Russia's President Vladimir Putin on Saturday ordered the start of strategic nuclear exercises involving launches of ballistic missiles. Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, a close ally of Putin, took part in military exercises alongside Putin from a situation centre in the Kremlin. There is intense speculation that Russia will launch an attack against Ukraine in the next days. Speaking to the media in Lithuania on Saturday, U.S. Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said Russian forces were beginning to "uncoil and move closer" to the border with Ukraine.

US president Joe Biden said on Friday evening (18 February) that Russian president Vladimir Putin has taken the final decision to invade Ukraine and that the objective is to occupy the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv. Speaking in a televised message from the White House, Biden said that his assessment was based on US intelligence information

“Allies confirmed that NATO’s door remains open; any decision on NATO membership is for NATO Allies and aspirant countries to take; nobody else", NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said after a meeting of NATO defence ministers in Brussels on Thursday (17 February).

European and African leaders come together today and tomorrow for an EU-Africa summit in Brussels with the goal of solidifying the partnership between the two neighbouring continents with a number of initiatives, agreements and investment pledges. The summit comes at a critical time for both continents and its results are crucial for future relations.

The Ethiopian parliament voted on Tuesday (15 February) to lift the country's state of emergency citing improvements in the security situation. Ethiopia declared a state of emergency last November when the Tigrayan fighter vowed to reach the capital, Addis Ababa.

In an exclusive interview with commonspace.eu on the margins of his visit this week to The Hague, Georgia's Deputy Foreign Minister, Teimuraz Janjalia reiterated  his country's commitment to the Association Agreement signed with the EU in 2014. "The Association Agreement provides a basis for a strong value-based partnership between EU and Georgia, and we remain firmly committed to it".