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Moscow warns US on allowing Ukraine to hit nation with longer-range weapons

The Kremlin warned on Monday that President Joe Biden's decision to let Ukraine strike targets inside Russia with US-supplied longer-range missiles adds "fuel to the fire" of the war and would escalate international tensions even higher. Biden's shift in policy added an uncertain, new factor to the conflict on the eve of the 1,000-day milestone since Russia began its full-scale invasion in 2022. It also came as a Russian ballistic missile with cluster munitions struck a residential area of Sumy in northern Ukraine, killing 11 people and injuring 84 others. Another missile barrage sparked apartment fires in the southern port of Odesa, killing at least 10 people and injuring 43, Ukraine's Interior Ministry said. Washington is easing limits on what Ukraine can strike with its American-made Army Tactical Missile System, or ATACMs, US officials told AP on Sunday, after months of ruling out such a move over fears of escalating the conflict and bringing about a direct confrontation between

'Resolution of Ukraine's war soon': Trump's secret phone call with Putin

In his first conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump urged the leader to end the war with Ukraine and bring peace to Europe

Russia amends comprehensive strategic partnership treaty with North Korea

Tass on Saturday reported Putin's signing of the law on ratification of the comprehensive strategic partnership treaty between Moscow and Pyongyang

Putin congratulates Trump on election win; says Moscow ready for talks

Vladimir Putin had also praised Trump for displaying courage during the assassination attempt at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 14

Federal agencies claim Russia, Iran influencing voters ahead election day

The nation's federal law enforcement and election security agencies are debunking two new examples of Russian election disinformation on the eve of Election Day, highlighting attempts by foreign actors to sow doubt in the U.S. voting process and warning that the efforts run the risk of inciting violence against election officials. In a joint statement late Monday, federal officials pointed to a recent article posted by Russian actors falsely claiming that U.S. officials across presidential swing states were orchestrating a plan to commit fraud, as well as a video that falsely depicted an interview with an individual claiming election fraud in Arizona. U.S. intelligence reveals that Russia-linked influence actors are manufacturing videos and creating fake articles to undermine the legitimacy of the election, instill fear in voters regarding the election process, and suggest Americans are using violence against each other due to political preferences, read the statement issued by the .

Russia suspected of plotting to send incendiary devices to US on planes

Governments across Europe have been raising alarm over a growing threat of Russia-sponsored acts of sabotage and destabilization since the Kremlin launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine

Zelenskyy urges export controls, says Russian drones use western components

Zelenskyy further emphasised the importance of enhanced export controls on specialised components and resources, which is crucial to prevent Russia from evading the sanctions imposed

Russian hackers are targeting US govt officials, defence workers: Microsoft

Microsoft has said the attacks are perpetrated by sophisticated Russian nation-state group Midnight Blizzard, which US and UK governments have connected to SVR, Russian foreign intelligence service

This pharma company from Mumbai may be helping Putin get Nvidia AI chips

But this inconspicuous pharmaceutical company is part of a lucrative trade in leading-edge technology to Russia that has the US and its European allies worried at India's burgeoning role

US finalises $20 billion loan to Ukraine, backed by frozen Russian assets

Yellen was keen to avoid a situation where US - or Ukrainian - taxpayers would be on the hook to pay back the loans if the frozen assets were turned back over to Russia as part of a truce agreement

Russia behind viral disinformation targeting Tim Walz: US official

Groups in Russia created and helped spread viral disinformation targeting Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz, a senior US intelligence official said on Tuesday. The content, which includes baseless accusations about the Minnesota governor's time as a teacher, contains several indications that it was manipulated, said the official with the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. Analysts identified clues that linked the content to Russian disinformation operations, said the official, who briefed reporters on the condition of anonymity under rules set by the office of the director. Digital researchers had already linked the video to Russia, but Tuesday's announcement is the first time federal authorities have confirmed the connection. The disinformation targeting Walz is consistent with Russian disinformation seeking to undermine the Democratic campaign of Vice President Kamala Harris and Walz, her running mate. Russia also has spread disinformation aimed at ..

