According to a senior Biden administration official who spoke to Reuters on the condition of anonymity, President Joe Biden is sending five former top defense officials on a trip to Taiwan this week to “demonstrate our continued robust support for Taiwan.” The delegation is expected to arrive in Taiwan Tuesday afternoon and leave Wednesday afternoon.…

Five days into Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed an application for membership into the European Union (EU). Pictures of the signing were tweeted out by Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal. Video of the signing can be found above. “This is the choice of Ukraine and the Ukrainian people. We more than…

The new week of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began with peace talks between the two nations in Belarus. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s office said his country was seeking an immediate ceasefire and the withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine. The Kremlin declined to comment on what Russia was looking for out of the Monday peace…

Ukraine recorded increased radiation levels from the defunct Chernobyl nuclear power plant one day after the site was taken by Russian forces. Officials say the increased readings were the result of military activity causing radioactive dust to rise into the air. “Radiation starts to increase. It is not critical for Kyiv for the time being,…

As the world closely monitors the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine, Ukrainians and even the country’s president have gone viral on social media with their response. According to Belarus-based journalist Hanna Liubakova, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has described himself as Russia’s top enemy. “The enemy marked me as target number one, and my family as target…

As fighting increases near Ukraine’s capital city of Kyiv, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he will stay in Kyiv with the understanding that doing so puts his safety at risk. Friday morning, Russia claimed it had taken Kyiv’s airport, cutting the city off from the West. The United Nations estimates 50,000 Ukrainians have fled the country, and that…

Russia’s invasion into Ukraine has quickly turned deadly. Ukraine’s Health Minister reported that 57 people were killed and 169 wounded in the first day of fighting. EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell said: “These are among the darkest hours of Europe since the Second World War.” Dr. Emily Channell-Justice, a director at Harvard University’s Ukrainian…

For those of you who have read my second book, The Absent Superpower, recent events in Ukraine should not come as a surprise. Chapter 6, The Twilight War, lays out how Russian geography and demographic realities would dictate Russian aggression in its immediate periphery. This is not a justification of Moscow’s aggression against its neighbor, but international…

Now that the question of a Russian invasion of Ukraine has proven itself not to be a hypothetical, Western governments will be pushed to respond. The United States and its European allies are likely to pursue a sanctions campaign, but this is easier said than done. While it has been popular to deride Russia and…

While under attack by Russian forces, some Ukrainians have expressed hope that they can win this war. Ukraine broke away from Russia in 1991 when the Soviet Union fell, but Russian officials have maintained a desire to reintegrate Ukraine. “We will definitely win,” Vlad Zuiev, a Kyiv resident, said. “I know that.” Zuiev went on…