Sputnik International
A bridge too far? Latest batch of US weapons not reaching Ukraine anytime soon With the latest $61 billion military aid package finally being approved by US lawmakers, Washington is expected to sign contracts for weapons and military hardware for Kiev worth…
The Pentagon chief confirmed that the United States is allocating $6 billion for the production of new weapons for Ukraine from American contractors.
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
💩46😁5👍1
Sputnik International
So long, Abrams: Ukraine sidelines US-made M1A1 tanks due to Russian drones Ukraine has withdrawn US-provided Abrams M1A1 battle tanks from the front line because of attacks by Russian unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), the AP news agency quoted American military…
The Pentagon refused to comment on the withdrawal of American Abrams tanks from the battlefield in Ukraine due to their vulnerability and recommended asking questions to Kiev.
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
😁60💩12
Despite the “transfer” of Crimea to Soviet Ukraine 70 years ago, it remained Russian – but at a price
Seventy years ago, on April 26, 1954, the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR issued the decree making Crimea a part of Soviet Ukraine. Even in a nightmare, its members could not imagine that this decree would one day become the “legal base” for attacks against Crimea – with the use of NATO’s missile systems.
The real author of the idea to make Crimea - a province of Russia since 1783 - “a gift for Kiev” was Nikita Khrushchev (1894 – 1971), who, as Stalin’s successor, was the top ruler of the Soviet Union. The main reason was pragmatic: administratively, it was easier to obtain water and electricity from neighboring Soviet Ukraine by making Crimea its part – formally.
The other reason was historical. Russo-Ukrainian reunification in 1654 had happened 300 years earlier, under Czar Alexey the Quiet, and the transfer of Crimea would become a symbol of “indivisibility” of Moscow and Kiev.
In 1954-1991, the transfer did not affect the daily lives of Crimeans. But it started to hurt after 1991, when Crimea was subjected to “Ukrainization” by the newly sovereign Kiev. The Russian-speaking peninsula became “an unloved child.”
In the 1990s, Western media noted the grievances of Russians in Crimea. It only stopped doing so after Maidan.
For example, when a pro-Russian candidate Yuri Meshkov was elected the president of Crimea in 1994, the NYT wrote on March 23, 1994: “For the ethnic Russians who make up 70% of the peninsula’s 2.7 million people, the victory of Yuri Meshkov held out a promise of a return… to what people here perceive as Russia’s relative prosperity.”
In 1994, Meshkov was prevented by Kiev from holding a referendum on the status of Crimea and ousted after a brief arrest. In 2014, when such a referendum was held after the Maidan coup, the Western elites preferred to stick to the formula of 1954. Now they say it allows Kiev to bomb Crimea as “Ukrainian” land.
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
Seventy years ago, on April 26, 1954, the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR issued the decree making Crimea a part of Soviet Ukraine. Even in a nightmare, its members could not imagine that this decree would one day become the “legal base” for attacks against Crimea – with the use of NATO’s missile systems.
The real author of the idea to make Crimea - a province of Russia since 1783 - “a gift for Kiev” was Nikita Khrushchev (1894 – 1971), who, as Stalin’s successor, was the top ruler of the Soviet Union. The main reason was pragmatic: administratively, it was easier to obtain water and electricity from neighboring Soviet Ukraine by making Crimea its part – formally.
The other reason was historical. Russo-Ukrainian reunification in 1654 had happened 300 years earlier, under Czar Alexey the Quiet, and the transfer of Crimea would become a symbol of “indivisibility” of Moscow and Kiev.
In 1954-1991, the transfer did not affect the daily lives of Crimeans. But it started to hurt after 1991, when Crimea was subjected to “Ukrainization” by the newly sovereign Kiev. The Russian-speaking peninsula became “an unloved child.”
In the 1990s, Western media noted the grievances of Russians in Crimea. It only stopped doing so after Maidan.
For example, when a pro-Russian candidate Yuri Meshkov was elected the president of Crimea in 1994, the NYT wrote on March 23, 1994: “For the ethnic Russians who make up 70% of the peninsula’s 2.7 million people, the victory of Yuri Meshkov held out a promise of a return… to what people here perceive as Russia’s relative prosperity.”
In 1994, Meshkov was prevented by Kiev from holding a referendum on the status of Crimea and ousted after a brief arrest. In 2014, when such a referendum was held after the Maidan coup, the Western elites preferred to stick to the formula of 1954. Now they say it allows Kiev to bomb Crimea as “Ukrainian” land.
