Worldcrunch
As the war in Ukraine has continued for years now, reports have surfaced of international soldiers, including those from China and North Korea, fighting for the Russian side. Less known but perhaps no less significant is the example of Nepalese soldiers, some of whom don’t even know a war is ongoing when they make the decision to leave for Russia in search of a better life.
The Russian president has no problem talking about negotiations and peace treaties. But he’s a master decoy artist. Putin has built his power on conflict, and now he needs war to hold on to it.
The Russian president has no problem talking about negotiations and peace treaties. But he’s a master decoy artist. Putin has built his power on conflict, and now he needs war to hold on to it.
Russia’s Roskomnadzor agency blocked the Discord messaging application earlier this month, and thus disrupted one of the Russian military’s well-established communication systems. It’s a reminder of the Kremlin’s need for Western technology to wage its war against Ukraine.
The Ukrainian attack on the strategically important Kursk region has taken Russia’s military and residents by surprise. But experts doubt whether the operation makes sense for Ukraine’s depleted military forces.
So-called “convalescent regiments” have been formed within the Russian army in an apparently desperate, and inhumane, attempt to avoid a deepening shortage of troops.
Many Russians have tried to avoid being conscripted to join the war in Ukraine, but many others believed deeply in the constant campaign of state propaganda. Here are some of the stories of the lucky ones who made it back — and those who didn’t.
Fighting has been fierce for the city of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine. What is the price of a victory that is, above all, symbolic?
In the Ukrainian city of Izium, Russian troops left behind more than destruction, mass graves and testimony of torture. After their hasty withdrawal in early September, Ukrainians found traces of the regime’s propaganda indoctrinating school children.
Thousands of Russian mothers exchange messages every day online in desperate bids to find their missing sons serving in the Russian army. This is the story of one such mother who has been looking for her son for seven months.
Ever since Russia announced a “partial mobilization” of hundreds of thousands of new recruits, we’ve seen plenty of coverage of those evading the draft. But the real story is how many untrained and under-equipped citizens will blindly follow the Kremlin’s orders.
The Kremlin has been less than transparent about its battlefield casualties in Ukraine, as