Secretary of the Russian Security Council Sergei Shoigu was shown nuclear developments for the purposes of the special military operation, according to a report from the press service of the Russian Security Council.

Shoigu visited the country's famous Sarov nuclear centre, where the first Russian atomic and hydrogen bombs were developed. The main task of the centre was and remains work in the field of Russian nuclear weapons, aimed at unconditionally guaranteeing the implementation of the Russian Federation's policy of nuclear deterrence.

Shoigu was also presented was presented the results of the nuclear center's work in the field of laser, supercomputer and other technologies in the outgoing year, as well as the tasks for 2025.

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Explosive legacy: Why landmines could haunt Ukraine long after the conflict

US President Joe Biden has purportedly authorized the delivery of “nonpersistent” antipersonnel land mines to Ukraine in a move that aims to boost Kiev’s defenses against advancing Russian troops, according to the Washington Post.

The reported decision means Biden has effectively undone his own policy given that in 2022, he reversed what he described as a “reckless” step by the Trump administration that allowed antipersonnel landmines' wider use.

“It will put more civilians at risk of being injured by unexploded mines, and is unnecessary from a military perspective,” Biden said at the time.

In a separate development last year, Russia's Permanent Mission to the UN sent a letter to the Security Council accusing Kiev of using scatterable PFM-1 (Lepestok) land antipersonnel mines against civilians in Donbass.

What are antipersonnel landmines?

🔺 They are encased explosive charge buried below the surface of the ground, typically detonated automatically by pressure when a target steps on it;

🔺 The device causes damage by direct blast effect or fragments, or both. Such mines are deadly or result in severe injuries, particularly amputations, as well as eye and hearing damage;

🔺 “Nonpersistent” mines are designed to self-destruct or lose battery charge to render them inactive within days or weeks. Arms control experts warn that even these mines could pose a safety hazard.

International legislature banning them:

⭕️ Antipersonnel mines are seen as indiscriminate weapons, which can remain hazardous years after the end of a conflict, harming civilians;

⭕️ The 1997 Ottawa Convention, also known as the Mine Ban Treaty, prohibits the use, stockpiling, production and transfer of antipersonnel mines;

⭕️ To date, a total of 164 countries, including Ukraine, have signed the treaty, with “millions of mines destroyed and thousands of square kilometers of land cleared” thanks to the document, per UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

Reaction to the move:

💬 Biden “lost his mind,” Elon Musk said on X;

💬 The approval is “yet another escalation in the conflict with Russia ahead of President-elect Trump's inauguration,” Fox News said;

💬 The decision is “another major policy shift,” CNN reported.

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❗️Hezbollah's response to attacks in central Beirut will be strikes in central Tel Aviv, the movement's leader has claimed

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The US has allocated a new military aid package to Ukraine worth $275 million, according to the Pentagon.

It includes shells for the HIMARS MLRS, TOW anti-tank missiles, drones, and chemical protection equipment.

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How Russian forces use 'wolf hunt' tactics to break Ukrainian defenses in Kurakhovo

Russian forces operating in the Kurakhovo region of the Ukrainian conflict zone have been methodically dismantling Ukrainian defenses using a tactic similar to that employed by wolf hunters, Russia's Ministry of Defense reveals.

The tactic involves:

🔹 Russian assault units split into multiple small teams

🔹 These teams work to encircle the enemy

🔹 They strike from multiple directions

🔹 This tactic aims to leave the opposition with no room to maneuver.

Cut off and constantly pushed back from all sides, Ukrainian militants find themselves unable to hold their positions, no matter how well fortified they are, and often prefer to surrender rather than to continue pointless resistance.

In August, Ukrainian forces launched an incursion into Russia’s Kursk region in what appeared to be an attempt to force Russia to divert its forces from the Ukrainian conflict zone to counter this breakthrough.

This gambit backfired spectacularly for Kiev as the Ukrainian assault achieved the exact opposite: the large number of troops Ukraine committed to the attack on Kursk led to Ukrainian forces lacking reserves to stop Russian offensive in multiple areas of the Ukrainian conflict zone, such as Kurakhovo, for example.

The city of Kurakhovo is important to Kiev from both the military and economic standpoints. Not only does it serve as the lynchpin of the Ukrainian defenses in the region, barring the way to a key logistical hub of Pokrovsk, it also currently serves as the only source of coking coal for the Ukrainian metallurgy industry.

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Undersea cables: How do they work and why are they so vulnerable? Part 1 👉 Part 2

Tens of thousands submarine internet cables have been laid on the seabed over the past decades. The latest disruption of two of them in the Baltic Sea has once again raised their security issue.

What are submarine cables?

