German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has dismissed the “erratic statements of a billionaire from the US” targeting the policies of parties like his Social Democratic Party (SPD) as par for the course.
“It’s nothing new when it comes down to it. You have to stay cool,” he told Stern magazine. He added that “Musk can say what he likes… Germany is governed by the will of its citizens.”
In a timeline of the recent verbal vitriol:
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Since the beginning of combat operations in the Kursk region, Ukrainian forces have lost more than 47810 soldiers.
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President Joe Biden has apparently decided to give one final giant middle finger to detractors on his way out the door, awarding the Presidential Medal of Freedom to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, hedge fund shark-turned ‘philanthropist’ George Soros and a slew of celebrities and activists.
The White House said the award, given “to individuals who have made exemplary contributions to the prosperity, values, or security of the United States, world peace, or other significant societal, public or private endeavors,” is being handed out this year to 19 individuals that “have made America a better place.”
Online, people were less than enthused:
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Silicon Valley CEOs and other business executives are contributing significant sums to US president-elect Donald Trump's inauguration, despite some of them having previously snubbed him during the election.
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Stating the obvious: Blinken admits US was pumping Ukraine with weapons long before conflict with Russia escalated
The US began pumping Ukraine with weapons long before the conflict escalated in February 2022, outgoing Secretary of State Antony Blinken has admitted at the end of his tenure.
“We made sure that […] starting in September and then again December, we quietly got a lot of weapons to Ukraine to make sure that they had in hand what they needed… things like Stingers, Javelins,” said Blinken in an interview for The New York Times.
The statement can hardly qualify as a “revelation,” considering that it has long been obvious that Western leaders who signed the Minsk agreements on Ukraine in 2014 never intended to honor them.
In 2022 former German Chancellor Angela Merkel and ex-French President Francois Hollande admitted that the Minsk Agreements, legally constituted by a decision of the UN Security Council, were seen by the West as an opportunity to train the Ukrainian Army and flood the Kiev regime with weapons.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, commenting on the deceitfulness of this betrayal, noted in December 2022: “We thought we would still be able to agree within the framework of the Minsk peace agreements... Of course, now the question of trust arises… And trust, of course, is almost at zero."
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The US began pumping Ukraine with weapons long before the conflict escalated in February 2022, outgoing Secretary of State Antony Blinken has admitted at the end of his tenure.
“We made sure that […] starting in September and then again December, we quietly got a lot of weapons to Ukraine to make sure that they had in hand what they needed… things like Stingers, Javelins,” said Blinken in an interview for The New York Times.
The statement can hardly qualify as a “revelation,” considering that it has long been obvious that Western leaders who signed the Minsk agreements on Ukraine in 2014 never intended to honor them.
In 2022 former German Chancellor Angela Merkel and ex-French President Francois Hollande admitted that the Minsk Agreements, legally constituted by a decision of the UN Security Council, were seen by the West as an opportunity to train the Ukrainian Army and flood the Kiev regime with weapons.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, commenting on the deceitfulness of this betrayal, noted in December 2022: “We thought we would still be able to agree within the framework of the Minsk peace agreements... Of course, now the question of trust arises… And trust, of course, is almost at zero."
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Just business: US military-industrial complex wants Ukraine bloodbath to continue even if it means drafting 18-year-olds Part 1 👉 Part 2
“The war in Ukraine is profitable to the United States economically, politically and so on. That’s why they’re interested in this war continuing,” retired Russian Army colonel and renowned military observer Viktor Litovkin told Sputnik, commenting on the Biden administration’s steady pressure on Kiev to reduce the draft age to 18.
Besides the cash the US military-industrial complex can expect from new contracts from its Eastern European NATO allies from the “recycling” of Soviet-era equipment, and the replenishment of Pentagon warehouses after sending old stocks off to Kiev, hawks in Washington are able to pursue their long-term agenda of “weakening Russia,” Litovkin explained.
The gruesome “business” in Ukraine is so profitable that Litovkin doesn’t expect it to stop once Donald Trump is in charge. After all, he recalled, it was Trump who first sent lethal weapons to the country.
Unfortunately, Litovkin doesn’t expect Ukraine’s population to rise up and overthrow the regime sending its sons to their deaths, either. “Power in Ukraine is in the hands of the Banderites, who keep the people who are left in fear…Maybe individuals and groups can declare a protest, but they will be immediately thrown in jail and the men sent to the front,” he said.
👉 Part 2
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“The war in Ukraine is profitable to the United States economically, politically and so on. That’s why they’re interested in this war continuing,” retired Russian Army colonel and renowned military observer Viktor Litovkin told Sputnik, commenting on the Biden administration’s steady pressure on Kiev to reduce the draft age to 18.
Besides the cash the US military-industrial complex can expect from new contracts from its Eastern European NATO allies from the “recycling” of Soviet-era equipment, and the replenishment of Pentagon warehouses after sending old stocks off to Kiev, hawks in Washington are able to pursue their long-term agenda of “weakening Russia,” Litovkin explained.
