📹 The Russian Armed Forces used FPV drones (UAV-kamikaze with a first-person view) to destroy strongholds of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the DPR

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🇦🇺 At least ten people have been killed and 11 others injured in a bus crash in Australia

"Initial inquiries indicate 10 people have died. 11 people were transported to hospital via helicopter and road, and 18 passengers are uninjured," the police said in a statement.

Emergency services continue to work at the scene, the statement noted, adding that a 58-year-old bus driver was taken to the hospital under police guard "for mandatory testing and assessment."

An investigation has been launched, the statement read.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

Donald Trump, if convicted over alleged mishandling of classified documents, could be pardoned by offering to end his presidential campaign 

On Friday, a federal court unsealed a new indictment against Trump showing he faces 37 counts in connection to his alleged mishandling of classified documents.  Several of Trump's charges carry sentences of 20 years in prison.

However, some Democrats are concerned that even a conviction will not stop Trump's presidential ambitions.

"I think if he's convicted, he would serve something minimal and be pardoned by whoever is president," former US Assistant State Attorney in Broward County, Florida, David Cannady, told Sputnik. "Trump may negotiate and offer — through a plea deal — not to run again, Democrat or Republican."

Cannady said it is likely Trump will be convicted, adding that it would send a message that people of his stature can be touched.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

📹 Footage of the destruction of an armored combat vehicle of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Zaporozhye region

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🇷🇺📹 The LPR is celebrating Russia Day for the first time since joining the country

❗️Vladimir Putin expressed condolences on the death of Silvio Berlusconi

▪️Putin noted that Berlusconi will be remembered in Russia as a consistent and principled supporter of strengthening friendly relations between Russia and Italy.

▪️"For me, Berlusconi was a dear person, a true friend, I sincerely admired his wisdom and ability to make far-sighted decisions," the Russian leader said.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

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

▪️Russian forces destroyed up to 120 Ukrainian soldiers, two tanks, and three armored fighting vehicles close to Vremevskoi Vystup;

▪️In Zaporozhye direction, Ukrainian losses amounted to more than 250 troops, five tanks, seven armored fighting vehicles, one D-30 howitzer, and one Akatsiya self-propelled howitzer;

▪️In Donetsk direction, Russian forces destroyed up to 140 Ukrainian soldiers and one D-30 howitzer;

▪️In the Kupyansk direction, the actions of one Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance group were thwarted. Russian forces destroyed up to 35 Ukrainian troops and one D-20 howitzer;

▪️In the Krasny Liman direction, Russian forces neutralized up to 55 Ukrainian soldiers, two armored fighting vehicles, Akatsiya and Gvozdika self-propelled artillery howitzers and one D-30 howitzer;

▪️In the Kherson direction, Russian troops neutralized up to 15 Ukrainian soldiers and one D-30 howitzer;

▪️In the Dnepropetrovsk region, the radar station of the S-300 anti-aircraft missile system was destroyed;

▪️An ammunition depot was destroyed in the Kharkov region;

▪️Russian air defenses shot down a Tochka-U ballistic missile and eight unmanned aerial vehicles in the DPR and Kherson regions.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

The Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant is still able to keep pumping water from the Kakhovka reservoir through a nearby thermal power plant

"At the current height of the reservoir by the ZTPP [Zaporozhye Thermal Power Plant ], the water pumps continue to be operable," the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said in a statement.

However, the pumps are currently "not continuously being operated" since both the ZTPP channel and the cooling pond near the ZNPP have enough water to meet cooling requirements for several months ahead, the statement added.

Meanwhile, the level of the Kakhovka reservoir has been dropping rapidly, the agency said. On Sunday morning, it was estimated at 11.27 meters (36.97 feet), down from nearly 17 meters before the dam was damaged.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

NATO launches a massive military exercise in Germany that may well become NATO’s biggest drill ever

On June 12, the Western military bloc that already fans the flames of the Ukrainian conflict by supplying vast quantities of weapons and military hardware to Kiev launches a massive military exercise in Germany.

As US Ret.Lt.Col. Karen Kwiatkowski explained to Sputnik, NATO is a “military alliance of disparate equipment, national procedures, and language,” and thus needs to conduct such exercises in Europe because so far, the bloc’s joint operations have been taking place “outside of Europe proper.”

Noting that the exercise will “practice defense (as NATO defines it) and conduct forward eastern operations as a 15 plus member fighting bureaucracy,” Kwiatkowski, a former analyst for the US Department of Defense, also observed that such events may also serve another purpose.

“All publicized military and government exercises and activities always provide cover for other activities that are less well publicized, as we have seen with last summer BALTOPS 22, and the subsequent remote detonation of pre-planted explosives designed to sever both Nordstream gas pipelines,” she said.

