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Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, Russia, on March 26, 2026.
Opinion

Russia's rhetoric on the Iran war reveals it's losing

by Natalie Arbatman

At a March meeting on Operation Epic Fury, European Council President Antonio Costa said, "There is only one winner in this war: Russia." Europe is right to be worried about Russian gains in this war. But this analysis is short-sighted and overlooks a central fact: the Kremlin is watching a key chess piece slip from the board, and its anxiety, not Europe's, should dictate the terms of this conflict. Despite its modest effort to aid Iran, Russia has failed to meet operational objectives on the

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What's a FOP, and why are the IMF and Ukraine fighting over it?

Editor's note: A version of this article first appeared in the Ukraine Business Roundup, our weekly newsletter on what's shaping Ukraine's businesses and economy. Sign up here. After months of failing to pass a range of measures needed to unlock billions in stalled donor funding, Ukraine’s parliament made a small dent in the long list of reforms this week. But there was one piece of regulation conspicuously absent from the agenda. As part of a new $8.1 billion International Monetary Fund loan

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Counterattacking through the kill zone, Ukrainian troops brace for new Russian offensives

Counterattacking through the kill zone, Ukrainian troops brace for new Russian offensives

Editor’s Note: In accordance with the security protocols of the Ukrainian military, soldiers featured in this story are identified by first name and call sign only. ZAPORIZHZHIA OBLAST – For tonight's clearing mission on the cold windy steppe of southern Ukraine, the munition of choice is the Spear. In a cramped dugout less than eight kilometers from Russian forces, Ukrainian soldiers prepare the bombs, taping wires and tail fins onto long tubes of black steel fitted with menacing iron spikes

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