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BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Hungary’s new prime minister headed on Tuesday to Poland, a longtime ally whose recent political transformation has plenty of lessons to offer on how Péter Magyar’s government can go about reversing his country’s authoritarian drift.

Magyar, whose center-right Tisza party defeated far-right Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and his nationalist-populist Fidesz in an earthquake election last month, has vowed to dismantle the political and economic system his autocratic predecessor spent 16 years building.

That has raised hopes across Europe, and also drawn comparisons to Poland’s 2023 election when Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s center-right coalition defeated the national-conservative Law and Justice party after eight years in power.

Like Magyar, Tusk moved quickly to restore democratic institutions eroded during the previous government, including the judiciary and public media, while seeking accountability for officials accused of abuses of power.

Magyar is flying to the southern Polish city of Krakow on Tuesday, before proceeding by train to the capital of Warsaw and then on to Gdansk, on the Baltic Sea.

After taking office on May 9, Magyar called openly for many officials appointed by Orbán’s government to step down or be removed by constitutional amendment — a power available to him after Tisza won a two-thirds majority in Parliament.

Magyar has targeted Hungary’s President Tamás Sulyok, a mostly ceremonial role but with some key constitutional powers, as well as the country’s attorney general and the heads of the constitutional and supreme courts — all figures he’s decried as “Orbán’s puppets.”

Andrzej Sadecki, an analyst with the Center for Eastern Studies in Warsaw, told The Associated Press that Magyar’s biggest challenge is that “some key state institutions are still in the hands of people nominated by Fidesz.”

Still, unlike in Poland, “the situation is much easier for Magyar because he has a constitutional majority. This makes it much easier for him to introduce deep changes,” Sadecki said.

While Tusk took power through a coalition government in Poland’s 2023 election, Magyar’s Tisza won 53% of the vote, gaining more votes and seats in Parliament than any other party in Hungary’s post-Communist history.

“It’s not just a change of government, it’s a watershed moment,” Sadecki added.

Orbán’s rule was marked by a sprawling media ecosystem, which for years served as a loyal mouthpiece for his Fidesz party while discrediting, defaming and intimidating his opponents.

Fresh from election victory, Magyar slammed public broadcasters under Orbán as “a factory of lies,” and said his government would suspend their news services until “the conditions for objectivity are restored.”

The approach mirrors steps taken by Tusk’s government, which less than a month after taking power revamped evening newscasts on state television. Poland’s new government argued its ownership of public media gave it the authority to replace executives at state outlets.

But the process drew criticism even by some liberal groups, with the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights in Warsaw saying at the time that “the manner of initiating changes in public media raises serious legal doubts.”

Still, József Péter Martin, executive director of Transparency International Hungary, said the degree to which Hungary’s public media had failed to fulfill its role means that “it should be rebuilt, and it can be done within the framework of the rule of law.”

During its years in power, Poland’s Law and Justice party tightened control over the courts by appointing loyalist judges to higher courts and punishing critics with disciplinary action.

It also installed enough sympathetic judges to the Constitutional Tribunal to delay any bills the party deemed unfavorable by referring them for constitutional review. Tusk government efforts to reverse those changes have repeatedly been blocked by two subsequent Law and Justice-sympathetic Polish presidents.

While progress was made in some areas, judicial independence has not been fully restored in Poland, and Magyar’s government could face similar challenges.

Despite Magyar’s calls for him to resign, President Tamás Sulyok — an Orbán ally whose term expires in 2029 — has indicated he does not intend to step down.

Also, the head of Hungary’s Constitutional Court, Péter Polt, widely regarded as a Fidesz loyalist, is to remain in office until 2037.

Though many Hungarian judges and prosecutors faithfully carry out their duties, judicial leadership — including the heads of the constitutional and supreme courts — should be replaced to restore trust and impartiality, said Martin of Transparency International Hungary.

And “not with (Magyar’s) Tisza loyalists, because then we would go from one problem to the other, but with someone who has full integrity and devotion to the Hungarian constitution and to the public interest, and not to the interest of the former autocratic regime,” Martin said.

Even without fully restoring judicial independence, Polish prosecutors have opened investigations and pursued cases against former Law and Justice officials they accuse of abusing their positions to benefit their political allies.

In October, Polish prosecutors announced plans to charge former Justice Minister Zbigniew Ziobro with diverting money from a Justice Ministry fund intended for victims of violence and using it for his own personal and political gain.