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
👍58❤2
US sows chaos in Asia-Pacific, foments serious problems in the region
Bilateral relations between China and the United States are currently in the midst of a “complicated historical period where competition, pressure and cooperation exist simultaneously,” according to Wang Zhimin, director of the Institute of Globalization and China's Modernization the University of International Business and Economics.
The United States regards China as its biggest rival and thus strives to suppress and contain China’s development, Wang tells Sputnik, noting that both Democrats and Republicans in the US are essentially in agreement on the harsh stance on China despite their differences on many other matters.
The scholar notes that in general, Sino-American relations are “difficult” and that the United States keeps exerting pressure on China “on all directions.”
Wang also points at a statement made recently by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi who said that the United States bears responsibility for the problems in the US-Chinese relations.
China sincerely hopes that the United States is capable of respecting China’s concerns and will play an active role in the development of healthy Sino-American relations, and Wang Yi mentioned that China seeks to facilitate sustainable development of the US-Chinese relations based on the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and mutually beneficial cooperation.
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
Bilateral relations between China and the United States are currently in the midst of a “complicated historical period where competition, pressure and cooperation exist simultaneously,” according to Wang Zhimin, director of the Institute of Globalization and China's Modernization the University of International Business and Economics.
The United States regards China as its biggest rival and thus strives to suppress and contain China’s development, Wang tells Sputnik, noting that both Democrats and Republicans in the US are essentially in agreement on the harsh stance on China despite their differences on many other matters.
“When it comes to politics, the United States is primarily a country that sows chaos and creates numerous serious problems in the Asia-Pacific region, and which influences the situation in the East China Sea, the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea,” he remarks.
The scholar notes that in general, Sino-American relations are “difficult” and that the United States keeps exerting pressure on China “on all directions.”
Wang also points at a statement made recently by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi who said that the United States bears responsibility for the problems in the US-Chinese relations.
China sincerely hopes that the United States is capable of respecting China’s concerns and will play an active role in the development of healthy Sino-American relations, and Wang Yi mentioned that China seeks to facilitate sustainable development of the US-Chinese relations based on the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and mutually beneficial cooperation.
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
👍37👌7🔥2
How Russian nuclear umbrella shields Belarus from NATO and its minions
"There is certainly a threat [to Belarus from the West]," Dmitry Stefanovich of the Moscow-based Institute of World Economy and International Relations tells Sputnik, referring to NATO's military build-up on the bloc's eastern flank and rapid militarization of Poland.
Under these circumstances the deployment of Russia's tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus is a step in the right direction in terms of creating deterrence, the scholar emphasizes.
The All-Belarusian People's Assembly (APA) unanimously adopted the nation's new military doctrine on April 25, while the National Assembly approved the country's updated National Security Concept. The documents envision the deployment of Russian tactical nuclear weapons as a key element of strategic deterrence.
Addressing the APA the nation's military and intelligence leaders referred to challenges faced by Belarus on its borders with Ukraine and Lithuania. While Ukraine has recently amassed around 120,000 troops there, Lithuania appears to have tested Belarusian air defense systems with a recent drone strike.
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
"There is certainly a threat [to Belarus from the West]," Dmitry Stefanovich of the Moscow-based Institute of World Economy and International Relations tells Sputnik, referring to NATO's military build-up on the bloc's eastern flank and rapid militarization of Poland.
Under these circumstances the deployment of Russia's tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus is a step in the right direction in terms of creating deterrence, the scholar emphasizes.
"This is a symbol that Russia is fully extending its nuclear umbrella to Belarus," the expert says. "And that an armed conflict in Belarus cannot but involve Russia as a guarantor. [Russia and Belarus] have a single defense contour of the Union State, which is multi-faceted, including the nuclear sphere."
The All-Belarusian People's Assembly (APA) unanimously adopted the nation's new military doctrine on April 25, while the National Assembly approved the country's updated National Security Concept. The documents envision the deployment of Russian tactical nuclear weapons as a key element of strategic deterrence.
Addressing the APA the nation's military and intelligence leaders referred to challenges faced by Belarus on its borders with Ukraine and Lithuania. While Ukraine has recently amassed around 120,000 troops there, Lithuania appears to have tested Belarusian air defense systems with a recent drone strike.
"If there were no Russian tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, there could be grounds for concerns," Yuriy Shevtsov, director of the Belarusian Center for Problems of European Integration, explains. "But since they exist (…) Belarus is unlikely to face a big blow from NATO. And a small blow, if it is delivered by Lithuania or by the Belarusian oppositionists under the guise of Lithuania, would be easily repelled by the Belarusian Army."
