BLOGONITY

MOSCOW — Moscow on Saturday said it seized two more villages in eastern Ukraine as Kyiv officials said Russian strikes killed one person and wounded 19. The Russian Defense Ministry said its forces captured Sudne and Burlatske in the south of the eastern Donetsk region. They lie near the town of Velyka Novossilka, which was seized by the Russian army at the end of January. The Ukrainian air force said Russia launched 154 drones overnight, of which 103 were downed and 51 disappeared from the radar without causing damage or casualties. Ukrainian regional authorities reported one death and several injuries. In the southern Odesa region, one person died and three were injured, according to Ukrainian prosecutors. Twelve people were wounded in the northeastern Kharkiv region and two others in the southern Kherson region, local authorities said. Two people were wounded in the rail and mining hub of Pokrovsk, where Russian forces are gaining ground, threatening this key logistical hub for Ukrainian troops. …

Following the U.S.-Russia talks in Saudi Arabia and Turkey, the Kremlin sent new instructions to state-run media to cover developments between Moscow and Washington in a positive tone, but instead of praising U.S. President Donald Trump personally follow the line that “the United States were wise to respond to Russia’s outstretched hand.” Click here for the full story in Russian. …

WASHINGTON — On the third anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine earlier this week, Chinese President Xi Jinping reaffirmed Beijing’s “no limits” partnership with Moscow in a call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to Chinese state media. “China-Russia relations have strong internal driving force and unique strategic value,” Xi said, according to the official readout from state media. He also called Russia a “true friend” and a “good neighbor.” The sentiment is not new. Moscow and Beijing have long touted the strength and long-term nature of their relationship. But according to a new report from Filter Labs, a U.S.-based political research and analysis company, Russia and China’s relationship may be weaker than they want the rest of the world to believe. “Their partnership is vulnerable,” Filter Labs founder Jonathan Teubner told VOA. “This ‘no limits’ partnership is much more complicated.” ‘Infused with doubt’ While the governments and state-run media from both countries work to project the image of a strong partnership, their relationship may be underpinned by more tension, mistrust and competing interests than previously thought, according to an extensive analysis of news media and social media posts by Filter Labs. “The axis is infused with doubt, ripe for disruption,” the report said. Teubner added, “The monolith theory of the China-Russia relationship isn’t necessarily the way it has to be.” But not all experts agree that the Russia-China relationship is fragile. “The China-Russia relationship continues to deepen and widen, and occasional disagreements are dwarfed by the scale and momentum of their strategic cooperation,” Robert Blackwill and Richard Fontaine wrote in a 2024 Council on Foreign Relations report. From the Chinese perspective, according to the Filter Labs report, there are doubts over the true resilience of Russia’s economy, whether Russia’s military is as strong as it says it is, and what Russia’s true intentions are in the long term. Meanwhile, says Filter Labs, Russian doubts pertain to quality concerns about Chinese goods, how militarily committed China actually is to Russia, and whether Chinese investment in Russia is really that substantial. Chinese state media is generally positive about the state of the Russian economy and often criticizes Western sanctions. However, Chinese netizens are increasingly worried about the impact that secondary sanctions could have on China. The United States has threatened to use secondary sanctions against Chinese businesses viewed as engaging with Russia, pushing some Chinese netizens to weigh the value of … “Russia and China’s relationship may not be as strong as it seems, report says” →

European leaders across much of the continent vowed to stand by Ukraine after a White House meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy turned into a heated exchange Friday, with Trump calling Zelenskyy “disrespectful.” European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said it has become clear that “the free world needs a new leader.” “Ukraine is Europe! We stand by Ukraine,” Kallas wrote on the social media platform X. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on X, “Ukraine can rely on Germany — and on Europe,” while Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez wrote on social media, “Ukraine, Spain stands with you.” “Dear @ZelenskyyUa, dear Ukrainian friends, you are not alone,” wrote Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk on X. French President Emmanuel Macron told reporters in Portugal, “Russia is the aggressor, and Ukraine is the aggressed people.” Other European leaders, including from Finland, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic and Norway, also took to social media to voice support for Ukraine. Not all European leaders backed Ukraine. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who has long been critical of EU military aid to Kyiv, posted on X, “President @realDonaldTrump stood bravely for peace. Even if it was difficult for many to digest. Thank you, Mr. President!” The meeting between Trump and Zelenskyy came as the two countries were seeking a deal that would allow the U.S. access to Ukrainian rare mineral rights. The discussion took a combative tone about 40 minutes into the meeting when Zelenskyy raised Russia’s 2014 invasion of Crimea. U.S. Vice President JD Vance immediately criticized Zelenskyy, accusing him of engaging in a “propaganda tour.” Both Vance and Trump accused the Ukrainian leader of not being thankful for the assistance his country has received from Washington. After the meeting abruptly ended, the White House confirmed that the mineral deal was not signed. US response In the U.S., many Republicans in Congress expressed support for Trump’s actions. Senator Lindsey Graham, who has previously supported military aid to Ukraine, said, “What I saw in the Oval Office was disrespectful and I don’t know if we can ever do business with Zelenskyy again.” House Republican leader Steve Scalise, who has also previously supported military aid to Ukraine, wrote on X, “President Trump is fighting for PEACE around the world and is putting America First as our best negotiator — he’s the only one to get Russia to the table to … “European leaders stand by Ukraine after heated exchange between Trump, Zelenskyy” →

