouses in the region following the strikes.
The United States and Ukraine are jointly developing peace proposals to present to Moscow, with officials expressing cautious optimism that changing war dynamics could lead to negotiations. Ukrainian officials view a partial ceasefire as the most realistic outcome, though Ukraine's new military chief has simultaneously pledged to escalate offensive operations.
Russia said it carried out a series of strikes on Ukrainian port infrastructure and vessels in Odesa and Chornomorsk during July 2026, claiming that the targets supported Ukrainian military operations. Reuters said it could not independently verify Russia's claims. Separately, India protested after four Indian sailors were killed in a suspected Russian cruise missile strike on the MV Golden Leo, while Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russian forces would continue targeting vessels they suspected of transporting weapons or other military goods for Ukraine.
North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui held high-level meetings in Moscow, including talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin and a third strategic dialogue with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. North Korean state media KCNA said the two sides reached consensus on all issues discussed and agreed to accelerate bilateral cooperation across multiple fields.
Ukraine conducted one of the war's largest drone attacks on Moscow and surrounding areas overnight July 19-20, 2026, deploying approximately 400 drones that wounded at least 10 people including a child, and struck an oil depot and logistics facilities. The attack came amid escalating cross-border strikes, including a Russian strike on a corn-carrying cargo ship near Odesa that killed 10 crew members.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin announced that 340 Ukrainian drones were dispatched toward the Russian capital over a 24-hour period on July 14, 2026, with most reportedly downed by anti-aircraft units before reaching the city. The attacks coincided with strikes on Russian oil facilities.
Trump administration envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner traveled to Kyiv and Moscow for trilateral peace negotiations, but Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy indicated the war appears set to continue into winter with no resolution in sight. The diplomatic push comes amid concerns from NATO defense officials about Europe's ability to sustain a prolonged conflict and as Russia prepares for parliamentary elections.
Ukraine launched a sustained campaign of drone attacks targeting Russian refineries, oil depots, and fuel tankers, striking over 20 vessels and multiple facilities in recent days. The offensive has triggered fuel shortages across Russia, prompting Moscow to ban diesel exports to stabilize domestic supplies.
Russia announced on Friday that its forces had seized the eastern Ukrainian city of Kostiantynivka, a strategically important location on the route to the last major cities in the Donbas region still under Ukrainian control. The claim, if verified, would represent a significant advance in Moscow's campaign to capture the entire Donetsk region.
Russian forces conducted an 11-hour drone and missile assault on Kyiv overnight, killing between 18 and 30 people and injuring dozens more in what officials described as one of the worst attacks on the capital since the war began. Moscow claimed the strike was retaliation for Ukrainian attacks on Russian oil facilities.
Ukraine has launched major drone attacks on Russian targets including a Moscow satellite communications center, killing civilians, while weeks of strikes on refineries have created a severe fuel shortage forcing Russia to import gasoline and implement rationing in Siberia. The escalation comes as Putin indicates willingness to host U.S. negotiators.
Ukraine launched extensive drone strikes targeting Russian energy infrastructure and military facilities deep inside Russia and Crimea, including a major natural gas plant and satellite communications centers. The attacks prompted Russia to relocate significant air defense assets to protect Moscow and other key sites.
A major oil refinery south of Moscow will be offline for at least six months following extensive damage from Ukrainian drone attacks this month, complicating Russian efforts to address fuel shortages. The attacks come as Putin signals readiness for peace talks with Ukraine.
Ukrainian drones struck multiple locations across Moscow including a major oil refinery in Kyiv's biggest air raid on the Russian capital since the war began, while separately MIT researchers published analysis of Russia's controversial Burevestnik nuclear-powered cruise missile.
Ukraine conducted its biggest drone assault on Moscow since Russia's full-scale invasion over four years ago, hitting a major oil refinery for the second time in a week and sending black oil specks raining down on parts of the city. The attack involved close to 200 drones, disrupted hundreds of flights, and sent huge plumes of black smoke over the Russian capital.
The European Commission announced plans to ban current and former Russian soldiers from entering EU territory as part of its next sanctions package, which also targets Russian banks, cryptocurrency firms, and oil revenues. The proposal has sparked debate about why the measure is limited to military personnel rather than all Russian citizens.
