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Morning Headlines
Reuters: Ukraine could export several billion dollars of military goods and services this year after authorising its first wartime foreign sales and is considering introducing a tax on those exports, a senior Ukrainian defence official said.
Meduza: In a new investigation, journalists examined the private correspondence of Russian General Roman Demurchiev. They found that he had boasted to close contacts and fellow service members about torturing, executing, and desecrating the bodies of Ukrainian military personnel, including prisoners of war.
The Kyiv Independent: Polish President Karol Nawrocki signed legislation on Feb. 19 transferring support measures for Ukrainian refugees into Poland’s general Law on the Protection of Foreigners, ending a separate legal framework created after Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022.
ISW: Western sources tied Putin’s unwillingness to compromise in negotiations to his belief that the Russian economy can continue to support a protracted war, which is consistent with ISW’s longstanding assessment of Putin’s theory of victory.
More News
The Guardian: Italy, the Winter Olympic hosts, has called for a reversal of the decision to let 10 Russian and Belarusian athletes compete with national flags and anthems at next month’s Paralympic Games.
Reuters: The International Monetary Fund on Thursday said its board would review a staff-level agreement for a new $8.1 billion lending program for Ukraine in coming days.
The Insider: A court in Belgium has ordered the arrest of Viktor Labin, an operative of Russia’s GRU military intelligence agency and the subject of an earlier investigation by The Insider.
ERR: Israeli citizen Anatoly Privalov was sentenced by an Estonian court to six years and six months in prison for spying against Estonia for Russia's FSB.
United24 Media: A 23-year-old man in Portugal has been formally accused of espionage after allegedly trying to sell information taken from NATO military computer equipment to the Russian Embassy in Lisbon.
NV: Ukrainian defense forces are reducing the “gray zone” in the south and preventing Russian troops from advancing deeper into Ukraine, while Russian claims of capturing Krynychne in Zaporizhzhya Oblast are false, a military spokesman said on Feb. 19.
The Moscow Times: The average price of a new passenger car in Russia has risen 46% since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, climbing from 2.4 million rubles ($31,200) to 3.5 million rubles ($45,500), according to Sergei Tselikov, head of the Avtostat analytical agency.
The Kyiv Independent: If Washington lifts sanctions on Russia, the United States could gain access to joint projects with Moscow worth more than $14 trillion, Kremlin economic negotiator Kirill Dmitriev said on Feb. 18.
Reuters: Hungary is considering cutting off power and gas exports to Ukraine unless Kyiv resumes Russian oil shipments to the country via the Druzhba pipeline, Orban's chief of staff told a briefing on Thursday.
Euronews: The European Commission has convened an emergency Oil Coordination Group meeting after Hungary and Slovakia halted diesel supplies to Ukraine, escalating a dispute over the Russian Druzhba pipeline.
United24 Media: Ukraine’s domestic defense industry is now providing more than 50% of the weapons and equipment required by the country’s Defense Forces and is moving toward deeper joint production with European partners, according to a statement published by Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense on February 19.
The Kyiv Independent: The United States is pressing allies not to invite Ukraine to formal meetings at the NATO summit in Ankara on July 7–8, Politico reported on Feb. 19, citing four Alliance diplomats.
Euractiv: One-third of the EU-made military goods that still reach Russia pass through Turkey, a new report by the German economic research institute Ifo revealed on Thursday.
Reuters: Sweden announced on Thursday a 12.9 billion crown ($1.42 billion) military aid package for Ukraine that will include air defence, drones, long-range missiles and ammunition.
The Kyiv Independent: Moldovan police said on Feb. 19 they had launched a joint investigation with Ukrainian authorities into an alleged plot to assassinate several "public figures" in Ukraine, claiming the operation was directed by Russian special services.
BBC: A total of 1,000 Kenyans have been recruited to fight for Russia, according to a Kenyan intelligence report that details a network of rogue officials allegedly colluding with human trafficking syndicates.
Reuters: European intelligence chiefs are pessimistic about the chances of an agreement being reached this year to end Russia's war in Ukraine, despite Trump's assertions that U.S.-brokered talks have brought the prospect of a deal "reasonably close".
worth mentioning
Sexual violence in the Ukraine war: Six women break their silence
Epstein waged a years-long quest to meet Putin and talk finance
Poland can mine border within 48 hours after Ottawa Convention exit, PM says
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