Ukraine

The Pentagon has announced that the U.S. will provide Ukraine additional Patriot missiles for its air defense systems as part of a massive $6 billion additional aid package. President Joe Biden also singled out Javelin anti-tank missiles, built at a Lockheed-Martin factory in Troy as being part of the new U.S. package of aid for Ukraine in its war against Russia.

The State Department has greenlighted an emergency $138 million in foreign military sales for Ukraine to provide critical repairs and spare parts for Kyiv's Hawk missile systems. The U.S. announced the move Tuesday saying that Ukraine has an urgent need for the maintenance support to keep the missile system running. An Alabama based company will to be put to work on the delivery.

Political observers in Alabama will be watching to see if the newly installed Speaker of the U.S. House follows through on threats regarding a bill supporting Israel. Mike Johnson is scheduled to lead the chamber on a funding measure to help Israel in its war against Hamas

Both of Alabama’s U.S. Senators voted in favor a bi-partisan stopgap funding measure designed to avert a government shutdown, which would have left members of the military and the TSA unpaid, and programs like Alabama Head Start at risk of going unfunded. Support among Alabama’s delegation wasn’t unanimous.

Alex Drueke was released by Russian separatists last September. Once he was home, he talked with APR news about his time as a POW. Drueke says he prayed for death before he realized he was finally coming home.

WATCH LIVE ON APR-- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as he addresses a joint session of the U.S. Congress. The Senate is inching closer to passing a $1.7 trillion government funding bill. Supporters are pointing to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's visit to Washington

"Welcome to Alabama"All week long on Alabama Public Radio, we’ve been looking at the ongoing impact of the so called Children of Chernobyl program. Twenty…

"The Inside Man"-- Next Monday marks 35 years since the Soviet nuclear plant disaster that became known as Chernobyl. Yesterday on APR, we met the Lee…

Next week marks 35 years since the Chernobyl nuclear plant disaster. The 1986 explosion in the Soviet nation of Ukraine sent radioactive fallout drifting north over the neighboring country of Belarus. That’s where families in Alabama stepped in. During the years 1999 and 2000, over 200 Belarusian children were flown to the state for medical treatment and a chance to get away from the shadow of Chernobyl. APR and the University of Alabama's Center for Public Television collaborated on this coverage. "Children of Chernobyl" may have occured 20 years ago, but the story is still unfolding.