United States

Iran

Ukraine

Russia

Cyber

Environment, Science & Technology

Military & Security

Science & Technology

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met with Alex Karp, the CEO of U.S. artificial intelligence company Palantir, as Kyiv expands its use of AI in the war against Russia, Reuters reported on May 12.

Ukraine: Kyiv Expands Palantir AI Partnership as Drone War Raises the Value of Combat Data

Europe

Politics

EU foreign ministers rejected Russian President Vladimir Putin's suggestion that former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder could represent Europe in possible future talks with Moscow on European security, Reuters reported on May 11.

EU, Russia, Ukraine: Europe Rejects Putin's Preferred Envoy for Future Security Talks

Russia-Ukraine Conflict

U.S. President Donald Trump said Russia and Ukraine agreed to a three-day ceasefire on May 9-11 and a 1,000-for-1,000 prisoner swap, according to his May 8 Truth Social post. 

Russia, Ukraine: Trump Announces Three-Day Victory Day Ceasefire

European Council President Antonio Costa said the European Union is preparing for potential future talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin and is consulting EU leaders on how to organize a possible European approach to Moscow with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's support, the Financial Times reported on May 8.

EU, Russia, Ukraine: Europe Prepares Russia Channel as U.S.-Led Talks Stall

The U.S. Department of State approved a foreign military sale to Ukraine of up to $374 million worth of extended-range Joint Direct Attack Munition kits and related equipment, Bloomberg reported on May 5. 

U.S., Ukraine: Washington Approves Guided Bomb Kit Sale To Sustain Ukraine's Precision-Strike Capacity

Economics

Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko said the U.S.-Ukraine Reconstruction Investment Fund had received 282 project financing applications from more than 15 countries one year after its creation under the U.S.-Ukraine minerals deal, The New Voice of Ukraine reported on May 5.

Ukraine, U.S.: Reconstruction Fund Draws 282 Project Applications One Year After Launch

Energy

Ukraine's repeated drone strikes on Russian energy infrastructure in April, including a fourth attack on Tuapse within a month, pushed Russian refining runs down to their lowest level since 2009, The Moscow Times reported on May 1.

Russia, Ukraine: Ukrainian Strikes Force Tighter Russian Fuel Management

Russian President Vladimir Putin used his April 29 call with U.S. President Donald Trump to discuss a possible ceasefire around Russia's May 9 Victory Day commemorations, alongside talks on Ukraine, Iran and possible future economic and energy cooperation, TASS reported on April 29, citing Putin's aide Yuri Ushakov.

Russia, Ukraine: Putin Seeks Brief Ceasefire To Protect Victory Day Parade

Snapshots

Russian officers patrol central Moscow on May 5, 2026, in front of the Kremlin, a few days ahead of the Victory Day military parade, to be held at Red Square on May 9. 

While Ukraine is unlikely to attack Moscow during the May 9 parade, its expanding long-range strike capabilities will steadily increase the war's political, economic and psychological toll on Russia ahead of the September elections.

Ukrainian Strikes Put Russia on Edge Ahead of Victory Day Parade

Assessments

Hungary

Peter Magyar, lead candidate of the Tisza party, speaks to reporters in Budapest on April 13, 2026, after his party's sweeping victory in Hungary's parliamentary elections.

With a two-thirds supermajority, the new government will be able to dismantle Orban's entrenched institutional and economic influence, as well as reset EU relations. But a swift and drastic reversal in Hungary-Ukraine relations remains unlikely.

Hungary's Pro-EU Opposition Wins Big, Ending the Orban Era

Lithuania

Latvia

Estonia

Eurasia

A soldier from the "Taifun" unmanned aerial vehicle unit prepares a new strike drone for flight on April 7, 2026 in Ukraine. 

Although Moscow is threatening retaliation against Baltic states over supposed involvement in Ukraine's drone attacks on Russian energy infrastructure, the Kremlin will not risk a direct military confrontation with NATO.


Direct NATO-Russia Confrontation in the Baltic Unlikely, Despite Ukrainian Strikes on Russian Energy Infrastructure 

Israel

Denmark

France

Italy

The European Parliament building in 2019 in Strasbourg, France. Parliament is set to hold a plenary vote March 26 on implementing the 2025 EU‑U.S. trade framework agreement.

U.S.-Iran Relations

A look at what the coming week will bring -- and a list of recommended RANE articles from the week that was.

The Weekly Rundown: A Vote on the EU‑U.S. Trade Framework, the Iran Conflict Continues

China

Japan

A large plume of smoke rises March 7 over Tehran after explosions were reported in the Iranian capital during the night.

The Weekly Rundown: The Iran War Continues, Takaichi Meets With Trump

A Ukrainian serviceman stands next to a truck equipped with a machine gun during an air raid alert in Kyiv on Jan. 24, 2026, amid Russia’s ongoing invasion.

