📌 The latest statements from Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov:

▪️Moscow on possible tank deliveries by NATO states to Kiev: They will not fundamentally change anything, but will only create problems for Ukraine

▪️President Putin has no plans yet to meet with IAEA Director-General Rafael Grossi

▪️Russia believes the significance of possible deliveries of NATO tanks to Kiev should not be exaggerated

▪️Moscow will closely monitor situation with possible arms supplies to Kiev from Latin America

▪️Relations between Russia and the United States are at their historic low, there is no hope for improvement

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Pentagon Chief Urges Allies to 'Dig Deeper' for Ukraine as West Mulls Sending Tanks to Kiev

Western defense ministers gathered at the Ramstein Air Base in Germany on January 20 to discuss further military aid to Ukraine amid continued debate among allies whether they should supply the Kiev regime with tanks.

Pentagon Chief Lloyd Austin has urged allies at Friday's talks at the US Ramstein Air Base in Germany to "dig even deeper" to support Ukraine with military aid at what he described as a crucial time for Kiev in the conflict against Russia.

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US Reportedly Opposes Calls by Some EU States to Lower Russia Oil Price Cap

Countries like Poland, Estonia and Lithuania have been vociferously demanding that it be lowered from the $60. They pointed to the fact that Russia's Urals brand has been trading below that level recently. At Russia's Baltic Sea port of Primorsk, its medium sour grade, Urals, traded at $45.55 a barrel on January 18, according to Argus Media, with Brent crude standing at close to $85.

However, the administration of President Joe Biden is arguing the need to wait until the additional G-7 price caps on Russia's petroleum products like diesel, kerosene and fuel oil are in place in February before reevaluating it, according to sources cited by a US media report.

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⚡️The Lobkovoe settlement in the Zaporozhye region has been successfully liberated, Russia's MoD says.

According to the MoD, a warehouse containing equipment was destroyed in the Kamenskoye area (also in the Zaporozhye region). Ukrainian losses in this direction amounted to 90 people per day

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

▪️Ukrainian forces have lost more than 40 soldiers in the Krasnolimansky direction;

▪️Russian armed forces have destroyed up to 30 Ukrainian soldiers in the Kupyansk direction in the day;

▪️The Russian military destroyed the US-made M109 Paladin self-propelled guns, as well as D-30 and Msta-B howitzers in the Kherson direction;

▪️More than 2,900 Ukrainian drones have been destroyed by the Russian army since the beginning of the special military operation;

▪️Russian Armed Forces have destroyed up to 60 Ukrainian military in the Donetsk direction in a day;

▪️Russian air defenses have shot down an Mi-8 helicopter in the day, intercepted five drones and six HIMARS and Uragan MLRS shells;

▪️Russian forces have hit 78 artillery units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in firing positions

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💉 US-based Pfizer demanded additional indemnity against any civil claims citizens might file if they experience adverse effects after inoculations, Deputy Minister of Electronics and Technology of India Rajeev Chandrasekhar reminded on Friday.

🗯 “Just to remind all Indians, that Pfizer tried to bully Govt of India into accepting conditions of indemnity,” he wrote on Twitter commenting on the video where independent journalists tried quizzing Pfizer chief on why his company's vaccine proved ineffective against COVID-19 and whether Pfizer should pay money back to the countries who purchased it.

💰 The company demanded a damages bond or remedy that will exempt her from lawsuits in case if the vaccine has any side effects.

The deputy minister added that high-ranking opposition leaders have been pressuring the Indian government to buy foreign vaccines during the coronavirus pandemic, rather than opt for Indian vaccines.

Under Biden Federal Agencies Turned Into Instrument of Intimidation, FBI Whistleblower Says

"The FBI is making the investigative process a punishment for individuals," FBI special agent Steve Friend told Sputnik.

💬 "The most clear example is the use of SWAT teams to apprehend J6 subjects who already retained counsel, communicated with FBI special agents, and pledged to cooperate with the FBI's investigative processes. SWAT arrests represent a far departure from the FBI's usual practice of deploying the least amount of force necessary to safely arrest subjects," the special agent said.

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💰 Hungarian-born billionaire George Soros is tied to at least 54 prominent media figures through cash provided to groups affiliated with them, including journalists from CNN, NBC, CBS, Bloomberg, NPR, and The Washington Post, a study conducted by MRC Business revealed.

💬 “His funding has helped him establish ties with some of the biggest name media personalities in the United States and abroad which help indoctrinate millions with his views on a day-to-day basis,” MCR Business analysts claim.

