Putin confronts the mud of Ukraine
CNN
When the snow melts in the spring, fields can get so muddy in the plains of Eastern Europe that Russians have a word for it: Rasputitsa, or "the season of bad roads." Analysts believe that if Putin launches an invasion of Ukraine, it will come before the spring thaw.
Mud hindered Napoleon's 1812 invasion of Russia and Hitler's 1941 blitzkrieg against the Soviet Union, and it could be one of many factors now in the timing of any possible Russian move into Ukraine. If Russian President Vladimir Putin orders his forces to invade, analysts believe it would come before the spring thaw. "The best time to do it is winter because it's going to be a mechanized advance and the mechanized divisions need hard frozen ground," said Tim Marshall.
CNN’s 5 Things PM brings you the stories you might have missed during your busy day.
Indian authorities have arrested a Lithuanian man wanted by the US for allegedly running a $96 billion cryptocurrency exchange that allowed terrorist organizations, drug traffickers and cybercriminals to launder money.
A federal judge on Wednesday halted parts of President Donald Trump’s executive order that targeted a Democratic-linked law firm.
The sister of Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett was the target of a bomb threat at her home earlier this month in Charleston, South Carolina, police said Wednesday.
Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire announced Wednesday that she will not seek reelection in 2026, a decision that will bring an end to the senator’s historic career in Congress and sets up a competitive race for the Senate seat in the Granite State.
As Trump imposes sweeping 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum, Mark Carney, leader of Canada’s ruling Liberal Party, told workers at a steel mill in Hamilton, Ontario that the country’s leadership was ready to sit down with the US “under a position where there’s respect for Canadian sovereignty.”
As the Office of Personnel Management oversaw the layoffs of thousands of federal workers and pressed others to justify their positions, the agency’s chief spokesperson repeatedly used her office for a side hustle: aspiring Instagram fashion influencer.
José Daniel Simancas Rodríguez was one of 177 Venezuelans that the US deported and sent to its naval base in Guantanamo, Cuba. He said his 15-day detention was unbearable and compared it to “hell.”
A 41-year-old woman was found alive on Tuesday after being trapped in her car for six days following a crash in northwest Indiana, officials said.
On a Friday afternoon in downtown Philadelphia, dozens gather on the corner of South 2nd and Chestnut streets. A mix of retirees and fired federal workers, they are teeming with fury, but not just toward President Donald Trump, Elon Musk and the early actions of the administration.
Lucas Hunter loves to kitesurf, so along with his sister Sophie he planned a trip to Colombia to take advantage of the “good waves” in the north of the country in late December last year.
Americans are not impressed with President Donald Trump’s stewardship of the economy, according to a new CNN poll conducted by SSRS, putting him underwater on the nation’s top issue even as he sees ratings among the best of his presidential career on other key priorities.
Authorities have ramped up their efforts by air, sea and land to track down the 20-year-old University of Pittsburgh student who went missing six days ago while vacationing in the Dominican Republic resort town of Punta Cana.