Steve Rosenberg: "Agriculture in Crisis": Russian Newspapers Write about Russia's Economic Problems

July 31, 2026 | Today one Russian paper claims Ukrainian strikes “haven’t yet caused Russia damage that could be regarded by the authorities as a reason to compromise.” Meanwhile, Russian “agriculture is plunging into crisis…construction already deep in the red.”

Putin Is Selling Off Russia's Gold. Is the War Economy Losing Steam? | DW News

July 30, 2026 | Russia has started selling gold from its reserves. It is not a sign of imminent collapse, but it does show Moscow is relying more heavily on the financial cushion built to withstand sanctions and war.

NATO Confirms Russian Missile Landed Inside Poland | DW News

July 30, 2026 | The western military alliance NATO has confirmed that a Russian missile came down in Poland, some 50 kilometers from the country's border with Ukraine, during a night of widespread Russian aerial attacks across Ukraine. Anja Kueppers-McKinnon speaks to DW's NATO expert Teri Schultz about NATO's response.

Steve Rosenberg: Some Russian Regions Experiencing "Fuel Discomfort" - One Russian Paper on the Fuel Shortage

July 28, 2026 | One of today’s Russian papers notes that yesterday the Duma speaker “repeated five times ‘Russia. Putin. Victory.” He was later awarded a medal (by the president). Meanwhile, some Russian regions are still experiencing “noticeable fuel discomfort”.

Steve Rosenberg: "Back to Square One": Russian Newspaper Downbeat on Ukraine War Diplomacy

July 27, 2026 | “We’re back to square one,” declares one Russian newspaper this morning on “efforts to settle the Russia-Ukraine conflict.” Another paper quotes Vladimir Putin as saying “We didn’t start a war”, nearly 4 ½ years after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Steve Rosenberg: Drone Attacks on Russian Online Retailer Wildberries: Reaction in the Russian Press

July 23, 2026 | Coming up: what this morning’s Russian papers are saying about the Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian online retailer Wildberries. Also in the papers: “Russians expect prices to soar.” Plus, an interesting editorial about “a cacophony of ideologies.”

Russia Cannot Win in Ukraine: Yale Historian Odd Arne Westad Explains Why | DW News

July 18, 2026 | Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine lasts longer than the First World War. Can these wars really be compared? How long could the war in Ukraine last, and how might it end? What risks does Vladimir Putin face if he expands the war to other regions of Europe?

Odd Arne Westad, a Norwegian historian, professor at Yale University and an expert on the history of the Cold War, as well as on the history of China and East Asia speaks to DW about history lessons for Russia, Europe and the world. His book, published in the spring of 2026, is called ‘The Coming Storm. Power, Conflicts and the Warnings of History”.

Sir William Browder on Trump's Capitulation to Russia, as the Wars in Iran and Ukraine Rage On

July 20, 2026 | Sir William Browder joins Anthony Davis to discuss Putin’s efforts in Ukraine, against NATO and the shifting world order as Trump fails to end the war in Iran and blames China for election interference. And was Lindsey Graham another victim of Russian poisoning? Only on The Weekend Show.

ANTHONY DAVIS can be supported on Patreon here.

Russia Pounds Kyiv for Five Hours in One of Its Biggest Ballistic Missile Attacks

Screenshot taken from this Guardian article. | A firefighter at work after about 40 missiles hit the Ukraine capital of Kyiv in night-time strikes. Photograph: Reuters
THE GUARDIAN: At least one person killed after dozens of missiles arrive in less than an hour and three-storey building catches fire

Russia has carried out one of its biggest-ever ballistic missile attacks on Kyiv, launching a five-hour raid that left at least one person dead and seven injured, with fires and damage across the city.

Ukrainian officials said the capital was hit with about 40 Iskander-M and hypersonic Zircon missiles. Residents heard an air raid siren sound at 1.30am. There was the sound of air defences, followed minutes later by a series of booms and explosions.

Houses in Kyiv’s historic centre shook, and car alarms blared, as dozens of missiles arrived in less than an hour. There was a second air raid siren at 6.30am, with more impacts reported.

A three-storey building caught fire in the central Shevchenkivsky district. Rescuers dug out several people trapped inside and recovered a body. Four other areas were hit, with fires reported at office and residential buildings and a dormitory.

Residents sheltering inside Lukyanivska metro station posted footage after the ceiling in the ground-floor vestibule collapsed because of a massive blast wave. The station is temporarily closed. » | Luke Harding in Kyiv | Sunday, July 19, 2026

Putin Will Never Make Peace in Ukraine. Bill Browder Explains Why | World of Trouble

Jul 11, 2026 | Vladimir Putin’s growing unpopularity in Russia means he cannot afford to end the war with Ukraine as he will be lynched by his own people, the president’s greatest personal enemy in the West has warned.

Sir Bill Browder told the Independent’s World of Trouble podcast: “If he does a peace deal, he’ll lose power. If he loses power, then he’ll get strung up from a lamppost.”

