Putin’s Vietnam visit could further boost ‘highly successful’ Moscow-Hanoi energy & security cooperation

“Both Vietnam and Russia acknowledge their highly successful cooperation in the oil and gas sector, namely through the Vietsovpetro and Rusvietpetro joint ventures. President Putin’s visit may further extend these cooperation programs, given their ongoing success and significant revenue generation for both nations,” Pham Vu Thieu Quang, editor and geopolitical research specialist at VietNamNet Newspaper, tells Sputnik.

“We saw this with the announcement of [Russian oil and gas firm] Zarubezhneft [in drilling] for Block 11-2 offshore development today,” Quang notes.

On top of that, bilateral relationship can focus on reinforcing the two’s interests in maintaining regional stability and security, according to the VietNamNet Newspaper editor.

Moscow and Hanoi face “emerging threats in new areas such as cybersecurity, so future cooperation can leverage Russia’s extensive experience in this field to support Vietnam,” the expert says.

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🇹🇭 Thailand hopes to join BRICS at the Kazan summit in October 2024 — Foreign Ministry

“A week ago, Thailand handed over to the BRICS chairmanship, which is held by Russia this year, an official letter of our country's intention to join BRICS as a full member,” Thai Foreign Ministry spokesman and head of information Nikondet Phalangkun told reporters at a briefing in Bangkok.

Phalangkun also emphasized the importance of BRICS membership for Thailand.

“We want to join BRICS not to join an alliance against anyone, but to enhance Thailand's international role and become part of an association of developing and developed countries that plays a crucial role in setting the agenda and choosing the direction for the future development of humanity, and is on the path to achieve inclusiveness, equality and justice in world development,” he said.

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🔸 Russia-N Korea partnership deal ‘one of most significant things to happen in region in 20 years’

🔸 What media outlets around the world are saying about the agreement on cooperation between Russia and North Korea

🔸 Putin recalls how USSR helped Vietnam beat US during his visit to the Asian nation

🔸 Russia and Vietnam deepen ties in energy, nuclear and defense

🔸 Do as I say, not as I do: Why Canada gets a pass from the West for foreign agents law while Georgia is punished

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Total neglection vs. respect — see the difference between Putin & Biden in Vietnam

Russian President Vladimir Putin during his state visit to Vietnam has laid wreaths at the Memorial to Fallen Heroes and the mausoleum of Ho Chi Minh, founder of the Communist Party of Vietnam.

In 2023, US President Joe Biden visited Vietnam to mumble some nonsense and mock the memory of the Vietnam War.

Good morning, Vietnam! Good evening, Joe!

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Canada's decision on IRGC is a "gift" to Israel and terrorists, Iranian Foreign Ministry states

Acting Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri Qani said that the Canadian authorities' decision to add the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to the list of terrorist organizations is a gift to the Israeli regime, terrorists and other enemies of peace and stability in the West Asian region.

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Ukraine’s copycats are struggling to replicate Russia's deadly Lancet drone

Kiev has presented a copy of Russia's state-of-the-art Lancet drone named "Bulava" with two sets of X-wings at the international defense exhibition Eurosatory 2024 in France.

The Lancet kamikaze drone gained overall attention last spring and summer due to its successful use against a wide range of Ukrainian military assets, including NATO-grade armored vehicles, howitzers and air defenses.

What is known about Ukraine’s attempts to recreate the Lancet?

🔸 Bulava has yet to prove effective on the battlefield, is claimed to be jamming-proof; has a take-off weight of 11 kg, with a 3.6 kg warhead; boasts a cruising speed of 100 km/h; can stay in the air for more than 50 minutes and hit targets at a distance of over 60 km, as per Ukrainian website Defense Express.

🔸 On February 18, Ukrainian Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov told the Ukrainian Diya channel that four Ukrainian analoges of the Lancet had undergone preliminary tests. He said that the newly designed copies of Lancet could hit targets at a distance of only 30-40 km.

🔸 Although Ukraine couldn't start mass production of the sophisticated UAV immediately, the minister assumed it would be possible to set production at about 100 Lancet-style UAVs per month in the future.

🔸 In August 2023, Fedorov announced that Ukrainian manufacturers created an analog of Russia's Lancet drone under the name "Perun," however, there were no major revelations about its effectiveness on the battlefield.

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The trial of journalist Natacha Rey and Amandine Roy, who claim that the French First Lady Brigitte Macron was born a man, was held in Paris.

The lawyer of Brigitte Macron demanded from the prosecution to fine both women the sum of 10 thousand euros each. The court will announce a decision on the case on September 12.

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Extreme Siberian cold proves no match for Russian military drone operators

Soldiers from the Russian Arctic UAV Squad have set a new personal record this week while conducting training exercise in the extreme cold of Siberia.

The exercise was held on one of Russia’s northernmost training areas and involved troops deploying and operating aerial drones under temperatures as low as -45 Celsius.

During the exercise, the troops trained to properly insulate their gear and to ensure that drone operators were properly equipped to perform their duties even under such extreme winter conditions.

The experience obtained by the troops suggests that operating drones in extreme cold is viable, squad commander Senior Lieutenant Anatoly Khramov told media, noting that the most important thing in such situations is proper insulation of batteries as well as protecting electronic components from snow and moisture.