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
👍49❤9🔥2
▪️So long, Abrams: Ukraine sidelines US-made M1A1 tanks due to Russian drones
▪️This is where US taxpayers' money is going
▪️Poles and Lithuanians don’t want to die in Ukraine but prefer to repatriate Ukrainians instead
▪️US sows chaos in Asia-Pacific, foments serious problems in the region
▪️How Russian nuclear umbrella shields Belarus from NATO and its minions
▪️How US foreign military interventions led to huge civilian deaths: Understanding the impact
▪️Unnamed US media company is seeking operators with combat experience who can use night vision goggles to work in Russia
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
▪️This is where US taxpayers' money is going
▪️Poles and Lithuanians don’t want to die in Ukraine but prefer to repatriate Ukrainians instead
▪️US sows chaos in Asia-Pacific, foments serious problems in the region
▪️How Russian nuclear umbrella shields Belarus from NATO and its minions
▪️How US foreign military interventions led to huge civilian deaths: Understanding the impact
▪️Unnamed US media company is seeking operators with combat experience who can use night vision goggles to work in Russia
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
👍19❤5
Dozens of George Washington University students continue their protest in Washington, D.C. in support of Palestinians and against Israeli military actions in the Gaza Strip. The organizers told a Sputnik correspondent that they demanded that US authorities “sever financial, material and intellectual ties” with Israel.
University administration unsuccessfully demanded that the protesters disperse by the end of the day Thursday - the tent city was set up on a square near the university's law school, a ten-minute walk from the White House.
The protest continued Friday, but police did not disperse participants. Law enforcement officials admit they have no idea when the demonstration will end.
In addition to Washington, D.C., demonstrations have also taken place at Columbia University, Yale, MIT, Princeton, Harvard, Stanford, UC Berkeley, and other institutions. At some universities administrators, backed by police officers, are forcibly disbanding the protests, which has led to hundreds of arrests and detentions.
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
University administration unsuccessfully demanded that the protesters disperse by the end of the day Thursday - the tent city was set up on a square near the university's law school, a ten-minute walk from the White House.
The protest continued Friday, but police did not disperse participants. Law enforcement officials admit they have no idea when the demonstration will end.
In addition to Washington, D.C., demonstrations have also taken place at Columbia University, Yale, MIT, Princeton, Harvard, Stanford, UC Berkeley, and other institutions. At some universities administrators, backed by police officers, are forcibly disbanding the protests, which has led to hundreds of arrests and detentions.
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
👍53❤5💩3👌2
Israel has a clear timeline for carrying out an operation in the Gaza Strip's southernmost city of Rafah and it will not allow Palestinian movement Hamas to conduct "another round of pointless talks for the purpose of fraud," the Axios news portal reported, citing senior Israeli officials.
On Friday, a delegation of Egyptian intelligence officials paid a visit to Israel to meet with Israeli military and security officials to talk over the hostage deal and the operation in Rafah, the report said.
The Israeli message to the Egyptian delegation that it would not engage in "another round of pointless talks for the purpose of fraud" was clear, another official said.
Therefore, Israel was ready to give the hostage negotiations one last go, but if there was no progress soon, it would launch the operation, Axios reported.
On April 8, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the date for the start of the ground operation in Rafah had been set. The city is considered to be Hamas' last holdout and the plan for the operation has already been approved, but it will require the evacuation of over one million displaced people currently sheltering there.
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
On Friday, a delegation of Egyptian intelligence officials paid a visit to Israel to meet with Israeli military and security officials to talk over the hostage deal and the operation in Rafah, the report said.
"Israel told Egypt that it is serious about preparations for the operation in Rafah and that it will not let Hamas drag its feet," one of the Israeli officials was quoted as saying.
The Israeli message to the Egyptian delegation that it would not engage in "another round of pointless talks for the purpose of fraud" was clear, another official said.
Therefore, Israel was ready to give the hostage negotiations one last go, but if there was no progress soon, it would launch the operation, Axios reported.
On April 8, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the date for the start of the ground operation in Rafah had been set. The city is considered to be Hamas' last holdout and the plan for the operation has already been approved, but it will require the evacuation of over one million displaced people currently sheltering there.
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
👎28🤬23👍4
Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte admitted that the military aid package for Ukraine adopted by the US Congress this week could be the last one, which would pose new challenges for Europe.
On Tuesday, the US Senate passed a $95 billion bill containing approximately $61 billion in Ukraine-related funding. US President Joe Biden signed the bill into law on Wednesday. The US Department of Defense later unveiled a $1 billion military aid package for Kiev, including cluster munitions and air defense supplies.