The gruesome “business” in Ukraine is so profitable that Litovkin doesn’t expect it to stop once Donald Trump is in charge. After all, he recalled, it was Trump who first sent lethal weapons to the country.
“I’m more than certain that Trump will not rush to stop this ‘business’. He will likely simply dump part of it onto Europe, while continuing the rest because it’s profitable for the US. Trump has always been on the side of the US military-industrial complex,” Litovkin said.
As for the drafting of 18-year-olds, “someone has to man the frontlines and the trenches” if the reserve of 25-year-olds and up (the current draft age) has been exhausted, the retired colonel said. “How can this conflict continue if a million Ukrainian servicemen have already been knocked out, killed, wounded, maimed and so on? Some people have fled to Europe, to Russia and so on.”
Unfortunately, Litovkin doesn’t expect Ukraine’s population to rise up and overthrow the regime sending its sons to their deaths, either. “Power in Ukraine is in the hands of the Banderites, who keep the people who are left in fear…Maybe individuals and groups can declare a protest, but they will be immediately thrown in jail and the men sent to the front,” he said.
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Just business: US military-industrial complex wants Ukraine bloodbath to continue even if it means drafting 18-year-olds Part 2 👉 Part 1
The mass desertion of troops from the “elite” NATO-trained 155th Ukrainian Mechanized Brigade is a sign that the Ukrainian Army is out of “fighting spirit,” retired Russian Army colonel and military observer Viktor Litovkin told Sputnik, commenting on the news that over 1,700 of the brigade’s 5,800 recruits fled during training in France and Poland before their deployment in the fierce battles in the Donbass.
“Victory in every war is determined by the fighting spirit of those masses who shed blood on the battlefield,” Litovkin explained, noting that the incident shows that “coercion,” not fighting spirit, are the main remaining motivator in the Ukrainian Army, hence the regular mass desertions, mass surrenders, etc.
“If it weren’t for the Banderites standing behind them, threatening to shoot them in the back or executing those who surrender or desert, the front line would have disappeared a long time ago,” the observer suggested.
The shortfalls of the NATO equipment sent to the front along with the brigade’s troops didn’t help matters, Litovkin said, pointing out that the CAESAR wheeled artillery is underpowered and unsuitable for use in Ukraine during the muddy seasons, and that the Leopard 2 tanks the brigade was equipped with weighing 10-20 tons more than Russian ones, meaning inferior maneuverability and effectiveness.
Ultimately, the brigade’s training was just a bureaucratic exercise, Litovkin said, with the money doled out and spent, and the French side especially not particularly concerned about the unit’s fate.
👉 Part 1
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The mass desertion of troops from the “elite” NATO-trained 155th Ukrainian Mechanized Brigade is a sign that the Ukrainian Army is out of “fighting spirit,” retired Russian Army colonel and military observer Viktor Litovkin told Sputnik, commenting on the news that over 1,700 of the brigade’s 5,800 recruits fled during training in France and Poland before their deployment in the fierce battles in the Donbass.
“Victory in every war is determined by the fighting spirit of those masses who shed blood on the battlefield,” Litovkin explained, noting that the incident shows that “coercion,” not fighting spirit, are the main remaining motivator in the Ukrainian Army, hence the regular mass desertions, mass surrenders, etc.
“If it weren’t for the Banderites standing behind them, threatening to shoot them in the back or executing those who surrender or desert, the front line would have disappeared a long time ago,” the observer suggested.
The shortfalls of the NATO equipment sent to the front along with the brigade’s troops didn’t help matters, Litovkin said, pointing out that the CAESAR wheeled artillery is underpowered and unsuitable for use in Ukraine during the muddy seasons, and that the Leopard 2 tanks the brigade was equipped with weighing 10-20 tons more than Russian ones, meaning inferior maneuverability and effectiveness.
Ultimately, the brigade’s training was just a bureaucratic exercise, Litovkin said, with the money doled out and spent, and the French side especially not particularly concerned about the unit’s fate.
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US arming of Ukraine justifies Russia’s special military op aims
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova responded to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken admission that Washington had been supplying weapons to Kiev long before the start of the special military operation.
She told Sputnik that was why one of the goals of the operation was the demilitarization of Ukraine.
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Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova responded to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken admission that Washington had been supplying weapons to Kiev long before the start of the special military operation.
She told Sputnik that was why one of the goals of the operation was the demilitarization of Ukraine.
"Russia has been saying this for many years," Zakharova said. "About the weapons supplies to Ukraine by the US and the UK, about the endless NATO exercises in the Black Sea region violating Russian borders, and about the dangerous proximity of Western military aircraft to civilian airliners in our country's airspace."
"This is why one of the tasks of the special military operation is the demilitarization of Ukraine and ensuring the security of our country," she added.
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Do US arms sales to Tel Aviv undermine Trump's hopes for Saudi-Israel normalization?
The US State Department "informally" notified Congress of a proposed $8 billion arms deal with Tel Aviv, described as supporting Israel's long-term security through the resupply of critical munitions and air defense capabilities, Axios reported.
The proposed arms package includes:
🔸 AIM-120C-8 AMRAAM air-to-air missiles for fighter jets.
