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Marc Santora
For Marc Santora's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
A member of Ukraine’s 17th Tank Brigade on patrol near the front line in the Donetsk region of southeastern Ukraine on Jan. 4.
WORLD
Apr 17, 2024
Ukraine’s big vulnerabilities: Ammunition, soldiers and air defense
Even if outside aid comes through, Ukraine's third year pushing Russia back will be extremely tough as they continue to be outgunned.
A woman and children place flags for friends who are in the Ukrainian military at Independence Square in Kyiv on Saturday.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 25, 2024
Ukraine marks second anniversary of Russian invasion, determined despite setbacks
Western leaders gathered in Kyiv to pledge support for Ukraine amid U.S. reluctance, while its troops suffer growing losses on the battlefield.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visits a frontline in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, on Sunday.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 5, 2024
Zelenskyy hints at major shake-up of Ukraine’s government
The Ukrainian president said that a broad overhaul of Ukraine’s military and civilian leadership was needed to reboot the country’s war effort.
Trucks line up in a queue to cross the Polish-Ukrainian border at the Dorohusk-Jagodzin crossing, in Brzezno, Poland, on Dec. 4.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 11, 2023
Front-line troops in Ukraine feel bite of Polish truckers’ protest
A monthslong border blockade by Polish truckers is starting to have an effect on Ukrainian soldiers.
Ukrainian soldiers fire a self-propelled howitzer near Borova-Svatove, in Ukraine’s Kharkiv region on Wedesday.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 8, 2023
Ukraine carries on fight while pondering an erosion of U.S. aid
Officials in Kyiv are racing to bolster their nation’s military capabilities and deepen ties with other allies who remain steadfast in their support.
A Ukrainian special forces unit operating on the waters of the River Dnieper, where Russians held the opposite bank, on Nov. 5, 2022.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 3, 2023
Crossing the Dnieper: What a Ukrainian military operation might mean
Ukrainian troops have taken positions along the Dnieper River, posing a threat to Russia’s dominance of the region.
The Khmelnytskyi nuclear power plant near the city of Netishyn, Khmelnytskyi region, Ukraine, in August.
WORLD / Politics
Oct 27, 2023
As winter nears, Ukraine braces for attacks on energy grid
Russian drone strikes near a nuclear power plant in western Ukraine this week have revived anxiety among officials and civilians.
A Ukrainian defensive fortification on the west bank of a lake along the Dnieper River, in the Kherson region, on Jan. 23. Ukrainian forces have in October stepped up assaults across the Dnieper near the city of Kherson, prompting speculation that Kyiv might be planning a more ambitious effort to open a new front in the push to retake territory from Russia.
WORLD / Politics
Oct 21, 2023
With raids across Dnieper River, Ukraine may be seeking new front in war
Military experts are reporting extensive strikes on Russian-held territory in the south, potentially with the goal of establishing a bridgehead.
Ukrainian marines practice house-to-house combat during training exercises in the region of Vuhledar, Ukraine, on Aug. 25.
WORLD
Oct 11, 2023
‘Always under fire’: On the battlefield with Ukraine’s elite troops
In the forest belts of eastern Ukraine, the Russian forces continue to mount relentless assaults in a maze of scorched pines.
A Ukrainian soldier coordinates as his team fires a rocket in the Donetsk region of Ukraine in June. Ukraine claims that its forces have driven further into the Mokri Yaly River Valley in the south of the country, announcing Wednesday that they had retaken the tiny village of Urozhaine.
WORLD
Aug 17, 2023
Ukraine marks progress with recapture of small village
Urozhaine is the first village known to have been recaptured by Ukraine’s forces since they reclaimed Staromaiorske in July.
A ship passes through the Bosporus Straits near Istanbul.
WORLD
Aug 9, 2023
Turbulent waters: How the Black Sea became a hot spot in the war
For centuries, the Black Sea has been at the center of Russia’s efforts to extend its geopolitical and economic influence.
A Ukrainian ship in the Black Sea off the coast of Odesa in March 2022. Ukraine has issued a warning that commercial ships using any of six Russian Black Sea ports would be considered military targets.
WORLD
Aug 6, 2023
Ukraine drone hits second Russian ship in two days
Ukraine has issued a warning that commercial ships using any of six Russian Black Sea ports would be considered military targets.
The damaged facade of an office building in the Moscow City complex following a reported Ukrainian drone attack in Moscow, on Sunday
WORLD
Aug 1, 2023
Small strikes and big ambitions in Ukraine’s attacks on Russia
The stepped-up drone and missile attacks show a will to hamper the Kremlin’s military logistics, and to remind ordinary Russians of the cost of war.
Cranes in the port of Odesa, which has been regularly targeted since Russia terminated a deal allowing grain exports from Ukraine through the Black Sea, on Thursday
WORLD
Jul 30, 2023
Russia hits another grain terminal in campaign against Ukraine ports
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine has vowed to enhance air defenses around the port and the coast, but Kyiv’s resources are stretched thin.
Japan Times
WORLD
May 28, 2023
‘It’s time’: Ukraine’s top commander says counteroffensive is imminent
A blunt statement, accompanied by a slickly produced video of Ukrainian troops preparing for battle, appeared designed to rally the nation and to spread anxiety among Russian forces.
Japan Times
WORLD
May 21, 2023
Wagner chief says Bakhmut is captured; Ukraine rejects claim
Satellite imagery and images taken by drones posted on social media by Russian and Ukrainian forces testify to the annihilation of the city.
Japan Times
WORLD
May 13, 2023
Ukraine’s advances near Bakhmut expose rifts in Russian forces
Russia’s pro-war bloggers were quick to claim that Ukraine’s long-anticipated counteroffensive had begun, but Ukrainian officials downplayed the advances.
Japan Times
WORLD
Mar 19, 2023
Russia signals it will take more Ukrainian children, a crime in progress
Far from disguising the deportations, the Kremlin puts the children on display in Red Square photo-ops and at lavish concerts celebrating the war.
Japan Times
WORLD / ANALYSIS
Mar 18, 2023
Xi, cast as peacemaker, wades into Russia’s war in Ukraine
The Chinese leader is expected to meet in person next week with President Vladimir Putin of Russia, and a call with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine could follow.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Feb 26, 2023
China to welcome Belarusian leader, raising concerns over Ukraine
A state visit this week by Aleksandr Lukashenko of Belarus comes as the U.S. has accused China of preparing to send lethal aid to Russia.

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