❗️Ukrainian drone struck gas station in Shebekino, Belgorod regional governor says

Firefighters are battling the gas storage tank blaze, Belgorod Regional Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov stated on social media.

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⚡️Officers of the Russian Federal Security Service eliminated an agent of the Ukrainian military intelligence who was planning terrorist attacks on the facilities of the Russian Ministry of Defense, the volunteer center and the fuel terminal in the Leningrad region.

The saboteur arrived from Lithuania in March 2024. They tried to catch him while he was taking explosives from a cache, but at that moment he put up armed resistance and disappeared, according to the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB).

Soon the Ukrainian agent was discovered during the seizure of another cache in the Gatchina district, he again resisted and was neutralized, the service said.

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❗️The liquidated Ukrainian agent was trained in demining and sniping in the town of Pabrade in Lithuania, the FSB reported.

In correspondence with his curator found on his phone, it showed that Ukrainian terrorists were planning attacks in Orthodox churches and places of residence of Russian speakers in the Baltic states.

Among the plans was the arson of a movie theater in Riga during a film screening. The purpose of the attacks, according to the FSB, was to "completely eradicate all Russian" in the Baltic countries.

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US military security in Niger is not compromised by the proximity of the Russian contingent, Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin said.

The Russians and Americans are not in contact as they are stationed independently, and the Russian military does not have access to American equipment, Austin stressed.

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Russia is developing relations with African countries in all areas, including defense, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said commenting on reports about the Russian military at the base in Niger.

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❗️ Macron's statements on potentially sending troops to Ukraine are dangerous, Kremlin spokesman says

Moscow is following France's statements closely, and the special operation will continue until all the goals are met, Dmitry Peskov stressed.

The statements by British Foreign Minister David Cameron about the possibility of strikes against Russia with British weapons are also dangerous, the official stressed.

According to the presidential spokesman, there is a verbal escalation in the West as a whole - this could threaten Europe's security.

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❗️Ukraine loses 1,000 soldiers a day due to the demands of the US and its allies - Shoigu

"The US and its allies are demanding that Ukraine prevent the collapse of its defenses and contain the offensive of Russian troops at all costs. As a result, the enemy's daily losses in April increased to 1,000 servicemen," Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said on Friday.

Shoigu also said that:

▪️Russian troops have taken control of 547 square kilometers (211 square miles) of territory in the new regions since the beginning of the year.

▪️Over the past two weeks, the settlements of Novobakhmutovka, Semyonovka and Berdychi in the DPR region have been liberated.

▪️Russian troops will continue to liberate Russian territories from neo-Nazis. The Kiev regime is essentially throwing Ukrainians unwilling to fight to the slaughter.

▪️Ukrainian authorities are tightening mobilization in an effort to curry favor with their Western masters in order to continue receiving financial and military aid from them.

▪️Russian soldiers continue to break into the enemy's strongholds along the entire line of contact, while Kiev's units are unsuccessfully trying to hold on to individual lines of contact.

▪️During the special operation, according to the Black Sea Fleet's coastal radio equipment, more than 80 drones and over 20 uncrewed Ukrainian boats were destroyed.

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US relocates warplanes and drones from UAE to Qatar amid Abu Dhabi’s security concerns

The Pentagon is shifting its jet fighters, reconnaissance planes and armed drones to Qatar’s Al Udeid air base in a move that will reposition US forces from the United Arab Emirates, unnamed sources have told the Wall Street Journal.

This comes after the UAE announced that it would no longer permit US warplanes and UAVs based at the Al Dhafra air base in Abu Dhabi to conduct strikes in Yemen and Iraq.

The decision was reportedly taken “from a position of self-protection,” amid concerns that with the escalation of tensions in the region, Iranian proxies could decide to target the UAE “if it is seen to be publicly aiding US military operations.”

Some Persian Gulf countries have repeatedly allowed US forces to be based on their territory, but these nations are now wary of being drawn into a regional conflict as the eight-month-old Gaza War between Israel and Hamas shows no signs of ceasing.

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A Chinese rocket has successfully launched the Chang'e-6 lunar probe into the Earth-Moon transition orbit, the China National Space Administration reports

If the entire expedition goes according to plan, it will be the first time mankind will receive soil from the far side of the Moon.

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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky deliberately lowered the number of deaths that his forces have reportedly suffered in February when he said about 31,000 soldiers had died so as not to scare off Ukrainians from being drafted into the army, according to The Washington Post.

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