WESTERN PERSPECTIVE Europe to use frozen Russian profits to arm Ukraine, Scholz says Ukraine's backers will use windfall profits on frozen Russian assets to finance arms purchases for Kyiv, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said following a meeting with his French and Polish counterparts aimed at showing unity after weeks of friction. At a joint press conference in Berlin, Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk reaffirmed their support for Ukraine, whose ammunition-starved troops face their toughest battles since the early days of Russia's invasion two years ago. European support has become increasingly key as U.S. President…

WESTERN PERSPECTIVE Ukraine official: two Russian border regions are now active combat zones A senior Ukrainian intelligence official said on Thursday that armed groups he described as Russians opposed to the Kremlin were pressing an incursion into Russian territory and had turned two border regions into "active combat zones". But the governor of one of the Russian regions hit by the attacks said, after a visit to villages in an area, that hostile troops were no longer there. Three Ukraine-based groups issued statements saying they were pursuing armed operations in Belgorod and Kursk regions and asking residents to evacuate localities…