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Ukraine

Ukraine is the second largest country in Europe after Russia, gaining independence from the Soviet Union and declaring neutrality in 1991. In February 2022, Russia's President Vladimir Putin ordered an invasion of Ukraine under the auspices of a "special military operation" to "de-nazify" the country. The move turned Moscow into a global pariah, and the Ukrainian army - backed financially and militarily by the US and western European countries - continues to fight off the invading forces. Nuclear-armed Russia has warned of consequences if Nato interferes in the war, while strategic ally China urges a peaceful, diplomatic solution.

Capital

Kyiv

Head of State

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy

Head of Government

Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal

Eileen Gu was all smiles after eventually qualifying for the final in second place. Photo: AP

SCMP Highlights

China accused of secret nuclear tests, Eileen Gu’s wake up call: 5 weekend reads

From China’s companies keeping Ukraine’s lights on to pushing endurance limits, here are five stories you may have missed over the weekend.

36 minutes ago

Greenland

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Russia

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8 Feb 2026 - 6:31PM

Ukraine war

Ukraine’s Zelensky says US wants deal to end Russia’s war by June

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8 Feb 2026 - 1:34AM

Firefighters work at the site of a Russian drone and missile strike in Kyiv, in an image released on Saturday. Photo: State Emergency Service of Ukraine via Reuters

Ukraine war

Russia strikes Ukraine power grid despite ongoing US-led peace talks

Ukrainians have accused Moscow of deliberately targeting the grid, leaving hundreds of thousands without heating in sub-zero temperatures.

7 Feb 2026 - 3:51PM

Xi Jinping

Editorial | Xi’s same-day calls with Trump and Putin showcase head-of-state diplomacy

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7 Feb 2026 - 7:15AM

North Korea

‘I won’t survive’: North Korean soldier caught by Ukraine dreads going home

Seoul faces a diplomatic tightrope as the captured soldiers plead for asylum in South Korea.

7 Feb 2026 - 7:21AMvideocam

A North Korean prisoner of war who was captured by Ukrainian forces in 2025. Photo: AFP

China trade

As Beijing and Moscow tout ties, China’s companies keep Ukraine’s lights on

Ukrainians are buying Chinese batteries and emergency items en masse after Russian strikes, with Beijing’s ties to Moscow no damper on trade.

7 Feb 2026 - 6:39AMvideocam

India

Opinion | Why the new US-India trade agreement is a big deal

The warming of New Delhi’s ties with Washington has implications for Russia, China and the global dynamics of trade and geopolitical power.

7 Feb 2026 - 5:30AMvideocam

Russia

Deputy chief of Russia’s military intelligence wounded in Moscow shooting

Several senior Russian officers have been assassinated since the start of the war in Ukraine.

6 Feb 2026 - 7:29PM

Lieutenant General Vladimir Alekseyev in 2023. Photo: Russian Defence Ministry via Reuters

Space

Opinion | How US-China space race is blurring line between civilian and military

While the private sector seeks the next trillion-dollar breakthrough, national governments race to secure the orbital assets that now underpin modern deterrence.

6 Feb 2026 - 12:40PMvideocam

US-China relations

What Xi’s calls with Trump and Putin reveal about China’s balancing act

Beijing holds rare same-day talks with Kremlin and White House as powers face headwinds at home, energy uncertainties and nuclear pact’s end.

5 Feb 2026 - 11:58PMvideocam

US-China trade war

Canada’s former deputy PM hopes for less economic dependency on China in future

Canada’s former deputy prime minister supports economic system ‘in which China works’ but other countries’ vulnerabilities are limited.

5 Feb 2026 - 8:28AMvideocam

Ukraine war

Ukraine and Russia wrap ‘productive’ first day of US-backed peace talks

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5 Feb 2026 - 4:18AM

Flames are seen at an apartment building following a Russian air attack in Kyiv early on Tuesday. Photo: AFP

US-China relations

Xi speaks with Trump hours after video chat with Putin, talks Taiwan, Ukraine

Chinese readout says Xi urged caution on US arms sales to Taiwan as Trump pledged dialogue to keep bilateral relations positive and stable.

5 Feb 2026 - 9:20AMvideocam

Chinese President Xi Jinping has spoken to US President Donald Trump hours after talking to Vladimir Putin, at a time when a US-Russia nuclear pact is set to expire. Photos: AFP

Japan

Video | Ukrainian sumo star eyes grand championship title in Japan

Aonishiki Arata, who fled the Ukraine war in 2022, has won 2 Japanese grand tournament titles back-to-back.

