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Moscow says it will build drone bases along Arctic coast

Several bases for long-range drones will be built along the Northern Sea Route, a representative of the Russian Defence Ministry says to newspaper Izvestia.

According to the state-controlled newspaper, drones of the model Inokhodets and Forpost will ultimately fly patrols over Russia’s vast Arctic waters. Bases are planned built several places along the Arctic coast, as well as in Kamchatka, the Kremlin-loyal media reports.

The unmanned aircraft will do surveillance of the sea and airspace. They will also take part in search and rescue operations, Izvestia informs.

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The Inokhodets drone is part of the Orion project developed by company Kronshtadt. It has a 16,3 meter wide wing span and can reportedly fly up to 24 hours with a 60 kg load. It was first tested in 2016. It can carry up to 180 kg of load, which is about the equivalent of six KAB-20 guided bombs.

The Forpost drone is based on the Israeli Searcher-II and can reportedly fly up to 400 km. The first Forpost was manufactured at the Ural Civil Aviation Plant in 2012 and has since been applied by the Russian Armed Forces in Syria and Ukraine.

Information about the planned bases comes only few days after Norway announced that it will build a base for long-range drones at its far northern island of And�ya. The base will be built together with the Americans and be the first of its kind outside the USA.

It is not clear exactly where Russia plans to build the Arctic drone bases, but one of the likely locations is the Kola Peninsula.

Drones have proved themselves a crucial part of modern warfare and are an key kind of weaponry applied in Moscow’s war of aggression against Ukraine. The Russian aggressors have lost vast numbers of equipment and manpower in Ukrainian drone attacks.

The Russians are increasingly concerned about drone attacks also in its north. In a recent exercise held by the Northern Fleet, the training scenario included a drone attack on the key military base of Severomorsk. Similarly, when two of the Northern Fleet’s new frigates last week conducted an exercise in the Barents Sea combat of enemy drones was key part of the training.

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Scholz: Ukraine may receive six more Patriot systems from NATO partners
Ukraine may receive additional air defense systems from NATO partners.

This was announced at a briefing by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Censor.NET reports citing RBC-Ukraine.

The German Chancellor said that NATO partners could supply Ukraine with six Patriot systems, in addition to the one already transferred by Germany.

"We have already provided two systems, and now we have provided a third, and we are the country that is making the most significant contribution to this cause. The last, third system that we have announced, which will be transferred to Ukraine and will be used there, is also our call to other countries to make similar decisions," Scholz said.

According to the Chancellor, the Alliance has made it clear that systems available in NATO countries can be transferred to enable Ukraine to better defend itself against numerous Russian attacks.

"And I would like to repeat this call and deepen it once again. We have heard about seven additional systems. One of them is ours. We are still hoping to find six more in the NATO context, and I have again used this opportunity in many talks to convey this message," he emphasized.

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Polish agent who offered Russia to kill Zelensky exposed
Agent who offered Russian security services an attempt on Zelensky’s life has been unmasked. The Daily Mail reports this.

The Security Service of Ukraine has said that together with Polish law enforcers they have unmasked a Pole who offered Russian special services an attempt on Vladimir Zelensky’s life.

So far, it is known that we are talking about a Polish citizen who collected information about the security of the airport Rzeszow-Jasienko.

This should have helped the Russian security services to plan an assassination attempt on the President of Ukraine during his stay in Poland.

The Russian agent has already been detained, the Polish prosecutor’s office has charged him with “willingness to act in favor of a foreign intelligence service.”

Message in the Telegram channel of the Security Service of Ukraine.


The charge of willingness to act in favor of a foreign intelligence service qualified under Article 130 �3 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Poland.

VIDEO. Earlier, Vladimir Zelensky said that he had survived six assassination attempts since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Zelensky reveals he's survived SIX assassination attempts since Russian invasion of Ukraine

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‘Enough Already!’ Don Jr. Turns Against Speaker Johnson With Damning Montage About Border Security
His father may be waffling, but Donald Trump Jr. appears to have made up his mind about House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA).

In a post to X/Twitter on Thursday, Don Jr. laced into Johnson by sharing a minute-long montage of the speaker talking about the importance of the House addressing the southern border. On Wednesday, after long insisting that any aid package for Ukraine and Israel must be tied to a new border security bill, Johnson decided to split up the legislation and move a separate border security bill.

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73rd Maritime Special Operations Center Strikes Ammunition Depot in Southern Sector

The operators of the 73rd Maritime Special Operations Center of the Armed Forces of Ukraine located the position of Russian troops and an ammunition depot in southern Ukraine.

This information was provided by the press service of the Special Operations Forces.

The Special Operations Forces struck the targets using FPV drones, drones equipped with a payload drop system, and 122-mm D-30 howitzers.

As a result of the fire damage, the caponiers with ammunition and the location of enemy personnel were destroyed.

Ураження особового складу та об'єктів противника

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Combat missions of the 73rd Maritime Special Operations Center
At the beginning of April, Militarnyi reported that the operators of the 73rd Maritime Special Operations Center of the Armed Forces of Ukraine used HIMARS to target the invaders who were constructing fortifications.

During reconnaissance operations in the southern sector, SOF discovered enemy personnel constructing new fortifications and control posts.

The operators transmitted the coordinates for the strike to the missile-artillery unit and adjusted the fire toward the enemy position.

It is reported that, as a result of the strike, 14 Russian servicemen died and 7 were injured.

According to the interface, target detection and artillery adjustment were carried out by the Ukrainian Shark reconnaissance drone.

Combat missions of the Special Operations Forces
It was recently reported that the operators of the Special Operations Center “East” (former 3rd Special Forces Regiment) of the SOF of the Armed Forces of Ukraine targeted a kamikaze drone at a vehicle from the R-378B automated jamming station of the Borisoglebsk-2 electronic warfare system.

The target was reportedly detected by a reconnaissance drone in the Donetsk sector.

A kamikaze drone, the model of which is not disclosed, struck the enemy combat vehicle.

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Ukrainian-born Republican Spartz proposes reducing military aid for Ukraine
Republican Congressional Representative Victoria Spartz, the only U.S. lawmaker born in Ukraine, has submitted amendments calling for reductions to the proposed Ukrainian aid package that is set to be voted on this Saturday in the U.S. House of Representatives.

One of Spartz's amendments suggests removing provisions from the proposed law regarding the PDA program, which allows the White House to supply weapons directly from U.S. military stockpiles to Ukraine.

Additionally, Spartz's amendments target economic aid included in Johnson's proposal. She proposes eliminating a clause of over $7.8 billion in loan assistance, as well as preventing the U.S. president from forgiving Ukraine's debt under specific conditions.

The fourth amendment eliminates $481 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services designated for refugees. Lastly, the fifth proposes barring countries affected by the war in Ukraine from utilizing funds within the FMF program, which allows for the direct purchase of weapons from manufacturers to support a U.S. ally's needs.

Spartz was born in a small city in Chernihiv Oblast, and moved to the U.S. in 2000. She became the first Ukrainian-born member of Congress in 2021 and has been known for her staunch support of former President Donald Trump.

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Takeaways from the day a jury was selected to decide Donald Trump’s fate in the hush money trial
Jury selection in Donald Trump’s hush money business fraud case began Thursday looking like the task of finding 12 jurors had run aground.

Two of the seven initial jurors who were seated Tuesday were excused. Judge Juan Merchan’s hopes to begin the trial on Monday with opening arguments appeared to be dwindling fast.

By the end of the day, the jury in the first criminal trial of a former president in US history had been seated. Only five alternates are left to be selected on Friday.

It’s also clear the trial will be a bumpy one. The Manhattan district attorney’s office, for instance, said it won’t let the defense know who its first witnesses are to prevent Trump from posting on social media about them.

A hearing over what prosecutors can say about Trump’s legal history is also likely on Friday.

Here are the takeaways from Thursday’s topsy turvy jury selection in Trump’s criminal trial:

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From drama to solved: ‘We have our jury’
Once Trump’s attorneys and the district attorney’s office used up their 10 peremptory strikes to remove jurors, things moved quickly.

The judge rejected Trump’s challenges to remove jurors for cause because they had expressed negative opinions about Trump, telling the former president’s attorneys that not liking his persona was not enough.

The seated jury includes seven men and five women. The new jurors empaneled Thursday include an investment banker, a security engineer, a retired wealth manager, a speech therapist and a physical therapist.

The jury pool was quickly whittled down from a second panel of 96 Thursday morning, after nearly 50 prospective jurors said they did not feel they could be fair and impartial and another nine said they had other conflicts.

Compared to Tuesday, there were fewer jurors who had a change of heart once they began reading the questionnaire in the courtroom – just one of the initial 18 jurors was dismissed during that process on Thursday. (Court was dark on Wednesday.)

Perhaps one reason: The second pool of jurors knew that Trump was the defendant on Tuesday, giving them time to think about being on the panel. The first panel of 96 jurors had to say whether they thought they could be fair just minutes after walking into the courtroom, seeing Trump as the defendant and hearing the judge explain the case and the jury’s role.

At least a couple jurors on Trump’s panel said they aren’t a fan
Trump’s legal team ran out of peremptory challenges to remove a couple jurors who voiced negative opinions of the former president and his politics.

One woman who will eventually decide Trump’s fate called him selfish and self-serving.

Juror 11 was seated on the jury after Merchan denied Trump’s challenge to the juror for cause. Trump’s lawyers argued she should be dismissed because she said she does not like Trump’s “persona.”

“I don’t like his persona,” she said. “I don’t like some of my coworkers, but I don’t try to sabotage their work.”

“He just seems very selfish and self-serving so I don’t really appreciate that in any public servant, so I don’t know him as a person, so I don’t know how he is in terms of his integrity,” she added. “It’s just not my cup of tea.”

In denying Trump’s challenge, Merchan said it’s not enough that she doesn’t like his persona because she said she was certain she could set that aside to be fair and impartial.

On Thursday afternoon, jurors were generally more open about their opinions of Trump. Many said they don’t like his politics or some of his behavior in public but felt they could see past that to be a fair and impartial juror.

Another juror said she doesn’t agree with some of his politics, and when it was a frequent topic of conversation with friends and family when he was president, some negative opinions of Trump were floated.

When asked by Trump’s attorney Susan Necheles if she’d feel pressured by others to convict Trump, she said, “Not at all.” She said she would make sure not to talk about the case with anybody.

There is one juror who follows Trump on social media and has read quotes from his book the “Art of the Deal.”

He’s an investment banker who has a master’s degree. He said during voir dire that he follows Michael Cohen on Twitter and he’s followed Trump since he became president, “Generally because it was a news item when he would put a tweet out so good to be aware of that.”

Trump’s lawyers successfully petitioned Merchan to remove one woman who was questioned about several strongly worded anti-Trump social media posts. The defense lawyers used Trump’s last few peremptory strikes to remove a woman who had slept at Necheles’ home — Merchan denied a challenge for cause for that panelist.

There were some bumps with the jury, likely not the last
Thursday morning highlighted how unpredictable the jury in a high-profile trial can be, especially in an unprecedented case that involves a former president. Thursday’s court session began with one of the seven jurors who had been empaneled Tuesday returning to ask to be dismissed from the jury.

The juror, No. 2, an oncology nurse and native New Yorker, came in and said that she had concerns that “aspects of my identity” have been made public after having friends, colleagues and family conveying to her that she had been identified as a potential juror.

Merchan excused her without objections. The judge then directed the media not to mention physical appearances that could identify jurors. He complained specifically that there were reports that one of the jurors who was selected had an Irish accent.

“We just lost” what would have been a good juror for the case, Merchan said.

He also told the media not to report on two questions on the questionnaire that all prospective jurors are being asked: Their current and former employers.

Later, a second juror who had been seated was excused after prosecutors notified the court that during their research they found information about the juror showing that he was arrested in the 1990s for tearing down political advertisements.

DA’s office won’t tell Trump which witnesses they will call
At the end of the day, Trump’s attorney Todd Blanche asked the district attorney’s office to share the first three witnesses they plan to call, noting that opening arguments and the first witness testimony could begin as soon as Monday.

The district attorney’s office refused. Assistant District Attorney Josh Steinglass acknowledged that courtesy is often extended. But because Trump has been posting on social media about their witnesses, he said with a shrug, “We’re not telling him who the witnesses are.”

Merchan said he couldn’t fault prosecutors for that. Trump visibly shook his head over the exchange.

Blanche then proposed that he would assure the district attorneys’ office that Trump would not post about the witnesses if they shared their witness list.

“I don’t think you can make that representation,” Merchan responded.

Blanche continued to protest, but Merchan said he would not order them to turn over their witnesses. “They’re not required to,” he said.

The tactic from the district attorney’s office means that not only will Trump’s team be in the dark about upcoming witnesses, the DA’s office could also choose to keep the identities of witnesses in the wings from the public, too – meaning it’s possible witnesses become a surprise on a daily basis.

We’re on track to start opening arguments Monday
Friday, there are 22 prospective jurors who have yet to go through the questionnaire process from the second panel. Merchan will begin with them to try to fill out a slate of five additional alternate jurors, although the judge noted he may change that number.

Trump’s attorneys and the district attorney’s office also will get additional peremptory challenges for the alternate jurors. Neither used a challenge for the first alternate chosen on Thursday.

If jury selection wraps up quickly enough Friday, Merchan said he will hold what’s called a Sandoval hearing Friday afternoon, where they will discuss what in Trump’s legal history can be used to try to impeach him if he chooses to testify.

Prosecutors say in filings they’ll ask the former president about the recent verdicts against him, including the recent civil fraud trial and the E. Jean Carroll defamation case.

But if a sufficient number of alternates cannot be chosen out of the 22, Merchan has teed up an additional panel of 96 jurors, who were sworn in Thursday and told to return on Friday – that’s likely the final pool of people who will make up the Trump hush money trial jury.

On Thursday, the downtown Manhattan courtroom was noticeably cold – Trump commented on it to reporters as he left and his attorney even asked if the temperature could be raised. Merchan noted the temperature in the courtroom – perhaps in more ways than one – as the prospective jurors in the case filed in on Thursday.

“I want to apologize that it’s chilly in here,” Merchan said. “We’re trying to do the best we can to control the temperature, but it’s one extreme or the other.”

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Hear what Trump said minutes after jury was seated in hush money trial
CNN's Daniel Dale fact-checks remarks former President Donald Trump made outside court minutes after a full jury has been seated in his New York hush money case, paving the way for the trial to begin.

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Op vrijdag 19 april 2024 08:37 schreef Ulx het volgende:
[ x ]

Wow, een Tu-22M neergehaald. Da's een mooie.

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Op vrijdag 19 april 2024 08:53 schreef bleiblei het volgende:

[..]
Nog 499 te gaan

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Op vrijdag 19 april 2024 08:58 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]
Rusland heeft er 63 operationeel.

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Russia's MOD is blaming a "technical malfunction."

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Op vrijdag 19 april 2024 09:53 schreef Frutsel het volgende:
[ x ]

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Op vrijdag 19 april 2024 01:53 schreef skysherrif het volgende:
Interessant.

Trump zegt een paar uur geleden dat "Supporting Ukraine is important"
[ afbeelding ]

helpt ons ook uitleggen waarom johnson dit durfde te doen, die heeft goedkeuring/steun van trump gehad en wist dat zn baantje veilig was waarschijlijk

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Op vrijdag 19 april 2024 10:37 schreef polderturk het volgende:
Wat zou er gebeuren als Trump en Putin worden opgesloten met een hongerige ijsbeer?

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Op vrijdag 19 april 2024 10:40 schreef Straatcommando. het volgende:

[..]
Dan heb je een doodzieke beer met buikloop.

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Op vrijdag 19 april 2024 09:06 schreef Ulx het volgende:
63 was trouwens 2018 lees ik. Vorig jaar werd er ��ntje op een vliegveld opgeblazen. In 2019 is er eentje gecrasht. Ze hebben er hooguit nog 60.

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Op vrijdag 19 april 2024 09:53 schreef Frutsel het volgende:
[ x ]

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Op vrijdag 19 april 2024 09:53 schreef Frutsel het volgende:
[ x ]

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Op vrijdag 19 april 2024 11:59 schreef Cilantro het volgende:

[..]
Sooow koekoek hoe hebben ze dat voor elkaar gekregen.

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Op vrijdag 19 april 2024 13:14 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]
Het toestel is veel dichter bij Oekra�ne geraakt. 800km is onzin.

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Op donderdag 18 april 2024 22:06 schreef bleiblei het volgende:

[..]
Door bronnen tegenover elkaar te zetten loop je wel groot risico om appels en peren te vergelijken. 315.000 Russen tegenover 100? Europeanen/Amerikanen. Een enorme hoop sovjet schroot tegenover een enorme hoop US schroot dat tegen nieuw prijs op de balans gepleurd wordt.

Tja, waar ben je dan precies naar aan het kijken? Zijn dat nu echte kosten of is dat het gemiddelde boekhoud/jaarcijfersgeneuzel waarbij alles alle kanten op te beredeneren is.

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Op vrijdag 19 april 2024 10:19 schreef dudewhereismycar het volgende:

[..]
Dit is natuurlijk allang hun strategie. De gedachte dat Trump na de verkiezingen nog steeds anti Oekra�ne zou zijn is dan ook gebouwd op drijfzand.

Alles echt alles draait om de verkiezingen. En hierbij willen de Republikeinen de Democraten in een zo slecht mogelijke positie brengen. Hoe beter en makkelijker kan je dat krijgen dan door een escalerende oorlog dan dit?

Jammer dat het over lijken gaat, maar vanuit Trump niet meer dan logisch. Dat ze nu mogelijk wel overstag gaan komt mogelijk doordat de nu echt precaire gaat worden in Oekra�ne. Ze moeten nu wel mee..

Maar alles voor de winst van Trump.

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Op vrijdag 19 april 2024 17:46 schreef grrrrg het volgende:

[..]
Trump hoeft ook niet meer te vragen of Zelensky een onderzoek wil gaan instellen naar Hunter Biden nu. Dus de noodzaak om hulp te blokkeren ontbreekt.

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Op vrijdag 19 april 2024 18:38 schreef BEFEM het volgende:
Nederland doneert weer meer.

Van landen zoals Spanje, Itali�, Belgi�, Sloveni� etc hoor je nooit wat. Doen die nog wel wat op een paar leopards en fh70 (?) na?

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Op vrijdag 19 april 2024 19:11 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]
Die 200 miljoen voor luchtverdediging is onderdeel van het pakket dat eerder is aangekondigd. Alleen versnellen ze het.

Wat andere landen doen moeten zij weten. Dat is geen argument om zelf niets te doen.

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Op vrijdag 19 april 2024 10:37 schreef polderturk het volgende:
Wat zou er gebeuren als Trump en Putin worden opgesloten met een hongerige ijsbeer?

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People in Slovakia buy bullets for Ukraine in defiance of Russia-friendly PM
BRATISLAVA - Slovaks have raised hundreds of thousands of euros for ammunition for Ukraine in a few days as part of a crowdfunding campaign, the organisers said on April 17, in defiance of a government that has refused to send military aid to Kyiv.

Thousands of people have already contributed �750,000 (S$1 million) since April 15, when the Peace For Ukraine group launched the initiative, organisers said.

Since coming to power in 2023, populist Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has stopped military aid to Ukraine and advocated peace talks with Russia.

“We, the residents of Slovakia, want to and can help,” said Ms Zuzana Izsakova, a representative of the fund-raising initiative.

“We want to show that it is not only the government and Robert Fico who decide on this matter,” she told AFP.

The organisation hopes to raise �1 million, and plans to funnel all of the money to an international initiative spearheaded by the Czech Republic to buy ammunition for Ukraine.

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The Czech Prime Minister said on April 16 that 20 countries had pledged enough to buy 500,000 artillery shells for Ukraine outside Europe.

The Slovak government has not joined the initiative.

One of the donors, Mr Tomas Benetin, cited that as his main motive to contribute.

“I wanted the world to know that Slovakia does not only consist of pro-Kremlin politicians,” the 36-year-old from Kosice told AFP.

In recent months, Mr Fico has made a number of inflammatory comments over Russia’s invasion, questioning Ukraine’s sovereignty and calling for Kyiv to cede territory to Moscow to end the war – something Ukraine has repeatedly ruled out.

Earlier in April, Mr Fico’s long-time ally Peter Pellegrini won a presidential election in the EU and Nato member of 5.4 million people, after divisions over the Ukraine war dominated the vote.

‘In the right hands’
Ms Marian Kulich, a representative of Peace For Ukraine, said the crowdfunding campaign was born out of opposition to the government’s stance on Ukraine.

