Latest news, headlines and top stories you need to know RIGHT NOW about Russia, the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe.
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said on Tuesday that he will not hesitate to use Russian tactical nuclear weapons, which are in the process of being moved to Belarus if his country faces “an aggression.”
In statements on Saturday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed that Kyiv’s counteroffensive has started. “Counteroffensive and defensive actions are being taken in Ukraine,” Zelensky announced in Kyiv alongside Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Zelensky’s remarks came days after international press reports had indicated that Ukraine’s much-anticipated counteroffensive had finally begun.
According to statements from the Russian judiciary, Travis Michael Leake was arrested and detained on Saturday. A statement released on Telegram by Moscow’s courts of general jurisdiction said Leake was arrested after “the Khamovniki District Court of Moscow took a preventive measure against an American citizen.”