Russia Watch

Zelensky arrives in Saudi Arabia for crucial peace talks with US officials– www.france24.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has arrived in Saudi Arabia for crucial talks on ending the war with Russia. He is scheduled to meet with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman before joining US and Ukrainian officials for negotiations on a peace framework and potential ceasefire. The talks in Jeddah mark the first meeting between the two sides since Zelensky’s White House visit last month. Here is Philip Turle’s analysis.

News24 | Ukraine launches drone attack wave on Moscow, killing one and shutting down airports– www.news24.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

Ukraine has launched a “massive” drone attack against Moscow that killed at least one person, injured several others and saw the shutdown of airports and damaged residential buildings, officials and aviation authorities said.

Russian Army Reports Major Advances in Kursk Region After ‘Operation Pipeline’– www.themoscowtimes.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

Russia has reclaimed more than 100 square kilometers (38.6 square miles) of territory and 12 villages from Ukrainian forces in the southwestern Kursk region over the past 24 hours, the Russian military said Tuesday.

“The North Group of Forces has liberated 12 settlements during offensive actions… and more than 100 square kilometers of the Kursk region,” Russia’s Defense Ministry said in a daily briefing.

The retaken settlements include Agronom, Bogdanovka, Bondarevka, Dmitryukov, Zazulevka, Ivashkovskiy, Kolmakov, Kubatkin, Martynovka, Mikhaylovka, Pravda and Yuzhny, all located just north or east of the Ukrainian-held city of Sudzha.

Russia’s significant advances this past month, which analysts say put Ukrainian forces at risk of encirclement, appear to have taken advantage of U.S. President Donald Trump’s suspension of military aid and intelligence sharing to Ukraine.

Playing his ‘Trump card,’ Putin goes for the kill to force Zelensky’s hand– www.washingtonexaminer.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

PUTIN’S POWER PLAY: Emboldened by President Donald Trump’s suspension of military aid and intelligence to Ukraine, Russian forces have stepped up the pace of air attacks and redoubled efforts to take back captured territory in the Kursk region in what appears to be an attempt to solidify its battlefield position ahead of a forced surrender by Kyiv.

Ukrainian troops in the field suspect that the U.S. is not just hurting Ukraine, but helping Russian forces in the Kursk region, who seem to have new intelligence about Ukrainian positions as they attempt to encircle Ukrainian forces and retake the tiny sliver of Russian territory that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky hoped to use as one of his few bargaining chips in any peace negotiation. Ukrainian soldiers in the border region have complained on X that they come under instant heavy attack as soon as they activate their Starlink terminals.

“Throughout this week, Russia has carried out hundreds of attacks against our people using various types of weapons: around 1,200 guided aerial bombs, nearly 870 attack drones, and over 80 missiles of different types,” Zelensky posted on X over the weekend, ahead of a scheduled trip to Saudi Arabia today. Zelensky said a Saturday attack in Dobropillya, a city in the Donetsk region, was “one of the most brutal” striking civilians targets, including nine residential buildings, a shopping center, and killing 11 people.

Musk and Rubio spar with Polish minister over Ukraine’s use of Starlink – BBC.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Elon Musk have clashed with Poland’s foreign minister over the use of the tech billionaire’s Starlink satellite internet system in Ukraine.

Musk said on X that Ukraine’s “entire front line” would collapse if he turned the system off. Radoslaw Sikorski responded, saying his country paid for its use in Ukraine and a threat to shut it down would result in a search for another network.

Rubio dismissed Sikorski’s claims and told him to be grateful, while Musk called him a “small man”.

The exchange appeared to lead to Polish PM Donald Tusk calling on his country’s allies to show respect for their weaker partners, rather than arrogance.

Starlink’s system is part of SpaceX’s venture to provide high-speed internet to remote and underserved areas. It has been used extensively by the Ukrainian military.

Elon Musk floats drastic measure against Ukraine that would ‘immediately’ end war with Russia – Daily Mail
Source Link
Excerpt:

Tech titan Elon Musk has suggested crippling sanctions on Ukraine’s oligarchs is the key to halting the nation’s bloody conflict with Russia

Musk, 53, the billionaire CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, called for sanctions targeting Ukraine’s wealthiest elite in a post on X Sunday morning.

The stunning intervention was a radical departure from the current strategy focused on punishing Russia for its unprovoked invasion of the country.

‘Place sanctions on the top 10 Ukrainian oligarchs, especially the ones with mansions in Monaco, and this will stop immediately. That is the key to the puzzle,’ Musk wrote bluntly.

The remark comes at the end of a week of intensive debate in Washington over whether continued US financial and military aid to Kyiv is sustainable as the war drags on with no clear end in sight.

Republican Senator Mike Lee (R-Utah) recently argued that the US shouldn’t offer ‘another penny’ to Ukraine – a view echoed by growing segments of the American public weary of the seemingly endless bloodshed and multibillion-dollar aid packages.

US demanding Ukraine trade land for peace, as talks with Rubio open in Saudi Arabia– www.washingtonexaminer.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

RUBIO: ‘THERE IS NO MILITARY SOLUTION’: Secretary of State Marco Rubio is in Saudi Arabia for face-to-face talks with a delegation consisting of Ukraine’s foreign minister, defense minister, and national security adviser to determine what concessions Ukraine is willing to make to end the three-year war with Russia.