“We are convinced that many people in Slovakia do not identify with the rejection of the Czech government’s initiative,” Ms Kulich told AFP.

Ms Izsakova said the group wanted to match the �1 million donated by the Slovenian government in March.

One supporter of the Slovak crowdfunding campaign is Holocaust survivor Otto Simko, who said his own wartime experiences could be applied to events in Ukraine.

The 99-year-old former journalist took part in the 1942 Slovak National Uprising, an attempt to resist German troops during World War II.

“We fought the aggressor, the German occupation... It was impossible to negotiate with them, they had to be defeated,” Mr Simko said in a campaign video for the ammunition initiative.

“If I can only give �20 to buy one single bullet, I will know that this bullet is in the right hands,” he added.

Another supporter of the fund-raising initiative, filmmaker Pavol Pekarcik, pleaded for donations, having spent months in the war-torn Ukraine shooting documentaries.

“The feeling of helplessness is probably the worst thing a person can experience in their life,” he said in a video message promoting the campaign.

“This is how we can help the Ukrainian defenders so that when someone shoots at them, they don’t have empty hands,” Mr Pekarcik added. AFP

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Op vrijdag 19 april 2024 21:37 schreef oheng het volgende:
Wilde er niet over berichten 2 weken geleden want ik vind het totaal onbelangrijk, maar de Amerikaanse overloper / smerige commie Russell Bentley is nu officieel deaud. RIA bericht over dit heugelijke feit. Waarschijnlijk gestikt in een explosieve hotdog ofzo.

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Op vrijdag 19 april 2024 21:39 schreef Anton91 het volgende:

[..]
Zie post #47

Hij heeft blijkbaar een andere hotdog gekregen.

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Op vrijdag 19 april 2024 22:10 schreef oheng het volgende:

[..]
Ugh, gaat Ulx er met mijn scoop vandoor.

Maar ik vind die post wel een beetje homofoob en xenofoob. Verkrachting is onderdeel van de russische militaire cultuur. Bovendien, als je je hotdog in de harige aars van een andere kerel steekt, maakt je dat niet automatisch gay.

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Polish PM calls on farmers to stop blockade of Ukraine's border
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has called on Polish farmers to stop blocking the border with Ukraine.

Source: Polskie Radio, citing Tusk after the summit of the European Council in Brussels, as reported by European Pravda

Details: Tusk stated that Ukraine is in a tough situation after the recent series of Russian strikes and the near future may be decisive for the fate of this war.

Quote: "I want to appeal to everyone in Poland without exception [and ask] not to do anything that could harm Ukraine... We must make decisions that will protect the Polish border and border crossings."

More details: Tusk emphasised that the Polish government cannot allow the blocking of crossings, regardless of the justification the protests have.

"We cannot harm Ukraine in any way at a time when the fate of the war is being decided," Tusk pointed out.

He mentioned that border crossings, according to the government's latest decision, have critical infrastructure status and that the government is ready to provide further assistance to farmers who have lost some of their income.

"I am counting on them to reflect and abandon this form of protest," Tusk said.

He added that state services will work on clearing the border crossings. However, Tusk does not believe that direct coercive measures are necessary in this case.

Background:
On 18 April, CIA Director William Burns warned lawmakers that if the US Congress does not approve assistance to Ukraine now, Kyiv may lose the war by the end of the year.
US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Charles Brown have stressed the need for Congress to approve aid to Ukraine as soon as possible, as the delay is already having consequences on the battlefield.

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Ukrainian troops eliminated a commander of the 59th Brigade of the Russian Armed Forces

The Ukrainian Air Force eliminated the commander of the 59th Brigade of the Russian Armed Forces during a missile strike on a military facility of the invaders in Luhansk.

Militarnyi reported on this.

The death of the Russian invader became known from the Russian media, which wrote about his funeral. He was Colonel Pavel Kropotov, who had fought in Syria before the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

The Russian invader was killed as a result of a successful missile strike by Ukrainian Armed Forces aircraft on April 13 on the Luhansk Machine-Building Plant 100, which was used by the invaders for military purposes.

Russian media outlets explicitly state that the commander of the 59th Brigade of the Russian Ground Forces (military unit 28331) was killed by a “British missile strike.”

Colonel Kropotov was to be buried near the city of Rostov-on-Don, where his family lives.

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The invaders’ units under his leadership were responsible for communication systems and means, thus ensuring the control of the invasion forces in the eastern sector.

The explosions in Luhansk occurred in the afternoon of April 13, after which a column of smoke rose over the city. Eyewitnesses reported at least two powerful explosions. At the same time, Russian propagandists immediately accused Ukraine of a missile strike.

У Луганську крилаті ракети уразили об'єкт окупантів

Later, the network showed the moment of the “hit”, and local media announced a possible strike on a machine-building plant used by the Russian invaders for military purposes.

Subsequently, the StratCom of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that the Ukrainian Defense Forces had successfully hit the command post of the ‘Center’ grouping of the Russian invasion army.

The Planet Labs satellite recorded the aftermath of an air strike on the Luhansk Machine-Building Plant-100 used by the Russian invaders in Luhansk. Satellite images show damage to at least one building at the plant.

The strike was carried out using Storm Shadow/SCALP-EG long-range air-to-ground air-launched cruise missiles.

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Husband of jailed Russian blogger signs up for Ukraine war to secure her release
Alexei Blinovsky reported to have joined unit popular with politicians and VIPs keen to curry favour with the Kremlin

When his wife, a prominent Russian Instagram influencer, was threatened with years of imprisonment over tax evasion charges, Alexei Blinovsky opted for what seemed the most viable means to secure her freedom in Russia today: he joined Vladimir Putin’s military campaign in Ukraine.

Months earlier, his wife, Yelena Blinovskaya, a former beauty queen turned famous self-help coach, made a last-ditch attempt to escape the country, but was arrested on the border with Belarus and charged with large-scale tax evasion.

On Tuesday, Blinovsky, who helped run his wife’s self-help business, was captured on film sipping tea alongside fellow soldiers near the frontline with Ukraine, trading his customary designer attire for khaki fatigues.

Blinovsky’s decision to join the war is merely the latest manifestation of a broader trend, wherein joining the fighting in Ukraine serves as a get-out-of-jail card for those deemed to have wronged the Kremlin.

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Tens of thousands of convicts, including murderers and sexual offenders, have already been pardoned by the Kremlin after they signed up for the war, in what Putin has lauded as a scheme for former convicts to atone for their crimes “with blood”.

Facing potential time in jail, household celebrities who attended the raunchy “almost naked” celebrity party in Moscow have also made the journey to the frontline and given concerts to the troops to atone for what Putin derided as “jumping around without pants”.

But Blinovsky’s case is the first known instance where a person has volunteered for the war in order to push for the release of a family member behind bars.

The Russian media reported that Blinovsky joined the Bars Kaskad unit, a specially created group led by the lawmaker Dmitry Sablin. The unit is stacked with members of Russia’s political elite and other prominent Russian VIPs.

From early on in the war, the Kremlin signalled that becoming directly involved in the war would be a way for Russian officials to bolster their standing with Putin, who referred to those participating in the conflict as “the true elite” of the country.

Among the more prominent figures to sign up was Nikolai Peskov, the son of Putin’s long-term spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, who in the spring of 2023 served a stint in Ukraine as part of the Wagner paramilitary group.

Dozens of mid-level officials looking for a boost in their careers have since joined the Bars Kaskad unit.

“Kaskad is specially created for all kinds of famous people and officials … who are looking to publicly demonstrate that they have gone to war and stood up for their country,” said Ruslan Leviev, a military analyst with the Conflict Intelligence Team.

The unit has been mocked for largely shying away from the fighting, instead serving as a PR opportunity for officials.

“You sit somewhere in the rear, drink tea, come back with a medal and titles and go on to build your political career as a participant in the war,” Leviev added.

For Blinovsky, it remains uncertain whether the last-ditch effort to spare his wife from potentially facing years in jail will prove successful. Some fervent supporters of the war have described his enlistment as a little too “on the nose”.

“The special military operation is not a washing machine,” wrote Marina Akhmedova, a supporter of the war and member of the country’s human rights council, referring to Blinovsky’s attempt to clean up his family’s reputation.

“Supporting the special military operation is good, but it does not exempt you from the law.”

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Why does Azov still not receive Western weapons?
Nonsense. That's the first word that comes to mind in the context of the current ban on the transfer of Western weapons to Azov.

Few people in Ukraine know about this, and almost no one speaks about it publicly. It's time to draw attention to this Kafkaesque situation and make it public.

Since 2017, a number of US Consolidated Appropriation Bills have contained the following amendment: "None of the funds made available by this Act may be used to provide arms, training, or other assistance to the Azov Battalion."

In 2015, Congressman John Conyers Jr, a Democrat from Michigan, proposed this amendment to the Department of Defense Appropriations Bill for the fiscal year ending 30 September 2016. The congressman made the proposal, noting that Foreign Affairs, as well as "other leading media outlets", had characterised the Azov Battalion as "openly neo-Nazi" and "fascist".

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According to media reports, the Department of Defense subsequently called for the proposed amendment to be withdrawn, arguing that aid to Azov should already be prohibited by the Leahy Act, which states that "no assistance shall be provided to ... any unit of the security forces of a foreign country if the Secretary of State has credible information that such unit has committed a gross violation of human rights". At the time, the ban on providing arms to Azov was not included in the final bill.

However, in 2017, this amendment was included in the text of the Appropriations Bill. It is also present in this year's Defence Appropriation Bill.

It is noteworthy that the Leahy Act, which requires that incidents of human rights violations be reviewed on the basis of specific facts, was not applied to Azov, and the decision to adopt the amendment was primarily based on the characterization of Azov by Western media, which apparently formed their attitude towards the unit under the influence of Moscow propaganda.

All of the main accusations against Azov have been repeatedly refuted on the basis of facts on the internet and in the media – particularly on https://azovcontrafake.com

Does it make sense to point out once again that the very wording "Azov battalion" used in the law actually refers to a non-existent unit?

At the end of 2014, Azov ceased to be a battalion and became a separate special forces detachment. Since February 2023, our unit has been the 12th Special Forces Brigade Azov of the National Guard of Ukraine. Not a battalion, not a regiment. A brigade.

It is this amendment, which wanders from one Appropriation Bill to another from year to year, that is the reason why Azov did not have modern Western weapons in 2022, during the defence of Mariupol. At that time, we were holding back the enemy's superior forces in besieged Mariupol, using the extremely limited resources we had, and we proved ourselves to be extremely effective.

How many lives could have been saved and what would have been the results of the city's defence if, in addition to our strong motivation, cohesion and professionalism, Azov had had modern armoured vehicles and artillery systems at its disposal?

Even after 2022, when it seemed that the world had finally learned the truth about Azov, we still cannot send our soldiers to most leading Western military exercises and do not receive the vitally needed weapons that our allies provide to Ukraine. This problem is partly solved by volunteers and conscientious Ukrainians who do their best to help the unit: for example, the Tylovyky volunteer project raised UAH 77 million for 17 FV432 Bulldog armoured personnel carriers for the Azov Brigade. But the war demands more.

Now the whole of Ukraine is experiencing what Azov has been dealing with since 2014. Unfortunately, Azov is not only the first unit in the Ukrainian army to implement Western military standards – it has also become one of the first and main targets of Moscow's propaganda. Ever since the beginning of the Russo-Ukrainian war in 2014, Moscow has accused Azov and other volunteer units of "neo-Nazism" and set out to destroy them.

In 2022, the Russians wanted to "denazify" the whole of Ukraine, labelling the entire nation "Nazis". Ten years ago, no one helped Azov to withstand the influence of the Kremlin's propaganda machine. Today, the whole country is in the same situation. And just as Azov has been experiencing for 10 years, Ukraine may now face a lack of Western assistance.

I emphasise that the very existence of such amendments and prohibitions not only prevents Azov from performing its combat missions more effectively, but is a blow to the defence capability of our country, tarnishes Ukraine's image on the international level, and is humiliating for the entire Ukrainian army.

There is no evidence or confirmation of the accusations that Russian propaganda has been spreading about Azov for 10 years. If there were, delegations of Azov fighters would not have been received in the United States, in European countries, and in Israel. Azov members would not have held meetings with representatives of the US Congress and human rights organisations. They would not have spoken at the UN, the Council of Europe, or top Western universities. They would not have given interviews to the world's leading media outlets and would not have participated in panel discussions at major military conferences. This is the absurdity of the situation: Azov is welcomed at the highest level throughout the Western world, but still not given weapons.

Azov is used to overcoming difficulties on its own. We were the first unit in Ukraine to adopt NATO standards, and we did it on our own initiative. Without Western weapons, we have become one of the most capable units in the country in 10 years. Our fighters are returning to the ranks after Russian captivity, fighting the enemy and fulfilling all the tasks set by the command.

No obstacles will stop us on our way. However, justice demands answers. How many more refutations of the Kremlin's lies do we have to provide before politicians in the West finally open their eyes to the truth? How long will a structural unit of the Security and Defence Forces of Ukraine, subordinated to the military leadership of the state, be stigmatised by such humiliating amendments?

And most importantly, how many more Ukrainian soldiers – fighters of our brigade, who are defending not only the freedom and independence of Ukraine, but also the entire free Western world from the real, unimagined Nazis of today – must be killed and wounded for lack of modern Western weapons, before Azov is finally removed from the Appropriations Bill and all "blacklists"?

Disclaimer: Articles reflect their author’s point of view and do not claim to be objective or to explore every aspect of the issues they discuss. The Ukrainska Pravda editorial board does not bear any responsibility for the accuracy of the information provided, or its interpretation, and acts solely as a publisher. The point of view of the Ukrainska Pravda editorial board may not coincide with the point of view of the article’s author.

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Takeaways from the final day of jury selection in Trump’s historic hush money trial
Judge Juan Merchan swiftly moved through consideration of roughly 200 potential jurors to find a jury pool of 18 by midday Friday, swearing in 12 jurors and six alternates who will decide Donald Trump’s fate in the New York hush money case.

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There had been estimates at the start of the week that jury selection could spill into a second week, and it appeared likely after Merchan lost two empaneled jurors on Thursday. But the judge found enough prospective jurors who were willing to serve and said they could be impartial that he didn’t have to turn to a third panel of around 100 jurors in reserve Friday.

Trump – whose lawyers on Friday continued to try to delay the trial – complained about Merchan’s pace as he left the courtroom for the day.

“The trial starts on Monday, which is long before a lot of people thought. The judge wants this to go as fast as possible. That’s for his reasons, not for my reasons,” Trump said in the hallway of the 15th floor courtroom.

Here are takeaways from the final day of jury selection in Trump’s hush money trial:

The jury is set
Four women and one man were added to the jury on Friday as five of the six alternates for the case. They will sit in the jury box and will hear the duration of the trial, but they will only be put on the jury should one or more of the 12 jurors be excused from the case.

The final additions to the jury included a woman from Spain, a native New Yorker who is a fan of martial arts, a contract specialist, a woman who works for a clothing company, and a project manager for a construction company.

All 18 of the jurors will meet as a group for the first time on Monday morning when the trial is set to begin. Five of the jurors came from an initial panel of 96 that was sworn in Monday, while the rest came from a second panel that did not begin answering questions until Thursday morning.

The fourth day of jury selection played out similarly to the first three. Prosecutors focused their questions in the case on preparing the jurors to accept testimony from less-than-favorable witnesses, like Michael Cohen. Trump’s attorneys, meanwhile, were almost singularly focused on a single question: What did jurors think about Donald Trump?

The former president appeared less interested in the proceedings during much of the questioning by the district attorney’s office, sitting back in his chair and fiddling with papers. But when his lawyers began asking jurors what they thought of him, the former president was turned toward the jury box, paying full attention.

Final round of juror questions highlights emotional decision for potential jurors
There were several emotional moments during Friday morning’s questioning of potential jurors, with two jurors telling the judge in the middle of voir dire they no longer felt they could serve.

One female prospective juror who works in sales for a trading company began crying when she was handed the microphone during the voir dire process.

“I’m sorry. I thought I could do this. I wouldn’t want someone who feels this way to judge my case either,” she said, adding: “This is so much more stressful than I thought.”

Merchan invited her to come up to the bench to talk privately. He then excused her.

At one point after that jury had left, another juror raised her hand and told the court she started feeling “high anxiety” as she sat and listened to a line of questioning about the credibility of witnesses.

The woman said she was feeling “anxiety and self-doubt” as she asked to approach the bench. She too was excused.

Everyone in the jury pool had the chance to be excused at the outset if they felt they could not be fair and impartial in this case, without further questioning by the judge.

The jurors who took part in voir dire on Friday had known that Trump was the defendant in the case since Tuesday, giving them several days to weigh what it would be like to be on the historic panel before having to step into the jury box.

But the excused jurors – along with an empaneled juror who was excused earlier in the week after she expressed concerns that part of her identity was made public – underscored how heavily trying a former president weighs on the justice system.

Trump is still trying to stop his trial
Despite seating a jury, Trump’s legal team again tried to stop the trial in its tracks with another strategic appeal.

The move shows how Trump lawyers are likely to continue to try to throw up procedural roadblocks in the criminal trial, even as it’s already gotten underway.

In a new motion filed Friday morning, Trump’s lawyers once again asked an appeals court to temporarily halt the trial until they ruled on Trump’s appeal to move the venue of the hush money trial out of Manhattan.

Attorney Cliff Robert argued on Trump’s behalf at a hastily scheduled hearing Friday afternoon.

Robert, speaking in a different courtroom from where the trial was ongoing, told the judge that seating a jury in three days with so many potential jurors being dismissed for cause over bias is “untenable.”

Trump unsuccessfully appealed with the same request for a stay over the change of venue motion last week.

The DA’s team argued at that point that the motion was premature because jury selection hadn’t happened yet. Robert said Friday that he had rightfully returned to renew Trump’s request since a jury had been empaneled.

Robert also pointed to the woman who asked to be dismissed on Thursday following media attention.

Trump’s lawyer argued that the juror’s fears proved it’s unfair for Trump to be tried in the city due to the publicity surrounding the former president.

The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office Chief of Appeals Steven Wu argued the record actually showed that “jury selection has worked.”

There’s been a “robust process,” he said, to ensure jurors can be fair and root out potentially biased jurors.

A hearing on Trump’s gag order violations set for Tuesday
Despite Trump’s attempts to delay, opening statements in his criminal trial will begin Monday morning.

Then the trial will fully shift into details about Trump’s alleged affair with an adult film star (which he denies) and the hush-money payment made to her in the run-up to the 2016 election. Prosecutors will lay out the theory of their case, followed by Trump’s attorneys summarizing their arguments against the charges.

After that, the first witness will be called. Prosecutors haven’t said who it will be – saying they don’t want to see Trump posting about any witnesses ahead of time.

On Tuesday, the morning will shift to Trump’s discussion of witnesses in the case, as Merchan plans to hold a hearing on social media posts by the former president that prosecutors say violated his gag order.

They’re asking the judge to fine Trump $1,000 per post and remind him that violations of the gag order could result in imprisonment.

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Trump Media warns Nasdaq of suspected market manipulation
Trump Media, the parent company of the former president’s Truth Social, alerted Nasdaq Inc. on Thursday of what the company suspects is illegal activity driving down the price of its shares.

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In a letter to the exchange, Devin Nunes, the CEO of Trump Media (DJT), laid out what he believes could be deemed “naked” short selling.

Naked short selling involves someone selling shares they don’t own or have not borrowed. They will often then try to buy shares at a reduced price to cover themselves. This practice is generally illegal. Whereas legitimate short sellers, people who seek to benefit from declines in the value of a company’s shares, borrow the shares before selling.

The letter was made public Friday in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Nunes also noted in the letter that shares of the company were on a list the Nasdaq maintains that’s “indicative of unlawful trading activity.”

“This is particularly troubling given that “naked” short selling often entails sophisticated market participants profiting at the expense of retail investors,” he said.

Representatives from Nasdaq and Trump Media did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The company, which is majority-owned by former President Donald Trump, is down by around 50% from the all-time high it set on March 26, the day after it merged with a blank-check acquisition company to go public.

Shares of company have been on a wild ride since.

Although the company is still worth billions of dollars, it is struggling to make money and needs cash. Experts have warned investors to be careful if they choose to trade the stock, because the company doesn’t have the fundamentals to back up its sky-high valuation.

Trump Media lost $58 million in 2023 and made just $4.1 million in revenue.

Shares of the company ended Friday’s session about 9.6% higher.

