4 d. ago Ukrainians brace for another winter of power cuts as Russia shifts tactics

Millions of Ukrainians are preparing for another winter of blackouts as Russia renews its strikes on the country’s energy grid

Politics

4 d. ago The Guardian view on Ukraine peace talks: Europe must ensure Zelenskyy can resist Trump’s bullying | Editorial

The US president’s attempts to broker a deal fail to distinguish between the aggressor and the victim. No just agreement is possible on that basisIt wasn’t quite the calamity of February, when Volodymyr Zelenskyy was publicly humiliated in the Oval Office by Donald Trump and his vice-president, JD Vance. But the Ukrainian president’s latest visit to the White House on Friday was, by all accounts, a disquieting experience. Mr Trump’s public musings before the meeting suggested that his stance had hardened towards Vladimir Putin, to the strategically significant extent of being willing to sell long-range Tomahawk missiles to Kyiv. But by the time Mr Zelenskyy arrived in Washington, the US president had changed his mind, instead lecturing his guest on the need to make territorial concessions to Russia.So far, so familiar. Since being re-elected, Mr Trump has repeatedly resiled from following up tough talk on Russia with meaningful action. Faux deadlines for Mr Putin to make substa...

Politics

1 week ago Ukraine war briefing: Crimea oil refinery burns as Russia feels effects on fuel supply

Glide bombs knock out power supply and hit hospital in Kharkiv; Zelenskyy lining up Trump meeting with Tomahawks hot topic. What we know on day 1,329An oil terminal at Feodosia in the Russian-occupied Crimean peninsula was burning on Monday after an attack by Ukrainian drones. A Ukrainian security official told Reuters on condition of anonymity that the drones, launched by Ukraine’s SBU intelligence service and military special forces, hit at least five reservoirs. The source said drones also hit at least two Russian electrical substations on the peninsula, which Russia took from Ukraine in 2014.Large heat signatures around the Feodosia terminal were visible on Nasa’s satellite fire monitoring service, Firms, and Crimea’s Moscow-installed governor confirmed the fire. The Feodosia terminal also came under attack last week. Ukraine has launched more than 30 strikes on Russian energy sites since the beginning of August, aiming to hamper funding of the Kremlin’s war machine and also tri...

Events

3 w. ago Voices: Britain’s closest neighbour, the European Union, is under attack

Moldova fended off bot farms and social media trolls fed in by Russia to influence its recent election – but, writes former minister of defence Nick Harvey, other countries may not be as resilient

Events

3 w. ago The Guardian view on climate policy: Britain needs clean power, not culture wars | Editorial

Kemi Badenoch’s plan to scrap the Climate Change Act is reckless. Ed Miliband offers a bolder, fairer vision. The future must be built on renewablesLet’s scrap Britain’s successful climate law so we can burn more gas, lose investment and have higher bills. Crazy as it might seem, that is the message of Kemi Badenoch’s new energy strategy. The Conservative leader proposes to repeal the 2008 Climate Change Act in favour of a plan to “maximise oil and gas extraction”, and remove all legally binding carbon targets. It’s pitched as pragmatism. But it’s a lurch into ideological self-harm.Britain’s energy problem isn’t its climate legislation, which is admired globally, backed by industry and supported by the public. It’s that this country remains too dependent on volatile fossil fuels. Emissions targets are not the reason for high bills. It is gas prices, which skyrocketed after Russia invaded Ukraine. They set UK electricity prices. In Europe, they don’t – that’s why bills are lower...

Events

3 w. ago From Moldova to the UK: How Russia is using interference to try to disrupt elections

As claims of Russian interference in Moldova’s parliamentary elections continue, Bryony Gooch asks what exactly Russian interference is – and whether it even works

Politics

3 w. ago Moldovans vote in pivotal election that could steer it closer to EU or Russia

Day marked by attempts of disruption including cyberattacks on election systems and fake bomb threatsMoldovans voted in a pivotal parliamentary election on Sunday that will decide whether the country of 2.4 million stays on its path towards EU membership or drifts back into Moscow’s orbit, amid widespread reports of Russian meddling.The president, Maia Sandu, and her pro-western Action and Solidarity party (PAS) faced a stiff challenge in the election from an alliance of Soviet-nostalgic, Moscow-friendly parties led in part by the former president, Igor Dodon, whom Sandu defeated in 2020. Continue reading...

Politics

3 w. ago Moldovans begin voting in key election between EU and Russia

President Maia Sandu casts the election as an existential test for the country of 2.4 million

Politics

4 w. ago Moldovans face stark choice between EU and Russia in critical election

The parliamentary election has been fraught with claims of Russian interference

Politics

4 w. ago ‘Dangerous abuse of power’: lawmakers sound alarm over Comey indictment

Democrats and legal experts say indictment is latest sign Trump is turning justice system into weapon to silence criticsFor Donald Trump, the indictment of former FBI director and longtime foe James Comey was,“justice in America”. Legal observers and lawmakers see something far more troubling.A former Republican appointed to lead the bureau by Barack Obama and kept on by Trump until he fired him in 2017, Comey was indicted Thursday on charges related to allegedly lying to Congress five years ago during a hearing on the FBI’s investigation into Russia’s meddling in the 2016 election. Continue reading...

Events