Interviews by Charley LockeFeb. 18, 2026 NYT
Tag: Ukraine
EU calls for ‘immediate’ release of Jimmy Lai after ‘politically motivated prosecution’ – Europe live
From 1h ago EU calls for ‘immediate and unconditional’ release of Jimmy Lai after his jail sentence The European Union has called for the “immediate and unconditional” release of the Hong Kong pro-democracy figure, Jimmy Lai, after he was sentenced to 20 years in prison, the harshest penalty handed down for national security offences in Hong Kong. In a strongly worded statement released just now, a spokesperson for the EU’s diplomatic service said the EU “deplores the heavy prison sentence” and called for his immediate release, “also in consideration of…
Babies, Robots and Climate Change
One statistic that stopped me recently is that China’s population is projected by some experts to halve by the end of the century. Halve! China was the most populous country in the world until only three years ago. Birthrates in Italy, Germany and Japan have been low for as long as I can remember. They’re now falling across the world. So what does it mean for humanity when humanity is shrinking? Will it solve climate change by reducing the human footprint? Reduce the disruption of artificial intelligence taking human jobs?…
Alarm raised over Chinese CCTV cameras guarding ‘symbol of democracy’ Magna Carta
Security cameras guarding Magna Carta are provided by a Chinese CCTV company whose technology has allegedly aided the Uyghur “genocide” and been exploited by Russia during the invasion of Ukraine, it has emerged. In letters seen by the Guardian, campaigners called on Salisbury Cathedral, which houses one of four surviving copies of the “powerful symbol of social justice”, to rip out cameras made by Dahua Technology, based in the Chinese city of Hangzhou. They have also written to the authorities responsible for the Parthenon temple in Greece, which is monitored…
The Guardian view on Europe’s payments problem: sovereignty starts at the till | Editorial
When the centre-left French politician Aurore Lalucq posted a warning last Wednesday that Donald Trump could cut off Europe from international payment systems, the clip went viral. To many, her message made sense. After all, if Mr Trump was prepared to test allies’ boundaries over Greenland, it is not far-fetched to imagine Visa and Mastercard becoming used against a recalcitrant Europe. The US can turn off payment systems it controls. Russia learned this first-hand after sanctions were rightly applied for its invasion of Ukraine. As up to 60% of Russian…
The Guardian view on food security: Britain can no longer trust markets alone | Editorial
Food policy across much of the world is changing. But not in Britain. That may be a costly mistake as the prices of essentials rise because of the climate emergency, geopolitical tensions and the fragility of just-in-time supply chains. Many capitals are now reviving their strategic food reserves. European nations such as Sweden, Finland, Norway and Germany are rebuilding stocks dismantled after the cold war. Climate shocks have led to Egypt and Bangladesh boosting similar programmes. Countries such as Brazil and Indonesia – sensitive to the food needs of their…
A hovering helicopter and a winter whiteout: photos of the day – Tuesday
The Guardian’s picture editors select some of the most powerful photos from around the world Continue reading… The Guardian
Russia’s war in Ukraine carries a warning for Australia: prepare for possible conflict in the Asia-Pacific
Military experts and diplomats agree new strategies and tactics – drone-based or otherwise – playing out in Ukraine’s theatre of war may be replicated closer to home Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast It’s early morning at the sprawling 32 Tactical air base in Łask, a couple of hours outside the Polish capital of Warsaw, and the late autumn wind is sharp. Nearby, a crew of Australians are wrapping up the deployment of an E-7 Wedgetail surveillance plane, sent to the country to assist Nato’s…
‘A little light in the dark’: the former Chinese police officer bringing bubble tea to wartorn Ukraine
Are you looking for a way to stay sane in an environment that has been torn apart by war? Then perhaps what you need is a bubble tea. That is the philosophy guiding Brother Dong, a Chinese-German volunteer in Ukraine. The 52-year-old former officer in China’s People’s Armed Police drives once a month from his home in Frankfurt to collect a haul of tapioca pearls from a warehouse in Berlin. From there he drives across Poland to reach Ukraine. Brother Dong, who asked that the Guardian use his nickname for…
The Guardian view on Trump and Europe: more an abusive relationship than an alliance | Editorial
Sir Keir Starmer, Emmanuel Macron and Friedrich Merz have become adept at scrambling to deal with the latest bad news from Washington. Their meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Downing Street on Monday was so hastily arranged that Mr Macron needed to be back in Paris by late afternoon to meet Croatia’s prime minister, while Mr Merz was due on television for an end-of-year Q&A with the German public. But diplomatic improvisation alone cannot fully answer Donald Trump’s structural threat to European security. The US president and his emissaries are trying…