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he U.S. and allied countries around the world are sending armored vehicles, advanced air defenses and billions of dollars in other weapons to Ukraine in hopes of quickly bolstering its forces ahead of a potential Russian offensive later this year. The latest tranche of American aid was unveiled Thursday, including a brigade's worth of armored Stryker vehicles, and was valued at $2.5 billion -- following a $3 billion package with Bradley Fighting Vehicles on Jan. 6. Defense leaders from about 50 countries huddled at Ramstein Air Base in Germany on Friday to discuss the aid and the path forward."Russia is...

"A Kremlin insider warned Thursday that Russia could start a nuclear war if it lost its conventional war in Ukraine. Dmitry Medvedev, deputy head of Russia’s security council and a close ally of President Vladimir Putin, made the threat in a post on the Telegram messaging app...."

rdent ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council Dmitry Medvedev on Thursday warned NATO allies that a defeat for Russia in Ukraine could provoke a nuclear war. "The loss of a nuclear power in a conventional war can provoke the beginning of a nuclear war," he said in a Telegram post as Western officials convene for another meeting with the Ukraine Defense Contact Group at Ramstein Air Base in Germany. "Nuclear powers have [never] lost major conflicts on which their fate depends," the Kremlin official added.

USFK declined to provide further details, including what types of equipment and how much has been requested or already transferred. The statement comes after the New York times reported earlier this week the United States was diverting munitions in Israel and South Korea to Ukraine for use in the war against Russia. Moscow calls its actions in Ukraine "a special operation". Asked about the report, Seoul's defence ministry said it was closely coordinating with the United states to maintain readiness posture. snip A U.S. official said in November Washington was in talks with South Korea to buy artillery shells to...

For years, the United States has insisted that Crimea is still part of Ukraine. Yet the Biden administration has held to a hard line since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, refusing to provide Kyiv with the weapons it needs to target the Crimean Peninsula, which Russia has been using as a base for launching devastating strikes. Now that line is starting to soften. After months of discussions with Ukrainian officials, the Biden administration is finally starting to concede that Kyiv may need the power to strike the Russian sanctuary, even if such a move increases the risk of escalation, according to...

MOSCOW (Reuters) -Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, an ally of Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin, warned NATO on Thursday that the defeat of Russia in Ukraine could trigger a nuclear war. Striking a similar tone at what he described as an anxious time for the country, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church said trying to destroy Russia would mean the end of the world. Since Russia invaded Ukraine, Medvedev has repeatedly raised the threat of a nuclear apocalypse, but his admission now of the possibility of Russia's defeat indicates the level of Moscow's concern over increased Western weapons deliveries to...

Ukraine is burning through ammunition for 155mm howitzers quickly and it is leaving the United States in a bind, according to a new report by think tank CSIS. It could take up to five years for the industrial base to produce enough rounds to replenish American stocks. It is not just cannon shells. Javelin and Stinger missiles could take six to eight years to normalize for the U.S. inventory.

President Vladimir Putin has removed Russia's top commander in Ukraine, three months after he was installed. Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov has been appointed to lead what Russia calls its "special military operation" against its neighbour. He replaces Sergei Surovikin who has overseen Moscow's brutal attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure. The reshuffle comes as Russian forces say they are making progress in eastern Ukraine after months of setbacks. Gen Gerasimov, who has been in post since 2012, is the longest-serving Russian chief of general staff of the post-Soviet era. Gen Surovikin - now his deputy - has been...

Russian President Vladimir Putin's unprovoked war with Ukraine could come to a conclusion this year, according to a former US Army general who warned that the Kremlin would likely turn to the dire option of nuclear weapons if Moscow faces defeat in the conflict.Retired US Army Brig. Gen. Kevin Ryan told Insider on Tuesday that he believes that Russia "would use a nuclear weapon before it allowed its military to be defeated in the field."Putin has repeatedly threatened the use of nuclear weapons since he ordered the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, but Ryan said that the Kremlin may...

Vladimir Putin has shown his rage at Russia's collapsing economy and failing war effort, as he publicly humiliated his deputy prime minister during an angry rant. The fuming dictator blasted Denis Manturov in a government video conference for failing to procure military and civilian planes. He accused him of "fooling around" after the politician, a deputy PM and Trade and Industry Minister, flew on holiday to Turkey over New Year. The Kremlin leader also shook up his high command once again, promoting a number of loyalist generals. A video of Putin's furious rant showed the president declaring: “There are no...

The battle for Soledar in eastern Ukraine continues to intensify, with Ukraine denying claims by the private Russian Vagner military group that it had taken control of the salt-mining town. Ukraine's Defense Ministry cited "colossal losses" by Russian forces trying to capture the town in a sustained offensive that the ministry described on January 11 as "maniacal" as the community's fate hangs in the balance. -snip- Yevgeny Prigozhin, said his forces had taken control of Soledar, which lies near another heavily contested city, Bakhmut, after Russian troops regrouped during an Orthodox Christmas pause last weekend. -snip- Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov...

Russian President Vladimir Putin has appointed a new commander to lead his forces in Ukraine. Gen. Valery Gerasimov will take over from Sergei Surovikin, the country’s Defense Ministry said on Telegram Wednesday, a change that comes as the Kremlin's forces appeared close to a breakthrough in bitter fighting on the eastern front lines. The announcement came just three months after Surovikin became the first person to be handed sole charge of the campaign since Russia launched its invasion on Feb. 24. The ministry said he would now serve as one of Gerasimov's three deputies, along with Army Gen. Oleg Salyukov...