Russia

• Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov told BBC on Friday that Ukraine is a “de facto” NATO member since it’s equipped with so many of the alliance’s weapons and dismissed the idea that his comments were controversial. AWC
• British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Saturday pledged in a call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky that London will provide Kyiv with its main battle tank, the Challenger 2. AWC
• Russia on Saturday launched missile strikes across Ukraine that targeted energy infrastructure after a two-week lull in such attacks. AWC
• A spokesman for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Ankara is unlikely to approve Sweden and Finland joining NATO before June. AWC

China

• The US and the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) are nearing a deal that would give more economic aid to the Pacific nation in exchange for more US military access to the islands, FSM President David Panuelo said on Friday. AWC

Middle East

• Aviv Kohavi, the outgoing head of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), warned Friday that Israel has three operational plans drawn up to attack Iran. AWC
• Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ), the head of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has come out against a potential F-16 sale to Turkey that was reported by The Wall Street Journal on Friday. AWC
• Iraq’s new prime minister told The Wall Street Journal in an interview published on Sunday that he supports a continued US troop presence in Iraq, breaking the silence on the issue since he came into office in October 2022. AWC
• Syrian President Bashar al-Assad told a Russian envoy on Thursday that any rapprochement with Turkey must result in Turkish forces withdrawing from Syrian territory. AWC