Joe Biden praises Slovenia PM for aiding major US-Russia prisoner swap

President Joe Biden heaped praise on Slovenian Prime Minister Robert Golob on Tuesday for his role in the recent seven-nation prisoner swap that freed Americans Evan Gershkovich, Alsu Kurmasheva and Paul Whelan from Russian prison. The deal, completed in August, was the largest US-Russian prisoner swap in post-Soviet history, involving 24 people, many months of negotiations and concessions from other European countries including Slovenia that released Russians in their custody as part of the exchange. "I want to thank you for your diplomacy and for your support and your leadership," Biden said at the start of his Oval Office meeting with the Central European leader. "You made it possible. That's not hyperbole. You made it possible. Slovenia agreed to the release of Artem Viktorovich Dultsev and Anna Valerevna Dultseva, two Russian spies who were living for years in the Slovenian capital Ljubljana while posing as Argentines operating a startup IT company and an online art ...

US statements on readiness for nuclear talks 'deception': Sergei Lavrov

The call to talk about strategic stability, about control over nuclear weapons without preconditions is a deception, Lavrov said

Russia holds 'substantive' talks with China to bolster defence ties

China and Russia declared a 'no limits' partnership in February 2022 when President Vladimir Putin visited Beijing less than three weeks before his forces launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine

Watch: Russian Su-35 'headbutts' US F-16 near Alaska. What does this mean?

The 'headbutt' manoeuvre, where the offending jet cuts in front of and across another, is deemed unprofessional at very close ranges, but has still been witnessed for decades

Russia's adaptability to US sanctions stymied their impact: Economists

Waves of sanctions imposed by the Biden administration after Russia's invasion of Ukraine haven't inflicted the devastating blow to Moscow's economy that some had expected. In a new report, two researchers are offering reasons why. Oleg Itskhoki of Harvard University and Elina Ribakova of the Peterson Institute for International Economics argue that the sanctions should have been imposed more forcefully immediately after the invasion rather than in a piecemeal manner. In retrospect, it is evident that there was no reason not to have imposed all possible decisive measures against Russia from the outset once Russia launched the full scale invasion in February 2022, the authors state in the paper. Still, the critical takeaway is that sanctions are not a silver bullet, Ribakova said on a call with reporters this week, to preview the study. The researchers say Russia was able to brace for the financial penalties because of the lessons learned from sanctions imposed in 2014 after it inva

US troops finish deployment to Alaska as Russian military activity rises

About 130 US soldiers are returning to their bases after being deployed last week to a remote western Alaska island with mobile rocket launchers amid a spike in Russian military activity off the western reaches of the US, a military official said Thursday. The deployment to Shemya Island involved soldiers from Alaska, Washington and Hawaii with the 11th Airborne Division and the 1st and 3rd Multi Domain Task Forces, Sgt 1st Class Michael Sword, a spokesperson for the 11th Airborne, said in an email to The Associated Press. The deployment coincided with eight Russian military planes and four navy vessels, including two submarines, travelling close to Alaska as Russia and China conducted joint military drills. None of the planes breached US airspace. A Pentagon spokesperson said earlier this week there was no cause for alarm. Maj Gen Joseph Hilbert, commanding general of the 11th Airborne Division, has told media the deployment to the island 1,200 miles (1,931 kilometers) southwest o

US sanctions Russian state media over raising funds for troops in Ukraine

The US State Department announced new sanctions on Russian state media Friday, accusing a Kremlin news outlet of working hand-in-hand with the Russian military and running fundraising campaigns to pay for sniper rifles, body armour and other equipment for soldiers fighting in Ukraine. While the outlet, RT, has previously been sanctioned for its work to spread Kremlin propaganda and disinformation, the allegations announced Friday suggest its role goes far beyond influence operations. Instead, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said, RT is a key part of Russia's war machine and its efforts to undermine its democratic allies. RT has also created websites posing as legitimate news sites to spread disinformation and propaganda in Europe, Africa and elsewhere, officials said. They say the outlet has also expanded its use of cyber operations with a new unit with ties to Russian intelligence.

Kremlin asks Trump, Harris to leave Putin out of their presidential fight

The Russian president's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, was speaking a week after Putin said in a teasing remark that he favoured Harris over Trump

US warns Russia's election meddling more sophisticated, widespread

Moscow's tactics include targeting US swing states using artificial intelligence and influence-for-hire firms