Free Republic

In 2020, just 246 people tried to sneak into Poland from Belarus through the marshy wetlands on the border, according to the Polish government’s records. There was a pandemic on, after all. But over the following year, almost 40,000 migrants from Syria, Somalia, Iran, Afghanistan, India and other countries crossed or attempted to cross this frontier. Those migrants didn’t end up in Belarus by accident. Some were carrying Russian visas or entry stamps. Russia and its ally — some would say lackey — Belarus were, in effect, importing migrants, delivering them to the Polish-Belarusian border and telling them to head...

Russia pummeled Ukraine’s capital with hundreds of drones and missiles early Thursday, the latest in a string of deadly Russian strikes this week. The attacks suggested that President Vladimir V. Putin had little intention of de-escalating his war, after he declared recently that he believed it was “coming to a close.” Explosions shook Kyiv, the capital, over several hours Thursday morning as Ukrainian forces tried to intercept and shoot down the drones and missiles, some of which evaded overwhelmed air-defense systems. The attack included cruise and ballistic missiles that Moscow often stockpiles for mass bombardments. As the sun rose, rescue...

More than a dozen airports across southern Russia suspended operations on Friday morning, while hundreds of flights were either cancelled or delayed after a Ukrainian drone crashed into the air traffic control center for the region, transportation authorities said. The strike damaged equipment at the control center in Rostov-on-Don, which manages aviation for southern Russia, the Transportation Ministry said. No one was reported injured, but the attack forced the center to suspend work. As a result, airports in southern Russia halted operations, including in the cities of Astrakhan, Vladikavkaz, Volgograd, Gelendzhik, Grozny, Krasnodar, Makhachkala, Magas, Mineralnye Vody, Nalchik, Sochi, Stavropol...

Following a yearlong deterioration of relations with the United States, Ukraine is considering its options for material assistance as Russia's war continues and the possibility of a peace deal remains remote. "When [President Donald] Trump was elected, many in Kyiv were hopeful he'd bring a welcome change," John Hardie, the deputy director of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) Russia Program, told Newsweek. "Now, the Ukrainians deal with Washington because they can't afford not to. The frustration is palpable." Former acting Under Secretary of Defense for Policy James Anderson, who worked in the first Trump administration, told Newsweek the...