One month after the shock of Russia invading Ukraine, how is Vladimir Putin's war going? There have been territorial gains and near-total control of the skies by Russia, but no blitzkrieg grab of Kyiv and no fatal blow to Ukraine's defences. Instead, Ukraine is proving its resilience with successes like the claimed destruction of a Russian landing support ship in the Russian-occupied port of Berdiansk, which is strategically located to the west of the besieged city of Mariupol in the Sea of Azov.
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.
Meanwhile, where is Sergei Shoigu? Vladimir Putin's defence minister appeared in Russian security council footage on Thursday for the first time since February 27. But the video has raised more questions than answers. Why is there no audio on the tape? Was Shoigu really live or on a taped loop? The Kremlin spokesperson says he has not gone anywhere and is just very busy at his job.
What is confirmed is Moscow's most high-profile defection so far. Vladimir Putin had once been a protégé of Anatoly Chubais when the longtime Kremlin advisor was the architect of Russia's 1990s pro-market reforms. Chubais has come out against the invasion of Ukraine and according to Moscow newspaper Kommersant, he was seen withdrawing cash from an ATM in Turkey this week.
In the run-up to next week's general election in Hungary, PM Viktor Orban has been toning down his longstanding cosy relationship with the Kremlin. The same goes for many of the 12 candidates in the upcoming French presidential election. All you heard was cheers when Ukraine's president addressed the French parliament on Wednesday. Volodymyr Zelensky's audience included four MPs who are challengers to incumbent Emmanuel Macron. Of the four, only the Green candidate is staunchly anti-Putin and pro-EU. Far-right standardbearer Marine Le Pen first said she had a scheduling conflict and would not attend the special session. In the end, she did take her seat but arrived late.
Produced by Alessandro Xenos, Juilette Laurain and Imen Mellaz.
