Russia will celebrate almost killing Boris Johnson – this is Putin’s plan for chaos
Johnson and other signatories had a close call on Ukraine’s border with Poland – it’s all part of Putin’s plan even if it was a fluke, explains world affairs editor Sam Kiley.
Bryony Gooch15 September 2026 00:00
NATO fighter shoots down drone in Lithuania
A NATO fighter jet shot down a drone in Lithuania shortly after midnight on Tuesday, the Lithuanian national crisis management centre said.
The drone, which likely entered from Belarus, was shot down near Pratkunai village in southern Lithuania, near Kaunas, the second-largest city, the centre’s spokesperson said. Its origin is yet to be determined, he said.
A drone alert was issued earlier in the capital Vilnius and surrounding region.
Fighters with the NATO Baltic Air Defence mission have patrolled the skies of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia since the Baltic countries joined the alliance in 2004. The mission’s jets shot down stray Ukrainian drones over Estonia in May, and Latvia in June and August.
Military drones straying into the airspace of Russia’s neighbours have stoked concerns that Russia’s war in Ukraine is spilling over NATO’s borders.
Ukraine has stepped up long-range drone attacks on Russia, including in the Baltic Sea area, and several Ukrainian military drones have strayed into the airspace of Finland, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia.
Ukraine blamed the incidents on Russia affecting the drones’ paths with electromagnetic warfare.
Bryony Gooch14 September 2026 23:42
Pictured: Electoral commission visits residents in Russian-controlled Donetsk during early voting in Russia’s parliamentary election
(Reuters)
Bryony Gooch14 September 2026 23:00
European leaders meet as Arctic thaw opens shipping routes and Russian buildup stokes security fears
European leaders were meeting Monday to discuss growing competition in the Arctic, where global warming is opening new shipping routes, governments are vying for vast natural resources and a Russian military buildup is heightening security concerns.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen were among leaders expected for the European Arctic Summit in Rovaniemi, Finland, a city perhaps best known for its Santa Claus village.
The two-day gathering that began Sunday comes on the heels of a Norwegian seizure of a Russian vessel earlier this month in the remote Arctic archipelago of Svalbard at the request of Ukraine, drawing the condemnation of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Maira Butt14 September 2026 22:00
US imposes Iran-related sanctions on Russia’s VTB
The United States imposed Iran-related sanctions Monday on Russia’s VTB Bank Public Joint Stock Company, accusing it of involvement in Iranian sanctions evasion, the Treasury Department said as Washington seeks to ramp up economic pressure on Tehran.
The action builds on sanctions imposed against VTB, Russia’s second-largest lender, in 2022, when the bank was targetedfollowing Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
“Under Operation Economic Outcast, Treasury will continue to target and disrupt those who provide material, technological, or financial support that allows the Iranian regime to sustain its terrorist enterprise,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in the statement.
“Treasury will not tolerate any support to the regime and will continue to identify, expose, and isolate Iran’s enablers.”
Bessent warned last week that resident Donald Trump’s administration would sanction a large bank as it continues to apply economic pressure on Tehran to end a more than six-month US conflict with Iran.
The United States has imposed a range of economic measures against Iran since the conflict began in February, targeting oil exports, shipping networks, weapons procurement channels, financial intermediaries, digital asset exchanges and aviation links.
Bryony Gooch14 September 2026 21:00
Russian strike on train on Ukraine-Poland border was meant to scare Western states, says EU’s Kallas
A Russian drone attack on a train on Ukraine’s border with Nato member Poland on Sunday was meant to scare Western countries supporting Ukraine, European Union’s foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said on Monday.
“I think we should act the opposite. We should show that we are there for Ukraine and we are not scared,” she told reporters in Rovaniemi, Finland where she attended a summit on Arctic strategy.
Maira Butt14 September 2026 20:00
Sam Kiley: Kremlin will celebrate Russia’s attack close to Boris Johnson’s train
Sam Kiley: Kremlin will celebrate Russia’s attack close to Boris Johnson’s train
Maira Butt14 September 2026 19:00
Analysis: Russia will celebrate almost killing Boris Johnson – this is Putin’s plan for chaos
If blowing up a petrol station and railway carriage close to a train carrying two former European prime ministers and the man who used to run America’s war in Afghanistan, the CIA – and rewrote US military doctrine – was an accident, it isn’t one the Russians are admitting to in the Kremlin.
Johnson, especially, is a national hero in Ukraine. His record in Britain, where he enhanced Russia’s strategic standing by helping take the UK out of Europe, doesn’t worry frontline soldiers in a country that is grateful for his stentorian support from the early days of the 2022 full-scale Russian invasion.
Maira Butt14 September 2026 18:30
Watch: Ukrainian animal rescuers injured in drone attack while on mission
Ukrainian animal rescuers injured in drone attack while on mission
Maira Butt14 September 2026 18:00
Zelensky: Ukraine wants specifics from partners on halting strikes
Ukraine is ready to halt strikes on Russia if its partners ensure that Moscow will refrain from hitting Ukrainian energy facilities, infrastructure and food supply routes, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Monday.
Posting his comments after US president Donald Trump said Ukraine and Russia had agreed not to hit each other’s energy targets, Zelensky said Ukraine was not convinced that Russia was willing to abide by any agreement.
“The war must be brought to an end. And a de-escalatory step regarding critical infrastructure could be the first step toward peace. We expect specifics from our partners,” Zelensky said on the Telegram app.
Bryony Gooch14 September 2026 17:57
