SPOILER

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Op dinsdag 25 juni 2024 10:24 schreef BEFEM het volgende:

[..]
Gekeken, slecht verhaal.

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Op maandag 24 juni 2024 08:39 schreef AchJa het volgende:

[..]
Lijkt me idd geen ATACMS

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The Kremlin said that it would have to see the details on any possible peace plan proposed by a possible future U.S. administration of Donald Trump but that Russian President Vladimir Putin remained open to talks. Reuters reported on Tuesday that two key advisers to Trump have presented him with a plan to end the war in Ukraine -- if he wins the presidential election -- that involves telling Ukraine it will only get more U.S. weapons if it enters into peace talks.

https://www.ynetnews.com/article/hyw11zluu0

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Op dinsdag 25 juni 2024 10:37 schreef Aether het volgende:

[..]

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Op dinsdag 25 juni 2024 17:37 schreef BEFEM het volgende:
Ik ben verre van een expert maar afgaande aan het aantal explosies lijkt het mij geen ontploffende ATACMS. In ieder geval niet zoals die bedoeld zou moeten ontploffen.

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Op dinsdag 25 juni 2024 17:39 schreef polderturk het volgende:

[..]
Misschien GLMRS.
Of kluster munitie.

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Op dinsdag 25 juni 2024 17:39 schreef BEFEM het volgende:

[..]
Ik bedoel, wat je ziet zijn enkele tientallen explosies. Je zou er meer verwachten bij een ATACMS. Hoewel je niet alles in beeld ziet waarschijnlijk.

En GLMRS kan Sevastopol niet halen toch?

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Op dinsdag 25 juni 2024 17:32 schreef polderturk het volgende:
Wat vinden jullie hiervan?

Foutje?
Valse vlag?
Hadden de bezetters daar maar niet moeten zwemmen?

[ x ]

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Op dinsdag 25 juni 2024 17:52 schreef Zwoerd het volgende:

[..]
Ja kan gebeuren als je ik oorlogsgebied je strandvakantie wil houden. Je ziet iig geen gerichte aanval van Oekra�ne op burgers.

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Op dinsdag 25 juni 2024 17:32 schreef polderturk het volgende:
Wat vinden jullie hiervan?

Foutje?
Valse vlag?
Hadden de bezetters daar maar niet moeten zwemmen?

[ x ]

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Op dinsdag 25 juni 2024 17:37 schreef polderturk het volgende:
[ x ]

Mad drone skills

[ x ]

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Op dinsdag 25 juni 2024 19:48 schreef dudewhereismycar het volgende:

[..]
Dit soort vage en moride filmpjes met net iets te grappige muziek eronder.. waarom?

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Op dinsdag 25 juni 2024 20:14 schreef QAnonn het volgende:
[ x ]

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Op dinsdag 25 juni 2024 21:52 schreef polderturk het volgende:
Gaat lekker daar.

[ x ]

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Op dinsdag 25 juni 2024 21:11 schreef Cilantro het volgende:

[..]
Maar 1340km Finse Navo grens erbij is geen 'existential threat'.

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Op dinsdag 25 juni 2024 20:14 schreef QAnonn het volgende:
[ x ]

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Op dinsdag 25 juni 2024 22:06 schreef Discombobulate het volgende:

[..]
Neen, dat is al wel eens besproken. Het is een domper voor Poetin, maar geen existential threat iit Oekra�ne.

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Op dinsdag 25 juni 2024 20:11 schreef ExTec het volgende:
Quiz tijd:

https://www.idrlabs.com/conflict-coordinates/test.php

Your conflict coordinates are 41.66% Palestine, 100% Ukraine.

quote:

Op dinsdag 25 juni 2024 20:11 schreef ExTec het volgende:
Quiz tijd:

https://www.idrlabs.com/conflict-coordinates/test.php

Your conflict coordinates are 41.66% Palestine, 100% Ukraine.

quote:

Op dinsdag 25 juni 2024 20:11 schreef ExTec het volgende:
Quiz tijd:

https://www.idrlabs.com/conflict-coordinates/test.php

Your conflict coordinates are 41.66% Palestine, 100% Ukraine.

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Op dinsdag 25 juni 2024 22:20 schreef Red_85 het volgende:

[..]
Hoe is Ukraine dat wel dan?
Die gasten wilden alleen maar leven in hun eigen staat. Thats it? Wat is daar 'existential threat' aan voor putler?

quote:

Op dinsdag 25 juni 2024 20:11 schreef ExTec het volgende:
Quiz tijd:

https://www.idrlabs.com/conflict-coordinates/test.php

Your conflict coordinates are 41.66% Palestine, 100% Ukraine.

quote:

Op dinsdag 25 juni 2024 22:52 schreef zalkc het volgende:

[..]
Simpel, als hun een gelukkig leven gaan leiden dan is dat een bedreiging voor de positie van Poetin.

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Op dinsdag 25 juni 2024 08:57 schreef BEFEM het volgende:

[..]
Dit wordt al honderden jaren geroepen in allerlei oorlogen. Volgens mij is dat nooit gelukt.

Je kan over de Tweede Wereldoorlog wel veel vinden wat betreft dit onderwerp.

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Russia Accused of Flooding Libya with Counterfeit Currency
Russia faces fresh allegations of flooding Libyan markets with counterfeit banknotes in another bid to further destabilize the country. The Kremlin has a documented history of sending counterfeit currency to Libyan National Army (LNA) leader Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar.

The Central Bank of Libya (CBL) announced in April that it began withdrawing the first and second prints of 50-dinar (just more than $10) banknotes from circulation after officials discovered counterfeit prints.

Russia is accused of printing the fake money at a farm on the outskirts of Benghazi, Haftar’s base. Russia’s Wagner Group of mercenaries, now known as the Africa Corps, supports the LNA.

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The CBL asked banks in Libya and their branches to allow the public to present the banknotes and deposit them in their accounts. It urged banks to exercise due diligence to prevent counterfeit currency from being passed and it published a presentation that showed the minute differences between legitimate and counterfeit 50-dinar prints.

The country is divided between Haftar’s government in Benghazi and Libya’s internationally recognized Government of National Accord (GNA) in Tripoli, which Haftar is attempting to overthrow.

Jalel Harchaoui, an associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute, said Haftar has intensified efforts to strengthen his ties with the Kremlin since August 2023.

“It’s important to emphasize that Russia’s assistance to Haftar rarely comes without financial demands,” Harchaoui told The New Arab. “Haftar is always required to cover the expenses incurred by the Russians active on Libyan soil — in military and other domains.”

A $150 million dispute between Haftar and Wagner emerged in 2020 after a contract between the parties ended. Haftar was accused of not paying the group after the combined forces lost seven cities over a 24-hour stretch in 2019, the year the warlord launched a sustained assault on Tripoli that ultimately failed.

At the time, Wagner was bringing “fighters — not so experienced — from Syria, Belarus and Serbia,” a military source close to Haftar said in a report by the Arabic Post news website.

In September 2019, five months into Haftar’s attack on Tripoli, Malta officials intercepted a shipment of Russian-made dinars en route to Haftar. Nearly 4.5 billion dinars were shipped from Russia to the eastern port city of Tobruk in the first half of 2019, coinciding with the start of the Tripoli war, Reuters reported. Another billion dinars was delivered to the east in 2016, according to the Libya Herald.

Legitimate Libyan dinars issued by the GNA in Tripoli are printed in the United Kingdom. Joint Stock Company Goznak, a Russian state-owned company, printed the illegitimate bills seized in 2019 and 2020.

As with the current crop of counterfeit cash, the previous fake Libyan dinar bills looked almost identical to official bills. By some estimates Haftar’s government flooded the country with nearly 12 billion Russian-made dinars between 2015 and 2020.

The fake bank notes were used to pay Haftar’s fighters and were found all over the country. They fueled inflation, drove down the value of the dinar, and undermined the official currency supplied by the central bank in Tripoli, according to Libyan economic analyst Mukhtar Al Jadeed.

The primary purpose of the counterfeit currency was to “fund the war on Tripoli,” Al Jadeed told Al-Jazeera.

Officials intercepted a shipment of $1.1 billion in fake dinars bound for Haftar in Malta in the spring of 2020.

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Op dinsdag 25 juni 2024 17:32 schreef polderturk het volgende:
Wat vinden jullie hiervan?

Foutje?
Valse vlag?
Hadden de bezetters daar maar niet moeten zwemmen?

[ x ]

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 00:49 schreef NeeOfTochJA het volgende:
[ x ]

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Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 00:37 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
Maar het lijkt mij in dit geval nu wel duidelijk te zijn dat dit cluster ammunitie is, en niet ��n Russische raket van de luchtafweer.

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MV-10 mine clearance system, partially manufactured in Ukraine, has successfully passed certification

^{DOK-ING MV-10 mine clearance system. Ukraine, February 2024. Photo credits: State Transport Special Service}

The MV-10 mine clearance system, assembled at a Ukrainian enterprise, has successfully passed certification.

The Ministry of Economy of Ukraine announced this.

The Ukrainian company A3Tech-Ukraine, which carries out large-scale assembly and partial production of Croatian DOK-ING vehicles, has received a certificate of conformity for the MV-10 mine clearance system.

The company has an order to produce eight such vehicles. The first one, manufactured with funds raised within the UNITED24 initiative, has already been delivered to Ukrainian sappers.

“It is important for us that it is a Ukrainian company that manufactures components and assembles the vehicles that clear our land of mines,” Yuliia Svyrydenko, First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy of Ukraine, noted.

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^{DOK-ING MV-10 mine clearance system in Ukraine, 2024. Photo credits: Ministry of Economy}

According to her, the demand for such equipment for humanitarian demining from sappers is very high, and the government expects that due to the support of partners and the capabilities of Ukrainian manufacturers, it will be possible to increase the number of mine clearance systems.

“We hope that along with the localization of foreign technologies, there will be an increase in the number of Ukrainian demining developments,” Svyrydenko shared.

A3tech already manufactures up to 40% of the components for the MV-10 working tool and plans to increase this figure to 100% by the end of the year. Two other Ukrainian companies have been subcontracted to work on these vehicles. They produce some of the components for the machines and the platforms used to transport them.

In total, A3Tech-Ukraine has the capacity to produce up to 60 MV-10 mine clearance systems per year.

Currently, 17 DOK-ING MV-10 mine clearance systems are in operation in Ukraine. The systems are used by the State Emergency Service, the State Special Transport Service, and the Swiss Foundation for Mine Action, mainly in Mykolaiv, Kherson, and Kharkiv regions. As of the end of May, these vehicles have cleared 850 hectares of Ukrainian land and eliminated more than 4,500 mines, cluster munitions, and other types of explosive ordnance.

^{The MV-4 mine clearance system is assembled in Ukraine. Spring 2024. Photo credits: Ministry of Economy}

In May, the MV-4 system assembled at the same Ukrainian enterprise also received a certificate of conformity.

MV-10

^{DOK-ING MV-10 mine clearance system. Ukraine, February 2024. Photo credits: State Transport Special Service}
DOK-ING MV-10 is a heavy mine clearance system with a double working set: a chain mechanism and a cutter. It is used for clearing areas of various types of mines and explosive devices. The vehicle is controlled by one operator using a remote control. The maximum depth of soil clearance is 60 cm.

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Ukraine and Moldova Begin EU Accession Talks
Today, on June 25, the negotiations on the accession of Ukraine and Moldova to the EU is officially starting.

“I am grateful to everyone on our team who worked hard to make this historic step a reality. Millions of Ukrainians, and indeed generations of our people, are realizing their European dream. Ukraine is returning to Europe, where it has belonged for centuries, as a full-fledged member of the European community,” President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote.

President of Moldova Maia Sandu wrote: “Becoming an EU member is our path to peace, prosperity, and a better life for all citizens.”

The accession negotiations are scheduled to start in Luxembourg on Tuesday afternoon through two separate intergovernmental conferences that the EU will convene with Ukraine and Moldova.

SPOILER

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The accession negotiation procedure simplified by European Pravda:
• The European Commission starts screening, studying the legislation of Ukraine regarding the level of its compatibility with European legislation.
• At the same time, the European Commission approves the draft negotiation framework, i.e. the regulations for further negotiations
• Ukraine is here at the moment
• Further, the Council of the EU, after holding consultations with Ukraine, approves the negotiation framework by unanimous decision.
• After that, the first meeting of the Intergovernmental Conference takes place. This event is considered the official start of accession negotiations, but in reality, one more step is needed. More precisely, not even one, but 33 steps.
• Negotiations are conducted in parallel under 33 sectoral chapters of the accession agreement, to start negotiations on the adaptation of Ukrainian legislation to EU norms
• In the process, the European Commission will prepare regular reports on Ukraine's progress, which will make it possible to compare whether we are moving quickly compared to other candidate states.
• When Ukraine completes negotiations on all 33 chapters in the specified order and the EU agrees to close all chapters, confirming Ukraine's readiness for membership, the signing of the accession agreement takes place.

In parallel with all this, a dialogue about the enlargement methodology continues in the EU, that is, about how decisions are made, where unanimity is required, and where the consent of a qualified majority of EU member states is sufficient.

Despite being amidst full-scale war, Ukraine managed to implement several recommendations received upon becoming an EU membership candidate in the summer of 2022.

To gain membership in the European Union, Ukraine must go through a difficult path, but it is a historic victory, to which Ukraine has come a long way since 2014.

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GDELS offers to produce 50 ASCOD infantry fighting vehicles for Ukraine

^{ASCOD IFV in Slovakia, April 15, 2021. Photo credits: Ministry of Defense of Slovakia}

General Dynamics European Land Systems has proposed to the Spanish government to produce up to 50 ASCOD infantry fighting vehicles for Ukraine within a year.

Spanish media Infodefensa reported on this.

Spanish armored vehicle manufacturer Santa Barbara Sistemas, part of General Dynamics’ European division, has informed the Spanish government that its plant in Trubia could produce up to 50 ASCOD infantry fighting vehicles per year.

The announcement follows a March meeting between the President and representatives of the national defense industry and the recently signed defense agreement with Ukraine, under which Spain guaranteed $1 billion in support.

However, El Comercio reports that the Spanish Ministry of Defense has not yet responded to the proposal.

SPOILER

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ASCOD for Ukraine
Speaking of the infantry fighting vehicle, it is worth noting that the proposal refers to its second generation, known as ASCOD 2 or ASCOD Phase 2.

This is not the first time this infantry fighting vehicle has been mentioned in the Ukrainian context. In September last year, GDELS, the Czechoslovak Group holding company, and Ukrainian Armor considered the possibility of its licensed production in the country.

Ukrainian Armor specialists, together with the Armed Forces of Ukraine, representatives of the State Research Institute for Testing and Certification of Weapons and Military Equipment, and the Czechoslovak Group, visited the production facilities of General Dynamics European Land Systems in Trubia, where they familiarized themselves with the production.

Ukrainian military personnel tested the IFV to compare the capabilities of ASCOD with the existing armored vehicles of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

^{ASCOD platform. September 2023. Photo credits: Ukrainian Armor}

In its article, Infodefensa notes that ASCOD is now a complete product, the production of which has already been tested at the facilities in Trubia. Santa Barbara Sistema once manufactured a hundred of these machines as part of the Ajax program for the UK.

The company performs a complete cycle of machine manufacturing, from cutting sheet metal to assembling the finished machine and integrating various weapon systems.

However, in Ukraine, the Spanish combat vehicle will face serious competition, as the Swedish CV90, which is already actively fighting on the battlefield, and the German KF41 Lynx, which Rheinmetall is building a plant for, are also being considered as future IFVs for the Armed Forces.

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The second batch of Patriot missiles sent by Spain has been in Ukraine since Friday
The shipment also includes Leopard tanks, ammunition, anti-drone systems, optronic surveillance systems and remote weapon turrets.

The second batch of long-range Patriot anti-aircraft missiles sent by Spain arrived in Ukraine this past Friday and joins a first shipment of this defensive weaponry supplied at the end of last April, government sources have confirmed.

The Patriot are part of an "important shipment" made this June, as reported on May 25 by the Minister of Defense, Margarita Robles , at the ministerial meeting of the Contact Group for the Defense of Ukraine, which was attended of his counterpart Rustem Umerov.

The shipment includes, in addition to the Patriot, a second batch of Leopard tanks , various types of ammunition , including 155mm artillery , anti-drone systems , optronic surveillance and tracking systems, and remote weapon turrets .

Two days after Robles' announcement to the allies, the President of the Government, Pedro S�nchez , and the Ukrainian President, Volod�mir Zelenski , signed in Madrid a security agreement that represents a commitment of "military support" on the Spanish side that reaches 1,000 million euros in 2024 to strengthen its defensive capacity.

As S�nchez stressed then, in a joint press conference with Zelenski in Moncloa, this amount will allow Ukraine to "reinforce" its defense resources, including its "anti-aircraft defense", which he considered "key" to be able to protect the civilian population from attacks. of Russia against its territory.

For his part, the Ukrainian president thanked the security agreement signed with S�nchez, "an important strategic document" with which Spain demonstrates once again that it is a "reliable" partner that "does not close its eyes to the violation by Russia." to the fundamental norms of International Law".

He especially thanked the new missiles and armored equipment provided for in the signed agreement, which will also generate jobs and the development of technology .

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ECHR finds Russia guilty of human rights violations in Crimea
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) issued its verdict on the merits in the first interstate case, Ukraine v. Russia (re Crimea), recognising the systemic violations of human rights committed by the Russians in occupied Crimea.

Source: European Pravda with reference to the court decision.

Details: The case Ukraine v. Russia (re Crimea) dealt with Ukraine's accusations of systematic violations of the European Convention on Human Rights by the Russian Federation in Crimea since February 2014.

It also alluded to charges of systematic persecution of Ukrainians for their political positions and/or pro-Ukrainian activities (Ukrainian political prisoners), which occurred mostly in Crimea, but also in other parts of Ukraine or the Russian Federation, since the beginning of 2014.

The Ukrainian government asserts that Russia has effectively controlled the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol since 27 February 2014.

It also claims that Russia committed systematic human rights violations as part of a repressive campaign that included disappearances, illegal detentions, ill-treatment, the inability to renounce Russian citizenship, the suppression of work of Ukrainian media and the functioning of the Ukrainian language in schools, and transfers from Crimea to remote Russian prisons.

Background:
• Russia decided not to comply with ECHR decisions issued after 15 March 2022. However, the Secretary General of the Council of Europe stated that according to international law, Russia is still obliged to comply with the decisions of the ECHR taken against it.
• Recently, oral proceedings were held at the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in the case Ukraine and the Netherlands against the Russian Federation. The proceedings concern Russia's violations of human rights in the occupied territory of Donbas.

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First shipment of ammunition from our initiative arrived in Ukraine – Czech PM
Initially, it was about 800,000 rounds, but later statements mentioned 1 million to 1.5 million shells that the Ukrainian Armed Forces could receive under the Czech initiative

Ukraine has received the first batch of ammunition purchased for the Defense Forces under the Czech initiative, the country's Prime Minister Petr Fiala wrote on X.

"The first shipment of ammunition from our initiative arrived in Ukraine some time ago. We are doing what it takes," the statement reads.

The Czech Prime Minister did not specify the exact number of shells.

Initially, it was about 800,000 shells that could be sent to Ukraine. However, in March, Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsk� stated that Kyiv could potentially receive 1.5 million rounds. In April, Czech President Petr Pavel mentioned that Prague had found over 1 million artillery shells in third countries that could be purchased for the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

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National Police forms three combined brigades to participate in combat operations

^{The National Police formed three consolidated brigades to conduct combat operations against the Russian invaders. June 2024. Photo credits: National Police}

The National Police has started forming additional units to participate in combat operations against the Russian invaders.

The National Police reported on this.

These are three consolidated rifle brigades with a total staff of 8,000 police officers.

The first is a consolidated Special Police Brigade created based on the Department of Preventive Activities.

The second is the consolidated brigade of the Patrol Police Department “Khyzhak” (Predator – ed.), and the third is the consolidated brigade of KORD special police units.

SPOILER

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^{Training of the instructor pool of the command of the consolidated brigades of the National Police. June 2024. Photo credits: National Police}

Combat training for the brigade command’s future instructors is currently underway, and they have already started at the National Police training grounds.

Три новостворені стрілецькі бригади Національна поліція України вже розпочали бойову підготовку

It is emphasized that most of the police officers undergoing the training already have combat experience. Their current instructors are representatives of the Separate Assault Brigade “Lyut” (Rage – ed.) of the National Police of Ukraine.

After the training of instructors and commanders, the police officers will go to their regions for training and combat coordination with the personnel of the consolidated brigades.

^{The National Police formed three consolidated brigades to conduct combat operations against the Russian invaders. June 2024. Photo credits: National Police}

In addition, three consolidated brigades totaling 5,000 police officers have been formed to jointly fulfill the tasks of the National Police and the State Border Guard Service. They perform tasks in the territories bordering the aggressor states of Russia and Belarus.

In addition, the staffing of the joint assault brigade of the NPU “Lyut” is 5,000 police officers.

Бригаду «Лють» озброїли танками Т-64БВ [березень 2024]

The brigade was formed in January 2023 and includes a tank unit armed with modernized T-64BV mod. 2027 main battle tanks.

Another 20,000 police officers serve in frontline regions such as Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Kharkiv, Donetsk, and border regions.

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Ukrainian troops destroyed Pantsir-S1 SAM in the Donetsk region

^{Destroyed Russian Pantsir-S1 air defense system in the Donetsk region. June 2024. Photo credits: Dosye_shpiona Telegram Channel}

Ukrainian military destroyed a Russian Pantsir-S1 air defense system in the Donetsk region with a missile strike.

The Dosye_shpiona Telegram Channel released a photo of the system.

According to the channel’s authors, the Russian air defense system was hit by a Ukrainian HIMARS rocket system.

The close explosion of the guided projectile and the debris caused a fire on board the vehicle, which resulted in its burning. The crew of the combat vehicle survived.

It is reported that a Russian air defense system was hit in the Donetsk region on June 15-20.

SPOILER

quote:

.

^{Destroyed Russian Pantsir-S1 air defense system in the Donetsk region. June 2024. Photo credits: Dosye_shpiona Telegram Channel}

According to the photos, the fire partially or completely burned out the radar system of the vehicle, the artillery part of the system, and the guides for anti-aircraft missiles burned down. Given this, the vehicle can be considered completely destroyed.

The two twin 30-mm automatic cannons of the system are pointed upward at a high angle, which may indicate an attempt to intercept the GMLRS missile on its approach to the Pantsir-S1 air defense system.

Two weeks earlier, the Dosye_shpiona Telegram Channel published another video shot by the Russian military showing another destroyed system in the Luhansk region.