▪️Each modern undersea cables contains multiple optical fibers to carry digital internet and telephone data at a maximum speed of ten terabits (Tbit) per second. The MAREA cable boasts 26.2 Tbit/s per fiber pair;

▪️They are typically 25 mm (1 in) in diameter: thin glass fibers are wrapped in layers of plastic and/or steel wire to survive in the deep ocean environment.

How are the undersea cables protected?

▪️The cables are laid between 1-2 meters below the seabed to protect them from trawlers and anchors, which may damage the infrastructure. Electronic monitoring systems proactively detect anomalies.

▪️They are protected by national regulations within territorial waters and by the provisions of the Law of the Sea Convention (LOS) in open sea.

How often do they break and why?

▪️There are over 100 cable faults each year on average.
▪️40% of cable faults are caused by fishing vessels.
▪️Damage caused by anchors accounts for 15.8%.
▪️Damage by third-party actors – 9.5%.
▪️Earthquakes and other natural disasters – 4.7%.

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What are the most famous cases of undersea cable destruction? Part 2 👉 Part 1

▪️A communications cable running along the Baltic seabed between the Swedish island of Gotland and Lithuania was damaged on November 17 this year. Another cable connecting Finland and Germany was also disrupted. The Western press pinned the blame on alleged "Russian sabotage" not ruling out that the disruption could be caused by Chinese vessels.

▪️In February 2024, four of the 15 cables carrying nearly 20% of the world's internet traffic were damaged in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, in the southern Red Sea. The damaged cables were part of one of three global communication routes providing internet connectivity between Europe and Asia. Communication problems were immediately detected in north-east Africa while serious disruptions were reported in the Gulf states and India. The accident was initially blamed on the Houthis, however, soon the South African internet service provider Seacom stated the damage was most likely caused by a trawler due to shallow waters in the area.

▪️In June 2022, the Asia-Africa-Europe-1 internet cable which connects Hong Kong with France was damaged. It provides internet connection to over 20 countries, ranging from India to Greece and Italy. The accident left more than 100 million people without communication. The cable was cut in the territory of Egypt. Sabotage was named as a likely cause for the accident.

▪️The Pacific Island nation of Tonga, with a population of about 100,000, was left without internet twice — in 2019 and 2022. In the first case, the Tonga Cable was damaged by a ship's anchor. In the second case, a volcanic eruption destroyed the cable severing the kingdom's contact with the outside world for weeks.

▪️In 2008, an internet blackout left 75 million people in the Middle East and India with only limited access. The collapse was caused by one ship damaging the undersea infrastructure off the coast of Egypt. As a result, phone and internet traffic was slashed by as much as 70% in countries including India, Egypt and Dubai. Attempts by local businesses to reroute their traffic and use backup satellite systems were of limited success.

▪️In 2006, a 6.7 magnitude earthquake off the island of Taiwan damaged major submarine cables, including the Asia-Pacific Cable Network, which connects north and southeast Asia, and the SEA-ME-WE-2 line, which runs from South Korea around Eurasia to The Netherlands. The disaster disrupted communications in Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong, South Korea and Japan and hit regional financial companies and businesses hard.

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Seymour Hersh: Israel to annex West Bank soon

"Israeli leadership will formally annex the West Bank in the very near future—perhaps in two weeks—in the hope that the decisive step will end, once and for all, any talk of a two-state solution," Pulitzer Prize-winning American journalist Seymour Hersh wrote in his article on the Substack platform, citing "a well-informed Washington official."

He added that the move aims to "convince some in the skeptical Arab world to reconsider financing the planned reconstruction of Gaza."

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Picture this: ‘Ming dynasty official’ Elon Musk tackling laziness one kick at a time

Imagine Elon Musk as a Ming dynasty official, armed with Kung Fu and waging war against inefficiency. This imaginative concept is a testament to peak AI creativity, courtesy of Chinese social media! In a hilariously dramatic video, Musk embodies the spirit of the "Department of Governmental Efficiency," delivering lines that echo the grandeur of ancient epics:

"I will sack those whom the federal government is afraid to sack. I will take care of what the federal government is not willing to do. In a word, I will handle what the federal government can handle!"

Thanks to user 暗色调 on Bilibili and X user Eivor for bringing us this surreal masterpiece. Someone call Netflix or Hollywood - this needs to be a movie!

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President-elect Donald Trump to appoint Matthew G. Whitaker as ambassador to NATO

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❗️The United States vetoed a UN Security Council draft resolution on Wednesday calling for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire in Gaza, the release of all hostages, and unrestricted humanitarian aid.

Russian Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia condemned the move as "shocking," while Deputy US Ambassador Robert Wood defended the veto, stating the US could not support an "unconditional" ceasefire.

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