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Trump campaign and RNC pledge to unleash thousands to monitor vote counting in battleground states
The Trump campaign and Republican National Committee are pledging to deploy 100,000 volunteers and lawyers to monitor vote counting across battleground states this year – part of what officials describe as a stepped-up focus on “election integrity” by the national party.

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Officials describe the program, detailed in a news release Friday and first reported by Politico, as the “most extensive and monumental election integrity program in the nation’s history,” and it underscores how much former President Donald Trump’s relentless focus on baseless election fraud claims from 2020 is shaping the party’s agenda.

As the party’s presumptive presidential nominee, Trump now controls the RNC and recently installed a new chairman, Michael Whatley, and his daughter-in-law Lara Trump as party co-chair.

“Having the right people to count the ballots is just as important as turning out voters on Election Day,” Trump said in a statement. “Republicans are now working together to protect the vote and ensure a big win on November 5th!”

The RNC and the Trump campaign said they plan to recruit and train poll watchers, poll workers and attorneys to monitor not only voting sites but ballot-tabulation centers, including those where mail ballots are processed to guard against what they call “Democrat attempts to circumvent rules.”

The party said it plans to establish election integrity hotlines in each battleground state, allowing poll watchers and voters to report issues to the GOP’s legal team.

It’s not unusual for political parties and candidates to work to recruit and deploy lawyers and partisan poll watchers to protect their interests as voters cast their ballots and election officials tally the results.

But some Republican officials – even those who don’t subscribe to the falsehood that rampant election fraud led to Trump’s loss in 2020 – have argued that the GOP was outgunned by Democrats on the legal front during that election – as communities around the country eased voting rules to allow people to cast ballots safely during the pandemic.

In a statement, Charlie Spies, a veteran Republican election lawyer who is now serving as the RNC’s general counsel, said, “The Democrat tricks from 2020 won’t work this time.”

“In 2024, we’re going to beat the Democrats at their own game and the RNC legal team will be working tirelessly to ensure that election officials follow the rules in administering elections,” he said.

Spies promised aggressive legal action if officials deviate from established election procedures or “try to change them at the last minute.”

The new election monitoring program comes as the RNC has engaged in dozens of election-related lawsuits around the country.

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Johnson speaks out after Democrats vote with him on foreign aid bill
House Speaker Mike Johnson speaks to reporters after a bipartisan group of lawmakers voted to advance a bill that provides aid to Ukraine and Israel. Several hardline Republicans, including Marjorie Taylor Greene, were opposed to the bill. Republicans may move to oust him as House Speaker for allowing the vote. The final vote on the bill could happen as soon as Saturday.

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Verenigde Staten trekken troepen terug uit Niger, Russische invloed groeit
https://nos.nl/l/2517435

De Verenigde Staten trekken hun troepen terug uit Niger. In de komende maanden zullen de ruim duizend Amerikaanse militairen het West-Afrikaanse land verlaten.

Na berichtgeving van The New York Times over de terugtrekking van de troepen melden bronnen aan persbureau Reuters dat er een akkoord is gesloten tussen het Amerikaanse ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken en de junta in Niger.

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Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 01:48 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
https://edition.cnn.com/p(...)-04-19-24/index.html
Vandaag was de 4de dag van Trump zijn rechtszitting, dit is een overzicht van de live verslaggeving hierover.

https://edition.cnn.com/2(...)ney-trial/index.html
[..]

SPOILER

[..]

Vandaag was de laatste dag voor het kiezen van de jury. Er zijn nu 12 vaste juryleden gekozen en 6 reserve juryleden. Ook was er de Sandoval hearing waarin besloten zou worden welke rechtszaken van Trump/zijn bedrijf gebruikt zou mogen worden als argumenten in de zwijggeld rechtszaak wanneer Trump gaat getuigen. (belastingfraude zaak van zijn bedrijf/Carrol rechtszaak/Trump fraude zaak etc.) Er zal nog een beslissing van de rechter op volgen uiterlijk deze zondag volgens mij.

Ook hebben de aanklagers aangegeven op zondag de naam van hun eerste getuige door te geven aan Trump zijn verdediging. Maar alleen als zij dit niet doorgeven aan Trump zelf. Mocht de naam van deze getuige op ��n of andere manier op internet terecht komen voordat hij opgeroepen wordt zullen zij de volgende getuigen geheim houden.

Ook was er een andere hoorzitting over een motie van de verdediging van Trum om de plaats van de rechtszaak te veranderen deze middag. Maar deze werd snel afgewezen door de rechter die hier over ging. De verwachting is dus dat maandag de rechtszaak zelf gaat beginnen en dat dan ook de eerste getuige opgeroepen zal worden.

Deze middag heeft een man zichzelf in de fik gestoken voor de deur van de rechtbank, hij is in kritieke toestand naar het ziekenhuis gebracht. Voordat hij dit deed gooide hij flyers met complottheorie�n om zich heen. Wat ik van de beelden zag is dat hij dit waarschijnlijk niet zal overleven.

Ook heeft hij weer publiekelijk geklaagd over zijn "gag order" en wil hij dat deze van hem afgenomen wordt. De teller staat nu op 10 keer dat Trump deze overtreden heeft. En volgende week dinsdag zal hier een zitting over zijn. Technisch gezien zou hij een boete van maximaal 1000 dollar per keer kunnen krijgen. Of een gevangenisstraf van 30 dagen per keer (als ik het goed begrepen heb). Natuurlijk zal de kans erg klein zijn dat hij de gevangenis in moet hiervoor.

Trump heeft weer gezegd dat hij zal getuigen in deze rechtszaak, dus het ziet er naar uit dat dit inderdaad zal gebeuren.

https://edition.cnn.com/2(...)ipulation/index.html
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Trump media is er blijkbaar niet zo blij mee dat de aandelen een vrije val gemaakt hebben en heeft hierover een klacht ingediend bij Nasdaq. Al is hij de laatste 3 dagen flink gestegen. Volgens hun zijn handelaren de aandeel aan het shorten zonder daadwerkelijk deze aandelen te beschikken "naked short selling" wat dus niet mag.

Vandaag is de aandeel met 9.68 procent gestegen naar een waarde van 36,38 dollar per aandeel. De beurswaarde is op dit ogenblik 4,97 miljard dollar.

https://edition.cnn.com/2(...)g-monitor/index.html
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Dat zijn een hoop mensen die zij op de been willen krijgen om toe te zien op eerlijke verkiezingen. Maar met de laatste verkiezingen in gedachte wie gaan er op deze 100.000 mensen toezicht houden.

https://edition.cnn.com/v(...)d-bill-cn-digvid.cnn
[..]

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Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 07:09 schreef PluggieOD het volgende:

[..]
Kap eens met die offopic bullshit.

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Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 08:56 schreef Breekfast het volgende:
Een hele spannende dag vandaag voor Oekra�ne, met de definitieve stemming in het huis van afgevaardigden in de VS over een steunpakket van 61 miljard.

Ik hoop dat de VS alles logistiek al zo hebben voorbereid dat als het pakket erdoor is, er heel snel wapens in Oekra�ne aan zullen komen.

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Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 08:56 schreef Breekfast het volgende:
Een hele spannende dag vandaag voor Oekra�ne, met de definitieve stemming in het huis van afgevaardigden in de VS over een steunpakket van 61 miljard.

Ik hoop dat de VS alles logistiek al zo hebben voorbereid dat als het pakket erdoor is, er heel snel wapens in Oekra�ne aan zullen komen.

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Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 09:02 schreef halfway het volgende:

[..]
Een lening dus zodat ze wapens van de VS kunnen kopen.

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Dutch intelligence agency takes action against Russian hackers: report
“The Military Intelligence and Security Service (MIVD) took action last year to restrict the digital freedom of movement of Russian hackers against the Netherlands and allies, including Ukraine. The service will continue to do so next year,” the MIVD wrote in its recent annual report.

According to the report, the Dutch intelligence agency sent intelligence to its Ukrainian counterparts regarding Russian cyber operations, enabling Ukraine to take action and stop leaks as a result. “This has contributed to the protection of Ukrainian government networks and vital infrastructure,” the MIVD noted.

“In addition, the MIVD shared intelligence and insights about Russian cyber operations with other partners and others, such as government services and the private sector… The MIVD itself has also disrupted Russian cyber operations,” the agency added.

“The threat from Russia is great,” MIVD Director, Rear Admiral Peter Reesink said in a press release regarding the recent report.

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Chinese intelligence actors
“The Netherlands is still an attractive espionage target for Chinese intelligence actors, especially in the semiconductor, aerospace, and maritime industries,” the Dutch military intelligence agency MIVD said in its annual report published on Thursday.

According to the Dutch intelligence agency, China’s heavy investments in acquiring Western knowledge are due to the limited technical capabilities of Beijing.

“China wants to be independent of Western knowledge and technology (and) wants to build a military that can match any other. To do so, it needs advanced technology it doesn’t yet fully possess. It tries to get this abroad, using legal means such as research and investments, but also through its intelligence agencies,” MIVD noted.

“China tries to get hold of technology in the Netherlands in various ways, using a combination of (cyber) espionage, company insiders, acquisitions, circumvention of export restrictions, and reverse engineering of technology for which no licenses are required,” the agency added.

The MIVD’s report further pointed to Chinese universities playing an important role in gathering intelligence, as scientists who work with Western companies often also work for China’s security services and state companies.

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Guardian: Half of British military defense fund for Ukraine remains unused
More than half of the U.K.'s 900 million pound (over $1 billion) military fund for Ukraine remains unused due to bureaucratic delays in handing out contracts, the Guardian reports.

The British Ministry of Defense manages a coalition of about nine countries called the International Fund for Ukraine (IFU). The IFU is a funding mechanism that was created in August 2022 and uses financial contributions from nine other countries to procure military equipment for Ukraine. Some of the other countries in the initiative include Denmark, Norway, the Netherlands, Sweden, Iceland, and Lithuania.

The IFU has been criticized for its slow provision of weapons to the frontlines. Of the more than $1 billion that's been donated by Western countries over the last two years, of which $600 million came from the U.K., only about $500 million has been committed or spent.

Some British officials even admitted that some of the materials that were purchased would not reach Ukraine until Spring 2025.

Delays have reportedly been caused by a need to assess each of the massive numbers of defense companies that have received contracts. A spokesperson from the Ministry reportedly told the Guardian that "thousands of responses have been received from industry to IFU requirements, each of which has had to be individually reviewed."

Defense Secretary Grant Shapps is actively trying to recruit new countries to join the fund but the initiative's negative record for distributing cash appears to be deterring potential donors.

Delays in Western aid have become a major issue for Ukraine's military, especially as critical ammunition shortages continue to undermine advances on the battlefield.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has also called on international partners to expand provisions of air defense systems amidst increased Russian aerial attacks over the last few months.

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Russians destroy agricultural products on their way to Asia and Africa in Odesa Oblast port

Russian missile attack on the Pivdennyi (Southern) post in Odesa Oblast on the afternoon of 19 April destroyed containers with agricultural products which were supposed to be exported to Asia and Africa.

Source: press service of the Ministry of Restoration of Ukraine

Quote: "Two terminals specialising in shipping of agricultural products were struck in the Pivdennyi port. One of the terminals belongs to the world famous Singapore company Delta Vilmar, which has been operating in Ukraine since 2004 and also owns several plants for processing of agricultural products. These are over US$300 million of investments and almost 1,000 [people’s] jobs."

Details: The Ministry of Restoration notes that this is the 39th Russian attack on port infrastructure facilities in Odesa Oblast.

In total, 215 facilities, 153 means of transport and 8 civilian vessels were damaged and partially destroyed, and 26 civilians were injured.

Background: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported that Russian forces had struck the Pivdennyi seaport on the afternoon of 19 April, hitting port facilities with missiles.

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Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 09:32 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
https://kyivindependent.c(...)aine-remains-unused/
[..]

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Een Patriot-systeem (Phased Array Tracking Radar to Intercept On Target) gebruikt een radar voor doelopsporing, classificatie en identificatie.
De radar geleidt de raketten die op meerdere lanceerinrichtingen staan naar het te onderscheppen doel.

Nederland beschikt over 3 vuureenheden met elk een eigen radar, vuurleidingscentrale en meerdere lanceerinrichtingen.
Er is materiaal voor een vierde vuureenheid, deze dient als reserve om de andere 3 vuureenheden inzetbaar te houden bij (groot) onderhoud.

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Two suspects held in Poland after attack on Navalny ally in Lithuania
Two men have been detained in Poland on suspicion that they attacked Russian activist Leonid Volkov — an ally of late opposition leader Alexei Navalny — on the orders of foreign intelligence services, officials said.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk later said on social media that the two Polish “assassins” are under arrest, as well as a Belarusian working for Russia who had ordered the Poles to “assassinate” a Navalny associate. He said the Poles were linked to extremist football fan groups.

SPOILER

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Mr Volkov was attacked on March 12 outside his home in the Lithuanian capital Vilnius, where he lives in exile. The attacker smashed one of his car’s windows, sprayed tear gas into his eyes and hit him with a hammer, police said.

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda announced the arrest of two people to reporters in Vilnius and thanked Poland for its work.

“Two people have been detained in Poland on suspicion of beating Russian opposition leader Leonid Volkov. I thank the Republic of Poland for the excellent work it has done. I have discussed this with the Polish president and thanked them for their excellent co-operation,” Mr Nauseda said.

Both suspects are Polish citizens previously known to police in their homeland. They travelled to Vilnius before the attack on Mr Volkov and returned to Warsaw afterwards, according to Lithuania’s deputy police chief Saulius Briginas.

He said they were detained on April 3 in an operation in which Lithuanian police participated.

Lithuania expects them to be handed over in May, chief prosecutor Justas Laucius told reporters. If convicted on charges of causing bodily harm, they face up to three years in prison.

In Poland, Joanna Adamowicz, the spokesperson for a Warsaw court, said the two men were put under arrest until May 13, on suspicion that “they had organised on the territory of the Lithuanian Republic an assault and caused damage to the health of (a) Russian citizen”, while “being active in an organised group and carrying out the orders of the special services of an alien country”.

The court in Warsaw’s Praga district has decided to hand them over to Lithuania for a criminal investigation, on the condition that they would serve any potential punishment in Poland, Ms Adamowicz said.

Their lawyers have lodged complaints and the files have been sent to the Appeals Court in Warsaw, she said.

Poland’s Central Investigation Bureau of Police confirmed that its officers worked with Lithuanian police to arrest two people suspected of an attack on a Russian opposition activist in Lithuania in March.

The developments came a day after Poland announced the arrest of a Polish man suspected of being ready to spy on behalf of Russia’s military intelligence in an alleged plot to assassinate Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky.

“There will be no leniency whatsoever for collaborators of the Russian services,” Mr Tusk said, referring to both cases.

Mr Volkov said on social media that he did not know the details of the arrest, but “saw how energetically and persistently the Lithuanian police have worked over the past month on this case” and was “very glad that this work has paid off”.

"Thanks a lot, Mr. President.
And great thanks to Lithuanian and Polish law enforcement agencies for the tremendous work they’ve done.

It is of enormous importance to investigate and to expose all the chain-of-command from Putin to the guy with the hammer. https://t.co/Yai5DLqEN3

— Leonid Volkov (@leonidvolkov) April 19, 2024"

“As for the details, we will find them out soon. Can’t wait to find out!” he added.

He suffered a broken arm in the attack. He accused Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “henchmen” at the time and vowed to keep up his opposition work.

The attack took place nearly a month after Mr Navalny’s unexplained death in a remote Arctic penal colony. He was Russia’s best-known opposition figure and Mr Putin’s fiercest critic.

Mr Navalny had been imprisoned since January 2021 and was serving a 19-year sentence on charges of extremism widely seen as politically motivated.

Opposition figures and western leaders laid the blame on the Kremlin for his death — something officials in Moscow rejected.

Mr Volkov used to be in charge of Mr Navalny’s regional offices and election campaigns. He ran for mayor of Moscow in 2013 and sought to challenge Mr Putin in the 2018 presidential election. He left Russia several years ago under pressure from the authorities.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 09:35 schreef michaelmoore het volgende:

[..]
Europa is te laks met hulp voor Oekraine en doet te weinig , ook zelf wapens en munitie maken gebeurt niet, Europa wacht tot de Rus de Balten en Moldova inpikt en doet dan nog niets
https://nl.marketscreener(...)n-te-halen-46473239/
De USA gaat met Trump ook niets doen ,
Tsjechie wil graag de vriend zijn van de Rus en is 1968 vergeten , Hongarije idem dito

nederland kan de helft van haar patriot systemen naar Oekraine sturen , maar doet NIETS
[..]

quote:

NATO has air defense systems ready for Ukraine, Stoltenberg says
Announcements are expected “in the near future,” the NATO Secretary General said after Zelenskyy met with defense ministers.

BRUSSELS — NATO countries confirmed Friday they have available air defense systems that can be sent to Ukraine, the alliance's chief said.

Announcements are expected "in the near future," Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told the media after a virtual meeting between Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and NATO defense ministers.

The emergency meeting, under the format of NATO-Ukraine Council, was called by Zelenskyy two days ago amid Russia's escalating missile attacks against Ukrainian civilians. It comes just a day before a crucial U.S. congressional vote to decide whether to give Ukraine a $60 billion package of military aid.

"NATO defense ministers have agreed to step up and provide further military support, including more air defense. NATO has mapped out existing capabilities across the lines and there are systems that can be made available to Ukraine," Stoltenberg said.

"So I expect new announcements on air defense capabilities for Ukraine soon ... I expect concrete announcements in the near future based on the information that was shared with us," he added.

While the focus is on the Patriot system, "there are other weapons that allies can provide, including SAMP/Ts," the NATO boss said, adding: "Many allies who do not have available systems have pledged to provide financial support to purchase them for Ukraine."

NATO is also working with industry to ramp up production and to refurbish systems to make them operational and fit for purpose, he said.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 09:30 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
https://tvpworld.com/7706(...)ssian-hackers-report
[..]
“The threat from Russia is great,” MIVD Director, Rear Admiral Peter Reesink

[..]

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 10:44 schreef Opnaarutrecht het volgende:
Het wordt tijd dat we iedereen die achter Poetin staat een enkeltje Rusland geven.

quote:

203mm shells of American production were spotted with Russians

^{American 203mm projectile. Source: Telegram channel "Ukrainian Informator"}

The Russian gunners were spotted with 203mm artillery shells of American production.

This was reported by the Telegram channel “Ukrainian Informant.”

The photo shows the ammunition and marked propellant charge “203-2S7.” Obviously, the projectile is designed to fire with a 2S7 Pion self-propelled gun.

The number 203 indicates that the shell received the name “Izdeliye 203.” Ammunition with this name was found in the Russian range tables, which were written in 2023.

SPOILER

quote:

^{Propellant charges. Source: Telegram channel “Ukrainian Informator”}

Marking on propellant charges and a range table may indicate that Russians received a large enough batch of these ammunition, and did not seize them from the Ukrainian military. Also, Russians could repack propellant charges and leave the container.

It can be assumed that Russia received these ammunition from Iranian arsenals. The country is known to operate American M110 203mm self-propelled guns.

^{Iranian M110 self-propelled gun. Photo credits: ISNA}

In addition to Iran, M110 operates in Bahrain, Cyprus, Greece, Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Pakistan, Taiwan and Turkey.

Iranian shells in the Russian arsenal
Recently, Militarnyi reported that Iran had supplied the Russian military with a batch of 120mm mortar rounds, which had been manufactured in 2023.

Mortar rounds are placed immediately with propellant charges in a plastic tube. Additional propellant charges are used to increase the maximum range of such rounds.

^{120mm mortar rounds from the People’s Republic of China and Iran of the Russian military. April, 2024. Ukraine. Photo credits: Telegram/@Pizdsapper}

In 2023, it became known that Iran had sold just over a million dollars worth of ammunition to Russia for the war against Ukraine. Iran and Russia signed a contract for ammunition back in September 2022.

According to the released contract, Iran sold various types of missiles and ammunition. An appendix to the contract states that Iran transferred 125mm barrels for T-72 tanks, barrels for D-30 122mm howitzer, tank, artillery ammunition.

As previously reported, Russians also use Iranian 122mm high-explosive shells of the Arash family for BM-21 Grad multiple rocket launchers.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 11:26 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
[ x ]

Russia will attack NATO if Ukraine falls, Mike Pence warns

quote:

Strike on Zaporizhzhia: Russians attacked industrial infrastructure with missiles
Russian invaders during today's early morning air attack on April 20 targeted the industrial infrastructure of Zaporizhzhia with a missile strike. There were no casualties as a result of the enemy shelling, reports Ivan Fedorov, the head of the Zaporizhzhia Regional Military Administration.