The anti-corruption campaigner, who once ran the biggest investment fund in Russia, has fought against Putin for nearly two decades. His latest intervention comes days after NATO leaders met in Turkey and agreed to allow Kyiv to produce its own Patriot air defence missiles, vital in withstanding the onslaught from Moscow.

Putin has variously claimed that he ordered the invasion of Ukraine in 2014 to see off a potential threat of NATO membership for Kyiv, to save Russian speaking peoples in the east of the country, or as part of a patriotic duty to return Ukraine to Russia’s empire.

Deadly Russian Strikes Hit Kyiv on Eve of NATO Summit

THE NEW YORK TIMES: Ballistic missiles were fired into the capital of Ukraine, as Russia launched its second major attack in less than a week. At least seven people were killed, officials said.

Explosions rocked the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv early on Monday, the eve of a NATO summit, as Russia mounted its second major attack on the city in days.

President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine, who is expected to attend the NATO summit in Turkey, had warned that Russia was preparing “a new massive strike” against the capital.

Loud blasts shook the city hours later. The regional military administration said ballistic missiles were flying, and Mayor Vitali Klitschko urged residents to stay in shelters.

Tymur Tkachenko, the head of Kyiv’s military administration, said that at least seven people had been killed. At least two dozen others were wounded. » | Cassandra Vinograd | Reporting from Kyiv, Ukraine | Sunday, July 5, 2026

Russia Planning Attack on Poland to Test Nato Resolve, US Warns

THE TELEGRAPH: Critical infrastructure could be targeted by missiles and drones, with soldiers potentially crossing the border from Kaliningrad or Belarus

Screenshot from this Telegraph article. | Polish security sources are not ruling out the prospect of a conventional ground incursion by Russian and/or Belarusian soldiers | Credit: Kacper Pempel/Reuters
Russia is planning an armed “provocation” on Polish soil to test Nato’s resolve, the United States has warned.

Polish critical infrastructure could be targeted by missiles and drones or Russian soldiers could cross the border into Nato territory.

Washington has issued several warnings to Warsaw about the plot, sources close to Karol Nawrocki, the Polish president, told Onet, the Polish news outlet, which, along with The Telegraph, is owned by Axel Springer and is part of its Global Reporters Network.

The goal of the Russian provocation would be to escalate tensions and force Western allies to suspend aid to Ukraine. It could be launched in a matter of months. » | Witold Jurasz in Warsaw. James Rothwell, Berlin Correspondent. Joe Barnes, Diplomatic Editor | Friday, July 3, 2026

À LIRE AUSSI :

La Russie prépare une attaque sur la Pologne pour «provoquer» l’Otan, selon les États-Unis : Washington a prévenu Varsovie de la possibilité d’une incursion terrestre russe d’ici quelques mois, rapporte le site d’information Onet, citant des sources proches du président polonais. »

Russia Hammers Ukraine’s Capital in Deadly Attacks

THE NEW YORK TIMES: At least 18 people were killed in Kyiv, the local authorities said. Ukraine’s president had warned that Moscow was preparing a “massive strike” as Ukrainian forces have hit deeper into Russian territory.

The Russian military blasted Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, with waves of ballistic missiles and drones that lasted into Thursday morning, a deadly show of force after weeks of Ukrainian attacks within Russia that have heaped pressure on President Vladimir V. Putin.

At least 18 people were killed and more than 30 injured in the attacks, Ukrainian officials said, as firefighters raced to extinguish blazes in several districts of the capital. Several apartment buildings were partially destroyed and an unknown number of people were trapped in the rubble, according to the local authorities.

The Russian barrage was the latest in the deadliest spring for Ukraine since Moscow’s full-scale invasion in 2022, as Ukrainian strikes prompt Mr. Putin to respond militarily. Ukraine has been bringing the war home to Russia by using long-range drones and cruise missiles to attack fuel facilities and military installations deep inside Russia and in occupied Crimea.

These attacks have caused widespread fuel shortages and have eroded Mr. Putin’s ability to insulate large parts of his country, including Moscow, the capital, from the war.

Ukraine’s strategy on the battlefield rests on forcing the Russian military to pay a heavy price for every mile of land it seizes while raising the economic costs for the Kremlin. Moscow believes it can outlast Kyiv’s outnumbered forces on the front while inflicting such a heavy human and economic toll that it breaks the will of civilians, according to Western military analysts.

In a statement on Thursday, Russia’s defense ministry called the strikes on Kyiv a response to Ukraine’s recent attacks inside Russia.