Pope Francis had a setback Friday during his stay at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, where he has been for the last two weeks. The Vatican said an “isolated breathing incident” caused the 88-year-old pontiff to inhale his own vomit, which required noninvasive mechanical ventilation. Francis was conscious during the episode and was able to cooperate and participate in the maneuvers needed for his recovery. The Vatican said the pope remained “alert and well-oriented.” The news of Friday’s complication followed three days of reports of improvement in Francis’ medical condition. The Vatican also announced Friday that Francis would not lead the Ash Wednesday service next week that marks the beginning of the Lenten season leading to Easter Sunday.  A senior Vatican official will stand in for the pope. Doctors said Thursday that Francis’ “prognosis remains guarded,” suggesting that they did not think he was out of danger. Francis spent Thursday morning in respiratory therapy. Later, he prayed in the chapel of his private suite at Gemelli Hospital, where he also received the Eucharist. After that, the pope attended to Vatican work responsibilities. Francis, the leader of the Catholic Church, was admitted to Gemelli Feb. 14 with a case of bronchitis that soon worsened to double pneumonia. This hospital stay is his longest during his time as pope. He is prone to lung infections, having had part of a lung removed when he was a young man. Some of the faithful who have journeyed to Rome to see the Vatican and possibly the pope have altered their plans and are now saying prayers for Francis outside the hospital for his full recovery. Lili Iparea Fernandez, from La Cruz, Mexico, traveled to Rome with other pilgrims from Mexico, hoping to participate in Francis’ general audience this week. When that was canceled, she decided to pray for him outside the hospital instead. “We firmly believe that the pope will recover because he is a very strong man,” she said Thursday. “So, I invite everyone to believe firmly, with certainty, with confidence, with hope, that the pope is going to be well.” The pope’s illness has prompted Catholics to gather in Vatican City, his native Argentina and other areas of the world to hold prayer vigils. Francis became pope in 2013 when his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, resigned. Some information for this story came from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters.  …

Georgians broadly supported Maidan protests in Ukraine seeking closer integration with Europe, elimination of corruption and malign foreign influence. Those goals resonate with Georgia’s current opposition. …

NATO’s newest rapid-response force is testing its strength in Romania, just kilometers from the Ukrainian border. VOA Eastern Europe Bureau Chief Myroslava Gongadze has more on the drills and NATO’s evolving defense strategy. Camera: Daniil Batushchak …

PARIS — French police said at least three people were killed when a tropical storm packing fierce winds and torrential rains thumped the French Indian Ocean island of Reunion on Friday.  Residents were ordered to stay at home as Tropical Cyclone Garance brought heavy rain and winds exceeding 200 kilometers per hour (124 mph), causing floods, power cuts and damage to buildings.  France’s national police force confirmed three fatalities but said it had no details about the circumstances.  Authorities said 847 people sought refuge in emergency shelters and 54 were evacuated due to the risk of flooding or landslides.  About 182,000 people were without power and 171,000 lost access to drinking water, the authorities said.  Officials said strong winds ripped off roofs, doors, and windows of many buildings. Tarpaulins were being sent to the hardest-hit areas to provide shelter in the eastern part of the island.  Authorities lifted the purple cyclone warning, the highest level, Friday morning, allowing rescue services to begin operations. However, the island remained under a red warning, with residents requested to stay indoors as heavy rain and strong winds were expected to persist throughout the day.  National weather agency Meteo France said winds reaching 214 kilometers per hour (133 mph) were recorded at the island’s main airport.  Reunion island is located about 1,500 kilometers (930 miles) to the southeast of the French territory of Mayotte, an island group off Africa, which was hit in December by the worst cyclone in nearly a century, with widespread devastation left in its wake.  Local authorities have confirmed 40 deaths from Cyclone Chido’s landfall and 41 people missing or believed to have been buried, but fear more may be dead. …

