Pokémon: The Electric Tale of Pikachu New Way of Money Laundering
 
Pokémon cards turned out to be popular not only among children but also among the Japanese mafia: criminal syndicates were using rare collectible cards to launder money, a former Yakuza told media.
 
The former criminal told Japanese media that his organization used Pokémon cards as a means of transporting stolen money abroad.
 
According to him, the small size and high cost of rare collectible Pokémon cards allowed the criminals to buy them in large quantities for illegally obtained cash in Japan and sell them in the US and other countries.
 
Especially valuable, as the former criminal explained, were cards with invisible foil embossing. To locate these, they would buy packs in bulk and shine at the encasing metal foil with a special detector. Afterwards, they would hold onto the valuable packs and resell the rest.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🍏 Innovative Syrian marketing: Trader sells fruit and veg on abandoned tank

The Syrian army left a tank right in front of the entrance to his shop, according to shipowner Ali. He decided to display his goods on the military vehicle because the shop was not visible.

"It became popular all over Syria and even the world. People started coming to take pictures and it became like a museum," he said.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❗️At least 30 US-made Patriot air defense systems destroyed by Russian forces during special military op
 
One of the latest and most effective strikes the Russian Defense Ministry has mentioned on December 15: four launchers, a combat control vehicle, and an AN/MPQ-65 radar station were destroyed.
 
The strike on May 16, 2023, remains the most effective. Then, according to reliably confirmed data, the strike of the Kinzhal hypersonic missile system on Kiev destroyed five Patriot launchers and a multifunctional radar station all at once.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

EU boosted oil imports from Russia to 8-month high in October

The European Union increased oil imports from Russia to 687.5 million euros ($717 million), the highest since February this year, according to Sputnik's analysis of Eurostat data.

In February, Russia supplied 690 million euros worth of oil to the EU. The increase in October was mainly due to a doubling of exports to the Czech Republic to 185.9 million euros from 91.3 million a month earlier.

Supplies to Hungary also increased significantly, by half to 233 million euros. In addition, the Netherlands increased its imports to 60.7 million euros from 40.5 million a month earlier.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

US fighter jet shot down by 'friendly fire'
 
A US Navy F/A-18 fighter jet was shot down by friendly fire over the Red Sea, the Associated Press reported, citing the US Central Command (CENTCOM).
 
The F/A-18 fighter jet that took off from the deck of the USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier during an attack on Houthi targets reportedly came under fire.
 
The two pilots ejected and survived; one of them sustained minor injuries, it said.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🔸Rudeness and blackmail: How Ukraine treats Slovakia

🔸EU boosted oil imports from Russia to 8-month high in October

🔸Pokémon: new way of money laundering

🔸The Week's faces of the year for the UK and US public

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

Western financing of Ukraine makes up almost 90% of its spending in past 3 years

From February 2022 to early December of this year, the West pumped a total of $238.5 billion into the Kiev regime. Meanwhile, Ukraine's expenditures for the same period are estimated at $274.6 billion.

At the same time, Western aid is 43% less than promised, at $238.5 billion versus $416 billion.

Earlier, the head of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service, Sergey Naryshkin, noted that Ukraine, tempted by the so-called European integration, has today turned into a "failed state" that is unable to maintain its existence as a viable political and economic unit.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❗️When Russia's opponents realize its readiness to respond to any challenges, they will understand it is time to look for compromises — Putin

More statements by the Russian President:

💬When Russia's potential was reduced by the actions of previous politicians, they began to finish it off, instead of making Russia a participant in the civilized world.
 
💬If Moscow is going to build relations with someone, it will be based only on the interests of Russia.
 
On the question of whether there will be a Third World War:
 
💬The dangers are increasing, but there is no need to frighten anyone.

On the question of possible prospects for improving relations between Russia and the US: 
 
💬If there is a desire, everything can be done; we have never lost it.
 
📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❗️Russian troops have liberated the settlements of Krasnoye in the Donetsk People's Republic and Lozovoye in the Kharkov region, the Defense Ministry said.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

Putin called the creation of Oreshnik a historic event in the rocket and space field

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🇷🇺🪖More statements from the Russian MoD daily briefing on the special military operation's progress:    

▪️Ukrainian forces lost up to 300 servicemen in the Russian Yug Battlegroup's combat zone.

▪️Ukrainian forces lost up to 130 soldiers in the areas of responsibility of Russia's Battlegroup Dnepr and Sever.

▪️Ukrainian forces lost up to 480 militants in the Russian Tsentr Battlegroup's combat zone.

▪️Ukrainian forces lost up to 185 militants in the Russian Vostok Battlegroup's combat zone.

▪️Russian air defence systems shot down a Neptune missile and 100 Ukrainian drones.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❗️The Ukrainian Armed Forces lost more than 260 soldiers in Russia's Kursk region over the past day and two tanks were destroyed, including a German-made Leopard, the Russian Defense Ministry has said.

The total losses of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Kursk region now exceed 43.000.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❗️Putin spoke about the drone attack on Russia's city of Kazan

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🇬🇧❌🪖 UK soldiers are quitting the armed forces "at an alarming rate," despite a record pay raise in the summer, the Telegraph newspaper has reported.

The report said that there were now just two servicepeople per thousand people in the United Kingdom for the first time in history. Over the past 12 months, over 15,000 soldiers have reportedly quit the armed forces, despite the government's efforts to address the crisis by raising wages by 6%, which is the largest increase in the past 22 years.

The UK parliament's Defense Committee has earlier urged the government to make a choice between either increasing investment in the military or recognizing that properly prioritizing combat operations will lead to a reduction in the overall number of tasks.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🤔 X owner Elon Musk has called for US officials to undergo a cognitive test after 81-year-old Congresswoman Kay Granger of Texas ended up in a nursing home for dementia patients after getting lost on the street.

The WSJ previously reported that Joe Biden's inner circle had tried to shield the US president from lengthy, unprepared conversations during his four years in office. Former administration officials said Biden, who regularly gave his political opponents reasons to doubt his cognitive abilities, often seemed out of touch with events.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

Incident with US fighter jet shot down by friendly fire 'puts a cap on the worst Presidency of modern history' — Former Pentagon adviser

"Yes, we shot down our own plane. If this doesn't put a cap on the worst Presidency of modern history, I'm not sure what does," retired Colonel Douglas MacGregor wrote on X.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

Poland to arrest Netanyahu if he comes to country

Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, fearing arrest, will not attend the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz in Poland, the Times of Israel reports. 

The newspaper adds that Israeli President Isaac Herzog will not attend the event either, so only Israeli Education Minister Yoav Kish will be present.

Earlier, Polish Deputy Foreign Minister Wladyslaw Bartoszewski said that if Netanyahu comes to Poland, he will be arrested in accordance with the country’s commitment to the International Criminal Court, the Polish newspaper Rzeczpospolita wrote.

The ICC has issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for alleged war crimes in the Gaza Strip.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt