Rapid escalation of Ukraine crisis fuels fear of confrontation between Russia and the West

Russia, careening toward economic crisis under the weight of devastating Western sanctions, has put its nuclear forces on alert as the Kremlin’s siege of Ukraine intensifies. © John R. Wright/AFP/Getty Images A U.S. airman guards an F-35 Lightning II fighter at Siauliai air base in Lithuania. The United States and its NATO partners have sent thousands […]