Rubio told reporters en route to Jeddah that Ukraine must utter no magic words, but he is looking for signs that Ukraine is ready to make painful concessions to achieve a lasting peace deal. “I mean, right now, we’re really in listening mode,” Rubio said. “We have to understand the Ukrainian position and just have a general idea of what concessions they’d be willing to make, because you’re not going to get a ceasefire and an end to this war unless both sides make concessions.”

“We’re not going to be sitting in a room drawing lines on a map, but just get a general sense of what concessions are in the realm of the possible for them and what they would need in return, and then find out what the Russian position is in that regard,” Rubio said. “At some point soon, obviously, we’ll have to go back and establish a process by which we can determine what the Russian positions are in this regard and see how far apart we are,” he said.

Zelensky Says ‘Sorry’ To Trump For Oval Office Showdown: Big Revelation Before U.S.-Ukraine Talks – The Times of India
Source Link
Excerpt:

U.S. President’s special envoy Steve Witkoff has said that the Ukrainian President apologized to Trump in a letter after the unruly public argument during an Oval Office meeting. “Zelensky sent a letter to the president. He apologized for that whole incident that happened in the Oval Office,” Witkoff told Fox News, adding that that was an important step toward rapprochement between both sides. The revelation comes just hours before Zelensky is set to meet Marco Rubio in Saudi Arabia for talks to end Russia’s war.

Russian Lawmakers Pass Local Government Reform Bill Designed to Further Strengthen Kremlin Control– www.themoscowtimes.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

Russia’s State Duma passed a bill Wednesday overhauling the country’s constitutionally mandated two-tier system of local self-government, further consolidating the Kremlin’s control six years after President Vladimir Putin proposed the reforms.

The bill, which has been amended over 1,000 times since its introduction in 2021, allows regional authorities to decide whether to abolish lower-tier urban and rural municipal governments, shifting toward a single-tier system.

One of the bill’s co-authors said that more than half of Russia’s regions, as well as four partially occupied Ukrainian regions and annexed Crimea, have already adopted or plan to adopt the new system.

The remaining regions — primarily ethnic republics — are expected to either retain the two-tier system or partially transition to the new model.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky is calling on Europe to build a common army. This comes as President Trump has expressed no interest in talking to Zelinsky about terms for a peace treaty. Trump has also recently “offered” ways Ukraine can pay the U.S. back for the billions they’ve invested in the country.

Zelensky said “The armed forces of Europe must be created. Without Ukraine’s army, Europe’s army’s will not be enough to stop Russia. Only our army in Europe has real, modern battlefield experience but our army alone is not enough too. And we need what you can provide weapons, training, sanctions, financing, political pressure and unity.”

Zelenksy calls for ‘Army of Europe’ to take on Russia without US as Trump urges him to make a deal with Putin– www.thesun.co.uk
Source Link
Excerpt:

… Speaking in Germany today, Zelensky proposed a new plan to achieve safety for Ukraine going forwards.

He said: “Many leaders have talked about Europe and that needs its own military, an army of Europe and I believe the time has come.

“The armed forces of Europe must be created.

“Without Ukraine’s army, Europe’s army’s will not be enough to stop Russia.

“Only our army in Europe has real, modern battlefield experience but our army alone is not enough too.

“And we need what you can provide weapons, training, sanctions, financing, political pressure and unity.”

Trump & Putin’s Ukraine deal – ‘they’ll try to redraw the map of Europe’

The Ukrainian president said Europe should be looking to create such a military separate from Nato in case “America might say no to Europe on issues that threaten it”.

He added that after three years of fighting, Ukraine has managed to build up the foundations of a European army and should now act on it.

“As we fight this war and lay the groundwork for peace and security we must build the armed forces of Europe so that Europe’s future depends only on Europeans and decisions about Europe are made in Europe,” he said.

“Europe has everything it takes but it needs to come together.

“We need confidence in our own friends so that others have no choice but to respect Europe’s power and without European army that is impossible.”

Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk appeared to support Zelensky’s calls as he said Europe urgently needs a plan over security.

Trump likely expects concessions from both Ukraine and Russia to end war: Analysts– www.channelnewsasia.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

Larres, who is also a distinguished professor of history and international affairs at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, added that this could mean Moscow having to give up some captured territory, although it is unclear to what extent.

Russia partially occupies Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions – around a fifth of Ukraine. Moscow has demanded Kyiv cede more territory and be rendered permanently neutral under any peace deal.

Ukraine has demanded Russia withdraw from captured territory – including Crimea, which was annexed in 2014. Kyiv also wants NATO membership or equivalent security guarantees to prevent Moscow from attacking again.

Trump says he and Putin could do something ‘significant’ toward ending Russia’s war in Ukraine– www.bostonherald.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Friday said his administration has already had “very serious” discussions with Russia about its war in Ukraine and that he and Russian President Vladimir Putin could soon take “significant” action toward ending the grinding conflict.

“We will be speaking, and I think will perhaps do something that’ll be significant,” Trump said in an exchange with reporters in the Oval Office. “We want to end that war. That war would have not started if I was president.”

Trump did not say who from his administration has been in contact with the Russians but insisted the two sides were “already talking.”

Asked if he has already spoken directly with Putin, Trump was coy: “I don’t want to say that.”

Trump has said repeatedly he wouldn’t have allowed the conflict to start if he had been in office, even though he was president as fighting grew in eastern Ukraine between Kyiv’s forces and separatists backed by Moscow, ahead of Putin sending in tens of thousands of troops in 2022.

