❗️Key points of new US sanctions package on Russia:

▪️Biden signs proclamation to impose 200 percent tariff on Russian aluminum;

▪️66 Russian entities added to the export blacklist;

▪️'Luxury goods' sanctions to include 276 entries in Russia, Belarus;

▪️Additional tariff increases on variety of goods from Russia worth approximately $2.8 billion;

▪️Sanctions against nine Russian ministers, 22 individuals, 83 entities, and dozens of other Russian officials;

▪️Sanctions against 12 Russian banks and financial institutions;

▪️Sanctions on the company operating the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant;

▪️Visa restrictions applied to 1,219 members of the Russian military.

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Balloon Paranoia Much? Mystery Orb On Japanese Beach Sparks Wild Theories

A mysterious beige sphere, estimated to be 5 feet in diameter, was reported on by a local broadcaster on February 18. Soon, people outfitted in helmets and hazmat suits cordoned off the area, with an X-ray carried out by a bomb squad that was swiftly called in. The team determined that the spherical metal object was not explosive, but its origins continue to baffle authorities and experts.

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Aftermath of two new earthquakes that shook Turkiye's Hatay province just a couple weeks after a pair of major earthquakes devastated the area on February 6

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Ukrainian Crisis Endgame May Consist of West Forcing Kiev to Accept ‘Bastard Compromise’ With Moscow

“The likeliest outcome is some sort of bastard compromise – an armistice or an informal line of separation,” Philip Short, a veteran UK observer with over four decades of experience covering Russia, believes, saying Moscow will be almost certain to retain liberated territories in the Donbass, as well as Crimea, thus allowing the Kremlin “to claim a modicum of success,” while “the US will be able to argue that its support was decisive in enabling Ukraine to resist” Russia.

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China Reportedly Preparing to Launch 13,000-Satellite Network to ‘Suppress’ Starlink Supremacy

The team, led by Xu Can, an associate professor at the People’s Liberation Army’s Space Engineering University in Beijing, aims to do so “before the completion of Starlink,” he said. This would “ensure that our country has a place in low orbit and prevent the Starlink constellation from excessively pre-empting low-orbit resources”, Xu’s team wrote in the journal article.

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❗️Earthquake 4.7 magnitude registered in Sivas, Turkiye

Iran-Russia Ties Not Directed Against Third States, West Should Look in Mirror Before Lectures: Spox

“Military and defense ties between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Russian Federation exist in the framework of the common interests of the two countries and are not directed against any third state. The military and defense ties between Iran and Russia precede the start of the military crisis in Ukraine,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani said in an interview with Sputnik Persian.

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❗️ Key points of phone conversation between Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan:

▪️Erdogan thanked Putin for Russia's help in eliminating the aftermath of the earthquakes in Turkey;

▪️Putin confirmed Russia's readiness to continue to provide the Turkish side with the necessary assistance during the restoration work in the disaster-affected regions of the country;

▪️Both parties discussed energy cooperation, the supply of Russian fuel and the construction of the Akkuyu nuclear power plant;

▪️Both parties exchanged views on the situation around Ukraine, and the implementation of Istanbul agreements on the export of grain from Ukraine and the supply of food and fertilizers from Russia.

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🇺🇸 The Biden administration has justified the sabotage of the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines with the need for Europe's support for NATO in its proxy war against Russia, Pulitzer Prize-winning US investigative journalist Seymour Hersh has told RT host Afshin Rattansi in an exclusive interview.

💬 "That was the rationale for the mission: to make sure that Europe and Western Europe keep supporting NATO and keep funneling arms into what is clearly a proxy war against Russia," Hersh said.

According to the investigative journalist, the plan was hatched in late 2021, before the escalation of hostilities in Ukraine. When Biden and Under Secretary of State Victoria Nuland both publicly spoke about “stopping” and “ending” Nord Stream 2, Hersh claimed the intelligence community was upset, “because it was supposed to be a covert operation.”

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❗️Seymour Hersh says that Joe Biden ordered the destruction of the Nord Stream pipelines because he was worried that Germany could change its mind about sanctions against Russia and start receiving the gas again.

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🚀 The Soyuz-2.1a rocket with the Soyuz MS-23 unmanned spacecraft was launched into orbit from Baikonur Cosmodrome to the International Space Station

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🇩🇪 “Peace Without Arms” rally took place in Dresden, Germany, where activists have gathered to demand an end to the supply of tanks and heavy weapons to Ukraine. Protesters played the old Soviet peace hymn "May There Always Be Sunshine."

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What is behind US plans to increase troop numbers on Taiwan? The objective is to deflect attention from failures at home, says author and former Washington Post bureau chief Jon Jeter.

💬 "It seems like we just started digging and we can't stop. We can't stop digging this hole, which just means that we're making the situation even more dangerous.

🎧 Listen to more of Jeter’ analysis in our podcast Political Misfits: US Troop Expansion in Taiwan, Israel Considers Attacking Iran

‘We Have No Idea Where All This Money’s Going’: MTG Announces ‘Audit of Ukraine’ Aid Bill

US Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene announced that she had introduced a bill to force an audit of Washington’s extensive aid to Ukraine, which has totaled over $100 billion in the year since the conflict began.

"While the warmongers and the Biden Administration have sent over $113 billion in foreign aid to Ukraine, our border patrol asked for just $15.46 billion to secure our southern border," the statement said.

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🥴 Former US President Donald Trump would withdraw from NATO if reelected in 2024, his former national security advisor John Bolton said.

Bolton argued that the Republican party's continued adherence to Trump is the longest act of attempted suicide by a political party in history.

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Archeologists Stunned After Discovering Possible Purpose of Square Hole in 3,500-Year-Old Skull

The Late Bronze Age remains were discovered in an area of modern-day northern Israel mentioned in a Bible book on the End of Days, with scientists positing two very different hypotheses to explain the purpose of the invasive (and likely very painful) procedure.

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What did Biden say about China's position paper on the Ukraine conflict?

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Iran says it has developed a long-range hypersonic missile capable of reaching any of the US regional military bases in the area.

What is known so far? Read here

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Why Western Sanctions Against Russia Failed

While an influx of Western sanctions against Russia over its special military operation in Ukraine continues, more analysts seem to agree that Moscow has repeatedly managed to withstand the pressure.

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Woman Who Returned Lady Gaga's Dogs Suing Singer For Not Paying Her $500,000 Reward

The lawsuit claims that McBride has suffered compensatory damages, pain and suffering, mental anguish, and loss of enjoyment of life as a result of being "defrauded" by Lady Gaga.

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Russia Not Leaving New START 'Very Important', Ex-Pentagon Advisor Says

The advisor spoke a day after Vladimir Putin announced the suspension of Russia’s participation in the new START Treaty during his address to the Federal Assembly on February 21. Putin cited Washington’s efforts to “inflict a strategic defeat” on Moscow and help Ukraine launch drone attacks against Russia’s strategic deterrent while “absurdly” calling for more nuclear inspections.

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