Prosecution of Ziobro, however, stalled when he announced in January that he had been granted asylum in Orbán’s Hungary. Since Magyar’s election win, Ziobro has said he is now in the United States, with Polish authorities seeking his return.

Many of the nearly 3.4 million Hungarians that voted for Tisza expect the new government to hold Orbán and his political and economic allies accountable.

Magyar has pledged to create the National Asset Recovery and Protection Office, an authority tasked with investigating and seeking to recover public funds allegedly misused during Orbán’s tenure.

According to Martin, restoring the rule of law and judicial independence would be “the initial and most essential step” toward ensuring past abuses will be prosecuted.

Hungary joining the European Public Prosecutor’s Office, something Magyar has promised to do, would be a step in the right direction, he added.

“If all this is done, then I think there is a good chance that the corrupt perpetrators of the former regime, under an independent judiciary, can be held accountable,” he said.

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Ciobanu reported from Warsaw, Poland.

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KISUMU, Kenya (AP) — The body of Tom Ochieng Mima is dressed in formal funeral finery, casket shaded from the hot western Kenyan sun as family and friends of the late 64-year-old settle into plastic chairs beneath white tents just off the roadside.

Wails pierce the air in a mix of lyrical song and unrestrained cries; a group of mourners wave leafy branches and beat them against the ground in a rhythm. A performance like this would not seem out of place at many funerals around the world — at first glance.

But this group of men and women never knew Mima, nor are they friends of his bereaved loved ones. They are professional mourners who are hired to openly and loudly express grief in line with local Luo cultural norms.

The role is an unlikely but relatively steady and well-paid job in Kenya’s poorer western regions, where traditional beliefs blend with widespread Christianity to create a unique patchwork of religious rites.

“It is a job anyone can do,” said Francis Oyoo, who has worked as a professional mourner for the last two years. “As long as you are in touch with your emotions and can show empathy.”

Oyoo typically receives one or two jobs as a professional mourner each month, with the pay — close to $80 — modest but enough to keep him afloat.

Professional mourners say they draw on their own experiences of grief to channel emotion at others’ funeral ceremonies.

“You think of someone you loved,” said Oyoo, who began the work after his uncle died in an accident and he felt compelled to help others with loss.

James Ajowi, another paid mourner at Mima’s funeral, is a veteran of more than 20 years in the profession. His daughter died a few years ago of a lung disease, and he said his own experience with grief deepened his commitment to the work. “It’s as if she was preparing me,” Ajowi said.

Those left behind take great comfort in the professional mourners who bolster attendance at funerals, which are already loud and busy community social affairs in western Kenya.

“They support us. They show us love,” said Lawrence Ouma Angira, who was raised by the deceased Mima, his uncle. “They help fill the emptiness and they comfort us,” he added — even if they never knew the subject of their grief. “They understand loss.”

Among the Luo people who live near Lake Victoria, mourning is not only about grief but also protection, according to Charles Owour Olunga, an anthropologist. Death is seen as a transition, with crying, singing, and movement by mourners helping drive away evil spirits.

Additional, unrelated mourners — typically women — appear at funerals in traditional cultures across Africa and Asia, Olunga said, though it is relatively unusual for men to also play a role. In addition to grieving, they may also help maintain order in large gatherings.

The professionalization of mourning is relatively recent, however, the anthropologist noted. “It is linked to urbanization and commercialization,” said Olunga. “We are moving away from the authentic, but still holding on to tradition. They add color to an existing process.”

Among scholars of religion, the particular blend of Christian beliefs with even older spiritual traditions in western Kenya is also notable.

The region has a significant number of so-called African-initiated churches, according to University of Nairobi research. They are a phenomenon linked to local pushback against strict Christianity’s prohibition of Indigenous rituals.

For the mourners, both those who knew Mima and the paid strangers, the nuances of combined Christian and traditional beliefs are less important than the emotional understanding and comfort that grief builds community.

“Death is painful,” said Oyoo. “But I also find strength in knowing that one day, I too will die — and people will gather for me.”

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Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.

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UN Security Council Session on Syria Highlights Progress Amid Calls for Recovery and Transitional Justice  

[Damascus] The United Nations Security Council held a new session on developments in Syria as UN officials and member states pointed to what they described as “real but fragile progress” while calling for greater support for recovery, stability, and transitional justice efforts. Participants also warned about the impact of declining humanitarian funding and ongoing security threats.  

