As bitter cold descends on Ukraine, so has a fresh barrage of Russian drone and missile strikes. Recent attacks on transformer substations and power plants have plunged Kyiv into its worst wartime heating and power outage. Also, as opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner María Corina Machado meets US President Donald Trump in Washington, Venezuelans are watching with a mix of hope and unease.
The unprecedented US military attack in Venezuela and the capture of Nicolas Maduro and his wife set alarm bells ringing for Iran's leadership. Tehran is one of the closest allies of Maduro, who remained in power in 2024 after massive election rigging and is not recognized by Germany or the European Union as the legitimate president of Venezuela. After his dramatic capture on Saturday, Maduro appeared in a New York courtroom on Monday on narco-terrorism charges.
