Beijing will boost the dialogue with all parties to the Ukrainian crisis, including Russia, and make efforts to reach a political settlement

"Based on provisions of the document 'China's Position on the Political Settlement of the Ukraine Crisis,' Beijing will continue to boost cooperation and dialogue with all parties, including Russia, and make real efforts for a political settlement of the Ukrainian crisis," Chinese Special Representative for Eurasian Affairs Li Hui said during the meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, as quoted in a statement by the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

The Chinese ministry stated following the meeting that Russia and China would continue to increase bilateral and multilateral cooperation in various areas and enrich their relations "in a new era."

In February, China released a 12-point document ennoscriptd "China's Position on the Political Settlement of the Ukraine Crisis," which underscores respect for the sovereignty of all countries, the cessation of hostilities and the resumption of peace talks between Moscow and Kiev. Russian President Vladimir Putin said that some of the provisions of the plan could be a basis for a peace settlement, "if the West and Kiev are ready for it."

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Ukraine has made a request to the German government to acquire Swedish-German long-range cruise missiles Taurus KEPD 350 with a range of up to 500 kilometers

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky raised the issue of the shipment of German missiles to Ukraine during his meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz earlier in the month, the newspaper said, adding that the German Defense Ministry confirmed that Kiev had requested Taurus from Berlin.

Earlier in the week, Roderich Kiesewetter, a German lawmaker from the opposition Christian Democratic Union, said that Berlin should abandon "red lines" in its approach to the Ukrainian conflict and provide cruise missiles with over 500km range to Kiev.

Western countries have been supplying military aid to Ukraine since the start of Russia's special military operation in February 2022. The aid includes both light and heavy weapons, such as tanks and other armored vehicles, missiles, drones, artillery and munitions.

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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 45 Ukrainian troops, two armored fighting vehicles, one Msta-B howitzer, one US-made AN/TPQ-50 counter-mortar radar as well as one ammunition depot;

▪️In the Krasny Liman direction, Russian forces neutralized up to 60 Ukrainian personnel, three armored combat vehicles, as well as two D-30 and one Gvozdika howitzer;

▪️In the Donetsk direction, Ukrainian losses amounted to more than 260 troops, two armored combat vehicles, two D-30 and one Gvozdika self-propelled howitzer as well as one ammunition depot;

▪️In the South Donetsk and Zaporozhye directions, Russian forces destroyed over 120 Ukrainian troops, one infantry fighting vehicle, a Polish Krab self-propelled howitzer, one US-made AN/TPQ-37 counter-mortar radar as well as two ammunition depots;

▪️In the Kherson direction, Russian troops neutralized up to 10 Ukrainian soldiers, one D-30 and two Gvozdika self-propelled howitzers;

▪️Russian air defenses shot down two Storm Shadow cruise missiles, two HARM anti-radar missiles, 19 HIMARS missiles, and 12 unmanned aerial vehicles in the LPR, DPR, and Zaporozhye region.

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The training of the military of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the use of M1 Abrams tanks and their maintenance has begun in Germany

▪️ The Pentagon was cited by US media as saying 200 military men have begun general-arms briefing at the training grounds in Grafenvoor and Hohenfels; another 200 are being trained in tank refueling and maintenance.

▪️ According to the report, the training will take from ten to 12 weeks.

▪️ Earlier it became known that the United States will transfer Abrams M1A1 tanks to Ukraine without “sensitive” technologies: there are fears that they will fall into the hands of the Russian military.

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EU freezes $26Bln in private assets of sanctioned Russians since February 2022

The value of frozen Russian private assets under sanctions increased from 18.9 billion euros in December to 24.1 billion euros in late May, a German newspaper said.

As many as 1,473 individuals and 205 firms from Russia have been sanctioned by the EU, the newspaper added.

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✈️ 110 years ago, the first-ever four engine aircraft, designed by famous Russian aviation pioneer Igor Sikorsky, performed its first flight in Russia. Its name changed to Bolshoi Baltiyskiy (The Big Baltic)

A massive contraption powered by four 100 hp Argus As engines made in Germany, Sikorsky’s creation was 20 meters long and 4 meters high, with the plane’s upper and lower wingspan being 27 and 20 meters respectively.

During its maiden flight on May 27, 1913, the plane, piloted by Sikorsky himself, took off from the Corpusny Airfield in St. Petersburg and reached an altitude of about 100 meters.

Russian Emperor Nicholas II himself took interest in Sikorsky’s creation and personally inspected the plane.

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Ukrainian military starts training in Germany to operate US Abrams tanks

About 200 Ukrainian troops started combined arms instruction at training ranges in Grafenwoehr and Hohenfels on Friday, while another 200 started being trained in tank refueling and maintenance, Pentagon spokesman Garron Garn was cited as saying.

Last week the White House gave its consent to European allies to sent Ukraine their US-made F16 jets — Kiev's fighter aircraft of choice. Germany said it would not send fighter jets but would continue supporting Ukraine in other ways. The Kremlin has repeatedly warned against Western arms deliveries to Kiev.

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Egyptian archaeologists unveil two largest embalming workshops found to date

The mission, led by the head of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities, Mostafa Waziri, also found two burial sites and some other artifacts, the regional broadcaster reported. The workshops, one of which was used for mummifying humans and the other for embalming animals, date back to the Thirtieth Dynasty of Egypt and the beginning of the Ptolemaic period, Waziri was cited as saying.

Archaeologists unearthed an intact tomb around 4,400 years old, which is believed to have belonged to a high-ranking official who lived during the Fifth Dynasty of Egypt. Other tombs dating back to the Old and New Kingdoms were also discovered there.

Saqqara is home to the oldest necropolis, whose first burials date back to the First Dynasty of Egypt, and the iconic Step Pyramid of Djoser.