WASHINGTON — The issue of Ukraine’s next presidential election has emerged as a possible element in the peace deal between Russia and Ukraine that the United States is negotiating. Ukrainian leaders and elections experts argue, however, that holding elections anytime soon would endanger lives and Ukraine’s sovereignty. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was elected in April 2019, and the next presidential election was scheduled for March or April 2024. However, martial law has been in effect since Russia invaded the country in February 2022, and Ukrainian law prohibits presidential elections when martial law is in effect. U.S. President Donald Trump has lambasted Zelenskyy for not holding a presidential election. In a Feb. 19 post on his Truth Social platform, Trump said of Zelenskyy, “He refuses to have Elections, is very low in Ukrainian Polls, and the only thing he was good at was playing Biden ‘like a fiddle.’ A Dictator without Elections, Zelenskyy better move fast or he is not going to have a Country left.” Some members of the U.S. Congress and conservative commentators echoed Trump’s demand that Ukraine hold elections to prove its democratic credentials. “Zelenskyy should hold elections. They are basically under martial law. That’s not good when you claim to be defending democracy. They need to practice it,” Republican Senator Josh Hawley told VOA. Republican Representative Victoria Spartz told VOA that Ukraine should hold “transparent elections, and that not doing so allows Russia to say, ‘You have an illegitimate president signing these contracts and deals.’” Russia has questioned the legitimacy of Ukraine’s president and government since 2014, well before Zelenskyy was elected to office. During his televised question-and-answer event on Dec. 19, Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested he couldn’t negotiate with Zelenskyy until his legitimacy is confirmed through elections. “If someone goes to the elections, gains legitimacy there, we will talk with anyone, including Zelenskyy,” he said. Zelenskyy said during a Feb. 23 press conference that he would step down as president if it meant “peace for Ukraine” but pushed back on the calls for holding elections. “How can we call an election in which half of the country’s population won’t be able to vote?” he said. “How can we vote when today, [Ukraine was] attacked with 267 drones?” His major political rivals, former President Petro Poroshenko, former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko and Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko, have also rejected the call for holding elections. According to a … “Perspectives, challenges of Ukraine’s next election” →

ATHENS — Hundreds of thousands of people rallied in cities and towns across Greece on Friday to demand justice on the second anniversary of the country’s deadliest-ever train crash, and striking workers grounded flights and halted sea and train transport. Fifty-seven people were killed when a passenger train filled with students collided with a freight train on February 28, 2023, near the Tempi gorge in central Greece. Two years later, the safety gaps that caused the crash have not been filled, an inquiry found on Thursday. A separate judicial investigation remains unfinished, and no one has been convicted in the accident. Mass demonstrations were planned in dozens of cities across the country. All international and domestic flights were grounded as air traffic controllers joined seafarers, train drivers, doctors, lawyers and teachers in a 24-hour general strike to pay tribute to the victims of the crash. Businesses were shut and theatres cancelled performances. By early morning, tens of thousands had gathered in Syntagma Square in the center of Athens, watched by police in riot gear. A sign read: “Government of murderers.” Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ center-right government, which won re-election after the crash in 2023, has faced repeated criticism by relatives of the victims for failing to initiate a parliamentary inquiry into political responsibility. The government denies wrongdoing and says it is up to the judiciary to investigate the accident. Friday’s protests reflected mounting anger over the disaster in Greece, where mistrust of government is common following a 2009-2018 debt crisis in which millions lost out on wages and pensions, and public services suffered from underfunding. “The government hasn’t done anything to get justice,” said Christos Main, 57, a musician at the Athens rally. “This wasn’t an accident, it was murder,” he said. Another protester, who gave her name as Evi, said she was there to mourn the dead, “but also because the government has tried to cover things up.” The names of those killed were spray-painted in red on the ground in front of the parliament building. In the suburbs of Athens, groups of all ages made their way downtown with placards reading “I have no oxygen,” a slogan of the protests echoing a woman’s last words in a call to emergency services. Many pupils went to class dressed in black, a symbol of mourning. Others held up black balloons. Major issue for Greeks In a Facebook post on Friday, Mitsotakis … “Hundreds of thousands protest across Greece over deadly train crash” →

