“Then Hungary would suffer Armageddon,” he added. The prime minister said he had “no doubt” that the document, reported about in the Financial Times, was authentic. “Knowing Brussels, they’re capable of it,” he said. Orbán has engaged in tense negotiations to extract concessions from the rest of the bloc in exchange for his support for … Read more
He claimed the Russian army detected two missile launches from Ukraine-controlled areas that hit the plane. “Most likely, it was American Patriot systems or European, probably French,” Putin said. POLITICO could not independently verify his claims. Putin refuted theories of “friendly fire” for the downing of the aircraft. “There are friend-or-foe systems, and no matter … Read more
Thousands of protesters rallied in south-central Russia on Wednesday after a court sentenced Fayil Alsynov, an indigenous rights activist for the local Bashkir ethnic group, to four years in a penal colony on charges of inciting ethnic hatred. The demonstration took place outside the courthouse in Baymak, a town of 17,000 inhabitants nearly 2,000 kilometers … Read more
European leaders have approved the opening of accession negotiations for Ukraine, European Council President Charles Michel announced Thursday. The announcement comes at a critical time for Ukraine as its counteroffensive against Russia’s invasion stalled in recent weeks and $60 billion in aid from the U.S. is stuck in Congress. While accession talks are likely to … Read more
A growing number of asylum seekers arriving on the EU’s eastern frontier is forcing Baltic countries to consider border closures with Russia, due to fears the Kremlin is weaponizing desperate people to create a migration crisis on the Continent. Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia are increasingly concerned after Finland last week shut all of its crossings … Read more
Warsaw has stopped supplying weapons to Kyiv and is focusing on arming itself instead, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said Wednesday, amid a dispute over Ukraine’s agricultural exports. “We are no longer transferring weapons to Ukraine, because we are now arming Poland with more modern weapons,” Morawiecki said in an appearance on Polish television channel … Read more