"Russian terrorist forces have once again launched rocket attacks on the industrial infrastructure of Zaporizhzhia," the official stated.

He added that the details of the enemy attack and its impact on the city are currently being clarified, and all consequences are being assessed. However, it is known that there were no casualties or injuries.

"There are no casualties," wrote the head of the Regional Military Administration in his Telegram.

Shelling of Zaporizhzhia region
Fedorov also provided an update in the morning on the situation regarding enemy strikes on the region.

"Throughout the day, occupiers struck Zaporizhzhia region 291 times. 7 settlements were under enemy fire," the official reported.

The adversary inflicted:
• 5 airstrikes on Robotyne, Mala Tokmachka, and Novoandriivka.
• 32 UAV attacks of various modifications targeted Huliaipole, Levadne, Robotyne, Mala Tokmachka, Malynivka, and Novoandriivka.
• 2 MLRS shelling hit Levadne and Robotyne.
• 252 artillery strikes were carried out on the territory of Huliaipole, Mala Tokmachka, Novoandriivka, Novodanylivka, Robotyne, Levadne, and Malynivka.

"There were 22 reports of housing destruction. Civilians were unharmed," the publication by the head of the Zaporizhzhia Regional Military Administration stated.

Russian air attack on Ukraine on April 20
Earlier, it was reported that on April 20, closer to dawn, alarms were sounded in various regions of Ukraine due to the threat of enemy air attacks, including the use of ballistic missiles and other means of attack from tactical aviation.

Around five in the morning, explosions were reported in Zaporizhzhia due to a rocket attack by Russian forces. Additionally, the Defense Forces of Southern Ukraine reported on air defense operations in the region, particularly in the Odesa region. Later, an explosion in Odesa was reported.

quote:

LIVE | Slowaken halen in enkele dagen tijd bijna twee miljoen op voor Oekra�ne
Aangepast: 1 min geleden2 min geledenin BUITENLAND

Van nieuws rond wapenleveranties tot de meest recente verschuivingen aan het front in de strijd tegen Rusland; volg hier de laatste ontwikkelingen in de Oekra�ne-oorlog.

quote:

Slowaken halen in enkele dagen tijd bijna twee miljoen op voor Oekra�ne

Een inzamelingsactie in Slowakije heeft afgelopen week bijna twee miljoen euro opgehaald.

Slowaken die boos zijn dat hun regering weigert om militaire hulp aan Oekra�ne te bieden, willen met de actie geld inzamelen om munitie naar Kiev te sturen.

Vrijdag stond de teller al op 1,94 miljoen euro, een bedag dat dankzij 30.000 donateurs in vier dagen werd ingezameld.
De gemiddelde donatie bedroeg 64 euro.

De actie werd opgezet door Otto Simko, een 99-jarige journalist en tevens overlevende van de Holocaust. Hij raakte ge�nspireerd door de Tsjechische regering, die een plan maakte om honderdduizenden artilleriemunitiepatronen te kopen voor Oekra�ne.

Slowakije, sinds september vorig jaar onder leiding van de pro-Russische premier Robert Fico, weigerde mee te doen aan dit initiatief, ondanks de dringende behoefte vanuit Kiev om munitie.

Daarom begonnen fondsenwervers de campagne met het doel om te laten zien dat een meerderheid het niet eens is met de verschuiving in het buitenlandse beleid van de Slowaakse regering.

"Veel mensen in Slowakije schamen zich voor de visie van de regering op Rusland.

quote:

‘Ghostly’ city: How Russia’s war in Ukraine is taking a toll on its own Belgorod region

Deserted streets, shuttered shops and silent restaurants. Damaged buildings and craters from missile strikes pockmarking the asphalt. Arrows on house facades signposting the nearest bomb shelters and stock of emergency supplies.

The once-tranquil city of Belgorod, some 25 miles north of Russia’s border with Ukraine, has been transformed into a kind of ghost town, its eerie silence interrupted by the regular wail of missile warning sirens – a reminder that the war raging in neighboring Ukraine looms ever closer.

Reporting from the region is complicated by media restrictions and government control over press freedom. Many Russians are afraid to speak openly for fear of prosecution.

Against that backdrop, residents of Belgorod have shared with CNN their struggle to navigate an uncertain future in the city, where everyday life has been irrevocably altered by the full-scale invasion of Ukraine launched by Russia in February 2022. Conversations were conducted by phone and audio messages.

Belgorod has been the launch site for many rocket and missile attacks on Ukraine, and a key military hub for Russia’s invading forces. In 2023, after a year of strikes on its towns and cities, Ukraine changed tactics and expanded its operations more overtly onto Russian territory, putting Belgorod region firmly in its crosshairs.

In recent weeks, the Belgorod region has been subject to almost daily shelling and drone attacks. Russian authorities blame Ukraine and report having repelled the attacks, while also admitting destruction and casualties caused by them. The Belgorod region has borne the brunt of the war compared to more distant Russian regions, which have been relatively untouched.

The governor of Belgorod region, Vyacheslav Gladkov, said on March 23 that 24 people had been killed and 152 injured in the span of less than two weeks.

SPOILER

quote:

‘Alarmed Belgorod’
At the peak of the shelling of Belgorod, Timur Khaliullin, the 36-year-old organist for the Belgorod Philharmonic, took a rollerblade ride through the city center’s deserted streets to show others what it looked like, in a video titled “Alarmed Belgorod.”

Khaliullin points to the sealed-off doors of shops and restaurants and the arrows leading to shelters, emergency kits and basements where residents can take cover.

Just as he reaches the central square and puts on his rollerblades, the sirens go off. “Can you hear that? That’s how frightening the sirens sound. It’s an air raid alarm. It means there will be incoming fire now, I need to take cover,” Khaliullin says from behind the camera.

He seeks refuge inside one of the empty, white-painted concrete boxes positioned at regular intervals throughout the square, each marked with the word “Shelter.” Screens stationed around the square instruct residents on proper conduct during shelling, offer guidance on administering first aid and echo patriotic encouragements. One of the messages reads, “The battle for Russia persists. Victory will be ours!”

As the sirens stop, Khaliullin resumes his rollerblade ride, filming empty streets, and people waiting at the bus stops. According to locals, those traveling by public transport often spend hours standing at stops until the all-clear signal sounds, allowing buses to run again, and the city to resume its life – until the next missile threat.

This is not how the city always looked. Describing her hometown of Belgorod pre-war, 25-year-old volunteer Natalia Izotova painted a charming picture. “It’s a small, cozy southern town with lots of trees and lots of greenery, which gets very hot in the summer,” she told CNN. “It’s such a quiet, tiny place where everyone simply lives their life and tries to change something for the better in every way they can.”

Born and raised in Belgorod, Izotova said despite the “terrible fear” she experiences every time the sirens go off, she is hesitant to leave, bound as she is by her work with a local charity helping people with special needs. “You live in a very large cocoon of misunderstanding and fear. At the same time, you don’t really want to leave the city. But the Belgorod you remember no longer exists.”

Now that the city has emptied out, far fewer people dare to step outside unless they have to, she said. “They still try to venture onto the streets, but it’s all getting gloomier. The city is becoming more ghostly.”

Deadly shelling
In mid-March, amid escalating Ukrainian attacks and with warning sirens sounding four to five times daily, Gladkov, the regional governor, announced the closure of malls and schools, and the cancellation of classes for two days in several regions, including the city of Belgorod.

Videos emerging from Belgorod showed scenes of chaos as people drove through thick smoke and burned-out cars, as well as damaged buildings and residents fleeing with their belongings amid the sounds of explosions and distant air-raid sirens.

The main square’s tiled pavement bears shrapnel damage - a reminder of a shell that fell on December 30 during one of the most devastating attacks. Toys and flowers have been placed on the steps nearby in memory of those lost.

Following a major air attack on Ukraine by Russia overnight into December 29, Kyiv retaliated a day later by targeting the Belgorod region. At least 25 people were killed, including three children, and 113 were injured that day, Gladkov said, making it the deadliest shelling within Russia since the war began.


“This is the darkest day we’ve had recently,” 24-year-old Elizaveta, who asked to be identified only by her first name for safety concerns, told CNN. She was among those who witnessed the December 30 attack.

As she left her job at a beverage chain store near the city center, she heard explosions. At first, everyone thought it was the usual sound of air defense operations.

“And then I saw it all: everything on fire, covered in smoke, buses stopped running, and taxis weren’t moving either because the roads were completely blocked,” she recalled.

“At some point, the city just died, no one expected this. Many people perished, and the entire city mourned and continues to mourn to this day.” Life there has not been the same since, she said. Her store has seen fewer customers, with many people afraid to step out of their homes.

‘Lifeless’ city
Like many others in Belgorod, Elizaveta has family in Kharkiv, across the border, with whom she has not spoken since they fell out in the first few months of the war. Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second largest city, has suffered a recent increase in Russian attacks.

“Here in Belgorod, many of us have relatives on both sides of the border. People from Belgorod frequently visited Kharkiv, and vice versa. It’s truly disheartening to see such a rift between people who were once so closely connected,” Elizaveta told CNN.

“I long for a return to normalcy, when people feel less fearful and regain a sense of security. The city is lifeless: stepping out to the streets at any hour you don’t see anyone or any vehicles, it’s as if you’re on a deserted island.”

Vasily, a 27-year-old human relations manager who asked only to give his first name for safety reasons, described a pervasive sense of anxiety that accompanies his fellow residents every time they set foot outside the house, the fear of shelling or missile attacks weighing heavily on their minds.

By the end of March, the disruptions caused by the attacks had become so predictable that setting a morning alarm seemed redundant. “You don’t even need to set an alarm anymore because like clockwork, at 8 in the morning, we’re met with another shelling, another missile launch, air defense operations or other war-related operations,” he told CNN.

Looting amid chaos
As the situation deteriorated, essential services began to falter. Shops and eateries were closing their doors, and food deliveries were becoming increasingly sporadic. Confronted with the reality of living in a conflict zone, Vasily, like many other residents, contemplated leaving the city but decided to stay because his wife is enrolled at a local university.

“Swathes of people in Belgorod are opting to move either further away from the region or entirely out of it, basically, anywhere far from the border where it should potentially be less dangerous,” Vasily said.

While the authorities have never ordered a general evacuation, Gladkov disclosed on March 30 that 5,000 children had been evacuated to more secure regions, including St. Petersburg, Bryansk and Makhachkala. In total, the authorities were planning to relocate approximately 9,000 children to other regions due to ongoing shelling, state media reported.

Deserted areas have witnessed an escalation of crime and disorder. In early April, the head of the Grayvoron district in Belgorod region sounded the alarm over a rise in looting incidents, with the highest number of such cases reported in the district’s border settlements.

The authorities have since said they aim to restore the border territories in time for Victory Day on May 9, when Russia commemorates the victory over Nazi Germany in 1945.

Meanwhile, the border villages in Belgorod region remain largely abandoned and in a state of disrepair, and authorities don’t seem in a hurry to encourage residents to return home.

As the war drags on, those who remain in Belgorod become less optimistic about the future.

“Considering that Russia is fighting in a way that what is left behind is scorched earth, I have a great fear that scorched earth may be left from the territory around Belgorod as well,” Vasily said.

Volunteer Izotova voiced a similar sentiment, describing the overwhelming sense of abandonment that has loomed large since the December 30 attack – a feeling that has only grown more pronounced in recent weeks.

In one of his latest references to the Belgorod region, Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed his “appreciation” and “admiration” for its residents’ courage and pledged support to it and other border regions.

Despite that assurance, according to Izotova, many residents of Belgorod still feel neglected by the media, authorities and the broader Russian population, which appears oblivious to the war.

The challenges faced by Belgorod appear to have been overlooked, she said, which in turn has led even those who oppose the war to feel that sympathy should no longer be extended only to the Ukrainian victims.

“While panic, fear and uncertainty persist, people are still trying to offer help. I think our main task right now is to assist those facing hardship – both Ukrainians (suffering from the Russian aggression) and victims of the conflict within Russia,” Izotova said.

“It is important not to remain silent or divert attention to comparisons of suffering, but rather to acknowledge the reality of war and remember who instigated it. Russia is entrenched in perpetual sorrow, experiencing it internally while also imposing it on others.”

quote:

How a store manager from India ended up killed on the battlefields of Ukraine fighting for Russia

^{Asfan Mohammed, seen in a Russian military uniform, in an image provided by his brother, Imran. Mohammed Imran}

They opened the box on a Sunday in late March, getting their first look at Asfan Mohammed since he departed India for Russia four months earlier.

He was better dressed than when he’d left – a black suit, white shirt, tie and shoes replacing the casual attire he’d worn when family and friends saw him off.

But he had to be buried in line with his Muslim beliefs, so his body would need to be prepared; the neat clothes removed.

It was then Imran Mohammad, 41, saw the extent of what had happened to his 31-year-old brother while fighting for the Russian armed forces in Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.

“I saw holes on the back of his shoulder, his ribs right down till his lower back,” Imran told CNN.

“There were six to seven holes caused by a drone attack. It ripped through his body. There was internal damage. Two teeth were broken.”

And now this tight-knit family in Hyderabad, southern India was broken too. A husband, father and provider gone.

Imran’s business was also in ruins, rotted by neglect as he’d focused all his energies on finding out what happened to his brother on the battlefield of Europe’s bloodiest conflict since the Second World War.

Imran noted the time.

“I opened the box at 11 a.m. Sunday. When I saw his body for the first time, it hit me that he’s no more,” he said.

“My efforts to look for my brother, my two-month fight for my brother, came to a painful end. I wanted to react looking at his corpse, but I just couldn’t. I went totally numb.”

SPOILER

quote:

A dream lost
Asfan met an unlikely fate – one his family could never have imagined when Putin ordered Russian troops into Ukraine in February 2022.

At the time, the father of two managed a clothing store, one of almost 300 across India in the homegrown Allen Solly chain, selling kids’ clothes, wedding tuxedos and just about everything in between.

He’d been there eight years, his brother said.

It wasn’t the worst job, but Asfan wanted more for his wife and two children, ages 2 and 8 months. And he dreamed of taking them out of Hyderabad.

“He wanted to work in Australia,” where his sister-in-law and her family lived, Imran said. “They were calling him and his family there.”

But that meant Asfan would need a high score on the International English Language Testing System (IELTS), which gauges proficiency of non-native speakers.

“He wrote his IELTS. He didn’t do well,” Imran said. “He felt demotivated. He tried again.”

It didn’t work, Imran said.

^{Asfran Mohammad's remains are returned to India in March. Mohammed Imran}

But videos on YouTube about job opportunities in Russia gave Asfan new hope, and he contacted an employment agency, his brother said.

“He was going to work as a taxi driver or delivery boy in Russia – that process was on,” Imran said.

“Then a couple of days later the agents said there are vacancies for helper and security jobs in the Russian army. The agents assured him that this was the best job. They said he could get a Russian passport and national card within a year through which you could move around neighboring countries.”

Asfan thought that could be a stepping stone to his family’s dream life in Australia, his brother said.

Instead, his choice took him to the frigid, battle-scarred landscape of Ukraine.

Brainwashed
Asfan kept his plans secret from family and friends until it was too late to turn back, according to Imran, who said he only learned his brother was leaving three days before he set off for Russia on November 9 last year.

By that time, Asfan had paid more than $1,800 to the recruiters, who asked him not to speak to anyone, even his family, about his intention to travel.

“They had brainwashed him so much … They warned him he could be deported from Russia, from the airport,” Imran said. “I tried my level best to stop him.”

After a multi-stop route that took him through other Indian cities and the United Arab Emirates, Asfan arrived in Moscow on November 12.

A day later, he signed papers – in Russian, which he couldn’t read – committing him to the work, his brother said.

“He trusted the agents a bit too much,” Imran said.

^{A Ukrainian soldier holds an artillery shell as he prepares to fire a howitzer towards Russian troops near the town of Kreminna, Ukraine March 4, 2024 Inna Varenytsia/Reuters}

Foreign fighters in Putin’s war
By some estimates, Russia has been sending thousands of foreign men to fight in Ukraine since Putin ordered the invasion.

Many of them are young men from South Asia, enticed by the prospect of steady employment and higher salaries in Russia. In Nepal, prominent opposition lawmaker and former foreign minister Bimala Rai Paudyal told parliament earlier this year that between 14,000 and 15,000 Nepalis were fighting on the front lines, citing testimony from men returning from Ukraine.

The Russian government last year announced a lucrative package for foreign fighters to join the country’s military, including a monthly salary of at least $2,000 and a fast track to Russian citizenship – but the Kremlin has not said how many foreigners it has recruited under the plan.

New Delhi has strong ties with Moscow dating back to the Cold War and has largely steered clear of condemning outright the invasion by Russia, which remains India’s biggest arms supplier.

India has also become a major purchaser of Russian energy, bolstering Moscow’s coffers by a record $37 billion of crude oil purchases last year alone and providing Russia’s sanctions hit economy with vital revenue.

Meanwhile, India, which has no law preventing its citizens from serving in a foreign state’s military, has acknowledged that a number of its nationals have been fighting for Russia in Ukraine.

In a statement in February, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs said getting those Indians an early discharge from the Russian military was a “top priority.” The ministry told CNN last month it has been in continuous contact with Russian authorities to make that happen.

But for some, those efforts would come too late. A ministry spokesperson told CNN at least two Indians have died in the conflict.

In early March, India’s Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) said it had busted major human trafficking networks that were duping men into Russian military jobs, with 35 such cases identified.

“The trafficked Indian Nationals were trained in combat roles and deployed at front bases in Russia-Ukraine War Zone against their wishes,” the CBI statement said.

To the front line
Asfan didn’t tell his brother when he was going to be sent to Ukraine, Imran said, but he did get in contact on December 1, just as he was heading to the battlefield.

Asfan was seeking a way out, Imran said.

“He asked me to speak to the agents,” Imran said. “I did promise him that I’d try my best.”

It was the last time they spoke to each other.

“The military personnel were not in touch with these agents,” Imran said.

“These brokers duped the boys and put their lives in danger,” he said, referring to Asfan and other Indians sent to war.

Weeks of uncertainty, then disbelief
On January 23, Imran received a voice message from one of those Indian men deployed alongside Asfan.

The man, who said he had been injured in combat, told Imran he had found Asfan, who’d also been injured, inside a house in Ukraine a day earlier.

Imran said the man told him he couldn’t pick his brother up “because of the drones around them,” but had passed word of Asfan’s condition to a Russian medical team.

Ukrainian forces have used converted commercial drones against their Russian opponents with devastating effect on the frontlines, either by dropping grenades from above or by using them as remote controlled bombs.

Two days later, Imran said he visited his member of parliament to try to get Indian officials to help his injured brother. But pleas to the government went unanswered, he said.

The Indian Embassy in Moscow eventually replied that it was looking into the case.

On a March 6 visit to his MP’s office, Imran got the news he had dreaded.

^{Asfran Mohammed, right, and his brother Imran are pictured with Asran's children before Asfran left for Russia. Mohammed Imran}

“We called the emergency number at the Indian Embassy (in Moscow). As soon as I mentioned Asfan’s name on the phone, they told me he’s dead. I didn’t have the strength to talk to them,” he said.

“I didn’t want to believe what they were saying.”

He still had no visual proof of Asfan’s death, but he had to pass on what he’d learned to the rest of the family.

Asfan’s wife “was unconscious for three hours,” Imran said. “She cried through the night.”

Asfan’s family has buried his body, but they are scarred by a war far away.

Imran says it pains him to look at his brother’s young children, who will never know their dad. And he says his own future feels uncertain.

“This has been on for four months, for 24 hours a day,” he said. “This has been the worst phase I’ve ever been through. There’s no personal life anymore. No friendship left. I’ve only been taking care of my family.”

And one of them, his brother, is forever gone.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 12:05 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
https://edition.cnn.com/2(...)tl-hnk-ml/index.html
[..]

SPOILER

[..]

En dan had hij ook nog eens 1800 dollar aan die recruiter betaald voor die baan. Of waarschijnlijk voor alle papieren, de reis naar Rusland en een mooie bonus voor hem.

Deze familie heeft in elk geval het lichaam terug gekregen. Er zijn een erg groot aantal die hun naaste nooit meer terug krijgen.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 12:20 schreef StateOfMind het volgende:

[..]
Tja, ik kan er geen greintje medelijden mee hebben.

quote:

Maar video's op YouTube over werkgelegenheid in Rusland gaven Asfan nieuwe hoop, en hij nam contact op met een uitzendbureau, zei zijn broer.