The session took place as Syria continues to undergo political and security changes, drawing increased international attention to efforts to stabilize the country, rebuild state institutions, combat terrorism, address the issue of missing persons, and advance transitional justice initiatives.  

During the meeting, UN officials reviewed the political, humanitarian, and security situation on the ground, emphasizing that Syria is passing through a sensitive phase requiring sustained international support, particularly as signs of relative improvement emerge in some areas while significant economic, humanitarian, and security challenges persist.  

Discussions also addressed the return of refugees and internally displaced persons, ways to support early recovery, and the importance of continuing international efforts to hold perpetrators of violations accountable, uncover the fate of missing persons, strengthen stability, and prevent the resurgence of extremist organizations.  

The US delegation to the United Nations delivered a lengthy statement carrying clear political and security messages regarding Washington’s approach toward the current phase in Syria.  

Tammy Bruce, deputy US representative to the United Nations, said in remarks delivered during the Security Council session held in New York on May 15, 2026, that President Donald Trump and the United States “stand with the Syrian people in supporting genuine transitional justice and the rule of law in Syria.”  

Bruce began by thanking the session chair, as well as Deputy Special Envoy for Syria Najat Rochdi Cordone and Undersecretary-General Tom Fletcher for their briefings to the Council.  

The US official stated that the recent arrests carried out by Syrian authorities against members of former President Bashar Assad’s regime, who were accused of atrocities against Syrian civilians, represent “a strong step away from impunity and toward accountability.”  

She added that the United States “stands in solidarity with the millions of survivors of Assad’s brutality,” urging the Syrian government to make use of the resources and expertise offered by international partners to support transitional justice and accountability efforts.  

Bruce stressed the importance of cooperation with the UN’s International, Impartial and Independent Mechanism, describing such institutions as a cornerstone of the justice process.  

The US envoy also addressed the issue of missing persons, noting that “hundreds of thousands of Syrian families, along with many American families, are still waiting for answers regarding their missing loved ones.”  

She said that Syria’s recovery process requires progress on this complex humanitarian issue, adding that the Independent Institution on Missing Persons possesses valuable expertise that could support these efforts.  

Bruce encouraged close cooperation between the Syrian government and international partners to provide answers for families of the missing, while urging UN member states to continue supporting international institutions and the Syrian government in advancing transitional justice and accountability.  

In another section of her address, the US envoy praised the campaign launched by Syrian authorities against terrorist networks and criminal gangs.  

She said the Assad regime “allowed Hezbollah and Captagon trafficking networks to operate or turned a blind eye to them,” contributing to destruction across Syria and the wider region.  

By contrast, she said, the new Syrian government has dismantled Hezbollah-linked plots, seized drug shipments, and coordinated with Jordan and Lebanon to combat cross-border crime.  

The United States also welcomed cooperation with Syria as a full member of the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS [The Islamic State].  

Bruce stated that the Syrian government is working with the United Nations and other entities to rehabilitate, repatriate, and reintegrate populations affiliated with ISIS from northeastern Syria into their original communities.  

She called on countries whose nationals remain in those areas to engage with Syrian authorities regarding their citizens.  

Despite welcoming recent developments, the US diplomat stressed that “much remains to be done,” citing the assassination of a Shiite cleric near Damascus on May 1.  

She said the incident reflects the persistence of serious security challenges and called on member states to support Syrian law enforcement agencies through information-sharing and capacity-building.  

Bruce also expressed Washington’s anticipation for an upcoming side event during the UN High-Level Week on Counter-Terrorism, organized by the UN Office of Counter-Terrorism in cooperation with the European Union and Syria, focusing on Damascus’ approach to confronting ISIS.  

Concluding her remarks, the US envoy mentioned Cordone’s recent visit to Syria, praising what she described as the “constructive engagement” between his team and Syrian officials.  

Washington also expressed support for relocating the office of the UN special envoy to Damascus “as soon as possible,” arguing that the office’s presence in Syria would enable it to better support both the Syrian government and the Syrian people.  

The positions expressed during the Security Council session reflected a growing international trend toward supporting Syria’s path to stability and recovery, amid increasing recognition that continued economic and humanitarian deterioration could threaten any political or security gains achieved in recent months.  