Russia's ability to sustain its war efforts despite mounting economic strain, combined with the U.S.'s new focus on Iran, makes meaningful progress in peace talks unlikely anytime soon.

Ukraine War Enters Its Fifth Year, With No Near End in Sight

City authorities and businesses rebuild residential buildings damaged by Russian shelling in Kharkiv, Ukraine, on July 12, 2023.

While European governments can fund Ukraine's war effort this year and next, securing the investment needed to rebuild damaged infrastructure will face significant political, economic and structural hurdles.

The Challenge of Rebuilding Ukraine's Economy

Columns

On Geopolitics

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky attends a press conference at the European Commission's headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, on Aug. 17, 2025.

Despite its strategic imperative to secure Ukraine's Western alignment, the EU remains unlikely to grant the country full or partial membership anytime soon due to numerous challenges, with the ongoing war being chief among them.

To Keep the Promise of Ukraine's Accession Alive, the EU Mulls Alternative Options

Palestinian Territories

Indonesia

Vietnam

Slovakia

India

U.S. President Donald Trump (C) holds up his signature on the founding charter of the Board of Peace among other world leaders at the World Economic Forum on Jan. 22 in Davos, Switzerland.

Israel-Hamas Conflict

The Weekly Rundown: The Board of Peace Convenes, Russia-Ukraine-U.S. Talks in Geneva

United Arab Emirates

Emirati flags on Feb. 4 in Abu Dhabi, UAE. On Feb. 4-5, delegations from Russia, Ukraine and the United States held a second round of trilateral talks in the United Arab Emirates.

The talks are unlikely to produce a near-term settlement, as Russia will continue to press its territorial demands while using diplomacy to manage sanctions pressure and build leverage ahead of a spring-summer offensive.

The Limits of Russia-Ukraine-U.S. Talks

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks during a meeting with European national security advisors in Kyiv on Jan. 3, 2026. 

The reshuffle seeks to strengthen Zelensky's negotiating position and mitigate the political fallout from a likely unfavorable peace deal amid weakening Western support and Russia's continued battlefield advances.

Ukraine's Government Reshuffle Signals Preparation for a Tough Peace Deal

Greenland

Switzerland

A sniper police officer on the Congress hotel during the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum on Jan. 24, 2025, in the Alpine resort of Davos, Switzerland.

The Weekly Rundown: Davos, Europe Steps Up Greenland Deployments

<p>Ukraine is the quintessential borderland state. The country borders three former Soviet states (Russia, Belarus and Moldova) and four countries in the European Union (Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania). Ukraine also has a coastline along the Black Sea to the south. Ukraine sits on the Northern European Plain, the area that has historically served as an invasion superhighway going east and west. Beyond its strategic location, Ukraine&#39;s geography has only facilitated such invasions. The country consists of flat and fertile plains, with the exception of the Carpathian Mountain range that arches into the far west of the country. But even these mountains can be penetrated and have not posed a significant barrier to invasion. Given such lack of barriers, Ukraine&#39;s wide-open geography is inextricably linked to that of Russia. Ukraine&#39;s agricultural and industrial belts have traditionally been integrated with Russia&#39;s, and Ukraine serves as the primary transit state for Russian energy exports to Europe. Due to its location and abundance of agricultural and mineral resources, Ukraine has been contested between regional powers for centuries. This competition is currently playing out in an extreme form today, with a Western-backed government confronting a Russian-backed uprising in eastern Ukraine. Further complicating the situation is the fact that Ukraine has several population and political cores, including Lviv in the west, Kiev in the center and the eastern cities of Donetsk and Luhansk. These different cores make administering Ukraine difficult. The current crisis in Ukraine is therefore merely the latest iteration of the country&#39;s internal divisions and the long-standing East-West conflict over the country. Maintaining sovereignty and unity in the face of this competition is Ukraine&#39;s primary geographic challenge.</p>

SITUATION REPORTS

Ukraine: Kyiv Expands Palantir AI Partnership as Drone War Raises the Value of Combat Data

EU, Russia, Ukraine: Europe Rejects Putin's Preferred Envoy for Future Security Talks

Russia, Ukraine: Trump Announces Three-Day Victory Day Ceasefire

EU, Russia, Ukraine: Europe Prepares Russia Channel as U.S.-Led Talks Stall

U.S., Ukraine: Washington Approves Guided Bomb Kit Sale To Sustain Ukraine's Precision-Strike Capacity

Ukraine, U.S.: Reconstruction Fund Draws 282 Project Applications One Year After Launch

Russia, Ukraine: Ukrainian Strikes Force Tighter Russian Fuel Management

Russia, Ukraine: Putin Seeks Brief Ceasefire To Protect Victory Day Parade

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