The war of the cities: The new edition
Opinion

The war of the cities: The new edition

by Mykhailo Dubynianskyi

Large-scale combat had been ongoing in Ukraine for several years, and the war had taken on a predominantly positional character. Any advance on the front proved insignificant and came at a disproportionately high cost in casualties. The bet was then placed on massive strikes against Russia's rear cities. No, this is not a brief description of the current Russian-Ukrainian war. This is roughly what the grueling eight-year standoff between Iraq and Iran looked like from 1980 to 1988. It was duri

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After Trump, Putin goes to Beijing — and leaves empty-handed

On May 19-20, Russian President Vladimir Putin traveled to Beijing to meet Chinese leader Xi Jinping, just days after Donald Trump did the same. Although Putin's visit had been scheduled well in advance, the timing alongside U.S.-China talks has heightened the significance of the trip. Russia analysts expect progress toward expanding the Power of Siberia pipeline, a deal the Kremlin has long pushed for. Despite that, not much had come out of the talks. Putin and Xi signed a joint declaration,

Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) and Chinese President Xi Jinping (R) in Beijing, China, on May 20, 2026.

'I'm not counting on the US' — In Estonia, faith in Trump's defense of Baltics fades

TALLINN, Estonia — Among Estonians, there is little confidence that U.S. President Donald Trump would rush to defend their country in the event of a Russian invasion. As a 1.3-million-strong NATO member sharing a border with Russia, Estonia would likely be at the forefront of a potential conflict between the alliance and Moscow — a prospect seen as increasingly realistic since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Publicly, Estonian officials have cast a confident note. While Russia rem

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