A Russian Pantsir-S1 of the 1st Special Purpose Air and Missile Defense Army was destroyed by a direct hit from a guided projectile launched by an M142 HIMARS rocket system.

На Луганщині ЗСУ знищили позицію з комплексом "Панцирь-С1"

Significant losses of the Russian air defense systems from the work of Ukrainian rocket systems and attack drones led the Russian army to start using systems made to order from other countries.

In particular, the Russian Armed Forces were seen armed with Pantsir-S1E anti-aircraft missiles and gun systems in a simplified export modification intended for the Iraqi contract.

In 2012, the Iraqi government signed a contract with Russia to supply 24 SAMs, with the possibility of resetting another 24 systems later. It is reported that in 2016, more than 20 systems were handed over to the customer, and in 2018, the country received a new batch, probably within the frame of additional orders.

This March, Militarnyi reported that Russia delayed the delivery of S-400 air defense systems to India due to its own needs related to the war in Ukraine.

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Ukrainian troops destroyed two Pantsir-S1 systems in the Belgorod region

^{The Russian Pantsir-S1 SAM in the camera of the Ukrainian drone. June 2024. Russia. Frame from the video of the "Spartan" brigade}

The Ukrainian Defense Forces detected and destroyed two Russian Pantsir-S1 air defense systems in the Belgorod region.

Soldiers of the 3rd Rapid Reaction Brigade “Spartan” of the National Guard of Ukraine showed the damaged systems.

“After that, Russian combat vehicles were hit and disabled,” the military said.

SPOILER

quote:

.

^{The defeat of the Russian Pantsir-S1 system in the Belgorod region. June 2024, Russia. Frame from the video of the 3rd Rapid Reaction Brigade “Spartan”}

The first Pantsir-S1 SAM was discovered in a field between the city of Belgorod and the village of Dubove.

The Pantsir-S1 system was constantly on duty at this location and did not change its position, as evidenced by the traces of the vehicle.

^{Traces of the Russian Pantsir-S1 system in the Belgorod region. June 2024, Russia. Photo credits: Dnipro Telegram group}

The second air defense system was discovered by reconnaissance drones near Borisovka.

US M142 HIMARS rocket systems presumably hit both systems.

The destruction of the Pantsir-S1 in the Belgorod region allows Ukrainian forces to deter the Russian offensive in the Kharkiv region more effectively.

^{The defeat of the Russian Pantsir-S1 system in the Belgorod region. June 2024, Russia. Frame from the video of the 3rd Rapid Reaction Brigade “Spartan”}

The Pantsir-S1 was used to shoot down reconnaissance drones and GMLRS projectiles launched from HIMARS.

Such a defeat forces the Russian command to withdraw other systems to safer areas, reducing the effectiveness of overall air defense in this sector.

^{Destruction sites of Russian Pantsir-S1 systems}

As previously reported, this possibility was made possible by the fact that the United States allowed the Ukrainian military to use American weapons on Russian territory.

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Stefanyshyn: Ukraine will fully implement Hungary's 11 demands regarding national minorities within the framework of joining the EU
The Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration Olha Stefanishyna, who heads the Ukrainian delegation at the accession negotiations with the European Union, confirmed Ukraine's readiness to fulfill Hungary's 11 demands regarding the protection of the rights of national minorities.

She said this in a speech at the first Intergovernmental Conference on Ukraine's accession to the EU on June 25, "European Truth" reports.

Stefanishyna recalled that Ukraine "repeatedly and persistently" confirmed its determination to maintain good relations with its neighbors, in particular in matters related to the protection of the rights of national minorities.

"As of now, we are sincerely committed to solving and, on this basis, fully implementing 11 issues raised, in particular, by the Hungarian side, aimed at strengthening the protection of the rights of national minorities, and continuing bilateral consultations with Hungary in this direction," she added.

The Deputy Prime Minister noted that Ukraine is also ready to implement further steps in the protection of the rights of national minorities, "agreed upon within the framework of the dialogue and on the basis of relevant agreements with Hungary, in good faith and as a contribution to mutual understanding, trust and respect."

"We expect the same contribution for further mutual understanding, trust and respect from our neighboring partners," she concluded.

As you know, at the end of January, during a visit to Uzhgorod, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Hungary, Peter Szijarto, handed over to the Ukrainian side a list of 11 demands that should guarantee the rights of the Hungarian national minority in Ukraine.

These demands, as Sijarto later stated, were included in the negotiating framework for Ukraine's accession to the EU, which was finally approved on June 21.

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2 Russian Women Put on a Play. Then the State Came for Them.
The prosecution of a prominent playwright and a director in Russia over their work is a chilling sign of increased repression, cultural figures say.

^{Yevgenia Berkovich, left, and Svetlana Petriychuk inside a courthouse in Moscow in May. The two are being tried on charges of terrorism relating to the production of their play, “Finist the Brave Falcon.”Credit...Dmitry Serebryakov/Associated Press}

They wrote and staged their play as an indictment of terrorism, examining the deception and depravity of violent extremists and the people whose lives they ruin.

But now the two women behind the production of “Finist the Brave Falcon” are standing trial in a Moscow courtroom, charged with justifying the kind of acts they meant to condemn.

The director, Yevgenia Berkovich, 39, and the playwright, Svetlana Petriychuk, 44, two highly decorated fixtures of contemporary Russian theater, have been in custody for more than a year. They face up to seven years in prison if convicted.

One of their lawyers and people in the Russian cultural community contend that the prosecution is one of the clearest examples of the accelerating crackdown on freedom of expression since Russia attacked Ukraine in February 2022.

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Cultural figures supporting the women say this is the first time in Russia’s post-Soviet era that a work of art is effectively being put on trial. The prosecution has been condemned by some of Russia’s best known intellectuals, including the Nobel Peace Prize laureate Dmitri A. Muratov and the director Kirill Serebrennikov, under whom Ms. Berkovich studied, as well as Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and other rights groups.

“Finist the Brave Falcon,” interweaves a classic Russian fairy tale with the personal tragedy of a woman who falls in love online with a radical extremist, who deceives her into coming to Syria to join the Islamic State. But there is no happy ending; instead, feeling horrified and betrayed, she returns home to Russia, where she is convicted as a terrorist.

The script was loosely based on the reported experiences of hundreds of women who joined the extremist group from Russia and former Soviet countries like Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.

As the trial opened last month, both Ms. Berkovich and Ms. Petriychuk said that their play put forth an antiterror message.

^{A production of “Finist the Brave Falcon.” The play combines a Russian fairy tale with the story of a woman who moves to Syria to join the Islamic State, after falling in love online with a radical Islamist.Credit...Alexander Andrievich}

“I staged the performance to prevent terrorism,” Ms. Berkovich said, according to the independent news outlet Mediazona. She said that she felt “nothing but condemnation and disgust” toward terrorists.

“This play is about what not to do,” Ksenia Karpinskaya, a lawyer for Ms. Berkovich, said in a video interview. “It is a prophylactic. You can’t go on stage and say, ‘Don’t join ISIS, it’s bad,’ because no one will go to your play, and no one will listen anyway. But when they show what happened to people who, well, answered this trap of recruiters, everything is clear.”

She called it a “very straightforward play,” and argued that “a play cannot be the object of a crime, because it is a work of fiction.”

But Russian prosecutors have said because the play is about women recruited by the Islamic State, it is justifying, even romanticizing, terrorism.

The case could have a chilling effect on cultural expression, said Mikhail Dyurenkov, a teacher and a former art director of Lyubimovka, the Moscow literary festival where the script of “Finist the Brave Falcon” was given a public reading for the first time, in 2019.

“This opens the door to a world where any person, and any work, can be accused of terrorism, or another crime, just because it was mentioned,” he said.

“Dostoyevsky could have been tried for killing an old woman,” he added, alluding to the plot of “Crime and Punishment,” one of Russia’s most famous novels. The author of “War and Peace,” Leo Tolstoy, “could be tried for inciting a war,” said Mr. Dyurenkov, who fled Russia in the wake of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine

^{Ksenia Karpinskaya, a lawyer for Ms. Berkovich, argued that “a play cannot be the object of a crime, because it is a work of fiction.”Credit...Natalia Kolesnikova/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images}

Even before the verdict, the case is sounding alarms in the Russian theater community, which had been flourishing despite years of creeping pressure on the cultural establishment.

“Of course, it will eventually be destroyed gradually,” said Marina Davydova, a Russian theater critic currently in exile. “Even if it has not yet been destroyed now, it will be destroyed in the near future.”

Before the war, “Finist the Brave Falcon” had little trouble getting to the stage, and initially received the blessing of the state.

The production received financing from multiple state-supported institutions, which means its script was vetted at various stages for potentially offensive content. After it debuted in 2020, it won two Golden Mask awards — Russia’s top honor for theatrical works — a prize supported by official structures, including the Moscow mayor’s office and the Russian culture ministry.

Ms. Davydova pointed out that “Finist the Brave Falcon” debuted years before the criminal trial began; not only did it not violate any rules, she said, but it received broad support and praise from the cultural establishment.

In 2019, before its official debut, it was even performed in a correctional colony for female minors in the Tomsk Region, and a write-up on the institution’s website summarized its message: “The consequences of gullibility and naivet� are terrible — criminal cases and long-term imprisonment.”

“These two young women are being tried for what they did with essentially universal approval,” said Ms. Davydova.

The criminal case was begun several months after a pro-Kremlin actor wrote a post on the social network VK.com expressing disgust that a play directed by an antiwar liberal would be shown in his city, Nizhny Novgorod, in the wake of Ukraine’s attack on the Crimean Bridge earlier that month. He labeled the show “undisguised sympathy for Ukraine and hatred of the current government.”

The performance there was canceled and the man, Vladimir Karpuk, eventually became one of the star witnesses for the prosecution.

^{Supporters of Ms. Berkovich and Ms. Petriychuk outside the Moscow courthouse where they are being tried, in May.Credit...Yuri Kochetkov/EPA, via Shutterstock}

Another key prosecution witness was a religious studies professor at Moscow State Linguistic University, Roman Silantyev, who produced an analysis that found that the text “contains signs of the ideology of Islamism and jihadism, as well as radical feminism and the fight against the androcentric social structure of Russia.”

Mr. Silantyev is known as the founder of a controversial discipline called “destructology” that has been dismissed by leading Russian experts as “pseudoscience.”

After a lawyer for the defense asked the Russian Ministry of Justice to review Mr. Silantyev’s analysis of the play, the ministry stated that his statement could not be considered expert testimony, because “destructology” cannot be considered a scientific discipline.

But another expert was assigned from the Federal Security Service, or F.S.B., who found that the play “romanticized the image of terrorism.”

Another witness is a person who has not been identified publicly and has been testifying from an undisclosed location; the witness’s face has been hidden and the voice disguised. Reports from the trial by independent Russian media outlets indicate that the person has been unable to answer basic questions about the play and its performances.

Once the prosecution finished presenting its evidence earlier this month, it asked that the trial be closed to the public, which the judge agreed to.

^{“I staged the performance to prevent terrorism,” Ms. Berkovich, center, said, according to the independent news outlet Mediazona. She said that she felt “nothing but condemnation and disgust” toward terrorists.Credit...Irina Buzhor/Kommersant, via Alamy}

Ms. Berkovich, the director, comes from a family of advocates — her mother is a human-rights activist, as was her grandmother, and her father is a poet. On the first day of Russia’s full-scale invasion, Ms. Berkovich was arrested and jailed for 11 days after holding a poster with the inscription “No to War,” and allegedly disobeying the police officers who demanded she accompany them to the station. She has also written antiwar poetry.

The playwright, Ms. Petriychuk, became well-known in the Moscow theater world in 2018, when she had her first reading at the Lyubimovka theater festival and began winning recognition and awards.

Both women have repeatedly asked that their detention be changed to house arrest. Ms. Petriychuk has scoliosis, a curvature of the spine, and Ms. Berkovich is mother to two adopted teenage daughters. She met them at a summer camp for orphans, where she and some friends were helping young campers put on plays for potential adoptive families.

“It’s awful, it’s very hard for them,” Ksenia Sorokina, a friend of Ms. Berkovich, said of the two daughters. “This is a terrible trigger for them, to repeatedly lose their parents.”

In April, just before the trial began, both women were added to Russia’s official list of “terrorists and extremists,” freezing their bank accounts. The list includes the Islamic State, Al Qaeda, the Taliban, political opposition figures such as the late Aleksei A. Navalny, the “international L.G.B.T movement” and Facebook’s parent company, Meta.

Mr. Dyurenkov, the former art director of the Moscow festival, said he expected more prosecutions of this kind. “Once this door opens, it doesn’t close anymore,” he said. “This is how the repressive system works.”

quote:

AfD MPs on trip to Russia
Waving flags for Putin

^{German-Russian flag high: AfD MP Frank Lizureck on Victory Square in Kaliningrad – and on Russian TV. (Source: Screenshot/Kaskad TV)}

AfD MPs travelled to the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad to demonstrate there - with Russian media in tow. The AfD leadership says they knew nothing about it.

They stand in a central square and wave flags that are half Russian, half German: Several AfD MPs and officials have traveled to Kaliningrad. Accompanied by Russian TV stations and media, they set a sign for German-Russian friendship and "against Western values" - regardless of Putin's war of aggression against Ukraine , regardless of the massive sanctions imposed by Germany and the EU against Russia . And also regardless of the criticism of such media-effective trips to authoritarian countries, especially Russia, from parts of their own party.

Several AfD representatives and officials were part of the trip from June 16 to 21, as videos from Russian media show. Among them: Hans-Thomas Tillschneider, AfD member of the state parliament and deputy chairman of the Saxony-Anhalt regional association, and member of the state parliament Frank Otto Lizureck (also from Saxony-Anhalt). Also present are AfD officials Philip Steinbeck, who sits on the Ludwigslust-Parchim district council (Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania), and Guido Borkowsky, who ran for mayor for the AfD in Bad Schmiedeberg (Saxony-Anhalt) in 2023

SPOILER

quote:

.

^{AfD state and parliamentary group vice-chairman Hans-Thomas Tillschneider: Is already known for his pleas for Russia. (Source: Screenshot t-online/Kaskad TV)}

Fellow traveller Natalie V., who has previously accompanied AfD officials on trips to Russia - allegedly as a translator - also speaks extensively on Russian TV. V. runs a tantra massage studio with sexual services and repeatedly appears in the context of pro-Russian propaganda campaigns and protests.

Federal government as "vassal of America"
A total of 18 AfD members traveled to Kaliningrad, including five state parliamentarians, Tillschneider explained in response to a request from t-online. And this did not go unnoticed: Several Russian media outlets picked up on the Germans' trip and, above all, their flag-raising action on Victory Square.

"Friendship. Germany - Russia. Forever," says Steinbeck into the camera of the Russian TV station Kaskad TV. "We say no, we do not want to break off relations with Russia," says Tillschneider. And Natalie V. claims in the same video: "At the moment there is no appropriate government that acts in the interests of the German people, in the interests of Germany, because this government, as you know, is America's vassal." Another reason for the "friendship trip" is to "oppose European values."

^{AfD official Philip Steinbeck: "Friendship. Germany – Russia. Forever" (Source: Screenshot t-online/Kaskad TV)}

It is a campaign to stir up sentiment against the West and to promote Putin, multiplied by the appearance on TV and the Internet. But how did the Russian media even become aware of the tour group? Tillschneider explains to t-online: "I informed the Russian newspaper I write for." This newspaper, in turn, would probably have informed other journalists.

Tillschneider writes for the Moscow newspaper "Vedomosti". He is also the founder and chairman of the pro-Russian association "Wastok eV", on whose board his fellow travelers Lizureck and Lieschke also sit.

Federal Executive Board contradicts Tillschneider: Trip not registered
The invitation to travel to the former K�nigsberg was sent to all members of the AfD Saxony-Anhalt, Tillschneider explained in response to a request from t-online. The participants covered the costs of the "friendship trip" themselves. "We wanted to show the Russian side in particular that not all Germans think like Scholz, Baerbock, Strack-Zimmermann, Merz, Kiesewetter and whatever," said Tillschneider.

According to the Saxony-Anhalt state vice-president, the trip was decided by the Saxony-Anhalt state executive committee at the end of 2023 and was "duly reported to the federal executive committee". The federal executive committee contradicts this: The trip was "probably not registered", a press officer for the party said in response to a request from t-online.

^{Apparently knew nothing about the Kaliningrad trip: AfD party leaders Alice Weidel and Tino Chrupalla. (Source: Kay Nietfeld/dpa/dpa-bilder)}

This is likely to cause anger in the party - and this shortly before the already explosive federal party conference in Essen this weekend . In the past, AfD politicians have often attracted attention by traveling to Russian territory or making propaganda appearances on Russian TV. Tillschneider is also no stranger here: he traveled to Russia in autumn 2022, but the trip was canceled after massive criticism.

Party conference motion against uncoordinated trips to Russia
Even within the AfD, which officially insists so much on nationalism and sovereignty, these trips are controversial as "Putin-smooching" and "hardcore propaganda". This is especially true for parts of the western associations. A motion has been submitted for the party conference this weekend that would put a stop to such trips and appearances in the future - it was submitted by the state chairmen Jan Bollinger (Rhineland-Palatinate) and Robert Lambrou (Hesse), among others.

^{Hesse's AfD leader Robert Lambrou: Has had enough of uncoordinated scandal trips. (Source: IMAGO/Eibner-Pressefoto/Florian Wiegan/imago)}

In it, they demand that in future the following should apply: "It should be considered and sanctioned as a particularly serious violation of the party's rules, which usually gives rise to serious damage," "if an official or elected representative undertakes trips abroad with political relevance, meets or appears in public with foreign politicians, or appears in foreign media, in particular radio broadcasts, without first obtaining the consent of the Federal Executive Board."

If what the federal executive board says is true, Tillschneider did not register the trip - and would at least violate this rule by appearing on foreign TV. When asked by t-online, Tillschneider did not want to answer whether he had also met with politicians or other Russian officials. He would provide information about this on Telegram in the next few days.

Either way: Tillschneider is giving new impetus to the proposal from the western state leaders – and new explosive potential for the federal party conference this weekend.

quote:

Germany, France, and Poland plan to jointly develop a long-range cruise missile

^{MdCN cruise missile. Photo credits: MBDA}

Three European countries will jointly develop a new long-range surface-to-surface missile to close the gap in weapons systems compared to Russia.

Boris Pistorius stated this at a meeting of the three countries’ defense ministers in Paris on Monday, June 24.

Representatives of the countries discussed the development of a mechanism for the acquisition of high-precision long-range weapons, including cruise missiles, to strengthen their own capabilities, which are extremely necessary given the experience of the war in Ukraine.

“High-precision long-range systems are a serious gap in Europe’s capabilities,” Pistorius said.

During the press conference, the German Defense Minister stated that he wanted to involve other European countries in the project.

SPOILER

quote:

The first specific step in creating the new weapon system is to sign a protocol of intent at the July NATO summit in Washington, D.C.

French Defense Minister S�bastien Lecornu said that states will evaluate the capabilities of weapons systems that are already available in different countries and companies.

A potential contender is the MdCN missile
The German publication Hartpunkt reported, citing its own sources, that France has already proposed its cruise missile, the Missile de Croisi�re Naval (MdCN), as the basis for developing a new system within the framework of the future project. The French Minister also mentioned it during a press conference in Paris.

The MdCN, also known as SCALP Naval, is a sea-launched cruise missile with a range of up to 1,000 km, developed by MBDA in 2017.

^{Loading the MdCN cruise missile into the transport-launch container. Photo credits: MBDA}

The cruise missile is designed using stealth technologies. To covertly penetrate the enemy’s rear and minimize the time the missile stays within the view of enemy air defense systems, the missile is adapted to fly at ultra-low altitudes (30-40 meters above the surface) and to avoid terrain to maintain a constant low altitude.

The MdCN is equipped with a powerful multi-channel guidance and positioning system. In addition to the already basic inertial system and satellite guidance, the missile is also equipped with an active radar homing head and an infrared guidance system.

At the Eurosatory 2024 exhibition this month, MBDA demonstrated the MdCN model and proposed developing a ground-launched version of the missile.

MBDA proposes a solution in which four missiles would be mounted on a launcher on a truck chassis. According to the company, the system can be quickly adapted to a ground launch. Although the MdCN is not currently in production, production facilities are ready.

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 02:46 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
https://www.t-online.de/n(...)-in-kaliningrad.html
[..]

SPOILER

[..]

Natuurlijk weet de leiding van de AfD er weer niets van, die wassen hun handen in onschuld. Net wanneer je denkt dat de pro Russische schandalen hun hoogtepunt hadden bereikt in de AfD.

quote:

Putin bans POLITICO in crackdown on European media outlets
Russia retaliates after the EU suspended 4 organizations for spreading Kremlin propaganda.

The Kremlin on Tuesday restricted access on Russian territory to 81 media outlets that do business in the European Union, including POLITICO, in retaliation against the EU’s ban on some Russia-linked media outlets within the bloc.

The “counter-restrictions” are imposed on “a number of media outlets of EU member states and EU-wide media operators that systematically disseminate false information about the progress of the special military operation,” the Russian ministry of foreign affairs said in a statement. “Special military operation” is Russia-speak for Moscow’s full-scale war of aggression against Ukraine.

The list of freshly banned media outlets includes several news agencies, such as France’s AFP and Spain’s EFE, alongside various TV channels, newspapers, internet publications and broadcasting corporations operating in EU countries.

SPOILER

quote:

Earlier in May, the Council of the EU suspended broadcasting activities within the EU for four media outlets linked to Russia — Voice of Europe, RIA Novosti, Izvestia and Rossiyskaya Gazeta — accusing the outlets of spreading and supporting the Kremlin’s propaganda in its war against Ukraine.

“These media outlets are under the permanent direct or indirect control of the leadership of the Russian Federation, and have been essential and instrumental in bringing forward and supporting Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, and for the destabilisation of its neighbouring countries,” said the Council of the EU in a statement.

The news website Voice of Europe as well as Viktor Medvedchuk, an ally of Vladimir Putin, and Artem Marchevskyi, another person involved, were all sanctioned by the Czech Republic at the end of March for an alleged pro-Russian influence operation believed to be aimed at interfering in the EU’s June election.

“The Russian side has repeatedly warned at various levels that the politically motivated harassment of domestic journalists and unjustified bans on Russian media in the EU will not go unanswered,” the Kremlin’s statement read.

“Despite this, Brussels and the capitals of the bloc countries preferred to follow the path of escalation, forcing Moscow to take mirror and proportionate countermeasures with another illegitimate ban,” it continued.

POLITICO’s Editor-in-Chief for Europe Jamil Anderlini said Tuesday evening: “The retaliatory actions of the Russian Government against journalists from media outlets across Europe, including POLITICO, are completely unacceptable.”

