And a huge thank you to @ilyushina.bsky.social for covering this critical analysis with a stellar article in the @washingtonpost.com! Read👇 www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/0...

“In many ways Putin has already got what he wants - the chance to negotiate directly with the US on Ukraine, possibly over the heads of Kyiv and Europe - as well as the opportunity to put himself at the top table of international politics,” writes BBC’s Steve Rosenberg. www.bbc.com/news/article...

Kremlin sounded less enthusiastic than Trump when asked whether yesterday’s Fogel swap is a step towards the end of war in Ukraine: “Such agreements are unlikely to become a turning point, but at the same time they represent the bit by bit rebuilding of mutual trust, which is at its lowest point."

The major fuel oil spill on the Black Sea was at first largely ignored by local and federal officials, even as thousands of volunteers flocked in to aid in the Sisyphean cleanup — sifting sand to separate it from sludge as waves bring in more deposits. www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/0...

Got a flash: “2025 has occurred in Russia - witnesses”

What our friends in Moscow are saying about Trump's cabinet picks wapo.st/3CPd7Ac by @ilyushina.bsky.social

Russia has been closely watching Donald Trump’s Cabinet picks, meticulously tracking the nominees’ positions on military aid to Ukraine and opinions of President Vladimir Putin, in hopes of predicting the policies of a president who is famously unpredictable. www.washingtonpost.com/world/2024/1...

Welcome, @ilyushina.bsky.social!