❗️ The West is "agitated" towards the rest of the world because the dominance, which it has enjoyed in the world for centuries is "fading away" and a multipolar world order is emerging, Lavrov says

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Security forces mistakenly shot a man in his house and accused him of taking a hostage

⚠️WARNING: some viewers may find this content disturbing

A man from Murphy, North Carolina, is now recovering in a Chattanooga hospital after SWAT team members that suspected he was the shooter and had a hostage, shot him after they say he confronted officers, according to the Cherokee County Sheriff's Office.

Jason Harley Kloepfer, 41, "engaged in a verbal altercation with the officers, exited the trailer and confronted the officers," the report said. At that moment, he was wounded by members of the special forces.

Later, Kloepfer posted surveillance video that shows a different version of events. The footage shows Kloepfer and his wife waking up and going to open the door. A few seconds later, the officers fired several shots at the unarmed Kloepfer, who fell to the ground.

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📹 Russia's MoD has published footage showing Russian artillerymen in combat as part of the special military op in Ukraine

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📹 While speaking at the joint press conference with his Eswatini counterpart, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov spoke in detail about the colonial practices used by Western countries, noting that Russia is "very much appreciative and respects the position of all our partners, who [...] are guided not by the orders from former colonial powers or from those who would like to dominate the world now, but are guided by legitimate national interests, and most of them do not shy from saying so publicly."

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⚡️ Russia’s MoD latest statements on the Ukraine crisis:

▪️ Russia’s aviation and artillery inflicted fire damage on the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Kharkov region, which resulted in the elimination of over 40 Ukrainian servicemen, an armored fighting vehicle, and a motor vehicle.

▪️ Russia’s artillery fire hit units of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the LPR and DPR. Over 30 Ukrainian troops, five armored combat vehicles, an M-777 artillery system, and two US-made AN/TPQ-37 counter-battery radar stations were destroyed.

▪️ Russian troops continue their offensive in the DPR. Army Aviation, Missile Troops and Artillery engaged the 25th Airborne Assault Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the DPR.

▪️ Near Zaporozhye, during the day, artillery fire and Eastern Military District units have destroyed more than 25 Ukrainian servicemen, as well as an Akatsiya self-propelled howitzer, two D-20 and D-30 howitzers, and three motor vehicles.

▪️ Airborne Troops artillery has destroyed a US-made AN/TPQ-50 counter-battery radar station in Kherson region.

▪️ The Operational-Tactical Aviation, Missile Troops and Artillery of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation hit the command post of the 57th Separate Mechanized Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and a dump of artillery munition in the DPR.

▪️ Russian Aerospace Forces obliterated a self-propelled fire unit of the Ukrainian Buk-M1 SAM system.

▪️ Ten Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles were shot down by anti-aircraft defense forces over the past 24 hours.

▪️ Some 376 airplanes and 203 helicopters, 2,944 unmanned aerial vehicles, 402 anti-aircraft missile systems, 7,614 tanks and other armored fighting vehicles, 988 combat vehicles equipped with multiple rocket-launching systems, 3,898 field artillery cannons and mortars, as well as 8,159 units of special military hardware have been destroyed during the special military operation.

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That Easy? Germany Hopes to Replace Russian Gas With LNG by 2026

Russia halted its gas supplies to Germany in August 2022 in a move that came amid Western sanctions against Moscow that were slapped shortly after the beginning of the ongoing Russian special military operation in Ukraine.

Russian President Vladimir Putin pointed out the policy of containment and weakening of Russia is a long-term strategy of the West, and that sanctions have dealt a serious blow to the entire global economy, backfiring against those who introduced them.

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👮 Australian Open guards received instructions on how not to confuse “prohibited” and “permitted” countries.

The flags of Russia and Belarus are prohibited.

The similar flags of France and Paraguay are allowed.

The instruction surfaced after yesterday's incident, when the guards did not let Serbian fans in, confusing their flag with the Russian one.

"It is forbidden to bring the flags of Russia and Belarus (t-shirts with Z symbols) to the stadium," the cheat sheet says.

