Belarus' authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko has ordered the release of 250 prisoners as part of a deal with Washington to lift some U.S. sanctions, the latest step in the isolated leader's effort to improve ties with the West. Lukashenko on Thursday pardoned the prisoners after meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump's special envoy for Belarus, John Coale. Coale hailed the release as a "significant humanitarian milestone" and a testament to Trump's "commitment to direct, hard-nosed diplomacy."
Russia's nuclear-capable Oreshnik missile system has entered active service, Russia's Ministry of Defense says, as negotiators continue to search for a breakthrough in peace talks to end Moscow's war in Ukraine. Troops held a brief ceremony to mark the occasion in neighboring Belarus where the missiles have been deployed, the ministry says. It did not say how many missiles had been deployed or give any other details. The announcement comes at a critical time for peace talks, with negotiators still searching for a breakthrough on key issues, including territory and control of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.
By MALLIKA SEN and HANNA ARHIROVA Associated Press
More than 100 conflicts fester around the world. The Middle East teeters on the brink of a regional war. In Ukraine, Russia slowly but steadily advances in the east, reducing towns to rubble. The Olympic Truce, clearly, has not been heeded. In the run-up to every Olympics over the past 30 years, the United Nations passes a resolution upholding the Olympic Truce. In theory, it halts hostilities in the name of granting athletes safe passage and promoting world peace. Not even two weeks into it, the news of missile strikes, annexations and heightened tensions is ceaseless.
Russia's war on Ukraine will top the agenda when U.S. President Joe Biden and his NATO counterparts meet on Tuesday and Wednesday. The focus will be what to do about Ukraine's future membership of NATO, and the security guarantees the country might need to ensure that Russia doesn't invade again after the war is over. The leaders are set to endorse new defense plans should President Vladimir Putin try to broaden Russia's war beyond Ukraine and westward into allied territory. Sweden's accession is up for discussion too, as Turkey delays the Nordic country's entry into the world's biggest security organization. The leaders will also set a new, higher target for defense spending.
