Latest news with #MeaghanMobbs
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
'Loud night in Kyiv, Dad' — US envoy's daughter appeals to Kellogg during Russian attack
Meaghan Mobbs, daughter of U.S. Special Envoy for Ukraine Keith Kellogg, made a direct appeal to her father on social media during Russia's combined missile and drone attack on Ukraine overnight on June 6. "Loud night in Kyiv, Dad! It might be the explosions and gunfire in the dead of night, but I get the strange feeling the Russians don't want peace," Mobbs wrote on X, as Russia launched one of its most intense air assaults of the war. According to Ukraine's Air Force, Moscow fired 452 drones — including Iranian-designed Shahed-type drones — and 45 missiles of various types across Ukraine, targeting the capital, major cities, and even western regions of the country. Ukrainian defenders intercepted 199 drones and 36 missiles, while another 169 drones disappeared from radar, likely decoys used to saturate air defenses. Multiple fires broke out across Kyiv after strikes hit residential areas and infrastructure. Nationwide, at least five civilians were killed and 73 injured during the past day, according to regional authorities. Ukraine's Air Force repelled the barrage with aviation, electronic warfare, mobile fire groups, and missile defense systems. Mobbs, a U.S. former paratrooper and longtime advocate for Ukraine, heads the R.T. Weatherman Foundation, which has delivered over 10,000 pallets of medical supplies and humanitarian aid to more than 70 Ukrainian hospitals and organizations. The large-scale assault came as Russia continues to reject calls for a ceasefire and escalates its air campaign despite mounting international pressure and ongoing negotiations. Kellogg has not yet commented on the attacks. U.S. President Donald Trump, who has positioned himself as a would-be peacemaker, has thus far refused to impose new sanctions on Moscow, citing ongoing efforts to achieve a ceasefire. Read also: UPDATE: Russia hits Ukraine with large-scale attack days after Operation Spiderweb We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
South China Morning Post
25-02-2025
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
To counter China, US must maintain soft power and alliances, Congress hears
Any effective counter to China's growing military and political muscle must include alliances and the use of soft power, although US foreign policy needs to become more focused and effective in light of increasingly constrained US resources, witnesses told a Congressional hearing on Tuesday. Advertisement Testifying before the US House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform on 'emerging global threats', analysts called out early moves by President Donald Trump, who in his first weeks back in the White House has threatened trade wars with Mexico and Canada; decimated the US Agency for International Development (USAID) that operated in 130 countries; and sided with Russia over Europe in a UN resolution on Ukraine. 'Soft power is not charity. It is a weapon, one that when wielded correctly can shape the battlefield before a single shot is fired,' said Meaghan Mobbs, director of the Centre for American Safety and Security, a foreign policy group. Citing China's Belt and Road Initiative, she added, 'Beijing understands this. Moscow understands this. 'The question is, do we understand this?' 07:29 'We all will die': What would the end of USAID mean for Asia's most vulnerable? 'We all will die': What would the end of USAID mean for Asia's most vulnerable? Mobbs, a former paratrooper and combat veteran, said there was little doubt the traditional US foreign policy approach must be overhauled and streamlined.
