France pushes to block Ukraine from buying US weapons & Moscow’s ‘glee’ at Trump’s Greenland gambit

Day 1,420.

Today, as reports emerge that a Russian air-defence missile has struck a residential building in the city of Rostov-on-Don, we examine claims that France is pushing to prevent Ukraine from purchasing American weapons, then look at the criminal charges brought against a prominent figure in Ukraine’s modern history. Later, we turn to Moscow’s media landscape to hear how the Russian press is interpreting potentially momentous developments in Iran, Venezuela, and Greenland.

Contributors

Francis Dearnley (Executive Editor for Audio). @FrancisDearnley on X.

Dominic Nicholls (Associate Editor of Defence). @DomNicholls on X.

James Kilner (Russia Analyst). @jkjourno on X.

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CONTENT REFERENCED:

France pushes to block Ukraine from buying US weapons (The Telegraph):

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/01/13/france-blocks-ukraine-from-buying-us-weapons/

Starmer poised to hammer out Ukraine peace plan in Davos (The Telegraph):

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/01/13/starmer-poised-talks-ukraine-peace-deal-davos-war-russia-uk/

Scottish independence accounts go dark after Iran internet blackout (The Telegraph):

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2026/01/12/scottish-independence-accounts-dark-iran-internet-blackout/

America abandoned this Arctic silo 60 years ago. Now, it could solve Nato’s Greenland problem (The Telegraph):

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/01/13/nuclear-option-america-nato-greenland/

Marco Rubio, Trump's Foreign-Policy Enabler (The New Yorker):

https://www.newyorker.com/newsletter/the-daily/marco-rubio-trumps-foreign-policy-enabler

Ukraine officially awards lithium deposit to Trump-linked investors, $179 million set for development (Kyiv Independent):

https://kyivindependent.com/ukraine-to-attract-179-million-u-s-investment-in-key-lithium-deposit/

Ukraine war: UN appeals for $2.3 billion to support aid teams’ ‘heroic work’ (United Nations):

https://news.un.org/en/story/2026/01/1166749?_gl=1*15f56p1*_ga*NzU3NDczMzg2LjE3NjgzOTI4NDc.*_ga_TK9BQL5X7Z*czE3NjgzOTI4NDYkbzEkZzAkdDE3NjgzOTI4NDYkajYwJGwwJGgw

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