International Glance
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said Thursday’s meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group in Brussels was defined by a “window of opportunity” for Ukraine, pointing to a new wave of concrete pledges of military assistance from allied countries.
According to Ukrinform, several allies – including Germany, the Netherlands, Latvia, Norway, Lithuania, Denmark, Luxembourg, Croatia, Sweden and Iceland – have now committed hundreds of millions of dollars into the Prioritized Ukraine Requirements List (PURL) program, which finances purchases of US-made military equipment for Ukraine.
“Window of opportunity – I think this is the main topic today,” Rutte said, adding that additional “assistance focused on Ukraine’s priorities will help increase pressure on Russia and force them to sit down at the negotiating table and eventually join serious negotiations to stop this terrible war.”
Ukrainian drones have hit several locations across Moscow in Kyiv’s biggest air raid on the city since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, setting a major oil refinery on fire and forcing evacuations at the country’s largest airport.
Kyiv came under repeated Russian attacks in the early hours of Thursday, as ballistic missile threats were followed by a new wave of strike drones, Ukrainian officials said.
Abdullah Ibrahim, the South African jazz pianist deemed his country's equivalent to Mozart by Nelson Mandela, died Monday in his adopted home of Germany after a short illness. He was 91 years old.
Ukraine has come under a massive Russian missile and drone attack with waves of explosions echoing through the capital, Kyiv, in the early hours of Monday morning as air raids killed at least five people across the country.
President Donald Trump and Iranian officials announced that a deal to end the Iran war has been reached, with an official signing ceremony planned for later in the week.
