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Who wins the information war? Russia's Ukraine invasion sparks global airwaves battle

While outlets like Russian broadcaster RT may now be blocked in places like France, Germany and the US, years of eroded trust in the so-called mainstream media mean that receptive audiences have long since defected to alternative news sources. That spin machine stunned the likes of France when, for instance, an under-embargo junta in Mali managed to turn public opinion against the French – despite them fighting jihadists – and in favour of the Russian mercenaries of Wagner. Those mercenaries are now reportedly headed to Ukraine.

Call for regime change? Biden departs from script to blast 'butcher' Putin

Is this just a bit of hyperbole that will soon be forgotten as the world watches Russia bomb civilians and push its invasion of Ukraine? Or a moment as significant as when Putin issued a thinly-veiled threat of nuclear war last month to deter the West from intervening? We dust off the Cold War playbook to see what works and what does not.

Putin's war: One month on, NATO on high alert as Russia recalibrates strategy in Ukraine

And if the kind of carpet bombing seen in Chechnya and Syria is not enough, what about chemical weapons? NATO allies were asked about red lines at their Thursday summit in Brussels.

NATO's red lines: How far will West go in support of Ukraine?

Exactly one month after Vladimir Putin launched what many predicted would be a lightning offensive, FRANCE 24 takes you to Irpin, one of those frontline suburbs of the capital Kyiv where Ukrainians now claim to be on the counter-offensive. Is it a turning point? Or are the Russians – who enjoy air supremacy – simply taking a breather while they pound major urban centres?

How far will it go? Russia attacks western Ukraine as aid remains blocked

From civilians under fire to President Volodymyr Zelensky, the call has been the same: for a no-fly zone. So far, NATO has refused point blank. Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg speaks for the Alliance with his flat refusal to close the sky over Ukraine. Now with a Russian air strike just 60 kilometres from the border of Poland, a NATO state, the hypothetical question becomes more real. Will NATO strike back?

Russia widens Ukraine bombardment, the battle of narratives, and is diplomacy the only solution?

Of all the deadly strikes carried out by Russia so far: the bombing of a maternity hospital in Mariupol earlier this week has perhaps sparked the most international outrage, as well as charges of a possible war crime. At least three people, including a child, were killed in the attack.

Europe's moment of truth? Russian invasion of Ukraine tests EU's resolve

Wednesday's shelling of a children's hospital in Mariupol a reminder that the West has seen this movie before in Chechnya and Syria. Are chemical weapons next? If so, what are the EU's red lines? Like NATO, the European Union upping assistance to Ukraine while so far shying away from putting boots on the ground. The 27 still hope unprecedented sanctions will suffice alongside ever-increasing armament.

Mother of all sanctions: Can the West do without Russian oil and gas?

We ask what energy independence looks like and weigh the costs of not heeding the call when Russia annexed Crimea back in 2014.

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Alessandro Xenos Sport News

Who wins the information war? Russia's Ukraine invasion sparks global airwaves battle

Call for regime change? Biden departs from script to blast 'butcher' Putin

Putin's war: One month on, NATO on high alert as Russia recalibrates strategy in Ukraine

NATO's red lines: How far will West go in support of Ukraine?

How far will it go? Russia attacks western Ukraine as aid remains blocked

Russia widens Ukraine bombardment, the battle of narratives, and is diplomacy the only solution?

Europe's moment of truth? Russian invasion of Ukraine tests EU's resolve

Mother of all sanctions: Can the West do without Russian oil and gas?