📹 Russian forces seize trophy Humvee in Artemovsk

The Ukrainian security forces attempted to destroy the abandoned Humvee with artillery, and as a result, it sustained minor damage. The vehicle’s wheels were damaged by shrapnel, but because the tires have special rubber inserts inside, this allowed the trophy to be successfully evacuated.

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⚡️Russia’s FSB in coordination with the Interior Ministry stopped a sabotage attempt planned by Ukrainian intelligence at the airfield in Ivanovo region using drones

🇺🇸🇪🇺 US fuelling breakdown of France, Germany, while capitalizing on 'weak Europe'

💬 “The US is luring over European industry with cheaper energy, lower taxes… creating a division between France and Germany… And on top of that, the Americans are shifting the center of Europe from Western Europe to Eastern Europe, because Western Europe is too much of a headache," Elijah Magnier, a veteran war correspondent, told Sputnik.

While in France “today you have Macron, tomorrow you will have Marine Le Pen,” in Germany, "Scholz is standing in support of the US interests, no longer supporting the German population and their needs,” underscored the veteran war correspondent.

Emmanuel Macron and Olaf Scholz are “no longer leaders even in their own countries,” he pointed out. While there has always been rivalry between France and Germany, Magnier reflected since the Ukraine crisis escalated in early 2022, the self-harming Western sanctions has exacerbated the energy crisis, so the two European countries could not put up “a united front” against the US.

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🇷🇺 Russia regains spot among world's top-10 largest economies

The country produced $2.3 trillion worth of goods and services in 2022, data from the World Bank and statistical services analyzed by Sputnik showed.

In 2014, Russia ranked the ninth in the list of the world's major economies by manufacturing $2.05 trillion worth of goods and services, while in 2021 the country was in the 11th place, the data said.

The data showed that the US's economy topped the rating in 2022 with its nominal gross domestic product (GDP) estimated at $25.5 trillion, while China ranked the second ($17.9 trillion), followed by Japan ($4.2 trillion), Germany ($4.07 trillion), and India ($3.4 trillion).

In addition, the UK's economy remained the sixth ($3.07 trillion) in the list and France ranked the seventh ($2.8 trillion), according to the statistics.

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⚡️ Arab League has approved Syria's return to organization, Iraqi foreign ministry spokesman says

Wagner Group chief Yevgeny Prigozhin has announced that Wagner will receive ammunition and weapons, and that General Sergey Surovikin will oversee the interaction of the group with the Russian Defense Ministry.

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📹 Russian Su-25 aircraft destroys Ukrainian armored vehicles

The ministry added that the Su-25s carried out missile strikes, performed a maneuver by releasing decoy flares, after which they returned to their departure airfield.

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

▪️In the Kupyansk direction, Russian forces destroyed up to 85 Ukrainian troops, one armored fighting vehicle, one D-30 howitzer, as well as one ammunition depot;

▪️In the Krasny Liman direction, Russian forces neutralized up to 75 Ukrainian personnel, three armored fighting vehicles, two Akatsiya self-propelled howitzers, and one D-30 howitzer;

▪️In the Donetsk direction, Ukrainian losses amounted to over 340 Ukrainian troops and mercenaries, two armored fighting vehicles, one D-20 howitzer, as well as two US-made counter-battery warfare radars;

▪️In the South Donetsk and Zaporozhye directions, Russian forces destroyed over 55 Ukrainian troops, two armored fighting vehicles, three pick-up trucks, a Msta-B and one D-30 howitzer, as well as a US-made AN/TPQ-50 radar system;

▪️In the Kherson direction, Russian troops neutralized up to 40 Ukrainian servicemen;

▪️During the night, 22 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles were detected by air defenses over the Black Sea. All Ukrainian UAVs were destroyed by anti-aircraft missile systems or suppressed with electronic warfare;

▪️Air defenses shot down one Mi-8 helicopter, five HIMARS projectiles, a Grom-2 and a Tochka-U ballistic missile, and 10 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles in the LPR, DPR, and Kharkov region.

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❗️US Treasury's ability to take extraordinary steps to avoid default is coming to an end, says Yellen

🇺🇸 Denver councilwoman faces backlash after saying white-led businesses should pay reparations

Democratic Socialist Councilwoman Candi CdeBaca sparked outrage after commenting at a business forum in Denver that more needed to be done to provide reparations.

