❗️Latest statements by Russian Defense Minister Shoigu on situation in Novaya Kakhovka:

▪️ Kiev carried out a terrorist attack by blowing up the Kakhovka HPP, which led to flooding in Kherson region;

▪️ Kiev blew up the Kakhovka HPP in order to transfer troops to the area of attack;

▪️ The Ukrainian regime began to construct defensive positions on the right bank of the Dnepr, which indicates their intention to defend there;

▪️ The Ukrainian Army intends to transfer units and equipment to the area of their offensive, significantly weakening their positions in the Kherson direction;

▪️ The water released from the Dnepropetrovsk HPP has increased, indicating Kiev's sabotage plans;

▪️ According to available information, there has been a significant increase in the water release from the Dnepropetrovsk HPP, leading to even greater flooding;

▪️ To prevent offensive actions by Russia, the Kiev regime carried out a terrorist attack on the hydroelectric plant, which will have long-term environmental consequences.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❗️ Russia requests UN Security Council meeting on destruction of Kakhovka HPP, Russia's Permanent Representative to the UN Vassily Nebenzia said

🎥 The Russian Ministry of Defense has released a video showing the destruction of foreign armored vehicles, including Leopard tanks

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🇺🇸‘What am I doing?’: Confused Biden elegantly wipes table with Kansas City Chiefs jersey

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

The Kakhovskaya hydroelectric power station in the Kherson region of Russia was partially destroyed as a result of shelling by armed formations of the Kiev regime.

Check out our infographics for more details.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

📍 On the birthday of the great 💭 🇷🇺 Russian poet Alexander Pushkin (224 years in 2023), the Russian House in India 🇮🇳 celebrates Russian Language Day.

To mark the occasion, officials from the Russian House and esteemed guests from the University of Delhi and Jawahar Lal Nehru University, among others, laid flowers at the monument to Alexander Pushkin in New Delhi.

Sputnik shares glimpses from the event with you!

Subscribe to @sputniknewsindia

🗣️”What they are talking about is actually taking hegemonic control of waters. The rules-based maritime order, the US, we set the rules. We make the orders as a unilateral US hegemonic tool”: International affairs and security analyst Mark Sleboda on Western military forces testing China with incursions into Chinese waters and airspace

🎧Listen to more of Sleboda’s analysis in our podcast Political Misfits

❗️Latest statements by Russian Foreign Ministry on Kakhovka HPP attack:

▪️Destruction of Kakhovka HPP planned by Kiev for military purposes as part of so-called counteroffensive;

▪️Russia strongly condemns destruction of Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Station by Ukrainian troops, calls it terrorism;

▪️Russia calls on the international community to condemn criminal acts of Kiev against Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Station.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

Former UN weapons inspector and US Marine Corps intelligence officer Scott Ritter says there’s another compelling reason: a bid to attract fresh sympathy for Kiev from the West and cure the United States and its allies of growing “Ukraine fatigue” against the backdrop of Kiev’s failing counteroffensive, and the upcoming NATO summit in Vilnius next month.

“The objective here is to create a source of international controversy,” Ritter told Sputnik.

“The United States and Europe – the collective West, have shown a propensity to accept at face value anything the Ukrainian government says regarding allegations against Russia even though there’s no evidence to back it up,” Ritter said.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

Morning Consult surveys indicate that from February 2022 to May 2023, there has been a decrease in the average percentage of Americans who support sanctions against Russia.

According to the analysis, in February 2022, Democrats showed the highest level of support for sanctions at 70%, but this percentage had decreased to less than 50% by May 2023.

Meanwhile, Republicans, who initially supported sanctions at a rate of over 50% a year ago, saw a decline to 30%. Independent voters exhibited a slightly more consistent level of support, starting at 50% and decreasing to 35% by May 2023.

Overall, the level of support among Americans for sanctions against Russia has decreased over the given time period, based on Morning Consult survey data.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

Russia's drone arsenal includes a range of sophisticated unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs)

Among them is the Orion drone, which has been in production since 2019 and boasts a top speed of 200 km/h and a maximum altitude of 8 km. The Orion's flight time can extend up to 24 hours.

Another drone, the Sirius, is scheduled to begin production in 2023 and has a top speed of 180 km/h, a maximum altitude of 7 km, and a flight time of up to 20 hours.

In addition, Russia's Altius drone is an advanced UAV that can reach a maximum altitude of 12 km, has a top speed of 250 km/h, and can remain aloft for up to 48 hours. The drone has been in mass production since 2021.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🗣️”A lot of these people were just sold to the CIA, right? They would literally, someone had a grudge against him or wanted money. And they just say, 'My neighbor over there in Afghanistan, he was part of 9/11.' Or what ever is totally untrue. And they were sent to Guantanamo”: labor attorney, human rights activist, and author Dan Kovalik on how the prisoners are treated in Guantanamo

🎧Listen to more of Kovalik’s analysis in our podcast Political Misfits

🗣️”He [Li Shangfu] said 'When friends come, they have good wine, and when jackals come, they get shotguns'. So I think he's definitely taking a stance. The US is trying to provoke China, and the US is rising to that game of chicken”: International affairs and security analyst Mark Sleboda on the state of the US-China relations

🎧Listen to more of Sleboda’s analysis in our podcast Political Misfits

🔺Deliberate sabotage by Ukraine: upper part of Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant damaged by shelling
🔺France objects to NATO opening liaison office in Japan
🔺Can China’s yuan stake a bigger claim to global prominence following US debt ceiling crisis?

The Critical Hour will cover these and more stories! Tune in to Radio Sputnik at 6pm EST|3pm PST|12am CET via the website or app

📻 Also in the United States at 105.5FM, 104.7FM, 102.9FM, 1390AM, 1140AM

🎙 As Africa takes a stronger stance in today’s world, your #AfroVerdict host sits down with a Nigerian delegation to discuss business and cultural cooperation between Russia and Nigeria.

🎧 Tune and and enjoy the episode!