Many Kyiv residents had been bracing for a large-scale Russian assault in part because about two weeks had passed since the last one, giving Moscow time to stockpile missiles and drones. President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine had warned in recent days that Russia was preparing another “massive strike,” and he urged people to be “especially careful.” Live Updates » | Cassandra Vinograd | Reporting from Kyiv, Ukraine | Thursday, July 2, 2026

À LIRE AUSSI :

« La pire attaque depuis le début de la guerre en Ukraine » : ce que l’on sait des frappes russes sur Kiev, qui ont fait au moins 17 morts : Le président ukrainien Volodymyr Zelensky avait indiqué mercredi après-midi depuis Dublin rentrer immédiatement à Kiev, disant craindre une attaque « de grande envergure » de la Russie. »

LESEN SIE AUCH:

Schwerster Angriff seit Kriegsbeginn: Russland überzieht Kiew mit Raketen und Drohnen: Russland hat in der Nacht mehrere ukrainische Städte mit Raketen, Marschflugkörpern und Drohnen angegriffen. In Kiew wurden Wohnhäuser zerstört, mindestens 18 Menschen kamen ums Leben. »

Crimea Back in Play? Russia Feels Pain of Ukraine Long-range Strikes • FRANCE 24 English

Jun 30, 2026 | A couple of weeks back, we asked if the tide was turning in Ukraine. The short answer: a little, but it's hard to cut through the fog of war. Now, we're beginning to wonder if Crimea could be back in play. Kyiv's new line of longer-range missiles and drones are wreaking havoc on fuel and power supplies. And while Russia continues to inch forward in other frontline flashpoints, the peninsula occupied in 2014 by Vladimir Putin's little green men has never looked so vulnerable.

A Ukrainian offensive still seems like a pipe dream. Instead, is the current pressure a way to force concessions out of a Kremlin forced to admit what's all over Russian social media: that petrol stations across Russia are running on empty because of those long-range strikes? Will Vladimir Putin compromise or double down?

And what do Crimeans themselves want? Most seemed happy to vote yes in a referendum to rejoin a Russia they only left in 1954. More broadly, what consequences for the entire Black Sea region, which since 2022 has alternated between periods of war, disruption and mutually agreed calm to allow both sides to ship goods? The Black Sea is of course shared with Turkey, which hosts next week's timely NATO summit.


Related articles in English and French here.

Ukraine Launches 40-day Drone Strike Campaign to Pressure Russia to End War | DW News

June 28, 2026 | Ukraine has launched a wave of drone strikes as part of a 40-day push to force Moscow into talks to end the war. On Friday, Kyiv's forces launched over 600 drones at targets across Russia. DW News asked Ben Friedman, policy director at American foreign policy think tank Defense Priorities if the campaign could shift the battlefield stalemate.

Russia Preparing Possible ‘Provocation’ in Baltic States or Poland, Sources Say

THE GUARDIAN: Kremlin may attempt to test Nato cohesion as Russia comes under growing pressure from Ukraine, according to sources from two countries

This photo is from this Guardian article. | The aftermath of a Ukrainian attack on Moscow last week, when nearly nearly 200 drones hit several locations across the Russian capital. Photograph: EPA
Two countries on Nato’s eastern flank have warned that Russia is preparing a possible “provocation” in the Baltic states or Poland in an effort to test the cohesion of the western military alliance.

Western sources also fear there could be danger on the horizon because the Kremlin is coming under pressure from Ukraine’s campaign of long-range attacks on targets near Moscow and St Petersburg.

On Monday, Latvian intelligence said: “We see indications that Russia is preparing military provocations against the Baltic countries or Poland.” However, it would be well short of a full scale attack.

A senior political source from a second Nato member made a similar statement last week. They said “we are picking up intelligence” that Vladimir Putin was “planning something against the Baltic states”.

They said Putin might be willing to test US support for some of Nato’s smallest member countries – Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania – in a desperate effort “to throw the dice” as Russia struggles with its invasion of Ukraine. » | Dan Sabbagh | Defence and security editor | Friday, June 26, 2026

Steve Rosenberg: What Are Russian Papers Reporting about Fuel Shortages and Ukrainian Drone Strikes?

Jun 22, 2026 | One Russian paper today writes that Ukrainian drone strikes “aim to create a sense of crisis amongst Russians.” In Crimea “the sale of fuel to the public is suspended.” Another paper: Russia’s offensive in Ukraine will continue: “for that we will always have enough fuel.”

Steve Rosenberg: How Are Russian Newspapers Reacting to the Ukrainian Drone Strike on Moscow?

Jun 19,, 2026 | Today’s Russian papers call yesterday’s large-scale Ukrainian drone strike on Moscow “a record attack”, but claim “Russian attacks do more damage to Ukraine than they’re doing to us.” One paper wonders: “From Moscow’s perspective, what level of escalation is permissible & controllable, and what isn’t?”

Moscow Oil Refinery Struck in Ukraine’s Biggest Air Raid on City since Start of War

THE GUARDIAN: Kyiv says attack, which also forced evacuation at Russia’s biggest airport, was in response to strike on historic monastery

Ukrainian drones have hit several locations across Moscow in Kyiv’s biggest air raid on the city since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, setting a major ⁠oil refinery on fire and forcing evacuations at the country’s largest airport.

The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, described the attack as a response to Russia’s striking of a historic Kyiv monastery complex earlier this week.

“We do not want this war and never did,” Zelenskyy said in a voice message to journalists. “But if Ukraine is going to burn, your Moscow will burn too … It is time to end the aggression, time to end this war.” » | Peter Beaumont in Kyiv and Pjotr Sauer | Thursday, June 18, 2026

Steve Rosenberg: Russia: Drone Attacks & "Unscheduled Repairs at Oil Refineries"

June 17, 2026