“Unfortunately, this is not the first time press freedoms have been restricted through politically motivated attacks, including the ongoing unjust imprisonment of Evan Gershkovich for committing fair and accurate journalism.”

“We call for the immediate lifting of these restrictions and continue to call for Evan’s immediate release. We remain undeterred in POLITICO’s mission to deliver factual and nonpartisan reporting — wherever our readers may be.”

In March of 2022, the EU officially banned the Kremlin-backed media outlets RT and Sputnik in a move meant to crack down on Russian disinformation amid Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

“In the event that the restrictions on the Russian media are lifted, the Russian side will also reconsider its decision with regard to the above-mentioned media operators,” according to the Kremlin.

quote:

Statement by the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in connection with the response to EU restrictions on Russian media
As a response to the decision taken by the EU Council on May 17 to ban “any broadcast activity” on three Russian media (RIA Novosti, Izvestia and Rossiyskaya Gazeta), which comes into force today, June 25, counter restrictions are being introduced access from the territory of the Russian Federation to the broadcast resources of a number of media outlets of the European Union member states and all-Union media operators who systematically disseminate false information about the progress of a special military operation.

The Russian side has repeatedly and at various levels warned that politically motivated harassment of domestic journalists and unfounded bans on Russian media in the EU will not go unnoticed. Despite this, Brussels and the capitals of the bloc countries chose to take the path of escalation, forcing Moscow to take mirror and proportionate countermeasures with another illegitimate ban. Responsibility for such a development of events lies solely with the leadership of the European Union and the countries of this association that supported such a decision.

If restrictions on Russian media are lifted, the Russian side will also reconsider its decision in relation to the mentioned media operators.

List of media outlets of EU member states and all-European media operators in respect of which countermeasures are being introduced to restrict broadcasting and access to resources on the Internet from the territory of the Russian Federation

SPOILER

quote:

Austria
1. State television and radio company “ORF” (orf.at);
2. Media holding “Osterreich” (oe24.at);

Belgium
3. Magazine “Le Vif” (levif.be);
4. Knack magazine (knack.be);

Bulgaria
5. News information portal “Mediapool” (Mediapool.bg);
6. Newspaper “24 Hours” (24chasa.bg);

Hungary
7. Internet information portal 444.hu;

Germany
8. Magazine “Der Spiegel” (spiegel.de);
9. Newspaper “Die Zeit” (zeit.de);
10. Newspaper "Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung" (faz.net);

Greece
11. JSC “Greek Radio and Television” EPT (ert.gr, ertnews.gr);
12. Media holding “Skai” (skai.gr);
13. TV channel “Mega” (Megatv.com);
14. Newspaper “Proto Thema” (protothema.gr);

Denmark
15. Daily newspaper “Berlingske” (berlingske.dk);
16. Publication “Information” (information.dk);

Ireland
17. National broadcaster RTE (rte.ie);
18. The Irish Times newspaper (irishtimes.com);
19. The Irish Independent newspaper (independent.ie);

Spain
20. Newspaper “El Mundo” (elmundo.es);
21. Newspaper “El Pais” (elpais.com);
22. Information agency “EFE” (efe.com);
23. Spanish State Television "Televisi�n Espa�ola" (rtve.es);

Italy
24. National television channel “LA7” (la7.it);
25. Newspaper “La Stampa” (lastampa.it);
26. Newspaper “La Repubblica” (repubblica.it);
27. TV company “RAI” (rai.it, rainews.it);

Cyprus
28. Newspaper “Politis” (politis.com.cy);
29. Electronic information portal “Cyprus Times” (cyprustimes.com);
30. Newspaper “Cyprus Mail” (cyprus-mail.com);

Latvia
31. TV channel “Latvian Television” and Latvian Radio 4 (lsm.lv);
32. Internet portal apollo.lv;
33. Internet TV channel tvnet.lv;
34. Edition "Diena" (diena.lv);

Lithuania
35. Internet portal “LRT” (lrt.lt);
36. Internet portal “15min.lt” (15min.lt);
37. Internet portal “lrytas.lt” (lrytas.lt);

Malta
38. Central state television channel “Television Malta” TVM (tvmnews.mt);
39. Newspaper “Times of Malta” (timesofmalta.com);
40. The Malta Independent newspaper (independent.com.mt);
41. Newspaper “Malta Today” (maltatoday.com.mt);

Netherlands
42. TV and radio company “Nos” (nos.nl);
43. Newspaper “Nrc” (nrc.nl);
44. Newspaper “Algemeen Dagblad” (ad.nl);

Poland
45. TV channel “Belsat” (belsat.eu, belsat.pl);
46. ​​Magazine “New Poland” (novayapolsha.eu, novayapolsha.com, novayapolsha.pl);

Portugal
47. TV channel "RTP Internacional" (rtp.pt);
48. Newspaper “Publico” (publico.pt);
49. Newspaper “Expresso” (expresso.pt);
50. Information and analytical project “Observador” (observador.pt);

Romania
51. TV channel “Pro TV International” (stirileprotv.ro, protv.ro);
52. TV channel “Digi24” (digi24.ro);
53. TV channel “B1TV” (b1tv.ro);

Slovakia
54. Newspaper “SME” (sme.sk);
55. Internet publication “Dennik N” (dennikn.sk);

Slovenia
56. Online publication "Nova24" (Nova24.si, Nova24tv.si);
57. Internet publication “Demokracija” (Demokracija.si, Demokracija.eu);

Finland
58. Newspaper “Ilta-Sanomat” (is.fi);
59. Newspaper “Iltalehti” (iltalehti.fi);
60. Newspaper “Helsingin Sanomat” (hs.fi);
61. TV and radio company “Yleisradio” (yle.fi);

France
62. TV channel “LCI” (tf1info.fr);
63. Le Monde newspaper (lemonde.fr);
64. Newspaper "La Croix" (la-croix.com);
65. Newspaper “Liberation” (liberation.fr);
66. Lexpress magazine (lexpress.fr);
67. Radio company “Radio France” (radiofrance.fr);
68. Information agency “Agence France-Presse” (afp.com, afpforum.com);
69. TV channel “CNews” (cnews.fr);
70. TV company “Arte” (arte.tv);

Czech
71. TV channel “Ceska Televize” (ceskatelevize.cz);
72. Internet portal “Seznam Zpravy” (seznamzpravy.cz);

Sweden
73. TV and radio company “SVT” (svt.se);
74. Radio company Sveriges Radio (sverigesradio.se);

Estonia
75. Information web portal propastop.org;
76. National Broadcasting Corporation "ERR" (err.ee);
77. Media resource “Delfi” (delfi.ee);

Pan-European media
78. Agence Europe (agenceurope.eu);
79. Politico (www.politico.eu, www.politico.com);
80. Satellite package "Svoboda Satellite Package" (rsf.org);
81. Internet publication “Euobserver” (Euobserver.com).

quote:

Ukrainian Paratroopers Repel Russian Armored Assault Near Heorhiivka

^{A destroyed Russian tank followed by a Ukrainian drone near the village of Heorhiivka. June 2024. Ukraine. Footage from the video of the 46th Airmobile Brigade}

Ukrainian paratroopers defeated a Russian armored group near Heorhiivka in the Donetsk region and took prisoners.

The 46th Airmobile Brigade announced that they successfully neutralized all the Russian equipment that had been deployed by the Russian command for the assault.

“All the vehicles that were moving to the position of the 46th Airmobile Brigade immediately became scrap metal. Not a single one escaped,” said the paratroopers.

Three tanks, one MT-LB armored personnel carrier, and one infantry fighting vehicle remained on the battlefield.

SPOILER

quote:

Біля Георгіївки десантники відбили бронетанковий штурм � Ф

The Russians hung all the armored vehicles with protective grilles that were supposed to stop attack drones.

However, it was the paratroopers’ FPV drones that became the weapon that defeated Russian armored vehicles.

^{Russian armored vehicles in the sights of Ukrainian drones. June 2024. Ukraine. Footage from the video of the 46th Airmobile Brigade}

The tanks were also fitted with KMT-6 rolling trawls to pass through Ukrainian minefields.

The principle of the trawl is based on pushing mines out of the ground and throwing them beyond the projection of the tracks.

Eight invaders were killed and 14 others were wounded by the assault platoon. Some fled the battlefield.

^{The place of the battle near the village of Heorhiivka}

Four Russian soldiers decided to surrender to Ukrainian paratroopers.

“Four invaders became rational, voluntarily became our POWs and replenished the exchange pool of the Ukrainian Defense Forces,” the paratroopers said.

^{Russian soldiers surrender to Ukrainian paratroopers near Heorhiivka. June 2024. Ukraine. Footage from the video of the 46th Airborne Brigade}

Heorhiivka is located to the west of Mariinka. The road to Kurakhove, one of the key defense centers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Donetsk region, runs through this village. This is not the first attempt by the invaders to break through near this settlement. Back in early June, paratroopers stopped attacks by Russian armored groups in the direction of Heorhiivka.

quote:

Ukraine recovers 90 military personnel from Russian captivity – photos, videos
59 defenders of Mariupol among those returned, according to Coordination Headquarters


On June 25, as part of a prisoner exchange, Ukraine successfully recovered 90 military personnel from Russia, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced.

"Warriors of the National Guard, the Navy, the Armed Forces, the Territorial Defense Forces, the Border Guard Service. Those who defended Mariupol. Those who defended the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant. Those who were on the Kherson, Donetsk, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia and Luhansk directions," the president wrote.

Zelenskyy stressed that Ukraine remembers all those in Russian captivity and continues to work for the release of everyone.

The president thanked the team involved in the exchanges and all international partners who assisted in the liberation of Ukrainians from Russian captivity.

The Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War specified that among those who returned home were 32 National Guard soldiers, 18 border guards, 17 Navy personnel, 15 Armed Forces fighters, and eight Territorial Defense fighters.

Specifically, 59 defenders of Mariupol were returned, including 52 fighters from the Azovstal plant. Additionally, five National Guard soldiers who guarded the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant were freed from Russian captivity.

SPOILER

quote:

З полону звільнили ще 90 українців, – ексклюзивне відео СБУ

Обмін 25 червня

quote:

UAE mediates successful exchange of 180 captives between Russia and Ukraine
The Ministry appreciates governments of Russia and Ukraine for their cooperation

Abu Dhabi: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has announced the success of mediation efforts by the UAE in facilitating the exchange of 180 war captives between Russia and Ukraine.

The Ministry emphasized that this successful mediation, the fifth since the beginning of this year, is a result of the UAE leveraging its distinct ties and partnership with both sides, including its role as a reliable mediator between the parties.

The Ministry expressed its appreciation to the governments of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Ukraine for their cooperation in making the exchange process a success.

The Ministry also affirmed the UAE's commitment to continuing efforts aimed at finding a peaceful solution to the conflict, stressing the importance of resorting to dialogue, de-escalation, and diplomacy as the only ways to resolve the conflict and mitigate the humanitarian repercussions resulting from the crisis.

Notably, the UAE's mediation efforts have succeeded in completing four exchanges of war captives between Russia and Ukraine since the beginning of this year, in addition to a successful exchange of two prisoners between the United States and the Russian Federation in December 2022.

quote:

Yak-52 Kill Marks Hint At Success In Ukraine’s Drone War
For the first time, a Ukrainian Yak-52 propeller-driven trainer has appeared with markings that could indicate a string of aerial victories against Russian drones.

A propeller-driven Yak-52 primary training aircraft has appeared with an impressive collection of kill marks displayed on its fuselage; seemingly confirmation of its success in having been pressed into service as a drone-killer. While we reported on a series of previous videos showing the use of Soviet-era Yak-52s to shoot down Russian drones, the latest evidence suggests that the unorthodox solution could be becoming a more important part of Ukraine’s multilayered air defenses.

SPOILER

quote:

.

<sup>Drone kills marked on the side of the Yak-52. via X


The same Yak-52 in a hangar, with its cockpit covered by a tarpaulin. via X</sup>

Two new photos that first appeared today on Facebook, before being deleted, show a Yak-52 in a hangar, with a geometric or ‘digital’ camouflage scheme, apparently tailored for low-level operations over the ground. An aircraft in this same scheme was previously seen in a video captured from the perspective of a Russian drone, as you can see here. In one of the new photos, the tally of kills is displayed below the cockpit and shows, in yellow, two ZALA 421-16E and six Orlan-10/30 series drones.

The ZALA 421-16E is a flying-wing type, weighing around 20 pounds and used primarily for surveillance over the front line of the battlefield. The Orlan-10/30 series is among the most widely used Russian drones in Ukraine, the smaller Orlan-10 weighing around 35 pounds, while the larger Orlan-30 tips the scales at around 90 pounds. It’s also primarily used for surveillance and targeting, being fitted with an electro-optical sensor package and laser designator.

<sup>A Russian Zala 421-16E that came down somewhere in the Belgorod region of Russia. via X


A Russian Orlan-10 is prepared for flight. Russian Ministry of Defense</sup>

More intriguingly, there are additional marks showing single examples of the Iranian-designed Mohajer-6, with its characteristic twin-boom configuration, and another Orlan-10/30 series drone. Both are crossed through with a single red line and, below them, there are depictions of a pelican and a stylized thundercloud, respectively. There have been suggestions that the crew of the Yak-52 witnessed the destruction of these last two drones when they fell victim to the bird and a lightning strike. It’s also possible that the Yak-52 survived both a bird strike and a thunderstorm, although we simply don’t know for sure.

What appears to be clear is the increasing adoption of Yak-52s for drone-hunting duties, especially in the south of Ukraine, far behind the front lines. So far, at least two and possibly three of the aircraft have been noted in a counter-drone role, although there remain a number of uncertainties around the details of how they actually go about their missions. It should also be noted that the Yak-52 seen in the photos today may reflect that one of the earlier examples was repainted.

The scale of Russian drone activity over their country means that the Ukrainians are employing a wide range of air defense systems to counter them. Putting aside non-kinetic options such as electronic warfare, these extend all the way from mobile fire teams equipped with machine guns and searchlights to Patriot air defense systems with their long-range surface-to-air missiles.

^{A drone-hunting mobile fire team of the 241st Independent Brigade’s air defense platoon on combat alert somewhere in the Kyiv region. Territorial Defense Forces of Ukraine}

The first time we observed a Yak-52 intercepting a drone was in April of this year. The target in that footage was another Orlan, which had deployed its orange-colored landing parachute, although it was unclear if this was activated before or after the Yak-52 — wearing distinctive blue and yellow wing stripes — began its attack, which was seen maneuvering around the drone in tight circles.

Як-52 над Одещиною

Reports so far indicate that the Yak-52 carries a gunner in the rear cockpit, who takes aim on drones using some kind of infantry weapon, likely a light machine gun.

Another video, showing the Yak-52 with a ‘digital’ camouflage scheme, or one painted in the same way, emerged earlier this month, the engagement being recorded by the drone that was apparently under attack. An individual could be seen in the open rear cockpit of the Yak-52, but it’s not possible to make out what weapon they were carrying.

The Yak-52 drone-killer aircraft is said to be operated by crew from Ukraine’s Civil Air Patrol, a civilian organization that consists mainly of amateur aviators and private aircraft owners. The needs of the conflict, and specifically the drone threat, have seen the organization field a so-called Tactical Aviation Group to “destroy enemy UAVs.”

An earlier video of a Yak-52 apparently operated by the Tactical Aviation Group of Ukraine’s Civil Air Patrol:

Як-52 над Одещиною

Previous videos emphasized the World War I-style nature of this kind of air combat, fought purely within visual range, likely with hand-operated rifle-caliber armament, and at very low level. What was less clear was how successful the Yak-52 has been in actually shooting down drones. In their favor, a lot of the drones of the types being intercepted operate on autopilot, with no ‘pilot in the loop,’ so they are unable to maneuver away or take evasive action.

As we have pointed out before, aiming a weapon by hand, using iron sights, with the slipstream of the aircraft to contend with, and two separate bodies moving three-dimensionally through the air, is hardly easy. While slow flying, the kinds of drones being intercepted are, for the most, also very small targets. As well as the challenges in actually getting into a suitable firing position, there is the wider problem of detecting the drone in the first place and vectoring the Yak-52 pilot onto it. This part of the engagement process may rely on the system of ground observers that Ukraine has implemented, driven by the drone threat, which also includes microphone and cellphone-based alert systems.

^{The Yak-52 with a ‘digital’ camouflage scheme, seen here from the perspective of a Russian drone that it was attempting to intercept. via X}

As for the Yak-52, it is an aerobatic platform, a feature which would be useful in certain engagements with drones, and the fact that it’s a popular mount for flying clubs and civilian organizations around the country should mean that these aircraft and people to fly them are available in useful numbers. Spare parts and maintenance shouldn’t be a major problem, either.

On the other hand, while a dedicated armed version of the Yak-52 was developed in Soviet times, the aircraft now available to Ukraine are strictly civilian in terms of their equipment. Their armament fit, at best, will be highly extemporized if not outright crude, although it’s possible that some kind of gun mounting and sighting system has been developed.

If the kill marks seen on the Yak-52 in the recent photo all represent genuine shoot downs, this would certainly speak to the utility of the platform, at least on some level, as well as to the training that its operators have received. This is the other major burden to consider, although it’s reasonable to assume that there is a cadre of experienced former military aviators who are too old for Ukrainian Air Force service but can nonetheless take part in these anti-drome efforts.

^{A pilot takes a selfie as he flies a Yak-52 over Ukraine in 2015. Dmitriy Fedorenko/Wikimedia Commons}

Overall, operating a light, slow-flying, agile platform like the Yak-52 could make some sense, especially in areas where Russian drones proliferate most deep behind the front lines.

On the other hand, operating an aircraft like this anywhere near Russian air defense systems would be extremely unwise bearing in mind their inherent vulnerability. This kind of exigency also points to the continued need for additional and more modern ground-based air defense systems for Ukraine, to ensure more effective coverage against drones — as well as missiles and aircraft — can be extended over the areas it’s needed.

Hopefully, now that the kill tally has come to light, it might be followed by more details about how these diminutive propeller aircraft are being used to tackle day-flying drones, and what their overall success rate looks like.

At the very least, we now have further evidence of Ukraine’s willingness to successfully adapt to the demands of the drone war in particular, putting to use the equipment they have to hand as this threat continues to intensify.

SPOILER

quote:

Translation.
Everything is good. Wish you so as well. How are you, man? Aaw, blyat'. Fuk it, pocket were ripped off. I'll call you later.

SPOILER

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Translation:
"Our artillerymen found that for every three shots of ours from the barrel artillery, the enemy retaliates with twenty shots from their side. The activity of the enemy artillery increased sharply. Sharp, for every three shots, 20 of their shots. And in the course of the counter-battery fight, the Ukrainians are masters in this business, they fire on our barrels from two sides. You can imagine that. What does this tell us? That the enemy's potential for artillery use has increased significantly. New guns have arrived, new ammunition has arrived. They're not in short supply. They were complaining four or five days ago that for every one shot they fire, we fire ten. Now it's the other way around: three of ours and twenty of theirs. Shitty. Not good. Well, the money they get, they use it to strengthen their combat capabilities."

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Russians criticize Russian Defense Ministry for air defense operations in Crimea - ISW
Russian military bloggers widely criticize the Russian Ministry of Defense and the Russian occupation authorities in Crimea for failing to prevent the June 23 attack on Sevastopol and properly protect civilians, according to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).

Russians criticize Russian authorities for not using air raid sirens to warn civilians of the danger.

Several Russian military bloggers have criticized their authorities for failing to detect and destroy all the missiles before they approached Sevastopol, and for failing to build shelters near the beach.

The images show that Russian troops have been deploying military equipment in civilian areas of Crimea since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the Institute noted. In addition, the Russian authorities have irresponsibly encouraged Russian tourism to the occupied Crimea, while the Russian military continues to use the peninsula as a rear area.
"The Russian military likely purposefully stations legitimate military targets nearby civilian areas in Crimea in an effort to deter Ukrainian strikes," the report says.

The ISW reminded that Russian troops have previously been documented using the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant and schools in the occupied mainland of Ukraine to cover their military equipment.

The Institute's analysts concluded that Russia is likely to violate its own rules of international humanitarian law, according to which "the military command shall avoid deploying military objectives in densely populated areas or in their vicinity."

On June 23, powerful explosions were heard in several cities of the temporarily occupied Crimea. In particular, explosions were heard in the area of Sevastopol. The governor of Sevastopol, Mikhail Razvozhayev, said that there was an attack and that air defense systems were working. Propaganda channels wrote that Crimea was attacked by ATACMS missiles.

Razvozhayev said that five air targets were "destroyed over the Black Sea" but that the wreckage fell in the coastal zone. As a result, several people were injured and two fires started.

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Half of Ukraine's Power Grid Crippled by Recent Russian Attacks
Seven recent Russian attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure have resulted in the loss of approximately 9 gigawatts of generating capacity, according to the head of the state-owned power grid operator Ukrenergo.

This represents half of the country's total power generation capacity and is equivalent to the energy consumption of the Netherlands for three months or the combined consumption of Slovakia and the Baltic states.

Volodymyr Kudrytskyi, the head of Ukrenergo's board, stated that Ukraine needs to urgently start building distributed generation facilities in preparation for this and next winter. Decentralizing smaller power plants will make Ukraine's energy system more resilient to Russian attacks, according to Kudrytskyi.

"Unfortunately, we have to deal with the realities that these attacks are likely to continue. And we need to be ready, we need to restore as much generation as possible before winter. We need to ask for additional air defense to protect what we are restoring. But we also need to deploy new generating capacity to make sure that if the Russians do these attacks again, they won't be able to concentrate on 10 or 15 large power plants, but will have to deal with a huge number of small ones," Kudrytskyi said.

Overnight on June 22, Russian forces launched a series of missile and drone strikes targeting critical energy infrastructure and residential areas across multiple Ukrainian regions, continuing its attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure. The Ministry of Energy of Ukraine has confirmed that these strikes caused damage to energy transmission systems in the southern and western regions, resulting in equipment disruptions.

Ukraine is currently implementing power restrictions in multiple regions, facing prolonged power outages in winter seasons.

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In Tuva, a policeman who burned a detainee alive was released to fight in the war

Former deputy head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for Tuva, Orlan Saryg-Dongak, who received 18 years in prison for the brutal murder of a detainee, enlisted in the war with Ukraine. Another person involved in the case, policeman Alim Kenden, sentenced to 14 years, went to the front with him, Sergei Konviz, a representative of the murdered man’s mother, told Siberian Express.

The court handed down a verdict against Saryg-Dongak in October 2023. Thus, the policeman spent less than a year in the colony. However, neither he nor his accomplice have yet paid compensation for moral damage to the family of the murdered man in the amount of 1 and 0.5 million rubles, respectively.