Joy Reid, Adam Schiff Politicize L.A. Fires to Bash Trump– www.newsbusters.org
Source Link
Excerpt:

Leave it to MSNBC’s Joy Reid to indulge her Trump derangement with no restraint, even in the middle of an ongoing disaster. Such was the case when she and Senator Adam Schiff (D-CA) disgustingly politicized the horrific Los Angeles fires in order to score cheap dunks on President-Elect Donald Trump.

WATCH the exchange between Reid and Schiff (click “expand” to view transcript):

The EU will be without cheap Russian gas following a decision by Ukraine to no longer allow Russia’s gas transferal to occur on Ukraine soil. President Volodymyr Zelensky called the decision “one of Moscow’s biggest defeats.” The “Brotherhood pipeline” shutdown will allegedly cause Russian gas giant Gazprom more than $6 billion yearly.

EU on brink of gas war after Ukraine cuts off Russia’s £5bn supply | World | News– www.express.co.uk
Source Link
Excerpt:

Ukraine will no longer allow Russian gas to pass through en route to European neighbours in a move that will hurt both the Kremlin and EU states dependent on Putin’s energy supply.

On January 1, the 2019 deal, which saw gas transit through Ukraine to states like Slovakia and Austria, expired.

President Zelensky heralded the move as “one of Moscow’s biggest defeats”, while his energy minister branded it “historic”.

The closure of the Urengoy–Pomary–Uzhhorod, which is also known as the Brotherhood pipeline, will cost Russian gas company Gazprom around £5bn a year – a bitter blow for Putin’s creaking war economy.

However, it’s not just Russia that is reeling following the expiration of the gas deal. Several European states are heavily dependent on Russian gas transported through Ukraine.

Austria, Hungary, Slovakia, as well as Moldova, are reliant on the steady flow of energy through Ukraine. Now that that is no longer possible, the only route remaining into Europe from Russia is via the TurkStream pipeline and the BlueSteam pipeline, under the Black Sea.

Adam Schiff Reveals Democrats Plan to Impeach Trump in 2nd Term: ‘We’ll Vigorously Push Back’– slaynews.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

Senator Adam Schiff (D-CA) has revealed that the Democrats are considering plans to impeach President Donald Trump during his second term in the White House.

Despite Trump not being sworn back into power yet, Schiff suggested that the Democrats are planning to use the same tactics they used to disrupt his first term.

Schiff revealed the anti-Trump agenda during an appearance on CNN’s “January 6th: Congress Certifies the Election.”

The newly elected senator commented after Trump’s historic election victory was officially certified on Monday.

In response, Schiff said that the Democrats are ready to “fight” Trump.

“We keep a focus on trying to get positive affirmative things done for the country,” Schiff told CNN’s Dana Bash.

Russia appears to have shot down an Azerbaijan airlines passenger plane that killed all 38 people on board. The incident occurred in Western Kazakhstan, about two miles from the city of Aktau.

Russia is now blaming Ukrainian terrorist activity that led to the plane being shot down, claiming, “Ukrainian military drones were carrying out terrorist attacks on civilian infrastructure… at the time… The pilot was offered alternative airports. He took the decision to go to Aktau airport”

‘Ukrainian military was carrying out terrorist attacks when Azerbaijani flight tried to land’: Russia claims– timesofindia.indiatimes.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

Russia on Friday claimed that Ukrainian drones were attacking the city of Grozny as an Azerbaijani Airlines plane attempted to land, before its subsequent crash in Kazakhstan.

Chief of Russia’s civil aviation authority Dmitry Yadrov via Telegram noted that severe fog enveloped Grozny during the plane crash incident, stating that “conditions that day and in those hours around the airport were very complicated”.
The Azerbaijan Airlines aircraft crashed in western Kazakhstan, resulting in the death of 38 amongst the 67 occupants. Various news sources have reported Azerbaijani officials suggesting that a Russian air defence missile might have caused the incident, AFP reported.
“Ukrainian military drones were carrying out terrorist attacks on civilian infrastructure… at the time,” Yadrov said, adding that the plane made two unsuccessful attempts to land.

Plane crash probe in Kazakhstan underway as speculation mounts about possible Russian involvement– www.cbsnews.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

Azerbaijan on Thursday observed a nationwide day of mourning for the victims of the plane crash that killed 38 people and left 29 survivors injured, as speculation mounted about the cause of the disaster — including whether possible Russian air defense operations may have played a role.

Azerbaijan Airlines’ Embraer 190 was en route from Azerbaijan’s capital of Baku to the Russian city of Grozny in the North Caucasus on Wednesday when it was diverted, for reasons that are still unclear, and crashed while trying to land in Aktau, in western Kazakhstan, after flying east across the Caspian Sea. The plane went down about 2 miles from Aktau.

A U.S. official told CBS News there are early indications a Russian anti-aircraft system may have struck the plane. The official, who asked not to be publicly identified, said that if these indications prove true, it would further underscore Russian recklessness in its invasion of Ukraine.

Cellphone footage circulating online appeared to show the aircraft making a steep descent before smashing into the ground in a fireball. Other footage and photos showed part of its fuselage ripped away from the wings and the rear half of the aircraft lying upside down in the grass.

US sets conditions for Ukrainian NATO membership — RT World News– www.rt.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

Washington has long insisted that Kiev will join the bloc, but never clarified the exact timeline

Ukraine can only hope to join NATO if it reforms its military and succeeds in improving its democratic institutions, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said.

Speaking at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York on Wednesday, Blinken rejected the idea that the US, Germany, or other NATO allies are “standing in the way” of Kiev’s accession to the bloc. Ukraine has long aspired to become a full-fledged NATO member, and formally applied to join in the autumn of 2022 after four of its former regions overwhelmingly voted to join Russia.

