Russia doubled down on nuclear threats in Europe: 2024 in review

On the ground in Ukraine, another 12 months have passed, over 1,000 days in all since the war started, without either side able to strike a winning blow — though Russia continued with slow advances. Kyiv has shown renewed resilience and ingenuity, most notably making a surprise incursion in the border territory of Kursk that featured an estimated deployment of 10,000 troops. At the time, the tactical gamble was looked upon by Matthew Savill, director of military sciences at the Royal United Services Institute, as Ukraine’s way of cracking “open” debate in NATO over whether to allow long range weapon strikes in Russia, but it was only when North Korean soldiers were deployed to Kursk that Washington finally dropped long range weapons restrictions to strike inside Russia.