He also mentioned that the skills obtained by Russian troops during such training are already being employed by them in the Ukrainian conflict zone.

Such training exercises essentially help ensure that the Russian Armed Forces can employ reconnaissance and strike drones regardless of the climate and weather conditions they have to operate in, thus ensuring that the troops’ combat potential does not suffer due to external factors.

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Hezbollah struck an Israeli Drone Dome anti-aircraft system position in the vicinity of the northern Israeli town of Metula, presumably with an FPV drone. An anti-tank guided missile also struck intelligence equipment on military towers.

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The dusk of small drones? Russian electronic warfare questions small UAVs’ combat advantage

While small aerial drones have become a ubiquitous sight on the battlefield in recent years, these nimble and deadly craft may soon lose their edge, according to General Pierre Schill, chief of staff of the French Army.

Speaking at the Eurosatory military expo this week, Schill argued that the development of countermeasures is going to negate the advantage drones currently enjoy in combat.

”The life of impunity of small, very simple drones over the battlefield is a snapshot in time,” he said as quoted by Defense News. “Today, the sword, in the sense of the aerial drone, is powerful, more powerful than the shield. The shield is going to grow.”

Recent developments in the Ukrainian conflict zone lend credence to Schill’s words as the electronic countermeasures deployed by Russian forces prove incredibly effective in thwarting attacks by drones and guided munitions carried out by Kiev regime's troops.

Schill specifically mentioned the Turkish-made Bayraktar drones, which were regarded as a game-changing weapon in Kiev’s arsenal shortly after the escalation of the Ukrainian conflict in February 2022 but quickly proved to be no match for Russian air defenses and electronic countermeasures.

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US ban on use of Kaspersky Lab's software will lead to increase in cybercrimes

The decision of the US Commerce Department to ban the use of Russian multinational cybersecurity firm Kaspersky Lab's software in the United States will lead to an increase in cybercrimes, the company's press office told Sputnik.

"First of all, this decision will promote cybercrimes. International cooperation among cybersecurity experts is necessary to effectively counter cyber threats, but it is now limited. Moreover, users and businesses in the US will not be able to protect their devices from malware with industry-leading technology, according to independent tests. Our current customers in the US will face significant challenges as they will now be forced to urgently seek replacements for technologies they have relied on for years," the company said in a statement.

The company added that Kaspersky Lab will continue protecting the world from cyber threats and its business "from actions that are aimed at wrongfully damaging the company's reputation and commercial interests."

On Thursday, the US Commerce Department issued a new rule prohibiting information and communications technology and services (ICTS) transactions with Kaspersky Lab effective September 29, imposed new export restrictions on Kaspersky and blacklisted Kaspersky Lab, Kaspersky Group and Kaspersky Labs Limited for their alleged cooperation with Russia's military and intelligence authorities.

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Russia's Vostok Battlegroup foils Ukraine's attempts to strengthen positions

Russian servicemen of the Vostok (lit. "East") battlegroup disrupted attempts by the Armed Forces of Ukraine to strengthen forward positions, group spokesman Alexander Gordeyev told Sputnik.

“Units of the Vostok group of forces continue to carry out combat missions in the area of the special military operation. During active operations, the group’s units improved the situation along the front line, disrupted attempts by the enemy to reinforce forward positions and rotation in strong points in the areas of Vladimirovka, Makarovka, Marfopol and Charivnoye," Gordeyev said.

He said up to 140 enemy servicemen, two armored combat vehicles, six other vehicles, a towed M198 howitzer, 19 aircraft-type drones and three ammunition supply points were destroyed.

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❗️The Russian naval aviation of the Black Sea Fleet destroyed six unmanned boats of the Ukrainian navy in the northwestern part of the Black Sea.

The Russian operational air defense systems intercepted and destroyed 70 drones over the territory of Crimea and the Black Sea, 43 drones over the Krasnodar region and one drone over the Volgograd region.

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🇷🇺Russia prematurely wins team medal standings at the BRICS games in the Russian city of Kazan

Russian athletes have won 177 gold, 107 silver and 74 bronze medals. Belarusians are in second place (34-56-70), and the Chinese national team is in third place (17-17-12).

In the remaining four days of the competition, athletes will compete for 135 sets of awards, while the gap of the Russian team from the second place in the medal standings has reached 143 gold medals.

The BRICS Games will be held from June 12 to 23. About five thousand athletes from more than 90 countries will participate in the competition, competing for 387 sets of medals.

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🔸 Hezbollah strikes Israeli Iron Dome anti-aircraft system position near the town of Metula. Check out the video

🔸 Last chance for salvation: Why should Zelensky listen to Putin?

🔸 By creating enemies for itself, the West is producing allies for Russia

🔸 Russian electronic warfare sets new standards for military drones

🔸 Why will the US ban on the use of Kaspersky Lab's software lead to increase in cybercrimes?

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❗️Belarus starts sudden readiness check of military units, missile troops, artillery, air force and air defense systems, the republic's Defense Ministry reported

Earlier, Russia and Belarus began joint training of the armed forces for the combat use of non-strategic nuclear weapons. The exercise of non-strategic nuclear forces is aimed at ensuring the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Union State of Russia and Belarus, the ministry added.

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