The bloc, Blinken insisted, has “put Ukraine on a path to NATO membership” and taken concrete steps to advance this goal, while stopping short of clarifying the accession timeline.

“We set up for the first time in NATO’s history a dedicated command whose purpose is to help Ukraine along that path, to take the practical steps that it needs to take – in continuing to build and reform its military institutions, to continue to strengthen its democracy – that are necessary for membership,” he said.


 

The secretary of state admitted that it would be “very challenging for Russia” to agree to a peace deal over Ukraine that would not explicitly remove the prospect of Kiev joining NATO. However, he argued that Ukraine could potentially receive “other kinds of assurances, commitments, guarantees” that would be similar to Article 5 of the NATO Charter, which states that an attack on one member of the bloc is an attack on all.

In October, Politico reported that some NATO allies were not particularly happy with Vladimir Zelensky’s ‘victory plan’, which calls for Ukraine to receive an immediate invitation to join the bloc. The article identified the US and Germany as the countries opposed to his request over fears that it would draw them into a direct conflict with Russia.

Publicly, NATO has ruled out full membership for Ukraine as long as it is embroiled in the conflict with Russia. However, some Western officials have floated an option of “partial membership” for Kiev, an idea rejected by Zelensky, who argued that this would essentially mean that the country recognizes all of its territorial losses to Russia.

Moscow has long been opposed to NATO expansion towards its borders, seeing it as an existential threat. Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that Kiev’s ambition to join the bloc is one of the key reasons for the conflict, with Ukrainian neutrality, along with demilitarization and denazification, being Moscow’s main goals.

Georgian lawmakers elected a Pro-Russian politician, Mikheil Kavelashvili after a controversial election that has triggered off mass protests that have not been abating. The move comes after the newly “elected” government voted to cancel the country’s bid to join the EU.

Anti-Western politician Mikheil Kavelashvili elected Georgia’s new president– timesofindia.indiatimes.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

Georgian lawmakers on Saturday elected former soccer player and anti-Western politician Mikheil Kavelashvili as the country’s new president. Kavelashvili’s election comes amidst ongoing protests sparked by the government’s decision to pause the country’s bid to join the European Union.

Kavelashvili, a former soccer player known for his critical stance toward the West, received 224 out of 225 votes from the electoral college. All opposition parties boycotted the vote, citing concerns about the fairness of the October parliamentary elections, which Georgian Dream officially won.
The ruling Georgian Dream party’s decision to postpone EU accession until 2028 has angered many Georgians who support joining the EU. Before the vote, hundreds protested outside parliament, some symbolically playing soccer and waving red cards in reference to Kavelashvili’s athletic past….
The recent protests, which have drawn thousands nightly for over two weeks, have occasionally led to clashes with police. The government claims the protests are an attempt to seize power. Hundreds of protesters have been detained, and the interior ministry reports that over 150 officers have been injured. Parliament recently approved new restrictions on protests, including increased fines and bans on certain items.

Georgia’s president will not step down until ‘illegitimate’ election rerun | Politics News– www.aljazeera.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

Pro-EU critic of governing Georgian Dream party says she won’t leave office next month as parliament elected fraudulently.

Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili said she will not leave office when her term ends because the parliament is “illegitimate”, while the prime minister warned against a “revolution” amid continuing pro-European Union protests.

Thousands of Georgians protested on Saturday for a third straight night after Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze announced the government will suspend talks on EU accession.

The goal to join the 27-member is now enshrined in Georgia’s constitution, but the prime minister – who has been building closer ties with Russia – suspended the talks for four years and accused Brussels of “blackmail”.

In an address on Saturday, Zourabichvili, a pro-EU critic of the Georgian Dream governing party, said parliament had no right to elect her successor when her term ends in December, and that she would stay in post.

An unnamed South Korean “official” is telling the press the Russians are trading high-tech anti-air missile systems for North Korean troops that are now being used and prepared for war in Ukraine.

A top South Korean official says Russia has supplied anti-air missiles to North Korea in return for it sending troops– abcnews.go.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

A top South Korean official says Russia has supplied anti-air missiles to North Korea in return for it sending troops

?u=http%3A%2F%2Fstatic.kremlin.ru%2Fmedia%2Fevents%2Fpress-photos%2Forig%2F41d3e9440d1678109133.jpeg%3Fkremlin-ru_photo-10.jpeg&f=1&nofb=1&ipt=b9b7f5755483b4201a44476010b3cc63ce22fb9603050851b5394ce282489e71&ipo=images

After lame-duck President Joe Biden decided to dramatically change U.S. policy to suddenly allow Ukraine to use American-made long-range missiles to attack Russia, Ukraine allegedly attacked Russia soon after. In response, Russian President Vladimir Putin has formally lowered his nation’s standards for when nuclear strikes can be ordered.

In response to Russia’s nuclear deterrent policy, Germany’s foreign minister, Annalena Baerbock, stated “… Germany in particular made the mistake back then, especially politically, of allowing itself to be intimidated by this fear and, above all, not listening to its partners, especially our Eastern European partners, who made it clear at the time: We must not rely on promises from the Kremlin. We must invest in our own security and protection.”

