Smolensk is among the oldest historic sites in Russia. First mentioned in medieval chronicles under the year 862, the early settlement was a center of the Krivichi, an eastern Slavic tribe.

Smolensk is one of the oldest historic settlements in Russia. First mentioned in medieval chronicles under the year 862, the early settlement was long a center of the Krivichi, an eastern Slavic ...

Ellie Cook is a Newsweek security and defense reporter based in London, U.K. Her work focuses largely on the Russia-Ukraine war, the U.S. military, weapons systems and emerging technology. She ...

A video screengrab shows a large fire burning at what was reportedly a state-owned oil storage depot in Yartsevo, Smolensk Oblast, Russia, after a Ukrainian drone attack, April 24, 2024.

Some 50 representatives of Belarusian opposition groups faced problems while visiting Russia's Smolensk region, where they commemorated the 22,000 Polish officers executed by the Soviets 77 years ago.