Most powerful laser installation in the world: meet Russia’s UFL-2M Tsar Laser

Construction of Russia’s UFL-2M Tsar Laser is proceeding as has been foreseen, and the installation will reach full power in four to five years, Sarov Nuclear Center director Valentin Kostyukov has revealed.

▪️ The UFL-2M consists of 192 laser beams, introduced simultaneously into a sphere-shaped interaction chamber from all sides. The 120-ton chamber has a 10 m diameter, and is covered by a 100 mm-thick aluminum alloy.

▪️ The laser hall is 130 m long, and built on a special foundation to protect it from seismic influences. The facility consists of 16,000 sq m of clean rooms.

▪️ Once fully operational, the UFL-2M will have a power capacity of a whopping 4.6 megajoules (MJ). For comparison, the US Lawrence Livermore Labs’ National Ignition Facility’s laser achieved a power of 2.2 MJ, resulting in a useful yield of 3.4 MJ of fusion energy. France is the only other country with a similarly powerful laser, with its Laser Mégajoule facility featuring a power generation capacity of up to 2 MJ.

▪️ The Tsar Laser is indispensable for the development of Russian nuclear weapons. Since the introduction of a moratorium on nuclear weapons tests, the installation can be used for modeling processes occurring at the moment of a nuclear explosion.

▪️ The UFL-2M can also assist in research in high energy density physics, namely, the study the properties of matter in extreme states, including ultra-high pressures and temperatures, which could be helpful in the study of processes occurring in stars. In some sense, the Tsar Laser itself is a miniature star created in a lab environment.

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Netanyahu-Gallant rift exposes ‘different approaches’ to resolving Gaza war – analyst

Verbal barbs traded between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his defense minister Yoav Gallant expose their “different approaches” to resolving the Gaza conflict, Dr Shaul Bartal, a researcher at Bar-Ilan University’s Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies, told Sputnik.

Gallant scotched the PM’s goal of “total victory” over Hamas in the Gaza Strip as “nonsense.” The leaked details of his meeting with the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee infuriated Netanyahu.

The rift between the two stems from “different military concepts regarding the capabilities and role of the military in war,” noted Bartal.

“Netanyahu's approach is that Hamas has indeed received severe blows but has not yet been finally defeated. A complete victory according to Netanyahu is a situation in which Hamas as a political organization no longer controls the Gaza Strip and Hamas as a military organization is unable to threaten Israel similar to what happened on October 7,” the retired lieutenant colonel noted.

To achieve this, the IDF would need “another period of fighting,” said the pundit.

Gallant wants a deal for Israel that “will allow a time-out for organizing and equipping,” and to “save a significant part of the abductees.”

“Gallant's approach is that a deal now will lead to a political settlement in the north with Hezbollah,” Bartal said. “Israel's withdrawal and a deal will allow Hamas to rehabilitate in the Strip, but it will take the organization several years to recover and it can always be attacked again militarily.”

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❗️There is no solid front line in Kursk Region: the enemy is trying to break through in certain areas, but Ukrainian troops have been successfully blocked, according to a confidant of the region's acting governor Alexei Smirnov.

The situation remains difficult but controlled and manageable, he said. Individual groups of enemy troops are being destroyed and the fighting continues in several areas.

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❗️ Russian Defense Minister held bilateral meetings with the heads of delegations from Vietnam, Myanmar, Laos, Mali and the Central African Republic, who arrived in Moscow to take part in the Army-2024 forum.

During the talks, Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov discussed the current state and prospects for the development of bilateral cooperation in the defense sphere. The sides exchanged views on the most pressing issues of the international situation and regional security.

Belousov and his Lao counterpart Chansamone Chanyalath signed an updated bilateral agreement on defense cooperation.

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The Ukrainian Armed Forces struck the city of Kakhovka in the Kherson region. A nine-story apartment building caught fire – city mayor

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Depesha, an agile robot platform, indispensable on the battlefield

The Depesha universal robot platform has a remote control and a four-wheel drive system, accommodating a wide range of target loads, a representative of the Vysokotochnye Kompleksy (High Precision Systems) company told Sputnik.

“Weighing 100 kg, it boasts a load capacity of 150 to 200 kg. The platform can achieve speeds of up to 40 km/h,” he noted.

Such vehicles play a crucial role in saving soldiers and enabling direct access to the front lines without risking troops’ lives.

“The primary advantage of this system is its ability to rapidly scale up production,” the representative added.

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📹 Need for Speed: Czech Edition

The streets of a tiny Czech town and its surroundings saw a lot more excitement than usual during a police chase that covered 20 kilometers.

In the end, the police stopped the offender using the legendary pit maneuver, leaving a lot of broken glass and a brutal arrest.

The driver went straight to prison, as it turned out he was dodging a previous sentence and was also banned from driving.

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Neo-Nazi supporter and corrupt "thief": what is Zelensky's potential successor Arsen Avakov infamous for? PART 1/PART 2/PART 3

The US is considering former Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov* as a replacement for Volodymyr Zelensky, the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) has learnt.

Who is Ukrainian politician Arsen Avakov, a Baku-born Armenian national?

Strong bond with neo-Nazis
▪️ In the wake of the Euromaidan coup d'etat of February 2014, Avakov was appointed minister of internal affairs of the country. He served until resigning in July 2021, allegedly on Zelensky’s demand

▪️ Avakov was involved in the Odessa Trade Unions Building massacre of May 2, 2014, according to Vasily Polishchuk, an eyewitness to the events and a former Odessa City councilor, who shared with Sputnik the results of his private investigation into the matter last May.

▪️ Avakov is infamous for incorporating the neo-Nazi Azov Battalion** into the Ukrainian National Guard in November 2014.