?u=https%3A%2F%2Fgroundup.org.za%2Fmedia%2F_versions%2Fimages%2Fphotographers%2FLiezl%2520Human%2Fukraineprotest-lh_extra_large.jpg&f=1&nofb=1&ipt=fa030b67eae19300ec11626d9a957b7a7c79232a2501f7ac002c6dc0cbabc6d5&ipo=images

A review of the Ukraine War in October reveals Ukraine is losing the war badly. Russia took 27 settlements in October alone. The failing war effort by Ukraine is beginning to trickle down to the Ukrainian people, who are losing confidence in their leaders that they can deliver the victory they were promised.

Ukrainian deputy Anny Skorokhod admitted that the number of Ukrainian desertions has hit 100,000, with an average of 900 Ukrainian soldiers deserting per day. Retired Colonel of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) Oleg Starikov claimed “… the Armed Forces of Ukraine are experiencing a tactical crisis in many areas of the SMO zone. I am now showing the real situation that is happening. The real crisis was in one direction, and now – in many.”

BITTER AWAKENING: Ukrainians and the MSM Start To Acknowledge Dire Situation in the Front, as Sweeping Russian Forces Take 27 Settlements in October | The Gateway Pundit– www.thegatewaypundit.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

The sweeping offensive by the Russian Federation forces is taking the Ukrainian army to a breaking point for lack of human resources, artillery shells, tanks, planes, drones, and missiles.

But mostly, lack of men.

Russia has captured over 700 square miles in Ukraine since August – and that is a reality that is starting to be openly discussed by the Ukrainians themselves and is also beginning to reach the MSM.

Moscow troops conquered a total of 27 settlements just in the month of October – I checked: Vishnevoye, Verkhnekamenskoye, Ugledar, Zhelannoye Vtoroye, Grodovka, Zolotaya Niva, Zoryanoye Pervoye, Ostrovskoye, Mikhailovka, Levadnoye, Krasny Yar, Nevskoye, Maksimilyanovka, Zoryanoye, Novosadovoye, Nikolaevka, Alexandropol, Izmailovka, Tsukurino, Katerinovka, Gornyak, Dobrovolye, Selidovo, Krugliakovka, Yasnaya Polyana, Leonidovka, Novoukrainka, and Shakhtyorkoye.

While this may look like a meaningless list of foreign names with no significance, it stands to reason that it was a LOT of places, between villages and cities, as the steamroller proceeds unabated by the defenses.

IS THE BRICS SUMMIT A HERALD OF THE BEGINNING OF THE MULTIPOLAR WORLD ORDER? – The 16th BRICS Summit completed on Thursday, October 25. It was conducted this year in Kazan, Russia. At the meeting, the prevailing theme was “this is the end American hegemony and the beginning of a multipolar world order.” It was highlighted by the Kazan Declaration, which included 13 provisions that will allegedly create “a more just and democratic world order.”

This summit, more than any other since, garnished worldwide MSM and alternative media attention, and it serves as an “alterative” to anyone currently in the American orbit to consider a more “lucrative” (allegedly) option.

Brazil Blocks Caracas’ Bid to Join BRICS  – Folha De S. Paulo

Source Link
Excerpt:

Brazil informally vetoed the admission of the Venezuelan dictatorship as a partner country in BRICS, the new category of association that is the key novelty of the 16th meeting of the group, which began this Tuesday (22) in Kazan.

What seemed like a consensus solution, however, was shaken by the surprise arrival of Venezuela’s dictator, Nicolás Maduro. The signal of pressure is obvious, given the fact that the Chavista regime is militarily supported by Russia.

Caracas had been left out of the list of 12 countries to be invited. According to Folha’s findings, they are, by region of the world: Cuba and Bolivia, Indonesia and Malaysia, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, Thailand and Vietnam, Nigeria and Uganda, and Turkey and Belarus.

The list, which is being put together by the Russian presidency of the bloc, is not yet final, and there may be surprises at the meeting of heads of state and government.

Ukraine war: ‘A just peace’ needed to end conflict, UN chief tells Putin at ‘new global order’ BRICS summit | World News– news.sky.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

The UN secretary general has told Vladimir Putin that “a just peace” is needed to end the Ukraine war.

Appearing alongside Mr Putin at a BRICS summit in the Russian city of Kazan, Antonio Guterres called on the Russian leader to agree a peace deal “in line with the UN Charter, international law and UN General Assembly resolutions”.

He said summit attendees: “Across the board, we need peace. We need peace in Ukraine.”

It comes after President Xi Jinping claimed on Wednesday that China and fellow BRICS member Brazil have put forward a peace plan for the war in Ukraine.

He told Mr Putin and other leaders at the three-day summit that they intend to rally further international support in the hope of bringing fighting there to an end.

Mr Xi said: “We must uphold the three key principles: no expansion of the battlefields, no escalation of hostilities, and no fanning flames and strive for swift de-escalation of the situation.”

The BRICS coalition of nations, which started out as a 5-nation coalition, expanded to include 4 new countries (Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, UAE), and now includes a couple dozen more countries wanting in to the club, met again this year, with the prevailing theme being the urgency of creating a world financial alternative to the western-dominated one. Russia is leading the charge, with China right beside, and both are now pushing for a gold-backed BRICS currency.

Russia’s Finance Minister Anton Siluanov declared,” The IMF and the World Bank are not performing their roles. They are not working in the interests of BRICS countries. It is necessary to form new conditions or even new institutions, similar to the Bretton Woods institutions, but within the framework of our community, within the framework of BRICS.”

The BRICS Coalition, with some exceptions, seems to be forming a Global South Coalition rather than an Eastern one, meaning the polarity of world power is starting to form around northern and southern powers (with some notable exceptions, such as Russia) rather than Eastern and Western ones (which also includes exceptions).

