'Putin has set aside all the rules and now he is deciding the rules.'
The unalloyed truth about the Ukraine-Russia conflict is that it is a war that Russia cannot lose and Ukraine cannot win, observes Colonel Anil Athale (retd).
On Monday, July 10, US President Joe Biden held meetings with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and King Charles III, in an overnight stopover in London.
'There is a cost to war.' 'The West knows that and so does Putin.' 'The point is, how much of the cost are both sides willing to pay?'
On Friday, Putin formally announced the annexation of four regions -- Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhia -- and claimed that "this is the will of millions of people".
'Frankly, India has no role to play.' 'This is a showdown between the US and NATO on one hand and Russia on the other.' 'That said, the outcome of this titanic struggle in Central Europe will remould the world order and affect India profoundly,' argues Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Biden said when he got elected, Putin thought that he would easily be able to break up NATO.
The US is ready to respond "decisively" to a Russian attack on Ukraine which is still very much a possibility, President Joe Biden has said, urging Moscow to step back from the brink of war.
The Freelancer has been made with workman-like efficiency, but the subject of Islamic terrorism could do with a break, points out Deepa Gahlot.
The responsibility for peace in Ukraine now rests in the hands of the two principal belligerents, Russia and the US, and the prime victim of this great power rivalry, Ukraine, points out Nitin Desai.
'The clean break between Russia and Europe that this foolish attack is creating may actually last long.' 'It will undermine Europe and benefit the US and China.'
In the Istanbul attack, at least 81 people were injured when an explosion rocked the busy pedestrian street.
'In view of the continued high levels of tensions and uncertainties with respect to the situation in Ukraine, all Indian nationals whose stay is not deemed essential and all Indian students, are advised to leave Ukraine temporarily,' the embassy said.
'Putin is in danger of losing face in his Ukrainian adventure. His bluster is a response to this.'
Putin justified his decision in a speech blaming NATO for the current crisis and calling the US-led alliance an existential threat to Russia.
We are sure that when talks take place, some way or the other will come out, Singh said.
We have already suffered considerable collateral damage as a result of the war, and its continuance will continue to dampen our prospects for faster economic growth. We have a direct and legitimate interest in its early cessation, counsels former foreign secretary Shyam Saran.
Notably, Ukrainian forces disabling bridges across the Dnipro river and attacking Russian supply lines made it very difficult for Russia to defend the occupied territory.
Kosovo's tennis federation has accused Serbia's Novak Djokovic of aggravating an already tense situation after the world number three wrote that Kosovo was "the heart of Serbia" on a camera lens.
White House Principal Deputy Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters on Monday that the United States is actively working to reach a diplomatic solution to de-escalate the crisis.
"I spoke from this chamber one year ago, just days after Vladimir Putin unleashed his brutal war against Ukraine. A murderous assault, evoking images of the death and destruction Europe suffered in World War II," Biden said in his address to a Joint Session of the US Congress on Tuesday night.
'India enjoys the maneuverability of a coming big power.' 'It is this possibility that has persuaded Moscow to humour India and stayed Washington from getting punitive about India's neutrality on the Ukraine issue.'
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Wednesday warned that a third World War, should it break out, will be "nuclear and devastating", amid spiralling tensions with the West over Moscow's ongoing massive military operation against Ukraine.
Soon after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addressed the G20 summit by video, Russia fired an estimated 100 missiles at residential buildings in Kyiv and other strategic locations.
The coup attempt has weakened Putin's position and in desperation he may well sanction the use of nukes, points out Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
The attack would be preceded by a fabricated pretext that the Russians use as an excuse to launch an invasion.
Stefanos Tsitsipas enjoyed an incident-free path into the third round of the French Open with a win over Roberto Carballes Baena.
'There's no pro-China tilt in BRICS.' 'All these countries want to be close to China, but they are all good friends of India also.'
Notwithstanding how the current impasse is solved, at some point in the future, Russia will realise that just as centuries ago it developed the paradigm of securing its heartland's safety through annexing vast buffer zones between itself and the enemy, a more modern security is possible only through friendly relations and sustainable peace, observes Shyam G Menon.
Whether it liked it or not, the Ukraine crisis forced India to choose between the aggressor Russia and the US-led free world, a decision it hated to make, Virendra Kapoor points out. In the end, it abstained from the vote in the Security Council.
Even though Carlos Alcaraz recently dethroned him from the top of the world rankings, Novak Djokovic is still considered the man to beat and still has the power to turn opponents into nervous wrecks.
'I was expressing the moral outrage I felt toward the way Putin is dealing ..., which is just brutality, half the children of Ukraine.'
"Throughout our history we've learned this lesson -- when dictators do not pay a price for their aggression, they cause more chaos. They keep moving. And, the costs and threats to America and the world keep rising," Biden said addressing the joint session of the Congress in his first State of the Union.
US President Joe Biden, who arrived in a surprise visit to Kyiv on Monday, reaffirmed America's unwavering commitment to Ukraine's democracy, sovereignty, and territorial integrity.
Now, as before, India's vote at the UN was dictated by paramount national interests. Though the Indian vote was 'neutral', its explanation was explicit in its criticism of the Russian actions. India took back with the left hand what it had given with the right, explains Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
Kyiv is no stranger to official visits, but this one is different. The fact the US President is meeting Ukraine's leader in the heart of the capital in the middle of a full-scale conflict is significant and symbolic.
'We know that our Indian partners are committed to that rules-based international order. There are any number of tenets in that order. One of them is that borders cannot be redrawn by force'
Denmark is opposed to Russian athletes participating in the Paris Olympics next year even under a neutral flag
'The aim of Russian policy is to reform European security, stop NATO expansion and in a more general sense -- set up the new rules of relations between the great powers.' 'From this perspective. the invasion of Ukraine is quite pointless.'
"China creeps towards hegemony in Asia, threatens India's borders, and treats other countries as junior partners, Indian-American Congressman Ro Khanna said.
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