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Ben Wolfgang

Ben Wolfgang

bwolfgang@washingtontimes.com

Ben Wolfgang is a National Security Correspondent for The Washington Times. His reporting is regularly featured in the daily Threat Status newsletter.
Previously, he covered energy and the environment, Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign in 2016, and also spent two years as a White House correspondent during the Obama administration.
Before coming to The Times in 2011, Ben worked as political reporter at The Republican-Herald in Pottsville, Pa.
He can be reached at bwolfgang@washingtontimes.com.

Articles by Ben Wolfgang

A Ukrainian Army soldier inspects fragments of a downed aircraft in Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, Feb. 25, 2022. It was unclear what aircraft crashed and what brought it down amid the Russian invasion in Ukraine. Russia is pressing its invasion of Ukraine to the outskirts of the capital after unleashing airstrikes on cities and military bases and sending in troops and tanks from three sides. (AP Photo/Vadim Zamirovsky)

Russians advance, Ukrainians resist as war builds in heart of Europe

Russia on Thursday launched a massive, coordinated assault on neighboring Ukraine, bombing key cities and sending troops across the border from multiple directions, as President Vladimir Putin's long-feared invasion wreaked havoc on global markets and threatened to plunge all of Eastern Europe into its most devastating conflict since World War II.

February 24, 2022
Ukrainian military track burns at an air defence base in the aftermath of an apparent Russian strike in Mariupol, Ukraine, Thursday, Feb. 24, 2022. Russian troops have launched their anticipated attack on Ukraine. Big explosions were heard before dawn in Kyiv, Kharkiv and Odesa as world leaders decried the start of a Russian invasion that could cause massive casualties and topple Ukraine's democratically elected government. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

Russia attacks Ukraine from air, land; West condemns Putin; Zelenskyy declares martial law

Russia on Thursday launched a massive, coordinated attack on Ukraine, with Russian jets reportedly hitting major Ukrainian cities and ground forces crossing into Ukrainian territory on multiple fronts, as Vladimir Putin's long-feared invasion threatened to plunge all of Eastern Europe into its most devastating conflict since World War II.

February 24, 2022
In this file photo, Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, and Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, right, talk to each other during their meeting in the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Wednesday, Jan. 19, 2022. (Pavel Bednyakov, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP) **FILE**

Biden’s push to revive Obama-era Iran deal hits new snags

The Biden administration's push to revive the 2015 Iran nuclear deal hit fresh snags Wednesday as Tehran recalled its top negotiator from multiparty talks while the spiraling Ukraine crisis continued to strain negotiations that struggled for months to gain steam.

February 23, 2022
Ukrainians attend patriotic action "Mariupol is Ukraine" in Mariupol, Ukraine, Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022. Russian lawmakers on Tuesday authorized President Vladimir Putin to use military force outside the country a move that could presage a broader attack on Ukraine after the U.S. said an invasion was already underway there. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)

World watches ‘the beginning of a Russian invasion’ in Ukraine

Moscow marched down a path toward war Tuesday as Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered troops into Ukraine's disputed Donbas region and suggested that he is prepared to go much further, while President Biden and America's NATO allies unleashed a coordinated package of sweeping economic sanctions in a last-ditch bid to halt a full-blown invasion.

February 22, 2022
A Ukrainian serviceman carries an NLAW anti-tank weapon during an exercise in the Joint Forces Operation, in the Donetsk region, eastern Ukraine, Tuesday, Feb. 15, 2022. While the U.S. warns that Russia could invade Ukraine any day, the drumbeat of war is all but unheard in Moscow, where pundits and ordinary people alike don't expect President Vladimir Putin to launch an attack on its ex-Soviet neighbor. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

Biden takes wait-and-see approach as Russia says some troops pulling back

War felt a little less inevitable Tuesday as Russia announced it was pulling back some troops from their positions near the Ukrainian border, but U.S. and NATO leaders said they could not verify those claims and President Biden again bluntly warned the Kremlin of severe consequences if it started "a war without cause or reason" against its smaller neighbor.

February 15, 2022
Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speaks during a forum, Wednesday, Aug. 18, 2021, in Edmond, Okla. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki) ** FILE **

Pompeo blasts China as world leaders gather at Seoul peace summit

China bears the blame for the immeasurable suffering from the COVID-19 pandemic over the past two years and the entire world must speak with a loud, unified voice in condemning Beijing's human rights abuses and disdain for faith and freedom, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said at an international rally over the weekend.

February 13, 2022
Taliban fighters walk at the frozen Qargha Lake, near Kabul, Afghanistan, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Friday, Feb. 11, 2022. The Taliban have detained two foreign journalists on assignment with the U.N. refugee agency and a number of its Afghan staff working in the country's capital, UNHCR said Friday. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Taliban detains two journalists in Kabul, refugee agency says

The Taliban has detained at least two foreign journalists along with several Afghan nationals in Kabul, the United Nations refugee agency said Friday, fueling fears that the extremist group is launching a major crackdown on reporters after just a few months in power.

February 11, 2022
This image from video provided by the Department of Defense and released on Feb. 3, 2022, shows the compound before a raid where Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi, leader of the Islamic State Group, died in Syria's northwestern Idlib province. A U.S. official says that the militant leader, one of the world's most wanted terrorists, exploded a bomb that killed himself and members of his family during the overnight raid by an elite U.S. military force. (Department of Defense via AP)

Raid that killed ISIS leader in Syria next to impossible in Afghanistan

A daring raid by U.S. special forces last week led to the death of Islamic State leader Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi in a remote Syrian border town, marking a key victory in America's war against Islamic extremists. It was exactly the type of operation that now is virtually impossible for the U.S. military to pull off in Afghanistan.

February 10, 2022
A Ukrainian border guard patrols the border with Russia not far from Hoptivka village, Kharkiv region, Ukraine, Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2022. Russian President Vladimir Putin is accusing the U.S. and its allies of ignoring Russia's top security demands but says Moscow is willing to talk more to ease tensions over Ukraine. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

With element of surprise lost, Russian invasion of Ukraine seems less likely

It may be the least surprising invasion in recent history, should it ever take place. Having spent months moving troops, ships, weapons and equipment to the Ukrainian border, any Russian move into its neighbor's territory will have completely lost all element of surprise and the host of military advantages that come with it.

February 8, 2022