🇷🇺🪖 Key points of the Russian MoD briefing on the weekly progress of the special military operation in Ukraine:

▪️The Russian Armed Forces repelled five attacks in the Kupyansk direction.

▪️Russian aviation shot down a Ukrainian Mi-8 helicopter in the Zaporozhye region.

▪️The Ukrainian losses in the Donetsk direction amounted to up to 290 servicemen; four enemy attacks were repelled.

▪️The Ukrainian Armed Forces (UAF) lost up to 100 servicemen in the Krasny Liman direction, and up to 90 servicemen in the South Donetsk direction.

▪️Russian air defense systems repelled an attempt by the UAF to launch a massive drone strike against targets in Crimea; all UAVs were destroyed.

▪️The Russian Armed Forces shot down 49 Ukrainian UAVs in the LPR, Zaporozhye, and Kherson regions, as well as 10 HIMARS, Uragan, and Alder MLRS missiles.

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🗣 The West sacrificed Ukraine for "mission impossible"

"For the West to say Ukraine is incompetent because it failed to accomplish military tasks, which were impossible to accomplish, is just once again indicative of the reality that the West doesn't care about Ukraine. And that's the sad state of affairs. You have an incompetent president. You have a Ukrainian military that's not capable of performing any of the missions that it's been assigned. And you have a collective West, the United States, NATO and the European Union, that has been willing to sacrifice Ukraine to achieve an unattainable political objective in Russia," Scott Ritter, former US Marine intelligence officer, told Sputnik.

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🇮🇱🇵🇸 Latest updates on Palestinian-Israeli conflict:

▪️The three Israeli hostages who were killed Friday by Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers in Gaza were shirtless and waving a white flag when they were shot, an IDF official said Saturday, calling the killings a “tragic, tragic event” and a violation of IDF rules of engagement.

▪️Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Bogdanov discussed with the ambassadors of Egypt and Jordan the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and an early ceasefire in Gaza.

▪️US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock discussed in a phone call the situation in the Gaza Strip and Red Sea maritime security, the Department of State said in a statement.

▪️The IDF said it destroyed Lebanese movement Hezbollah's targets in Lebanon in response to recent launches.

▪️Air raid sirens sounded in northern Israel, Israeli army said.

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🛩 Two Tu-22M3 long-range bombers completed a 5-hour flight over the neutral waters of the Baltic Sea, accompanied by a Su-30cm.

At certain stages of the route they were also accompanied by foreign fighters, the Russian Ministry of Defense said.

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🇮🇱 Israel is relying heavily on artificial intelligence in its bombardment of the Gaza Strip, to choose targets at an unprecedented rate, independent journalist Vanessa Beeley said on Rachel Blevins' show. Beeley added that the West was using Gaza as a testing ground for its latest weapons and technology, which was one of the reasons why the US and its allies support Israel.

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🇷🇺🇪🇬🇯🇴 Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov has discussed with Egyptian Ambassador to Russia Nazih el Nagari and Jordanian Ambassador to Russia Khaled Shawabkeh the Palestine-Israel conflict and the issue of an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, the Russian Foreign Ministry stated on Saturday.

"During the conversation, the sides discussed the situation in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict zone and focused on the necessity to continue consolidated efforts in the interests of an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and the provision of humanitarian assistance to its population, as well as the situation in the West Bank," the foreign ministry reported.

The meeting's agenda also included the issues of strengthening Russian-Arab coordination on key topics of international and regional agenda, including within the framework of the Russian-Arab Cooperation Forum, the statement read.

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🇷🇺🛡 Unique strategic weapons built to keep Russia safe

During a trip to the northern Russian shipbuilding city of Severodvinsk this week, President Putin toured took part in the flag raising ceremony for a pair of brand new nuclear-powered ballistic and cruise missile subs; he also left a note in the Admiral Kasatonov frigate's logbook reading “With such sailors, ships and weapons, Russia will feel safe.”

Veteran military historian Yuri Knutov told Sputnik that Putin’s message is unmistakable – that Russia has the tools in its strategic arsenal to prevent any large-scale enemy aggression, whether with its Zircon scramjet-powered hypersonic missiles, Kinzhal air-launched hypersonic missiles, the Avangard hypersonic glider, the Poseidon nuclear-powered, nuclear-armed underwater drone, the Burevestnik nuclear-powered cruise missile, the Sarmat ICBM, or its advanced aircraft.