“Hij ging als taxichauffeur of bezorger in Rusland werken – dat proces was bezig”, zei Imran.

“Een paar dagen later zeiden de agenten dat er vacatures zijn voor helpers- en veiligheidsbanen in het Russische leger. De agenten verzekerden hem dat dit de beste klus was. Ze zeiden dat hij binnen een jaar een Russisch paspoort en een nationale kaart kon krijgen, waarmee je door de buurlanden kon reizen.’

Asfan dacht dat dit een opstap zou kunnen zijn naar het droomleven van zijn familie in Australi�, zei zijn broer.

In plaats daarvan bracht zijn keuze hem naar het ijskoude, door de strijd getekende landschap van Oekra�ne.

quote:

en nu is ie dood, niks baantje als taxi chauffeur in moscow en dan naar Australie

Tegen die tijd had Asfan meer dan 1.800 dollar betaald aan de recruiters, die hem vroegen met niemand, zelfs niet met zijn familie, te praten over zijn voornemen om te reizen.

Na een route met meerdere tussenstops die hem door andere Indiase steden en de Verenigde Arabische Emiraten voerde, arriveerde Asfan op 12 november in Moskou.

Een dag later ondertekende hij papieren - in het Russisch, die hij niet kon lezen - die hem aan het werk verplichtten, zei zijn broer.

'Hij vertrouwde de agenten een beetje te veel,' zei Imran.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 12:05 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
https://edition.cnn.com/2(...)tl-hnk-ml/index.html
[..]

SPOILER

[..]

En dan had hij ook nog eens 1800 dollar aan die recruiter betaald voor die baan. Of waarschijnlijk voor alle papieren, de reis naar Rusland en een mooie bonus voor hem.

Deze familie heeft in elk geval het lichaam terug gekregen. Er zijn een erg groot aantal die hun naaste nooit meer terug krijgen.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 11:16 schreef Delenlill het volgende:


https://www.reddit.com/r/(...)russian_fairy_tales/
When your friend got lost in Russian fairy tales, but you quickly brought him back to reality

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 11:26 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
[ x ]

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 12:55 schreef grrrrg het volgende:

[..]
De Indiase regering zou hier wat aan moeten doen, maar kennelijk vindt die het allemaal wel best

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 16:02 schreef BEFEM het volgende:
350 per stuk? Geen geld toch?

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 16:19 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]
Het is nu gewoon bijkopen. Training en infrastructuur e.d. is makkelijker als je die al hebt geregeld of zelf kunt doen.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 16:21 schreef BEFEM het volgende:

[..]
Dat is logisch. Maar had verwacht dat zo'n batterij een stuk duurder was.

Vraag is natuurlijk ook wel hoe het met de munitie zit. 1 zo'n raket van 4 miljoen zou dan meer dan 1% van de batterij zijn

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 16:29 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]
Is dat de prijs per PAC-3MSE of per canister waar er vier inzitten? Dat is heel onduidelijk.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 16:59 schreef BEFEM het volgende:
Net een filmpje gezien in een 155mm fabriek in Zweden. Zitten ze vloeibare explosieven met de hand en een maatbeker, die ik voor slagroom mixen gebruik, in een granaat te gieten

Ter hun verdediging, ze waren aan het uitbreiden en moderniseren, maar zag er echt bizar uit. Alsof je naar een filmpje van de speld zat te kijken.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 18:40 schreef Cilantro het volgende:
[ x ]
👀👀👀

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 19:21 schreef ETA het volgende:
security bill (tiktok ban) is aangenomen. Taiwan vote nu, daar zijn nu al genoeg votes voor.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 19:22 schreef Breekfast het volgende:

[..]
stemming voor Oekra�ne moet nog komen? Of is dat 8036 die ik nu op die live stream zie?

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 19:54 schreef BEFEM het volgende:
Toch snel er doorheen, zo zag het er pak hem beet 2 weken geleden niet naar uit.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 19:50 schreef dudewhereismycar het volgende:
Gefeliciteerd Oekra�ne, sluizen gaan weer open vanuit Amerika. Ruim 100 Republikeinen stemmen voor.

De senaat is niet echt een hobbel. Dit was wel de belangrijkste stemming.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 00:14 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
[ x ]
Met ondertiteling deze keer.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 09:18 schreef Delenlill het volgende:

Update from Ukraine | Ukraine Shot Down the Ruzzian Strategic Bomber and hit S-400s with ATACMS

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 20:06 schreef trein2000 het volgende:
Ik neem aan dat de C17’s as we speak worden volgeladen?

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 16:59 schreef BEFEM het volgende:
Net een filmpje gezien in een 155mm fabriek in Zweden. Zitten ze vloeibare explosieven met de hand en een maatbeker, die ik voor slagroom mixen gebruik, in een granaat te gieten

Ter hun verdediging, ze waren aan het uitbreiden en moderniseren, maar zag er echt bizar uit. Alsof je naar een filmpje van de speld zat te kijken.

The factory working 24/7 to make shells for Ukraine

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 20:09 schreef Cilantro het volgende:
Ter verduidelijking:

[ x ]

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 20:14 schreef Discombobulate het volgende:

[..]
Hoe lang kunnen ze daarmee tot het weer op is? En daarna moeten ze ongetwijfeld weer 61 miljard, maar de kraan drupt steeds minder.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 20:14 schreef Discombobulate het volgende:

[..]
Hoe lang kunnen ze daarmee tot het weer op is? En daarna moeten ze ongetwijfeld weer 61 miljard, maar de kraan drupt steeds minder.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 20:25 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]


Het is dus meer de vraag wat de Russen daar tegenover kunnen stellen. Want zelfs een slecht bewapend Oekra�ens leger was al niet te verslaan.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 20:25 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]
Die vraag is voorlopig niet zo belangrijk. Want ook zonder die hulp hielden ze Rusland toch behoorlijk tegen. De verwachte ineenstorting kwam niet. Wel werden ze heel langzaam teruggedrongen op zwakke plekken aan het front. Nu komt er ineens een hele voorraad munitie om die zwakke plekken enorm te versterken. En nu lijkt het allemaal tegelijk te gaan komen. Munitie uit Europa en de VS. De F16's komen eraan. Er komen snel nieuwe luchtafweersystemen. En dan heb je nog wat Oekra�ne zelf in elkaar sleutelt. Daarnaast kunnen dienstplichtigen nu ook voorzien worden van wapens.

Het is dus meer de vraag wat de Russen daar tegenover kunnen stellen. Want zelfs een slecht bewapend Oekra�ens leger was al niet te verslaan.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 20:14 schreef Discombobulate het volgende:

[..]
Hoe lang kunnen ze daarmee tot het weer op is? En daarna moeten ze ongetwijfeld weer 61 miljard, maar de kraan drupt steeds minder.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 20:11 schreef BEFEM het volgende:

[..]

The factory working 24/7 to make shells for Ukraine

Hier het filmpje overigens. Op 0:25 zie je ze gieten

quote:

Nitroglycerine kan bereid worden door nitrering van glycerine met salpeterzuur, onder invloed van zwavelzuur (nitreerzuur).
Dit is een zeer gevaarlijk reactieproces waarbij veel voorzorgen moeten worden genomen om explosies bij de bereiding te voorkomen, zoals een lage temperatuur en het voorkomen van schokken.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 20:40 schreef michaelmoore het volgende:

[..]
nee hier mee kan er heel erg veel kapot gemaakt worden en kan het nog 2 jaar duren , de Ruzzen worden het zat

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 20:43 schreef Zwoerd het volgende:

[..]
Begrijp ik dat goed? Jij denkt dat dit paket genoeg is voor Oekra�ne om het nog 2 jaar vol te houden

Pundits admit Russia is struggling

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 20:47 schreef Cilantro het volgende:
[ x ]

Moscow Marge is ZIEDEND.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 19:50 schreef dudewhereismycar het volgende:
Gefeliciteerd Oekra�ne, sluizen gaan weer open vanuit Amerika. Ruim 100 Republikeinen stemmen voor.

De senaat is niet echt een hobbel. Dit was wel de belangrijkste stemming.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 20:23 schreef AgLarrr het volgende:
Zeer goed nieuws. Nu maar hopen dat het op tijd komt om het momentum van de Russen weg te nemen.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 20:11 schreef BEFEM het volgende:

[..]

The factory working 24/7 to make shells for Ukraine

Hier het filmpje overigens. Op 0:25 zie je ze gieten

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 21:21 schreef Digi2 het volgende:

[..]
TNT smelt bij circa 80 ^oC wanneer het stolt instaat er een holte omdat vloeibaar TNT minder volume inneemt dan vast. Dat nagieten van TNT in die holte om de ruimte weer op te vullen is gebruikelijk. Ik ben wel verbaast dat het daar nog steeds met de hand wordt ingegoten net zoals tijdens WOI

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 21:21 schreef Ploplap het volgende:
[ afbeelding ]

Het zal een keer gaan ophouden voor de Amerikanen.

quote:

Hoeveel landen gebruiken de dollar?
Amerikaanse dollar - Wikikids
Naast de Verenigde Staten zelf is de Amerikaanse dollar ook officieel gebruikt in Ecuador, Panama, El Salvador, Oost-Timor, Micronesi�, Palau, de Marshalleilanden, de Turks- en Caicoseilanden (onderdeel van het VK), de Britse Maagdeneilanden (ook onderdeel van het VK) en Caribisch Nederland

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 21:21 schreef Ploplap het volgende:
[ afbeelding ]

Het zal een keer gaan ophouden voor de Amerikanen.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 21:24 schreef BEFEM het volgende:

[..]
Ja je zou een robot verwachten. Kan er toch gewoon een lopende band van maken net als flessen tomatensaus...

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 21:31 schreef spicymchaggis het volgende:

[..]
Dat zal wel meevallen; de Amerikaanse economie groeit flink en de economische slagkracht van de VS is natuurlijk vele malen groter dan die van een "shithole country" als Rusland.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 21:28 schreef Kukelecucktsju10 het volgende:
U S A !!

U S A !!

U S A !!

@:onlogisch doe die adelaar, gauw.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 21:47 schreef onlogisch het volgende:

[..]
[ afbeelding ]

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 21:48 schreef Kukelecucktsju10 het volgende:

[..]

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 21:35 schreef Ploplap het volgende:

[..]
Leuk die slagkracht als je de mensen er niet meer voor hebt, en de mensen die nog wel lucht in en uitblazen, die zwemmen liever de rivieren over om niet vermalen te worden tot slachtvlees, en jij maar aan de zijlijn zitten te juichen wanneer ze voorraadje mortieren krijgen.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 21:48 schreef onlogisch het volgende:

[..]
Wat denk jij, is het een man of een vrouw?

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 21:48 schreef onlogisch het volgende:

[..]
Wat denk jij, is het een man of een vrouw?

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 21:54 schreef Kukelecucktsju10 het volgende:

[..]
Male/37/petrol SUV/260.000$ debt.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 22:02 schreef Opnaarutrecht het volgende:

[..]
Ik hoop dat die hoer sterft aan kanker.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 22:07 schreef 3rr0r het volgende:
Heeft Putin al gereageerd? 61 miljard gaat niet uitmaken voor het verloop van de oorlog zal hij wel zeggen.

quote:

Reactie uit Rusland

Een woordvoerder van het Kremlin zei tegen het Russische staatspersbureau Tass dat het Amerikaanse steunpakket Oekra�ne "verder zal ru�neren" en tot meer dodelijke slachtoffers zal leiden in het land. Volgens de woordvoerder zal Rusland "reageren met maatregelen in zijn eigen belang".

Ook de Russische minister Lavrov van Buitenlandse Zaken heeft gereageerd. Hij zei op platform Telegram dat de steun voor "het regime in Kyiv een directe donatie aan terroristen" is.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 22:02 schreef Opnaarutrecht het volgende:

[..]
Ik hoop dat die hoer sterft aan kanker.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 22:15 schreef 3rr0r het volgende:
Niet van Putin zelf maar NOS meldt dit:
[..]

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 20:55 schreef michaelmoore het volgende:

[..]
nee dat zal niet hoeven en anders dan komt er nog een pakket

Pundits admit Russia is struggling

[ afbeelding ]

'This is the sellout of America'

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 22:15 schreef 3rr0r het volgende:
tot meer dodelijke slachtoffers zal leiden

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 22:18 schreef luxerobots het volgende:

[..]
Marjorie is pissed off.

'This is the sellout of America'

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 22:15 schreef 3rr0r het volgende:
Niet van Putin zelf maar NOS meldt dit:
[..]

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 20:25 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]
Die vraag is voorlopig niet zo belangrijk. Want ook zonder die hulp hielden ze Rusland toch behoorlijk tegen. De verwachte ineenstorting kwam niet. Wel werden ze heel langzaam teruggedrongen op zwakke plekken aan het front. Nu komt er ineens een hele voorraad munitie om die zwakke plekken enorm te versterken. En nu lijkt het allemaal tegelijk te gaan komen. Munitie uit Europa en de VS. De F16's komen eraan. Er komen snel nieuwe luchtafweersystemen. En dan heb je nog wat Oekra�ne zelf in elkaar sleutelt. Daarnaast kunnen dienstplichtigen nu ook voorzien worden van wapens.

Het is dus meer de vraag wat de Russen daar tegenover kunnen stellen. Want zelfs een slecht bewapend Oekra�ens leger was al niet te verslaan.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 22:30 schreef Discombobulate het volgende:

[..]
Toch winnen ze terein en gaat het slechter met Oekra�ne. Kijk de kaart.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 22:31 schreef trein2000 het volgende:

[..]
Wel een paar honderd meter per dag, tegen absurde verliezen. Joe.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 22:28 schreef Ploplap het volgende:
[ afbeelding ]

En dat zit aan de financiele touwtjes in the land of free

Wat een land

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 22:31 schreef trein2000 het volgende:

[..]
Wel een paar honderd meter per dag, tegen absurde verliezen. Joe.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 21:21 schreef Ploplap het volgende:
[ afbeelding ]

Het zal een keer gaan ophouden voor de Amerikanen.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 22:40 schreef oheng het volgende:

[..]
Wie krijgt die 61 miljard, Ploplap?

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 22:48 schreef grrrrg het volgende:

[..]
De Irak en Afghanistan oorlog waren toch een stuk duurder?
En bovendien wordt veel van de hulp geleverd in wapens, die komen van de Amerikaanse wapenindustrie. Dat geld vloeit terug in de Amerikaanse economie

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 22:28 schreef Ploplap het volgende:
[ afbeelding ]

En dat zit aan de financiele touwtjes in the land of free

Wat een land

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 22:51 schreef dudewhereismycar het volgende:

[..]
En waar gaat 8/10 van t geld heen denk je? Hint: US wapenindustrie

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 22:57 schreef spicymchaggis het volgende:
Een nieuw Amerikaans steunpakket voor Oekra�ne en de (pro-)Russische ratten komen weer uit hun holen gekropen om het te bagatelliseren en te vertellen dat "Roesja stronk" de oorlog heus wel gaat winnen hoor!

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 23:06 schreef grrrrg het volgende:
Oekra�ne heeft vooral artilleriegranaten en Patriot-systemen nodig. Hopelijk kan Oekra�ne die op zeer korte termijn in voldoende mate krijgen.
Eigenlijk beschamend hoe het Westen Oekra�ne bijna in de steek hebben gelaten de afgelopen maanden.

quote:

Well, we waited. Now the war against Russia will be waged with Russian money. Lovely.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 22:49 schreef Ploplap het volgende:

[..]
Zeker, de Amerikanen moeten maandag weer een dagje gratis werken.

quote:

Hoeveel landen gebruiken de dollar?
Amerikaanse dollar
Naast de Verenigde Staten zelf is de Amerikaanse dollar ook officieel gebruikt in Ecuador, Panama, El Salvador, Oost-Timor, Micronesi�, Palau, de Marshalleilanden, de Turks- en Caicoseilanden (onderdeel van het VK), de Britse Maagdeneilanden (ook onderdeel van het VK) en Caribisch Nederland.20 feb 2024

quote:

The United States' debt-to-GDP ratio at the close of fiscal year 2023 was 97 percent. While this figure is down slightly from 100 percent in 2020, a 74-year high, the nation's fiscal outlook is still on an unsustainable path. Debt held by the public is on track to exceed GDP in 2025 and climb to 116 percent in 2034.9 apr 2024

quote:

What is Japan's total debt to GDP ratio 2023?
As of March 2023, the Japanese public debt is estimated to be approximately 9.2 trillion US Dollars (1.30 quadrillion yen), or 263% of GDP, and is the highest of any developed nation. 43.3% of this debt is held by the Bank of Japan.

quote:

BREAKING: US House passes $61 billion in aid to Ukraine

quote:

The aid package provides $60.84 billion to assist Ukraine, including $13.8 billion for Ukraine to buy advanced weapons, $13.4 billion for replenishing U.S. stockpiles, $11 billion to support U.S. allies in the region, and another $13.8 billion to purchase U.S. defense systems for Ukraine.  

Another $9 billion will be allocated to the war-torn country as economic assistance in the form of loans that can be forgiven by the president with Congress's approval.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 00:01 schreef BlaZ het volgende:

[..]
[..]
Dat valt ook wel mee, ik dacht dat het om een groter deel aan leningen ging in deze aangepaste versie.

https://kyivindependent.c(...)on-ukraine-aid-bill/

quote:

Kremlin: US military aid to Israel is ‘road straight to escalation’; Medvedev slams package as ‘Russophobia’
https://www.timesofisrael(...)kage-as-russophobia/

The Russian Foreign Ministry says US House of Representatives’ approval of security aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan will “deepen crises throughout the world.”

“Military assistance to the Kyiv regime is direct sponsorship of terrorist activity,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova writes on Telegram.

“To Taiwan, it is interference in China’s internal affairs. To Israel, it is a road straight to escalation and an unprecedented rise in tension in the region.”

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 01:10 schreef Aether het volgende:

[..]

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 00:42 schreef grrrrg het volgende:

[..]
Het maakt op dit moment echt niet uit of het een lening is of niet.

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 20:02 schreef AchJa het volgende:

[..]
[..]
Ergo, al dat "Patriot Ambush" geneuzel van laatst is alweer van tafel.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 01:43 schreef BlaZ het volgende:

[..]
Tuurlijk wel, dit is van groot belang voor de mogelijkheden van Oekra�ne om op de vrije markt extra te kunnen bijlenen. Het land heeft immers een begrotingstekort van 40 miljard per annum.

quote:

UAVs hit a fuel and energy facility in the Smolensk region

Drones hit the fuel and energy facility in Kardymovo, Smolensk region, Russia.

The governor of the Smolensk region, Vasily Anokhin, announced this.

It is home to a gas condensate-to-petrol plant and an oil depot.

According to him, at about 2:00 a.m. in the Kardymovsky district of the region, a fuel and energy facility was attacked by allegedly Ukrainian drones.

Anokhin says that the drones were destroyed by air defense forces, but the falling debris caused a fire.

SPOILER

quote:

У Смоленській області БПЛА уразили об'єкт паливно-енергетичного комплексу

A container with fuels and lubricants caught fire at the facility. Rescuers are currently working at the scene to extinguish the open flames. Information about the victims is being clarified.

In addition, attacks by allegedly Ukrainian drones were reported in Bryansk, Belgorod, Kursk, and Kaluga regions.

In the Kaluga region, local governor Vladislav Shapsha claimed that the drones had damaged an energy infrastructure facility.

The Russian Defense Ministry reported on 50 downed drones allegedly launched by Ukraine.

The agency clarified that the drones had been destroyed in Belgorod, Bryansk, Tula, Kursk, Smolensk, Ryazan, Kaluga, and Moscow regions.

Also in Russia, Bryansk Governor Alexander Bogomaz reported a fire at an energy infrastructure facility in the Vygonichsky district.

It was recently reported that Russian energy companies were preparing to protect their infrastructure against possible drone strikes. The future standard of protection in Russia envisages the development of a system, in which the active component will be represented by drone detection equipment.

quote:

One less enemy: Z-blogger Misha from Canada crashed in Crimea
Russian Z-blogger Mikhail Kasperov crashed on a motorcycle in occupied Crimea.

On the night of April 20, in occupied Sevastopol, the dangerous enemy of Ukraine, Mikhail Kasperov, said goodbye to his life.

Information about the death appeared in the morning on his own Telegram channel “Misha from Canada,” Dialog.UA reports.

A native of Russian Magadan, Kasperov moved to Crimea after the occupation. Living on the peninsula, he was engaged in propaganda, raising funds for the Russian military, and also persecuted local residents for their pro-Ukrainian views.