Russia has repeatedly warned NATO countries that arms supplies to Ukraine would be considered legitimate targets. Moscow has accused NATO countries of "playing with fire" by arming Ukraine, emphasizing that such actions hinder the possibility of Russia-Ukraine negotiations.
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
"It is great that the US Congress has decided to support Ukraine, but we have to start thinking about what should happen if this is the last aid package. That would mean that the challenges for us here in Europe would be even greater. We have prayed so much that Congress convene and resolve this issue, but there may be a need for further support," Simonyte told Lithuanian news agency ELTA.
On Tuesday, the US Senate passed a $95 billion bill containing approximately $61 billion in Ukraine-related funding. US President Joe Biden signed the bill into law on Wednesday. The US Department of Defense later unveiled a $1 billion military aid package for Kiev, including cluster munitions and air defense supplies.
Russia has repeatedly warned NATO countries that arms supplies to Ukraine would be considered legitimate targets. Moscow has accused NATO countries of "playing with fire" by arming Ukraine, emphasizing that such actions hinder the possibility of Russia-Ukraine negotiations.
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
🥴31👍11😁8👎2🔥2❤1
Yemen's Ansar Allah movement, also known as the Houthis, said that they struck the British oil tanker Andromeda Star in the Red Sea with missiles and shot down a US MQ-9 drone.
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
👌52👍30❤13😁4🔥3💩1
Israel has carried out deadly strikes in areas of Gaza that it marked as safe zones for Palestinian civilians, NBC News reported, citing an investigation it conducted on this matter.
The report said it looked into seven Israeli strikes that had killed Palestinians in areas of southern Gaza designated as safe zones by Israel.
These strikes occurred from January to April, the report noted.
The report said that on December 18, Israeli armed forces dropped leaflets in Gaza that identified the Tal Al Sultan, Al Zuhur, and Al Shaboura neighborhoods as safe and told Gaza residents to seek shelter there.
However, NBC News said its investigation found that all three locations have been hit by Israeli airstrikes since then.
NBC News said they were told by the Israel Defense Forces that they continue to consider these designated areas as safe zones.
Israel's operation in Gaza has resulted in the death of more than 34,000 Palestinians and the wounding of over 77,000 Palestinians since October.
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
The report said it looked into seven Israeli strikes that had killed Palestinians in areas of southern Gaza designated as safe zones by Israel.
These strikes occurred from January to April, the report noted.
The report said that on December 18, Israeli armed forces dropped leaflets in Gaza that identified the Tal Al Sultan, Al Zuhur, and Al Shaboura neighborhoods as safe and told Gaza residents to seek shelter there.
However, NBC News said its investigation found that all three locations have been hit by Israeli airstrikes since then.
NBC News said they were told by the Israel Defense Forces that they continue to consider these designated areas as safe zones.
Israel's operation in Gaza has resulted in the death of more than 34,000 Palestinians and the wounding of over 77,000 Palestinians since October.
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
🤬67❤5👍1🌚1
Jewish student protester shatters myth of antisemitic campus demonstrations
Pro-Palestine demonstrations began over a week ago at Columbia University, where students set up an encampment calling for the school to divest funds from financial interests connected to weapons manufacturers and the Israeli occupation. Hundreds of arrests have since taken place at protests on campuses across the country.
“The university as soon as we set up started to accuse us of things like antisemitism and attempting to incite violence,” he added. “It could not be further from the truth at all. As a Jewish student, I was there and I feel like it's my duty to just refute these ridiculous claims of antisemitism that have been thrown around by the university and politicians.”
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
“At least 33 major American universities – and now international ones – have joined in on campus Gaza protests,” noted host John Kiriakou on Sputnik’s Political Misfits program.
Pro-Palestine demonstrations began over a week ago at Columbia University, where students set up an encampment calling for the school to divest funds from financial interests connected to weapons manufacturers and the Israeli occupation. Hundreds of arrests have since taken place at protests on campuses across the country.
“NYU is one of the most expensive universities to attend in the United States,” said Jewish NYU protest organizer Sam, whose full name was withheld to protect his safety. “We are just utterly sick of having our money directly fund the murder of children, the destruction of hospitals, the oppression of an entire people”.
“The university as soon as we set up started to accuse us of things like antisemitism and attempting to incite violence,” he added. “It could not be further from the truth at all. As a Jewish student, I was there and I feel like it's my duty to just refute these ridiculous claims of antisemitism that have been thrown around by the university and politicians.”
“Not only did I and other Jewish students feel safe in the encampments, but Jewish students generally played a vital role in the planning of this encampment, as well as the programing. For example, we held a Passover Seder at the encampment.” Sam insisted the primary threat to Jewish students emerged not from their fellow demonstrators, but from their schools’ heavy-handed crackdowns.
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
👍45❤9💩2👌2
Israel has eliminated Lebanese movement Jamaa Islamiya's senior official Mosab Khalaf, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said.
According to the IDF, Khalaf had cooperated with the branch of Palestinian movement Hamas in Lebanon, coordinating and carrying out terror attacks against Israel.
Later, the military wing of the Lebanese movement confirmed the death of Khalaf as a result of an Israeli drone strike on a car he was riding in.
The situation on the Israel-Lebanon border worsened after the start of Israel's military operations in the Gaza Strip in October 2023. The Israeli army and Lebanese Hezbollah fighters daily fire at each other's positions in areas along the border.
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
"A short while ago, IAF aircraft struck and eliminated Mosab Khalaf in the area of Meidoun in Lebanon, a senior terrorist in the Jamaa Islamiya terrorist organization who advanced a large number of terror attacks against Israel. The Jamaa Islamiya terrorist organization recently planned and promoted a large number of terror attacks from Lebanese territory against Israel in the area of Har Dov, as well as additional areas in northern Israel," the IDF said on Telegram.
According to the IDF, Khalaf had cooperated with the branch of Palestinian movement Hamas in Lebanon, coordinating and carrying out terror attacks against Israel.
"Khalaf’s elimination was carried out to harm the terrorist organization’s capability to carry out planned attacks against the State of Israel in the area of the northern border," the IDF claimed.
Later, the military wing of the Lebanese movement confirmed the death of Khalaf as a result of an Israeli drone strike on a car he was riding in.
The situation on the Israel-Lebanon border worsened after the start of Israel's military operations in the Gaza Strip in October 2023. The Israeli army and Lebanese Hezbollah fighters daily fire at each other's positions in areas along the border.
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
🤬45👍11💩8🔥5👎3❤1
Congress panics over Ukraine as Russian drones kill Abrams battle tanks, a former British diplomat told Sputnik.
The rush to fast-track $6 billion in military aid to Ukraine on Friday reflects the panic felt by the Biden administration and in Congress that the Zelensky regime's forces are collapsing amid reports that Russia's unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are now proving successful at targeting and destroying US-supplied Abrams Main Battle Tanks, veteran UK diplomat, former ambassador and political commentator Peter Ford told Sputnik.
"The announcement coincides with reports that the Ukrainians are withdrawing US Abrams tanks from the front because they have shown themselves to be vulnerable to drone attack," the analyst highlighted.
However, the main US defense contractors were oblivious to the multiple failures of their weapons systems on the battlefields of Ukraine and were only interested in further expanding their already enormous profit margins, Ford emphasized.
The other purpose of the otherwise futile and too late new arms package was to give Biden domestic credibility before his re-election campaign against former President Donald Trump this fall, Ford explained.
The $6 billion arms package was therefore meant "to make Biden look resolute and consistent as he positions himself for the presidential election campaign," he said.
The people of Ukraine once again had become the victims of cynical and ruthless US political manipulations and intrigues, Ford stressed.
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
The rush to fast-track $6 billion in military aid to Ukraine on Friday reflects the panic felt by the Biden administration and in Congress that the Zelensky regime's forces are collapsing amid reports that Russia's unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are now proving successful at targeting and destroying US-supplied Abrams Main Battle Tanks, veteran UK diplomat, former ambassador and political commentator Peter Ford told Sputnik.
"The haste to release billions of dollars of funds for Ukraine betrays US alarm at the dire situation facing its client state on the battlefront," he said.
"The announcement coincides with reports that the Ukrainians are withdrawing US Abrams tanks from the front because they have shown themselves to be vulnerable to drone attack," the analyst highlighted.
However, the main US defense contractors were oblivious to the multiple failures of their weapons systems on the battlefields of Ukraine and were only interested in further expanding their already enormous profit margins, Ford emphasized.
"Never mind, the main aims are being achieved. Not to help Ukraine - how naive! - but to stuff billions of taxpayer dollars down the gullet of the arms manufacturers," he said.
The other purpose of the otherwise futile and too late new arms package was to give Biden domestic credibility before his re-election campaign against former President Donald Trump this fall, Ford explained.
The $6 billion arms package was therefore meant "to make Biden look resolute and consistent as he positions himself for the presidential election campaign," he said.
The people of Ukraine once again had become the victims of cynical and ruthless US political manipulations and intrigues, Ford stressed.
Subscribe to @SputnikInt
👍53❤8😁6🔥4