War

The Azov Battalion became widely known for resisting Russian forces in Mariupol in Ukraine. Formed by volunteers to protect the Donbas from Russian invaders, it has evolved into an elite unit, with specialists drawn from Ukraine’s special forces. Here’s a look into who its members are and what they do. …

by Reid Standish and Aleksei Aleksandrov / Current Time As the frontline Donbas city of Bakhmut has turned into the site of some of the fiercest fighting under way in Ukraine, tensions between the notorious Russian mercenary company, the Vagner Group, and the Russian military have spilled out into the open. …

by Mike Eckel and Borys Sachalko / RFE-RL KREMINNA, Ukraine — For the paratroopers of a Ukrainian airborne brigade, there’s only one way to describe the waves of Russian infantry who are relentlessly pressing the Ukrainian lines in and around this Donbas city: Meat. “First, they throw in the mobilized …

by Mike Eckel, RFE/RL A man wearing military fatigues, a balaclava, and a special forces insignia showed up at Correctional Colony No. 29 in the Russian coal-mining region of Kemerovo on October 3. During that evening’s inspection, with several hundred inmates lined up in one of the prison’s outdoor yards, …

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said last week that the Patriot missile system is “the strongest element” of the new $1.8 billion U.S. military aid package headed to Kyiv. What can the missile do, and how can it help Ukraine fend off continued attacks from Russia? The Patriot missile system was …

Georgian Vadim Chkhetiani lies in a hospital bed in Ukraine, recovering from a serious wound suffered there in September while fighting with his countrymen, other foreigners, and Ukrainians against invading Russian forces. “There is this village called Yampil…. We were attacked by the occupiers. A shell exploded and shrapnel hit …

by Aleksander Palikot / RFE-RL KHERSON, Ukraine — For Vladyslav Nedostup, the eight-month occupation of his native city has receded swiftly into the past since the last Russian soldier escaped Kherson on a speedboat in early November, and already seems distant and unreal. But that chunk of time has left him …

Ukrainian artillery crews make regular use of the Western-supplied M777 howitzer, and say it has had a major impact against Russian forces. “One time we hit 300 men,” one soldier said. Crews operating one in a muddy field in the Donetsk region say the key to its success is its …

Russia is firing old cruise missiles stripped of their nuclear warheads at Ukrainian targets because Vladimir Putin’s stocks are so depleted, the British Ministry of Defence (MOD) has suggested. An intelligence update from the MOD on Saturday said the desperate improvisation by the Russian President’s struggling forces are “unlikely to achieve reliable …

A Telegram channel with close ties to the private Russian mercenary group Wagner has published a video of a Russian fighter who allegedly defected to Ukraine being killed with a sledgehammer. The video, which is titled The Hammer Of Revenge and contains comments declaring “The traitor was punished,” was published …