Russia

A Russian-American citizen has been released in a prisoner swap between Moscow and Washington after spending more than a year in a Russian prison. Ksenia Karelina, an amateur ballerina and Los Angeles resident, was arrested in early 2024 while visiting family in Yekaterinburg. Russia's FSB security service accused her of fundraising for a Ukrainian organization that allegedly provided arms to the Ukrainian military. She pleaded guilty last August and received a 12-year prison sentence. According to Russian human rights activists, Karelina had made a single $51 (£39) donation to a Ukrainian charity on February 22, 2022—the first day of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The charity in question has denied raising money for weapons or ammunition, stating that its focus is humanitarian aid and disaster relief. The FSB reportedly discovered the transaction on Karelina's phone. In exchange for her release, […]

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy affirmed on Monday that Kyiv is committed to intensive diplomacy to swiftly end the three-year conflict with Russia, emphasizing his hope for continued US support in securing peace. The statements came three days after Zelenskiy's White House meeting with US President Donald Trump, reportedly ending in tense exchanges. Zelenskiy's comments highlighted the urgency of diplomatic solutions and the critical role of US backing in these efforts. Trump had suggested his patience with the Ukrainian leader was wearing thin following an AP report quoting Zelenskiy saying the end of the war was "very, very far away." This comment came during Zelenskiy's attendance at a weekend meeting with European allies focused on developing a settlement plan, which occurred shortly after the contentious White House meeting. "It is very important that we try to make our diplomacy substantive to […]