4 Feb 2026 - 9:25PMvideocam

Japan

Video | Ukrainian sumo star eyes top title in Japan

Aonishiki Arata, who fled the Ukraine war in 2022, has won 2 Japanese grand tournament titles back-to-back.

4 Feb 2026 - 8:58PM

Ukraine war

Ukraine left freezing as Russia bombs energy grid before peace talks

Largest barrage of the year hits Kyiv and Kharkiv, damaging power plants. Zelensky says Moscow chose terror over diplomacy as talks loom.

3 Feb 2026 - 6:02PM

Emergency services personnel battle to extinguish a blaze at a multi-storey residential building after a Russian attack in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Tuesday. Photo: Ukrainian Emergency Service/AP

ICBMs

China grows nuclear arsenal as last US-Russia limits expire

President Xi Jinping plans to further expand China’s nuclear weapons stockpile, while caps on US and Russian deployments end this week.

5 Feb 2026 - 2:58PM

United States

Trump lifts Russia-related oil tariffs on India under new trade deal

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3 Feb 2026 - 6:00AMvideocam

China-Russia relations

Could Greenland and Iran have been factors in latest China-Russia talks?

Sunday’s meeting between senior officials saw Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi warning against the ‘law of the jungle’.

2 Feb 2026 - 10:16PMvideocam

Wang Yi and Sergei Shoigu, pictured in Beijing on Sunday. Photo: Xinhua

Ukraine war

Russian drone strike on bus in Ukraine kills 12 miners as more peace talks loom

Ukraine’s first deputy PM condemns ‘targeted’ attack on energy workers as Zelensky says next trilateral peace talks to be February 4-5.

2 Feb 2026 - 9:53AM

A bus that was hit by a Russian drone in Dnipropetrovsk region, Ukraine. Photo: Ukrainian Prosecutor’s Office via AP

Ukraine war

Electricity lines between Ukraine, Moldova, Romania fail, with mass outages

The incident, in sub-zero temperatures, prompted a complete shutdown of Kyiv’s metro network and knocked out its water supplies.

31 Jan 2026 - 11:40PMvideocam

Asean

Asian Angle | ‘Old order is not coming back’: Trump’s US, not China, threatens status quo

American unpredictability is pushing countries to hedge more proactively – and, ironically, soften existing tensions with China.

31 Jan 2026 - 11:00AM

Ukraine war

The foreigners who fought for Russia, now stuck in POW limbo in Ukraine

Captured foreigners describe journeys from joining the Russian side to a Ukrainian jail with no way home.

30 Jan 2026 - 4:32PM

Prisoners of war at a detention centre in western Ukraine. Photo: AFP

Ukraine war

Trump says Putin agreed to not fire on Ukraine’s freezing capital for a week

Amid record-setting cold, the US president says he personally requested Russia halt energy strikes as peace talks prepare to resume.

30 Jan 2026 - 6:54PM

A resident warms up next to fire during a blackout in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Monday. Photo: Reuters

Russia

Video | Men from Bangladesh tricked into fighting for Russia

Men from across South Asia and Africa said they were promised jobs that ended up on the frontlines.

29 Jan 2026 - 10:22PM

Japan

Why more Japanese than ever support strengthening the military

A record-high survey result reflects how the war in Ukraine and regional tensions have reshaped Japan’s once cautious security outlook.

29 Jan 2026 - 9:30AMvideocam

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Ukraine

China accused of secret nuclear tests, Eileen Gu’s wake up call: 5 weekend reads

From China’s companies keeping Ukraine’s lights on to pushing endurance limits, here are five stories you may have missed over the weekend.

.css-sioo19{color:#c79a00;}Open Questions | Europe must act fast in Trump’s more brutal new world order: Luuk van Middelaar

Russia says suspect in shooting of top general detained in Dubai

Ukraine’s Zelensky says US wants deal to end Russia’s war by June

The president suggested that the Trump administration’s focus later in the year would be on the US midterm elections.

Russia strikes Ukraine power grid despite ongoing US-led peace talks

Ukrainians have accused Moscow of deliberately targeting the grid, leaving hundreds of thousands without heating in sub-zero temperatures.

.css-1m2rp1p{color:#34b8b5;}Editorial | Xi’s same-day calls with Trump and Putin showcase head-of-state diplomacy

At a time of geopolitical uncertainty, the extraordinary back-to-back conversations with the leaders of Russia and the US highlight Xi’s diplomatic approach.

‘I won’t survive’: North Korean soldier caught by Ukraine dreads going home

Seoul faces a diplomatic tightrope as the captured soldiers plead for asylum in South Korea.

As Beijing and Moscow tout ties, China’s companies keep Ukraine’s lights on

Ukrainians are buying Chinese batteries and emergency items en masse after Russian strikes, with Beijing’s ties to Moscow no damper on trade.

Opinion | Why the new US-India trade agreement is a big deal

The warming of New Delhi’s ties with Washington has implications for Russia, China and the global dynamics of trade and geopolitical power.

Deputy chief of Russia’s military intelligence wounded in Moscow shooting

Several senior Russian officers have been assassinated since the start of the war in Ukraine.

Opinion | How US-China space race is blurring line between civilian and military

While the private sector seeks the next trillion-dollar breakthrough, national governments race to secure the orbital assets that now underpin modern deterrence.

What Xi’s calls with Trump and Putin reveal about China’s balancing act

Beijing holds rare same-day talks with Kremlin and White House as powers face headwinds at home, energy uncertainties and nuclear pact’s end.

Canada’s former deputy PM hopes for less economic dependency on China in future

Canada’s former deputy prime minister supports economic system ‘in which China works’ but other countries’ vulnerabilities are limited.

Ukraine and Russia wrap ‘productive’ first day of US-backed peace talks

The negotiations in Abu Dhabi focused on Moscow’s territorial demands and the fate of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.

Xi speaks with Trump hours after video chat with Putin, talks Taiwan, Ukraine

Chinese readout says Xi urged caution on US arms sales to Taiwan as Trump pledged dialogue to keep bilateral relations positive and stable.

Video | Ukrainian sumo star eyes grand championship title in Japan

Aonishiki Arata, who fled the Ukraine war in 2022, has won 2 Japanese grand tournament titles back-to-back.

.css-rcruog{color:#C79A00;}Video | Ukrainian sumo star eyes top title in Japan

Aonishiki Arata, who fled the Ukraine war in 2022, has won 2 Japanese grand tournament titles back-to-back.

Ukraine left freezing as Russia bombs energy grid before peace talks

Largest barrage of the year hits Kyiv and Kharkiv, damaging power plants. Zelensky says Moscow chose terror over diplomacy as talks loom.

China grows nuclear arsenal as last US-Russia limits expire

President Xi Jinping plans to further expand China’s nuclear weapons stockpile, while caps on US and Russian deployments end this week.

Trump lifts Russia-related oil tariffs on India under new trade deal

Under the pact, India’s tariffs have been reduced from 50 per cent to 18 per cent.

Could Greenland and Iran have been factors in latest China-Russia talks?

Sunday’s meeting between senior officials saw Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi warning against the ‘law of the jungle’.

Russian drone strike on bus in Ukraine kills 12 miners as more peace talks loom

Ukraine’s first deputy PM condemns ‘targeted’ attack on energy workers as Zelensky says next trilateral peace talks to be February 4-5.

Electricity lines between Ukraine, Moldova, Romania fail, with mass outages

The incident, in sub-zero temperatures, prompted a complete shutdown of Kyiv’s metro network and knocked out its water supplies.

Asian Angle | ‘Old order is not coming back’: Trump’s US, not China, threatens status quo

American unpredictability is pushing countries to hedge more proactively – and, ironically, soften existing tensions with China.

The foreigners who fought for Russia, now stuck in POW limbo in Ukraine

Captured foreigners describe journeys from joining the Russian side to a Ukrainian jail with no way home.

Trump says Putin agreed to not fire on Ukraine’s freezing capital for a week

Amid record-setting cold, the US president says he personally requested Russia halt energy strikes as peace talks prepare to resume.

Video | Men from Bangladesh tricked into fighting for Russia

Men from across South Asia and Africa said they were promised jobs that ended up on the frontlines.

Why more Japanese than ever support strengthening the military

A record-high survey result reflects how the war in Ukraine and regional tensions have reshaped Japan’s once cautious security outlook.

Open Questions | Europe must act fast in Trump’s more brutal new world order: Luuk van Middelaar

Editorial | Xi’s same-day calls with Trump and Putin showcase head-of-state diplomacy

Video | Ukrainian sumo star eyes top title in Japan