Politics & World Affairs — June 14, 2026

EU advances Ukraine membership talks. Ambassadors from all 27 EU member states agreed to open the first phase of accession negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova, with talks expected to begin Monday.

Reuters · Read more ↗

Yoon sentenced to 30 years. A Seoul court sentenced former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol to 30 years in prison. His crime: ordering military drones flown over Pyongyang to manufacture a pretext for martial law.

Reuters · Read more ↗

UK seizes Russian shadow fleet tanker. Royal Navy forces captured the vessel Smyrtos in a six-hour operation in the English Channel, escalating Western enforcement against Russia’s sanctions-evading oil shipping network.

Al Jazeera · Read more ↗

UK defense secretary quits over funding. John Healey resigned this week, telling Prime Minister Keir Starmer that the government’s defense spending plan “falls well short of what is required” given rising Russian threats.

Defense News · Read more ↗