The session also demonstrated heightened international focus on transitional justice, accountability, missing persons, and counterterrorism as essential components of any sustainable transition or stabilization process.  

At the same time, several participants stressed that the current progress remains fragile and requires sustained international support, coordination with UN institutions, and adequate funding for humanitarian and early recovery programs.  

The tone adopted by the United States during the session appeared to signal a notable shift in Washington’s approach toward Syria’s evolving reality, particularly through repeated references to the “new Syrian government” in positive terms and the emphasis on security cooperation, transitional justice, and counterterrorism.  

Similarly, calls to relocate the UN envoy’s office to Damascus and deepen cooperation with Syrian institutions reflected a broader push toward direct international engagement inside Syria in an effort to reinforce stability and prevent the return of chaos and extremist groups.  

Amid continuing economic, security, and humanitarian challenges, the coming period appears critical for Syria’s future, as observers await whether ongoing international efforts can transform what UN officials described as “real progress” into a sustainable path toward recovery and stability. 

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After Assad’s Fall, Syrians Weigh Homecoming Against Hard Reality 

Destroyed homes, weak services, uncertain jobs, and children settled abroad are complicating return for millions of Syrians displaced by war 

[DAMASCUS] More than 1.2 million Syrians have voluntarily returned from neighboring countries since the fall of the Assad regime in December 2024, according to Syria’s General Authority for Border Crossings and Customs, but for millions still abroad, going home remains a difficult calculation shaped by destroyed housing, weak services, uncertain jobs, and lives rebuilt in exile. 

At a border crossing, Samer stood holding his child’s hand while his wife watched travel bags piled beside a bus. He carried little: some clothes, official documents, and old photographs preserved through years of displacement. After more than a decade in Turkey, Samer, 35, had decided to return to his hometown in northern Syria, knowing that the home he left behind was no longer the same and that the life he remembered might have disappeared entirely. 

He told The Media Line that the decision was not easy but came after years of feeling alienated and psychologically unsettled. Living in his homeland, even with hardship, seemed more bearable than remaining abroad indefinitely, he said. Still, he did not hide his fears about Syria’s battered economy, limited services, and the difficulty of securing a future for his children. 

Samer’s story reflects the dilemma facing thousands of Syrians in Turkey, Germany, Lebanon, the Netherlands, and elsewhere: whether return is truly possible, or whether years of exile have created lives too stable, or too complicated, to leave behind. 

Mushir Al-Rimah, head of the media department at Syria’s General Authority for Border Crossings and Customs, told The Media Line that voluntary returns from neighboring countries from the fall of the Assad regime in December 2024 through April 2026 had reached about 1.211 million people, including more than 715,000 from Turkey. 

Al-Rimah said the authority had worked to facilitate border crossings by simplifying procedures at checkpoints, speeding up paperwork, and providing services to travelers. About 120,000 people had voluntarily returned from Lebanon to Syria since the beginning of this year, he said. 

The services provided include buses inside border crossings, medical points, ambulances when needed, and arrangements for transporting furniture and luggage, along with full customs exemptions, as part of efforts to encourage voluntary return and ease the burden on returnees, Al-Rimah said. 

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) estimated that 1,630,874 Syrian refugees had returned to Syria since December 8, 2024, as of April 30, 2026, and that the number had risen to 1,645,180 by May 14. UNHCR says the figure is calculated by triangulating multiple data sources, which helps explain why it differs from the Syrian border authority’s administrative count. 

Even after the wave of returns, millions of Syrians remain outside the country. UNHCR’s regional refugee response data lists about 4.7 million registered Syrian refugees in the region, including 2.87 million Syrians registered by the government of Turkey and 1.79 million registered with UNHCR in Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, and Lebanon, along with more than 43,000 registered in North Africa. Lebanon remains a special case: UNHCR lists about 490,000 registered Syrian refugees there, while the Lebanese government estimates the country hosts about 1.12 million displaced Syrians. Germany and other European countries also host large Syrian communities, many of whom have obtained protection status, citizenship, jobs, homes, and children enrolled in local schools, making return a very different calculation than it is for refugees in neighboring states. 

The numbers are large, but they do not tell the whole story. International reports have warned that returnees face damaged infrastructure, inconsistent basic services, scarce jobs, and the enormous cost of reconstruction. International refugee policy standards require returns to be voluntary, safe, and dignified. 