When asked why NATO intends to essentially showcase so much military equipment during the exercise, Kwiatkowski suggested that the military bloc has been pushing a propaganda narrative portraying Ukraine as “Europe's last stand against a crazed Russian invader set to sack the cities of western Europe,” and that this display is supposed to show that NATO members have the gear to resist such imagined invasion.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

Ukraine urges Germany to spare 'many more' Leopard tanks after military setback

The Russian Defense Ministry said over the weekend that Ukrainian armed forces lost four Leopards and five US-supplied Bradley fighting vehicles in an attempt to breach Russian defenses in southern Donetsk and Zaporozhye regions.

"The Ukrainian army urgently needs many more Western battle tanks, infantry fighting vehicles and other armored vehicles … Every Leopard 2 is literally as good as gold for the decisive offensive," Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrii Melnyk told a German media an interview published on Sunday.

Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrii Melnyk estimated that the number of Leopard supplies could be "tripled without endangering Germany’s defense capability."

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

‼️ EXCLUSIVE: India’s FM S. Jaishankar answers a Sputnik correspondent’s questions during his special briefing at the 🌐 G20 Development Ministers’ Meeting in Varanasi

Subscribe to @sputniknewsindia

Swiss bank UBS says acquisition of Credit Suisse completed

UBS Group AG will manage two separate parent banks, UBS AG and Credit Suisse AG, the statement read. Each institution will retain its subsidiaries and branches, keep serving its clients and working with counterparties. The board of directors and group executive board of UBS Group AG will be responsible for the consolidated group.

The announcement came after last week, UBS reached an agreement with the Swiss government that the latter would cover losses of 9 billion francs that might emerge as a result of the takeover of Credit Suisse, after UBS covers the first $5.5 billion in losses.

In mid-March, Credit Suisse's share price plunged nearly 30%, sparking fears of a liquidity crunch.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

Fox News demands Carlson stop competing series on Twitter

Fox News has sent a "cease and desist" letter to Tucker Carlson after the network’s former top star debuted his own show on Twitter, a American news website reported on Monday.

Fox News is continuing to pay Carlson and says that his contract keeps his content exclusive to Fox through December 31, 2024, the report added.

Carlson has released two episodes of his "Tucker on Twitter" show, a 10-minute monologue in which the conservative political commentator discusses latest developments. The host said that his Twitter videos are protected under the First Amendment and accuses Fox of committing material breaches of his contract.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

👨‍🚀🇷🇺 As Russia celebrated it's national day, Russian cosmonauts took their greetings to a new level by congratulating their fellow citizens from the International Space Station.

The cosmonauts extended their wellwishes from the vast expanse of space, adding an extra layer of excitement to celebrations.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

Raytheon to give Ukraine 5 Patriot systems by end of 2024

Greg Hayes told the American news outlet that the Arizona-based company wanted to increase production of surface-to-air missiles to 12 a year.

Ukraine currently has two full Patriot systems at its disposal, which include a launcher, radar and a control station.

The Ukrainian military reportedly changed the settings to allow for the tracking and destruction of hypersonic missiles, which travel at twice the speed of missiles the Patriot was designed for.

Subscribe @SputnikInt

Scheduled work on TurkStream completed, Gas transportation resumed — Gazprom

Gazprom, the Russian energy giant, announced on Monday that the planned maintenance on the TurkStream gas pipeline, which delivers Russian gas to Turkiye through the Black Sea, has been completed.

The maintenance period was scheduled from June 5-12 and Gazprom confirmed that gas transportation has already resumed.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

A nation reborn: why Russia Day is celebrated?

June 12 marks Russia Day, one of the country’s “youngest” but most important national holidays.

What is its history? How did Russia Day emerge?

Sputnik has the answers to these questions

🇦🇲🇷🇺🇦🇲🇷🇺Armenian exports to Russia up by 187% in 2022

"The growth of exports to Russia amounted to 187% in 2022 compared to 2021," the Armenian finance minister said during a speech in the Armenian parliament.
At the same time, Hovhannisyan specified that the increase had been primarily driven by re-export of foreign goods, while exports of Armenia's domestic products had made a contribution of 47 percentage points to the growth.

In January, the Armenian authorities said the country's foreign trade had surged by 68.6% and reached $14.12 billion in 2022 year-on-year. Exports amounted to $5.36 billion, a 77.7% increase from 2021, and imports totaled $8.76 billion, a 63.5% increase.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🇷🇺🇮🇩 The corvettes Gromkiy and Sovershenniy and the medium tanker Pechenga of the Pacific Fleet, on a long-distance voyage to the Asia-Pacific region, celebrate Russia Day in the Indonesian port of Surabaya, where the ships arrived the day before as part of a business call.

Video courtesy from Russian MoD

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🇷🇺 Burj Khalifa lights up with Russian flag to honor Russia Day

The tallest tower in the world - the Burj Khalifa in Dubai (UAE) - was lit up portraying the Russian flag to celebrate Russia Day.

Looks good, doesn't it?

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

‼️In a first, 🇵🇰 Pakistan pays for 🇷🇺 Russian oil in Chinese yuan: country’s petroleum minister

The first cargo of Russian crude oil arranged under a new deal struck between Islamabad and Moscow arrived in Karachi on Sunday.

Subscribe to @sputniknewsindia