Exclusive: Russian commanders charging up to $40,000 to spare soldiers from the frontlines in Ukraine & ‘You’re not evil’: Trump unveils Board of Peace

Day 1,457.


Today, amid reports that Russian forces’ loss of Starlink is
reducing the intensity of drone attacks along the frontline, we
examine claims that Russian commanders are charging soldiers up
to £30,000 to avoid deployment to the most dangerous sectors. We
then bring you the latest from the first meeting of Donald
Trump’s so-called “Board of Peace”, and finally hear the view
from Belarus as Putin seeks to place more nuclear missiles there.


Contributors


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


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


Rozina Sabur (National Security Editor). @RozinaSaburon X.


With thanks to Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya.


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CONTENT REFERENCED:


US presses NATO for major reset, ending mission in Iraq (The
Telegraph):


https://www.politico.eu/article/us-presses-nato-reset-cut-foreign-missions-allies-peacekeeping-iraq-kosovo/


Russian commanders demand £30k to spare soldiers from front line
(The Telegraph):


https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/02/19/russian-commanders-demand-30k-spare-soldiers-front-line/


Over 1,000 Kenyans enlisted to fight in Russia-Ukraine war,
report says (BBC):


https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ce8w266769go


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