🇷🇺 Russian air defenses down 42 drones dispatched by Ukraine near Crimea

Nine UAVs were destroyed, 33 were suppressed by electronic warfare systems and crashed without reaching the target over the territory of the Republic of Crimea, the MoD said.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🇮🇷 Iran reveals what percentage of its military equipment is homegrown

Speaking to Lebanese media, Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics spokesman Brig. Gen. Reza Talaei-Nik indicated that since the Iranian Revolution of 1979, Iran has “transformed from an importer of weapons into a country that manufactures about 90 percent of its military needs.”

Characterizing the Islamic Republic as among the top ten nations in the world in terms of defense technology, Talaei-Nik nevertheless stressed that the country uses its equipment only for defense, and “has not and will never be the initiator of any war.” Iran will also “spare no effort in decisively defending its independence and security,” he said.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🇷🇺🇧🇴 Bolivian president says considering paying visit to Russia in 2024

Luis Arce said in an interview with Sputnik that he had several phone conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who invited him to visit the country.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

😎 Mugshot merch: Don Jr. starts selling Trump Collection to fight 'tyranny & insanity'

The website states all profits from the items on sale will be donated to the Legal Defense Fund.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🤥 Volodymyr Zelensky once again appealed to his Western partners [in crime] for a fresh package of military assistance, this time begging Finland for F-16s

"Anything that floats or flies," Zelensky says.

Stay tuned to stay updated on the new "gifts" to Ukraine, but be sure to keep an eye on your pockets, as Zelensky may attempt to reach into them.

Subscribe to @sputniknewsindia

☢️ Depleted uranium munitions make Ukraine ‘uninhabitable,’ Russia’s MFA spokeswoman Zakharova says

Due to the supply of radioactive and highly toxic British and American depleted uranium munitions, radiation contamination of the soil is already happening and is being objectively recorded, Maria Zakharova said.

The consequences of the use of such munitions could also affect neighboring Poland, the spokeswoman said, adding that Ukrainians must demand that radioactive munitions be removed from their country as soon as possible.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❗️Ukrainian intelligence agencies are behind the recent arson attacks on the facilities of the Defense Ministry, Interior Ministry and Russian Railways in Russia, the FSB revealed.

The authorities have cracked these arson cases, with the perpetrators getting 19-year prison sentences, the FSB added.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❗️The death of Wagner Group chief Yevgeny Prigozhin will not change anything in terms of cooperation between the Central African Republic and Russian forces, Fidele Gouandjika, an advisor to CAR President Faustin-Archange Touadera, says.

💬 “It’s sad news, he saved democracy so the country’s in mourning. But for us it changes absolutely nothing. We’ll continue to have Wagners on the ground thanks to our agreement with the Kremlin,” Gouandjika said.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🪖 Ukrainian militants from the 123rd territorial defense brigade have shot 23 of their own fighters for attempting to desert from their positions near Kherson, a Russian security source told Sputnik, citing a source with Ukrainian forces.

The Ukrainian military command added the executed soldiers to the list of missing people to cover up the incident, the source said.

The finding comes shortly after reports surfaced that a Ukrainian squad leader had fatally shot one of his own service members after they had panicked during an encounter with Russian troops. A source told Sputnik at the time that the incident was captured on a cellphone that was found on the individual's person.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

📹 WATCH Russia's Tor-M2 missile system rocket into special op action

The Tor-M2 anti-aircraft missile system is capable of detecting, capturing and destroying up to 4 air targets simultaneously. It takes only 2 minutes to occupy a firing point, deploy the system and detect the target. It takes another minute to capture and identify the target, then the anti-aircraft missile is launched vertically.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🇷🇺🇬🇷 Leaked ‘top secret’ document details termination of technical support for Greece's Russian-made military equipment

There are not enough spare part for continued support of Russian Tor-M1 and Osa-AKM air defense systems, and the government is "throwing away" a billion euros, a Greek media outlet claims.

