Drone footage over military cemeteries in Ukraine reveals the scale of the military death toll. From small village graveyards to large urban burial sites, the number of graves of Ukrainian soldiers killed in the ongoing war keeps expanding rapidly. At Kyiv’s Lisoviy Cemetery, entire sections are now dedicated to fallen troops, with flags and portraits marking each site. As the full-scale invasion enters its third year, the Ukrainian government keeps official casualty numbers classified, but estimates suggest tens of thousands have died. In some areas, mass graves have been dug to accommodate the growing losses. A local told RFE/RL's Ukrainian service ‪@RadioSvobodaUkraine‬ this illustrates the heavy price of defending big cities like Kharkiv.

The US president has claimed that Washington is holding direct negotiations with Tehran to avoid “doing the obvious” | President Donald Trump has announced that the US will engage in “very high-level talks” with Iran over its nuclear program on Saturday, warning that if the negotiations fail, the Islamic Republic will face a “very bad day.” ● The US president revealed last month that he had sent a letter to Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, proposing new negotiations over the nuclear deal which the US unilaterally abandoned during Trump’s first term in 2018. He went on to threaten Iran with bombing strikes “the likes of which it has never seen” if Tehran rejects the offer.

Estonian lawmakers are lifting any restrictions amid tension with Russia and cable damage incidents in the Baltic Sea | Estonia’s parliament is set to vote on a bill that would allow its military to sink civilian vessels found to pose a national security threat, state broadcaster ERR reported on Tuesday. ● The proposal comes amid heightened tensions with Russia and widespread suspicion it orchestrated the sabotage of undersea cables in the Baltic Sea, speculation Moscow has vehemently rejected. The legislation – the final reading of which will take place on Wednesday, – would give the Estonian Defense Forces authority to use maximum force in the country’s national waters and its exclusive economic zone, to protect critical infrastructure, ports, facilities and vessels. Firing on, and sinking a civilian craft would be permissible if potential damage is deemed less than that accruing if the target vessel is allowed continue. Under the bill, military and naval commanders would be required to notify the vessel’s owner, or its flag state, only after the use of force.