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🇺🇦☦️ “A step that is as ridiculous as it is predictable”

Ukraine is slammed for religious persecution as Patriarch Kirill in Russia is added to a “wanted” list by the Kiev regime.

Zelensky’s government has been targeting members of the Russian Orthodox Church for more than a year, even pressing criminal charges against prominent leaders in Ukraine.

The move is symbolic as Ukrainian authorities have no jurisdiction outside the country, although critics say Kiev uses such tactics to intimidate its detractors internationally.

The “kill list” maintained by figures with links to Ukrainian MPs includes journalists, musicians, and 13-year-old activist Faina Savenkova.

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Scott Ritter: West shifting rhetoric on Ukraine as aid to Kiev crumbles

As Kiev's counteroffensive fails while Russian Army is growing stronger by the day, “and the collapse of political will and fiscal ability on the part of Ukraine’s erstwhile allies in the US and Europe,” Scott Ritter points to a clear shift in the language used by Western officials to discuss the Ukraine crisis.

“Joe Biden and his national security team are scrambling to manage the consequences of policy failure. Putin, it seems, has not lost the war with Ukraine. Russia is winning, something no amount of funding by either the US, the Europeans, or both, can reverse. The best thing that could happen to Ukraine is for the congressional Republicans to hold steadfast to their objections and allow Ukraine to be taken off the life support that US funding provides. Ukraine is a terminal case. Continuing to underwrite its failed war effort simply prolongs the agony of its people,” Ritter summarizes.

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🇺🇸 Trump quotes Putin to prove US democracy in danger

Trump addressed his supporters during a campaign rally at the University of New Hampshire's Whittemore Center Arena in Durham on December 16.

The presidential hopeful emphasized that even the Russian president believes that Trump is being politically persecuted.

“Even Vladimir Putin – has anybody heard of Vladimir Putin of Russia? – says that Biden's, and this is a quote, ‘Politically-motivated persecution of his political rival is very good for Russia because it shows the rottenness of the American political system, which cannot pretend to teach others about democracy.' So, you know, we've talked about democracy, but the whole world is watching the persecution of a political opponent that's kicking his ass. It's an amazing thing. And they're all laughing at us," Trump stressed.

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🇩🇪 🛫 German flag carrier Lufthansa and its subsidiaries demanded 740,000 euros ($807,000) in compensation from climate activists for cancellations, delays, and changes in flight routes due to their protests at German airports, the Bild am Sonntag newspaper reported on Saturday.

The damage from the activists' actions at the airports of Hamburg and Dusseldorf on July 13 was estimated at 400,000 euros and 220,000 euros, respectively, the report said, adding that the activists are asked to pay compensation out of court.

Losses from the protest at Berlin airport in November 2022 were estimated at 120,000 euros, the newspaper reported. The report noted that five activists sought the help of lawyers and one filed a lawsuit.

German Digital and Transport Minister Volker Wissing said that the government was already working to tighten penalties for "blocking airports in order to disrupt their operations."

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📈 Global coal demand is expected to hit an all-time high by the end of 2023 — surpassing 8.5 billion tons

The International Energy Agency (IEA) reported a 1.4-percent increase in demand in its Coal 2023 report, primarily attributed to growing consumption in emerging and developing economies, marking a pivotal moment in the world's energy landscape.

Despite Western countries' warnings about climate change, their reliance on coal remains significant. Coal accounts for a considerable portion of their energy mix even as they advocate for green energy solutions.

Rising gas prices in 2021 made coal-fired power generation competitive again despite higher European Union Allowance (EUA) prices for carbon emissions. Coal consumption in the EU surged 14 percent that year, mainly in the power sector, according to IEA's Coal 2022 analysis and forecast for 2025.

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🇮🇱 Is Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu governing on borrowed time?

Demonstrations against the controversial leader rocked Tel Aviv over the weekend as the Israeli military admitted responsibility for the killing of 3 Israeli captives in northern Gaza City.

The Israelis were shot by IDF soldiers despite waving white flags of surrender, a violation of the rules of military engagement.

The announcement comes after controversy erupted over video of a 1986 interview with Netanyahu where he appeared to justify the bombing of hospitals.