This night, while riding his Harley-Davidson motorcycle, he lost control and drove into oncoming traffic. There he collided head-on with a VAZ-2114 car. All that was left of the motorcycle was a pile of debris.

SPOILER

quote:

Kasperov received injuries incompatible with life. They managed to take him to the intensive care unit, but they could not pump him out.

Let us note that Kasperov appears on the website of the Ukrainian “Peacemaker”. They call him “an accomplice of the Russian occupiers and an anti-Ukrainian propagandist.”

“ Deliberate violation of the State Border of Ukraine with the aim of penetrating Crimea captured by Russian occupiers. Participation in propaganda activities of the Russian Federation against Ukraine. Participation in attempts to legalize the occupation of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea by Russian invaders ,” says the occupier’s profile.

quote:

Insta-Nazis: How Claims Of 'Rehabilitating Nazism' Are Molding A Militaristic Society In Putin's Russia

^{Alyona Agafonova appears in a Volgograd court earlier this month.}

A court in the southern Russian city of Volgograd sentenced a 23-year-old woman to 10 months of compulsory labor on April 5 after convicting her of "rehabilitating Nazism." The charge stemmed from a 2023 social media video that prosecutors said contained "cynical actions that disregarded the norms of morality and ethics."

In the video, Alyona Agafonova, a tourist from the mid-Volga region city of Samara, documented her visit to Volgograd and at one point, using a trick of perspective, playfully "tickled" the breasts of the enormous statue that dominates the city's memorial to the Battle of Stalingrad -- probably the most prominent icon of World War II anywhere in Russia. In court, prosecutors said she had "offended a symbol of the resilience of the Soviet people during the Great Patriotic War."

The head of the investigations department of the Volgograd branch of the Investigative Committee, Vladimir Surkov, said the case should be a warning to others.

"Anyone who wants to hype themselves in a similar manner should think about this and not do it," Surkov told a local news website.

SPOILER

quote:

^{The 85-meter Motherland Is Calling statue dominates the Mumayev Kurgan memorial complex to the Battle of Stalingrad in Volgograd.}

Under longtime President Vladimir Putin, the state has used its draconian laws on "foreign agents," terrorism and extremism, and treason to stifle political dissent, successfully marginalizing all opposition. But the 2014 law against "rehabilitating Nazism," which includes punishments of up to five years in prison, has been used for a different purpose, analysts say: To mold an increasingly militaristic society by sacralizing a mythologized version of the Soviet and ethnic-Russian contributions to the defeat of Nazi Germany -- and, by extension, to bolster Putin's false claims that Russia is confronting "Nazis" in Ukraine and the West.

The law overshadowed a 2001 law against disseminating Nazi symbols, which Aleksandr Verkhovsky of Sova, a Russian group that monitors extremism, told the BBC in 2023 was a genuine attempt to combat far-right hate groups.

Activist Aleksandr Cherkasov of the banned human rights group Memorial told RFE/RL that under the "rehabilitating Nazism" law, repressions are being carried out in the name of "historical memory, which has itself become a quasi-religion."

'How Many More Alyonas?'
Agafonova was convicted despite publishing a public apology in July 2023.

"I would like to sincerely apologize for my actions, which by no means were intended to ridicule the history of my country or the lives of those who fell for the sake of our future," she wrote, noting that her grandfather had been killed during the war. "I am a patriot and I love my country."

She pleaded guilty in court and apologized again in her closing speech, arguing that the 13 months she spent in pretrial detention were adequate punishment. In addition to the 10 months of labor she was ordered to perform at a job assigned to her by the Federal Penitentiary Service (FSIN) in Samara, Agafonova must give 10 percent of the salary she earns to the state, and she is barred from using social media for two years.

^{A participant dressed in Red Army World War II uniform performs at an open-air interactive museum to commemorate the 82nd anniversary of the World War II-era parade, at Red Square, in Moscow on November 6, 2023.}

Immediately after her video appeared, Agafonova was inundated with criticism and denunciations from self-professed patriots. The pro-Kremlin Telegram channel Talipov, which is run from the Russian-occupied Ukrainian region of Crimea by blogger Oleksandr Talipov, wrote that the incident illustrated "the problem with the patriotic education of our youths."

"Can it really be that no schoolteacher in Samara or no one at the institute [she attended] was able to inculcate in Alyona a sense of respect for the glory of our grandfathers?" the channel wrote. "And how many more Alyonas are there in Russia?"

Sociologist Maria Turovets, who left Russia in the wake of Moscow's February 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine, told RFE/RL that the "rehabilitating Nazism" cases are a sop to "the active minority that welcomes them."

"I tend to call them 'the party of fascism,'" she added. "The authorities are trying to anticipate and accommodate this minority."

^{Russian soldiers on their way to Ukraine march past the Motherland Is Calling statue in Volgograd in January 2023.}

The statue Agafonova was accused of insulting is called Motherland Is Calling, an 85-meter behemoth that dominates the Mumayev Kurgan memorial complex to the Battle of Stalingrad on a site where some 35,000 Soviet victims of the battle, which marked the turning point of the war when German forces there surrendered in February 1943, are buried in mass graves. It was dedicated in 1967.

'At A Time Like This…'
Among the dozens of "rehabilitating Nazism" cases that have been filed in recent years, only a few seem to objectively fit the definition. In February 2022, a St. Petersburg professor was tried under the charge for allegedly denying the Holocaust in his lectures. The same year, a teenager in the Siberian city of Irkutsk faced the charge for allegedly writing numerous social media posts lionizing the World War II German military and the notorious SS.

In some cases, the charge was brought against people who criticized Soviet dictator Josef Stalin's conduct of the war, particularly the 1939 Nazi-Soviet nonaggression pact.

^{Communist Party supporters line up to place flowers at Josef Stalin's grave near the Kremlin Wall to mark the 71st anniversary of his death with the Mausoleum of the Soviet founder Vladimir Lenin in the background, on Red Square on March 5.}

Much more commonly, the charge is used to prosecute actions that question Russia's "military glory." In February, authorities in the Altai region settlement of Staroaleiskoye filed criminal charges of "rehabilitating Nazism" against two teenaged boys who allegedly constructed a snow phallus next to a war memorial and posted photographs of it on social media.

Many other cases involve people accused of "insulting" the black-and-orange St. George ribbon or the pro-government Z and V symbols that are used to show support for Putin's war against Ukraine and confrontation with the West.

In fact, Cherkasov of Memorial said, one effect of the application of the law is to convey to such modern-day symbols a status equivalent to the status of the symbols of victory in World War II that has been carefully cultivated by the Putin government since he came to power nearly 25 years ago.

Also in February, investigators opened a criminal probe on the charge against Rasul Akhiyaretdinov, a Bashkir activist who wrote in a social media post that the Motherland Is Calling statue is not dressed modestly enough for Muslim and Orthodox Christian standards because her breasts are visible. He called the presentation a "mistake of the Soviet Union" and urged that they "put a shawl on her shoulders."

Like Agafonova, Akhiyaretdinov was savagely attacked by the so-called patriotic social media channels. Unlike Agafonova's, the investigation against him was closed after he publicly apologized.

"Looking through the reactions, I understood that for many people this statue is not just a statue but the Motherland," he said in a social media video. "As a person who does not want divisions and conflicts in the Russian Federation, I apologize to all veterans of World War II and to those who didn't understand me correctly or were offended by what I said. Our country is going through difficult times. The war in Ukraine and other things. I think that at a time like this I should not have posted such a video."

Roman Zaitsev, a lawyer in Volgograd, said the security forces like such cases because of the publicity and media coverage.

^{Military helicopters fly over a statue of the Mother Motherland at the Piskaryovskoye Memorial Cemetery, where more than half a million Leningrad Siege victims were buried during World War II.}

"Earlier there was a political subtext or protest activity behind these cases, but now they are opened just for the sake of statistics," he said. "In the case of [Agafonova], it is completely unclear what she did to dishonor a burial place. You might consider her actions inappropriate, provocative, or stupid, but it is hard to see them as criminal."

Yelizaveta Klochkova, of the OVD-Info group that monitors political repressions, agreed, saying the increased interest in such cases on the part of law enforcement and "denouncers" "is in complete accord with other general trends including the sacralization of World War II, the propaganda use of symbols associated with it, [and] the search for supposed Nazis or their supporters at home and abroad."

"For security agents and denouncers, such cases are just a way of [meeting quotas] and attracting attention to themselves for 'exposing ideological crimes,'" Klochkova told RFE/RL.

"There is a second aspect," said self-exiled Tatar political analyst Ruslan Aisin. "They need to scare people. The security forces are always hungry."

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After Congress finally does pass new funding, this is how the US can rush weapons to Ukraine
The Pentagon could get weapons moving to Ukraine within days once Congress passes a long-delayed aid bill. That’s because it has a network of storage sites in the U.S. and Europe that already hold the ammunition and air defense components that Kyiv desperately needs.

Moving fast is critical, CIA Director Bill Burns said this past week, warning that without additional aid from the U.S., Ukraine could lose the war to Russia by the end of this year.

“We would like very much to be able to rush the security assistance in the volumes we think they need to be able to be successful,” Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said.

The House approved $61 billion in funding for the war-torn country Saturday after Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., pushed a larger foreign aid bill toward a vote despite threats from within his party that doing so could cost him his job. It still needs to clear the Senate.

After the House vote, Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said he was grateful “for the decision that keeps history on the right track.” He said on X, formerly Twitter that the House action “will keep the war from expanding, save thousands and thousands of lives, and help both of our nations to become stronger.”

President Joe Biden has said he would sign it “immediately.”

If that happens, “we have a very robust logistics network that enables us to move material very quickly,” Ryder told reporters this past week. “We can move within days.”

The Pentagon has had supplies ready to go for months but hasn’t moved them because it is out of money. It has already spent all of the funding Congress had previously provided to support Ukraine, sending more than $44 billion worth of weapons, maintenance, training and spare parts since Russia’s February 2022 invasion.

By December, the Pentagon was $10 billion in the hole, because it is going to cost more now to replace the systems it sent to the battlefield in Ukraine.

As a result, the Pentagon’s frequent aid packages for Ukraine dried up because there’s been no guarantee Congress would pass the additional funding needed to replenish the weapons the U.S. has been sending to Ukraine. The legislation would include more than $20 billion to restock the Pentagon’s shelves and ensure that the military services have what they need to fight and protect America.

The lag in weapons deliveries has forced Ukrainian troops to spend months rationing their dwindling supply of munitions.

A look at how the U.S. can quickly move weapons to Ukraine:

SPOILER

quote:

PRESIDENTIAL DRAWDOWN AUTHORITY
When an aid package for Ukraine is announced, the weapons are either provided through presidential drawdown authority, which allows the military to immediately pull from its stockpiles, or through security assistance, which funds longer-term contracts with the defense industry to obtain the systems.

The presidential drawdown authority, or PDA, as it’s known, has allowed the military to send billions of dollars worth of ammunition, air defense missile launchers, tanks, vehicles and other equipment to Ukraine.

“In the past, we’ve seen weapons transferred via presidential drawdown authority arrive within a matter of days,” said Brad Bowman, director at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies center on military and political power.

Those stocks are pulled from bases or storage facilities in the U.S. or from European sites where the U.S. has already surged weapons to cut down on the amount of time it will take to deliver them once the funding is approved.

DWINDLING U.S. STOCKS
As the war in Ukraine has dragged on, the U.S. began to send increasingly larger, more lethal and more expensive systems to the warfront. They included entire air defense systems, armored vehicles, sophisticated missiles — even Abrams tanks.

Those systems cost more to replace, so the military — in particular, the Army — went deeper into debt. Compounding that, the military in some cases opted to replace older systems sent to Ukraine with pricier, higher-tech ones at home.

As a result, Army leaders recently told Congress that without passage of the foreign aid bill, they will begin to run out of money and have to move funds from other accounts.

Army Secretary Christine Wormuth and Gen. Randy George, chief of staff of the Army, said the branch wouldn’t have enough money to bring home troops serving in Europe or to train units in the U.S.

U.S. WEAPONS STORAGE
The military has massive weapons storage facilities in the U.S. for millions of rounds of munitions of all sizes that would be ready to use in case of war.

For example, the McAlester Army Ammunition Plant in Oklahoma sprawls across 45,000 acres (70 square miles) connected by rail and has a mission to surge as many as 435 shipping containers — each able to carry 15 tons (30,000 pounds) worth of munitions — if ordered by the president.

The facility is also a major storage site for one of the most used munitions on Ukraine’s battlefield, 155 mm howitzer rounds.

The demand by Ukraine for that particular shell has put pressure on U.S. stockpiles and pushed the military to see where else it could get them. As a result, tens of thousands of 155 mm rounds have been shipped back from South Korea to McAlester to be retrofitted for Ukraine.

STORING WEAPONS IN EUROPE
According to a U.S. military official, the U.S. would be able to send certain munitions “almost immediately” to Ukraine because storehouses exist in Europe.

Among the weapons that could go very quickly are the 155 mm rounds and other artillery, along with some air defense munitions. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss preparations not yet made public.

A host of sites across Germany, Poland and other European allies also are helping Ukraine maintain and train on systems sent to the front. For example, Germany set up a maintenance hub for Kyiv’s Leopard 2 tank fleet in Poland, near the Ukrainian border.

The nearby maintenance hubs hasten the turnaround time to get needed repairs done on the Western systems.

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Drones for Ukraine coalition raises EUR 500 mln so far: Latvian def min
A Latvian-led drone coalition has so far raised EUR 500 million to purchase drones in support of Ukraine, the Latvian Defense Ministry said on Saturday. Earlier on Tuesday Latvian Defence Minister Andris Spruds announced that the country is sending the first batch of unmanned aerial vehicles to Ukraine.

The ambition of the drone coalition member states is to provide Ukraine with 1 million drones. By signing a letter of intent, the countries pledged to invest in drone production, deliver drones and spare parts, conduct tests, train soldiers, and implement other technical solutions. Latvia pledged to contribute at least EUR 10 million a year to the drone coalition.

Riga also pledged to provide Ukraine with annual military support of 0.25% of its gross domestic product by 2026, and annual support of EUR 5 million for Ukraine’s reconstruction.

Latvia is the first of the Baltic states to sign such an agreement. The country also plans to train at least 4,000 Ukrainian soldiers in 2024, the Defense Ministry said.

The drone coalition
The drone coalition led by Latvia, the U.K., and Sweden also includes Australia, Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Ukraine and Poland.

The drone coalition was founded under the Ukrainian Defence Contact Group (UDCG), a coalition consisting of 56 members from NATO, the EU, and partner nations collaborating to coordinate military assistance to the Ukrainian government in response to Russia’s invasion.

In January, the UDCG established a drone coalition with the goal of enhancing Ukraine's unmanned capabilities. In addition to supplying aerial vehicles, participants are urged to offer spare parts, production services, logistical support, testing facilities, training programs, and related technical solutions for Ukraine.

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Latvian citizen accused of plotting sabotage operations in Ukraine
Latvia’s Prosecutor’s Office has charged a Latvian citizen on suspicion of travelling to Ukraine to commit acts of sabotage.

Source: European Pravda, with reference to Delfi

Details: The man’s name is Ivan Tarabanov, and his trial in Riga City Court is scheduled for 7 June.

Tarabanov is accused of attempting to illegally participate in an armed conflict and travelling for the purpose of terrorism. He is currently in custody.

Tarabanov travelled to Ukraine to take part in the war, violating Latvian law, in January 2022.

He received an assignment from a person who introduced himself as Aleksandr, and who remains unidentified, to conduct a sabotage operation involving arson in Ukraine.

Tarabanov travelled to Ukraine to carry out the plan. The prosecutor’s office did not disclose any further information.

Before being referred to the Prosecutor’s Office, the case had been investigated by the State Security Service of Latvia (SSSL).

The SSSL is currently verifying whether several other Latvian citizens were illegally involved in the war in Ukraine on the side of the Russian armed forces.

Background:
• Earlier in April, the Latvian state police opened a criminal case against a man aged around 22 for publicly supporting Russia’s war crimes and glorifying Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin in the centre of the Latvian capital, Riga.
• The Latvian state police also detained two Latvian citizens who tore down a Ukrainian flag from a building in Riga.

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Russian disinformation efforts around US elections ‘kicked into gear over the last 45 days’: Microsoft
Russia’s disinformation operations around the U.S. elections have ramped up over the last month-and-a-half after a relatively slow start compared to previous cycles, Microsoft said Wednesday.

The operations use a mix of themes seen in 2020 campaigns with a “renewed focus on undermining US support for Ukraine” as well as efforts to turn U.S. citizens against NATO and to foster domestic infighting.

“Messaging regarding Ukraine — via traditional media and social media — picked up steam over the last two months with a mix of covert and overt campaigns from at least 70 Russia-affiliated activity sets we track,” Microsoft’s Threat Analysis Center (MTAC) explained in the new report.

MTAC traced the activity back to several Russia-affiliated influence actors, but the most prolific was housed within the Russian Presidential Administration. Microsoft said the efforts have quietly pivoted away from intelligence services and the Internet Research Agency into a more centralized operation run by Russia’s presidential office.

SPOILER

quote:

“Each Russian actor has shown the capability and willingness to target English-speaking — and in some cases Spanish-speaking — audiences in the US, pushing social and political disinformation meant to portray Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as unethical and incompetent, Ukraine as a puppet or failed state, and any American aid to Ukraine as directly supporting a corrupt and conspiratorial regime,” they said.

At least one Russian actor has published anti-Ukraine narratives in English, Russian, French, Arabic, Finnish and several other languages.

The efforts typically start with a purported whistleblower or citizen journalist publishing a video which is then covered by a network of affiliated websites based in “the Middle East and Africa, as well as several English-language outlets such as DC Weekly, Miami Chronical, and The Intel Drop.” Other websites, like “Election Watch” and “50 States of Lie,” focus on domestic U.S. issues.

Before long, the information is circulated enough online that U.S. audiences repeat and share the disinformation widely — with most “unaware of its original source.”

Microsoft noted that ex-Ukrainian Parliamentarian and U.S.-sanctioned Russian agent Andrei Derkach — who spearheaded a disinformation campaign against U.S. President Joe Biden in 2020 — reemerged on social media in January after nearly two years offline.

“Derkach, in an interview conducted in Belarus and uploaded onto social media, propagated both old and new claims about US political figures, including President Biden,” the researchers said.

In addition to wider disinformation efforts, Russian groups are also employing hack-and-leak operations akin to what was seen in the 2016 election. Microsoft said it has seen a “notable uptick in cyber activity” from groups like SEABORGIUM — also known as COLDRIVER and Callisto Group.

The groups are targeting Western think tanks and Microsoft officials believe it is the “first in a series of hacking campaigns meant to drive Kremlin outcomes headed into November.”

AI concerns
Microsoft reiterated previous concerns that state actors in Russia, China and Iran have been honing their skills with generative artificial intelligence to unleash a barrage of deepfakes and other deceptive material.

The company has partnered with Democracy Forward and AI For Good Lab to “identify, triage, and analyze nation-states’ malicious use of generative AI in influence operations.”

So far, their research has found that high production, synthetic deepfake videos have largely not caused widespread deception or confusion and in “only a few cases have [they] seen any genuine audience deception from such content.”

“Instead, most of the incidents where we’ve observed audiences gravitate toward and share disinformation involve simple digital forgeries consistent with what influence actors over the last decade have regularly employed,” they said.

“For example, fake news stories with spoofed media logos embossed on them—a typical tactic of Russia-affiliated actors—garner several times more views and shares than any fully synthetic generative AI video we’ve observed and assessed.”

The most potent content that has shown the ability to gain traction involves real images edited with AI as opposed to completely AI-generated content, Microsoft explained, noting that social media platforms have become fairly good at spotting and calling out fake content. According to the researchers, AI images and videos are most successful in private chats where a person cannot get the opinion of others.

Audio content, however, has proven to be alarmingly convincing. Microsoft pointed to the recent Slovak presidential election cycle, where audio deepfakes of politician Michal �imečka and journalist Monika T�dov� had an impact, as an example of how Russian actors will likely leverage AI.

Microsoft released a similar report on China’s efforts to use AI ahead of the 2024 U.S. election two weeks ago, spotlighting several campaigns run by the country’s intelligence services.

Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) — chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee — warned to the New York Times on Wednesday that the disruption of U.S. intelligence agencies efforts to coordinate with social media sites to stop disinformation campaigns was endangering the country.

Warner pointed to Slovakia as a worrying example of how effective Russian disinformation can be.

