Wait you're telling me killing large numbers of a country's leaders makes it hard to negotiate with them? Who's have guessed.

Ukraine’s Plan to Starve the Russian War Machine Negotiations have stalled. Trump keeps changing his policies. Ukrainians, backed by Europeans, are taking matters into their own hands. ​​​

Back in September, I wrote about Ukraine's long-range drones. Now that they are regularly and accurately striking Russian refineries and oil infrastructure, I think it's worth reading again, for those who missed it. Gift link:
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv...

Trump and Putin have 'zero instruments' to enforce backroom deal on Ukraine, ex-FM Kuleba tells Kyiv Independent Caught between Russia's war at home and mounting geopolitical turbulence abroad, Ukraine is unlikely to see a major turnaround anytime soon, says former Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba. "2026 will be ...

"2026 will be another year Ukraine will have to survive," former Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba told the Kyiv Independent in an exclusive interview last week.

🇺🇦 Budanov: The free sale of Ukrainian weapons abroad in the hot phase of the war is impossible. Only what is in sufficient surplus, such as naval drones, can be freely sold.

We can also export weapons that are almost no longer used in our war, but are in great demand in Asian or African countries.

The rush to appease Trump led Keir Starmer into this ethical void | Rafael Behr Mandelson’s flaws were mistaken for credentials to represent Britain in the court of a rogue president, says Guardian columnist Rafael Behr

On the part that Trump appeasement plays - traits that should have disqualified Mandelson were seen as credentials to be emissary at the court of a rogue president www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

🇧🇪🇺🇦 Belgium will buy 15 Gepard anti-aircraft self-propelled guns for further transfer to Ukraine. This measure will be implemented within the framework of a military aid plan worth one billion euros, which was approved in early April, - L’Echo

BESSENT on extending Russian sanctions relief after promising not to do so:

"I was approached by more than 10 of the most vulnerable and poorest countries in terms of energy and they asked us to extend that sanction [relief] and it's only for 30 days."

Spain will deliver 100 VAMTAC armored tactical vehicles and a batch of 155mm artillery ammunition to Ukraine this year, Spanish Defense Minister Margarita Robles announced during a visit to Kyiv.

Deliveries are scheduled to begin in May.

Thank you Spain! 🇪🇸🇺🇦

Ukrainian specialists have deployed their anti-drone technology „Sky Map“ at Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia.

Betting the Farm | Diana Kruzman In Ukraine, the corporate consolidation of farmland poses risks—to both small farmers and the sustainability of agriculture.

For Baffler, Diana Kruzman reports on how Ukraine opened farmland sales to corporations in 2024, accelerating a consolidation that's already put a quarter of arable land under large agroholdings, degrading Ukraine's famously fertile soil with industrial monoculture.

thebaffler.com/latest/betti...

Ukraine teamed up sea and interceptor drones to down Russian Shahed in new first The new tactic, carried out by the 412th Nemesis Brigade, could help Ukraine form an additional air defense layer in the Black Sea.

Videos appear to show the interceptor, which the Wild Hornets said was its Sting drone, to fly out of a cubby on the sea drone. https://bit.ly/4mH5O0t

Having soldiers drop like flies due to entirely preventable diseases is what this COUNTRY was BUILT ON

Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur says the U.S. has paused Estonia's ammunition deliveries until the end of the war in Iran, at least. He said the main issues for Estonia are related to HIMARS ammunition and Javelins. news.err.ee/1610001736/u...

Ukraine’s Permanent Representative to the UN,Andrii Melnyk:

No army since World War I has paid such an astronomical death toll for such negligible territorial gains as Russia

According to battlefield assessments,Russia is currently losing…254 soldiers for every square km of Ukrainian territory⤵️

The quietly brilliant Michele Alboreto is fading into F1 history. He deserves more respect On the 25th anniversary of his death, Matt Bishop makes a case for Michele Alboreto as one of grand prix racing's most unjustly forgotten talents

One of F1's most unjustly forgotten talents?25 years on from Michele Alboreto's shocking death, @thebishf1.bsky.social says that the former Ferrari #F1 driver and his unassuming brilliance deserve more respect
go.motorsportmagazine.com/42qldIV

good news :)

source: ru.themoscowtimes.com/2026/04/21/r...

