The purpose is to derail the peace talks by provoking Russia into either preemptively escalating against Ukraine as a deterrent or authorizing an overmatched retaliatory escalation right after that could in any case be spun by the Europeans to manipulate Trump against Putin. Putin warned on the fourth anniversary of …

Neutralising Tehran’s ability to close the strait is the decisive long-term move As a US “armada” assembles in the Arabian Gulf and Donald Trump signals that a deadline delivered to Iran is measured in days, the question now is what conflict would seek to achieve. The answer may lie less …

Toplines The fifth year of Russia’s invasion is not beginning well for Moscow. Recent Ukrainian successes on the battlefield disprove Russian claims that things can only get worse for Ukraine the longer Kyiv delays surrendering to Russian demands. Battlefield realities as of late February 2026 show that continued significant Russian …