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Finnish Foreign Minister Says May Consider NATO Entry Without Sweden

Finland, which jointly applied with Sweden for NATO membership in May, may consider continuing the accession procedure without Stockholm, Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto said Tuesday.

"But we have to be ready to re-evaluate the situation. Has something happened that would in the long run prevent Sweden's application from progressing? Now it is too early to take a view on that," Haavisto told a Finnish broadcaster when asked if Finland should proceed at the same pace as Sweden in seeking approval for the application.

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One Dead & Seven Injured in California's Third Mass Shooting in Three Days

The shooting occurred on Monday evening in the 5900 block of Macarthur Blvd.

"At this time, we are aware of eight victims, one who is deceased and the remaining victims were listed in stable condition," the police said late on Monday.

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⚡️ Turkey-Sweden-Finland talks on joining NATO postponed indefinitely at Ankara's request - source to Sputnik

🇵🇱🇩🇪 Poland Requests Permission From Germany to Supply Leopard 2 Tanks to Ukraine

Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said that the Polish authorities were waiting for a quick response from the German government to the request to allow the transfer of Leopard tanks to Ukraine.

"I hope that the answer from Germany will come quickly this time," he said, rebuking Germany for constantly dragging out the resolution of such issues. "We can clearly see that they don't want to broadly help a defensive Ukraine," Morawiecki noted.

"What does this mean? Fear or misunderstood fears to the end, or faith in the possibility of restoring normal relations with Russia? It is worth asking these questions. Because the coalition of countries that want to help Ukraine <...> must expand. Germany is the largest country, and it should make a huge contribution to the common coalition of countries that help Ukraine," the head of the Polish government added.

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Roscosmos Chief Says Russia Must Increase Satellites in Orbit Fivefold by 2030

Russia must increase the constellation of its satellites in orbit from the current 200, the head of Russia's state space corporation Roscosmos, Yury Borisov, said on Tuesday.

"In our opinion, we should have a constellation of at least 1,000 satellites by 2030," Borisov said at the Korolev Academic Space Conference in Moscow.

Russia's current satellite production is "insufficient," Borisov added.

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Biden May Transfer ‘Significant Number’ of Abrams M1 Tanks to Ukraine - Reports

The Biden administration could announce the deliveries of a "significant number" of Abrams M1 tanks to Ukraine as early as this week, western media reported on Tuesday, citing US officials familiar with the matter.

The coming announcement would be part of a broader deal made with Germany, which would pledge to supply a small number of its Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine as well, the report said.

Germany would also allow countries operating Leopard 2 tanks, notably Poland, to supply Ukraine with units of their own reserve, the report also said.

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⏰ The doomsday clock of the US magazine Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists has been advanced 90 seconds before midnight.

This is the closest arrow position in history to a nuclear Armageddon.

The magazine's president, Rachel Bronson, said there were 90 seconds left before the "nuclear apocalypse point".

Bronson noted that this decision was made mainly in light of the situation around Ukraine. According to her, "the likelihood that the conflict could get out of anyone's control remains high."

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🇷🇺❄️ While in some parts of Russia, citizens are trying to keep warm in -50 Celcius, in resort city Sochi, locals have turned to shamans to "summon" snowfall amid the unusual winter "heatwave".

Sochi is a popular ski resort among Russians.

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🇷🇺🇸🇾 Russian and Syrian troops restore Jirah airfield destroyed during operations (video by Russian MoD)

The airfield has been fitted with restored lighting and elements of the maneuvering area. The air traffic control post has been fitted with communication and radio facilities, designed to provide for the arrival and departure of aircraft at day and night.

The joint deployment of Russian and Syrian aircraft at the Jirah airfield allows for the protection of the border, and ensures the safety of civilians in the northern and northeastern areas of the Syrian Arab Republic.

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❗️Swedish PM says Stockholm wants to return to "dialogue" with Ankara on NATO accession

⚡️ Scholz decided to send Leopard 2A6 tanks to Ukraine, German media reports.