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In 2008, Saryg-Dongak, who served as the head of the criminal investigation department of Kyzyl, together with his subordinate Kenden, interrogated 30-year-old Alisher Makhmutov, suspected of theft. Subsequently, the police took the detainee to a city wasteland, put him in a hole and forced him to kneel.

Saryg-Dongak claimed that he did this in an attempt to get an apology from Makhmutov for threats against his family, and when the detainee refused to ask for forgiveness, he doused him with gasoline and set him on fire. “Makhmutov’s body and head instantly caught fire. Experiencing unbearable pain, he began to scream loudly, somersaulting on the ground, trying to extinguish the fire and save himself, however, he did not succeed,” the verdict says.

Seeing this, Kenden decided to kill the detainee: he took a hammer from the car, ran up to Makhmutov, who was burning alive, and dealt him “multiple blows” to the head. The policeman stated that he did this “wanting to quickly end the torment” of Makhmutov, “out of a feeling of compassion for the latter.” The operatives burned the body of the deceased. To cover up the crime, Kenden wrote a report about the victim's "escape".

Six months later, local residents found a man's skull and charred bone fragments, and a case was opened for murder (Article 105 of the Criminal Code). Expert examinations confirmed that the remains belonged to Makhmutov, but in June 2009, the investigation reached a dead end and was suspended. It was resumed only in February 2020, when the Investigative Committee took up the case - then suspicion first fell on the criminal investigation officers.

It is noteworthy that several years after the murder, Orlan Saryg-Dongak won the republican competition “The most polite policeman.” He did not admit guilt, claiming that it was Alim Kenden who accidentally killed the detainee when he promised to show the place where he hid the stolen goods, and he allegedly tried to escape. However, the court considered the evidence presented convincing and sent Saryg-Dongak to a maximum security colony, and also stripped him of the rank of colonel and all awards.

After a former police officer and his subordinate signed a contract with the Ministry of Defense to be sent to war, their real sentence was replaced with a suspended sentence in accordance with a recently adopted law. Control over them will be carried out by the command of military units. Saryg-Dongak and Kenden will have to serve until the end of the war, after which they will be released from criminal prosecution with the subsequent removal of their criminal records. This can happen earlier if they are nominated for a state award or if they are injured and are unfit to continue serving for health reasons.

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Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 10:15 schreef polderturk het volgende:
Gurka's?

[ x ]

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 10:15 schreef polderturk het volgende:
Gurka's?

[ x ]

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 10:15 schreef polderturk het volgende:
Gurka's?

[ x ]

The aftermath of the battle in Lyptsi ("Khartiya" Brigade near Kharkiv)

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Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 11:54 schreef oheng het volgende:
Hilarisch stuk op de russische TV :'D
Wat is het toch een apenland.

Lawmaker Andrey Svintsov proposes physical flogging of disobedient Russians

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 11:37 schreef oheng het volgende:

[..]
Die hele thread van Arthur is wel interessant:
[ x ]


En deze reportage van een TDF brigade in Liptsky, aan het uiterste westen van het Kharkiv front, is ook wel interessant.

The aftermath of the battle in Lyptsi ("Khartiya" Brigade near Kharkiv)

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Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 15:58 schreef fjs het volgende:
https://twitter.com/KyivIndependent/status/1805824374232035538

Noord Korea gaat meevechten?

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Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 15:58 schreef fjs het volgende:
https://twitter.com/KyivIndependent/status/1805824374232035538

Noord Korea gaat meevechten?

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 12:09 schreef RamboDirk het volgende:

[..]
Is dit jiskefet?

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 11:37 schreef oheng het volgende:

[..]
Die hele thread van Arthur is wel interessant:
[ x ]


En deze reportage van een TDF brigade in Liptsky, aan het uiterste westen van het Kharkiv front, is ook wel interessant.

The aftermath of the battle in Lyptsi ("Khartiya" Brigade near Kharkiv)

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 15:58 schreef fjs het volgende:
https://twitter.com/KyivIndependent/status/1805824374232035538

Noord Korea gaat meevechten?

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 18:25 schreef oheng het volgende:
En Noord Korea heeft weinig te winnen met meevechten in deze oorlog. Enige wat ze willen is expertise.

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 00:57 schreef ExTec het volgende:
Anti-air kan submunities hebben. Starstreak is daar een voorbeeld van.

En als wat daar neerkwam een cluster GMLRS was, dus eigenlijk die met wolfraam fragmenten, dan was dat strand rood van het bloed. DIe pellets gaan gewoon door een motorblok heen en sproeien in het rond met een snelheid hoger dan dat van geluid. ATACMS, cluster edities hebben 300-900 submunities; die op hun beurt ook allemaal een wolfraam casing hebben. Dan leeft er ook niks meer op dat strand. Op het filmpje zie je zeer ver uit elkaar minder dan 10 explosies.

Ik denk een rus AA raket z'n submunities die daar neerkwamen.

M270 Multiple Launch Rocket System and "Steel Rain" submunitions

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Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 18:16 schreef Discombobulate het volgende:
Noord-Korea is wel met heel veel, dus ik ben benieuwd. Zou wel weer een volgende trap zijn.

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Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 18:28 schreef Discombobulate het volgende:

[..]
Noord Korea heeft een gigantisch leger. Denk dat ze wel heel wat mensen kwijt kunnen voor die expertise. Wat zou Kim Jong-un het nou boeien?

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 18:35 schreef spicymchaggis het volgende:

[..]
Een gigantisch leger met uitgehongerde soldaten vol met infecties en uitgerust met militaire technologie uit de jaren '50, dat zal een doorslaggevend succes worden.

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Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 19:00 schreef MatthijsDJ het volgende:

[..]
Dan kan nog wel eens een grote shitshow worden voor NK; als die gasten besluiten over te lopen naar het Westen

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Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 19:09 schreef Neezoistniet het volgende:

[..]
Dat gaat niet gebeuren want dan verdwijnt hun hele familie in NK in een werkkamp.....

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Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 18:35 schreef spicymchaggis het volgende:

[..]
Een gigantisch leger met uitgehongerde soldaten vol met infecties en uitgerust met militaire technologie uit de jaren '50, dat zal een doorslaggevend succes worden.

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Pentagon Praises SpaceX Efforts to Stymie Russian Starlink Use
Elon Musk’s SpaceX has cooperated extensively with the US military to stop Russia’s illicit use of its Starlink satellite communication terminals in Ukraine, a Pentagon official has assured a lawmaker.

SpaceX “has been forward-leaning in providing information to support investigations and denying service” since Russia’s use of the terminals “became known several months ago,” Amanda Dory, acting undersecretary for policy, wrote Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren this month in a letter obtained by Bloomberg News.

Dory wrote that an estimated one in a hundred Starlink terminals in Ukraine were illegitimate and service had been cut to “several hundred unapproved terminals.”

The letter reaffirmed a previous Defense Department assurance that SpaceX was helping to curb Russian military use of the terminals, which have become essential communications tools both for Ukraine’s war operations and its civilians.

Dory wrote that the Pentagon believes Russian forces “will adapt and persist in efforts to gain their illicit access.” Warren, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee member, has been reviewing SpaceX’s Pentagon contractual relationships and has raised questions about the Russian use of Starlink terminals in the war.

SpaceX is under a $40.5 million Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative contract through Nov. 30 to provide Starlink services, but that represents “only a small fraction of the tens of thousands of terminals donated by other countries and those purchased by Ukrainian citizens through legitimate channels,” Dory wrote.

Last month, Ukraine’s Vice Prime Minister Mikhailo Fedorov told Bloomberg News that SpaceX is “quick to respond” when needed, whether for a “technical intervention” or an emergency. As recently as early May, Starlink terminals continued to be advertised for sale in Russia.

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Zelenskyy approves creation of Unmanned Systems Forces
Control over the implementation of the decision is assigned to the Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed Decree No. 382/2024, which approves the decision of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) to create the Unmanned Systems Forces within the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

The control over the implementation of this decision is assigned to the Secretary of the NSDC. The decree takes effect on the day of its publication – June 25.

"To enhance the capabilities of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the use of unmanned and robotic aerial, maritime, and ground systems, ensuring their readiness for use, and in accordance with the proposal of the Cabinet of Ministers, the National Security and Defense Council has decided: to support the proposal submitted by the Cabinet of Ministers regarding the creation of the Unmanned Systems Forces as a separate branch within the structure of the Armed Forces of Ukraine," the document states.

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Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 19:14 schreef BEFEM het volgende:

[..]
Waarom en hoe zouden ze �berhaupt overlopen? Die weten niet eens wat Oekra�ne is.

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 18:28 schreef Discombobulate het volgende:

[..]
Noord Korea heeft een gigantisch leger. Denk dat ze wel heel wat mensen kwijt kunnen voor die expertise. Wat zou Kim Jong-un het nou boeien?

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 19:20 schreef Discombobulate het volgende:

[..]
Getallen maken wel uit, dat zie je ook bij Rusland. Kwantiteit versus kwaliteit, weet je nog? Zou het zeker niet onderschatten zoiets.

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Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 19:33 schreef spicymchaggis het volgende:

[..]
Ik vraag me eerlijk gezegd ook af of hun militaire training �berhaupt volstaat om hen voor te bereiden op het slagveld van de 21e eeuw, waarschijnlijk hebben ze zelfs nog nooit in hun leven een drone gezien.

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The United States transferred the GCS-200 mine-clearing vehicle to Ukraine

^{The GCS-200 mine-clearing vehicle transferred to Ukraine by the United States. June 2024, Ukraine. Photo credits: Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine}

The U.S. government has transferred a new aid package to Ukrainian explosive ordnance disposal units with a GCS-200 mine-clearing vehicle.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine said that the new package includes Dodge RAM trucks.

The U.S. also handed over X-ray machines, two types of blasting vehicles, metal detectors, and more.

The total value of the transferred machinery and equipment is $2 million.

“Given the density of mines on the territory of Ukraine, we would like to assure you that we will continue to provide you with all the support you need,” Bridget Brink, U.S. Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Ukraine, said.

SPOILER

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^{Mine clearing equipment donated by the US government to Ukraine. June 2024, Ukraine. Photo credits: Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine}

Currently, the Ministry of Internal Affairs units have 50 mine-clearing vehicles of various types.

Mechanized mine-clearing vehicles make it possible to protect personnel from explosions and significantly speed up the process of clearing the territories.

The GCS-200 mine clearing vehicle was developed by the Swiss-German company Global Clearance Solutions.

The GCS-200 consists of a crawler tractor and attachments. The standardized mounting interface makes it easy to connect and disconnect the working tools in just a few minutes.

^{The GCS-200 mine-clearing vehicle transferred to Ukraine by the United States. June 2024, Ukraine. Photo credits: Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine}
During demining, the front tool detonates or destroys the mines, diverting the explosion from vulnerable parts of the system.

To ensure survivability, the vehicle is equipped with ballistic protection made of Hardox steel with a thickness of 8 mm for the chassis, 20 mm for the lower front part, 10 mm for the radiator housing, and a V-shaped body.

Комплекс розмінування GCS-200 України [Червень 2024]

Last year, Global Clearance Solutions was reported to supply about 20 mine-clearing vehicles to Ukraine.

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Toronto address listed shipping $80M of electronics for 'Russian war machine'
Semiconductors, electronics sourced from China and web of shell companies

^{The address of a Toronto house appears on 2023 trade data at least 1,400 times for a business seemingly supplying millions of dollars of microelectronics to Russia. (Patrick Morrell/CBC News)}

A Caribbean shell company has smuggled at least $80 million worth of electronics into Russia under the disguise of a Canadian address, according to leaked Russian trade filings obtained by CBC News.

The scheme appears to be part of a Kremlin initiative involving a covert web of multinational buyers and producers that source sanctioned technologies from Western countries, the majority of which come from Chinese stockpiles and manufacturers, to help produce weapons for Russia's war with Ukraine.

"My initial reaction was that this looked like a really egregious breach of [Canada's sanction regime]," said Jessica Davis, an Ottawa-based financial crimes expert who viewed the data and previously worked with the Canadian Security Intelligence Service.

"It seemed really surprising that somebody would be so blatant about facilitating these kinds of goods to Russia, particularly in the context of the Russia-Ukraine war."

Two separate sources, one from a government agency and the other an academic watchdog, provided the 2023 import data, which was then cross-referenced for its authenticity by two experts. CBC News has agreed to keep the sources confidential to protect against retribution from the Russian government.

Alburton Enterprises Inc. is one of the top Canadian entries in the trade filings and uses a suburban Toronto residence as the "supplier address" for more than 1,400 deals involving microelectronics and other computer components.

SPOILER

quote:

.
^{Russian trade data appears to show that a company called Alburton Enterprises Inc. used a Canadian address at least 1,400 times to send microelectronics to Russia in 2023. (Jared Thomas/CBC News)}

The imports show a common theme: Russian front companies shielding direct business with Chinese manufacturers to protect the flow of precious microelectronics from seizure and keep Chinese companies out of a risky venture upsetting Western business partners.

The Biden administration has repeatedly warned Beijing against supplying the Kremlin with weapons, a charge China has denied. But in recent months, China has come under fire after some of its microelectronics slipped into Russia.

Davis said using a Canadian entity like Alburton could be a way to obfuscate "scrutiny from U.S. law enforcement," because having a "Canadian address and a Canadian company can sometimes lend a veneer of legitimacy to companies doing this kind of business."

In a statement to CBC News, the RCMP, which investigates Canadian sanctions violations, said it has not laid charges relating to the export of microelectronics into Russia.

Agent for service
While Alburton has no website or extensive online presence indicating its business or origins, Ontario government records show it was first incorporated in the British Virgin Islands in 2012 and then obtained an extra-provincial licence in 2015 to operate as a foreign business in the province.

Alburton appears to use its status as a quasi-Canadian company to buy components made by tech industry giants like Samsung, Huawei, Intel and H3C from China, Taiwan (the global leader in microchips) and Malaysia, among others.

It appears to transport them, under the Alburton banner, to one of two Moscow-based computer companies: Rubion, which says it is accredited by the Russian government, and Obltransterminal LLC, a company under U.S. sanctions for providing equipment to the Russian military.

The Ontario records named Edward Poberezkin as Alburton's agent for service, meaning an appointee responsible for receiving notarized mail on behalf of a company in Ontario. His residence is the same address on the Russian customs data.

Poberezkin helmed at least three other companies in Ontario, which also don't have websites and list his home as their address. Property records show an individual with the last name Poberezkina as the homeowner since 1998.

Poberezkin confirmed to CBC News that he was Alburton's agent for service, but said he hadn't been in contact with the company in nine years.

"My address is part of the public record, and unfortunately, I cannot control if anyone decides to use it," said Poberezkin via email, adding that he had no knowledge of the "financial or business activities" of the company. He declined multiple interview requests.

The same Ontario records detail the murky origins of Alburton in the British Virgin Islands, which has become synonymous with international money laundering, and contains incorporation documents naming Australian national Christalla Kirkillari as its first director. She is connected online with more than 360 companies worldwide and operated in Cyprus, another global hotbed for financial crimes and tax evasion, where one of her official business addresses was located.

Kirkillari, who is publicly linked with Russian business people and has at least one Moscow business address, is mentioned in more than 700 confidential documents in the Offshore Leaks, a database of secret financial and legal files shared with CBC News. The Offshore Leaks, which has a publicly facing website where Kirkillari is searchable, has linked a trail of billions in dark money to Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin.

Kirkillari is a business associate of two men implicated in another recent scheme to smuggle technologies into Russia. In May, Slovak newspaper Pravda connected London businessmen Vladimir Pristoupa with Olech Tkacz and his Slovakian front company in selling software and computer components to Russian clients who subsequently supplied them to their military, which the U.S. Department of Treasury then sanctioned.

While open source records show Pristoupa and Kirkillari both worked in at least three of the same companies, all three of them are named as current or former officers at London-based Backriver Limited, which specializes in "scientific and technical activities." Backriver does not have a website.

Emails to the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs about Alburton, Kirkillari and the smuggling of microelectronics into the country went unanswered.

Russia uses front companies to procure parts
Since the dawn of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, continuous sanctions from Canada and its allies have challenged Russia's military-industrial complex. In defiance, the Kremlin has constructed shadowy global networks of middlemen buying predominantly Chinese technologies or Western technologies made in China.

In much the same way drug traffickers wash illicitly obtained currencies in a complex series of transactions to hide their movements, Russia has sourced items as simple as a semiconductor from China, unconnected to the business of war, that ends up in a glide bomb.

"We've been putting parties in third countries on our entity list who are sort of complicit in participating in the transshipment of items, and of the chips to Russia. And that includes companies in China," said Matt Axelrod, assistant secretary for export enforcement at the U.S. Department of Commerce.

Axelrod leads the Disruptive Technology Strike Force, a unit assembled one year into Russia's total invasion of Ukraine and designed to prevent in-demand electronics from ending up in enemy hands. His team has laid charges in at least 16 cases involving the illegal export of parts to Russia.

"We've also made very clear in conversations with the Chinese that this is a problem and that we need their help in making sure that we make progress on it," he said.

The Russian import data reflects the same: Alburton appears to never have purchased or sent Canadian-made technologies to Russia from Canada, but purchased components from China and other countries in the South Pacific, then shipped them to Russia using their status as a Canadian supplier.

Other open source evidence shows questionable transactions logging Alburton importing microprocessors and other electronics to Rubion in 2017 and 2023.

Other open source links point to it exporting materials with Hong Kong tech company Brukida Limited.

In an email, a director at Brukida categorically denied any involvement with Alburton and was adamant the company "has never worked with" or even "heard of Alburton" before.

"I am led to believe somebody must have deceptively used our company name in correspondence or some kind of trade documents."

Axelrod believes Russia's clandestine pursuit of microelectronics is a Kremlin directive.

"I don't think this is just individual entrepreneurs in Russia that are obtaining these parts," he said. "This is a government-sponsored … effort to procure items for the Russian war machine."

In one recent U.S court filing, the Department of Justice said the FBI was investigating the "illegal procurement of sensitive technology for the benefit of the Russian government, including its military and intelligence services."

Alburton's unknown ownership
So who actually owns and operates Alburton?

The British Virgin Islands government requires the collection of ownership records on incorporated entities operating under its jurisdiction, but that information is publicly inaccessible.

As of March 2024, Kirkillari was still named as the director of Alburton. But after multiple CBC requests for comment that went unanswered, the directorship changed to Elmarie Ibanez, a South African national who is also mentioned in more than 700 documents in the Offshore Leaks. She and Kirkillari are listed together as former directors of the now-defunct London company Production Investment Management Ltd.

Ibanez did not return requests for comment. Email tracking software showed Kirkillari viewing the emails from CBC News at least 14 times, twice showing them being opened in an unknown location in Moscow.

CBC News asked Poberezkin multiple times to provide contacts for the owners of Alburton, as he would be required as agent for service to have that information. He never responded.

The BVI government said it complies with the U.K.'s sanctions protocols and suspected breaches are investigated by its Financial Investigation Agency, but it does "not comment on individual breach reports received."

quote:

The DIU has obtained more than 4000 images of Russian military facilities with the help of the “people’s satellite”

^{Satellite image of a Russian training ground. Source: The Defence Intelligence of Ukraine}

Ukrainian military intelligence has been detecting Russian military facilities using the ICEYE satellite for almost two years.

This satellite was purchased with donations from citizens.

The Defence Intelligence of Ukraine reported that the satellite allows data to be received both from the temporarily occupied territory of Ukraine and from other places on the planet where Russia’s military forces and assets are located.

The prompt receipt of intelligence data became possible thanks to the initiative of the Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundation and donations from Ukrainians to the “people’s Bayraktar,” which in 2022 was used to purchase a satellite at the request of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.

SPOILER

quote:

.

^{Satellite images of Russian military facilities. Source: The Defence Intelligence of Ukraine}

Throughout using the “people’s satellite” and access to the ICEYE satellite constellation, Ukrainian specialists have taken a total of 4173 images of enemy targets, including:

370 – airfields;
238 – air defense and radio reconnaissance positions;
153 – oil depots and fuel warehouses;
147 – missile, aviation weapons, and ammunition depots;
17 – naval bases.

^{Satellite images of Russian military facilities. Source: The Defence Intelligence of Ukraine}

The ICEYE lens also captures the Russian Armed Forces’ permanent deployment points, training grounds, military camps, and mobilization centers.

It is noted that this makes it possible “to track the dynamics of Russia’s movements with personnel, to reveal its military intentions in order to disrupt them.”

In addition, the satellite allows us to monitor the aggressor country’s military industry and logistics network, which includes the illegal bridge across the Kerch Strait.

The Defence Intelligence of Ukraine said that the ICEYE spacecraft is able to clearly see the concentration of even carefully camouflaged enemy mechanized units with their equipment.

^{Satellite image of a Russian training ground. Source: The Defence Intelligence of Ukraine}

“Its images allow us to accurately identify the type and type of enemy combat aircraft, ships, and air defense systems detected, as well as to record the level of damage to the enemy’s facilities,” the statement reads.

It is reported that about 38% of the entire data set obtained through ICEYE was used to directly prepare fire on the enemy.

The Defence Intelligence of Ukraine expressed gratitude to the entire Ukrainian society, which joined the fundraising for the spacecraft, as well as to every volunteer who provides daily assistance to the defenders of Ukraine.

quote:

Russia may have formed new army to deploy in Ukraine – ISW
Russia may have formed another combined arms army for deployment in Ukraine.

Source: Institute for the Study of War (ISW)

Quote: "The Russian military is currently undergoing large-scale reforms, however, including the creation of new combined arms army level formations, and Ukrainian sources' references to a '51st Army' may constitute an early indicator that Russia has formed another combined arms army for deployment to Ukraine."

Details: Colonel Yurii Povkh, the spokesperson for the Kharkiv Operational Strategic Group, stated on 23 June that the Russian military plans to deploy elements of the "9th Motorised Rifle Brigade of the 51st Army" toward the Kharkiv area.

Povkh mentioned that Russian units have been moved from Kherson Oblast and other unspecified locations to reinforce the Kharkiv front.

Similarly, Lieutenant Colonel Nazar Voloshyn, the spokesperson for the Khortytsia Operational Strategic Group, reported on 25 June that Russian forces aim to transfer elements of the 155th Naval Infantry Brigade (Pacific Fleet) and the "9th Motorised Rifle Brigade of the 51st Army" to Kharkiv to make up for significant Russian losses.

ISW recently noted reports that the Russian forces have transferred elements of the 155th Naval Infantry Brigade and the 9th Motorised Rifle Brigade (1st Donetsk People's Republic Army Corps [DNR AC]) from areas west and southwest of the city of Donetsk to the Kharkiv front. However, there has been no reporting on the Russian "51st Army".

The statements from Ukrainian officials imply that the Russian forces might have subordinated the 9th Motorised Rifle Brigade to the potentially revived WWII-era "51st Army".

