Ukraine

Two blasts have rocked Ukraine just hours after a car belonging to a pro-Russian rebel leader was blown up in a suspected ruse to give Vladimir Putin an excuse for war.

Blinken will meet with foreign ministers from Germany, France and the UK.

Russia has wanted to ally itself with Europeans since the 90s. What has led to today's hostility?

Vladimir Putin will tomorrow oversee military drills involving Russian “strategic forces” which will include ballistic and cruise missile launches.

The eyes of the world are on Russia as it builds up forces along the border with Ukraine. This is why Putin would want to invade.

Defense ministers have held talks over fears that Russia could be seeking to send its troops into Ukraine. Moscow says it has withdrawn some forces and that it has no plan to launch an invasion.

In the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, Germany is cutting a rather ambivalent figure. Former Chancellor Gerhard Schröder is one major reason why. Can the Social Democrats and the country find its way out from under his shadow?

Intelligence sources indicate Russia could invade Ukraine at any time and President Vladimir Putin is likely to strike without warning.

Russia has positioned about 130,000 troops - equipped with everything from tanks and artillery to medical facilities and logistical support - close to Ukraine's border.

White House urges Americans to leave Ukraine, but officials say they don’t know whether Putin has decided to invade or not

French President Emmanuel Macron has said he thinks a deal to avoid war in Ukraine is possible and that it is legitimate for Russia to raise its own security concerns.

In the last two weeks, the number of battalion tactical groups in the border region has risen to 83 from 60 as of Friday and 14 more are in transit, the officials told Reuters on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the information.

The mission also defended the movement of Russian troops "on our own soil" and accused the U.S. violating "the principle of the indivisibility of security" with the placement of "military infrastructure close to Russian borders."

Washington wants China to “use its influence” with Moscow to push diplomacy over Ukraine

US president who pledged to stare down threats from Putin faces moment of reckoning

Hopes remain that matters can be settled diplomatically, however.

The US has rejected Russia's demand to bar Ukraine from NATO, amid warnings Russia might invade its neighbor.

Kiev claims ‘cyber espionage’ group backed by Belarusian intelligence hacked Ukrainian websites

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby described the intelligence that Russia could frame Ukraine as preparing an attack against Russian-backed forces as “very credible.”

Russia’s dealings — or, more accurately, its clashes — with the West have focused on one country that has been a particular flashpoint for confrontations in recent years: Ukraine.