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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Elon Musk sends signals to Russia and Ukraine from space?

A glow seen in the sky over Ukraine and Russia is associated with the passage of the third stage of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched on Thursday, the Crimean Astrophysical Observatory told Sputnik.

In Crimea, the glow was observed around 11 pm Moscow time [8 pm GMT], and reports about it also came from Russia's Karelia, Moscow, Tver, Pskov and Novgorod regions.

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Blood, sweat and even less pleasant liquids: Ukraine legalizes adult content in a bid to fund its crumbling army

Ethical Capital Partners – the head company of adult content website PornHub – is now an official taxpayer in Ukraine, reported a local MP, presenting it as a big achievement of the Kiev regime.

“The company that controls PornHub finally registered as a VAT [value added tax] payer under electronic services range”, he said on Telegram, adding that all income from contents will go to the state budget.

He boasted, oddly enough, that Ukraine ranks as the 14th largest consumer of PornHub content.

Earlier, Ukraine legalized another adult content website – OnlyFans – that already paid over $700,000 to Kiev.
Ukraine is on track to completely legalize adult content as well as prostitution – the controversial bill now considered by Kiev legislators decriminalizes spreading and sharing such content, as well as permits people to organize brothels as legal businesses.

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The Houthis invited American students suspended for supporting Palestine to study in Yemen. The University of Sana'a is ready to receive activists.

The university council also condemned the restriction of freedom of speech of teachers and students in US and European educational institutions.

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Latvia has begun building its first defense line one kilometer from the Russian border, local media report

The Baltic state will spend 303 million euros over five years to create the fortification line, the LSM radio and television portal reported.

"Strengthening Latvia's eastern border and implementing the anti-mobility plan is part of the overall Baltic fortification line. Along the border with Russia and Belarus, the military will create a chain of strongholds - protective fortifications, various obstacles and ammunition depots," LSM reported.

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All of NATO is fighting against Russia — Syrian military attache

"[At the exhibition in Moscow] there are American, German, Czech tanks, [weaponry] from different European countries. This suggests that Russia is not fighting against Ukraine, but on the contrary, the whole West, all of NATO is fighting against Russia… And they're just using Ukraine,” a Syrian military attache who visited the exhibition of captured NATO weapons told Russian media.

"Let them [NATO] see with their own eyes – their equipment is here, it has been destroyed. The equipment is located at Park Pobedy [lit. Victory Park]. It resembles the victory in the Second World War, the Great Patriotic War. There will be the same victory. And we will celebrate it here," he added.

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"For the first time, a Western politician has so openly recognized what has long been an 'open secret' for the majority of the world: The West is waging an open war against Russia through the hands of the Ukrainians," Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said, referring to British Foreign Minister David Cameron's remarks about Kiev's right to use British weapons to attack Russia.

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❗️Russian troops struck the Balovnoye oil depot, from which fuel was supplied to Ukraine's military units.

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

▪️Units of the Yug Battlegroup have taken more advantageous positions. Ukrainian losses amounted to 340 soldiers;

▪️Battlegroup Zapad improved its position on the frontline and repelled three attacks by the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Kharkov region and the Lugansk People's Republic. Ukrainian losses amounted to 355 soldiers and nine pieces of equipment during the counter-battery struggle;

▪️Units of the Vostok Battlegroup repelled three counterattacks by Ukrainian forces, who lost up to 135 soldiers;

▪️Battlegroup Tsentr repelled ten Ukrainian counterattacks during the day;

▪️Russian troops destroyed the Ukrainian illumination and guidance radar, as well as the IRIS-T air defense missile launcher with two S-300PT air defense missile launchers. Russian air defenses shot down 40 Ukrainian drones and three Hammer bombs in a day.

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BlackRock CEO: Depopulation is good because robots will replace humans

“I can argue that in developed countries, countries with declining populations will benefit,” BlackRock CEO Larry Fink said during a recent World Economic Forum panel discussion.

“These countries will rapidly develop robotics and AI and technology. And if the promise of all of that transforms productivity, which most of us think it will, we’ll be able to elevate the standard of living of those countries and individuals, even with shrinking populations. And so the paradigm of negative population growth is going to be changing, and the social problems that one will have in substituting humans for machines is going to be far easier in those countries that have declining populations.”

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20 years ago, Hungary did not join the European Union as it is now, said Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

He pointed out that in 2004, the migration issue was more strictly controlled, and the level of security was much higher.

