Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s failure to fire his Commander-in-Chief Valery Zaluzhny shows that there is no “center of power” in Kiev, international relations and security analyst Mark Sleboda told Sputnik’s Fault Lines.

“if [US President] Joe Biden is the ‘emperor with no clothes’, then that kind of makes Zelensky the ‘butt-naked king.’

“The president has failed to fire his own commander-in-chief. That means there is no center of power within the regime at the moment, or perhaps Zaluzhny has more power than Zelensky. Or, the West is just running the show and Zelensky [has] been revealed as nothing but a puppet middle manager with no agency or control in his own country.”

Sleboda said that the Ukrainian general’s reported refusal to resign at the behest of Zelensky, as well as the reported refusal by his potential replacements to take the post, showcase that the “military establishment united against [Zelensky]. … they all said ‘no’ to him,” describing it as “defiance.”

Sleboda noted it reminded him of a situation in 2019, when an Azov commander got into an argument with Zelensky on video.

“Right after he became president. 'I'm not some loser off the street,' he said. And [the] Azov commander is like, 'Yeah, okay, whatever, dude.' And it was after that that he gave up on any attempts to complete the Minsk protocols, which initially he made some gestures, some small gestures towards [that]. That's what he was there to do to get Azov to stop firing artillery shells into Donetsk and they refused.”

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The US has “overstayed” its “effectiveness in our influence” in the Middle East, Michael Maloof, a former senior security policy analyst for the Secretary of Defense and author told Sputnik’s Final Countdown while speaking about the drone strike in Jordan that killed three US soldiers and injured dozens more.

“Clearly, we have overstayed our effectiveness in our influence [in the Middle East] because everyone uniformly hates us,” Maloof explained. “We really have to reevaluate what our policies are, and that’s not happening. All we’re doing is reacting now to events and what it’s doing is putting us on more of an escalatory approach and having us dig deeper holes than we ever wanted.”

Maloof called for a flexible foreign policy that reevaluates the situation and adjusts to changing conditions. “We’re looking at the Middle East completely through the prism of Israel and look [at] what it’s gotten us. It started with Iraq… we spent trillions there, and what [do] we have to show for it? Nothing,” he explained.

Maloof also warned the situation could escalate quicker than the US is prepared for. “It could bring in Russia and China. I mean, this thing could get out of control completely. … Why do we want to continue on? We have Saudi Arabia and UAE saying, ‘Look we want normalization. We want to get this war over with so we can have normalization and bring some sanity to the region again’ but instead we’re provoking and continuing to agitate even further.”

He also warned that if Iran shut down the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea, “it would create a worldwide depression… and no one’s talking about it.”

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The United States created the conflict in Ukraine to keep Europe “under its thumb,” analyst Dr. David Oualaalou told Sputnik’s Critical Hour.

“[The US] created the conflict to ensure that Europe will stay under [its] thumb by dictating the terms and complicating matters for them,” Oualaalou explained. “One way you do that, [is] you complicate the economic outcome for an entity, doesn't matter who, that's how you do it,” Oualaalou added, noting the rise in food and energy prices in Europe.

Oualaalou comments came after NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said during a press conference that “Weapons are – in fact – the way to peace [in Ukraine,]” an assertion that Oualaalou said “defies logic” and said that Ukraine is already “gone” with or without further aid from the West.

In fact, according to Oualaalou, money is not the only issue facing the Ukrainians, there are also ammunition shortages, something Europe cannot help them with.

“I hope your listeners know that the UK cannot fight the Houthis, for example,” Oualaalou said, referring to the growing conflict in the Red Sea. “The reason? They don't have firepower, they don't have enough. That is why they are just riding with the US.”

Oualaalou warned that there were likely more conflicts planned by the US security apparatus.

“That's usually how the narrative goes because that is the aim - you move from one conflict to the next one because you're already preparing [for] the next conflict. … what I see on the horizon, is what's going on too, in Asia,” he explained. “It [has] become clear in the West that Ukraine is a failed state. The objective has been accomplished. Let's move to the next conflict. And once that's settled, we're going to move to a third one and so forth.”

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Trump seemingly abandons his promise to seek a peace deal in Ukraine.

Instead, the former president promised to pressure European countries into spending more money on military support for the Zelensky regime.

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Zelensky wants Zaluzhny ousted for alleged ceasefire-related secret talks with West- Seymour Hersh

Volodymyr Zelensky wants to remove Commander-in-Chief Valery Zaluzhny from his post over his alleged involvement in secret talks with Western officials about pursuing a ceasefire with Russia, US investigative journalist Seymour Hersh reported.

"Zelensky's desire to fire his commanding general is the result, some Americans believe, of his knowledge that Zaluzhny has continued to participate - whether directly or through aides is not known - in secret talks since last fall with American and other Western officials on how best to achieve a cease-fire and negotiate an end to the war with Russia," Hersh said.

The New York Times, citing sources, reported Tuesday that Kiev postponed Zaluzhny's dismissal because of a leak about his possible resignation.

The head of the Ukrainian military intelligence service, Kyrillo Budanov, and the commander of the Ukrainian ground forces, Oleksandr Syrsky, were named as possible successors.

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🇷🇺 The Central Election Commission has announced the number of eligible voters in Russia - over 112.3 million. For the first time, data has been presented taking into account voters living in the new regions. There are also almost 1.9 million voters outside Russia.

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❗️The Russian Presidential Administration has not received any requests from Kiev asking for the transfer of the bodies of prisoners of war killed in the Il-76 crash, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Sputnik.

Earlier, the Main Intelligence Directorate of Ukraine’s Defense Ministry stated that Kiev had asked Russia to hand over the bodies of the prisoners of war killed in the Il-76 crash in the Belgorod region, but that Moscow had allegedly not yet given an answer.

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▪️ Iran begins building new nuclear power plant

▪️ Trump urges Europe to spend more on Zelensky regime

▪️ Zelensky-Zaluzhny feud signals anarchy in Kiev

More stories:

▪️ ’Digital Pearl Harbor’ leaker and WikiLeaks activist sentenced to 40 years

▪️ US created Ukrainian conflict to dominate Europe – analyst

▪️ US failed in Mideast, sparking ubiquitous hatred – analyst

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The current US approach towards Ukraine involves backing the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valery Zaluzhny and implementing nationwide reforms that will lead to a change in the Zelensky regime, US investigative journalist Seymour Hersh said.

"The actual concept ... envisions sustained support for Zaluzhny and reforms that would lead to the end of the Zelensky regime," Hersh said.

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According to Ukrainian media, border guards reported that military draft dodgers in Ukraine have resorted to disguising themselves as animals in their attempt to escape the country.

Security camera footage that has been published captures the moment two men, under the cover of darkness, crawl on all fours while attempting to cross the border.

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NATO chief praises Trump for anti-China stance

“You shifted your policy on China in 2017 under President Trump, and since then, NATO has gone a long way in helping European allies fully appreciate the challenges posed by China and respond to it,” NATO General Secretary Jens Stoltenberg said during a speech at conservative think-tank in Washington on Wednesday.

Stoltenberg pledged that the alliance would help the US take on the “China challenge,” but did not offer specifics on what support it was willing to provide.

In recent years, NATO has sought to expand its military footprint in the Asia-Pacific region and declared that it views China as a “threat” that needs to be contained. Beijing has promised a “resolute response” to any NATO expansion into Asia.

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Huge air vulnerability, massive gap in NATO’s arsenal exposed in Ukraine

Retired US Marine Colonel Mark Cancian pointed out in an interview with Business Insider that the hybrid air defense systems, known as FrankenSAM, used by the armed forces of Ukraine, have exposed NATO's vulnerability to Russia’s military power.

"Ukraine's use of experimental "FrankenSAM" defense systems has highlighted gaps in NATO's own arsenals," the publication said.

According to Cancian, the utilization of such weaponry by the Ukrainian army highlights a deficiency in ground-based air defense systems within the North Atlantic military bloc, including the United States.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly stated that Moscow harbors no geopolitical or economic ambition to engage in hostilities with NATO members.

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🇮🇷 Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi asserted that while his country has no intention of initiating a war but it will "respond strongly" to any attempts at bullying.

"We will not start any war, but if anyone wants to bully us they will receive a strong response," Raisi said in a televised speech.

"Before, when they (the Americans) wanted to talk to us, they said the military option is on the table. Now they say they have no intention of a conflict with Iran," he said.

"The Islamic Republic's military power in the region is not and never has been a threat to any country. Rather, it ensures security that the countries of the region can rely on and trust," Raisi added.

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❗️ Ukraine’s actions are cynical; in order to achieve selfish goals, it is ready to commit any crime, said Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, commenting on the downing of Il-76

❗️ Statements by Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu on the achievements of the Russian army in January in the special operation zone

▪️ Ukrainian forces' losses in January exceeded 23,000 people killed and injured;

▪️ Russian forces maintain strategic initiative along line of contact after Ukraine’s counteroffensive failed;

▪️ Russian forces now in control of Veseloe, Tabaevka, Krakhmalnoe settlements after fighting in Kupyansk, Krasny Liman, Donetsk directions;

▪️ Groups of Russian troops continue to reduce the enemy's combat potential;

▪️ Russian troops destroyed more than 3 thousand Ukrainian weapons in January, including Leopard tanks, Patriot and HIMARS launchers;

▪️ Russia in January carried out 127 strikes with high-precision weapons on military infrastructure, facilities of defense industry of Ukraine;

▪️ Kiev throws its remaining reserves into battle and hastily carries out the next forced mobilizations to prevent the collapse of the defense;

▪️ To demonstrate to Western curators at least some success, the Zelensky regime is carrying out terrorist attacks against Russian civilians.

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❗️ French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne revealed the death of two French citizens in Ukraine.

According to him, "two French aid workers" were killed there. "Three others were injured," Sejourne stated.

Previously, Russian troops struck a location housing foreign mercs in Kharkov. The Russian Ministry of Defense said the strike killed more than 60 French mercenaries.

"Two humanitarians? I would like to confirm that. Because the 400 French people who went to kill Palestinian children and babies are also humanitarians?" netizens quipped, questioning the minister in the comments.

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A member of the Ansar Allah Politburo, Ali al Qahum, commented for Sputnik on the ongoing attacks of the Western coalition on the territory of Yemen.

“The US and UK are confused. They have failed to provide protection to Israel in the Red Sea and cannot support it in continuing its criminal aggression against Gaza and the oppressed Palestinian people.”

“We see that Western countries are preparing for an escalation of the situation in Yemen. But I want to assure you that the Houthis are also preparing for retaliatory actions. He will be tough. And the area and scale of military operations will be wider. In this war, all options are open. We will spare no effort or means to defend our sovereignty and help our Palestinian brothers.”

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🇵🇱 Polish farmers plan to go on strike and block the Ukrainian border on 9 February in protest against European agricultural policy

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"Units of the Russian Armed Forces are moving forward, expanding control zones, and improving their position along the front line," Shoigu said.

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