US First Lady Melania Trump has brokered a localized cease-fire between Russia and Ukraine for the Russian-occupied southern Ukrainian city of Oleshky, with Kyiv confirming preparations for an operation to establish humanitarian corridors and evacuate civilians.
As the conflict in the Persian Gulf continues to impact and shape the region, journalists from RFE/RL's Central Newsroom and Iranian service, Radio Farda, deliver ongoing updates and analysis.
US officials publicly accused Russia of threatening a Finnish-operated commercial satellite that provides imagery and intelligence to Ukraine and other nations, calling the move “deliberately reckless.”
Amid growing controversy over restrictions on Ukraine's use of Starlink satellite Internet services, which its military relies heavily on, US President Donald Trump claimed that the company's head, Elon Musk, had lifted limitations on Kyiv's access.
Stephen Hubbard, a 74-year-old retired teacher from Michigan held by Russia since 2022 on accusations of joining Ukraine's armed forces, has been freed in what is being framed as a goodwill gesture by the Kremlin.
Russian President Vladimir Putin told US envoy Steve Witkoff that Moscow was willing to resume stalled, US-mediated peace talks with Ukraine, Kremlin foreign policy aide Yury Ushakov said after the two met at Constantine Palace in St. Petersburg.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio departed Uzbekistan on October 20 for India after meetings with all five Central Asian countries, wrapping up a visit aimed at expanding Washington’s economic and diplomatic engagement with a region increasingly intent on shaping its own international partnerships.
US special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner will take part in meetings in Oslo to discuss the situation in Ukraine with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as Russia continues to pound the country amid growing tensions between Kyiv and Washington.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov arrived in Tehran on October 19 for talks with his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araqchi and a meeting with President Masud Pezeshkian amid questions over what support, if any, Moscow is providing Iran to fight its war with the United States.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington would continue efforts to end Russia's war against Ukraine, warning that the conflict risks escalating beyond the two countries as he met with Central Asian officials in Uzbekistan.
President Donald Trump slammed his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy and defended his decision to waive sweeping sanctions planned against Russia as an effort to keep Moscow at the negotiating table amid criticism from Kyiv and US lawmakers that it sends the wrong message to the Kremlin.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha said that US President Donald Trump's decision to waive sweeping sanctions against Russia was "indecisiveness," which "sends the wrong message to the aggressor."
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