As an example, he pointed out that EU countries were not faced with the question that they “would allow millions of migrants onto the continent, and those countries that, like Hungary, were against, would force them”.

According to the prime minister, it was not discussed that pressure would be put on states that, “like Hungary, have written down in the constitution that a family is a union of a man and a woman.”

Orban also noted that Hungary joined the European Union to feel safe and have free access to the markets of larger European countries. However, now, according to the Hungarian prime minister, Europe is experiencing a serious economic and security crisis.

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Gay? Yay! Pro-Palestinian? Nay!

US police happily parade alongside half-naked men during the “pride” events, but fire rubber bullets and tear gas at college students protesting in support of Palestine.

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Ukraine's fear is clear: Not many Abrams tanks left

Russian troops destroyed the seventh US-supplied Abrams tank today, the Russian Defense Ministry announced.

In total, the United States has sent 31 M1A1 Abrams tanks Ukraine.

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Find out how NATO beefs up its ‘mostly peaceful’ military presence on Russia’s doorstep

A US military battalion that was originally expected to be stationed in Lithuania until the end of the next year is going to remain in the Baltic country indefinitely, the Lithuanian defense minister proudly announced this week.

In 2017, NATO began its troop buildup in the region by announcing the establishment of four new "multinational battalion-size battlegroups" in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and neighboring Poland. As tensions escalated in the Ukrainian conflict, the scale of these battlegroups was increased to brigade size in 2022.

According to NATO’s official website, the battlegroup stationed in Estonia is composed of British, French and Icelandic troops, while the one deployed in Latvia consists of Canadian, Albanian, Czech, Icelandic, Italian, Montenegrin, North Macedonian, Polish, Slovakian and Slovenian troops. Lastly, the battlegroup deployed in Lithuania consists of US, German, Belgian, Czech, Dutch, Norwegian and Luxembourgian troops.

In December 2023, Lithuania and Germany inked an agreement to have a German military brigade fully deployed on Lithuanian soil by 2027.

Also in 2023, US Ambassador to Estonia George Kent told the press that the United States had “over 600 troops” stationed on Estonian soil, noting that this deployment also includes the HIMARS mobile rocket launch systems.

In January 2024, Sweden disclosed its plan to deploy approximately 800 troops to Latvia. The announcement was made by Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, despite the fact that Sweden had not yet formally become a member of NATO.

NATO also uses three airbases in the Baltic States - Lithuania’s Zokniai Air Base, Estonia’s Ämari Air Base and Latvia’s Lielvārde Air Base – to host military aircraft involved in the Baltic Air Policing mission.

Check out Sputnik’s map to see how NATO is beefing up its militarization of Baltics

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‘Keep sending more weapons and we’ll keep hammering them’: Ordinary Russians react to captured Western military hardware

Sputnik spoke to attendees at Moscow’s trophy weapons exhibition, and asked them whether they had any message for Western governments and taxpayers. Here’s what they had to say.

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The US forced to end its costly military presence in Niger, making room for Russian troops

Russian military specialists, invited by the Nigerien government, were moved into Airbase 101 near Niamey, where a small number of US troops still remain. Washington is set to withdraw its 1,000-strong contingent, presently deployed at Airport 201 base in Agadez, following a request from the nation's new leadership to end its presence.

▪️The US has had two military bases in Niger, called Air Base 101 and Air Base 201. Per The Intercept, the US has also maintained non-permanent footprint in Arlit, Dirkou, Diffa, and Ouallam.

▪️This permanent military presence of the American forces in Niger traces back to at least 2013 when Washington signed a deal with the country to operate military drones from an airbase near Niamey. In 2014 the US struck a deal to open a second drone base in Niger as part of its war on terror.

▪️The US Nigerien Air Base 201 is located 5 km southeast of Agadez. It was leased from the Nigerien government for a period of 10 years. The agreement expires in 2024.

▪️The installation cost $110 million, but, according to The Intercept, its price tag allegedly reached $280 million by 2024. It cost $30 million per year to operate and maintain the base.

▪️Air Base 201 boasts a 1,890-meter runway for MQ-9 Reapers and manned aircraft. As per the Pentagon the base was used for anti-terror and surveillance operations. Drone operations began at the site in 2019.

▪️In September 2022 Pentagon released a report indicating that despite its substantial military presence in Africa it had not reached any of its objectives over the past two decades in degrading and disrupting violent extremist and terrorist organizations in the continent.

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