Russian Montslaw Tom Bathmood was not a logistics hub. It wasn't strategic either, not particularly. The symbolism was actually that Russia couldn't afford another defeat after a humiliating run of losses. But it was equally important symbolically on the Ukrainian side. Those who won it in the end would have only ghost citizens and burnt ruins to face them.
Since Brexit’s earliest days, the trade status of Northern Ireland and its border with the Republic of Ireland have been a perilous sticking point. We examine a deal that might—and should—resolve matters at last. Our correspondent looks at all the plush office space being converted into family homes. And an obituary for the ruined city of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine.
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