Will Bobulinski's testimony end Joe Biden's presidential bid?

"For years, [Tony] Bobulinski has been trying to make his case against the Biden family 'business,' yet over the same period, the FBI, Department of Justice and Internal Revenue Service have refused to prosecute the lay-down cases against many Biden family members and associates for corruption, influence peddling, money-laundering and income tax evasion," Wall Street analyst Charles Ortel told Sputnik.

Former business associate of Joe Biden's son Hunter, Tony Bobulinski, delivered his bombshell testimony concerning Joe Biden's involvement in his son's business dealings on February 13 before American lawmakers in the House impeachment probe. Bobulinski alleged that Joe Biden could be probed in relation to the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), Anti-Corruption and Public Integrity statutes, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), and the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO).

Nonetheless, there's little if any chance that Biden's DoJ will pick up the case and prosecute the US president, as retired certified public accountant Robert Bishop and CrowdSource the Truth founder Jason Goodman told Sputnik.

Apparently, only Donald Trump's victory and an overhaul of the House and Senate would be the guarantee that the Bidens and other political dynasty families will be held accountable, Sputnik's interlocutors believe.

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▪️Security, really? 'Galactic' record of US hegemonic ambitions to militarize space

▪️US hysteria over Russian nuclear arms in space is just smoke and mirrors

▪️From missiles to EW and laser arms: Meet Russia’s various anti-satellite warfare innovations

▪️The Ukrainian military has already begun a partial withdrawal in Avdeevka

▪️Ukraine attacked a Belgorod shopping center using RM-70 “Vampire” MLRS. What do we know about the weapon that killed civilians, including a child?

▪️Western pharma giants have been doing illegal medical experiments on people for decades

▪️Will Bobulinski's testimony end Joe Biden's presidential bid?

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⚡️The situation in Avdeyevka is critical as the city may fall under Russian control due to a lack of ammunition, the White House said.

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Volodymyr Zelensky’s approval rating plummets – Ukrainian survey

After the Ukrainian president dismissed Valery Zaluzhny as his commander-in-chief, Zelensky’s public approval rating declined by 13%, according to poll results published by the Kiev International Institute of Sociology (KIIS).

In the framework of the poll noscriptd “Trust in political, military and public figures”, Ukrainians also expressed their attitudes towards the country's most important names:

▪️Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukrainian president – 64% of respondents expressed their confidence in their president, compared to 77% last December, while 35% mistrust him, compared to 22% last December;

▪️Andriy Yermak, head of Zelensky's office – public trust dropped from 33% in December to 27% in February;

▪️Oleksandr Syrsky, new commander-in-chief – 40% of respondents trust him, 21% do not, and 4% are uncertain (35% of people were unaware of who he was);

▪️Valery Zaluzhny, former commander-in-chief – enjoys 94% trust rating, with mere 5% of people distrusting him (same as last year).

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The US is in Process of contacting Russia, consulting with allies over the alleged 'threat,' Strategic Communications Advisor John Kirby said.

US President Joe Biden has instructed his team to initiate direct diplomatic contacts with Russia in connection with a "national security threat" related to Russia's ongoing development of anti-satellite capabilities, Strategic Communications Advisor John Kirby said.

"He [Biden] has directed a series of initial actions including additional briefings to congressional leaders, direct diplomatic engagement with Russia, with our allies and our partners as well, and with other countries," Kirby said during a press briefing.

Kirby said that while Russia's development of this particular capability is concerning, it does not pose an immediate threat to anyone's safety. "Our general knowledge of Russian pursuit of this kind of capability, goes back many months, if not a few years," he added.

The US has contacted Russia regarding a potential threat to US national security, but has not secured actual talks so far, Kirby specified.

"We reached out to the Russian side, but we have not secured actual conversations at this point," the official clarified, when asked if any contact had been made with Russia.

Commenting on an alleged Russian-related "security threat" to the US, the Kremlin said Thursday that the White House is trying to get Congress pass a bill on new assistance to Kiev by hook or crook.

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John Kirby blames Republicans unwilling to support the supplemental funding bill for the critical situation in the city of Avdeyevka.

"In very large part this is happening because the Ukrainian forces on the ground are running out of artillery ammunition… And because Congress is yet to pass the supplemental bill, we’ve not been able to provide Ukraine with the artillery shells… The Russian forces are now reaching Ukrainian trenches actually in Avdeyevka, and they are beginning to overwhelm Ukrainian defenses," the official insisted.

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What US weapons may be a bigger problem to their wielders than to the enemy

The United States has been forced to rely on the aging C-2 cargo planes for delivering cargo to their aircraft carriers at sea after the US Navy and US Air Force had to ground their fleets of the more advanced V-22 Osprey aircraft due to safety concerns.

This move, prompted by a deadly Osprey crash in Japan in November 2023, is far from the only example of the supposedly advanced US military hardware turning out to be a lot more faulty than advertised by its makers.

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The Houthis attacked the British ship Lycavitos under the flag of Barbados with anti-ship missiles in the Gulf of Aden, Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said.

"UK vessel Lycavitos was attacked in the Gulf of Aden by anti-ship missiles with a direct hit on the target. We will continue to hamper the passage of ships associated with Israel until the aggression in the Gaza Strip ceases and the blockade is lifted," Saree stressed.

