President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko arrived in Kazan, Russia, for the opening of the "Games of the Future". The president was received at the ramp by the head of the Republic of Tatarstan.

Games of the Future - is a high-tech international tournament that will be held in Kazan from February 23 to March 2, 2024. The official opening ceremony of the Games is scheduled for today, which is expected to be attended by President Vladimir Putin.

The presidents of Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan are also expected to attend the opening ceremony.

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The West is responsible for what has happened in Ukraine over the last ten years, Larry Johnson, retired CIA intelligence officer and State Department official, revealed the role of the US in the Maidan "popular uprising".

"This was provoked. They wanted to create this relationship with the West because there were so many Westerners, particularly in the United States, ranging from Joe Biden, Hunter Biden, Mitt Romney, families that had financial interests in Ukraine. So this is, you know, really all about money," he said.

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Arriving in Kazan, Russian President Vladimir Putin visited the Kazan Aviation Plant and proposed to name the new Tu-160M after the first President of Tatarstan Mintimer Shaimiev.

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Avdeyevka liberation: ‘Beginning of end of Ukrainian combat cohesion along entire front line’ – Scott Ritter

Ukraine lost the battle for Avdeyevka for a number of reasons, but the most important is that they simply don't have the fire power necessary to stabilize the battlefield, as they've done in the past, former US Marine Corps intelligence officer Scott Ritter told Sputnik.

“They [Ukrainian forces] have no more artillery rounds that enable them to flood the battlefield, break up Russian attacks, and support counterattacks. They don't have air defenses to stop Russian air power from coming in and dominating the battlefield. They have insufficient drones to replace artillery fire support. Simply put, the Ukrainians are unable to hold their own on the battlefield,” Ritter pointed out, describing the situation as “the Avdeyevka end game.”

He suggested that the liberation of Avdeyevka could be “the beginning of the end of Ukrainian combat cohesion along their entire front line.”

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If Assange is extradited to the US no journalist in the world would be safe – ex-UN expert.

"Essentially it would mean that any journalist who publishes information that the US government does not like would be subject to persecution and prosecution," Alfred de Zayas, professor of international law in Geneva, former UN independent expert on international order (2012-18), and a retired senior lawyer with the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, told Sputnik.

"His extradition would set a very toxic precedent that the core principle of refugee law and asylum law no longer protects persons who have a well-documented fear of persecution, as codified in article 1 of the Geneva Refugee Convention," the ex-UN expert continued.

According to de Zayas, Assange's extradition would be "the culmination of 14 years of vicious lawfare, of the destruction of the rule of law in the United States, United Kingdom, Sweden and Ecuador, all complicit in this scandal and all too public."

He bemoaned the fact that the US and its allies totally ignored calls by UN official organs and rapporteurs who qualified Assange's detention in the UK's prison as "torture" and called for his immediate release.

Assange, who made classified data provided to him by Chelsea (born Bradley) Manning in 2010 public, shedding light on the US' alleged war crimes during its invasions and occupation of Afghanistan and Iraq, could receive a prison term of up to 175 years in the US.

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❗️In the Avdeyevka direction, the Russian troops took better ground, reppeled seven counterattacks of the Ukrainian troops. Ukrainian losses amounted to 450 soldiers.

🇷🇺🪖 Other statements from the Russian Defense Ministry briefing on the progress of the special military operation in Ukraine:

▪️In the Kharkov region, Russian troops repelled five counterattacks of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the area of the village of Senkovka;

▪️In the DPR, Ukrainian losses amounted to more than 425 servicemen; in the south of the DPR, Ukrainian losses amounted to up to 210 servicemen and 2 tanks;

▪️The Russian forces hit fuel depots and personnel of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in 123 districts;

▪️ Russian air defense systems shot down 12 HIMARS MLRS shells, one JDAM guided missile and 99 drones during the day.

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📹 Biden vs Putin: Stair climbing edition

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Donald Trump reminds Americans that Russian military defeated Hitler and Napoleon

“You really are up against a war machine in Russia. Russia, what did they do? They defeated Hitler, they defeated Napoleon. So, you know, they are a war machine.”

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Ukraine’s bloody Maidan coup: See how it started

This February marks the 10th anniversary of the Maidan coup that shook Ukraine to the core and sparked a chain of dramatic events throughout the country.