👉 Check out Sputnik's article to find out more

🌍 'A Total Failure'? COP28 Outcomes Explored Through African Lens

COP28 was unsuccessful for African countries, as countries in the Global North failed to commit to meeting the $100 billion in climate finance pledged to help developing countries reduce emissions and adapt to global warming, Sydney Chisi, Executive Director at Reyna Trust in Zimbabwe, told Sputnik Africa.

"So at the end of the day, when it comes to issues of climate finance, COP28 was, once again, a total failure for Africa and there's absolutely no hope for Africa to get that money from the Global North," Chisi pointed out.

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🚢 Two global shipping majors suspended their vessels’ passage through the Red Sea on Friday: Denmark’s Maersk and Germany’s Hapag-Lloyd. Then on Saturday, the Italian-Swiss giant MSC and France’s CMA CGM also suspended the travel of their vessels through the Red Sea strait.

“We are deeply concerned about the highly escalated security situation in the southern Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. The recent attacks on commercial vessels in the area are alarming and pose a significant threat to the safety and security of seafarers,” Maersk said in a statement.

The decisions made by these shipping majors is a response to a warning by the Huthis who claimed they were targeting vessels as a way to put pressure on Israel. Since the Palestine-Israel conflict broke out in early October, the Houthis have conducted multiple attacks on commercial ships in the Red Sea.

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🇪🇺 Europe is preparing for the fact that it will have to compensate Kiev for the missing assistance from the United States, and under this scenario, it has five to eight years to restore its defense capability, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius stated on Saturday.

"For example, the defense industry will take time to ramp up. Right now we have about five to eight years to catch up in the military, industry and society," Pistorius told Welt, adding that in the next ten years, the US will show more interest in the Pacific region rather than in Europe, and therefore Europeans themselves need to become more involved in ensuring security in the region.

The EU has been trying to reach an agreement on 20 billion euros in military support for Ukraine and intends to include another 50 billion euros in the EU budget to provide macro-financial assistance to Kiev over the next four years. However, the plans have faced opposition from some member states, mainly from Hungary.

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🇩🇪🪖 German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius suggested possible reintroduction of compulsory military service in the country, calling its suspension a mistake despite the reasons that existed at the time.

However, it is hard to return compulsory connoscription now due to a number of issues, including legal and political, Pistorius said. At the same time, he is currently considering a Swedish connoscription model, where both men and women are considered liable for military service, but only a portion of them are connoscripted, Pistorius added.

On April 28, Pistorius told Spanish press that Germany had no plans to bring back compulsory military service since Berlin did not have the capacity or funds for this.

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🇺🇦🪖 “Attack helicopters, advanced fighter jets, long-range missile systems, and Abrams tanks”

These items are among Ukraine’s wishlist for the United States as German media reports plans for a 2024 counteroffensive.

The report comes despite the broad failure of Ukraine’s efforts in 2023 as the country continues to grow its stockpile.

“What we are experiencing is basically a controlled rearguard action,” said one expert, suggesting Kiev is fighting a losing battle.

Ukraine will reportedly abandon efforts to reclaim territory and simply focus on attempting to kill as many Russians as possible.

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🇵🇸🇮🇱 Hamas stated on Saturday that it would not negotiate a hostage exchange until Israel ended its military operation in the Gaza Strip.

"The Hamas movement reiterates its position not to conduct any negotiations on the exchange of prisoners until the military operation against our people finally ends," the movement stressed.

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🇷🇺🪖 The Russian air defense destroyed 33 Ukrainian drones over Russia’s Lipetsk, Rostov, and Volgograd Regions, the Russian Defense Ministry stated.

"Tonight, an attempt by the Kiev regime to carry out a terrorist attack by fixed-wing drones on objects on the territory of the Russian Federation was stopped. Air defense systems destroyed and intercepted 33 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles over the territories of the Lipetsk, Rostov, and Volgograd Regions," the ministry reported.

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Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg is investing millions of dollars to construct a vast underground bunker, according to a report in US media.

The doomsday shelter is part of a sprawling compound being built on property the multimillionaire owns in Hawaii which will include mansions, a large gym, and treehouses.

Denoscriptions of the bunker read like the stuff of science fiction, with soundproofed rooms and passages hidden behind bookshelves leading to secret areas.

Zuckerberg has attempted to maintain secrecy around the project, forcing contractors to sign strict nondisclosure agreements.

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