Russia-Ukraine War

Russia claims to have captured Mariupol in what would be its biggest victory yet in its war with Ukraine, following a nearly three-month siege that reduced much of the strategic port city to a smoking ruin, with over 20,000 civilians feared dead. There is no immediate confirmation from Ukraine.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken accused Russia on Thursday of weaponizing food and holding grain for millions of people around the world hostage .

The Senate has whisked a $40 billion package of military, economic and food aid for Ukraine and U.S. allies to final congressional approval. Thursday’s 86-11 vote puts a bipartisan stamp on America’s biggest commitment yet to turning Russia’s invasion into a painful quagmire for Moscow. The legislation was backed by every voting Democrat and most Republicans. At a time of...

Russia says hundreds more fighters have emerged from the Mariupol stronghold where they made their last stand and surrendered. The Red Cross is working to register the fighters as prisoners of war, as the end of a key battle in the conflict draws closer. Meanwhile, in the first war crimes trial held by Ukraine, a captured Russian soldier testified Thursday...

Russia says that nearly 1,000 Ukrainian troops who doggedly defended a giant steelworks in Mariupol have surrendered. The plant became a symbol of their country’s resistance. The announcement Wednesday comes as the battle for the strategic port city appeared all but over. Ukraine ordered the fighters to save their lives and said their mission to tie up Russian forces is...

A 21-year-old Russian soldier facing the first war crimes trial since Moscow invaded Ukraine has pleaded guilty to killing an unarmed civilian. Sgt. Vadim Shishimarin could get life in prison for shooting a a 62-year-old Ukrainian man in the head through an open car window on Feb. 28. Shishimarin is being prosecuted under a section of the Ukrainian criminal code...

After a canceled 2020 edition and a scaled back gathering last year, the Cannes Film Festival kicked off Tuesday which what organizers hope will be a fully resuscitated French Riviera spectacular. Formally attired stars including Eva Longoria, Julianne Moore and Forest Whitaker were among those streaming down the Cannes’ famous red carpet Tuesday for the opening of the 75th Cannes...

The fall of Mariupol appears at hand as Ukraine is moving to abandon a sprawling steel plant where its soldiers had held out under relentless bombardment for months, which would make it the biggest city to fall into Russian hands. Much of it, though, has been reduced to rubble. Ukraine estimates some 20,000 civilians have been killed in the Russian...

Sweden and Finland have pushed ahead with their bids to join NATO even as Turkey insists it won’t let the previously nonaligned Nordic countries into the alliance because of their alleged support for Kurdish militants. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s strongly worded objections caught the two applicants and other NATO members off guard, complicating what was envisioned to be a...

The Ukrainian government says Russia has shelled more than 1,000 schools, destroying 95, while experts say such wide-scale wreckage can be used as evidence of Russian intent.

U.S. authorities stopped migrants more than 234,000 times in April, one of the highest marks in decades as the Biden administration prepares to lift pandemic-era restrictions on claiming asylum.

McDonald’s says it’s started the process of selling its Russian business, which includes 850 restaurants that employ 62,000 people. The fast food giant pointed to the humanitarian crisis caused by the war, saying holding on to its business in Russia “is no longer tenable, nor is it consistent with McDonald’s values.” The Chicago-based company had temporarily closed its stores in...

Ukrainian officials say the regiment that doggedly defended a steel mill as Ukraine’s last stronghold in the port city of Mariupol has completed its mission. The declaration came Monday after more than 260 fighters, including some badly wounded, were evacuated and taken to areas under Russia’s control. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the evacuation to separatist-controlled territory was done to...

Ukrainian band Kalush Orchestra has released a new music video, hours after its hit “Stefania” led it to victory in the Eurovision Song Contest. The video features scenes of war-ravaged Ukraine and women in combat gear in a sign that the annual song contest has taken on ever more political tones. Ukraine pulled ahead of Britain in the grand final...

Joining the Kentucky Republican in the unannounced trip to Ukraine’s capital were Sens. Susan Collins of Maine, John Barrasso of Wyoming and John Cornyn of Texas.

Ukrainian band Kalush Orchestra has won the Eurovision Song Contest in a clear show of popular support for the war-ravaged nation that went beyond the music.

Ukraine says Russian forces are withdrawing from around Ukraine’s second-largest city after bombarding it for weeks. Officials say Moscow’s troops are pulling back from Kharkiv in the northeast while launching mortar, artillery and airstrikes in the eastern province of Donetsk. According to Ukraine’s defense minister, the country is “entering a new, long-term phase of the war” after more than 11...

After rebuffing U.S. requests for months, Russian Minister of Defense Sergei Shoigu spoke with U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Friday.

Ukrainian and British officials say Russia suffered heavy losses when Ukrainian forces destroyed the pontoon bridge enemy troops were using to try to cross a river. That’s another sign of Moscow’s struggle to win decisive victories and salvage a war gone awry. Russia’s campaign in Ukraine’s east is making faltering progress. Ukraine’s airborne forces command has released images of what...

Negotiations are happening as Kyiv prepares for its first war crimes trial of a captured Russian soldier.