Anti-West BRICS Summit Unites Biggest U.S. Enemies – PJ Media– pjmedia.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

The BRICS coalition of nations, which last year touted its expansion and determination to undermine U.S. currency’s global status, is once again bringing together powerful dictatorships to challenge the West, especially America.

As the world’s greatest mass murderer, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), dictatorial Russia, jihad-sponsoring Iran, and the other regime leaders of the BRICS nations gather in Russia for the BRICS Summit, the CCP has made it clear that the nations’ coalition is a rival to the West. “Unlike the ideological offensive and defensive alliances formed by some Western countries, the BRICS cooperation mechanism embraces diverse political systems and economic development models,” CCP outlet Global Times babbled. It’s propaganda but still worth noting, especially in light of last year‘s BRICS goal of de-dollarization — a move away from the U.S. dollar as world reserve currency. That’s a goal the CCP highlighted again this year.

This comes as an unknown number of Chinese spies infiltrate through our southern border as illegal aliens. Indeed, The Federalist covered a Congressional report last week that Chinese Communist spying has increased across 20 states since pro-China Joe Biden and Kamala Harris took office. The CCP wants to prevent a Trump presidency, undermine the U.S. dollar, and keep the U.S. weak — which is exactly what Russia and Iran want, too. These countries are spying on the U.S. and funding our politicians. Yes, BRICS is a threat, but that is why we need new leadership in America from the White House on down.

In the article I cited above, CCP’s Global Times used a lot of nonsense words to emphasize its ambitious goals for BRICS.

From the Middle East to Africa, from Asia to Latin America, the expansion of BRICS is an inevitable result of aligning with globalization trends to promote win-win cooperation. The expanded “Greater BRICS” now accounts for nearly half of the world’s population, with greater strength and broader representation…the economic output of the “Greater BRICS,” calculated by purchasing power parity, has already surpassed that of the G7…joining BRICS helps promote economic development, improve trade levels, attract more investment, reduce reliance on the US dollar, and enhance their country’s international standing…

Additionally, the charm of the “Greater BRICS” lies in that in an increasingly fragmented world, it allows the Global South, which lags behind the West in economic development, to see the power of unity and collaboration, as well as the hope of catching up

In another article, Global Times pontificated, “While organizations such as the United Nations and the World Bank remain crucial, BRICS brings new energy and perspectives by prioritizing the needs and aspirations of the Global South.” The CCP outlet added:

A key contribution of BRICS lies in its efforts to advance inclusive economic globalization. For decades, the benefits of global economic growth have disproportionately flowed to the West, leaving much of the developing world on the margins. Closer and enlarged BRICS cooperation promises to rebalance this dynamic by promoting investment, infrastructure development, and trade that align with the specific priorities of the Global South.

BRICS aims to rival and eventually usurp the power of corrupt globalist organizations like the UN. Of course, the Islamic jihadis backed by Iran and the CCP already seem to dominate the UN. Yes, this is what it looks like when genocidal dictatorships try to take over the world. That’s not Sci-fi or comic book exaggeration; it’s reality.

For Our VIPs: IDF Affirms Hamas-Issued Gaza Casualties Are Exaggerated as Westerners Bewail Gaza

The CCP is extremely open about its goal of being the “Middle Kingdom,” by which it means the center of the world, the sun around which all other nations revolve. The Iranian regime has affirmed that “Death to America” is one of its main slogans, and it has threatened to assassinate Donald Trump and other U.S. politicians. Russia hates the Biden-Harris administration for funding Ukrainian oligarchs. The other BRICS nations, including Brazil, also resent U.S. influence.

All of which is to say that when you vote this year, don’t just vote for Republicans who will take on domestic problems, but for leaders like Donald Trump who will challenge and contain the dictators desperate to destroy us.

Russia urges BRICS to create global financial alternative to Western-controlled IMF – Firstpost
Source Link
Excerpt:

…. Russia as the current chair of the BRICS group has urged the member countries to form an alternative to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in a bid to counterbalance the political influence exerted by Western nations ahead of the upcoming BRICS summit this month.,,

Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov, who is hosting the meeting, said the global financial system is controlled by Western countries and that the group, which represents 37% of the global economy, needs to create an alternative.

”The IMF and the World Bank are not performing their roles. They are not working in the interests of BRICS countries,” Siluanov said at an event on the first day of the meeting.

”It is necessary to form new conditions or even new institutions, similar to the Bretton Woods institutions, but within the framework of our community, within the framework of BRICS,” Siluanov added.

BRICS Summit Kicks Off With Welcome To “Record Gold Prices”– wltreport.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

An expanding group of nations are backing a new form of money aimed at disrupting the Western status quo and dethroning the U.S. dollar as the world’s reserve currency.

At a meeting this week, representatives from these BRICS nations met to discuss their strategy at a summit that coincided with an all-time record-high price for gold.

 

That “new world order” involves a gold-back currency that could become an existential threat to the U.S. dollar and, as nations around the world invest in gold as a hedge, the precious metal’s price continues to soar.

Russia hosts BRICS summit, pushes new world order agenda to rival West – cnbc
Source Link
Excerpt:

Russia is rolling out the red carpet to its geopolitical allies as it hosts the latest BRICS summit on Tuesday, pushing its agenda to create a “new world order” that challenges the West.

