Putin says Russia wants a buffer zone in Ukraine's Kharkiv but has no plans to capture the city

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday that Moscow’s offensive in Ukraine’s northeastern Kharkiv region aims to create a buffer zone but has no plans to capture the city, as Ukraine will allow prisoners to join the army's depleted ranks and approved a fivefold...

Putin concludes a trip to China by emphasizing its strategic and personal ties to Russia

BEIJING (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin concluded a two-day visit to China on Friday, emphasizing the countries’ burgeoning strategic ties as well as his own personal relationship with Chinese leader Xi Jinping as they sought to present an alternative to U.S. global influence. ...

Taiwan’s foreign minister says China and Russia are supporting each other's ‘expansionism’

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Russia and China are helping each other expand their territorial reach, and democracies must push back against authoritarian states that threaten their rights and sovereignty, Taiwan’s outgoing foreign minister, Joseph Wu, said in an interview with The Associated Press. ...

Ukraine says it has checked Russia's offensive in a key town, but Moscow says it will keep pushing

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian units locked in street battles with the Kremlin’s forces in a key northeastern Ukraine town have halted the Russian advance, military officials in Kyiv claimed Thursday, though a senior Moscow official said the frontline push had enough resources to keep going. ...

Russia expels British defense attaché in a tit-for-tat move

MOSCOW (AP) — Russia on Thursday declared Britain's defense attaché persona non grata and gave the diplomat a week to leave the country in response to London's decision to expel the Russian defense attaché earlier this month over spying allegations. Russia's Foreign Ministry...

China and Russia reaffirm their close ties as Moscow presses its offensive in Ukraine

BEIJING (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Thursday reaffirmed their “no-limits” partnership that has deepened as both countries face rising tensions with the West, and they criticized U.S. military alliances in Asia and the Pacific region. ...

What to know about Vladimir Putin's visit to China

Russian President Vladimir Putin's visit to China starting Thursday underlines an increasingly close partnership between the two allies who oppose the U.S.-led democratic order. China, led by President Xi Jinping, has offered robust diplomatic support to Moscow after its invasion of...

Russia's President Vladimir Putin arrives in China for a state visit in a show of unity between the authoritarian allies

ICC prosecutor faces demand for action against Israeli leaders and Russian attack over Putin warrant

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The International Criminal Court’s prosecutor faced demands Tuesday for speedy action against Israeli leaders and a blistering Russian attack over the ICC’s arrest warrant for President Vladimir Putin stemming from Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. Karim...

Protesters throng streets of Georgia's capital after parliament passes so-called 'Russian law'

TBILISI, Georgia (AP) — Huge throngs of protesters blocked streets in the capital of Georgia and milled angrily outside the parliament building after lawmakers on Tuesday approved a “foreign influence” bill that critics call a Russian-style threat to free speech and the country’s...