Russia

Ukrainian soldiers repair their truck's bullet-shattered windshield Thursday, hit during their withdrawal from Debaltseve Wednesday.

World News

Ukraine Update: Fighting Shifts To Mariupol; A Call For U.N. Peacekeepers

7:30pm February 19, 2015

by Bill Chappell

Ukraine says that in the past 24 hours alone, 14 of its soldiers have died and 172 were injured. The leaders of France, Germany, Ukraine and Russia are trying to salvage a cease-fire.

World News

British Fighter Jets Escort Russian Bombers Away From Coast Of U.K.

4:12pm February 19, 2015

by Jackie Northam

British Typhoon warplanes were scrambled after Russian military aircraft skirted England. The incident comes after the U.K. criticized Russia for its actions in Ukraine.

Yakutsk, Russia is the world's coldest city: average winter temperatures hit -30 degrees. It's also the largest city built on permafrost.

Thrilled By Chills? Take A Look At The World's Coldest City

9:53pm February 15, 2015

by NPR Staff

In a remote region in Russia, six time zones away from Moscow, lies the coldest city on earth. Rich with natural resources, Yakutsk is home to 270,000 residents brave enough to face the extreme cold.

Queue Listen Now

Members of the Ukrainian armed forces ride on a military vehicle not far from Debaltseve, eastern Ukraine on Sunday.

World News

Sporadic Shelling Continues As Ukraine Truce Takes Effect

8:46am February 15, 2015

by Scott Neuman

The fighting continued around the Luhansk region and in the heavily disputed city of Debaltseve.

A Ukrainian military convoy stops on the road between the towns of Debaltseve and Artemivsk, Ukraine, on Saturday, hours before a cease-fire agreement is set to go into effect.

World News

Ukraine Truce Now In Effect. But Will It Hold?

7:18pm February 14, 2015

by Scott Neuman

A cease-fire deal forged earlier this week in Minsk has gone into effect with fighting right up to the midnight deadline. But skepticism abounds over the second truce in six months.

A Ukrainian government soldier waves to an armored vehicle on a road near the town of Artemivsk, Ukraine, Friday. Fighting between Russia-backed separatists and Ukrainian government forces has continued despite the agreement reached by leaders of Russia,

World News

As Cease-Fire Nears, Europe Warily Watches Fighting In Ukraine

10:44am February 13, 2015

by Bill Chappell

Despite Thursday's breakthrough, "The enemy shelled positions of the 'anti-terrorist operation' forces with the same intensity as before," a Ukrainian military official said Friday.

German youths wave flags as they celebrate the country's reunification at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin in 1990. One Russian lawmaker recently referred to West Germany's "annexation" of East Germany and said it was less legitimate than Russia's "reunific

World News

With New Moves, Russia's Parliament Looks To Rewrite History

4:25pm February 12, 2015

by Corey Flintoff

Russia's seizure of Crimea has been widely criticized. But what if Crimea was given away illegally to Ukraine back in 1954? Russian lawmakers are hard at work on their own version of history.

Russian President Vladimir Putin waves as he leaves a Ukrainian crisis peace summit in Minsk, Belarus. After hours of talks, Russia and Ukraine reached a deal for a cease-fire in eastern Ukraine.

World News

Ukraine Cease-Fire Is Reached, Along With $40 Billion Aid Deal

9:23am February 12, 2015

by Bill Chappell

A new cease-fire is set to begin on Sunday in eastern Ukraine, in a deal after 16 hours of peace talks between Russia and Ukraine. The deal calls for the removal of heavy weapons.

World News

Putin Presents Egyptian Leader With An AK-47

2:47pm February 10, 2015

by Jackie Northam

Russian President Vladimir Putin is in Cairo for talks with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi, one day before a critical meeting in Minsk over the future of Ukraine.

President Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel hold a joint news conference at the White House on Monday.

'Lethal Defensive Weapons' One Option In Ukraine, Obama Says

2:08pm February 09, 2015

by Krishnadev Calamur

The president said the option was one of many he was considering if diplomacy fails. Germany's chancellor, who held a joint news conference with the president, backs diplomacy to end the crisis.