The group was initially comprised of Brazil, Russia, India and China before South Africa joined in 2010, giving the organization of rapidly economically-developing nations its current name. It has since morphed into a geopolitical forum for the world’s most powerful nations outside of the West.

The BRICS now have additional clout after Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates joined the group in January, with membership to the bloc becoming an attractive prospect for countries looking to boost trade, investment and economic development.

Russia has been trying to woo what’s collectively known as the “Global South” — or economically-developing countries in Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Latin America — and contrast to the “Global North” of industrialized nations, traditionally led by the U.S.

Russian President Vladimir Putin frequently comments on his ambition to establish what he calls a “new world order” to rival and usurp the geopolitical and economic pre-eminence enjoyed by the U.S.-led West.

Russia, holder of the rotating BRICS presidency and economically isolated and heavily sanctioned by the West, can also turn to this year’s summit to demonstrate that it still commands respect on the global stage and has powerful allies willing to turn a blind eye to its ongoing war in Ukraine.

Putin has described the beefed-up BRICS group as a “strong indication of the growing authority of the association and its role in international affairs” and signaled on Friday that he intends for the so-called “BRICS +” format to challenge the West on both a geopolitical and economic front.

“The countries in our association are essentially the drivers of global economic growth. In the foreseeable future, BRICS will generate the main increase in global GDP,” Putin told officials and businessmen last Friday at the BRICS business forum in Moscow, which precedes the group’s summit, in comments translated by Reuters.

“The economic growth of BRICS members will increasingly depend less on external influence or interference. This is essentially economic sovereignty,” Putin added.

Earlier in October, Putin said Moscow was open to using the summit for discussions with its allies on the “the parameters of interaction in the emerging multipolar world, and is open to discussing the issues of building a new world order with all our friends, partners and like-minded people,” he said, according to Russian state-owned news agency Tass.

Putin added that “it is in this spirit that we are preparing the BRICS and Outreach/BRICS Plus summit,” referring to the last day of the three-day summit when officials from almost 40 Asian, African, Middle Eastern and Latin American countries are attending as part of the group’s bid to expand ties with the “Global South.”

PM’s Modi Full Speech At 16th BRICS Summit In Russia– www.ndtv.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today strongly pitched for “single-minded” focus and “firm support” of all in combating terrorism, asserting that there is no place for “double standards” to deal with the challenge. In an address at the 16th BRICS Summit, PM Modi also underlined the need to take “active steps” to stop the radicalisation of young people.

Here’s PM Modi’s full speech at the BRICS Summit.

Your Highness,

Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Congratulations to President Putin for the excellent organisation of the 16th BRICS Summit.

And, once again, a warm welcome to all the new friends who have joined BRICS. In its new avatar, BRICS accounts for 40 per cent of the world’s humanity and about 30 per cent of the global economy.

In the last nearly two decades, BRICS has achieved many milestones.I am confident that in the times to come, this organisation will emerge as a more effective medium to face global challenges.

I would also like to convey warm greetings to Her Excellency Dilma Rousseff, President of the New Development Bank.

Friends,

In the last 10 years, this bank has emerged as an important option for the development needs of the countries of the Global South. The opening of GIFT or Gujarat International Finance Tech City in India as well as regional centres in Africa and Russia has boosted the activities of this bank. And, development projects worth about $35 billion have been sanctioned. NDB should continue to work on the basis of the demand driven principle. And, while expanding the bank, ensuring long-term financial sustainability, healthy credit rating and market access should remain a priority.

Friends,

In its new expanded avatar, BRICS has emerged as an economy of more than $30 trillion. The BRICS Business Council and the BRICS Women Business Alliance have played a special role in increasing our economic cooperation.

This year, the consensus reached within BRICS on WTO reforms, trade facilitation in agriculture, resilient supply chains, e-commerce and Special Economic Zones will strengthen our economic cooperation. Amidst all these initiatives, we should also focus on the interests of small and medium scale industries.

I am pleased that the BRICS Startup Forum proposed during India’s presidency in 2021 will be launched this year. The Railway Research Network initiative taken by India is also playing an important role in increasing logistics and supply chain connectivity among BRICS countries. This year, the consensus reached by BRICS countries, in collaboration with UNIDO, to prepare a skilled workforce for Industry 4.0 is quite significant.

The BRICS Vaccine R&D Centre launched in 2022 is helping increase health security in all the countries. We would be happy to share India’s successful experience in Digital Health with BRICS partners.

Friends,

Climate change has been a subject of our common priority. The consensus reached for the BRICS Open Carbon Market Partnership under Russia’s presidency is welcome. In India too, special emphasis is being laid on green growth, climate resilient infrastructure and green transition. Indeed, India has taken up several initiatives like the International Solar Alliance, Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure, Mission LiFE i.e. Lifestyle for Environment, Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam.

Last year, during COP-28, we started an important initiative called Green Credit. I invite BRICS partners to join these initiatives.

Special emphasis is being laid on the construction of infrastructure in all BRICS countries. We have established a digital platform called the Gati-Shakti portal to rapidly expand multi-modal connectivity in India. This has helped in integrated infrastructure development planning and implementation and has reduced logistics costs.

We will be happy to share our experiences with all of you.

Friends,

We welcome efforts to increase financial integration among BRICS countries.

Trade in local currencies and smooth cross-border payments will strengthen our economic cooperation. The Unified Payments Interface (UPI) developed by India is a huge success story and has been adopted in many countries.

Last year, together with His Highness Sheikh Mohamed, it was launched in the UAE as well. We can also cooperate with other BRICS countries in this area.

