President Vladimir Putin's war in Ukraine is approaching a new, potentially more dangerous phase after a month of fighting has left Russian forces stalled by an outnumbered foe.
He is left with stark choices — how and where to replenish his spent ground forces, whether to attack the flow of Western arms to Ukrainian defenders, and at what cost he might escalate or widen the war.
Despite failing to score a quick victory, Putin is not relenting in the face of mounting international pressure, including sanctions that have battered his economy. The Western world is aligned largely against Putin, but there have been no indications he is losing support from the majority of the Russian public that relies predominantly on state-controlled TV for information. (AP)
In our 'Get Real India' segment, watch this story about how a farmer in Maharashtra's Chintaraj village in Dharashiv district set his entire onion stock of six hundred sacks on fire after traders offered a price of just one rupee per kilo for the produce.
After an eleven-day deadlock, the Congress high command has appointed a new Chief Minister for Kerala, ending intense lobbying and factional disputes.
The edition of India First covers significant global and domestic developments. At the BRICS Foreign Ministers meeting in Delhi, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar emphasised the necessity of unimpeded maritime flows through the Strait of Hormuz and criticised unilateral sanctions.
The Congress party has resolved its leadership crisis in Kerala by selecting a new Chief Minister after eleven days of deliberations. The decision comes after a legislature party meeting, which saw the attendance of most elected representatives, though a senior leader skipped the gathering due to disagreement with the high command's choice.
