Moscow hopes Europe will find 'creative way' to pay for Russian gas in rubles - Deputy FM Ryabkov

❗ President Biden to speak with Zelensky at 10:45 am (14:45 GMT) on Wednesday - White House

❗ Russian journalists came under fire in the LPR, no one was injured, Sputnik correspondent reports

❗ Slovakia reportedly orders cutting Russia's embassy staff by 35 personnel

⚡⚡ Key goals in Kiev and Chernigov directions have been accomplished, Russian MoD says

Meta (banned in Russia for extremist activity) is paying consulting firm, Targeted Victory, to turn the US public against TikTok, The Washington Post claims.

Targeted Victory urged partners to push stories to local media, tying TikTok to dangerous teen trends. “Any local examples of bad TikTok trends/stories in your markets?” an internal email allegedly shared with The Washington Post says.

“Dream would be to get stories with headlines like ‘From dances to danger: how TikTok has become the most harmful social media space for kids,’ ” the staffer wrote.

⚡⚡ Officials who participated in the creation of biological weapons components in Ukraine have been identified - Russia's Ministry of Defence

💬 According to investigations in the West, the US companies involved in the creation of bioweapon components in Ukraine are associated with Hunter Biden

⚡ Russian MoD: Kiev regime seriously considered using bioweapons against Russia, Donbass

👉 These are heads of departments and employees of the Pentagon and its main contractor companies, directly linked to Hunter Biden, the ministry says

⚡ Ukrainian authorities planned to use UAVs to spray dangerous substances - Russian Defence Ministry

❗ Putin, Scholz agree that experts from two countries will additionally talk about paying for gas supplies in rubles - Kremlin

⚡ Lavrov assesses outcomes of Russia-Ukraine talks in Istanbul as positive step ahead but this is not final result

❗ Lavrov: Kiev's readiness to ensure non-bloc, non-nuclear status of Ukraine is significant progress

⚡ EU officials reportedly raid Gazprom offices in Germany

📞 Putin briefs Italian PM Draghi on Russia-Ukraine talks in Istanbul

Russia's Ministry of Defence gives an interim account of the special operation in Ukraine:

▪️ At the first stage of the special operation, it was planned to engage the enemy forces in the Kiev and Chernigov directions on the battlefield - this would not allow them to use forces in the Donbass, which is a priority;

▪️ Conditions for the final stage of the operation to liberate the republics of Donbass have been met;

▪️ Russian forces continue to destroy fortifications which the Kiev regime has been building for more than eight years, and have taken under control the main lines of communication and supply;

▪️ The air defence systems of Ukraine, the airfield infrastructure, the largest military depots and mercenaries' training centres have been destroyed;

▪️ Russian troops are regrouping to intensify actions in priority areas and to complete the operation for the liberation of Donbass;

▪️ In total, 124 aircraft and 77 helicopters, 214 unmanned aerial vehicles, 323 unmanned aerial vehicles, 1,767 tanks and other armoured combat vehicles, 186 multiple launch rocket systems, 741 field artillery and mortars, and 1,657 units of special military vehicles of the Armed Forces of Ukraine have been destroyed during the operation

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📞 Biden told Zelensky that the United States plans to provide Ukraine with $500 million in direct budget assistance - White House

⚡ Bruce Willis to retire from acting after being diagnosed with aphasia

Bruce Willis' family members issued a joint statement to social media announcing the actor’s retirement:

“To Bruce’s amazing supporters, as a family we wanted to share that our beloved Bruce has been experiencing some health issues and has recently been diagnosed with aphasia, which is impacting his cognitive abilities,” the statement reads. “As a result of this and with much consideration Bruce is stepping away from the career that has meant so much to him.”

“This is a really challenging time for our family and we are so appreciative of your continued love, compassion and support,” the statement continues. “We are moving through this as a strong family unit, and wanted to bring his fans in because we know how much he means to you, as you do to him.
As Bruce always says, ‘Live it up’ and together we plan to do just that.”

Israel has witnessed five different attacks in a mere two weeks: the country's leader Naftali Bennett links it to the hatred of the Jews. As tensions between Israelis and Palestinians are expected to escalate, the prime minister says the country's security forces should be creative and "adapt to a new threat".

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