SPOILER

quote:

To quote the ISW’s Key Takeaways on 25 June:
• Two major international bodies – the International Criminal Court (ICC) and the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) – announced decisions on 25 June confirming Russia's long-term perpetration of war crimes and human rights violations in Ukraine.
• Russia and Venezuela signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) aimed at countering "coercive measures", likely to demonstrate to the West that the Kremlin holds influence in the Western hemisphere.
• Ukrainian forces conducted a drone strike on a Russian ammunition depot in Voronezh Oblast on 25 June and recently conducted strikes on Pantsir-S1 air defence systems in Belgorod Oblast with unspecified weapons.
• Russia imposed countersanctions against 81 European Union (EU)-based news outlets on 25 June following EU sanctions against four Russian state-affiliated news outlets on 24 June.
• Dagestan Republic Head Sergey Melikov ordered investigations into the personal records of senior Dagestani officials following the 23 June likely Wilayat Kavkaz terrorist attacks in Dagestan, indicating that the Kremlin may be intensifying efforts to address Islamist extremist threats in the North Caucasus as it attempts to maintain a veneer of stability and normalcy.
• Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan met with Lithuania-based Belarusian opposition leader Svitlana Tsikhanouskaya on 20 June in Vilnius amid deteriorating Armenian-Belarusian relations
• Ukrainian forces recently regained lost positions in Vovchansk, and Russian forces recently advanced near Siversk and Avdiivka.
• A Russian milblogger claimed that the Russian Volunteer Society for Assistance to the Army, Aviation and Navy of Russia (DOSAAF) will begin training unspecified Russian military personnel on 1 October 2024.

quote:

Ukrainian paratroopers still holding positions in Paraskoviivka despite Russian claims
Paratroopers of the 79th Brigade continue to carry out combat missions in Paraskoviivka, which the Russian Defense Ministry claimed to have seized three weeks ago

The information from the Russians about the alleged capture of the village of Paraskoviivka, located between Kostiantynivka and Novomykhailivka in the Donetsk Oblast, one of the hottest sections of the front, is not true. This was reported by Orest Drymalovskyi, a representative of the press service of the 79th Separate Tavrian Air Assault Brigade, during a television marathon.

The Russian Ministry of Defense claimed that Russian forces occupied Paraskoviivka on June 7.

Drymalovskyi stated that this is absolutely not true and that the Russian military department "traditionally lies."

"Our units are still in the village of Paraskoviivka, still holding these positions. The village is essentially destroyed, there is not a single intact building. The Russians are bombarding it intensively with shells, mines and aerial bombs. However, the paratroopers of the 79th Brigade are still in the village," said the representative of the brigade's press service.

quote:

The Russians hung the flag of Ukraine on their house

On the territory of Russia, local residents independently hung a giant flag of Ukraine on their building.

The flag has been hanging there for several days already.

This is reported by the Ukrainian military monitoring groups on Telegram.

Also published a video, where you can see a large Ukrainian flag.

It is claimed that the video was filmed in the Belgorod region of Russia.

“Cringe of the day. In Russia, locals independently hung the flag of Ukraine on their houses so that the Ukrainians did not bomb them. The flag has been there for several days,” – signed under the published video.

The Ukrainian military reminded that Ukraine does not bomb the homes of civilians, unlike the Russian occupiers.

As previously reported, the Russian military managed to shoot down a missile right above the beach in the city of Simferopol in occupied Crimea during the attack.

At that time, there were many vacationers on the beach. After the missile fragments fell, there are dead and a lot of injured civilians.

quote:

Serbia opposes restrictions on the sale of ammunition to third countries

^{Serbian mortar rounds of Krusik company. Photo credits: krusik.rs}

Serbian Prime Minister Milo� Vučević has called for the continuation of the sale of Serbian ammunition to third countries.

Milo� Vučević told Agence France-Presse that Serbia is not a party to the war in Ukraine, despite the use of Serbian shells in the war.

According to Vučević, the sale of Serbian shells “is not a contribution from Serbia to one of the warring parties.”

“I do not want to prevent companies from selling our ammunition to Spain, the Czech Republic, the United States… because it is not prohibited and it is not immoral for us to produce weapons and ammunition, which, unfortunately, are also used where there is a war,” the Serbian Prime Minister added.

Last weekend, it was reported that Serbia is increasing its sales of ammunition to third countries, which then send it to Ukraine.

SPOILER

quote:

.

^{Milo� Vučević. Photo credits: Ministry of Defense of Serbia}

According to estimates provided by the Financial Times, since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Serbian exports of ammunition that entered Ukraine through third parties have amounted to about �800 million.

Following the publication of these data, the Russian Foreign Ministry reported on talks with Serbia about possible security threats due to the volume of supplies that could enter Ukraine. The Kremlin promised to clarify this information with its “Serbian friends.”

President’s position
Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić had previously acknowledged that Serbian weapons could enter Ukraine through third countries, but the volume of supplies was first reported only after a publication in the Financial Times.

“This is part of our economic revival, and it is important for us. Yes, we export our ammunition. We can’t export to Ukraine or Russia… but we had a lot of contracts with the Americans, the Spanish, the Czechs, etc. What they do with it in the end is their business,” the Serbian president said.

^{President of Serbia Aleksandar Vučić and Volodymyr Zelenskyy. 2023. Photo credits: Office of the President of Ukraine}

When asked whether the figure of �800 million was correct, he said that it was not for one year, but “maybe over two or three years.”

As previously reported, the Ukrainian Defense Forces are using Serbian 30-mm grenades for AGS-17 automatic grenade launchers and new ER Grad 2000 122mm rockets.

^{ER Grad 2000 122mm rockets in Ukraine. Photo credits: Ukraine Weapons Tracker}

It is stated that the ammunition was purchased from the Serbian Kru�ik enterprise by the Canadian JNJ Export & Import company.

quote:

Slovakia increases production and repair of artillery shells for Ukrainian army
Slovakia has significantly increased the production and repair of artillery shells of the necessary calibers, announced President Peter Pellegrini

Slovakia is participating in supporting the Czech initiative to purchase artillery shells for the Armed Forces of Ukraine, President Peter Pellegrini stated during a visit to the Czech Republic, according to Pravda.

Pellegrini said that Bratislava supports Kyiv in ways not often discussed, such as supplying electricity to prevent the collapse of Ukraine's energy system.

The President of Slovakia also confirmed the country's participation in the Czech initiative to purchase ammunition for Ukraine.

"Thanks to our production capacities, we will make a significant contribution to the success of the Czech initiative to purchase ammunition," Pellegrini noted.

According to him, Slovakia has increased the production and repair of artillery shells of the necessary calibers.

"A significant portion of the ammunition collected by the Czech Republic will ultimately be refurbished and produced directly at Slovak factories," he said.

quote:

BRICS to suspend admitting new members for a while — Lavrov
"By the overwhelming majority, the ten nations decided to ‘take a pause’ with new members to ‘take in’ the new members who have doubled the association," he said at a meeting with speaker of Belarus

MOSCOW, June 25. /TASS/. BRICS nations have decided to "take a pause’ in terms of admitting new members, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said.

"By the overwhelming majority, the ten nations decided to ‘take a pause’ with new members to ‘take in’ the new members who have doubled the association," he said at a meeting with speaker of Belarus’ Council of the Republic, or upper house of parliament, Natalia Kochanova.

"At the same time, we are working of categories of partner countries as stages ahead of a full-fledged membership. We will support our Belarusian friends as a number of other like-minded nations," Lavrov, who is on an official visit to Minsk, said.

A meeting of the BRICS foreign ministers was held in Nizhny Novgorod on June 10 and 11. This was the first ministerial meeting following BRICS expansion in 2023 when Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE joined Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa as full-fledged BRICS members. About 30 more countries are interested in cooperating with the association in this or that format.

Russia took over the BRICS’ year-long presidency on January 1, 2024. Russia’s presidency features more than 250 various events, with a BRICS summit in Kazan in October 2024 being the central one.

quote:

Lithuania Commits 0.25% of GDP to Support Ukraine’s Defense

The Lithuanian government will allocate at least 0.25% of its GDP to support Ukraine’s security and defense.

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda announced this.

It is reported that the decision was made following a meeting of the State Defense Council of Lithuania.

“Lithuania will continue to stand firmly with Ukraine until victory. We will always support freedom,” Nausėda said.

As previously reported, Lithuania transferred a batch of M113 APCs and related vehicles to Ukraine as part of its military assistance program.

SPOILER

quote:

.

^{Armored vehicles that Lithuania transferred to Ukraine. June 2024. Photo credits: Ministry of Defense of Lithuania}

The delivered tracked armored personnel carriers are intended to enhance the Ukrainian Defense Forces’ demining capabilities and represent Lithuania’s contribution to the Coalition for Demining led by Iceland.

The delivery of these armored vehicles was initiated by the Lithuanian Ministry of National Defense and the Armed Forces of Lithuania.

Military aid from Lithuania
Militarnyi previously reported that the Lithuanian government would allocate almost �10 million for the rehabilitation of Ukrainian soldiers.

The funds from the Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Aid Fund are intended to implement three projects.

The areas of funding include the reconstruction of the Spinal Injuries Rehabilitation Center at Dnipro State University and the reconstruction of the Neskoreni Rehabilitation Center in the village of Briukhovychi.

^{Illustrative photo of a soldier in a rehabilitation center. Source: ICTV}

In addition, the Lithuanian government will allocate funds to strengthen institutions and organizations working in the field of rehabilitation and reintegration in Ukraine.

On May 29, it was reported that the Lithuanian government prepared a financial package for the purchase of radar stations for Ukraine as part of the German air defense initiative.

The �13.5 million package will provide for the purchase of appropriate radar stations that will enhance Ukraine’s radar coverage.


^{RADA ieMHR radar. Photo credits: Blue/Yellow}

Four radar stations will be purchased as part of this financial package. It has not been officially reported what kind of radar model will be transferred to Ukraine.

quote:

Armed Forces of Ukraine Receive Italian Puma APCs

^{Italian Puma armored personnel carrier with 6x6 wheel formula. Photo credits: Pakistan Defence}

The Ministry of Defense of Ukraine has authorized the use of Italian Puma armored personnel carriers in the army.

The defense ministry explained that the armored personnel carriers have undergone codification, which allows the purchase of these APCs for funds from the state budget.

No country has officially reported that the aid packages included Puma wheeled armored personnel carriers.

This armored personnel carrier is in service with the armed forces of Italy, Pakistan, Libya, and Djibouti.

Presumably, the batch of Puma APCs was included in one of the classified defense aid packages to Ukraine from the Italian government.

SPOILER

quote:

.

^{Italian Puma armored personnel carrier with 6�6 wheel formula. Photo credits: wikipedia}

Puma armored personnel carriers in 6�6 and 4�4 wheel configurations were developed and mass-produced by the Italian consortium Iveco-Oto Melara in the early 2000s.

The crew of the Puma 6�6 armored vehicle with a weight 8.2 tons consists of two people: a driver and a gunner. The latter is armed with a 7.62 mm or 12.7 mm machine gun. The squad compartment has space for four Ukrainian soldiers.

The APC’s powerplant is a four-cylinder Iveco diesel engine with a capacity of 180 hp and an automatic transmission.

In Ukraine, the APC can perform various functions, including reconnaissance, fighting armored vehicles (version with an anti-tank missile on the roof of the vehicle), and transferring manpower.

Various variants of the Puma APC have been created: command and control, reconnaissance, equipped with anti-tank and anti-aircraft systems, with 81-mm mortar, medevac APCs, and CBRN monitoring vehicles.

^{Italian Puma armored personnel carrier with 6�6 wheel formula. Photo credits: wikipedia}

Previously, Italy sent a batch of M109L artillery systems to Ukraine without an official announcement.

In June, Italy confirmed the transfer of an additional battery of the SAMP/T anti-aircraft missile system capable of intercepting ballistic missiles.

quote:

Russia Upgrades Workshops for New Tu-160 Bomber Production

^{Four Tu-160M ​​strategic bombers on the territory of the Kazan Aviation Plant. Photo credits: Russian media}

The Russian United Aircraft Corporation has completed the modernization of three workshops for the production of new Tu-160 bombers.

This was reported by Defence News.

The modernized workshops will be used for the production of parts for the Tu-160M bomber, which will then be assembled at the Kazan Aviation Plant.

The work took place in the preparatory and production, mechanical assembly and flight test centers.

SPOILER

quote:

.

^{Tu-160 strategic bomber in flight. Photo from open sources}

This will provide the Russian Aircraft Corporation with new capabilities and accelerate the replenishment of its fleet of Tu-160 strategic bombers.

Work on the modernization of the enterprise and workshops began in 2016, after the Russian Ministry of Defense decided to resume production of this type of bomber.

In total, from 2016 to 2024, about 10 production facilities were modernized to prepare them for mass production of important components.

Under the contract signed by the Russian Ministry of Defense for the 2018-2027, the Russian Air Force is expected to receive 10 newly built Tu-160Ms.

^{Construction of the Russian Tu-160M2 bomber. 2021}

During the preparation of the production line, the company was repeatedly prosecuted for corruption and late completion of work.

According to the original plan, the Kazan Aviation Plant was scheduled to complete the modernization of all its centers and workshops by 2020. However, the Kazan Aircraft Production Association reported that it was unable to meet this deadline, prompting additional modernization efforts financed by the company itself.

It should also be noted that the Kazan Aviation Plant is modernizing Tu-22M3 aircraft and old-built Tu-160s.

Previously, Militarny reported that the Kazan Aviation Plant was preparing to transfer a new batch of Tu-160M bombers to the Russian Aerospace Forces.

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 21:36 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
[ x ]
Een beetje dramatisch natuurlijk. Maar de F-16 zal zeker een enorme aanwinst zijn, die met goed gebruik wel degelijk een belangrijk effect zou kunnen hebben in de oorlog.

En laat die Russen elkaar maar lekker bang maken. Dan gaan ze nog meer fouten maken. Al vraag ik mij af wat nu precies de bron is hiervan.

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 21:44 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
https://mil.in.ua/en/news(...)0-bomber-production/
[..]

SPOILER

[..]

Ik denk niet dat wij die deze oorlog nog in actie gaan zien komen.

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 19:14 schreef BEFEM het volgende:

[..]
Waarom en hoe zouden ze �berhaupt overlopen? Die weten niet eens wat Oekra�ne is.

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 21:44 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
https://mil.in.ua/en/news(...)0-bomber-production/
[..]

SPOILER

[..]

Ik denk niet dat wij die deze oorlog nog in actie gaan zien komen.

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 21:47 schreef TwenteFC het volgende:

[..]
F16 is oud, maar het platform heeft wel grote voordelen. Om een voorbeeld te noemen; de HARM raketten die ze gebruiken om radar installaties kapot te schieten die moeten nu op de grond geprogrammeerd worden waarna ze de raket onder een Mig knutselen.

F16's kunnen dat realtime, in de lucht door eigen radar, maar ook op data gevoerd door andere westerse systemen (via Link 16) of bijv de AWAC vliegtuigen die Zweden levert.

Alleen net zoals russische vliegtuigen allemaal neergaan wanneer ze in de buurt komen van de Oekrainse AA, zo gaan de F16's waarschijnlijk ook neer als ze onverwacht bij de Russische AA terecht komen.

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 22:16 schreef Ulx het volgende:

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 22:10 schreef MatthijsDJ het volgende:

[..]
Omdat de kans dat een geslaagde ontsnappingspoging stukken groter is in de chaos aan het front.

Ze krijgen hoe dan ook een blik op het moderne Rusland en Oekra�ne. Er gaat dus een besef komen dat NK helemaal niet zo geweldig is.

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 22:19 schreef TwenteFC het volgende:

[..]
Jep, maar specifiek dat is dus wat de F16 extra brengt. Voor zover ik weet was dat tot nu toe nog niet mogelijk met de sovjet vliegtuigen?

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 22:28 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]
Dat klopt, daar kan het niet mee. Het is landen als Polen en Tsjechi� ook niet gelukt.

Maar tegen de tijd dat de F16's er zijn hebben de Russen niet heel veel luchtafweer over. De ene na de andere S300/S400 installatie ging er de afgelopen weken aan.

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 22:23 schreef BEFEM het volgende:

[..]
Een blik op het moderne Rusland en Oekra�ne?

Denk je dat ze eerst een schooluitje krijgen?

Die gaan gewoon ergens naar een trainingskamp, als ze geluk hebben, en dan linea recta naar het front.

En je ziet maar weinig ontsnappingsacties gebeuren. Waarom zou een Noord-Koreaan die letterlijk niks van de wereld kent, dan wel op grote schaal succesvol zijn?

Mochten zij mee gaan vechten, wat natuurlijk koffiedik kijken is, dan worden ze gewoon als kannonenvoer gebruikt. Lekker als eerste naar voren rennen met Russen achter je.

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 22:28 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]
Dat klopt, daar kan het niet mee. Het is landen als Polen en Tsjechi� ook niet gelukt.

Maar tegen de tijd dat de F16's er zijn hebben de Russen niet heel veel luchtafweer over. De ene na de andere S300/S400 installatie ging er de afgelopen weken aan.

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 22:23 schreef BEFEM het volgende:

[..]
Een blik op het moderne Rusland en Oekra�ne?

Denk je dat ze eerst een schooluitje krijgen?

Die gaan gewoon ergens naar een trainingskamp, als ze geluk hebben, en dan linea recta naar het front.

En je ziet maar weinig ontsnappingsacties gebeuren. Waarom zou een Noord-Koreaan die letterlijk niks van de wereld kent, dan wel op grote schaal succesvol zijn?

Mochten zij mee gaan vechten, wat natuurlijk koffiedik kijken is, dan worden ze gewoon als kannonenvoer gebruikt. Lekker als eerste naar voren rennen met Russen achter je.

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Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 22:34 schreef BEFEM het volgende:

[..]
Hadden de Russen sowieso niet iets van 500 s300 installaties?

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 22:49 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]
Ze halen nu al S300 en S400's weg uit het verre oosten en het noorden om in en rondom Oekra�ne te worden neergezet. Ik denk dat er wel wat druk op staat. En ze zullen ook wel iets moeten laten staan om de rest van het land te kunnen verdedigen.

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 22:34 schreef BEFEM het volgende:

[..]
Hadden de Russen sowieso niet iets van 500 s300 installaties?

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 22:49 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]
Ze halen nu al S300 en S400's weg uit het verre oosten en het noorden om in en rondom Oekra�ne te worden neergezet. Ik denk dat er wel wat druk op staat. En ze zullen ook wel iets moeten laten staan om de rest van het land te kunnen verdedigen.

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Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 23:02 schreef ExTec het volgende:

[..]
Ze zullen heel veel launchers hebben. Maar de 2 radar installaties, en de commando posten, ik denk niet dat ze er daar 500 van hebben.

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Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 23:06 schreef oheng het volgende:

[..]
Als je alleen al kijktnaar de S-400, rusland had iets van 57 batterijen met ieder 8 lanceerders. In totaal 465 lanceerders.

Daar zijn nu meer dan 17 van vernietigd.

Ik denk niet dat rusland ooit zonder S-400's komt te zitten. Maar, ze alleen onderdrukken kan al genoeg wezen.
Het lijkt me niet dat een F-16 ooit boven vijandelijk gebied zal kunnen vliegen.

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 23:20 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]
Maar zijn die gebouwd of bestaan ze vooral op papier?

quote:

NASA Satellites Reveal Fire at Russia's Drone Launch Site in Occupied Crimea

^{Fire near Cape Chauda in occupied Crimea, June 25, 2024. (Source: Radio Svoboda)}

According to satellite monitoring data, on June 25, a fire broke out in the area of ​​Cape Chauda in Crimea annexed by Russia, where the military training ground of the Russian army is located and from where Russian troops launch Shahed-136/131 type drones over Ukraine.

Radio Svoboda reported this on Wednesday, June 26, with reference to satellite images published on the NASA fire monitoring website.

^{Satellite image confirming fire in Cape Chauda area, June 25, 2024. (Source: Radio Svoboda)}

The fire occurred approximately on the southeastern shore of the Feodosia Bay. What caused the fire is unknown, there have been no reports of missile or drone attacks on this area of ​​Crimea in recent days.

In the late 1980s, the military training area on the cape was closed, but in 2016, the Russian Federation resumed its work. The Russian Air and Space Forces conducted air shows and training here in 2019.

In the period from November 1, 2022, to May 30, 2023, residents of the occupied peninsula were prohibited from entering the territory of the cape. The Russian mass media reported measures being taken to carry out test works.

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 23:06 schreef oheng het volgende:

[..]
Als je alleen al kijktnaar de S-400, rusland had iets van 57 batterijen met ieder 8 lanceerders. In totaal 465 lanceerders.

Daar zijn nu meer dan 17 van vernietigd.

Ik denk niet dat rusland ooit zonder S-400's komt te zitten. Maar, ze alleen onderdrukken kan al genoeg wezen.
Het lijkt me niet dat een F-16 ooit boven vijandelijk gebied zal kunnen vliegen.

quote:

Op donderdag 27 juni 2024 08:13 schreef BEFEM het volgende:

[..]
Idd. Luve (duimpje van achja) zullen ze altijd genoeg hebben. Daar is heel hun doctrine op bedacht.

quote:

Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 23:20 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]
Maar zijn die gebouwd of bestaan ze vooral op papier?

quote:

Op donderdag 27 juni 2024 08:13 schreef BEFEM het volgende:

[..]
Idd. Luve (duimpje van achja) zullen ze altijd genoeg hebben. Daar is heel hun doctrine op bedacht.

quote:

Op donderdag 27 juni 2024 10:48 schreef StateOfMind het volgende:

[..]
Pas bij luverd geeft ie een duim

quote:

Op donderdag 27 juni 2024 11:54 schreef oheng het volgende:
Hamas komt ook weer op bezoek in rusland.

Lekkere vrienden: Iran, Taliban, Noord Korea, Hamas...

quote:

Op donderdag 27 juni 2024 11:54 schreef oheng het volgende:
Hamas komt ook weer op bezoek in rusland.

Lekkere vrienden: Iran, Taliban, Noord Korea, Hamas...

quote:

Op donderdag 27 juni 2024 12:09 schreef Hyperdude het volgende:

[..]
Lijkt wel een Axis of Evil.

quote:

Op donderdag 27 juni 2024 12:02 schreef Straatcommando. het volgende:

[..]
Maar westelijke landen zijn de oorlogshitsers.

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Op donderdag 27 juni 2024 12:45 schreef oheng het volgende:

[..]
Ik vergat de Houthi's.

quote:

Op donderdag 27 juni 2024 11:54 schreef oheng het volgende:
Hamas komt ook weer op bezoek in rusland.

Lekkere vrienden: Iran, Taliban, Noord Korea, Hamas...

quote:

Op donderdag 27 juni 2024 13:09 schreef spicymchaggis het volgende:

[..]
Het vriendenclubje van misdadige barbarenvolkeren, oftewel "de as van het kwaad".

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Ukraine shoots down five enemy missiles, 23 UAVs overnight
On the night of June 27, Russians launched a missile and air strike against Ukraine, using air- and sea-launched missiles and Shahed-type attack drones. The Ukrainian air defense forces shot down 5 missiles and 23 drones.

According to Ukrinform, Air Force Commander Mykola Oleshchuk reported this on Telegram.

According to him, the enemy launched six missiles of various types and 23 attack UAVs:
- 1 Kh-47 M2 Kinzhal missile (from the airspace of Russia’s Tambov region);
- 4 Kalibr cruise missiles (from the northeastern part of the Black Sea);
- 1 Kh-59/Kh-69 guided missile (from the airspace of Russia’s Kursk region);
- 23 Shahed-131/136 attack UAVs (from Russia’s Primorsko-Akhtarsk).

Fighter aircraft, anti-aircraft missile units of the Air Force, mobile fire groups and EW units of the Ukrainian Defense Forces were involved in the combat operations.

28 enemy aerial targets were shot down:
- 4 Kalibr cruise missiles;
- 1 Kh-59/Kh-69 guided missile;
- 23 Shahed-131/136 attack UAVs.

As reported, since January 1, 2024, the Russian invaders have launched 2,277 Shahed-type attack drones against Ukraine. The air defense forces destroyed about 86% of them – 1,953 UAVs.

quote:

Drones attacked a fuel plant in the Russian Federation

^{Ukrainian Lyutyi attack drone}

Drones attacked a Russian aviation fuel plant in the Tver region several times during the night.

The Baza Telegram channel reported on this.

A plant in Redkino, Tver region, was attacked twice by attack drones.

According to eyewitnesses, the first attack on the plant took place at around 2 a.m. Three unmanned aerial vehicles struck the facility.

One of the drones landed on the roof of workshop No. 4 and exploded. The second one was shot down by air defense forces and also fell near the shop. It exploded a few minutes later. The third drone attacked flammable liquid tanks on the plant’s premises, damaging a pipeline and starting a fire.

Two hours later, around 4 a.m., the plant was attacked by another UAV. The drone also came down near workshop No. 4.

SPOILER

quote:

"Лютий" атакує паливний завод в Тверській області � Ф [27 червня 2024]

The video of the second attack shows the drone’s distinctive appearance, similar to the Ukrainian Lyutyi drone.

In the eyewitness footage, the sounds of gunfire, probably from small arms, are also heard, which may indicate attempts to intercept the drones already above the plant.

According to the Telegram channel’s sources, the company’s staff was evacuated. According to preliminary reports, there were no injuries.

Currently, Russian officials have not provided any official information regarding the strike on the fuel plant. However, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced the interception of four drones in the Tver region, two more in the Moscow region, and one over the Belgorod region.

Redkino Experimental Plant
The Redkino experimental plant specializes in producing fuel and other chemical products. According to publicly available data, it produces more than 40 types of products for the Russian defense aviation and space industry.


^{Redkino Experimental Plant}

Located more than 1,000 kilometers from Ukraine, this is not the first time the facility has been targeted. Previously, in September 2023, the company was also attacked by drone strikes.

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Op woensdag 26 juni 2024 21:47 schreef TwenteFC het volgende:

[..]
F16 is oud, maar het platform heeft wel grote voordelen. Om een voorbeeld te noemen; de HARM raketten die ze gebruiken om radar installaties kapot te schieten die moeten nu op de grond geprogrammeerd worden waarna ze de raket onder een Mig knutselen.

F16's kunnen dat realtime, in de lucht door eigen radar, maar ook op data gevoerd door andere westerse systemen (via Link 16) of bijv de AWAC vliegtuigen die Zweden levert.

quote:

The F-16CJ/DJ Block 50D/52D have the HARM avionics/Launcher Interface Computer (ALIC) resulting in a full autonomous employment capability of the HARM missile. This capability adds the SEAD (Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses) mission to the already extensive list of missions the F-16 is capable to perform.

quote:

Alleen net zoals russische vliegtuigen allemaal neergaan wanneer ze in de buurt komen van de Oekrainse AA, zo gaan de F16's waarschijnlijk ook neer als ze onverwacht bij de Russische AA terecht komen.

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Poland Launches ‘Holidays With the Army’ Program to Boost Recruitment
Poland has launched an initiative to boost its military recruitment campaign in the face of increasing threats in the region.

Dubbed “Holidays With the Army,” the program involves providing basic military training to Polish citizens aged 18 to 35 over 28 days.

Many of the participants are recent high school graduates who are eligible to enlist.

Despite the program’s name, participants are far from being given a holiday as they have to wake up early and learn combat and survival skills.

During free time, trainees are required to clean their quarters and are prohibited from leaving the base.

Those who complete the basic military training will reportedly receive 6,000 zlotys ($1,491).

SPOILER

quote:

‘Great Interest’
Polish Army officials said there has been great interest in the program as more than 11,000 people have chosen to participate.

The target, however, is up to 10,000 volunteers spread throughout 70 locations across Poland.

“The army wants to train as many citizens as possible,” logistics regiment commander Col. Pawel Galazka said. “Everyone knows about the threat that comes from the east.”

At the end of the training, participants may choose to pursue a military career by joining a branch of the Polish Armed Forces or the Territorial Defence Forces.

They can also opt to be on standby as reservists.

Increasing Threats
The “Holidays With the Army” initiative is part of Warsaw’s efforts to expand its 198,000-strong army amid the threat brought by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The government has increased its defense spending significantly over fears of being targeted next by Moscow if it succeeds in Kyiv.

A leaked German military document claimed that President Vladimir Putin may order an attack on a NATO member state by 2026 over the alliance’s support for Ukraine.

In November 2022, Poland put its military on high alert after a missile attack blamed on Russia killed two people in the village of Przewodow.

It later turned out that the missile was a Ukraine misfire.

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Over 10,000 newly naturalised Russian citizens sent to ‘dig trenches’ in Ukraine
The head of Russia’s Investigative Committee, Alexander Bastrykin, told the St. Petersburg International Legal Forum on Thursday that up to 10,000 recently naturalised Russian citizens had been sent to serve in Ukraine.

Under Russian law, any successful male applicant for Russian citizenship must register for military service and join the “special military operation” in Ukraine “if required”, Bastrykin said, adding that the Russian authorities had “caught” over 30,000 who hadn’t done so, about 10,000 of whom had joined the ranks of “rear units” to “dig trenches and build fortifications”.

After the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russia adopted laws that simplified the process for obtaining Russian citizenship, making it easier for immigrants, among them citizens of Central Asian states, to apply for residence permits and Russian passports, which led to an increase in migrants arriving in Russia despite the ongoing war.

Over 117,000 Central Asian migrants crossed the Russian border in 2023, more than twice as high as the figure for 2022, according to a Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) report quoted by state-affiliated daily Vedomosti in May.

The Russian authorities have been carrying out raids on migrant neighbourhoods to boost their troop numbers in Ukraine, targeting both naturalised citizens who hadn’t contacted the military recruitment office and illegal migrants, who were promised a Russian passport if they agreed to serve in the military, and threatened with deportation if they refused.

Citizens of Central Asian states have been moving to Russia for work since the dissolution of the Soviet Union, and currently number up to 7 million, according to Vedomosti, though their real number may be far higher due to widespread illegal immigration.

quote:

Why arrival of F-16s won't rapidly change Ukraine's fortunes in war with Russia

KYIV, June 27 (Reuters) - Around two years after Ukraine started asking allies for F-16 fighter jets to help it fight Russian forces, the first planes are set to arrive by next month.

The length of the process, from procuring the U.S.-designed aircraft and training Ukrainian pilots to fly them, has frustrated Kyiv.

Russia has had time to prepare defences to try to nullify the F-16s' impact, and Ukraine has had to survive with a depleted air force a fraction of the size and sophistication of the enemy's.

Here are some facts about how the F-16s may help Ukraine and what obstacles still lie in the way of effective deployment:

POTENTIAL IMPACT

Some analysts say the F-16s will not alone prove a turning point in the war, which began with Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022.

"You'd have to separate symbolism from the actual impact on the battlefield - which will be useful but modest, particularly in the beginning," said Mark Cancian, senior adviser with the International Security Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).

Serhii Kuzan, chairman of the Ukrainian Security and Cooperation Center, a non-governmental research group, said at least 60 planes would be needed for significant operations as Ukraine attempts to push Russian aviation back from its borders.

Lawmaker Oleksandra Ustinova, who leads Kyiv's parliamentary commission on arms and munitions, said that Ukraine would need nearer to 120 F-16s to boost its air capability significantly.

While the pilots gain experience in Ukrainian skies and the military builds out its air infrastructure, the initial deliveries could at least help Ukraine strengthen its air shield, experts say.

"It will provide some air defence and depth capacity, potentially also help intercepting Shaheds [Iranian-built drones] and cruise missiles. Although it is a very expensive way of doing that, munitions-wise," said Justin Bronk, senior research fellow for airpower and technology at Royal United Services Institute (RUSI).

Ukraine's military has worked hard to reduce the threat to the arriving F-16s in recent months by attacking Russian air defences, according to Kuzan.

"The formation of the battlefield, especially in the south, is already taking place," he said. "Ukraine has the capabilities to systematically strike Russia's foremost air defence complexes."

But Cancian of CSIS said he expected Ukraine to try to open gaps in Russia's defences in the immediate run-up to planned F-16 attacks rather than a long time in advance.

PILOTS AND MAINTENANCE

Training will be crucial.

"You can have lots of fast jets but if they don't have effective weapons, and air crew able to employ them with effective tactics, then they will just be shot down in large numbers," said Bronk.

The timeline for the training of Ukrainian pilots on F-16s has dominated discussions about deliveries and pledges of more than 70 jets.

By the end of 2024, Ukraine expects to have at least 20 pilots ready to fly F-16s, Ustinova said.

"It is difficult to solicit more planes when you don't have people to pilot them," she said, adding that, at first, Ukraine will have more F-16s than qualified pilots.

"Waiting in line for 10 years before our pilots are trained is not OK."

The Ukrainian Air Force spokesperson declined to comment.

U.S. officials have directed questions on training to Ukraine and noted that pilots can also be trained in Europe. However, Bronk said NATO's capacity was already stretched.

He added that aircraft maintenance was an even more pressing challenge than pilot training.

He said most repairs and maintenance would need to happen inside Ukraine, and it would probably have to rely on foreign contractors who know the aircraft.

AIR BASES UNDER THREAT

Russia has already intensified its attacks on infrastructure that could be used for the maintenance and deployment of F-16s, some experts said.

"Russia is striking all airfields, potential F-16 bases, every day, including attempts to damage airstrips and infrastructure. These strikes have not paused for the last two months, at least," Kuzan said.

The targets will become all the more valuable when the aircraft, pilots and maintenance teams arrive. This is likely to force Ukraine to install missile defences to protect them, even though it is short of both air defence systems and ammunition.

"We have to accept the fact that the airfields will be well-protected when civilian objects could be under attack," Kuzan said, adding that each base would need at least two Patriot and two NASAMS batteries to secure it.

"As soon as we (build up our flight capabilities), we will push their planes back and the terror will stop. But these couple of months will be truly difficult," Kuzan added.

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Russia Loses Last Black Sea Missile Ship – Putin Demands Better Protection
Putin urges increased protection for the fleet against long-range missiles, after Ukraine eliminates another missile ship in Sevastopol, forcing Moscow to move the fleet to mainland Russia.

Russia's Navy needs to be protected from long-range missile attacks as soon as possible, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a meeting discussing shipbuilding on Wednesday, June 26.

"It is necessary to protect our fleet from possible attacks already on the far outskirts of naval bases and areas of operation of our ships," he said.

Last month, Ukraine's Armed Forces destroyed a Russian Black Sea Fleet small missile ship, the Cyclone, during an attack on the occupied port of Sevastopol. According to Ukrainian Navy spokesman Dmytro Pletenchuk, the 22800 Karakut class vessel was the last Kalibr equipped Russian missile carrier on the Crimean Peninsula, as the rest had already been transferred to Novorossiysk due to the Ukrainian attacks.

Putin noted that to increase the combat stability of the Black Sea fleet, "special attention should be paid to the speedy introduction of remote threat detection systems, including those from unmanned vehicles."

He also said that the fleet is being replenished with new ships, equipped with modern weapons, and that domestic shipbuilders will hand over more than 40 vessels to the Defense Ministry this year.

SPOILER

quote:

According to the open-source intelligence (OSINT) site Molfar, Ukraine has sunk or damaged nearly 60 ships of the Russian Navy.

In March Kyrylo Budanov,the head of Ukraine’s military intelligence directorate (HUR), said that the attacks on Russian ships and other targets in the Black Sea were in preparation for a "serious operation in Crimea."

MAGURA-V5 maritime drones developed by the HUR helped sink several Russian ships. This has forced the Russians to move most of the Russian fleet from its main Black Sea harbor in occupied Crimea back to ports on the Russian mainland, Budanov told The Philadelphia Inquirer.

“They are already trapped near the Novorossiysk port,” Budanov said. “We just need to make sure that all the remains of the fleet are pushed back to the territory of the Russian Federation. There have been no combat ships left in the Black Sea for a long time”

Earlier, he shared his unusual hobby, which is also related to the Russian Black Sea Fleet.

"If we are talking about naval drones, I have model ships. Every time a new one comes out, I get a new one [ship’s model] - I hope to have a full shelf someday. This will mean that the Black Sea Fleet is over," Budanov added.

quote:

Ukrainian pilots launch AASM bombs from ultra-low altitudes

^{The Ukrainian MiG-29 launches AASM-250 bombs}

A Ukrainian MiG-29 launched French AASM-250 bombs at the ultra-low altitude in the Belgorod region.

The Ukrainian military published the footage of the combat operation.

The pilot of the Ukrainian fighter jet performed a complex dive-bombing maneuver with two bombs at an extremely low altitude to avoid being hit by Russian anti-aircraft missiles near the front line.

He managed to launch the bombs from such a low altitude due to a sharp maneuver and a feature of the French AASM adjusted aerial bomb equipped with a solid rocket booster.

SPOILER

quote:

Пуск авіабомб AASM винищувачем МиГ-29 на наднизьких висотах [Червень 2024]

Immediately after launching the bombs, the fighter pilot turned the plane back and descended sharply to minimize the risk of being captured by a Russian air defense system.

At the same time, the two 250-kilogram bombs continued to fly independently in the direction of the target according to satellite coordinates.

The video shows the consequences of the use of precision air weapons by the Air Force against Russian targets in the Belgorod region, as Militarnyi wrote about a few days earlier.

The footage captures the damage to a building used by the command of one of the motorized rifle regiments of the Russian Armed Forces as a command center.

“The Air Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, in cooperation with other components of the Defense Forces, successfully struck at the command center of the enemy motorized rifle regiment located in the village of Nekhotiyivka, Belgorod region (Russia). As a result of combat operations, explosions were recorded. The target was successfully destroyed,” the General Staff stated.

^{Ukrainian MiG-29 with AASM 250 HAMMER bomb. Photo credits: Tysk}

This is the first video to show Ukrainian tactical aviation’s flight and use of precision weapons at such a low altitude.

Militarnyi previously published a video of AASM bombs being launched at an altitude of about 1,500 meters from a Ukrainian Su-27 fighter jet.

З'явилось відео запуску AASM-250 з українського винищувача

The Russian military has also previously demonstrated how an AASM missile bomb arrives at an extremely short distance from the operator.

quote:

Op donderdag 27 juni 2024 20:28 schreef Cilantro het volgende:
[ x ]

quote:

Russia mulling downgrading ties with West, Kremlin says
Russia is considering a possible downgrading of relations with the West due to the deeper involvement of the United States and its allies in the Ukraine war, but no decision had yet been taken, the Kremlin said on Thursday.

A downgrading of relations - or even breaking them off - would illustrate the gravity of the confrontation between Russia and the West over Ukraine after an escalation in tensions over the war in recent months.

Even during the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, when the Cold War is thought to have come closest to nuclear war, Russia did not sever relations with the United States, though Moscow did break off ties with Israel over the 1967 Middle East war.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told the Izvestia newspaper that ambassadors fulfilled a difficult but important job that allowed a channel of communication to operate in troubled times.

But Ryabkov also said that a possible downgrading of ties with the West was being studied.

SPOILER

quote:

When asked about the possibility of such a move, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that given the West's current approach to Russia it was one of several options that was being considered, though no decision had yet been made.

"The issue of lowering the level of diplomatic relations is a standard practice for states that face unfriendly or hostile manifestations," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

"Due to the growing involvement of the West in the conflict over Ukraine, the Russian Federation cannot but consider various options for responding to such hostile Western intervention in the Ukrainian crisis."

President Vladimir Putin, who ordered thousands of troops into Ukraine in 2022, presents the war as part of a wider struggle with the U.S., which he says ignored Moscow's interests after the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union and then plotted to split Russia apart and seize its natural resources.

The West and Ukraine have cast the war as an imperial-style land-grab. Western leaders, who deny they want to destroy Russia, say that if Putin wins the war then autocracies across the world will be emboldened.

With Russia gaining the upper hand in the biggest land war in Europe since World War Two, the Ukraine crisis has escalated in recent months.

After the United States allowed Ukraine to strike Russia with some U.S. weapons, the Kremlin sent signals that it viewed this as a serious escalation.

Putin has ordered drills to practise deployment of tactical nuclear weapons, suggested Russia could station conventional missiles within striking distance of the United States and its allies, and sealed a mutual defence pact with North Korea.

The United States and its European allies still have embassies in Russia, and Russia has embassies in Washington and European capitals, though diplomats from both sides say they are experiencing the most hostile conditions in decades.

"Moscow has given up on repairing relations with the West," said Geoffrey Roberts, a historian of Josef Stalin and Soviet international relations at University College Cork.

"It would signal that Putin thinks he can usher in a Brave New Multipolar World, whilst at the same time keeping the West at arm's length," he said. "But maybe its a just a gesture, a protest, a sign of frustration with the West and/or a sop to Russian hardliners who want to escalate the war in Ukraine."

quote:

Ukraine and EU Have Signed a Historic Bilateral Security Agreement. Here’s What it Includes

On June 27, Ukraine and the European Union signed a security agreement on the sidelines of the EU Summit. The agreement was signed by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during his visit to Brussels.

The agreement covers the supply of arms to Ukraine, military training, defense industry cooperation, and demining.

Security agreements were also signed with Lithuania and Estonia.

The text of the document contained two main sections on security guarantees, each with nine points, including:
• �50 billion will be allocated for the next 4 years within the framework of the Ukraine Facility program; funds to reimburse EU countries for weapons provided to Ukraine from the European Peace Fund; �5 billion for weapons from the Fund for Aid to Ukraine, and profits from frozen Russian assets.
• the long-term supply of military equipment, military training, defense reform, cooperation between the defense industries of Ukraine and the EU, cybersecurity, and intelligence exchange.
• the “future of Ukraine and its citizens in the European Union,” demining and reconstruction, continued support for refugees, preservation and strengthening of anti-Russian sanctions, and the creation of a special tribunal for the Russian political elite.
• an action plan in the event of possible future aggression, including urgent consultations to take place within a day.

For the first time, this agreement will guarantee the commitment of all 27 member states to provide Ukraine with broad support despite any internal institutional changes.

Earlier, Zelenskyy announced that three security agreements were planned to be signed in Brussels, one of which is with the European Union.

quote:

The Russian fleet is demonstrating the least activity in Novorossiysk

^{Landing boat D-199 in Novorossiysk. 27.07.2014. Photo credits: forums.airbase.ru}

The Russian naval base Novorossiysk has currently the least activity of surface ships over the entire period of observation.

The satellite images were published by the user on the social network X.

The image captures the smallest number of surface ships at the Novorossiysk Naval Base: one Project 775 landing ship, one Ivan Gren-class landing ship, and two Sivuch class gunboats.

Small missile ships, as well as some landing ships, were moved to the Sea of Azov to disguise them from Ukrainian naval drones.

SPOILER

quote:

.

^{Satellite image of the Russian Black Sea Fleet naval base in Novorossiysk. Photo credits: MT Anderson}

There are no large ships at the naval base, although until recently, two Admiral Grigorovich-class frigates, three Buyan-M corvettes, and four Kilo-class submarines and Paltus-class submarines were permanently stationed there.

There is a possibility that these ships went out to sea to launch cruise missiles at Ukraine and had not yet returned at the time of the recording.

Currently, the Russian Black Sea Fleet is in a rather dangerous situation due to the active use of surface drones that pose a threat to Russian ships.

In addition, Ukraine’s active development of naval drones creates a new danger for Russian naval helicopters. First of all, this is due to the installation of R-73 guided missiles on naval drones.

^{The Russian Navy base in Novorossiysk. Photo credits: Google Earth}

At the beginning of June, satellite images were published capturing Russian landing ships leaving the port of Novorossiysk, where they had been hiding from Ukrainian attacks for a long time, as part of a powerful escort.

Comparing the latest satellite images from Airbus for June 5 with data from June 2, the analyst noted that a large group of Russian Navy ships had left the port of Novorossiysk.

The vessels in question are:
• Two Project 22160 patrol ships;
• Two Buyan-class corvettes;
• Two Ropucha-class landing ships;
• One Ivan Gren-class landing ship;
• One Tapir-class landing ship;
• Two Kilo-class submarines.

Together with them, two Project 266M “Aquamarine-M” minesweepers and one Project 12700 “Alexandrite” minesweeper also set off in an unknown direction.

quote:

Russian official calls for complete destruction of Ukraine until 'there is nothing left'
A Russian official currently in charge of the occupied Zaporizhzhia region says it's time to "burn everything Ukrainian down to the root" until "there is no trace left".

Dmitry Rogozin, who was previously head of Russia's space agency, posted on his Telegram channel that there could be "no truce" with Ukraine as it would mean "certain death for our children and grandchildren".

"This time we need to burn everything Ukrainian down to the root," he said.

"Together with their bastard literature, delusional history, cannibalism of the 'ancient Ukrainians', passion for fascist 'aesthetics' and servility towards the West.

"Burn it so that there is no spirit left. No truces. Any truce, let alone reconciliation, is certain death for our children and grandchildren."

The comments come as the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) adopted three resolutions relating to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Among them is recognition of Russia's intent in destroying Ukraine's cultural heritage and identity.

quote:

More Americans are ending up in Russian jails. Prospects for their release are unclear

^{This photo combination shows some of the U.S. citizens who are in Russian custody. Clockwise from top left are Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, corporate security executive Paul Whelan, Army Staff Sgt. Gordon Black, a dual U.S.-Russian national Robert Woodland Romanov, Prague-based editor for the U.S. government-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s Tatar-Bashkir service Alsu Kurmasheva, and a dual U.S.-Russian national Ksenia Karelina also known as Khavana. (AP Photo)}

One was a journalist on a reporting trip. Another was attending a wedding. Yet another was a dual national returning to visit family.