A previous study showed that George Soros siphoned at least $131 million between 2016 and 2020 to influence 253 media groups.

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Kiev Seeks to Ban Ukrainian Orthodox Church as Part of Religious Crackdown

The ban is to go into force if the Ukrainian authorities determine that the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church is affiliated with Russia, stated a message posted on the website of the parliament, or Verkhovna Rada.

Russia's spiritual leader, Patriarch Kirill, condemned the direct persecution of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church, the forcible seizures of churches in Ukraine, beatings inflicted on clergy and laity, threats to their lives, mass searches, and "counterintelligence measures" in diocesan administrations, churches, and monastic cloisters, as well as the initiation of criminal cases and calls for a complete ban on the activities of the UOC in the country.

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❗️️Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin has reaffirmed that a new aid delivery to Ukraine will include 90 infantry fighting vehicles and the upcoming delivery of Archer howitzers from Sweden, the dispatch of 19 howitzers from Denmark, the deployment of Stinger systems, helicopters, and other equipment from Latvia, and the transfer of 155 mm howitzers from Estonia.

At the same meeting, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that allies need to rapidly increase the production of weapons and ammunition and replenish their stockpiles, which will be discussed at a meeting of defense ministers in February.

Earlier, the Russian Foreign Ministry said that Russia regards the West’s decision to discuss the new supply of weapons to Kiev as a blatant provocation that will inevitably lead to more casualties and a dangerous escalation.

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Scottish Nationalists to Ask 7YO Children if They Are Transgender in School Survey

Children will be asked their gender identity, with the option of "male, female, non-binary, transgender or other" — and will be allowed to fill in the form without their parents seeing their answers.

Parents' group Us for Them Scotland also voiced concerns about the SNP's existing policy of "validating" children who question their biological sex without consulting their parents, saying there had been a "huge growth" in young people complaining of gender dysphoria.

💬 "It can look like it is being encouraged," said UFT Scotland organiser Jo Bisset. "The fact that schools transition children without their parents' knowledge is something our members find very disturbing."

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Some Weapons Sent to Kiev Could Take US ‘Nearly Half a Century’ to Replenish, Retired Officer Warns

The US and its allies have slashed military warehouses' stocks of advanced weapons systems, including hundreds of thousands of artillery shells, HIMARS rockets, and anti-air missiles, in the West's effort to prop up its client state in Kiev in the NATO proxy war against Russia. A retired US Army officer fears that the weapons deliveries undermine US national security.

Here's how

Yellen's Trip: US' Attempts to Squeeze Russia & China Out of Africa are Futile, Scholars Say

Earlier this week, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen embarked on an 11-day trip to Senegal, Zambia, and South Africa. The declared goal of Yellen's charm offensive is to offer new economic opportunities to African nations.

What other objectives is the treasury secretary pursuing in the world’s second-largest continent?

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❗️The US will soon designate the private military company Wagner Group as a transnational criminal organization and impose sanctions on its network, White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said on Friday.

Kirby said the US government will also impose additional sanctions next week against Wagner and its support network across multiple continents. The US government will work to identify, disrupt, expose and target firms that are assisting the Wagner Group, the White House official said.

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Biden's Messy Policies Dealt a Heavy Blow to Americans in Just Two Years, US Observers Say

"Biden's focus on diversity, equity and inclusion has turned our political system into a disaster," Lisa Haven, a libertarian commentator, radio host and alternative media news analyst, told Sputnik.

💬 "There is progress being made on nothing, only talking points, lies and misdirection. Our entire FAA initiated a complete ground stop. Our borders are a porous disaster. The floodgates of opioids have been wide open. The economy is failing, incomes are dropping, debt is rising... So, in short, Biden has dealt with nothing," Haven said.

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‼️ New Zealand Labour MP Chris Hipkins is set to take over the top spot after Jacinda Ardern officially steps down next month

Hipkins was the sole nominee for the Labour leadership

💬 "Very recently, just less than a week ago, they had an effigy of Erdogan being hung in Stockholm. A month ago, they had projections, the PKK had projections projected onto the Turkish embassy, the Turkish embassy is, obviously Turkish sovereign territory in Sweden is protected by the Geneva Convention, which is should be a big no-no. And we're continuing to see this type of activity. Swedish government is saying, well, it's freedom of press," says Yusuf Erim, an editor-at-large at TRT World.

🎧 Listen to more of Yusuf Erim’s analysis in our podcast Fault Lines: Key US Ally Moves Away From the Dollar Amid Global Economic Chaos