Now these systems could eventually end up in Ukraine via third counties, the report adds.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❗️The meeting of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will take place in the near future, Kremlin spokesman Peskov says

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🇷🇺 Latest statements by Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov:

▪️The work of the BRICS group is not aimed against anyone, on the contrary, it is aimed at mutually beneficial cooperation

▪️The Kremlin considers the BRICS summit to be extremely successful

▪️Russian Resident Vladimir Putin not planning on participating in the G20 summit

▪️The meeting of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will take place in the near future

▪️There are many speculations in Western states regarding a crash of a plane said to be carrying Wagner Group private military company (PMC) leader Yevgeny Prigozhin, all this is an absolute lie

▪️The Wagner Group private military company (PMC) does not exist de jure as a structure, so it is hard to say what its future will be

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

Ukraine forces using deadly white phosphorus weapons in Zaporozhye Region

Injuries from phosphorus are considered harder to treat than conventional burns and require qualified medical assistance. The doctor in the accompanying video says the use of white phosphorus by Ukraine suggests that these weapons were already supplied by NATO.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🇺🇸📉 Bidenomics forces US budget deficit to balloon to 'crisis-size'

Economic policies of the Biden administration have already triggered fears that the US may be heading towards an economic crisis worse than the 2008 Great Recession, amid fallout from the Fed's interest rate hikes, mounting debt, surging home prices, and a spending spree as part of proxy, trade and tech wars against Russia and China.

The United States is currently mired in crisis-size deficits as a result of the policies enacted by the administration of President Joe Biden. There are few hopes of any improvement in the near future, as forecasts issued by the Congressional Budget Office show.

👉Follow the link for more details

🇩🇪 Evidence surrounding Nord Stream blasts leads to Ukraine, German media report

Sources familiar with the investigation into the explosions at the Nord Stream gas pipelines confirm Ukraine’s involvement, several German outlets report.

The official German investigation links the blasts to the Adromeda yacht, a version of events which was branded by US investigative journalist Seymour Hersh a ‘CIA cover-up' story. In the report, the German news outlets also reassured that there was no credible evidence of Russia’s involvement in the pipeline explosions.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🗣️ On the chances that BRICS will put an end to neocolonialism in Africa:

“We see this coalition, but not Coalition of the Willing. You see this coalition of the people who really want to change the world for the better… Russia, China, India, Iran, they are paying extreme attention to what's going on in Africa. And in several layers, diplomatic, militarily, etc., they are or especially they will offer their full support to this new leaderships springing up across West Africa especially,” Pepe Escobar, a geopolitical analyst and writer, told Sputnik.

🎧 Listen to more of Escobar’s analysis in our podcast New Rules

👉 Watch the full episode of our show on YouTube or Rumble

🇨🇳🇯🇵 China blasts Japan's release of Fukushima wastewater as 'irresponsible behavior'

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin urged Japan prevent this situation from turning into a "disgrace for Japan."

China and other nations are ennoscriptd to take legitimate preventive measures to ensure the security of the marine environment and people's health in response to the "irresponsible actions" of Japan, Wang added.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

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

▪️The Russian Navy hit a Ukrainian port facility used for military purposes, the goal of the strike was achieved

▪️Russian forces repelled a Ukrainian attack in the DPR

▪️Ukraine lost up to 80 servicemen in the Krasny Liman direction

▪️Russian troops repelled three enemy attacks in the Kupyansk direction, eliminating up to 50 Ukrainian servicemen

▪️Russian air defenses shot down a Ukrainian Su-25 attack aircraft near in the Kherson region

▪️Ukrainian losses in the Kherson direction amounted to up to 50 servicemen

▪️The Russian Army repelled three Ukrainian attacks in the Donetsk direction, eliminating up to 260 servicemen

▪️Ukrainian forces lost up to 125 servicemen in the South Donetsk direction, with one Krab howitzer and two M777 artillery systems destroyed

▪️Russian troops repelled five Ukrainian attacks in the Zaporozhye direction, eliminating more than 110 servicemen as well as destroying two Bradley and two Stryker armored fighting vehicles

▪️Russian forces brought down 73 Ukrainian UAVs

▪️High precision strikes hit decision making centers and accumulations of manpower in Russia’s special military operation zone

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🇫🇮 Finland approves an 18th aid package to Ukraine worth $101 million, bringing the total amount of Finland's aid to the country to nearly 1.3 billion euros, the Finnish Defense Ministry said.

The ministry, "for operational reasons," did not provide further details on the package's content or on when and how it is going to be delivered.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt