🇵🇱 Poland has officially refused to file a claim against Russia in the European Court of Human Rights in the case of a plane crash near Smolensk in 2010, Poland's Ministry of Foreign Affairs reports.

On April 10, 2010, Polish Air Force flight 101's Tu-154 crashed near the Russian city of Smolensk, killing all 96 people on board. Among the victims were Polish President Lech Kaczynski and his wife.

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Since the beginning of the special military operation, over 300 mercenaries from France have arrived in Ukraine to participate in hostilities, a source tells Sputnik.

Some of the mercenaries served in the 2nd Parachute Regiment of the French Foreign Legion's 11th Airborne Brigade.

As of January, there were 50 militants from France in the zone.

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US mercenaries in panic mode as Ukraine funding dries up

A group of American mercenaries fighting in Ukraine traveled to Washington, DC this week to lobby the US Congress for a new military aid package to Ukraine, according to The Hill.

Several mercenaries told the newspaper that the Ukrainian military was experiencing serious weapons and equipment shortages, along with low morale on the front lines. One of the biggest problems, they said, was countering Russia’s growing arsenal of drones.

“The operation I got hurt on, when I looked up in the sky, there were just drones everywhere, they were all over the place,” said Jumbo, a former US Marine who was wounded during the Ukrainian counteroffensive last year.

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The key factor hindering the resolution of the conflict in Ukraine is the continued support of the West, Russian FM Sergey Lavrov said during a UN Security Council meeting on the issue of arms supplies to Ukraine.

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The United States is firmly blocking any attempts to conduct an honest investigation into the Nord Stream explosions, and the EU has resigned itself to public humiliation, Lavrov said.

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Kiev deliberately attacks purely civilian targets, Lavrov said. Blood of civilians killed yesterday on consciousness of those who are supplying weapons to Ukraine, he added.

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Kiev resells some Western weapons on the black market, something that it’s hard to imagine Western capitals don’t know about: “One hand washes the other," Russia's FM said.

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The American journalist Lira was tortured to death in the Kiev regime's dungeons for publishing critical notes about Zelensky and the West said nothing about it, Lavrov said.

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There are no interests of the Ukrainian people in the war against Russia, there are only the interests of the Anglo-Saxons, Russia FM said during a UN Security Council meeting.

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If Kiev stops fighting, it will save the lives of hundreds of thousands of those it is trying to round up like cattle and send them to die for Western interests, Lavrov said.

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Russia is ready for negotiations on Ukraine, but not on how to keep the current leaders in Kiev in power, Russian FM said. Zelensky’s peace formula is a path to nowhere, the sooner the US and the European Union realize this, the better, he added.

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More statements by Russian FM Sergey Lavrov during a UN Security Council meeting on the issue of arms supplies to Ukraine:

▪️US funding to Kiev is not like financing a war, but like a profitable business project;

▪️Lavrov called to listen carefully to Russia’s position on Ukraine "while there is still time”;

▪️The Russian Federation began its operation not against Ukraine and the people, but against the criminal regime in Kiev;

▪️The devastated arsenals of Europe will be refilled with American weapons, the United States will force the Europeans to find money for this;

▪️Anyone can buy American M16 rifles supplied to Kiev for cryptocurrency, terrorist groups take advantage of this;

▪️Lavrov called accusations of alleged Russian plans to attack other countries fiction in order to “extort money” from other states to help Kiev;

▪️Russia has never refused to negotiate and resolve the Ukrainian conflict through diplomatic means.

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📹 The blood of dozens killed civilians is on conscience of those who arming the Zelensky regime, Russian FM said.

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📹 Lavrov on Ukrainian conflict drastically weakening European countries.

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In deep crisis: Germany's chemical sector faces delays

Germany's chemical industry, pivotal in Europe, is navigating through turbulent waters due to delayed Red Sea shipments, Reuters reported. Here's how it's unfolding:

▪️The largest in Europe, the chemical sector with annual sales of around $282 billion joins others in experiencing supply disruptions, leading to production cuts.

▪️Attacks by Yemen's Houthis have forced shippers to reroute from the Red Sea and Suez Canal, affecting imports from Asia.

▪️Tesla's Berlin factory emerges as a prominent victim of these logistical challenges.

▪️Approximately one-third of the sector's imports come from Asia.

▪️Companies like Gechem are reducing output due to shortages of crucial materials, adjusting work shifts to cope.

▪️ JP Morgan analysts suggest that these disruptions could lead to price hikes and increased demand for chemical products.

According to the Ifo Economic Institute, the German chemical sector, which employs roughly half a million workers, slipped further into crisis last year, after being severely hit by the energy crisis following sanctions against Russia.

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US aid to Ukraine resembles not the financing of military operations, but a profitable business project, with 90% of the funds remaining in the United States, Russian FM Sergey Lavrov said during a UN Security Council in New York.

Lavrov said senior administration officials are "cynical" in their effort to get Congress to agree to fund new assistance for Ukraine.

“We know from what they say, for example, that 90 percent of the military budget which is being given by the US to the Kiev regime remains in the United States and is used to develop the military industry of the country and to update US weaponry. The old ancient junk is being used in Ukraine, “ Lavrov said.

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🇩🇪 Germany's ex-spy boss to found new party

Hans-Georg Maassen, the former head of Germany's Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, intends to officially create the WerteUnion (Values Union) party by February. It is expected that it will adhere to conservative values and cooperation with the AfD is not ruled out.

Two weeks earlier, another new party, the Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance, was registered in Germany - it opposes pumping Ukraine with European weapons and anti-Russian sanctions.

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Yemen's Houthis say they attacked a US military cargo ship in the Gulf of Aden, according to a Houthi spokesman.

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Taliban* published footage of the evacuation of Russians who survived a plane crash in Afghanistan

*the organization is under UN sanctions for terrorist activities

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📹 The IDF released a video of Hamas tunnels in Khan Yunis, Gaza Strip, where Israeli hostages were allegedly being held.

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Zelensky needs Ukrainian conflict to drag on in order to stay in power

Washington’s attempts to bully Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky into firing a large number of Ukrainian government officials highlights the emerging differences between Washington and Kiev, says political analyst Bogdan Bezpalko.

Whereas the US would not mind a pause in the Ukrainian conflict in order to rearm and rebuild Ukraine and then pit it against Russia once more, Zelensky needs the fighting to continue in order to retain his power, Bezpalko explains.

He also suggests that the recent criticism of Zelensky by Kiev’s Mayor Vitali Klitschko comes as the latter emerged as a speaker for a group of Ukrainian politicians who became disaffected with Zelensky’s leadership and who would not mind steering Ukraine in a different direction.

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