First, links to reports from the Associated Press, Reuters, Agence France-Presse, and National Public Radio; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. Then, links to two pieces of commentary, the first from Behind the Curtin, the second from the Washington Post; the latter, like the five news reports that begin today’s entry, is full of examples of what the former talks about. — MCM
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Russian losses evident in key liberated Ukrainian city, by Adam Schreck and Vasilisa Stepanenko | AP LYMAN, Ukraine — The bodies of Russian soldiers were lying in the streets of a key eastern Ukrainian city today, evidence of a hasty retreat that marked a new military defeat for Moscow as it struggles to hang on to areas it illegally annexed last week. Russia’s upper house of parliament rubber-stamped the annexation . . . READ MORE . . .
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Russia forges ahead with annexation plan despite military retreats, by Jonathan Landay and Tom Balmforth | Reuters * Putin expected to sign annexation plan * Zelenskiy rules out peace talks with Putin * Ukraine retakes land in southern thrust * Is pressuring Russia in the east too | KRAMATORSK/KYIV — Russian President Vladimir Putin may finalise his plan to annex four Ukrainian regions later on Tuesday, even as his forces are being pushed back by Ukraine on two separate battlefield fronts shrinking the amount of seized territory he controls. Russia, which has escalated its seven-month war with its annexation drive, a mobilisation and warnings of nuclear weapons use . . . READ MORE . . .
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Over 200,000 people mobilised to Russian army in two weeks: Defence minister. From AFP. MOSCOW: More than 200,000 people have been conscripted into the Russian army since President Vladimir Putin announced a mobilization drive on September 21, Moscow’s Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said today. . . . The Kremlin has called the mobilization “partial” and said it aims to recruit 300,000 men. Shoigu said those mobilized are being trained at “80 training grounds and six training centers.” READ MORE . . .
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Putin raises the specter of using nuclear weapons in his war with Ukraine. Reported by A Martínez and Greg Myre | NPR As Russian President Vladimir Putin threatens to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine, U.S. officials are assessing the threat level and planning how the U.S. could respond. Click HERE to listen and, tomorrow, read.
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Russia is losing the edge in Ukraine, but Putin still seems ready to double down. Reported by Mary Louise Kelly, Michael Levitt and Sarah Handel | NPR Mary Louise Kelly speaks with Michael McFaul, a former U.S. Ambassador to Russia, about Putin’s mindset as the war in Ukraine shifts out of Russia’s favor. Click HERE to listen and read.
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Only adult children still believe U.S. propaganda, by Edward Curtin | Behind the Curtain It should now be quite clear to any reasonable person that the Biden administration is hell-bent on destroying Russia and will risk nuclear war in doing so. It has already started World War III with its use of Ukraine to light the final match. The problem is that reasonable people are in very short supply, and, as Ray McGovern recently wrote in “Brainwashed for War with Russia,” the Biden administration and their media lackeys “will have no trouble rallying Americans for the widest war in 77 years, starting in Ukraine . . . READ MORE . . .
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Negotiated peace with Putin is safest way out, by David Von Drehle | The Washington Post I can’t fault anyone who objects to the idea of a negotiated settlement of the Ukraine war. Russia started with an unprovoked invasion and moved quickly to war crimes. So why . . . READ MORE . . .
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TO BE CONTINUED