“Slovakia was 80 percent pro-Ukraine. Two years later, with massive amounts of Russian misinformation and disinformation, you have a pro-Russian government and 55 percent of Slovaks think America started the war in Ukraine,” he told the New York Times.

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), FBI, and Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) released guidance on Wednesday that outlines the latest tactics used in foreign malign influence operations.

“Foreign actors continue to pursue efforts aimed at sowing discord among the American people, with the ultimate goal of eroding confidence in our democratic institutions,” said ODNI Foreign Malign Influence Center Director Jessica Brandt.

“The normalization of influence activities, combined with the rise of new technologies, increasingly presents a whole-of-society challenge for the Intelligence Community to address alongside the broader U.S. Government, industry, and civil society.”

quote:

Georgia not ready for EU, says ruling party
The pronouncement comes as tensions fray between Tbilisi and Brussels over a ‘Kremlin-inspired’ foreign agent law.

Georgia is unlikely to join the European Union any time soon, despite having been granted candidate status last year, the chairman of the country’s ruling party said on Saturday.

“Last December, we became a candidate country. The next step is joining,” Irakli Garibashvili told reporters on Saturday. “Today, we are not ready to become a member country.”

Despite widespread protests, the Georgian Dream politician and former prime minister defended a controversial new bill that would label NGOs, campaign groups and media outlets that receive more than 20 percent of their funding from abroad as agents of foreign influence. Critics say the legislation would drive a wedge between Georgia and the West and stifle opposition in the same way similar rules have in Russia.

“If we are told that tomorrow we will become a member of the EU, then it will be possible to very easily cancel it, revise, transform or adopt a new one,” Garibashvili said.

At the same time, he claimed that “there is no consensus a country can become a member of the EU today” because the bloc “is not ready for enlargement and it will take time and these next steps depend on many things.”

The EU has told Georgia the proposals, which have brought thousands onto the streets in protest in recent weeks, are incompatible with European values and should be withdrawn, while Washington branded the “Kremlin-inspired” legislation as an attack on civil society.

When the European Commission granted Georgia candidate status last year, it set out specific steps needed for the South Caucasus country to be admitted as a full member, including tackling political polarization and strengthening human rights protections. According to the bloc’s top diplomat, Josep Borrell, passing the foreign agent law, as well as the government’s new proposals cracking down on LGBTQ+ rights, “would negatively impact Georgia’s progress on its EU path.”

A December 2023 poll conducted by the National Democratic Institute found that 79 percent of Georgian respondents supported their country’s EU membership ambitions.

quote:

US weighs sending additional military advisers to Ukraine as Russia gains momentum
The troops would be serving in a non-combat role, officials said.

The U.S. is considering sending additional military advisers to the embassy in Kyiv, the latest show of American commitment to Ukraine as Russia appears to be gaining momentum in the two-year conflict.

The advisers would not be in a combat role, but rather would advise and support the Ukrainian government and military, according to Pentagon spokesperson Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder.

SPOILER

quote:

“Throughout this conflict, the DOD has reviewed and adjusted our presence in-country, as security conditions have evolved. Currently, we are considering sending several additional advisers to augment the Office of Defense Cooperation (ODC) at the Embassy,” Ryder said in a statement to POLITICO, noting that “personnel are subject to the same travel restrictions as all embassy employees.

The ODC “performs a variety of advisory and support missions (non-combat), and while it is staffed exclusively by DOD personnel, it is embedded within the U.S. Embassy, under Chief of Mission authority like the rest of the Embassy,” Ryder added.

Ryder declined to discuss specific numbers of personnel “for operational security and force protection reasons.”

The additional troops will support logistics and oversight efforts for the weapons the U.S. is sending Ukraine, according to four U.S. officials and a person familiar with the plans, who were granted anonymity to speak about a sensitive topic.

The new contingent will also help the Ukrainian military with weapons maintenance, according to one of the U.S. officials and the person familiar.

A handful of U.S. troops have already deployed for short rotations attached to the embassy in Kyiv, two of the U.S. officials said, with the second official describing the numbers as “onesies and twosies.” Those personnel are helping with oversight and embassy security.

It was not clear how many additional U.S. troops would ultimately be sent to Ukraine, but two of the U.S. officials said the number would be up to 60.

The additional troops, even in a non-combat role, would expand the U.S. military presence in the country, just as the House passed billions in military aid for Ukraine. Congress had stalled for months on greenlighting additional assistance for Kyiv, as former President Donald Trump repeatedly expressed skepticism about the effort.

President Joe Biden has long vowed U.S. troops wouldn’t participate in the war on Ukraine’s behalf, as doing so would increase the risk of a direct confrontation between American and Russian forces.

One of the tasks the advisers will tackle is helping the Ukrainians plan sustainment of complex equipment donated by the U.S. as the summer fighting is expected to ramp up, according to the person familiar. They’ll also buttress what is a relatively small contingent at the U.S. embassy in Kyiv and coordinate new weapons shipments when the current supplemental bill in Congress becomes law and allows more weapons and equipment to flow to Ukrainian front lines.

Ukraine has struggled to regain the initiative against Russia since its counteroffensive last summer failed and Congress stalled in providing billions of dollars in military aid the president requested. The Pentagon has only sent one new tranche of new weapons since December, when it ran out of funding to provide additional aid.

The House on Saturday approved $60.8 billion of long-delayed aid for Ukraine, and the Senate could vote on it early next week. The White House has said it supports the legislation.

Ukraine has clamored for more artillery, air defenses, long-range missiles and fighter jets, which frontline troops and leading politicians insist would help the Ukrainians break through Russian lines and hold their positions.

The news that the U.S. is sending additional forces to Ukraine comes as senior officials warned last week that Russia has been gaining momentum.

CIA Director Bill Burns said Ukraine could lose the war this year if Congress didn’t approve the assistance package.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, speaking to lawmakers, said, “We’re already seeing things on the battlefield begin to shift a bit in Russia’s favor. We are seeing them make incremental gains. We’re seeing the Ukrainians be challenged in terms of holding the line.”

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 21:21 schreef Ploplap het volgende:
[ afbeelding ]

Het zal een keer gaan ophouden voor de Amerikanen.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 02:10 schreef Delenlill het volgende:

[..]
Feiten:
• In een aantal weken tijd vielen er opeens een heleboel Russische vliegtuigen uit de lucht.
• Toen kwam het Russische nieuws, met onduidelijke beelden, dat een tweetal Patriot lanceerders opgeblazen waren relatief dicht bij het front.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 07:37 schreef BEFEM het volgende:
Over dat confisqueren van Russisch geld door de VS, er werd steeds gezegd dat dat juridisch helemaal niet mogelijk is.

Hoe zit dat? Hebben ze daar gewoon schijt aan?

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 22:30 schreef Discombobulate het volgende:

[..]
Toch winnen ze terein en gaat het slechter met Oekra�ne. Kijk de kaart.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 08:51 schreef AchJa het volgende:

[..]
Er is nog steeds nul bevestiging van die "heleboel vliegtuigen" en die "opgeblazen patriots"...

Een hoop verhalen hebben we gelezen, verder niks. Net als de aanvallen op een aantal vliegvelden een week of twee geleden. Dus het zijn geen "feiten".

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 09:02 schreef Toine51 het volgende:

[..]
Goh, en bij het begin van de oorlog werd Rusland neergezet als een land met een ouderwets leger met verlopen materieel wat zelfs nog door Luxenburg verslagen kon worden bij wijze van...:')

En nu heeft Oekra�ne Westers materieel en lijden ze terreinverlies.

Hoe lang willen ze dit volhouden vraag je je af?

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 07:37 schreef BEFEM het volgende:
Over dat confisqueren van Russisch geld door de VS, er werd steeds gezegd dat dat juridisch helemaal niet mogelijk is.

Hoe zit dat? Hebben ze daar gewoon schijt aan?

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 09:45 schreef zuchtje het volgende:
Kan Rusland, als ze op deze voet verder gaan, het hele land bezetten? En kan Oekra�ne, als ze op deze manier verder gaan, zich daartegen verdedigen?

quote:

Explosions reported in Sevastopol: Russia claims anti-ship missile destroyed
Residents of occupied Sevastopol woke up to loud explosions on the morning of April 21, and the Crimean Bridge was closed. The city's Kremlin-installed authorities attributed this to the interception of an anti-ship missile
Telegram channels "Crimean Wind" and ASTRA have shared updates on the situation.

Local residents began reporting explosions around 07:30, accompanied by sightings of smoke.

Reports indicate that fire engines were dispatched to the northern side of Sevastopol, heading toward Sukharna Bay or Hollandia Bay following the explosions.

Occupying forces reportedly blocked traffic on the Crimean Bridge.

Subsequently, the self-proclaimed governor of Sevastopol, Mikhail Razvozhaev, stated that military personnel on a ship in the north repelled an apparent anti-ship missile attack earlier that morning.

He noted that the debris from the incident caused a minor fire, which has since been extinguished.

• Given the recent attack by the Armed Forces of Ukraine on the Dzhankoy airbase and the subsequent destruction of air defense systems on April 17, strikes on the Crimean Bridge from Ukraine are anticipated in Russia.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 09:02 schreef Toine51 het volgende:

[..]
Goh, en bij het begin van de oorlog werd Rusland neergezet als een land met een ouderwets leger met verlopen materieel wat zelfs nog door Luxenburg verslagen kon worden bij wijze van...:')

En nu heeft Oekra�ne Westers materieel en lijden ze terreinverlies.

Hoe lang willen ze dit volhouden vraag je je af?

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 10:06 schreef dudewhereismycar het volgende:

[..]
Die vraag kan je natuurlijk ook aan de russen vragen: hoe lang houden ze het vol. Dagelijks 750+ russische doden en veel materiaalverlies.

Dat je zegt dat zelfs er werd geroepen dat zelfs Luxemburg Rusland wel onder de voeten kan lopen is geeoon uit je duim gezogen. Echt niemand hier of in de media heeft geroepen dat Rusland makkelijk kan worden aangepakt.

Waar jij t over hebt is de verbazing! Ja verbazing dat Rusland heel Oekra�ne al niet binnen een week heeft kunnen bezetten. Want Rusland heeft, naja had.. een enorme hoeveelheid materiaal en manschappen...

Dat is waar de verbazing over was... tot 2022 gold Rusland als nummer 2 mbt leger.

Dus zuig wat minder uit je duim

quote:

How Britain’s stolen Range Rovers and Rolls-Royces ended up on the streets of Moscow
[img]Criminal gangs are supplying Kremlin elites with the Western luxuries they crave
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/content/dam/business/2024/04/19/TELEMMGLPICT000374509215_17135474769010_trans_NvBQzQNjv4Bq7t4Eljyiy6iRMFuEKY2dXA1vLvhkMtVb21dMmpQBfEs.jpeg?imwidth=960[/img]
Upon first inspection, the red shipping container sitting in an Essex storage site would have looked unremarkable but the police officers who opened it up knew better.

Acting on a tip, they emptied out stacks of bicycles and white goods to reveal the real, hidden cargo: three stolen Range Rovers, wrapped up in mattresses and rugs, worth a combined �170,000.

More have followed since that discovery in June 2022 and the tempo is increasing.

Other discoveries include: Bentley, Audi and Toyota cars worth �250,000 sandwiched into a container together; a �300,000 Rolls-Royce Dawn, nestled among the remains of 13 other chopped up cars; and high-end Lexus Saloons stacked like cards on top of one another.

Last year, Essex Police’s stolen vehicle intelligence unit intercepted more than 60 containers like this before they were exported, carrying 240 cars worth around �13m.

SPOILER

quote:

They are almost always disguised under false papers and usually headed for destinations in the Middle East, Africa or Asia, fuelling a lucrative trade in luxury cars and parts that organised criminals are only too pleased to facilitate.

Why the recent upsurge? At least part of the answer is thought to lie in the conflict raging 1,000 miles away in Ukraine, which has triggered a string of Western sanctions against Russia.

These sanctions aim to not only hurt the Russian economy but also deprive Vladimir Putin’s cronies of the Western luxuries they enjoy so much, not least the expensive cars they drive around Moscow.

It is forcing them to pay more for both their vehicles and the parts to maintain them, which must now be obtained through more complex and riskier means.

One way they are avoiding these sanctions is simply by shipping vehicles to neighbouring ex-Soviet countries and then sending them on to Russia, according to reports.

However, the crackdown is also thought to be fuelling a black market that has prompted gangs to employ blunter tactics: the theft of vehicles from British streets. to be transported to Russia via intermediate destinations. The cars can be shipped whole or they can be broken down into parts to be put back together upon arrival.

“The sanctions are driving the need for cars and car parts in Russia very hard, and that desperation is part of the reason we are seeing more vehicles going out via the Middle East,” says Mike Briggs, an insurance industry veteran who is now UK president of the International Association of Auto Theft Investigators (IAATI).

“It’s a real problem for them at the moment – because anything you see on Russian roads will eventually need spare parts.

“The black market there has always been rife, but now it is getting bigger because of the sanctions, because people still want their luxury cars…and in fact, being able to still get them even now is actually likely to improve your status within Russia.”

There was a 48pc increase in vehicle thefts in the year to the end of September 2023, according to the Crime Survey of England and Wales, rising from 72,000 to 106,000 incidents.

The way criminals typically steal cars goes something like this: a gang receives an order for a certain model of car or parts from an overseas buyer.

They then go hunting for what they need in a big city, such as London, Birmingham or Manchester.

Once they have found their prey – with families and wealthy foreign drivers seen as soft targets – they break into the car, jam and remove any tracking devices they can find, and then park it up somewhere to wait and see whether anyone comes looking for it.

If no one comes, the gangs then strip the car for parts or ready it for export via a container that is often loaded with other metal goods to disguise the real cargo and confuse X-ray scanners

It is then shipped to locations such as Dubai or the Democratic Republic of Congo.

One reason why so many of the cars get through is that only a tiny proportion of containers are ever checked, says Iain McKinlay, chairman of the National Association of Stolen Vehicle Examiners.

By one industry estimate, fewer than five in every 100,000 containers leaving Britain are searched. This is partly because of how disruptive searching more of them would be to trade.

Nationally, there are thought to be just four full-time police officers dedicated to checking containers at Britain’s ports.

Another issue is that many vehicle thefts and recoveries require cross-border cooperation by different police forces – but typically only one will get the credit in statistics, creating few incentives for forces to go the extra mile.

Frustratingly, criminals also cannot be arrested for carrying equipment used to break into cars, while prosecutions for attempting to smuggle or chop up the cars are few and far between, McKinlay adds. Business owners often claim they didn’t know the vehicles were stolen.

“If you get caught with a �5,000 quantity of drugs, you’re going away to jail for a very long time,” the former detective constable explains.

“But if you get caught with a stolen vehicle worth �70,000, you’ll likely just get a slap on the wrist.

“So the gangs have identified there’s a lot of money to be made and that the risk versus the reward is really negligible.”

An industry insider said: “Vehicle crime is almost decriminalised in the UK now.”

They point to figures showing less than 1pc of recorded thefts ever lead to charges.

This is what visibly frustrated the chief executive of Jaguar Land Rover Adrian Mardell in February, when he complained that authorities were effectively giving gangs a free pass by failing to check enough of the shipping containers leaving Britain.

The British car maker is so concerned that it has actually started providing its own funding, understood to be worth hundreds of thousands of pounds, towards police intelligence work to help ensure the problem is tackled.

However, as a shipping source points out, it would be impractical to check every container.

“If you did, you can bet that JLR and the other car makers would be among the first to complain,” the source notes.

Instead, checks must be “intelligence-led” – i.e., based on tip-offs and police investigatory work – unless a new technology solution can be found that allows containers to be checked effectively and swiftly without needing to be opened.

A spokesman for the British Association of Ports said: “Border security and combating illicit trade falls to government agencies who take a risk-based and intelligence-led approach to checks.

“This balances interests of legitimate trade and helps keep costs down for traders.

“The ports industry… is always open to constructive discussions about how we can continue to bear down on smuggling and organised crime, but this must be done in a proportionate manner.”

One potential way to direct more resources to this issue could be to adopt a model used by some US states and Australia, where a small percentage of every car insurance policy goes towards funding anti-vehicle theft police operations, says McKinlay.

That might prove controversial if it pushes up policy costs. But it may prove cheaper in the long run if insurers don’t need to cover as many claims, McKinlay argues.

The cost of vehicle theft and theft from a vehicle hit record levels in 2023, with insurers paying out �669m for claims, according to the Association of British Insurers.

The lobby group says it takes vehicle theft seriously and is “exploring partnerships with the police to help with the recovery of stolen vehicles from ports”, as well as with car manufacturers on prevention.

Ultimately, observers say more resources must be directed towards the problem to have an impact. In Canada, border authorities have done precisely this, setting up a new taskforce with money from insurers that recently targeted the Port of Montreal in a raid earlier this month.

Through searches of 390 shipping containers, they discovered 598 stolen cars worth a total of about �20m.

In the UK, a conference hosted by Toyota in Derby this July will bring together the UK Government, police, car makers and other industry figures to try to address the problem here as well.

To stop the flow of luxury cars to Russia, says Briggs, “we need more training, more police and more technology”.

“This is just business for the gangs. And so long as there is a market and they can get these cars for nothing, why wouldn’t they do it?”

The Home Office said it was cracking down on the use of electronic devices used to steal vehicles by making it an offence to possess them, through new laws in the Criminal Justice Bill that is working its way through Parliament.

A spokesman said forces were also being given more funding to hire frontline police officers, adding: “We have made great progress in tackling vehicle crime, which is down 39pc since 2010.”

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 10:15 schreef Toine51 het volgende:

[..]
Eh, nou mss niet in de exacte woorden maar er werd wel degelijk de draak gestoken met het leger van Rusland hoor...
Geen bereidheid, oud materieel uit de Sovjet-tijd...


Net zoals de bewering dat binnen een paar maanden de hele economie van Rusland aan gort zou liggen..

Nou, 2 jaar verder zijn we....

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 10:19 schreef dudewhereismycar het volgende:

[..]
Vergeleken met het westen, is het materiaal van de Russen natuurlijk weldegelijk inferieur. Alleen de kwantiteit nekt Oekra�ne nu bigtime. Net als domme mortieren etc.

Dat de economie van Rusland aangort is, is wel een feit. Alleen doordat Rusland een oorlogseconomie draait, zie je vertekende cijfers. Zodra de oorlog over is, dan zal het lastig worden om de oorlogseconomie weer om te zetten naar een normalenel economie. Je hele ecosysteem is omzeep geholpen.

quote:

Russian bought $88m of gold from dealer in Changi to launder funds for Ukraine invasion
SINGAPORE – A Russian man bought more than US$65 million (S$88 million) worth of gold bullion held in Singapore in a money laundering conspiracy meant to fund the Russian military’s invasion of Ukraine.

The gold was sold by the precious metals dealer Singapore Precious Metals Exchange (SGPMX), which stores the bullions at Le Freeport, a secured logistics hub in Changi North Crescent.

SGPMX is a privately run trading and storage company headquartered in Singapore. It allows its clients to trade in actual gold in an online global exchange, much like how shares are traded on the stock exchange.

Clients can physically check on their gold at the facility at any time.

Russian national Feliks Medvedev, 42, was charged in the United States on April 11, 2023, with one count of operating an unlicensed money transmitting business and 39 counts of money laundering.

On Feb 22, he pleaded guilty to the charges. He admitted to running an unlicensed money transmitting business in the US, and moving over US$150 million of illicit funds in more than 1,300 transactions.

Of this, more than US$65 million was used to buy the gold from SGPMX.

SPOILER

quote:

SGPMX told The Straits Times that due to privacy laws, it could not provide details on the matter.

“SGPMX adheres to the highest standards of checks and due diligence and is bound to strict confidentiality clauses as dictated by local regulations and Personal Data Protection Act laws,” a spokesman added.

ST understands the Singapore Police Force are aware of the case.

The US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia said Medvedev resided in Georgia, US, where he had registered eight companies which were used to illegally transmit the illicit funds.

It said the companies did not incur typical business expenses or maintain employees, adding that a majority of the illicit funds had come from multiple overseas companies before being transferred to other foreign companies.

Two other Russians and a business consulting firm in Moscow were alleged to have conspired with Medvedev in the transfer of these funds and laundering of the illegal proceeds.

Alexey Chubarov, 42, and Lev Solyannikov, 31, are alleged to have informed Medvedev about the incoming fund transfers, and directed him on transfers to make after, including to SGPMX to buy the gold bullion.

The US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia said Chubarov and Solyannikov both worked for the KSK Group, and Chubarov was identified as an expert on international structuring.

