National Security

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks about Russia and Ukraine during a briefing at the State Department in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday.

The U.S. says it will stand firm against major Russian demands as tension rises

5:47pm January 26, 2022

by Becky Sullivan

Among the demands from Russia was a guarantee that Ukraine be permanently barred from NATO membership. That would violate a U.S. "core principle," Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday.

National

Homeland Security is trying to root out domestic violent extremism in the U.S.

7:41am January 26, 2022

by Odette Yousef

The Biden administration's new Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships aims to stop radicalization before it starts. But critics say it's a repackaging of failed strategies and inadequate.

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Snow covers Kyiv's city center in December.

Kyiv or Kiev? Why people disagree about how to pronounce the Ukrainian capital's name

5:43pm January 25, 2022

by Jerome Socolovsky

What's the correct way to call a foreign city — by its English name, if it has one, or by its name in the local language? For the people involved, it can be a serious matter entwined with geopolitics.

American troops battle ISIS for control of Syrian prison

5:23pm January 25, 2022

American forces are fighting the Islamic State for control of a prison in northeastern Syria, in the most substantial military engagement with ISIS since it lost the last of its territory in 2019.

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A soldier pauses in territory controlled by pro-Russian militants in eastern Ukraine. The U.S. and its allies are preparing responses and counter-responses if Russia invades Ukraine.

President Biden says a Russian invasion of Ukraine 'would change the world'

4:10pm January 25, 2022

by Brian Naylor

Biden said should Russian President Putin move in using the more than 100,000 Russian troops surrounding Ukraine, "it would be the largest invasion since World War II. It would change the world."

U.S. soldiers take part in a joint military combat exercise with Estonian soldiers in 2017 near Tapa, Estonia. The U.S. is readying 8,500 troops to possibly deploy to Eastern Europe.

The U.S. is placing 8,500 troops on alert for possible deployment to Eastern Europe

6:46pm January 24, 2022

by James Doubek

The Pentagon said no final decision has been made, but Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin wanted U.S. forces to be ready "just in case" of a Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Tired of forever wars, the U.S. weighs options if Russia invades Ukraine

4:41pm January 24, 2022

NPR's Asma Khalid speaks with retired U.S. Navy Admiral James Stavridis about how to address a potential Russian invasion of Ukraine.

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Biden weighs sending 5,000 troops to Eastern Europe to counter Russia

8:57am January 24, 2022

The Biden administration is considering a plan to send several thousand additional U.S. troops into NATO countries in eastern Europe, near both Russia and Ukraine.

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Soldiers of Poland, Britain, US and Romania take part in military exercises at the military training ground in Bemowo Piskie, Poland on Nov. 18, 2021.

U.S. weighs sending 5,000 troops to Eastern Europe to counter Russia

11:27pm January 23, 2022

by Emma Bowman

Biden is considering sending up to 5,000 troops to Eastern European countries, including Romania and Poland, a U.S. official told NPR. Russia has stationed 100,000 troops near Ukraine.

Chairman Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., of the House panel investigating the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol insurrection testifies before the House Rules Committee in December.

Jan. 6 panel is investigating a Trump administration plan to seize voting machines

8:09pm January 23, 2022

by Matthew S. Schwartz

Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi confirmed Sunday that an executive order was drafted for Trump to sign that would have used the military to seize machines in battleground states.