For many Syrians, the decision differs sharply depending on where they spent exile. Those in Turkey and Lebanon often face a different set of pressures and incentives than Syrians who have built lives in Europe, where citizenship, home ownership, healthcare, education, and children’s integration can weigh heavily against emotional attachment to Syria. 

Hikmat Al-Hassan, 32, told The Media Line that his years of asylum in Germany gradually became a stable and integrated life. He learned German, completed vocational training, entered the labor market, bought a home, and obtained citizenship. His children grew up in German schools. Returning now, he said, would mean giving up stability built over many years, especially when Germany’s healthcare and education systems are difficult to compare with Syria’s current reality. 

Souma Taha, 37, a Syrian journalist living in Germany, described a similar dilemma. She told The Media Line that her family has become fully settled after years of work and study, obtaining citizenship, and owning a home. She sees abandoning that stability as a major risk, especially because healthcare and education needs cannot easily be guaranteed at the same level inside Syria. 

She said that the decision to return remains a complex mixture of emotion and belonging on one hand, and logic and stability on the other. 

For Syrians in Turkey, the pull of home may be stronger, but the practical barriers remain severe. Ibrahim Badanjki, 29, who lives in Turkey, told The Media Line that the desire to return still exists but runs into one major obstacle: housing. Many homes in Syria are destroyed or need extensive repairs, while property prices have risen beyond the reach of many expatriates living on limited incomes. Returning without a ready home, he said, is practically impossible, despite the psychological pressure of exile. 

Sobhi Al-Bassas, 36, who lives in the Netherlands, told The Media Line that return is currently impossible because his home has been destroyed. He also cited security difficulties, a lack of job opportunities, and the absence of a stable environment. For now, he said, remaining abroad is the most realistic option. 

Abdul Hay Al-Ahmad said he has long been ready to return but is waiting for improvements in services and education, especially for children, in order to avoid the shock of a sudden transition. His view reflects how return is not only an individual decision but a family calculation. 

Raghad Suleiman, a Syrian woman who obtained Turkish citizenship and is married to a Turkish citizen, described another layer of complexity: social integration and education. She told The Media Line that children who grew up in Turkey or Europe face challenges with Arabic and adapting to a different educational system, as well as limited job prospects and favoritism in hiring inside Syria. 

Medical needs can also complicate return. Abdullah Janniyat, a Syrian living in Turkey, pointed to a decline in free support for prosthetics and growing dependence on private centers, making treatment a major financial burden for many affected Syrians. 

Some returnees have made the opposite choice despite those hardships. Malath Assaf, a young Syrian woman who returned from Turkey to Syria, said that years of displacement deepened rather than weakened her attachment to Syria, despite her awareness of the country’s economic and living difficulties. She told The Media Line that hope for a dignified return still exists, no matter how much time passes. 

Yasser Al-Hammadi, a Syrian who returned to northern Syria from Turkey after the fall of the Assad regime, offered a similar view centered on personal belonging. He said he returned to Syria without regret, describing the decision as deeply personal and dependent on each individual’s circumstances and sense of stability. 

Together, the accounts show that return to Syria is no longer a simple emotional choice. It is a balance among housing, jobs, education, healthcare, security, social identity, and the stability that many refugees built abroad during more than a decade of war. 

The fall of Assad opened a door many refugees once thought permanently shut, but walking through it still requires more than a change of government. For some, Syria remains home no matter how difficult life becomes. For others, return is still a postponed project, waiting on a roof, a school, a job, reliable electricity, medical care, or enough confidence that going back will not mean starting from zero again. 

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HAVANA, May 18 (Reuters) – Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel said on Monday that any U.S. military action against Cuba would lead to a “bloodbath” with incalculable consequences for regional peace and stability.

“Cuba does not represent a threat,” Diaz-Canel said in a post on X.

The comments follow an Axios report published on Sunday, citing classified intelligence, that said Cuba had acquired more than 300 military drones and had discussed plans to use them to attack the U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay, U.S. military vessels and Key West, Florida. Cuba said the U.S. was fabricating a case to justify potential military intervention.

On the streets of Havana, some residents said they would resist any attack despite the island’s deep economic hardship.

“I know Cuba is a strong country. Cubans are very brave and they are not going to find us unprepared,” said Sandra Roseaux, 57. “If they come, they will have to fight, because Cuba will respond. My country, hungry or however it may be, will respond. It is better that they do not come because there will be a fight.”

