EPA-EFE/Sergey Kozlov
Both sides have good reasons for wanting to avoid a deal which freezes the frontlines where they are.
EPA-EFE/Shawn Thew/pool
It’s been a whirlwind week in Washington, but our experts are here to help navigate the big stories.
Trump has threatened to impose more sanctions and tariffs on Russia if Putin fails to make a deal to end the war in Ukraine.
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Trump is urging Putin – as well as others – to end the war in Ukraine, or face consequences.
Belarus’ Alexander Lukashenko is often described as ‘Europe’s last dictator.’
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In power since 1994, Belarus’ Alexander Lukashenko has aligned the country with Russia in an ideological battle with the West.
EPA-EFE/Sergei Ilnitsky
Putin successfully changed Russia’s constitution to allow himself to stay in power.
EEPA-EFE/Jim lo Scalzo/pool
‘Dictator for a day’: Donald Trump embarks on a second term in the Oval office.
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The second Trump presidency is likely to foster instability, uncertainty and fear at home and abroad. But other countries can find common cause to counteract his ‘disaster politics’.
Donald Trump portrays himself as uniquely strong and powerful.
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Though the 22nd Amendment prohibits Trump from being elected president again, it does not prohibit him from serving as president beyond Jan. 20, 2029. A scholar of politics and history explains.
Donald Trump meets with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at Trump Tower in September 2024 in New York.
(AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
For Russia, the return of Donald Trump provides a chance to end western sanctions against it, and provide solace for its appalling war losses.
Trump call: the US president speaking to Russian presaident Vladimir Putin after his inauguration in January 2017.
EPA/Michael Reynolds
The ‘Molink’ hotline has averted a serious crisis on several occasions. But would it still be as effective, given the personalities of the two leaders?
Mikheil Kavelashvili, who has been elected as president of Georgia.
Georgian parliament handout via Xinhua/Alamy
Georgia’s new president was not directly elected after a change to the constitution, and was the only person on the ballot.
Vladimir Putin answers questions during his annual live press conference on December 19.
Yuri Kochetkov/EPA
Ex-president Dmitry Medvedev has called journalists who justify Ukraine’s actions ‘active participants’ in a war against Russia.
Gavriil Grigorov, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP
A round-up of the biggest global stories this week.
EPA-EFE/Yuri Kochetkov
Messages emerging from Moscow and Brussels are that nothing short of victory will do. But a new Trump administration could change all this.
A Damascus motorist displays his loyalty by decorating his car with a poster showing Bashar al-Assad and Vladimir Putin.
Friedrich Stark / Alamy Stock Photo
The fall of one of Putin’s key client regimes in the Middle East has diminished Russia’s power and status.
Key facility: Tartus naval base in 2019.
AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko
Tartus is Russia’s only foothold on the Mediterranean coast.
One man and his attack dog: Vladimir Putin with his former adviser, hardliner Sergey Karaganov.
EPA-EFE/Alexander Kazakov/Sputnik/Kremlin pool
Recent messages coming out of Moscow have been tough, but the Russian president may be hoping to use rhetoric to encourage disunity within Nato.
Kremlin Pool/Alamy
The word choices of Russian governors were part of a major study of when and how flattery is used in authoritarian regimes.
PA-EFE/Ramil Sitdikov/Sputnik/Kremlin pool
The Russian media is obsessed with western reactions to Putin’s nuclear rhetoric.
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EPA-EFE/Sergei Ilnitsky
Putin says his new long-range missile could hit targets with the force of a meteorite.