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"By this time, all Russians will have already left": Six months ago, the advisor to the head of the Ukrainian presidential office, Mikhail Podolyak, promised to expel all Russians from Crimea by today and personally come to the city of Yalta. But something went wrong 🤷‍♂️

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🗣️”The enormous profits that come into these defense contractors, they plow some of those profits into think tanks, as you guys know very well. And what do those think tanks do? They produce policy papers about threats, the China threat, the threat from Asia, the threat from here, the threat from there.”: Daniel McAdams, executive director of the Ron Paul Institute for Peace and Prosperity, on the hidden connections between the Pentagon, think tanks, and the media

🎧Listen to more of McAdams’ analysis in our podcast Fault Lines

Henry Kissinger turns 100

Henry Kissinger is an American political scientist and former US secretary of state. He is famous for creating the foreign-policy doctrine called "realism".

No matter how the geopolitical situation changes, Kissinger continues to insist that Russia should be perceived as "an essential element" of global equilibrium and call for a peaceful co-existence with China.

"Most people don’t understand that there is no 'independent diplomacy' pursued for the benefit of all humanity and disconnected from the pursuits of power," Nicolai Petro professor of political science at the University of Rhode Island told Sputnik.

Who is Kissinger and what's his legacy?

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🚀 SpaceX is a private aerospace company founded by Elon Musk that focuses on developing advanced rockets and spacecraft. It is known for its achievements in reusable rocket technology and its ambitious goal of establishing a human colony on Mars.

On May 27, SpaceX launched the Arabsat BADR-8 telecommunications satellite into orbit.

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EU Commissioner says Twitter quitting bloc's voluntary pact against disinformation

"Twitter leaves EU voluntary Code of Practice against disinformation. But obligations remain. You can run but you can’t hide. Beyond voluntary commitments, fighting disinformation will be legal obligation under # DSA [Digital Services Act] as of August 25. Our teams will be ready for enforcement," European Commissioner for Internal Market Thierry Breton tweeted on Friday.

Last February, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell expressed concerns that Twitter's policy under its new owner, Elon Musk, would harm efforts to counter disinformation and manipulations since the platform removed free access to its application programming interfaces, among other things.

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🚀 Virgin Galactic is a commercial spaceflight company founded by Richard Branson, offering suborbital spaceflights for tourists. Its flagship vehicle, VSS Unity, was launched from a carrier aircraft and provides passengers with a few minutes of weightlessness and a stunning view of Earth from space.

The company launched its Unity 25 mission from Spaceport America in New Mexico ahead of the planned commercial launch in June 2023.

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🗿 The Olmec civilization is one of the oldest known complex societies in Mesoamerica, flourishing between approximately 1500 BCE and 400 BCE.

It is considered the "mother culture" as its influence and artistic style spread to later civilizations, such as the Maya and Aztecs.

A 2,500-year-old Olmec stone monolith has returned to Mexico museums after decades illegally kept in the US.

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Serbian President steps down as ruling party leader

"I suggest that Milos Vucevic be appointed as the new leader of our party," Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic told a party congress in the city of Kragujevac.

Later in the day, Vucevic said that as a new leader of the party he would continue his predecessor's course, prioritizing the protection of Serbians and their values.

"Our politics will not change, we will remain the party that is the engine of our country's development; the party that protects and observes traditional values of the Serbian people and all citizens of Serbia; the party that will politically support keeping Kosovo and Metohija as part of Serbia and that will take care of the interests of the Serbian community everywhere, first and foremost on the territory of former Yugoslavia; the party that will be a reliable partner of president Vucic," Vucevic was quoted by Radio Television of Serbia as saying.

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🇺🇸 Deal ‘in principle’ made to raise US debt ceiling before default

Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) have reached a deal to raise the government’s debt ceiling limit ahead just days before the start of June when the US Treasury Department said the government was at risk of defaulting on its obligations.

McCarthy confirmed the news on Twitter, saying that he and Biden had come to an agreement that was “worthy of the American people.”

It has been reported the deal will limit non-defense-related spending to 2023 levels for two years and will increase the debt ceiling for a similar amount of time. The deal will prevent any more debt ceiling standoffs until after the 2024 Presidential election.

In delivered remarks, McCarthy said that there was still a lot of work to be done before the bill is ready to be presented to Congress for a vote. He said he expects the text of the bill to be completed and posted Sunday, with the House voting on it on Wednesday.

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🇷🇺 Putin says border guards to continue protecting Russia’s sovereignty territorial integrity

Vladimir Putin has congratulated veterans and current service members on Border Guards Day, which is celebrated on May 28:

💬 "You, the successors and heirs of the victors’ generation, of those who defeated Nazism, continue to discharge your duty with honour and dignity, solve challenging high-priority tasks to protect the state borders, carry out border control and protection of marine resources, make an important contribution to implementing international integration projects and development of cross-border cooperation, fight transnational crime and smuggling, and prevent diversions and terrorist attacks."

The Russian president thanked border guards for their service, particularly those participating in the special military operation in Ukraine.

💬 "... it is vitally important to ensure fast movement of both military and civil vehicles and cargoes, including food, humanitarian aid, and construction materials on their way to new constituent entities of the Russian Federation – the Donetsk and Lugansk people’s republics, and the Zaporozhye and Kherson regions," Putin said.

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⚡️ Turkiye goes to vote in presidential election run-off

The first round two weeks ago saw Erdogan clinch 49.52% of the votes, and Kilicdaroglu 44.88%. To win the election, a candidate must receive a simple majority of the votes.

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#SputnikInfographic: 🇹🇷 Turkiye's presidential run-off 2023: Sizing up the candidates

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