#BREAKING

💰🚀📈 Bitcoin hit a new All-Time-High at $107000!

@FelipeChannel

🇩🇪🗳❗️ — Germany's Social-Democrat chancellor Scholz loses parliamentary confidence vote, paving way for snap elections to be held in February 2025.

🇸🇾 🇸🇾 - JUST IN: Ex-President of Syria, Bashar al-Assad, issues statement on his loss in the Syrian Civil War and flight to Russia.

Follow: @ThermopylaeNews

🇷🇺❌🌐 Russia must be ready to fight NATO in Europe in next decade, Russian minister says

🇺🇸📱 TikTok files emergency appeal with Supreme Court to block a US ban unless it's sold.

— AP

🇺🇸📱 Trump is set to meet with TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew at Mar-a-Lago Club today.

— CNN

🇨🇦 - 60 liberals MPs sign a letter urging Trudeau to resign.

🇧🇴⛓🛠 — A prosecutor in Bolivia has confirmed the existence of an arrest warrant against former socialist president Evo Morales on charges of human trafficking.

🇻🇺📈 - A 7.4 magnitude earthquake hits Vanuatu.

A precautionary tsunami warning is issued.

The earthquake in Vanuatu caused severe damage to the United States Embassy in Port Vila.

🇺🇦❌🇷🇺❗️ — The head of Russia’s nuclear defense forces has been killed by an explosive device planted close to a residential apartment block in Moscow!

🇷🇺❌🇺🇦 — Russian Security Council Chairman Dmitry Medvedev: The Kiev Regime will face imminent revenge for Russian general's killing

🇺🇸🗯🇷🇺❌🇪🇺 — 🇩🇪 BILD:

"NATO chief accuses Russia of direct attacks on Alliance countries

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said Russia had long been waging an open, rather than covert, war against NATO countries. Speaking to security experts in Brussels, Rutte stressed the need to change approach and adopt a “war mindset” to be prepared for possible attacks, including, for example, the use of drones in Europe.

According to a report provided by the American delegation to the OSCE, Russia has launched about 150 attacks on NATO territory since the start of the war in Ukraine. These include cyberattacks on railways, hospitals, GPS systems in aviation and water supply facilities. The report also mentions hacking, sabotage and threats to military facilities and underwater infrastructure.

Particular attention is paid to attacks on critical infrastructure. For example, in 2024, major hospitals in Romania and pharmacies in the United States were paralyzed by hacker attacks, and mass failures of GPS signals were recorded in Europe. Russia is also suspected of sabotaging underwater cables in the Baltic Sea, which affected communications and data transmission.

In addition to cyberattacks, the report mentions cases of physical violence and assassination attempts. In Italy, a plot to assassinate the defense minister was foiled, and plans to attack defense industry executives were uncovered in Germany and the United States.

Moscow is also accused of using the migration crisis to destabilize the borders of EU countries. The document also highlights the role of Russian propaganda and interference in elections."

🔗 Source:

🫡👋🇸🇾 — 🇩🇪 BILD:

"Russia has begun a large-scale withdrawal of military equipment from Syria

Satellite images from Maxar confirm the transfer of Russian military equipment from Syria. The photos show heavy weapons being loaded onto two An-124 aircraft with open noses at the Khmeimim airbase in Latakia province. Disassembled helicopters are also prepared for transportation.

According to the British Channel 4 television channel, large convoys with more than 150 military vehicles are moving towards Latakia. Among them, tanks and armored personnel carriers have been spotted, which were previously deployed in the southern regions of Syria, such as Damascus and Daraa. Apparently, the Russian command was able to agree with the new authorities on a controlled withdrawal of troops.

Russian warships have reportedly already left the port of Tartus entirely. US sources suggest that Russia is looking for a new base for its fleet in the Mediterranean, possibly off the African coast. Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh noted that Russia is taking steps to protect its resources as the regime of Bashar al-Assad falls.

Assad himself, who had held power in Syria for a long time with the support of Russia, was overthrown and given asylum in the Russian Federation. After the rebels came to power in Syria, Russian troops began to curtail their presence in the country."

🔗 Source

🇭🇺💬👤👎🕊🇷🇺 — 🇭🇺 Prime Minister of Hungary Viktor Orbán on 𝕏:

"At the end of the Hungarian EU Presidency, we made new efforts for peace. We proposed a Christmas ceasefire and a large-scale prisoner exchange. It’s sad that President @ZelenskyyUa clearly rejected and ruled this out today. We did what we could!..."