▪️ In October 2019, Avakov slammed group of US congressmen over their initiative to designate Azov as a terrorist organization. According to the Intercept, Azov had been barred from receiving US arms supplies since 2018, but nonetheless received US military training. The Biden administration lifted the weapons ban on the neo-Nazi battalion in June 2024.

▪️ During the Russian special military operation in Ukraine, Avakov continued to support and deliver materiel to the Azov battalion and other Ukrainian military formations.

*Included in the register of terrorists and extremists in Russia.
**a terrorist organization banned in Russia.

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Avakov is responsible for crimes against civilians in Donbass PART 1/PART 2/PART 3

He used Ukrainian nationalist thugs to crack down on the breakaway Donbass republics in 2014.

▪️ The Ukrainian interior minister helped organize punitive operations by neo-Nazi and ultra-nationalist battalions, including Azov**, Aidar**, Donbass, Dnepr-1 and Dnepr-2, against the breakaway Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics (DPR and LPR) which did not accept the illegitimate 2014 coup d'etat in Kiev. The offensives were launched in April 2014.

According to the Russian Investigative Committee, Avakov* acted along with Ukrainian businessman Igor Kolomoisky, who reportedly funded the nationalist formations, as well as with Ukrainian top brass. The battalions were involved in the torture and killing of civilians in the occupied territories of DPR and LPR, according to eyewitnesses and Donbass human rights groups.

▪️ In June 2014, the Russian Investigative Committee opened a criminal case against Avakov for the "organization of murder, use of prohibited means and methods of warfare, kidnapping and obstruction of the lawful activities of a journalist." On July 9, 2014, the Basmanny Court of Moscow sanctioned Avakov's arrest in absentia.

Corruption

▪️ In December 2015 Avakov publicly clashed with former Georgian president and then-governor of Odessa region Mikheil Saakashvili, who called him a "thief".

▪️ The Ukrainian prosecutor's office opened a criminal case against Avakov in January 2012 for illegally transferring 55 hectares of state land in the Kharkov region to private ownership. After fleeing to Europe, Avakov was detained by the Italian authorities in March 2012 for 40 days, but never extradited to Ukraine. Avakov evaded prosecution after being elected as an MP of the Ukrainian Batkivshchyna (Fatherland) Party in October 2012.

▪️ In the 1990s, the Ministry of Internal Affairs suspected Avakov of stealing gas condensate from the Balakleya field in the Kharkov region as well as of contract killing of his business partner, Alexander Konovalov.

*Included in the register of terrorists and extremists in Russia.
**a terrorist organization banned in Russia.

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Avakov is seen as a convenient tool by the US PART 1/PART 2/PART 3

So it is hardly surprising that Washington sees Avakov* as a potential replacement for Zelensky.

▪️ According to former Ukrainian MP Oleg Tsarev, Avakov could have been recruited by the CIA during his 40-day long detention in Italy in 2012. "From that time on, he was constantly under control and in contact with the CIA, coordinating his actions," Tsarev told the Russian press on August 13. The former Ukrainian MP added that Avakov was also involved in the smuggling of weapons to Syrian jihadists during his time as interior minister at the request of the US intelligence services.

▪️ A member of the Other Ukraine movement and former Ukrainian MP Spiridon Kilinkarov told Sputnik that Avakov may be seen by the US as a convenient and manageable tool for "reformatting" Ukrainian power after Zelensky steps down.

▪️ According to the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), the US considers Avakov's ties with Ukrainian nationalists and heads of European states as one of his "strengths".

Russophobia

▪️ Avakov is well known for his Russophobic comments. In 2014, he reportedly issued death threats to Russian journalist Roman Naumov, an employee of Channel Five, in a Facebook* messenger chat, claiming that his "khloptsy" (guys) would find Naumov in Moscow and "blow [his] brains out".

▪️ In April 2018, the Russian Investigative Committee opened a criminal case against Avakov for interfering in the Russian presidential election and preventing the Russians residing in Ukraine from voting.

▪️ Avakov repeatedly called Russia an "aggressor" and claimed that the Russian language does not belong to Russia. At the congress of the People's Front party, which took place on February 2, 2019, Avakov used obscene language about Russia and its president.

▪️ On October 2, 2023, Russia added Avakov to the list of terrorists and extremists.

*Included in the register of terrorists and extremists in Russia.
**banned in Russia for extremism.

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▪️ What prized NATO hardware has turned to scrap metal during Ukraine’s Kursk attack?

▪️ 'We were simply sent to the slaughter' - captured Ukrainian soldier

▪️ Russia reveals a man-portable electronic warfare system and a new Lancet drone

▪️ Watch Russian soldiers hunting Ukrainian drones

▪️ What stands behind Netanyahu-Gallant rift

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US approves $18.82bln sale of 50 F-15IA aircraft to Israel - Pentagon

The US State Department has approved an $18.82 billion sale of 50 F-15IA multirole fighter jets and related equipment to the government of Israel, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) said.

“The Secretary of State has approved a possible Foreign Military Sale to the Government of Israel of F-15IA and F-15I+ Aircraft and related equipment for an estimated cost of $18.82 billion,” the agency said in a press release. “The Government of Israel has requested to buy up to fifty (50) new F-15IA multi-role fighter aircraft.”

In addition to fighter jets the US will sell $2.1 billion worth of tactical vehicles, tank equipment and medium-range missiles to Israel.

The Israeli government has also requested to purchase 25 modification kits for its existing F-15I multi-role fighter aircraft, 120 F110-GE-129 engines, 90 Advanced Display Core Processors II, 320 LAU-128 Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile launchers, 25 M61A Vulcan cannons, and 180 Embedded Global Positioning System/Inertial Navigation System, among other related equipment, according to the release.

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