Sanctions relief fueling Russia's war ambitions, Zelensky warns as Ukraine steps up oil strikes "Our far-reaching sanctions... ensure that (Russia) receives the necessary response," President Volodymyr Zelensky said.

⚡️ Sanctions relief fueling Russia's war ambitions, Zelensky warns as Ukraine steps up oil strikes.

"Our far-reaching sanctions... ensure that (Russia) receives the necessary response," President Volodymyr Zelensky said.

HODGES: Lavrov said that they need security guarantee for Russia. I mean, it’s almost laughable to hear him say that Russia needs security guarantee.

They were quite secure before they decided to attack Ukraine. So they are secure, except when they get outside of their borders.

That bloody duck terrified me!

Could be an eight-year-old in a fat orange man suit?

This night, SBU drones struck the "Samara" oil station, which processes Russia's primary export grade, Urals. This facility is a critical component of the Russian Federation's oil transportation infrastructure.

Ukraine’s new exoskeleton has no electronics, no power supply, and takes 2 minutes to put on In a war defined by electronic warfare, a purely mechanical system with no power requirements is specifically suited to frontline conditions.

Ukraine is field-testing the "Gyurza-1" passive exoskeleton, weighing 2 kg, with no electronics or battery, and fitting in under 2 minutes

It lets soldiers carry up to 70 kg without critical spine and back strain euromaidanpress.com/2026/04/21/u...

A photo of the Porta Nigra, a massive Roman city gate in Trier. Constructed of sandstone blocks, featuring two large cylindrical towers with multiple arched windows and passageways. The weathered structure stands prominently in a modern urban setting, surrounded by buildings. Sunlight casts shadows on the stone facade, highlighting its intricate details and imposing presence.

The Porta Nigra in Trier is the best preserved Roman city gate North of the Alps. It was built around 170 AD and converted into a church in the Middle Ages.
The Porta Nigra was restored to its original state in 1804 at Napoleon's behest.

📷me

🏺

Russia Is Losing Record Numbers of Troops Compared to Territory Gains Ukraine’s representative to the United Nations, Andrii Melnyk, commented on the losses of the Russian army. He described them as enormous, especially when com

🇺🇦🇺🇳 Ukraine’s representative to UN, Melnyk, commented on the losses of the Russian army. He described them as enormous.

Russia loses an average of 254 soldiers for every sq. km. of Ukrainian territory.

Read more 👀
theukrainianreview.info/russia-is-lo...

PETRAEUS: We should be doing everything we possibly can to enable Ukraine to continue to succeed in what it has been doing — which is stopping Russians and innovating at pace that is defining future of warfare.

And we should be learning from that as well, much more rapidly.

Opinion | My Child Died of Measles If more people had gotten the vaccine, she might still be here.

In @nytopinion.nytimes.com

Rebecca Archer’s daughter died of measles that she contracted before she was old enough to be vaccinated. “Parents must realize that refusing vaccinations doesn’t just put your own child at risk. It puts other children at risk,” Archer writes.

President Zelenskyy:

Ukraine has completed repairs to the section of the Druzhba oil pipeline that was damaged by a Russian strike.The pipeline can resume operations

*Bad* project managers: the enemy of lunch!

UK accelerates clean energy to protect against fossil fuel price shocks Britain will launch a package of measures on Tuesday to accelerate ​the growth of renewable power and reduce the country’s reliance on fossil fuels which have ‌soared in cost due to the conflict in Iran, the government said.

UK accelerates clean energy to protect against fossil fuel price shocks reut.rs/4sERA1f

🇫🇷🇩🇰 “Denmark will benefit from the increased production capacity for the SAMP/T NG system and the production of Aster missiles, with deliveries scheduled to begin in 2028.”

www.thalesgroup.com/en/news-cent...