The two Russians and the company were charged on Feb 13 with conspiracy, operating an unlicensed money transmitting business, and 39 counts of money laundering for their alleged respective roles related to Medvedev’s scheme.

The case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Chubarov and KSK Group were added to America’s specially designated nationals list of sanctioned entities on Sept 14, 2023.

US Attorney-General Merrick B. Garland said on Feb 22 that the illicit funds were for fuelling Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“The Justice Department is more committed than ever to cutting off the flow of illegal funds that are fuelling Putin’s war and to holding accountable those who continue to enable it,” he said.

“That is why today we are announcing several additional enforcement actions that the Justice Department has taken to bring prosecutions against and seize assets of sanctioned enablers of the Kremlin and Russian military.”

US Deputy Attorney-General Lisa Monaco said the prosecution of Medvedev, Chubarov, Solyannikov and KSK Group is part of the actions taken by Task Force KleptoCapture, a US Department of Justice unit formed in March 2022.

The unit’s goal is to enforce sanctions on Russian oligarchs in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Ms Monaco said that since its inception, the task force has restrained, seized, and obtained judgments to forfeit nearly US$700 million in assets from Russian enablers and charged more than 70 people for violating international sanctions and export controls levied against Russia.

She said: “Since the onset of Russia’s brutal and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, the Justice Department has used every tool in our arsenal – including our international partnerships – to target the criminal actors and activity propping up Vladimir Putin, his henchmen, and his illegal war.

“The charges we announce today against oligarchs, facilitators, and money launderers are the next chapter: so long as Russia’s aggression continues, so too will our resolve to hold its enablers accountable. We stand firmly with the people of Ukraine.”

Medvedev is expected to be sentenced on May 7.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 10:01 schreef Discombobulate het volgende:

[..]
Nee, en nee.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 10:15 schreef Toine51 het volgende:

[..]
Eh, nou mss niet in de exacte woorden maar er werd wel degelijk de draak gestoken met het leger van Rusland hoor...
Geen bereidheid, oud materieel uit de Sovjet-tijd...

Net zoals de bewering dat binnen een paar maanden de hele economie van Rusland aan gort zou liggen..

Nou, 2 jaar verder zijn we....

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 09:17 schreef Delenlill het volgende:

Een aantal van de neergehaalde vliegtuigen zijn bevestigd vanuit Oekra�ne hoek en vanuit Russische hoek. En van enkele zijn ook daadwerkelijk beelden langsgekomen. Ik zeg niet dat alle 13-15 vliegtuigen daadwerkelijk neergestort zijn, maar er zijn zeker meer vliegtuigen neergestort dan normaal. En dat er geen sprake is van bevestiging is dus niet waar.

quote:

Net zoals er ook beelden zijn van 1 van de vliegvelden waarop bewijs was te zien dat er wel daadwerkelijk schade was aan 1-3 vlieg tuigen. De andere vliegvelden zijn later inderdaad ontkracht met ondersteuning van bewijs.

quote:

Oorlogen zijn nu eenmaal chaotisch.

quote:

Tegenover persbureau TASS liet Peskov zich ook uit over een minder besproken bepaling in het zaterdag aangenomen wetsvoorstel.

Daarin krijgt de Amerikaanse regering de bevoegdheid om Russische bezittingen in beslag te nemen en deze voor wederopbouw aan Oekra�ne over te dragen.

Mocht dat inderdaad gebeuren, dan zou dit volgens Peskov "het imago van de Verenigde Staten aantasten".

quote:

Een meerderheid van het Amerikaanse Huis van Afgevaardigden heeft zaterdag voor een wetsvoorstel gestemd dat extra middelen toekent aan Oekra�ne.
De hulp bestaat voornamelijk uit militaire steun, maar omvat ook economische steun ter waarde van 10 miljard dollar.
Dat laatste deel van de hulp is een lening.

Het voorstel is onderdeel van een pakket wetsvoorstellen ter waarde van 95 miljard dollar (ruim 89 miljard euro), dat ook hulp biedt aan onder meer Isra�l en Taiwan.

Ruim 60 miljard is bestemd voor Kiev.
De Democraten onder leiding van president Joe Biden en de dwarsliggende Republikeinen kwamen er maandenlang niet uit.
Onder meer Trump-fanaat Marjorie Taylor Greene (Georgia) uit het Huis van Afgevaardigden was fel tegen het plan om meer steun te verlenen aan Kiev.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 11:16 schreef michaelmoore het volgende:
Tegenover persbureau TASS liet Peskov zich ook uit over een minder besproken bepaling in het zaterdag aangenomen wetsvoorstel.

Daarin krijgt de Amerikaanse regering de bevoegdheid om Russische bezittingen in beslag te nemen en deze voor wederopbouw aan Oekra�ne over te dragen.

Mocht dat inderdaad gebeuren, dan zou dit volgens Peskov "het imago van de Verenigde Staten aantasten".

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 10:01 schreef dudewhereismycar het volgende:

[..]
Dat is het mooie van wetten aannemen, dan bepaal je dus ook wat juridisch mogelijk is.... dus ja, de wet is aangepast.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 09:00 schreef Cherni het volgende:

[..]
Daar zijn ze nog altijd mee bezig of dat mogelijk is. Het imf is er niet zo blij mee om zomaar de regels te overtreden.
Het nadeel is dat landen weinig zin gaan hebben om nog te investeren in het westen als ze zomaar de boel confisqueren en zich niet aan de wet houden. Je maakt er globaal gezien geeft vrienden mee als men zomaar de regels kan overtreden.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 10:15 schreef Toine51 het volgende:

Eh, nou mss niet in de exacte woorden maar er werd wel degelijk de draak gestoken met het leger van Rusland hoor...
Geen bereidheid, oud materieel uit de Sovjet-tijd...

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 12:10 schreef bianconeri het volgende:
Het enige wat Rusland heeft zijn tientallen miljoenen manschappen die ze in kunnen zetten.
En al heb je geen modern materiaal, met kwantiteit overwhelm je het uiteindelijk wel.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 12:21 schreef AchJa het volgende:

[..]
Dit dus, kwantiteit is ook een kwaliteit.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 12:10 schreef bianconeri het volgende:

[..]
Iedereen steekt nog steeds de draak met het Russische leger.
Het Russische leger is ouderwets en zwak.

Je weet dat het Rusland tegen Oekra�ne is? En je weet dat Oekra�ne geen machtig land is en ook ouderwets materiaal heeft?
Het is veel zeggend dat Rusland nog niet het hele land en niet eens de helft in bezit heeft. Dat zegt gigantisch veel over de zwakte van Rusland.

En nee Oekra�ne vecht niet met veel Westers materiaal. Het enige Westerse materiaal wat ze volop krijgen is materiaal dat het Westen dumpt, wat wij over hebben.
Op een enkel ding na, zoals Patriots, maar die worden dan ook maar zeer zeer mondjesmaats gestuurd.

Het enige wat Rusland heeft zijn tientallen miljoenen manschappen die ze in kunnen zetten.
En al heb je geen modern materiaal, met kwantiteit overwhelm je het uiteindelijk wel.

Dus wat je zegt is gewoon onzin.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 12:37 schreef bianconeri het volgende:

[..]
Absoluut.
Meer dan 30 miljoen manschappen volgens info, dat is niet weinig.
Maar wel een lastige om in te schatten.

Toine doet net alsof Oekraine volledig met Westers materiaal vecht, maar dat is natuurlijk onzin.
Maar goed met hoeveel manschappen overwhelm je een Westers leger? Een factor 10? Een factor 100?

Rusland kan nooit op tegen een volledig Westers leger, maar tegen een Oekraine dat het met een beetje ouder Westers materiaal moet doen overloop je ze uiteindelijk gewoon. Je kunt gewoon niet golf na golf na golf na golf tegenhouden met wat Oekra�ne heeft.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 12:37 schreef bianconeri het volgende:
Absoluut.
Meer dan 30 miljoen manschappen volgens info, dat is niet weinig.
Maar wel een lastige om in te schatten.

Toine doet net alsof Oekraine volledig met Westers materiaal vecht, maar dat is natuurlijk onzin.
Maar goed met hoeveel manschappen overwhelm je een Westers leger? Een factor 10? Een factor 100?

Rusland kan nooit op tegen een volledig Westers leger, maar tegen een Oekraine dat het met een beetje ouder Westers materiaal moet doen overloop je ze uiteindelijk gewoon. Je kunt gewoon niet golf na golf na golf na golf tegenhouden met wat Oekra�ne heeft.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 12:39 schreef Cherni het volgende:

[..]
Als dat zo zou zijn waarom moeten we dan denken dat de Russen doorstoten tot de Noordzee? Het onderschatten van je tegenstander is sowieso een slecht idee. Zeker tegen de Russen. Dat is al vaker slecht afgelopen. Maw we hadden al veel en veel eerder rekening moeten houden met Rusland.

China idem, maar men neemt het allemaal niet serieus en dat al sinds de jaren 90. Ook daar hoor je, het stelt geen ruk voor.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 13:07 schreef AchJa het volgende:
Je kunt ook niet golf na golf na golf tegenhouden met een modern westers leger, het gaat om voortzettingsvermogen.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 13:08 schreef bianconeri het volgende:

[..]
Wie zegt dat we bang moeten zijn dat de Russen doorstoten tot de Noordzee?
Buiten een paar gekken denk ik niemand.
Rusland heeft daar absoluut de kracht niet voor en nee ook de manschappen niet.

Natuurlijk moet je niemand onderschatten, zeker niet aangezien ze kernwapens hebben.
Maar in dit geval is redelijk bekend wat Rusland heeft. En kunnen ze zelfs een veel zwakker land dat ook nog eens geen modern materiaal heeft verslaan.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 09:00 schreef Cherni het volgende:

[..]
Daar zijn ze nog altijd mee bezig of dat mogelijk is. Het imf is er niet zo blij mee om zomaar de regels te overtreden.
Het nadeel is dat landen weinig zin gaan hebben om nog te investeren in het westen als ze zomaar de boel confisqueren en zich niet aan de wet houden. Je maakt er globaal gezien geeft vrienden mee als men zomaar de regels kan overtreden.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 13:16 schreef Ulx het volgende:
Uiteindelijk hebben we daarvoor de grote jongens liggen op Volkel.

quote:

Maar Oekra�ne hield het afgelopen half jaar stand. De Russische terreinwinst stelde niet veel voor. Vorig jaar braken de eerste muiterijen al uit. Het blijft geen golf na golf.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 13:27 schreef AchJa het volgende:

Maar goed, feit blijft gewoon dat kwantiteit ook een kwaliteit is.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 12:55 schreef Joppiez het volgende:

[..]
Want Rusland heeft een miljard inwoners en Oekra�ne maar 5 miljoen.

One, Rusland heeft drie keer meer mankracht.
Oekra�ne verdedigd.
Doet Oekra�ne dat slim dan gaat de vuistregel van 3 op 1 wel op.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 13:42 schreef BEFEM het volgende:

[..]
Oekra�ne heeft veel minder inwoners dan die 44 miljoen die altijd genoemd wordt.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 13:42 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]
Rusland heeft ook minder dan de 180 miljoen die men altijd noemt.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 13:48 schreef BEFEM het volgende:

[..]
Ja maar wel een andere factor minder. Die 44 miljoen is met Oost oekraine, de andere bezette gebieden en de krim erbij. Kan je dus al een aantal miljoen van af halen (en bij Rusland optellen, een groot portie ervan wordt immers gemobiliseerd, veel groter percentage dan jn Rusland zelf). Daarnaast zijn er iets van 7 miljoen vluchtelingen in Europa, kan je er ook afhalen. En nee, dat zijn niet alleen vrouwen en kinderen.

Ben je zo al 20/30% van je 44 miljoen kwijt.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 13:25 schreef dudewhereismycar het volgende:

[..]
Lees je zin nog eens terug. Weinig zin hebben om te investeren in t westen..

En nog een keer lezen.

Vraag je zelf nu het volgende af: bedrijven hebben geld en groeien. Ze mogen kiezen; investeren in een boevennest of andersgezegd: shitholes, of investeren in ontwikkelde landen. Kies je voor de eerste; weinig kans van slagen, veel risico, marges laag etc etc. De tweede hoef ik niet uit te leggen.

Je kaart een totaal irrationeel probleem aan.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 13:57 schreef Cherni het volgende:


China bezit gigantisch veel onroerend goed binnen onze westerse wereld. Niet dat ik daar bij van kan worden en zou je blij worden van het confisqueren. Maar gezond is het niet.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 10:15 schreef Toine51 het volgende:

[..]
Eh, nou mss niet in de exacte woorden maar er werd wel degelijk de draak gestoken met het leger van Rusland hoor...
Geen bereidheid, oud materieel uit de Sovjet-tijd...


Net zoals de bewering dat binnen een paar maanden de hele economie van Rusland aan gort zou liggen..

Nou, 2 jaar verder zijn we....

quote:

Op zaterdag 20 april 2024 21:03 schreef RamboDirk het volgende:

[..]
Welk momentum?

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 14:12 schreef Cilantro het volgende:
Volgens ISW duurt het nog wel een paar weken voordat Oekra�ne van de steun profiteert. Ze verwachten dat de Oekra�ense positie in juni sterk verbeterd is.

[ x ]

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 12:39 schreef Cherni het volgende:

[..]
Als dat zo zou zijn waarom moeten we dan denken dat de Russen doorstoten tot de Noordzee? Het onderschatten van je tegenstander is sowieso een slecht idee. Zeker tegen de Russen. Dat is al vaker slecht afgelopen. Maw we hadden al veel en veel eerder rekening moeten houden met Rusland.

China idem, maar men neemt het allemaal niet serieus en dat al sinds de jaren 90. Ook daar hoor je, het stelt geen ruk voor.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 14:08 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]
Dus als China in Taiwan zou gaan fucken dan kunnen ze enorm veel verliezen? Dat ze economisch terug naar de tijd van Mao gaan?

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 13:07 schreef AchJa het volgende:

[..]
Je kunt ook niet golf na golf na golf tegenhouden met een modern westers leger, het gaat om voortzettingsvermogen. Als je de eerste paar golven hebt weten tegen te houden zul je misschien vwb manschappen weinig verliezen hebben maar je bent simpelweg door je munitie en middelen heen. We hebben gewoon geen voortzettingsvermogen op dit moment en er gaan minstens 10-15 jaar overheen (persoonlijke inschatting) voordat we dat weer een beetje op peil hebben en ook dan moeten alle zeilen bijgezet worden.

De koude oorlog aantallen die we voorheen hadden waren ook gewoon gebaseerd op het arsenaal van het WP. Die 1000 tanks die Nederland alleen had was ook gewoon een rekensom, 1 westerse tanks vs 3 oostblok tanks, dat was de verhouding ongeveer waar mee gerekend werd. Het was ook niet voor niets dat er vwb luchtverdediging (Air defence belt Hawk/Nike Hercules) drastische maatregelen werden genomen zoals 20kt nucleaire koppen op de Nikes zodat er met 1 schot een hele club WP bombers naar de andere wereld geholpen kon worden. Anders was de NATO door de missiles heen maar de WP bombers zouden nog steeds komen.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 13:42 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]
Rusland heeft ook minder dan de 180 miljoen die men altijd noemt.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 13:18 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]
Toplui in het Kremlin roepen dat. De offici�le propagandakanalen roepen dat. Je kunt dat dus maar beter serieus nemen.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 14:19 schreef spicymchaggis het volgende:

[..]
Achteraf gezien hadden de Amerikanen het lend/lease verdrag met de Russen nooit moeten sluiten tijdens WO II en was het beter geweest wanneer de Duitsers de Russen, net als tijdens WO I - verslagen hadden.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 14:36 schreef bianconeri het volgende:

[..]
Owh sorry!
Ik wist niet dat Poetin het ook riep. Dan moet het inderdaad wel serieus zijn. Ik ga direct in mijn bunker zitten. Sterkte allemaal en tot nooit!

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 13:48 schreef BEFEM het volgende:

[..]
Ja maar wel een andere factor minder. Die 44 miljoen is met Oost oekraine, de andere bezette gebieden en de krim erbij. Kan je dus al een aantal miljoen van af halen (en bij Rusland optellen, een groot portie ervan wordt immers gemobiliseerd, veel groter percentage dan jn Rusland zelf). Daarnaast zijn er iets van 7 miljoen vluchtelingen in Europa, kan je er ook afhalen. En nee, dat zijn niet alleen vrouwen en kinderen.

Ben je zo al 20/30% van je 44 miljoen kwijt.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 14:45 schreef Joppiez het volgende:

[..]
Er zijn ook miljoenen Russen het moederland ontvlucht sinds de oorlog. De Emiraten, Malta, Georgi�, Frankrijk, Engeland, Nederland enz enz. Krioelt van de Russen overal als je beetje oplet.

quote:

Op zondag 21 april 2024 14:56 schreef BEFEM het volgende:

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Ja en zoals ik zeg, dat percentage Russen wat gevlucht is, is een stuk lager dan dat van Oekrainers. En dat is ook niet zo heel gek aangezien Oekra�ne wordt aangevallen. Het is allemaal niet ingewikkeld om wat realistische aantallen erbij te pakken en niet gelijk in het defensief te schieten als er een minder rooskleurig feit genoemd wordt.

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Op zondag 21 april 2024 14:36 schreef bianconeri het volgende:

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Owh sorry!
Ik wist niet dat Poetin het ook riep. Dan moet het inderdaad wel serieus zijn. Ik ga direct in mijn bunker zitten. Sterkte allemaal en tot nooit!

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Op zondag 21 april 2024 14:56 schreef BEFEM het volgende:

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Ja en zoals ik zeg, dat percentage Russen wat gevlucht is, is een stuk lager dan dat van Oekrainers. En dat is ook niet zo heel gek aangezien Oekra�ne wordt aangevallen. Het is allemaal niet ingewikkeld om wat realistische aantallen erbij te pakken en niet gelijk in het defensief te schieten als er een minder rooskleurig feit genoemd wordt.

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Op zondag 21 april 2024 14:11 schreef spicymchaggis het volgende:

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Dat is onzin; de verwachting was dat Rusland Oekra�ne in korte tijd onder de voet zou lopen. De draak steken gebeurde pas nadat de nodige Russische blunders bekend raakten.

Er is ook helemaal niemand die beweerd heeft dat de Russische economie binnen enkele maanden de nek omgedraaid zou zijn. Dat kan ook helemaal niet binnen zulke korte tijd.

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Op zondag 21 april 2024 12:10 schreef bianconeri het volgende:

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Iedereen steekt nog steeds de draak met het Russische leger.
Het Russische leger is ouderwets en zwak.

Je weet dat het Rusland tegen Oekra�ne is? En je weet dat Oekra�ne geen machtig land is en ook ouderwets materiaal heeft?
Het is veel zeggend dat Rusland nog niet het hele land en niet eens de helft in bezit heeft. Dat zegt gigantisch veel over de zwakte van Rusland.

En nee Oekra�ne vecht niet met veel Westers materiaal. Het enige Westerse materiaal wat ze volop krijgen is materiaal dat het Westen dumpt, wat wij over hebben.
Op een enkel ding na, zoals Patriots, maar die worden dan ook maar zeer zeer mondjesmaats gestuurd.

Het enige wat Rusland heeft zijn tientallen miljoenen manschappen die ze in kunnen zetten.
En al heb je geen modern materiaal, met kwantiteit overwhelm je het uiteindelijk wel.

Dus wat je zegt is gewoon onzin.

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Op zondag 21 april 2024 14:44 schreef Cherni het volgende:

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In de jaren 90 hadden we het anders moeten aanpakken. Daar is alles mis gegaan door hebzucht, neoliberalisme etc. IK ben geen politicus maar er is een tijd geweest dat Rusland bij de NAVO wilde.

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Op zondag 21 april 2024 15:27 schreef Toine51 het volgende:

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Jawel, dat is wel door figuren beweerd bij het begin van de oorlog.

Alle sancties zouden Rusland in een chaos storten was de verwachting.

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Op zondag 21 april 2024 15:29 schreef Toine51 het volgende:

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Rusland wil ook niet het hele land.

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Op zondag 21 april 2024 14:19 schreef spicymchaggis het volgende:

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Achteraf gezien hadden de Amerikanen het lend/lease verdrag met de Russen nooit moeten sluiten tijdens WO II en was het beter geweest wanneer de Duitsers de Russen, net als tijdens WO I - verslagen hadden.

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Op zondag 21 april 2024 15:27 schreef Toine51 het volgende:

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Jawel, dat is wel door figuren beweerd bij het begin van de oorlog.

Alle sancties zouden Rusland in een chaos storten was de verwachting.