Cuba, a communist foe of Washington for generations, has come under increasing strain since the United States cut off its energy supplies after arresting the president of its then-ally Venezuela in January. In recent weeks fuel has run out and electricity is often available for only an hour or two a day.

Tensions between the two countries have risen sharply in recent days. Reuters reported last week, citing a U.S. Department of Justice source, that prosecutors planned to indict former Cuban leader Raul Castro over Cuba’s 1996 shooting down of two planes operated by a humanitarian group.

Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez said in a social media post that Cuba, “like every nation in the world,” has the right to legitimate self-defense against external aggression under the U.N. Charter and international law.

Ulises Medina, 58, a Havana resident, urged negotiations. “It would not be right for the United States to invade Cuba, nor for Cuba to invade the United States,” he said. “They must reach an agreement and talk and negotiate. Cuba, in any case, will defend itself because the country will not be surrendered.”

An indictment of Castro, 94 – the brother of late former leader Fidel Castro and a hero of the 1959 Cuban Revolution – would mark a major escalation in pressure on Cuba by the Trump administration.

“The Cuban people do not let anyone interfere with their land,” said Jorge Villalobos, 87. “Cubans know how to defend themselves, even with sticks and stones.”

(Reporting by Kylie MadryEditing by Peter Graff and Rosalba O’Brien)

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LONDON (AP) — Prince William’s Duchy of Cornwall plans to sell about 20% of its 1 billion pound ($1.3 billion) property portfolio over the next decade to consolidate its holdings and finance plans to build thousands of homes, expand renewable energy production and pursue wildlife restoration projects.

Will Bax, the chief executive of the duchy, or domain, revealed the plans in an interview with the Times of London that the newspaper published on Monday. They are in line with the duchy’s strategy of consolidating its far-flung holdings and investing the proceeds in environmental and social projects, which was announced in its most recent annual report.

William has decided that the duchy “shouldn’t just exist to own land,” Bax told the Times. “It should first and foremost exist to have a positive impact on the world.”

The initiative comes as Britain’s royal family in general and the Duchy of Cornwall specifically are under pressure to be more transparent about their finances and to show that the monarchy provides value for money for taxpayers.

The duchy, created in the 14th century to provide an income for the Prince of Wales, owns 52,173 hectares (131,393 acres) of land in 19 counties across England.

The duchy now plans to focus on five “heartlands” in the Isles of Scilly, Cornwall, Dartmoor and the Bath area, all in southwestern England, as well as the Kennington area of London, Bax said.

Land sales will help the duchy invest about 500 million pounds in housing, renewable energy and environmental projects, he said.

The duchy’s profits support the public and private life of the Prince and Princess of Wales and their three children. It reported a profit of 22.9 million pounds in the financial year ending March 31, 2025.

While the current Prince of Wales is entitled to the duchy’s operating profits, he cannot sell its property to benefit himself. The duchy’s activities are overseen by a board of directors that is charged with protecting the assets for future generations. Large property transactions must be approved by the government to ensure the long-term value of the assets.

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Belarus said Monday it launched joint drills with Russia to practice the use of nuclear weapons that Moscow has deployed on the territory of its neighbor and ally.

Belarus’ authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko has allowed Russia to deploy some of its tactical nuclear weapons to his country. In December, Russia also announced that its latest intermediate range nuclear-capable Oreshnik missile system entered service in Belarus, which borders Ukraine and NATO members Poland, Latvia and Lithuania.

The Belarusian Defense Ministry said that the drills will involve missile units and warplanes.

“During the exercise, in cooperation with the Russian side, it is planned to practice the delivery of nuclear weapons and preparations for their use,” the ministry said in a statement. It said the drills will focus on training forces to move covertly across large distances.

It said the maneuvers had been planned in advance and weren’t aimed against any third countries.

Lukashenko has ruled the nation of 9.5 million with an iron fist for more than three decades. His government has been repeatedly sanctioned by the West for its crackdown on human rights and for allowing Moscow to use its territory for the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

In 2024, the Kremlin released a revised nuclear doctrine that placed Belarus under the Russian nuclear umbrella. Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that Moscow will retain control of its nuclear weapons deployed to Belarus, but would allow its ally to select the targets in case of conflict.