Moscow’s Sheremetevo Airport resumed flight arrivals and departures early on Friday after a temporary suspension of operations, Russia’s aviation authority said. “Restrictions on the arrival and departure of aircraft were lifted at Sheremetevo Airport at 03:45 Moscow time (0045 GMT),” the aviation authority said on its Telegram app. The authority said the restrictions were introduced to ensure the safety of civil aircraft flights. During the period of restrictions, one aircraft flying to Sheremetevo landed at the alternate airfield in Pulkovo, the authority said on Telegram. TASS news agency earlier reported that the airport had briefly suspended operations at 2:41 Moscow time. …

MOSCOW — Soviet chess grandmaster Boris Spassky, who was famously defeated at the height of the Cold War, has died at 88, the Russian Chess Federation announced Thursday. “The tenth world champion Boris Spassky has died at 88,” the Russian Chess Federation said in a statement on its website, calling this a “great loss for the country.” The statement did not say when exactly he died or from what cause. Spassky is best remembered for his duel with American Bobby Fischer in 1972, which was emblematic of the confrontation between East and West. The iconic Cold War duel has been the subject of numerous books, documentaries and films. Most notably it inspired the Walter Tevis novel The Queen’s Gambit, which was adapted into the acclaimed Netflix series in 2020. Spassky became world champion in 1969 and held the title until he played the match that would define his career, facing the eccentric American prodigy. With the Soviet Union having dominated the game for years, Spassky faced a must-win situation and initially took the lead. But the American roared back to win, ending an unbroken streak of Soviet world champions since 1948. Although the loss was a slap in the face for Moscow, Spassky admitted decades later it was a relief to be rid of a “colossal responsibility.” Born in 1937 in Leningrad, now St. Petersburg, Spassky showed prodigious talent early, becoming junior world champion and the youngest grandmaster in history at the time at 18.  …

Kurdish political parties in the Kurdistan Region have largely welcomed PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan’s call for disarmament and a peaceful resolution to the Kurdish issue in Turkey. In his message, Ocalan urged the PKK to lay down arms and shift to a political struggle, an appeal that many see as a potential turning point in Kurdish-Turkish relations. Click here for the full story in Kurdish. …

ROME — Nations cheered a last gasp deal reached Thursday to map out funding to protect nature, breaking a deadlock at United Nations talks seen as a test for international cooperation in the face of geopolitical tensions.  Rich and developing countries worked out a delicate compromise on raising and delivering the billions of dollars needed to protect species, overcoming stark divisions that had scuttled their previous meeting in Cali, Colombia, last year.  Delegates stood and clapped in an emotionally charged final meeting that saw key decisions adopted in the final minutes of the last day of rebooted negotiations at the U.N.’s Food and Agriculture Organization headquarters in Rome.   COP16 President Susana Muhamad of Colombia hailed the fact that countries worked together for a breakthrough, enabling progress “in this very fragmented and conflicted world,” she said.  “This is something very beautiful because it’s around protecting life that we have come together, and there cannot be anything higher than that,” she said. The decision comes more than two years after a landmark deal to halt the destruction of nature this decade and protect the ecosystems and wildlife that humans rely on for food, climate regulation, and economic prosperity.  One million species are threatened with extinction, while unsustainable farming and consumption destroy forests, deplete soils and spread plastic pollution to even the most remote areas of the planet.  The agreement on Thursday is seen as crucial to giving impetus to the 2022 deal, which saw countries agree to protect 30% of the world’s land and seas.   Talks were also seen as a bellwether for international cooperation.   The meeting comes as countries face a range of challenges, from trade disputes and debt worries to the slashing of overseas aid.  Washington, which has not signed up to the U.N.’s Convention on Biological Diversity, sent no representatives to the meeting.  “Our efforts show that multilateralism can present hope at a time of geopolitical uncertainty,” said Steven Guilbeault, Canada’s minister of environment and climate change.   Ousseynou Kasse of Senegal, speaking on behalf of the Africa Group, also threw support behind global cooperation.   “We believe that this is the way that can save the world, and we must continue down this path,” he said.   Countries must be “accountable to our children, to the generations to come,” he added.  The failure to finalize an agreement in Cali was the first in a string of … “At UN talks, nations agree to invest in plan to protect nature” →

U.S. President Donald Trump hosted British Prime Minister Keir Starmer Thursday at the White House, where the two laid out their visions for the end of Ukraine’s brutal three-year war. The allies also sparred over trade and tariffs, and Trump revived his first-term push for NATO allies to contribute more to their own security and rely less on American support. VOA White House correspondent Anita Powell reports from Washington. Kim Lewis contributed. …