💬 “You could be collecting those extra taxes from white-led business all over the city and redistributing them to black and brown-owned businesses,” she said.

After posting a video of her comments on TikTok, she met with backlash, which her office branded as a “white nationalist mob.”

Her remarks come amid ongoing discussions about reparations that have swept the nation.

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Berlin court lifts ban on display of Russian flags, symbols on May 8-9

The Berlin police said earlier that it had prohibited flags and symbols of Russia, Ukraine and the Soviet Union at Soviet memorials on May 8 and 9 for the second consecutive year to avoid confrontation. However, the ban does not apply to diplomats and veterans.

Earlier on Sunday, lawyer Patrick Heinemann said on Twitter that a Berlin court overturned the ban on flying Ukrainian flags near memorials in the German capital.

The reports say the ban on Russian flags and symbols has also been lifted, including at an event scheduled for May 9 on the 17th of June Street in Berlin.

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'Our Heritage & Culture': S. African Activist Lays Out Case for Returning 'Star of Africa'

▪️The ultimate goal of many Africans across the continent is to restore historical justice by returning everything that was stolen during colonial times to be able to own what was produced on their soil as it represents their culture and heritage, Mothusi Kamanga, LLB law graduate from the University of Johannesburg and social justice activist told Sputnik Africa.

▪️Kamanga is one of the South African activists, who promoted a petition addressed to the UK's King Charles III and other high officials for the Cullinan diamond, set in the royal scepter, to be returned and displayed in a South African museum.

▪️The petition, which he called an activity of paramount importance, has already gathered over 8,000 signatures from those interested in the restoration of justice.

👉 READ THE FULL STORY

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🕺Dream big!

From a young age, all this 102-year-old WWII veteran from Georgia wanted to do was dance. But the war disrupted his plans. However, he never gave up, and now he's dancing, showing everyone nothing stands in people’s way to fulfilling their dreams!

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🇷🇺 The creation of the modern Russian military took place on May 7, 1992, following the collapse of the Soviet Union. The military faced significant challenges in the 1990s, including budget cuts, demoralization, and conflicts across the post-Soviet region.

However, today the Russian military has recovered and has since become one of the top three military powers globally. It has demonstrated its capabilities in conflicts such as the proxy war in Ukraine.

While NATO has numerical advantages in terms of personnel, equipment, and spending, the Russian military remains a formidable force, and the ongoing tensions between Russia and NATO highlight the concerns about their respective military capabilities.

What is its makeup and composition? What does the letter ‘Z’ painted on Russian vehicles in Ukraine mean? How does Russia’s military stack up against NATO?

Sputnik explains

🇮🇹🇷🇺 The descendants of Soviet people living in Rome gathered to commemorate their ancestors

Festive events dedicated to Victory in the Second World War are currently ongoing.

This year is no exception. In various cities, people go out onto the streets and flow like rivers with portraits of their relatives who made a significant contribution to the victory in World War II.

The Immortal Regiment is a remarkable tradition that started about 10 years ago. During the event, people carry portraits of relatives who participated in World War II and march through the main streets of cities, honoring their memory.

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US running out of ability to use extraordinary measures to avoid default

"We've been using extraordinary measures for several months now and our ability to do that is running out," US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told ABC News, when asked whether her office still had some extraordinary steps in stock.

Earlier in May, the US Treasury warned of a possible debt default by June 1 without raising the congressional limit.

In April, House Republicans passed a debt ceiling proposal, but the Democrats and Biden rejected it.

Biden is set to negotiate the debt limit with congressional leaders next week.

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Switzerland to decide on resale of 25 decommissioned Leopard tanks in near future

In March, Germany sent a request to Switzerland for the purchase of Leopard 2 tanks. However, the Swiss legislation allows the sale of only decommissioned tanks and any sales deal is subject to parliamentary approval.

Later in March, the Commission on Security Policy of the Swiss National Council approved the decommissioning of 25 Leopard 87 tanks, which made their sale to a German manufacturer possible.
"The parliament will certainly make an important decision here. The Federal Council has not yet taken any stance. It will consider this issue in the near future," Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis told a Swiss newspaper.

The foreign minister also said that the government was closely monitoring the parliamentary discussions on the resale of 96 Leopard 2 tanks to Germany, although it had not held discussions on this initiative itself.

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