Russia has used a conventionally armed version of the Oreshnik — Russian for hazelnut tree — to strike facilities in Ukraine on two occasions — in November 2024 and then again in January.

Putin has claimed that Oreshnik’s multiple warheads plunge at speeds of up to Mach 10 and can’t be intercepted, and that several such missiles used in a conventional strike could be as devastating as a nuclear attack.

Intermediate-range missiles can fly between 500 to 5,500 kilometers (310 to 3,400 miles). Such weapons were banned under a Soviet-era treaty that Washington and Moscow abandoned in 2019.

Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya criticized the drills, saying that the deployment of Russian nuclear weapons has “turned Belarus into a target.”

“Lukashenko has turned Belarus into a platform for Russian threats, but Belarusians don’t need these weapons,” Tsikhanouskaya told The Associated Press. “Only a free Belarus will become a source of security, not nuclear blackmail, in Europe.”

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By Alexander Tanas

CHISINAU, May 17 (Reuters) – Moldovan leaders denounced as a threat Russian President Vladimir Putin’s offer of simplified Russian citizenship for the country’s pro-Russian Transdniestria separatist enclave and contemplated measures to counteract it.

Transdniestria broke from Moldova in 1990 when it was still a Soviet republic and, despite a brief conflict two years later, has since existed largely in peace alongside the country.

  A Russian military contingent of some 1,500 troops, which Russia sometimes describes as peacekeepers, separates the two sides and the enclave receives substantial Russian assistance.

Moldova’s government, which seeks to join the European Union by 2030, sees the enclave and the military presence as a means of Moscow exerting influence over its affairs. Last month, the contingent’s commanders were barred from entering Moldova.

Putin issued a decree on Friday, enabling Transdniestria’s 350,000 residents to secure Russian passports without meeting residence and other requirements. About half already hold Russian citizenship.

“Probably, they want more people to send to the war in Ukraine,” President Maia Sandu, a frequent critic of Russia’s invasion of its neighbour, told a conference in Estonia on Saturday.

“It’s probably one way to threaten us again, because Russia does not like the actions we have been taking on reintegration on the economic and financial (sectors). The people in the Transdniestria region have to think twice.”

She said many of the region’s residents had already secured Moldovan passports to “feel safer” since the outbreak of war.

Moldovan Prime Minister Alexandru Munteanu, speaking late on Saturday, said his government was considering practical actions, as summoning the Russian ambassador to complain about Russian drones violating Moldovan airspace had had no effect on Moscow.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Putin’s offer was tantamount to “Russia designating the territory of Transdniestria as supposedly its own”. He said Ukraine and Moldova would work out “a joint assessment and joint action”.

Russia’s ambassador to Moldova, Oleg Ozerov, told the state TASS news agency that the move was based on humanitarian grounds because of Moldova’s “increasing pressure on Transdniestria”.

Moldovan criticism of the decree, he said, amounted to “hypocrisy” as many Moldovans were obtaining passports from Romania, Moldova’s western neighbour. 

(Reporting by Alexander Tanas, writing by Ron Popeski; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)

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May 18 (Reuters) – Russia has intercepted and destroyed at least 3,124 Ukrainian drones over the past week, the RIA state news agency said, citing data from the Defence Ministry.

RIA, after compiling the data, said the most drones were downed on May 13 and May 17 with 572 and 1,054 units destroyed, respectively, mostly over European Russia.

At least four people were killed, including three in the Moscow region, after Ukraine launched its biggest overnight drone attack on the Russian capital in more than a year, local officials said on Sunday.

(Reporting by Jekaterīna Golubkova in Tokyo; Editing by Tom Hogue)

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SEOUL, May 18 (Reuters) – North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said plans to strengthen frontline units on the border with South Korea, as well as other major units, were key to “more thoroughly deter war,” state media KCNA reported on Monday.

Kim made the remarks on Sunday at a meeting of commanders of divisions and brigades across the army, KCNA said.

He called for adjusting the training system and expanding practical drills to reflect changes in modern warfare and the development of North Korea’s military, according to KCNA.

Kim also said planned projects should redefine operational concepts in line with rapid modernisation of military and technical equipment, and apply them to unit combat training.

KCNA said Kim stressed ideological loyalty and vigilance against the “arch enemy,” a term North Korea has used for South Korea.

(Reporting by Joyce Lee, Editing by Nick Zieminski)

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