The Economist Latin America April 2, 2022

Politics Russia said it would scale back its attacks on Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital, and another northern city, Chernihiv, to concentrate on eastern Ukraine. More shells fell on both cities, but there were reports of withdrawals by Russian troops. Russia said it had achieved its goals near Kyiv, despite having conspicuously failed to capture the city. Ukrainian celebration was muted. The invading army may be inept, but it is huge, and continues to commit atrocities. The jaw-jaw Face-to-face peace talks resumed in Istanbul. Progress was slow. Ukraine does not want to give up territory. Vladimir Putin, Russia’s dictator, needs to claim some kind of victory. Ukraine hinted that it might accept being neutral, if it receives security guarantees it trusts. The Red Cross said “time is running out” for people trapped in Mariupol,…

Politics Russia said it would scale back its attacks on Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital, and another northern city, Chernihiv, to concentrate on eastern Ukraine. More shells fell on both cities, but there were reports of withdrawals by Russian troops. Russia said it had achieved its goals near Kyiv, despite having conspicuously failed to capture the city. Ukrainian celebration was muted. The invading army may be inept, but it is huge, and continues to commit atrocities. The jaw-jaw Face-to-face peace talks resumed in Istanbul. Progress was slow. Ukraine does not want to give up territory. Vladimir Putin, Russia’s dictator, needs to claim some kind of victory. Ukraine hinted that it might accept being neutral, if it receives security guarantees it trusts. The Red Cross said “time is running out” for people…

WHEN VLADIMIR PUTIN ordered Russian troops into Ukraine he was not alone in thinking victory would be swift. Many Western analysts also expected Kyiv, the capital, to fall within 72 hours. Ukrainian valour and ingenuity confounded those assumptions. As the war enters its sixth week, the side that is contemplating victory is not Russia but Ukraine—and it would be a victory that redraws the map of European security. Speaking to The Economist in Kyiv on March 25th, President Volodymyr Zelensky explained how people power is the secret to Ukraine’s resistance and why the war is shifting in his nation’s favour. “We believe in victory,” he declared. “This is our home, our land, our independence. It’s just a question of time.” The battlefield is starting to tell the same story as the president…

THE PAST week has been grim in Afghanistan. Many girls had looked forward to going to secondary school on March 23rd. But the Taliban broke an earlier promise and barred them, citing their supposedly immodest uniforms. As if that were not bad enough, Afghan women who venture far from home will now need male chaperones, making it impractical to hold down a job and needlessly hard to visit a hospital. Parks are to be segregated by sex, to preserve public morals. Foreign broadcasters such as the BBC were taken off local channels. And it was reported that government employees will be obliged to wear traditional dress and sport beards. That would be tricky for women, had they not mostly been sent home months ago. President Joe Biden’s disorderly retreat from Kabul…

WHEN VLADIMIR PUTIN ordered Russian troops into Ukraine he was not alone in thinking victory would be swift. Many Western analysts also expected Kyiv, the capital, to fall within 72 hours. Ukrainian valour and ingenuity confounded those assumptions. As the war enters its sixth week, the side that is contemplating victory is not Russia but Ukraine—and it would be a victory that redraws the map of European security. Speaking to The Economist in Kyiv on March 25th, President Volodymyr Zelensky explained how people power is the secret to Ukraine’s resistance and why the war is shifting in his nation’s favour. “We believe in victory,” he declared. “This is our home, our land, our independence. It’s just a question of time.” The battlefield is starting to tell the same story as…

THE PAST week has been grim in Afghanistan. Many girls had looked forward to going to secondary school on March 23rd. But the Taliban broke an earlier promise and barred them, citing their supposedly immodest uniforms. As if that were not bad enough, Afghan women who venture far from home will now need male chaperones, making it impractical to hold down a job and needlessly hard to visit a hospital. Parks are to be segregated by sex, to preserve public morals. Foreign broadcasters such as the BBC were taken off local channels. And it was reported that government employees will be obliged to wear traditional dress and sport beards. That would be tricky for women, had they not mostly been sent home months ago. President Joe Biden’s disorderly retreat from…