First, links to Reuters and Associated Press reports from this morning (possibly updated  from what appears below, and linked to others) and National Public Radio segments. Then, a link to a New Yorker interview with a Russian ex-patriot journalist who specializes in that country’s intelligence network; it is linked to other recent New Yorker pieces related to Russia and Ukraine. Next, from Global Research, a link to one writer’s summaries of “the road to war” and the war itself so far. Finally, from TK News, the beginning of Matt Taibbi’s reminder that TV news shows tend to present representatives of corporations doing business with the government who are former government officials according to their former government status without mentioning their current paid status; also recommended: the short video illustration. — MCM

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Russia halts gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria, by Marek Strzelecki, Tsvetelia Tsolova and Pavel Polityuk | Reuters * Russia demands payment in roubles to shield it from sanctions * EU denounces gas cut-off as ‘blackmail’  * Kyiv reports some Russian gains in villages in east Ukraine * Explosions hit Russian regions on border; Kyiv calls it ‘karma’ * Concern grows that conflict could suck in Moldova | WARSAW/SOFIA/KYIV — Russia halted gas supplies to Bulgaria and Poland today for rejecting its demand for payment in roubles, taking direct aim at European economies in its toughest retaliation so far against international sanctions over the war in Ukraine. The step was denounced by European leaders as “blackmail”, and comes as European countries have joined the United States in ramping up arms shipments to help Ukraine fend off a new Russian assault in the east. READ MORE . . .

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Russia releases US Marine vet as part of prisoner exchange, by Eric Tucker and Matthew Lee | The Associated Press WASHINGTON — Russia and the United States have carried out an unexpected prisoner exchange in a time of high tensions, trading a Marine veteran jailed by Moscow for a convicted Russian drug trafficker serving a long prison sentence in America. The deal announced by both countries involving Trevor Reed, an American imprisoned for nearly three years, would have been a notable diplomatic maneuver even in times of peace. . . . The U.S., for its part, returned Konstantin Yaroshenko, a Russian pilot who’d been serving a 20-year federal prison sentence in Connecticut . . . READ MORE . . .

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U.N. secretary general goes to Moscow for talks with President Putin. Reported by Charles Maynes | National Public Radio U.N. Secretary General António Guterres was in Moscow Tuesday for talks with Russian President Putin and his foreign minister. The focus: U.N. efforts to ease the civilian suffering in Ukraine. Click HERE to listen and, tomorrow, read.

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U.S. officials say more weapons will help Ukraine hand Russia a strategic defeat. Reported by Michele Kelemen | NPR  The White House is rushing more weapons to Ukraine to try to ensure “a strategic defeat” for Russia. Aims shifted partly because of Ukrainian battlefield successes with U.S. provided weapons. Click HERE to listen and, tomorrow, read.

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Russia’s national energy company cuts off natural gas to Poland and Bulgaria. NPR’s Leila Fadel talks to Henning Gloystein, energy director at the Eurasia group, about what European leaders say is a move that amounts to blackmail. Click HERE to listen and, tomorrow, read.

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Ukrainians debate the future of Russian identity and culture within their society. Reported by Brian Mann | NPR People in the Ukrainian city of Odesa are considering how their deep Russian heritage can fit into Ukraine’s national identity. Some want Russian monuments and cultural markers removed. Click HERE to listen and, tomorrow, read.

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The Purges in Putin’s Shrinking Inner Circle, by Isaac Chotiner | The New Yorker I recently spoke by phone with Andrei Soldatov, an investigative journalist and an expert on the Russian state’s intelligence apparatus. Currently in London, Soldato . . . READ MORE . . .

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THE MILITARY SITUATION IN THE UKRAINE: Parts 1 and 2. By Jacques Baud | Global Research Let’s try to examine the roots of the [Ukrainian] conflict. It starts with those who for the last eight years have been talking about “separatists” or “independentists” from Donbass. This is a misnomer. The referendums conducted by the two self-proclaimed Republics of Donetsk and Lugansk in May 2014, were NOT referendums of “independence” (независимость), as some unscrupulous journalists have claimed, but . . . READ MORE . . .

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A Brief Note on the ‘Gentlemen’s Agreement,’ Which Is Not Just for Defense Lobbyists, by Matt Taibbi | TK News TV analysts from all sorts of industries are identified by long-ago official titles, not current lobbying gigs. . . . As some readers correctly pointed out, defense is only the most conspicuous example of the phenomenon in which TV news programs identify guests by illustrious past official titles, and not by their current lobbying ties or positions on corporate boards. This happens in most every industry . . . READ MORE . . .