Earlier in the day, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said that it had received a report of an attack on a vessel 85 nautical miles east of the Yemeni city of Aden.

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❗️ The US House of Representatives will break from legislative business until February 28, without having advanced any legislation to provide assistance to Ukraine and Israel.

House lawmakers adjourned on Thursday for a President’s Day break, before beginning consideration of legislation to provide aid to Ukraine and Israel, such as a $95 billion supplemental funding bill passed by the US Senate earlier this week.

US Congressman Don Bacon reportedly said that he intends to introduce a new bipartisan bill with foreign aid and border security measures, which cut some economic and humanitarian assistance included in the US Senate bill.

US House Speaker Mike Johnson has said that he has no plans to bring the Senate bill to the House floor for a vote.

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Recession-plagued Japanese economy ‘has fallen into vicious circle’ thanks to anti-Russian sanctions

Tokyo’s decision to impose sanctions against Russia after February 2022 contributed to the current woes plaguing the Japanese economy that has now entered recession, says Sergio Rossi, professor of macroeconomics and monetary economics at the University of Fribourg.

According to him, the “boomerang effect” of the Japanese sanctions “can be observed to a large extent on energy prices, which have been recording a mushroom growth in the last two years.”

“This has given rise to observable inflationary pressures across the market for produced goods and services, thereby reducing the purchasing power of Japanese consumers, mostly with regard to the middle class, which has a higher propensity to consume than the wealthy people,” Rossi notes.

“As a result, consumption expenditures have slowed down, thereby inducing a sort of demand-led recession across the Japanese economy. This weakened the exchange rate of the Japanese yen, thereby aggravating the domestic inflationary pressures stemming from a much higher cost for imported goods.” Japan’s economy thus has “fallen into a vicious circle,” he states.

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Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev discussed with his Iranian counterpart, Ali Akbar Ahmadian, security issues in the Middle East and Central Asia in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, the Russian Security Council said.

"There was an extensive exchange of views on issues of mutual interest, with an emphasis on the strategic priorities of Russia and the Islamic Republic of Iran. The parties focused on security issues in the Middle East and Central Asia, as well as prospects for Russia-Iran cooperation in countering challenges and threats to the security of both states," a statement said.

The officials also discussed the practical implementation of the agreements at the highest level, the council highlighted.

Nikolai Patrushev and Ali Akbar Ahmadian held talks on the eve of the multilateral meeting of the secretaries of security councils on the issues related to Afghanistan.

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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has signed a bill legalizing the use of cannabis for medical purposes in Ukraine, the country's parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, said.

"The bill on regulating the circulation of hemp plants for medical, industrial purposes, scientific and scientific-technical activities… was returned with the signature of Volodymyr Zelensky," the Verkhovna Rada said in a statement.

The bill will go into effect six months after it is officially published.

On December 21, 2023, Ukrainian lawmaker Yaroslav Zheleznyak said that the Verkhovna Rada had adopted a bill on the legalization of medical cannabis in the second reading. Later, a resolution to block the bill was registered in parliament. Subsequently, the majority of deputies refused to block it.

Zelensky pledged to legalize medical cannabis during his presidential campaign in 2019. However, the bill failed to pass the parliament in July 2021. The Ukrainian cabinet backed the president's bid to allow its cultivation and use for medical and scientific purposes in June 2022.

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🇿🇦 'Over our dead bodies': Global South mustn't allow West to extend its domination, SA politician says

There is a need to build a cohesive and powerful global movement that will serve as a steadfast bulwark against neo-colonial and imperialist forces that seek to conserve their hegemony in different ways, Dr. Alex Mashilo, the South African Communist Party (SACP) National Spokesperson, told Sputnik Africa.

"For example, they will deprive you of access to original sources of information, such as what Russia is saying. And when you do an Internet search engine, depending on the territory you are doing that from, the results you will receive are predominantly Western European and American internet search engine results. What do those results do? They push an imperialist agenda and want you to believe it," the South African politician explained.

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Exposed: US intel's false claim on the Trump-Russia collusion

The US intelligence community fabricated claims that Russian President Vladimir Putin preferred Donald Trump over Hillary Clinton in the 2016 US presidential election, journalists Michael Shellenberger, Matt Taibbi and Alex Gutentag reported.

An Intelligence Community Assessment (ICA) published by the US Director of National Intelligence in January 2017 purported that Putin wanted Trump to win the election.

However, the assessment’s authors fabricated the intelligence on the claim, the report said, citing sources close to a House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI) investigation into the origins of the Trump-Russia scandal.

The findings of the HPSCI investigation are being blocked from release, according to the report.

Evidence indicates that Putin actually preferred Clinton, the report said. The House investigators found that US intelligence analysts had information about Russians calling Trump unreliable and unsteady, the report said.

In contrast, intelligence indicates that Russians viewed Clinton as manageable and likely to continue existing US policies, the report said.

A four-year investigation by US Special Counsel Robert Mueller into the allegations found no evidence of a criminal conspiracy.

A subsequent investigation by US Special Counsel John Durham concluded that the FBI should have never launched the probe into the collusion allegations.

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