Friends,

India is fully committed to increasing cooperation under BRICS. Our strong belief in our diversity and multipolarity is our strength. This strength of ours, and our shared belief in humanity, will help in giving a meaningful shape to a prosperous and a bright future for the generations to come.

I thank everyone for today’s very important and valuable discussions. As the next President of BRICS, I extend my heartfelt best wishes to President Lula. India will give its full support for the success of your BRICS presidency.

Once again, many thanks to President Putin and all the leaders.

(This is the approximate translation of the Prime Minister’s remarks. Original remarks were delivered in Hindi.)

?u=https%3A%2F%2Forinocotribune.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2024%2F04%2F882532618.jpg&f=1&nofb=1&ipt=58c07e13d0388a59e85f7f447396bcdedc82a0bcc7427cef0074dbe6a02e87b1&ipo=images

Two documents were leaked to Iran that expose in whole or in part Israel’s plans for retaliation following Iran’s recent missile barrage of the country. The Pentagon has stressed that no employee in the Defense Department is under suspicion at present. The leak critically undermines America’s trustworthiness not just with Israel, but with the rest of the world.

President Donald Trump believes the leaker is coming from within, as do most other people not existentially committed to the social experiment that is the DNC-CCP agenda.

Trump said, “They leaked all the information about the way that Israel’s going to fight and how they are going to fight and where they are going to go. And somebody — who did that? Can you imagine somebody doing that? That’s the enemy. I guess that maybe is the enemy from within, as I talked about. We have an enemy from within. They hate to talk about it. Can you imagine? So we just can’t stand for this incompetence anymore.”

The U.S. is investigating an unauthorized release of classified documents on Israel’s attack plans– www.washingtontimes.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

The United States is investigating an unauthorized release of classified documents that assess Israel’s plans to attack Iran, three U.S. officials told The Associated Press. A fourth U.S. official said the documents appear to be legitimate.

The documents are attributed to the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency and National Security Agency, and note that Israel was still moving military assets in place to conduct a military strike in response to Iran’s blistering ballistic missile attack on Oct. 1. They were sharable within the “Five Eyes,” which are the U.S., Great Britain, Canada, New Zealand and Australia.

The documents, which are marked top secret, were posted to the Telegram messaging app and first reported Saturday by CNN and Axios. The officials spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly.

The investigation is also examining how the documents were obtained — including whether it was an intentional leak by a member of the U.S. intelligence community or obtained by another method, like a hack — and whether any other intelligence information was compromised, one of the officials said. As part of that investigation, officials are working to determine who had access to the documents before they were posted, the official said.

Trump suggests ‘enemy from within’ is responsible for Israel leak– www.washingtonexaminer.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

Former President Donald Trump used his “enemies from within” line to suggest that Americans were responsible for a classified documents leak.

Trump claimed without evidence that an “enemy from within” leaked highly classified U.S. intelligence documents involving Israel. The FBI is investigating the incident.

“They leaked all the information about the way that Israel’s going to fight and how they are going to fight and where they are going to go. And somebody — who did that? Can you imagine somebody doing that? That’s the enemy. I guess that maybe is the enemy from within, as I talked about,” Trump said at an event focused on Latino leaders Tuesday.

“We have an enemy from within,” Trump continued, adding, “They hate to talk about it. Can you imagine? So we just can’t stand for this incompetence anymore.”

White House officials have said it has not been determined yet whether the documents were leaked or hacked, but they said they do not expect additional leaks. The documents in question were each dated Oct. 15 and Oct. 16, purportedly from U.S. government agencies, including the National Security Agency and the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. Their contents focused on Israel’s expected retaliatory attack against Iran.

While it is unclear exactly who “they” Trump is referring to, he did reaffirm that his “enemies from within” line is, in fact, referring to his political opponents. When asked on Fox News to clarify his comments about using law enforcement or the military against those who disagree with him, Trump confirmed he was talking about former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA).

“What they’ve done is so terrible. Who’s ever heard of anything like this? Adam shifty Schiff. He’s a crooked guy. He’s a crooked politician. 100% he’s going to be a senator,” Trump said on Sunday. “Of course, he’s an enemy. He’s an enemy. He wanted to put my son in jail.”

“We have a lot of bad people. But when you look at Shifty Schiff and some of the others, yeah, they are, to me, the enemy from within. I think Nancy Pelosi is an enemy from within. She lied,” Trump continued.

FBI Investigates Leak on Israel’s Iran Strike Plans – devdiscourse

Source Link

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin confirmed no employees from the Office of the Secretary of Defense are under investigation for a leak concerning Israel’s strike on Iran. The FBI is probing the release of classified documents, while social media falsely accused a Defense Department employee.

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has confirmed that no employees from the Office of the Secretary of Defense are currently being scrutinized in relation to a leak of U.S. intelligence about Israel’s plans to strike Iran. Speaking in Rome, Austin assured reporters that no OSD officials have been implicated in the investigation.

According to the FBI, the inquiry is focused on the unauthorized public disclosure of two highly classified documents that detail Israel’s intention for a retaliatory operation against Iran. The Bureau made this announcement on Tuesday, reinforcing a commitment to uncover the source of the leak.

Israel targets Hezbollah-run banks as U.S. probes alleged leak of Iran attack plan– www.cbsnews.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

The White House says President Biden is “deeply concerned” about the possible leak of American intelligence about Israel’s plans for an attack on Iran. Meanwhile, Israel is turning up pressure on Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon, targeting the group’s financial network. Debora Patta reports.