🔗 PM_ViktorOrban

🔗 @ZelenskyyUa:

We all hope that @PM_ViktorOrban at least won’t call Assad in Moscow to listen to his hour-long lectures as well.

It’s absolutely clear that achieving real peace and guaranteed security requires America’s determination, Europe’s unity, and the unwavering commitment of all partners to the Purposes and Principles of the UN Charter.

No one should boost personal image at the expense of unity; everyone should focus on shared success. Unity in Europe has always been key to achieving it. There can be no discussions about the war that Russia wages against Ukraine without Ukraine.

I am grateful to @realDonaldTrump and many European leaders with whom we are already working to find the right and strong solutions for real peace...."

#Ukraine

🇷🇴😀❌👨🏻‍🦳⚡️🇺🇸 — 🏴 ZeroHedge | Romania's Constitutional Coup Is Meant To Buy More Time For NATO In Ukraine | Authored by Andrew Korybko via Substack | December 16, 2024:

"(...)

This is a disturbing precedent that can easily be exploited by the West the next time that a populist conservative-nationalist with “politically incorrect” foreign policy views wins an election. At the time of writing, a redo hasn’t yet been scheduled, but it’s expected after the new pro-Western parliament convenes on 20 December. About that, their elections were held after the first presidential round, but no accusations of foul play followed. This is obviously due to the West receiving its desired result.

It remains unclear who’ll serve as Commander-in-Chief until the next one is elected, but whoever it is, nobody should anticipate them implementing any radical policies like Georgescu’s. Accordingly, more time has been bought for NATO to organize its reportedly planned peacekeeping mission in Ukraine, even if it’s carried out under a non-NATO mandate. Had Georgescu won the second round and been inaugurated later this month, he could have ruled out his country’s participation in this possible plan.

Romania isn’t as indispensable for NATO’s military logistics to Ukraine as Poland is, but it still borders Ukraine’s western and southwestern regions that are of strategic importance for the bloc. Even if Romania wouldn’t directly participate in any such mission, regardless of whether it’s carried out under the peacekeeper pretext, it could still let the alliance’s troops and equipment transit through its territory to Odessa for example. Georgescu, however, could have cut that off and greatly complicated their plans."

🗄 Archive

🔗 Full:

🇪🇺❌📱 EU Launches Probe Into TikTok Over Romania Vote 'Interference'

The EU said on Tuesday it had opened a formal investigation into TikTok following allegations the platform was used by Russia to sway the result of Romania's later annulled presidential election.

The EU said on Tuesday it had opened a formal investigation into TikTok following allegations the platform was used by Russia to sway the result of Romania's later annulled presidential election.

The probe, under a mammoth law known as the Digital Services Act (DSA), centres on concerns the short-video app failed to "assess and mitigate systemic risks" linked to election integrity, the European Commission said.

"We must protect our democracies from any kind of foreign interference. Whenever we suspect such interference, especially during elections, we have to act swiftly and firmly," said commission chief Ursula von der Leyen.

The EU said the decision to open the probe was in part based on declassified intelligence reports by the Romanian authorities.

The investigation would focus on the TikTok's "recommender systems" -- which uses data to suggest users content they might like -- and its policies on political advertisements and paid-for political content, commission said.

The European executive, which acts as the EU's digital watchdog under the DSA, stressed that the opening of formal proceedings does not prejudge its outcome and there is no deadline for the probe's completion.

🔗 https://www.barrons.com/news/eu-launches-probe-into-tiktok-over-romania-vote-interference-994b1285

🇷🇺🇱🇾 Lot of Russian navy movements to-from Mediterranean. Linked to or shaped by the situation in Syria (and Ukraine), but some may have been planned earlier.

Expecting major withdrawal of equipment from Tartus

🔗 H. Sutton

🇺🇸❗️🇧🇷🌎 — U.S. President-elect Donald Trump says Brazil ‘taxes too much’ and promises reciprocity in imposing tariffs; the criticism extended to all BRICS countries

“We are going to treat people very fairly, but the word ‘reciprocal’ is important because if someone taxes us… If India taxes us 100% and we charge them nothing for the same thing. [...] They send us a bicycle, we send them a bicycle, and they charge us 100, 200. India charges a lot, Brazil charges a lot. If they want to tax us, fine, but we will tax the same amount!"