All are U.S. citizens now behind bars in Russia on various charges.

Arrests of Americans in Russia are increasingly common with relations sinking to Cold War lows. Washington accuses Moscow of using U.S. citizens as bargaining chips, but Russia insists they all broke the law.

While high-profile prisoner exchanges have occurred, the prospects of swaps are unclear.

“It seems that since Moscow itself has cut off most of the communication channels and does not know how to restore them properly without losing face, they are trying to use the hostages. … At least that’s what it looks like,” said Boris Bondarev, a former Russian diplomat who quit after Moscow invaded Ukraine in 2022.

SPOILER

quote:

Who is known to be in Russian custody?
EVAN GERSHKOVICH — The 32-year-old Wall Street Journal reporter faces trial Wednesday on espionage charges that he, his employer and the U.S. government deny. He was detained in March 2023 while reporting in the city of Yekaterinburg and accused of spying. Russia alleges Gershkovich was “gathering secret information” at the CIA’s behest about a facility that produces and repairs military equipment. It provided no evidence to support the accusations.

PAUL WHELAN — The 54-year-old corporate security executive from Michigan was arrested in 2018 in Moscow where he was attending a friend’s wedding, convicted two years later of espionage, and sentenced to 16 years in prison. He maintains his innocence, saying the charges were fabricated.

TRAVIS LEAKE — The musician was arrested in 2023 on drug charges. An Instagram page describes him as the singer for the band Lovi Noch (Seize the Night). Court officials have said he is a former paratrooper.

MARC FOGEL — The Moscow teacher was sentenced to 14 years in prison, also on drug charges. The Interfax news agency said Fogel taught at the Anglo-American School in Moscow and had worked at the U.S. Embassy. Interfax cited court officials as saying Fogel has admitted guilt.

GORDON BLACK — The 34-year-old staff sergeant stationed at Fort Cavazos, Texas, was convicted June 19 in Vladivostok of stealing and making threats against his girlfriend, and was sentenced to three years and nine months in prison. He had flown to Russia from his U.S. military post in South Korea without authorization and was arrested in May after she accused him of stealing from her, according to U.S. and Russian authorities.

ROBERT WOODLAND — Woodland, a dual national, is on trial in Moscow on drug- trafficking charges. Russian media reported his name matches a U.S. citizen interviewed in 2020 who said he was born in the Perm region in 1991 and adopted by an American couple at age 2. He said he traveled to Russia to find his mother and eventually met her on a TV show. Woodland was charged with trafficking drugs as part of an organized group — punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

ALSU KURMASHEVA — Kurmasheva, a dual U.S.-Russian national, was arrested in 2023 in her hometown of Kazan. The Prague-based editor for the U.S. government-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s Tatar-Bashkir service was visiting her ailing mother. She faces multiple charges, including not self-reporting as a “foreign agent” and spreading false information about the Russian military.

KSENIA KHAVANA — Khavana, 33, was arrested in Yekaterinburg in February on treason charges, accused of collecting money for Ukraine’s military. Independent Russian news outlet Mediazona identified her by her maiden name of Karelina, and said she had U.S. citizenship after marrying an American. She returned to Russia from Los Angeles to visit family. The rights group Pervy Otdel said the charges stem from a $51 donation to a U.S. charity that helps Ukraine.

DAVID BARNES — An engineer from Texas, Barnes was arrested while visiting his sons in Russia, where their mother had taken them. His supporters say the woman made baseless claims of sexual abuse that already had been discredited by Texas investigators but he was convicted in Russia anyway and sentenced to prison.

What’s the process for negotiations?
Gershkovich and Whelan have gotten the most attention, with the State Department designating both as wrongfully detained. The designation is applied to only a small subset of Americans jailed by foreign countries.

Those cases go to a special State Department envoy for hostage affairs, who tries to negotiate their release. They must meet certain criteria, including a determination the arrest came solely because the person is a U.S. national or part of an effort to influence U.S. policy or extract concessions from the government.

The U.S. successfully negotiated swaps in 2022 for WNBA star Brittney Griner and Marine veteran Trevor Reed — both designated as wrongfully detained. Moscow got arms dealer Viktor Bout, who was serving a 25-year sentence, and pilot Konstantin Yaroshenko, serving 20 years for cocaine trafficking.

It’s unclear how many Americans are jailed in Russia or if negotiations are in the works for them.

Kurmasheva’s husband, Pavel Butorin, told The Associated Press after her arrest he hoped the U.S. government would use “every avenue and every means available to it” to win her release, including designating her as wrongfully detained.

Is the West holding anyone Russia wants?
In December, the State Department said it had made a significant offer for Gershkovich and Whelan but Russia rejected it.

Officials did not give details, although Russia has been said to be seeking Vadim Krasikov, serving a life sentence in Germany in 2021 for the killing of Zelimkhan “Tornike” Khangoshvili, a Georgian citizen of Chechen descent who had fought Russian troops in Chechnya and later claimed asylum in Germany.

President Vladimir Putin, asked about releasing Gershkovich, appeared to refer to Krasikov by pointing to a man imprisoned by a U.S. ally for “liquidating a bandit” who had allegedly killed Russian soldiers in Chechnya.

Beyond that, Russia has stayed silent. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov says such swaps “must be carried out in absolute silence.”

Historically, when relations are better, “the exchanges seem to be smoother,” said Nina Khrushcheva, a professor of international affairs at the New School in New York and the great-granddaughter of Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev.

She cited prisoner swaps between the USSR and Chile in the 1970s, as well as those with the U.S. and Germany shortly after Mikhail Gorbachev took office in the 1980s involving dissidents Vladimir Bukovsky and Natan Sharansky.

Ultimately, the decision “is only in Putin’s hands,” Khrushcheva said.

In Gershkovich’s case, an exchange might also involve concessions, possibly related to Ukraine, said Sam Greene of the Center for European Policy Analysis.

“Even if the immediate reason to get people around the (negotiating) table is Evan and a prisoner exchange, that allows them to get right up to the line and to say: ‘OK, we’ve got 98% of the deal, but if you really want to get this done, there’s this other thing we’d really like to talk about,’” like sanctions or another Ukraine-related issue, he said.

“The Kremlin is perfectly happy to hold onto Evan as long as it possibly can. And so its incentive is to get as much for him as possible,” Greene said.

quote:

Op donderdag 27 juni 2024 20:53 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
[ x ]

quote:

Congress gives new NATO leader blank slate — despite past Trump criticisms
Mark Rutte is mostly starting from square one as he establishes relationships with key U.S. lawmakers tasked with doling out dollars and military assistance internationally.

Mark Rutte is grabbing the reins of NATO at a perilous time for the alliance — but he’ll be starting with effectively a blank slate among U.S. lawmakers.

House members, even those with extensive foreign policy portfolios, say they’ve yet to hear from the incoming secretary general of NATO and many lawmakers know next to nothing about him. That means Rutte, who the alliance formally selected as its next leader on Wednesday, will have significant work to do to establish and develop relationships with U.S. lawmakers tasked with doling out dollars and military assistance internationally.

Democrats who do know the incumbent Dutch prime minister had warm words about his capabilities even as they acknowledged potential friction — particularly if former President Donald Trump regains the White House. Current NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg still holds the post until Oct. 1, a possible reason U.S. lawmakers said they’d not yet had direct outreach from Rutte.

SPOILER

quote:

“Having had to navigate European politics, I would say he’s well-prepared to handle ours as well,” Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), president of the NATO parliamentary assembly, told POLITICO.

Connolly said he, along with a bipartisan U.S. delegation, met with Rutte last summer and found him to be “smart, accomplished, politically skilled, very affable, easy to relate to … I think our whole delegation liked him.”

Republicans were a bit more circumspect, signaling they were looking forward to working with Rutte but not praising him outright. While Rutte is generally known for a low-key and consensus-building leadership style, he has directly confronted Trump multiple times, particularly after the then-president threatened to pull the U.S. out of NATO. Those threats could easily continue if Trump wins the White House, and NATO already has significant existing problems given the threat of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“NATO is in place because people like Putin exist,” said Rep. Jack Bergman (R-Mich.), another member of the NATO parliamentary assembly. “You got to pull your own weight. Every country brings different capabilities to the table. All of our countries in NATO — whether it's manpower, whether it's technology — what they all need to bring to the table is commitment.”

The prime minister’s experience in assembling complex coalitions makes Rutte a “great choice” to take over the alliance, according to Rep. Jason Crow (D-Colo.), as NATO tries to insulate itself from possible attacks by Trump should he regain the White House.

“He's widely respected, has a lot of support within NATO, which of course gets him off on a good start,” Crow, another member of the parliamentary assembly, said in a brief interview. “Secretary General Stoltenberg did an incredible job. Mr. Rutte, he's got big shoes to fill but I think he's up to the task.”

House Intelligence Committee Chair Mike Turner (R-Ohio), who is also head of the U.S. delegation to the NATO parliamentary assembly, extended “sincere congratulations” to Rutte on Wednesday in a statement and said he looked forward to “strengthening the Alliance and bolstering our collective defense capabilities.”

Conservatives pronounced themselves agnostic about Rutte's ascension, but indicated he should prepare himself for Trump to adopt a similar stance toward the alliance if Trump returns.

“I would anticipate if President Trump was reelected that he will continue to support NATO, but press Europe to do its fair share in NATO,” Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said in a brief interview.

“I think President Trump also will be rightly reluctant to engage in foreign adventurism. I think one of the mistakes of the Biden administration is being far too eager to engage in foreign adventurism,” the Texas Republican added.

The offices of Sens. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) and Jim Risch (R-Idaho), leaders of the Foreign Relations Committee, didn’t respond to requests for comment on whether Rutte had reached out. The House Foreign Affairs Committee leaders, Reps. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) and Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.), said they knew Rutte — but Meeks said he not heard from him since he won the nod to lead the alliance.

“The key is the dialogue and conversation between the NATO nations, to make sure everyone is doing their fair share and working together,” said Meeks. “And I think that if he does that [that] helps with every member — Democrat, Republican.”

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A bloc of 70 Republicans supported an amendment from Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) that would prohibit any additional funding for Ukraine amid its ongoing war with Russia as the chamber considers a defense funding package.

Support for Ukraine among House GOP members has eroded as the conflict continues, even though Congress ultimately approved a foreign aid package with funds for Ukraine earlier this year over conservative objections.

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Op donderdag 27 juni 2024 21:15 schreef BEFEM het volgende:

[..]
De eerste tweet heeft het over shells en de tweede heeft het over shell bodies...

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Op donderdag 27 juni 2024 21:19 schreef Delenlill het volgende:

[..]
Je raadt nooit wat er gemaakt wordt met die shell bodies.

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Op donderdag 27 juni 2024 21:19 schreef BEFEM het volgende:

[..]
Maar shell bodies is niet het enige wat je nodig hebt. Dat lijkt me wel duidelijk.

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Op donderdag 27 juni 2024 20:28 schreef Cilantro het volgende:
[ x ]

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Czechia has sent first 50,000 shells to Ukraine, minister says
The Czech Republic has delivered the first 50,000 shells to Ukraine as part of the Prague-led initiative, the country's defense minister Jana Cernohov� said on June 27, the Czech Press Agency (CTK) reported.

Czech President Petr Pavel said in February that Prague had identified 500,000 155mm shells and 300,000 122 mm shells outside Europe that could be bought and sent to Ukraine after the necessary funds were allocated to the initiative.

Ukraine has received the first batch of artillery shells "some time ago," Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said on June 25. Prague worked on the shipment jointly with Germany, CTK wrote.

According to the defense ministry, 50,000 shells make up the first batch of 180,000 rounds of ammunition financed by Germany.

The Czech Republic allocated almost over 34 million euro ($36 million) for the effort, Fiala said. The money will be used to purchase shells from STV Group, the Czech ammunition producer.

Several countries, including the Czech Republic, Germany, Denmark, Portugal, Canada, and the Netherlands, have since contributed funds to the Czech initiative, which may result in the delivery of 1.5 million rounds to Kyiv, Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky said in late March.

More than 1.6 billion euros ($1.7 million) have been allocated for the effort, according to the prime minister.

Pavel launched the initiative against the backdrop of Ukraine losing the key front-line city of Avdiivka in February amid a severe ammunition shortage.

Moscow is still outpacing the West in securing artillery supplies on international markets, the Czech government said, fearing that delayed payments to arms companies could result in millions of munitions being shipped to Moscow rather than Kyiv, the Financial Times reported in late May.

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Op donderdag 27 juni 2024 21:08 schreef polderturk het volgende:
[ x ]

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Op donderdag 27 juni 2024 20:55 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
https://news.sky.com/stor(...)880907#liveblog-body
[..]

SPOILER

quote:

"05.06.2024 Donetsk region, district of settlement Ocheretino.

This is what happens when a driver drives using a navigator: he drives straight to zero. As a result, the T-64BM Bulat tank and the MAN HX 81 tractor were destroyed. One person was killed and another was captured.

Coordinates: 48.25649, 37.56024"

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Russia Conducts Widespread Torture and Abuse of Ukrainian Civilian Detainees and POWs, UN Reports
Protest in Vilnius in support of the Ukrainians captured by Russia, May 20, 2024. (Source: Ukrainian Embassy in Lithuania)

The 26th of June marked the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture. The Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (HRMMU) works on preventing torture, documenting violations, and holding the guilty accountable.

The HRMMU was deployed in 2014 and has the goal of monitoring and issuing public reports on human rights conditions, aiming to strengthen human rights protection and ensure accountability for those responsible for human rights abuses.

Since February 2022, HRMMU interviewed over 600 released Ukrainian civilian detainees and prisoners of war (POWs), including those who were freed from Russian captivity on 31 May.

In line with earlier findings, each participant in this recent exchange has recounted instances of torture, ranging from severe beatings and prolonged stress positions to electric shocks applied to genitals and attacks by dogs.

SPOILER

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“Torture was applied to whole groups of prisoners. For example, in a so-called “admission procedure” to a facility located in the Russian Federation, POWs had to walk between rows of guards who beat them with police batons or tasered them. Exhausting physical exercises and humiliation, such as forcing POWs to memorize and sing Russian patriotic songs, also continued to be part of the daily routines,” United Nations Ukraine reported in a press release.

Numerous interviewed detainees, who were exchanged, reported enduring constant hunger while in captivity, along with prolonged deprivation of adequate medical care and poor hygiene. These conditions frequently resulted in significant weight loss and the onset of skin diseases among POWs, even losing teeth. These accounts were consistent with the observations made by HRMMU, where the physical state of the interviewees corroborated their testimonies.

“International humanitarian law reflects fundamental values that even amid the horror of war aim to preserve our humanity”, said the head of HRMMU Danielle Bell. “The protection and humane treatment of prisoners in the hands of belligerent parties is central to those values.

Among those reporting massive abuse of POWs are the exchanged defenders of Azovstal, who surrendered in May 2022, becoming Russia’s POWs. Around 1500 Azovstal soldiers remain captured, including 700 Azov Brigade fighters. For more than two years they have been denied access to international observers and communication with family and Ukrainian authorities.

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Op donderdag 27 juni 2024 23:12 schreef oheng het volgende:
Israel: 8 x Patriot Pac-2 batterijen naar Oekraine?

Paywall linkje

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Op donderdag 27 juni 2024 23:23 schreef ExTec het volgende:

[..]
Yup, van de twitters, zonder paywall.

[ x ]

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Op donderdag 27 juni 2024 21:15 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
https://www.politico.com/(...)blank-slate-00165301
[..]

SPOILER

[..]

Van dezelfde life feed:
[..]

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Op donderdag 27 juni 2024 23:40 schreef Shotty het volgende:
Maar hij heeft wel altijd achter Oekra�ne gestaan, heeft veel politieke capaciteiten, en is aalglad. Met een beetje mazzel bezorgd hij Poetin meer hoofdpijn dan Zelensky :-)

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Op donderdag 27 juni 2024 21:41 schreef TwenteFC het volgende:
[ x ]

Het zijn dit soort filmpjes waardoor de steun voor Oekra�ne voor nooit genoeg kan zijn tot de laatste rus vrijwillig of in een lijkzak terug gaat naar die shithole waar ze vandaan kwamen.

Ze denken als nazi's, ze gedragen zich als nazi's en ze zijn er maar wat trots op.

Ben wel benieuwd wat voor mensen het zijn die openlijk rusland steunen, kom ze alleen op het internet tegen.

quote:

Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 00:01 schreef Cilantro het volgende:
[ x ]

quote:

Op donderdag 27 juni 2024 21:41 schreef TwenteFC het volgende:
[ x ]

Het zijn dit soort filmpjes waardoor de steun voor Oekra�ne voor nooit genoeg kan zijn tot de laatste rus vrijwillig of in een lijkzak terug gaat naar die shithole waar ze vandaan kwamen.

Ze denken als nazi's, ze gedragen zich als nazi's en ze zijn er maar wat trots op.

Ben wel benieuwd wat voor mensen het zijn die openlijk rusland steunen, kom ze alleen op het internet tegen.

quote:

Russia accused of flashing violent Ukraine war images on children’s TV channels

A UN agency is investigating accusations that Russia hacked into Ukrainian television and flashed violent imagery from its invasion of the country on children’s channels, according to a report.

Ukraine and other European nations have complained to the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) about the alleged satellite interference impacting navigation services and television shows, The Telegraph reported.

Ukraine, in its complaint to the ITU on 3 June, recorded at least 11 cases of interference in the last three months affecting dozens of Ukrainian television programmes, the report added. ITU is a specialized agency of the UN responsible for matters related to information and communication technologies.

The alleged interference by Russia hit children’s channels and resulted in the flashing of violent images of Moscow’s bloodied invasion between the regular programming. The hacking jammed GPS signals and could endanger air traffic control, according to the EU in a statement submitted to the ITU earlier this month.

SPOILER

quote:

Officials in Kyiv have sought action from the UN agency to “take all possible measures to stop interventions of the Russian Federation”. These claims made by Kyiv are now set to be reviewed by the ITU this week.

Both Russia and Ukraine have attempted the “hacking” of each other’s television, satellite and internet broadcasts since the February 2022 invasion.

Prosecutors at the International Criminal Court were reportedly investigating alleged Russian cyberattacks on Ukrainian civilian infrastructure as possible war crimes, four sources familiar with the case said earlier this month.

This marks the first confirmation that attacks in cyberspace are being investigated by international prosecutors, which could lead to arrest warrants if enough evidence is gathered.

The probe is examining attacks on infrastructure that endangered lives by disrupting power and water supplies, cutting connections to emergency responders or knocking out mobile data services that transmit air raid warnings, one official said.

The latest incident includes hacking attempts from Russian sources on 9 May when Ukrainian and Latvian television broadcasts were halted by the footage of Moscow’s Victory Day parade, forcing Ukrainian providers to switch to an alternative transmission method.

A similar attempt was made on the same day on Russian broadcasting of the parade by “unknown hackers”, according to a report by Ukrainian newspaper Ukrainska Pravda.

The Russian viewers in Omsk ad Irkutsk cities were made to see footage of the terror attack on Crocus City Hall near Moscow. It identified Russian soldiers in Ukraine, already labelled by their names, as “murderer”.

In July last year, millions of Russians watching TV were warned that their “hour of reckoning was coming”. The video was reportedly made by the Ukraine’s ministry of defence and included Kyiv’s military advancements. The footage was stopped with text warning reading “the hour of reckoning has come” in Ukrainian language.

Ukraine’s cyber spy chief in January said Russian hackers were inside Ukrainian telecoms giant Kyivstar’s system from at least May last year in a cyberattack, which should be seen as a “big warning” to the West.

The Independent has always had a global perspective. Built on a firm foundation of superb international reporting and analysis, The Independent now enjoys a reach that was inconceivable when it was launched as an upstart player in the British news industry. For the first time since the end of the Second World War, and across the world, pluralism, reason, a progressive and humanitarian agenda, and internationalism – Independent values – are under threat. Yet we, The Independent, continue to grow.

quote:

Weimar Triangle starts preparing for a standoff with Russia
Germany, France, and Poland are renewing the forgotten Weimar Triangle to bolster the EU's defense capabilities with plans to buy long-range missiles and hold military exercises together.

^{The so-called Weimar Triangle format is becoming more relevant again}

The regional alliance of France, Germany and Poland created in 1991 called the "Weimar Triangle" has largely been put on ice in recent years.

However, Russia's invasion of Ukraine that markedly changed the foreign policies of Germany and France toward Russia, has made the format relevant again.

Relations were strained under Poland's previously nationalist government , which recently lost power in the country to a government more open to European cooperation.

Lukasz Jasinski, an analyst at the Polish Institute of International Affairs, told DW that all these factors happening together have created a window of opportunity for the Weimar Triangle.

"This is a short moment when this cooperation is in the interest of three countries, when there is political will and there are perspectives and ideas bringing their cooperation on a very practical level," explained Jasinski, adding that the aim of the Weimar Triangle is to send a strong political message to Russia.

SPOILER

quote:

In March, Emmanuel Macron, Olaf Scholz and Donald Tusk met in Berlin to renew the Weimar format and primarily discussed working together in supporting Ukraine.

On Monday in Paris, the defense ministers of the triangle announced more concrete steps to strengthen Europe's role in NATO as a plan B in a scenario where Americans would not come to the aid of Europe in case of an attack.

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius and his Polish and French counterparts, Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz and Sebastien Lecornu, announced plans to buy long-range missiles, setting up a mechanism to procure "deep precision strike weapons" such as cruise missiles together.

^{Europe lacks cruise missiles to deal with a possible attack from the east}

Counterbalancing Russia
Carlo Masala, a professor of international politics at the Bundeswehr University Munich, told DW that regardless of who wins the US elections in November, Europe must take on more responsibility.

Masala explained that it is not necessarily about organizing the defense on the eastern flank of Europe, but more about building up capabilities, such as cruise missiles and air defense, as a counterbalance to Russia.

"If Russia would attack the Baltics and try to prevent other European countries from running to the defense of the Baltic, they will send the cruise missiles and ballistic missiles to European capitals. And we don't have the air defense to protect European cities," Masala said.

The precondition to stand up to Russia successfully is to have the right capabilities to strike back deep inside Russia's territory, Masala added.

"If you have to fight Russia, the first thing you have to do is to destroy stuff Russia needs to basically conduct a large-scale military operation and those facilities are deep inside Russia, and we can't reach them. So, long range is exactly the capability we need," he explained.

Cruise missiles fly low over the ground, making them harder to detect by radar. Europe's existing stocks of cruise missiles currently include relatively old and expensive systems such as Britain's Storm Shadow, France's Scalp and Germany's Taurus. These missiles that have a range of several hundred kilometers have seen a huge revival since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Show of military strength
One of the key takeaways from the latest Weimar Triangle meeting is that it resulted in plans to hold joint military exercises. And Poland will host them next year. The armed forces of the three states are to be deployed together in Poland on the eastern flank of NATO and the EU, practicing for a potential attack from Russia.

"The allies of the Weimar Triangle are becoming a reality," Kosiniak-Kamysz stated after their meeting. Pistorius added that the aim is to make the Weimar Triangle format more visible, not only in person, but also beyond that, through the armed forces.

Jasinski said that the Weimar initiative would not be able to create an alternative to NATO. "It's about military mobility to make the deployment of armed forces much quicker, some experts even use the cliche of a so-called military Schengen," Jasinski added.

The Weimar Triangle is not only looking through the prism of the number of tanks or weapons, but also at cyber attacks, Russian interference in democratic elections and disinformation, Jasinski said.

^{The armed forces of the Weimar Triangle are to be deployed together in Poland next year.}

Possible weak points
There is, however, a distinct possibility that the Weimar Triangle cooperation may not be successful.

"One showstopper is going to be probably the 2027 election in France. I think all this will come to an end probably once Marine Le Pen is going to be elected the next French president," Masala said.

According to the Polish Institute of International Affair's Jasinski, the big question for the Weimar Triangle is how it can withstand the influence of populist policies in countries such as France and Germany.

"The Weimar Triangle is not a separate international organization which is very useful because thanks to this the format is very flexible. But on the other hand, the big question is how to make the Weimar Triangle, so to speak, populist-proof in the worst-case scenario," Jasinski said.

quote:

Bulgarian president declines government proposal to lead delegation to NATO summit
Bulgarian President Rumen Radev has turned down a government proposal to lead the country’s delegation to NATO’s July summit in Washington, D.C., saying he was not consulted while it worked out the official position of the country and its commitments regarding the war in Ukraine, his press office said Thursday.

The decision comes on the heels of heated debates between pro-Russian and pro-Western parties in Bulgaria about whether Radev, as the commander-in-chief of the military, should represent the country at the NATO summit.

Radev has often been criticized by political opponents for his Kremlin-friendly position in the aftermath of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and for his public remarks that sending military aid to Kyiv would extend the conflict. He has referred to those favoring military aid to Ukraine as “warmongers.”

Delyan Peevski, who leads a liberal pro-Western party and is one of Radev’s harshest critics, called the refusal “a confirmation that Radev’s positions serve foreign, not national interests and are subjected to dependencies and ties in the East, contrary to the Euro-Atlantic values and principles”.

Bulgaria, one of Moscow’s closest allies during the Cold War era, joined NATO in 2004. Although the presidential post is mostly ceremonial, it provides a strong platform to influence public opinion. Large parts of the country’s population of about 6.6 million, surveys show, share pro-Russian sympathies based on historical and cultural bonds between the two nations.

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House overwhelmingly rejects Greene, Gosar efforts to cut off aid to Ukraine
The House on Thursday rejected a flurry of amendments offered to an appropriations bill from Reps. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) and Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) to cut off aid to Ukraine, a signal of bipartisan support for Ukraine.

Gosar and Greene proposed a series of amendments to the State Department, foreign operations and related programs appropriations bill that would have cut off funding to Ukraine amid its war with Russia.

Gosar’s amendments would have prohibited funds for foreign military sales to Ukraine, the bilateral security agreement between the U.S. and Ukraine and the special representative for Ukraine’s economic recovery. Greene’s amendment would have cut off all funding for Ukraine.

Gosar’s amendments failed on a bipartisan basis, with the House voting down the foreign military sales amendment 61-350, the security agreement amendment 76-334 and the economic recovery amendment 109-303.

Greene’s amendment faced a similar fate with a 70-342 vote.

SPOILER

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Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fla.), chair of the House Appropriations State and Foreign Operations Subcommittee, rose in opposition to Gosar’s amendments, calling them a “monumental mistake” that would “potentially embolden our enemies, including Russia.”

Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), the ranking member of the subcommittee, also rose in opposition, saying the amendments would send “a terrible message.”

Greene and Gosar are part of a group of Republicans who have opposed funding to Ukraine since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.

Former President Trump has spoken critically of U.S. aid to Ukraine, and the subject is likely to be raised at Thursday night’s debate. President Biden and Trump differ significantly in their positions on Ukraine.

The House months ago approved a new aid package for Ukraine, but it did so without the support of a majority of Republicans in that chamber. It is unclear whether aid would be continued by a GOP-controlled Congress working with Trump.

The latest aid package was approved after Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) chose to bring the legislation to the floor despite threats from Greene that she would seek to depose him from leadership. Greene later sought to dismiss Johnson as Speaker, but the effort was easily cast aside.

Gosar and Greene both introduced their amendments Wednesday night and spoke on the House floor about the need to “end forever wars.”

“The United States has spent $600 million in government sales to Ukraine,” Gosar said. “The U.S. should not approve foreign military sales to foreign countries like Ukraine that has arrested priests, raided monastery, suspended opposition parties and consolidated all television platforms into a single state channel.”

Ukraine is currently under martial law, imposed by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, as part of the nation’s effort to ward off Russia’s invasion of his country. Ukraine arrested an Orthodox Christian leader in April, alleging that he was helping spread Russian propaganda.

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Support for Farage's Reform UK party drops after Ukraine comments
Support for Nigel Farage's right-wing Reform UK party has fallen ahead of a July 4 election, a poll showed on Thursday, after he said the West had provoked Russian President Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine.

The BMG Research opinion poll for the i newspaper, carried out June 24-26, put support for Reform on 16%, down from a record high of 19% last week. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's Conservatives were on 20%, up from 19% previously.

Keir Starmer's opposition Labour Party remained far ahead on 42%.

A separate YouGov poll conducted on June 24-25 reported a one point drop in support for Reform to 17%, with the Conservatives and Labour also down one point each on 18% and 36% respectively.

In an interview with the BBC aired last Friday, Farage said he stood by previous comments that Russia's invasion of Ukraine was a consequence of the eastward expansion of the European Union and NATO.

SPOILER

quote:

The remarks by Farage, one of the country's most recognisable and divisive politicians, drew strong criticism across the British political spectrum, but he went on to repeat them again during campaigning this week.

Britain has been a vocal backer of Ukraine since the February 2022 invasion and polls taken earlier this year showed British public support also remained solid.

The dip in support for Reform could ease some of the pressure on the Conservatives after Farage's surprise entry into the election race threatened to divert right-of-centre votes away from Sunak's party.

"This is a glimmer of hope for the Conservatives as the Reform surge appears to have stalled," Rob Struthers, BMG Research Director said.

"However, the overall picture for Rishi Sunak remains extremely bleak ... Labour's lead over the Conservatives remains above 20 points. This leaves little doubt that the Conservatives are fighting to avoid a near wipeout next week."

Reform said on Thursday it had won the backing of former Newcastle soccer club owner John Hall, who has previously donated hundreds of thousands of pounds to the Conservatives and has now made a "substantial donation" to Farage's party.

Any hope that the Conservatives could narrow the gap on Labour in the final weeks has been tested after five people from the Conservative Party, including two candidates, were investigated over bets on the timing of the election.

London's Metropolitan Police said on Thursday it was investigating "a small number of bets" made on the timing of the election, with possible offences including Misconduct in a Public Office.

In a boost for Labour, the Economist magazine on Thursday gave it their backing. Under the headline "Keir Starmer should be Britain's next prime minister," it said while no party fully subscribed to the ideas it held dear, the choice was clear.

"If we had a vote on July 4th, we, too, would pick Labour, because it has the greatest chance of tackling the biggest problem that Britain faces: a chronic and debilitating lack of economic growth," it said.

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 07:52 schreef Raw85 het volgende:
Het topic wordt er niet echt lekker leesbaar van zo

quote:

Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 09:50 schreef Papierversnipperaar het volgende:

[..]
Met jouw nutteloze post posten, bedoel je?

quote:

Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 07:52 schreef Raw85 het volgende:
Het topic wordt er niet echt lekker leesbaar van zo

quote:

Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 09:51 schreef NeeOfTochJA het volgende:
Idd een hoop lappen text met spam.

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 10:06 schreef zuchtje het volgende:

[..]
Bedankt voor uw waardevolle bijdrage die ook helemaal niks bijdraagt! Laten we nu het er nu (weer) met zijn allen lekker off-topic gaan klagen over hoe waardevol een post is, en daarbij het topic nog minder leesbaar maken! Constructief, je mening geven over de vorm, en niet de inhoud!

Als er geen desinformatie voorhanden is, ga je maar op de messengers schieten?

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 10:10 schreef NeeOfTochJA het volgende:

[..]
Schieten op lappen text niet op de messenger, wat jij wel doet.

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 10:03 schreef ExTec het volgende:

[..]
Herhaling van zetten.

Er zijn veel mensen die deze posts waarderen, als overzicht van wat in de tussentijd is gebeurt.

Ik scan de meeste van die posts ook wel, en klik af en toe iets aan als het me interessant lijkt.

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 10:03 schreef ExTec het volgende:

[..]
Herhaling van zetten.

Er zijn veel mensen die deze posts waarderen, als overzicht van wat in de tussentijd is gebeurt.

Ik scan de meeste van die posts ook wel, en klik af en toe iets aan als het me interessant lijkt.

quote:

Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 10:33 schreef Raw85 het volgende:

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Oh ik waardeer de bijdragen en gedane moeite ook wel hoor. Handig als overzicht inderdaad, maar als soms 17 van de 25 posts op een pagina bestaan uit lange stukken zonder context of iets gepost door ��n user dan vind ik het juist wat minder overzichtelijk worden. Maar zal aan mij liggen

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 10:35 schreef dudewhereismycar het volgende:

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Ligt aan jou.

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A conventionally powered Portuguese attack submarine has completed a rare voyage under the Arctic ice. As well as being a first-of-its-kind mission for the Portuguese Navy, the deployment underlines the growing importance of the Arctic theater to NATO’s submarine fleet. Although it’s nuclear-powered boats that traditionally dominate in this challenging area of operations, the Portuguese deployment demonstrates that conventionally powered submarines have a role to play here too.

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 12:08 schreef xpompompomx het volgende:
Het is wel een beetje tekenend voor staat van de Nederlandse marine dat notabene een land Portugal dit kan doen:
Portuguese Diesel-Electric AIP Submarine Just Patrolled Under The Arctic Ice
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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 12:12 schreef Ulx het volgende:

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Hoezo wil een Portugees succes iets zeggen over de Koninklijke Marine?

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 12:12 schreef Ulx het volgende:

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Hoezo wil een Portugees succes iets zeggen over de Koninklijke Marine?

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 12:13 schreef xpompompomx het volgende:

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Wij mochten willen dat we al duikboten met luchtonafhankelijke aandrijving hebben.

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 12:14 schreef Cilantro het volgende:
[ x ]

Rob de Wijk is weer paniek aan het zaaien.

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 12:15 schreef StateOfMind het volgende:
[ afbeelding ]

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 12:43 schreef Papierversnipperaar het volgende:

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Dan moeten we Rusland maar zo snel mogelijk plat bombarderen.

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 12:14 schreef Cilantro het volgende:
[ x ]

Rob de Wijk is weer paniek aan het zaaien.

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 13:33 schreef Cilantro het volgende:
[ x ]👀

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 13:30 schreef dudewhereismycar het volgende:

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Ik vind na het lezen van dat artikel, die paniek wel meevallen. Ik lees dat nergens.

Vrij realistische blik: Rusland heeft een kleine economie en kan daardoor nooit dominant worden etc.

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 13:33 schreef Cilantro het volgende:
[ x ]👀

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 13:44 schreef dudewhereismycar het volgende:

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Kosten voor een S500 setup: 2.5 miljard.

Hopelijk snel een filmpje met bewijs, want dat is dan wel groot nieuws. Het vlaggenschip van de luchtverdediging kapot geschoten door een rakket..

De oorlog toont goed aan hoeveel troep die Russen hebben gemaakt. Het enige dat succesvol is gebleken is de Ak47 en FAB bommen. Alles dat modern moet zijn faalt.

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 13:41 schreef AgLarrr het volgende:

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Een aantal mensen op FOK! reageert op Rob van Wijk zoals ze tijdens Corona op van Dissel deden: met gebrek aan achtergrond, daardoor niet in staat context danwel nuance aan te brengen �n allergisch voor iemand die vanuit zijn expertise durft te menen iets beter te weten dan zij.

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 13:33 schreef Cilantro het volgende:
[ x ]👀

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 12:14 schreef Cilantro het volgende:
[ x ]

Rob de Wijk is weer paniek aan het zaaien.

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 12:29 schreef inslagenreuring het volgende:
Heb het een tijdje niet gevolgd. Maakt Oekra�ne inmiddels een opmars met de nieuwe leveranties?

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 18:54 schreef polderturk het volgende:
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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 17:35 schreef Discombobulate het volgende:

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Niet bepaald, het blijft hooguit hetzelfde alleen veel minder Russische terreinwinst ten opzichte van een maand geleden ofzo.

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 15:16 schreef ExTec het volgende:
Meanwhile in sovjet russia.

[ x ]

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 19:11 schreef Ulx het volgende:

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Oekra�ne heeft toch een stadje teruggepakt? Of de restanten daarvan. Maar daarnaast is het vooral gebleven bij Russen doodmaken. En dat gaat prima op het moment.
Ze zijn ook helemaal niet aan een tegenoffensief begonnen. Ik denk ook niet dat je dat moet verwachten voor de eerste 12-18 F-16's aanwezig zijn.

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 19:31 schreef Discombobulate het volgende:

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Tja, vorig jaar zei je dat de Krim allang heroverd was.

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 19:37 schreef Ulx het volgende:

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Was dat voor of nadat je zei dat de Russen in drie dagen in Kyiv zouden staan?

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 19:39 schreef Discombobulate het volgende:

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Dat heb ik nooit gezegd dus laat die onzin maar achterwege. Jij wel namelijk. Dat hele Kiev gedoe was van te voren al gedoemd tot falen, ik deelde de mening van Rob de Wijk in deze.

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 19:45 schreef Ulx het volgende:

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Je zag meteen dat de Russische elitetroepen inferieur waren aan de lokale politieagenten en de reservisten. Die ze dan ook gelijk van Hostomel aftrapten waardoor de hele inval mislukte?

Je hebt er blijkbaar kijk op.

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 19:26 schreef polderturk het volgende:
Hopelijk wordt hij snel kapot geschoten.

[ x ]

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 19:52 schreef Discombobulate het volgende:

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Nee, het aantal. Wat was het, 80k ofzo?

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 17:35 schreef Discombobulate het volgende:

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Niet bepaald, het blijft hooguit hetzelfde alleen veel minder Russische terreinwinst ten opzichte van een maand geleden ofzo.

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 19:26 schreef polderturk het volgende:
Hopelijk wordt hij snel kapot geschoten.

[ x ]

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European ammo companies call on the EU to increase their funding

^{Production of 155-mm shells at the Rheinmetall plant. Photo from the company's website}

European artillery shell producers are calling on the European Union to increase funding to create a strong production base.

The ammunition manufacturers Nammo and KNDS stated this during the Eurosatory defense exhibition in Paris.

The manufacturers emphasized that the European Union should invest in expanding the production of artillery shells now, as companies will not be able to increase production rates immediately, but systematically.

“The response from the industry: hurry up,” said Morten Brandtzaeg, the CEO of Nammo.

SPOILER

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^{Production of DM121 155mm artillery shells. Photo credits: Rheinmetall}

In addition, the expansion of production should provide priority assistance to Ukraine in creating large reserves of 155-mm artillery shells, which are still in short supply.

According to the manufacturers, the European Union has a sufficient number of enterprises that could expand production to produce 2 million artillery shells per year from 2025.

The EU is currently implementing the ASAP program (Act in Support of Ammunition Production), under which it has allocated �500 million to expand the production of casings for artillery ammunition, powder, detonators, etc.

According to the French-German company KNDS, they are seeking an additional �200 million from the countries.


Production of 155-mm shells at the BAE Systems plant in Washington, DC. Photo credits: BAE Systems
The allocated funds in the amount of �500 million are not intended to conduct development and research of improved versions of shells that would increase the range and accuracy.

It was also noted that the cost of one artillery shell produced in Europe ranges from $5,000 to $10,000.

Additionally, the NAMMO noted that the increase in the cost of artillery shells is due to a number of factors, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the high demand for shells, powder, and detonators.

Militarnyi previously reported that Northrop Grumman will set up ammunition production in Ukraine.

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A drone strikes an oil depot in the Tambov Oblast of Russia

^{Ukrainian Liutyi UAV in the sky over the Russian Federation, March 2024}
In the Tambov Oblast of Russia, a drone attacked an oil depot, causing a fire.

This was reported by the Russian ASTRA telegram channel.

Early in the morning on Friday, June 28, the attack was announced by the governor of the region, Maxim Yegorov.

According to him, the drone allegedly hit an oil depot in the Michurinsky municipal district of the Tambov region at 4:35 am local time.

He noted that as a result, a “small fire” had broken out, which had quickly been localized with the involvement of 11 fire crews.

According to Yegorov, there were no casualties. If necessary, local residents will be evacuated.

“There are no casualties. The nearest settlement is 3 km away. If necessary, the residents will be evacuated. Everything is ready for this,” the governor added.

SPOILER

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It is worth noting that Ukrainian attack drones have been regularly striking Russian oil refineries and oil depots in various regions recently.

Earlier this week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi said that Ukraine’s Security Service drones alone had hit more than 30 Russian oil refineries, terminals and oil depots.

"Лютий" атакує паливний завод в Тверській області � Ф [27 червня 2024]

The day before, drones attacked a Russian aviation fuel plant in the Tver region. The Redkino Experimental Plant in the town of Redkino was hit.

According to eyewitnesses, the plant was first attacked by three drones around two in the morning. One of the drones fell on the roof of workshop No. 4 and then exploded. The second one was allegedly shot down by air defense forces, after which it also fell near the shop and exploded. The third drone attacked tanks with flammable liquid, damaging a pipeline and starting a fire.

^{Redkino Experimental Plant}

Redkino Experimental PlantTwo hours later, around four in the morning, the plant was attacked by another UAV. It also came down near workshop No. 4. According to Russian telegram channels, the plant’s staff was evacuated. According to preliminary reports, there were no casualties.

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 19:58 schreef Ulx het volgende:

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Het aantal wat?

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Russian Defense Minister Instructs Army to Counter US Drones Over the Black Sea

^{American RQ-4 Global Hawk UAV. Photo from open sources}

Russia’s defense minister has instructed the armed forces to counter US reconnaissance drones flying over the Black Sea.

The Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation published a statement.

This is due to the fact that these UAVs allegedly provide targeting information to the Ukrainian Defense Forces, which use high-precision Western weapons to strike at Russian military facilities.

They also added that the flights of US strategic reconnaissance aircraft over the Black Sea allegedly “increase the likelihood of incidents in the airspace with aircraft of the Russian Aerospace Forces.”

That’s why Defense Minister Andrey Belousov, who recently took office, instructed the Russian army’s general staff to make “proposals for measures to respond promptly to provocations.”

SPOILER

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^{Northrop Grumman RQ-4B Global Hawk. Photo credits: US Air Force}

Russian propagandist Ilya Tumanov, who runs the Fighterbomber aviation channel, explicitly states that Russian fighter jets will try to shoot down American drones.

Aggressive actions of Russian aviation
On March 14 last year, the United States military had to sink its MQ-9 Reaper drone after a collision with Russian aircraft.

The Americans said that two Russian Su-27 aircraft had conducted an unsafe and unprofessional intercept with an unmanned U.S. Air Force Intelligence, Surveillance, and reconnaissance MQ-9 aircraft, causing it to crash into the Black Sea.

^{A Russian fighter jet attacks a US Air Force MQ-9 UAV. March 14, 2023. Frame from the US Air Force video}

The U.S. military said that Russian Su-27s had dumped fuel in front of the MQ-9 and had struck the propeller of the MQ-9, causing U.S. forces to have to bring the MQ-9 down in international waters.

The U.S. military emphasized that this incident was an example of aggressive actions by Russian pilots when interacting with US aircraft and allies in international airspace.

Відео з безпілотника MQ9, який був пошкоджений російськими винищувачами (14 березня 2023)

They also published a video showing Russian planes performing dangerous maneuvers near the drone and dumping fuel several times in an attempt to pour it on the American UAV.

^{A Russian fighter jet maneuvers dangerously and dumps fuel on a US MQ-9 UAV over the Black Sea. March 14, 2023. Frame from the U.S. Air Force video}

The last seconds of the video also show a damaged engine blade of the American drone, indicating that the Russian fighter jet collided with the MQ-9 Reaper in midair.

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Op vrijdag 28 juni 2024 20:39 schreef Papierversnipperaar het volgende:

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En veel meer dode Russen.

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Denmark trained the first group of Ukrainians for F-16 maintenance

^{Maintenance of the US Air Force F16 fighter jet. 2021. Photo credits: dvidshub.net}

Denmark has trained the first 50 Ukrainian specialists to service F-16 fighter jets, which will soon be put into service with the Ukrainian Air Force.

Major General Jan Dam, Commander of the Royal Danish Air Force, said this in an interview with TV2.

According to him, most of them have already returned to Ukraine to prepare to receive the first fighter jets at Ukrainian air bases.

The major general said that the next group of 50 Ukrainians would also start training soon.

He added that the first group of Ukrainian pilots was still being trained. They are currently learning to fly at night.

SPOILER

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^{F-16 of the Royal Danish Air Force. Photo credits: Office of the President of Ukraine}

In general, the program for training Ukrainian pilots is designed for six to eight months.

In June, the Danish defense minister announced that by the end of this year, Denmark would stop training Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets.

Poulsen explained that the training of Ukrainian pilots would stop because Denmark was switching to F-35 fighter jets. The new planes will be deployed at the Skrydstrup air base, where Ukrainian pilots are currently training.

Denmark will continue to contribute to the training of Ukrainian pilots, but this will not take place in the country.

F-16s from Denmark
As previously reported, in August 2023, Denmark announced that it planned to transfer 19 aircraft to F-16, which in the 2000s had been upgraded under the Mid-Life Update (MLU) program.

^{Volodymyr Zelensky and Mette Frederiksen against the background of the Danish F-16 fighter. August 2023. Denmark. Photo credits: Office of the President of Ukraine}

Future Ukrainian fighters during the MLU program underwent significant repairs and received, in particular, a more modern AN/APG-66(V)2 radar.

Volodymyr Zelenskyi recently said that the first Danish F-16s would arrive in Ukraine in the near future.