What started as social unrest in late 2013 due to the then-president’s decision to delay a trade agreement between Ukraine and the EU eventually erupted into massive political demonstrations backed by the US and the EU.

The protests quickly grew increasingly violent and ultimately caused a deep political rift within Ukrainian society that sparked the beginning of the ongoing crisis.

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Israel’s economic downturn ‘ultimately direct or indirect implication’ of Gaza war

Tel Aviv’s ongoing military campaign in the Gaza Strip and the psychological impact of this conflict on Israeli society have directly contributed to the country’s recent economic decline, says Dr. Nasir Iqbal, associate professor at the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics.

“If we look into the spending pattern and psychological well-being of the citizens of Israel, they are facing a lot of issues in terms of this psychological warfare of the economy and that led to a significant decline in economic activity,” Dr. Iqbal notes.

The scholar also suggests that the international boycott of “most of the products produced by and linked with Israel” by those who do not approve of Israel’s actions also does not do the Israeli economy any favors.

“This decline in economic activity is ultimately a direct or indirect implication of the war. As we know, around $58 billion [has been used] by Israel to accommodate the war expenses,” Dr. Iqbal adds.

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Battle for Donbass: What comes next?

Sputnik correspondent Russell Bentley (@TXDPR) writes that although Avdeyevka represents a major victory, a big battle lies ahead for the full liberation of the Donbass.

“The NATO-backed Ukrainian Army has been routed from Avdeyevka, but they remain in the vicinity, and within artillery and drone range of Donetsk, Makeyevka, and Gorlovka. The Ukrainian Army's next strongpoint is the defensive line running from Yasnobrodovka through Orlovka to Novokalinova (see yellow line on the map).

This defensive line is not nearly as fortified as Avdeyevka was, but it is still a prepared defensive line, with minefields, bunkers, significant water obstacles, etc. Our troops are likely to keep pushing west of Avdeyevka, towards the village of Lastochkino, but I expect that there will be a pause in our advance for rest, resupply and consolidation of our forces, before hitting the Ukrainian defensive line at Orlovka.

The liberation of Avdeyevka is a major accomplishment and heroic victory, but the main DPR cities (and water supply infrastructure) remain within range of artillery and medium range attack drones. This will remain the case until the Ukrainian Army is moved back to a line running from Pavlograd to the very heavily defended Kramatorsk. Until then, our cities and civilians remain under threat, and are expecting the revenge attacks on civilians that inevitably follow Ukrainian military defeats on the battlefield.”

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Russia's FM Sergey Lavrov arrived in Rio de Janeiro for the meeting of G20 foreign ministers.

He is expected to meet with ministers from Mexico, South Africa, Bolivia, Brazil and possibly Turkiye.

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Trident II and the woes of Britain's nuclear deterrent

The illustrious British Royal Navy has once again demonstrated its standards of excellence by messing up a submarine nuclear missile launch test last month.

While HMS Vanguard did manage to launch the Trident II intercontinental ballistic missile (equipped with a dummy warhead) into the air, the ICBM’s first stage boosters apparently failed to ignite and the missile promptly crashed into the sea right next to the sub.

This cock-up did not deter the UK Defense Ministry from proclaiming that the British nuclear deterrent remains “effective,” with the launch failure simply being attributed to an “anomaly.”

Trident II ballistic missile: What can it do?

The UGM-133 Trident II is a submarine-launched ballistic missile made by famous US defense contractor Lockheed Martin.
These three-stage solid-fuel missiles, which can carry several nuclear warheads and have an operational range of about 12,000 kilometers, serve as integral parts of both the US and the UK nuclear arsenals.

The February 2024 mishap was not the only incident to occur during UK tests involving Trident II missiles. In 2016, a malfunction during a Trident II launch off the coast of Florida caused the missile to fly in the direction opposite to where it was supposed to go in accordance to the Royal Navy’s plan.

As one British media outlet helpfully pointed out, the UK has not performed a successful nuclear missile launch since 2012.

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The Polish Foreign Ministry is concerned that protesting farmers have started using anti-Ukrainian slogans and phrases "glorifying Putin."

The ministry believes that "actions of this type put Poland in a bad light" and allegedly compromise the organizers of the protest.

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