WATCH LIVE: German farmers converge on Berlin's Brandenburg Gate in final bid to fight subsidy cuts

👉 Follow the live here or on Sputnik's website

🇨🇳 A representative of China was not among the participants in the “Ukrainian peace formula” meeting, despite the fact that Beijing received an invitation, media reports citing a source.

According to the source, Davos was deliberately chosen as the venue for a next meeting on the Ukrainian “peace formula” so that it would take place in a place where representatives of China are already present (the World Economic Forum is being held in Davos). However, Beijing refused to participate.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🇦🇺 Australian authorities have decided to dispose of decommissioned Air Force MRH-90 Taipan helicopters rather than send them to Ukraine, despite a request from Kiev, ABC reports. The reason is problems with safety and operation, the publication notes.

Despite serious complaints about the safety of the Taipan, Kiev sent an official request to Canberra on December 19 for the helicopters to be transferred. Meanwhile, according to ABC, the process of dismantling the Taipan has already begun.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❗️ A meeting between Vladimir Putin and North Korea’s foreign minister cannot be ruled out, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

Russia intends to further develop partnerships with the DPRK in all areas, the dialogue will continue at all levels, Peskov stated.

He added that Moscow hopes that Putin’s visit to the DPRK will take place in the foreseeable future, the dates will be agreed upon through diplomatic channels.

🇪🇨 ‘We continue working to restore peace for all Ecuadorians’

Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa has published a message on his X account (formerly Twitter) recognizing the work of the armed forces and the National Police in recovering control of the country's prisons. He accompanied the post with a video.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🫡 Russian soldier lures Ukrainian kamikaze drone and dodges it

Watch how a Russian soldier tricks a Ukrainian drone operator into wasting his equipment. The masterly fighter serves in the 1st Donetsk Army Corps, according to media.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🔨With the decision to strike the Houthi positions, Biden hammered another “nail in the coffin” in terms of support from Muslim voters, Newsweek says.

All this is happening against the backdrop of already existing dissatisfaction with the White House over its support for Israel in the Gaza conflict, the publication notes.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🇷🇺🇮🇷 Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu has held telephone a conversation with his Iranian counterpart, Brigadier General Ashtiani, the Russian Ministry of Defense reports.

Military cooperation and regional security were discussed, and respect for each other’s sovereignty and territorial integrity was emphasized, the ministry added.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

Russia-Ukraine peace talks won’t get off the ground until NATO puts pressure on Kiev regime

President Zelensky’s quixotic ‘peace plan’ proposal got a cool reception at Davos on Sunday, with officials failing to agree a “clear path forward” and managing only a “more diverse family photo” compared to previous meetings on the matter.

“It is important here to understand…that Ukraine’s position is still not realistic,” Jacques Sapir, a leading Paris-based geopolitical analyst and economist, told Sputnik, pointing to the ‘peace plan’s’ demands that Ukraine regain its lost territories. And “in the mind of Kiev’s rulers, peace is to come through military victory.”

“To achieve a real negotiation beginning and a cease-fire, NATO countries [would have] to give something to Russia, be it a suspension of further arms deliveries till negotiations take place, or a partial suspension of sanctions, and maybe both,” Sapir said.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❗️ Ukrainian forces lost more than 200 troops, a tank and three infantry fighting vehicles in the DPR. The losses of Kiev regime amounted to over 140 military personnel in the south of the DPR.

🇷🇺🪖 Other statements from Russian MoD briefing on progress of special military op in Ukraine:

▪️ Ukrainian attack was repelled near Kupyansk, and Ukrainian losses amounted to up to 20 people.

▪️ An attack was repelled in the Krasny Liman area, and more than 160 Ukrainian soldiers were killed.

▪️ In the Zaporozhye region, attacks were carried out on Ukrainian positions, while the enemy lost up to 20 soldiers.

▪️ Up to 40 Ukrainian military personnel were destroyed in the Kherson region.

▪️ A fuel base for Ukrainian military equipment was hit, while 25 Ukrainian UAVs and three Tochka-U missiles were shot down.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

Neocon Haley campaign spent thousands on luxury hotels - report

US Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley's campaign has spent thousands of dollars on luxury hotels in the past year, despite claims from her team that she runs a "tight ship" and stays in "affordable" accommodations, Fox News reported, citing a third-quarter disbursements filing by Haley with the Federal Election Commission (FEC).

Haley's campaign spent more than $11,000 on luxury four-star and five-star hotels, the filing reportedly shows.

This comes as the US is preparing for the first Republican Party nominating contest of the 2024 presidential election cycle on Monday, in the form of caucuses in the state of Iowa.

Haley has emerged as Trump's top competitor and is the most active proponent of an aggressive foreign policy towards Russia, China, Iran, Venezuela, and other countries.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

⚡️ For new US military biological projects, funds from the Clinton, Rockefeller, Soros, and Biden foundations are attracted under state guarantees, Russia’s Ministry of Defense said.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

⚡️ In 2023, the Pentagon developed documents suggesting the expansion of a foreign network of US-controlled biological laboratories, the Russian Ministry of Defense said

⚡️ The US is increasing its military-biological potential, this can be seen in the example of Ukraine, the Russian Ministry of Defense said