⚽️ The countdown to the football world's most spectacular event - this year's FIFA World Cup - has entered the home stretch, promising a riveting showdown between men's football teams representing 32 countries that have successfully worked their way up through the preceding three years of the qualifying phase of this quadrennial tournament.

👉 Learn more on the upcoming tournament

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❗️Poland's denial of Lavrov's participation at the OSCE Ministerial Council is unprecedented and provocative, the Russian Foreign Ministry says. The ministry also stated that Warsaw’s position inconsistent with its status as chair and violates the organization's rules.

▪️The Russian delegation to the OSCE Ministerial Council meeting in Lodz, Poland on December 1-2 will be headed by the Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation Alexander Lukashevich, the ministry added.

▪️In addition, Moscow has already sent a request to all OSCE member states to evaluate Poland’s actions.

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❗️Russian MoD briefing on the progress of the special military operation in Ukraine:

▪️Russian forces are advancing in the DPR, more than 120 Ukrainian servicemen were eliminated;

▪️The Russian Army thwarted an attack by Ukrainian troops and mercenaries in the Kupyansk direction, eliminating more than 60 servicemen;

▪️Russian troops thwarted an attempt to attack by the Ukrainian Army in the Krasny Liman direction;

▪️The Russian Air Force destroyed nine Ukrainian command posts;

▪️Russian forces destroyed a US-made AN/TPQ-50 radar in the DPR;

▪️Russian air defenses destroyed 10 UAVs.

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📹 The priest tells how Ukrainian special services tried to recruit him when he served in Ukraine

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🇸🇱 🇷🇺 Sierra Leone can supply Russia with pineapples and cocoa beans - some of the best on the global market, the country's ambassador to Russia Mohamed Yongawo, has told Sputnik

So far, he said, the republic has exported them mainly to European countries.

🚜 In return for exporting to Russia, the West African nation is interested in importing Russian agricultural equipment.

🗣 "Russia is one of the leading manufacturers in this area. We would also like to import grain and fuel, including diesel," he added.

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❗️UK PM Rishi Sunak makes first visit to Kiev since taking office.

Britain has long been one of the most active supporters of the Kiev regime, supplying military and financial aid, thus contributing to the escalation of the Ukraine crisis.

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⚡️ British PM Sunak during his visit to Kiev said that London will assist Ukraine in strengthening its air defense, media reports say

📹 Crews of self-propelled 'Akatsiya' artillery mounts of the Southern Military District destroyed Ukrainian 'Grad' rocket launchers and strongholds in the Zaporozhye region.

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🥳 Sputnik is happy to announce that the number of followers of our Koo account has soared to 10k!

Stay tuned for more news stories and exclusive material from the Sputnik news team!

❗️An explosion caused by depressurization and a subsequent fire occurred on a gas pipeline in the Russian region of Leningrad, regional Governor Aleksandr Drozdenko said on Saturday.

💬 "Firefighters and rescuers are eliminating the fire caused by an explosion on a gas pipeline between Bernhardovka and Kovalevo [districts]. There is no threat to the public or risk of the fire spreading to residential areas," Drozdenko said.

He added that there were no injuries, according to preliminary data. Pressure in the pipeline was reduced, and a local power station temporarily switched from gas to heavy fuel oil to avoid heating failures.

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📹 Russia's MoD has published footage showing the Central Military District's Grad and Uragan MLRS crews in combat action

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🇰🇪 World's oldest school student dies in Kenya at 99, local media report

👵 Priscilla Sitieni, a resident of the village of Ndalat in western Kenya, was 94 years old when she persuaded the principal of a local primary school to accept her.

📝 The main motive for getting an education at her age was the desire to read the Bible on her own, as well as write down the knowledge in medicine she had accumulated over 65 years of work as a midwife

🗣 "Without education, there will be no difference between you and a chicken,” she said last year. “Education is your future. Education remains in your head forever and you cannot lose it once you have it.”

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❗️NATO is not looking for a confrontation with Russia, but will stand by Ukraine, says US Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III.

▪️The outcome of the conflict in Ukraine will be one of the factors determining the world security situation in the 21st century, the Pentagon official said.

▪️Russia has heavily criticized the US for prolonging the hostilities in Ukraine, fueling Kiev regime with weapon deliveries, with Washington effectively becoming a party to the conflict.

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🇺🇸🇺🇦 Former Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard has ripped into President Biden for sending billions of dollars to Ukraine.

💬 “We have politicians from both political parties who are the permanent Washington elite, and who must be held accountable for what they’re doing with our taxpayer dollars and how they’re undermining our national security as they push us closer and closer to the brink of nuclear catastrophe,” Gabbard said.

Demanding that Washington “stop giving a blank check to Ukraine and demand accountability” for the tens of billions of dollars already sent, Gabbard stressed that much of this money has gone to the US military-industrial complex, which has already made “trillions of dollars” off of US wars abroad.

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🇯🇵 Yuriko Koike, the governor of Tokyo, has urged city residents to wear turtlenecks this winter to save energy bills.

🌡 According to the official, “thermal effect” of high-neck jumpers and scarves will reduce energy consumption.

▪️Japan, as well as Europe, is likely to face a difficult winter ahead due to soaring energy prices and skyrocketing inflation.

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