Ukraine’s second biggest city, Kharkiv, which is just 20 miles from the Russian border, is under attack and Russia’s soldiers are advancing. Ukrainians are having to make some very hard choices about what they can defend, and they are fighting an enemy that has adapted itself to exploit their weaknesses. …

Although the protests have not been called off and an overnight curfew remains in place in New Caledonia, the French government decided not to extend the state of emergency on Tuesday. France has deployed some 3,500 security forces personnel to maintain calm and the international airport in the capital Nouméa …

Two years of war takes its toll on Ukraine’s younger generations, both physically and emotionally. Source link

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has urged President Biden to attend a peace summit due to be held in Switzerland in mid June. Mr Zelensky said his key ally’s possible absence “would only be applauded by Putin, personally applauded by Putin, and it would be a standing ovation”. Reports suggest President …

Ahead of Spain’s cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said recognising Palestine was “not only a matter of historic justice”, it was also “an essential requirement if we are all to achieve peace”. He insisted that Spain was not acting against Israel and was standing against Hamas which opposed a …

Russia, he said, was dropping some 3,200 aerial bombs on Ukraine each month. “How do you fight that?” Mr Zelensky asked reporters in Madrid where he met Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez. The Ukrainian president rejected the idea of inviting Russia to a planned peace summit in Switzerland next month. The …

Earlier this month, the Prado said the painting was “without a doubt, a Caravaggio masterpiece”, calling it “one of the greatest discoveries in the history of art”. Caravaggio, who died in 1610 at the age of 38, was renowned for his dramatic use of light and shadow to bring deep …

“It’s a crazy story,” he tells me at his office in nearby Montpellier. “It’s incredible because you have a man in politics, mayor and former MP who is very intelligent. And you discover that a man like that can be manipulated by a woman.” “This is a woman who came …

A senior Ukrainian defence official told the BBC that the latest US military aid package will only be enough for it to continue defensive operations until the end of this year. In other words, not enough to launch a more costly and difficult offensive to try to take back territory. …

Geert Wilders’ Freedom Party did back a Dutch “Nexit” referendum to leave the EU but now says: “I see there’s no longer support for a Nexit in the Netherlands”. The same goes for The Finns Party, which does not actively seek a Finnish exit, or “Fixit” from the EU any …

At least two people have been killed and 35 others wounded after Russian forces hit a home improvement store in the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, local officials say. The BBC’s Jeremy Bowen reports from the scene of the attack in Kharkiv on how Russia is seizing the opportunity to hit …

At least two people have been killed after Russian forces hit a supermarket in the northern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, according to local authorities. Videos distributed on social media appeared to show a large fire raging at the Epicentr K home improvement store on the northern outskirts of the city. …

A French policeman has killed a protester in France’s Pacific territory of New Caledonia. Seven people have now died in a week of violence sparked by controversial voting reforms. Prosecutor Yves Dupas, in New Caledonia’s capital Nouméa, said the officer came under attack from demonstrators and fired his weapon on …

In Thursday’s statement, Mr Blinken said the Georgian Dream party “has developed and passed a ‘foreign influence’ law that would stifle the exercise of freedoms of association and expression, stigmatise organisations that serve the citizens of Georgia, and impede independent media organizations working to provide Georgians with access to high …

At least six people have been killed and more than a dozen injured in a Russian missile attack on Kharkiv, north-eastern Ukraine, according to the regional head. A further two people remain missing after the attack, which saw Russian forces strike Ukraine’s second-largest city at least 15 times, Oleg Sinegubov …

Finland’s defence and foreign committees held emergency meetings on Wednesday and Prime Minister Petteri Orpo said the political leadership was “monitoring the situation closely”. “Right now I don’t see any reason for greater concern,” he said. The Russian proposals were no longer visible on Wednesday with only the message “draft …

A top far-right German politician says he will pull back from campaigning for the upcoming EU elections – although he will remain his party’s lead candidate. The latest controversy comes after the Alternative for Germany (AfD)’s Maximilian Krah told an Italian newspaper that SS members weren’t automatically “criminals”. “It depends. …

Gen Popov was sacked in July 2023 after complaining publicly about Russian military problems in Ukraine. In a widely-shared voice message, he said: “It was necessary either to keep quiet and be a coward or to say it the way it is.” “I had no right to lie in the …

Ukraine has battled endemic corruption since the first days of its independence in 1991, and government officials and independent campaigners alike say that fight is key to winning the existential war it is fighting with Russia. They have had some success. Anti-corruption organisation Transparency International ranks Ukraine at its highest …

Eagles changed their migration routes across Ukraine to avoid fighting and because their habitats were likely damaged or destroyed by war, say scientists. The researchers believe the Greater Spotted Eagles skirted around dangers including artillery fire, jets and tanks as well as buildups of troops. They fly through Ukraine every …