🔸 Hellfire AGM-114 missiles for attack helicopters.
🔸 155mm artillery shells.
🔸 Small diameter bombs, JDAM tail kits, 500-lb warheads and bomb fuzes.
The arms deal follows Israeli military operations in Gaza, Lebanon and Yemen, which have depleted its weapon stockpiles.
The military campaign continues despite the Gaza ceasefire talks resuming in Doha, Qatar, on January 3.
At least 65 people, including children, were killed in recent Israeli airstrikes in Gaza on Friday and Saturday, according to Palestinian sources.
Impact on US-Saudi-Israel relations
US arms support for Israel's military campaigns is likely to complicate Donald Trump's plan to expand the Abraham Accords with a deal to normalize relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel.
🔹 Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) reaffirmed in September 2024 that normalization depends on Palestinian statehood, which the current Israeli government opposes.
🔹 In November 2024, MBS condemned Israeli military aggression in Gaza and Lebanon during the Arab League and Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) summit.
🔹 Reports of a "breakthrough" in normalization talks were denied by both Tel Aviv and Riyadh in December 2024.
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The US State Department "informally" notified Congress of a proposed $8 billion arms deal with Tel Aviv, described as supporting Israel's long-term security through the resupply of critical munitions and air defense capabilities, Axios reported.
The proposed arms package includes:
The arms deal follows Israeli military operations in Gaza, Lebanon and Yemen, which have depleted its weapon stockpiles.
The military campaign continues despite the Gaza ceasefire talks resuming in Doha, Qatar, on January 3.
At least 65 people, including children, were killed in recent Israeli airstrikes in Gaza on Friday and Saturday, according to Palestinian sources.
Impact on US-Saudi-Israel relations
US arms support for Israel's military campaigns is likely to complicate Donald Trump's plan to expand the Abraham Accords with a deal to normalize relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel.
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Danish police are investigating after 20 drones were reportedly spotted over the port of Køge, southwest of Copenhagen, the Associated Press reported quoting local authorities.
A witness called the police, claiming to have seen about 20 drones which then rapidly disappeared into the Køge Bay, the agency said. The police stated that they are trying to determine the total number of drones and their owners, as no drone flight permits had been issued for the area at the time of the sighting.
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A witness called the police, claiming to have seen about 20 drones which then rapidly disappeared into the Køge Bay, the agency said. The police stated that they are trying to determine the total number of drones and their owners, as no drone flight permits had been issued for the area at the time of the sighting.
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Baerbock’s Syria trip focused on energy, support for Kurdish separatists: analyst
Berlin’s modern-day foreign policy is focused on two things: antagonizing Russia and a search for energy, and German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock’s Syria trip was aimed primarily at “trying to secure relations with parties that hold a good grasp on energy resources,” Sakarya University security policy expert and researcher Furkan Halit Yolcu told Sputnik.
Pointing to long-standing German support for Kurdish separatist movements across the region, from Syria and Iraq to Turkiye, Yolcu pointed out with the YPG militias controlling “a good amount of energy reserves” in Syria, Germany is looking to avoid losing “its leverage on that side,” while trying to get a sense of where Transitional Government head Abu Mohammad al-Julani stands, and convince him of Germany’s potential support in the coming years.
Accordingly, whether the trip has a positive or negative outcome depends whether or not Berlin can convince Damascus not to attack YPG positions, the observer said.
As for Baerbock’s comments about keeping Syria “out of the hands” of Russia and China, Yolcu said that in his estimation, German foreign policy simply doesn’t have “such a macro level understanding of the international system,” or ability to influence it, with the country focused on saving its economy and maintaining its top spot among European economic powers amid the ongoing crisis facing the EU.
Ultimately, Yolcu doesn’t expect Berlin to give up on its support for Kurdish groups in Syria, Iraq or Turkiye, with such support giving them the means to pressure all three countries, as “leverage for them, mainly against Turkiye.” Accordingly, as far as Syria is concerned, the Kurds are what’s most important for Berlin, the analyst said.
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Berlin’s modern-day foreign policy is focused on two things: antagonizing Russia and a search for energy, and German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock’s Syria trip was aimed primarily at “trying to secure relations with parties that hold a good grasp on energy resources,” Sakarya University security policy expert and researcher Furkan Halit Yolcu told Sputnik.
Pointing to long-standing German support for Kurdish separatist movements across the region, from Syria and Iraq to Turkiye, Yolcu pointed out with the YPG militias controlling “a good amount of energy reserves” in Syria, Germany is looking to avoid losing “its leverage on that side,” while trying to get a sense of where Transitional Government head Abu Mohammad al-Julani stands, and convince him of Germany’s potential support in the coming years.
Accordingly, whether the trip has a positive or negative outcome depends whether or not Berlin can convince Damascus not to attack YPG positions, the observer said.
As for Baerbock’s comments about keeping Syria “out of the hands” of Russia and China, Yolcu said that in his estimation, German foreign policy simply doesn’t have “such a macro level understanding of the international system,” or ability to influence it, with the country focused on saving its economy and maintaining its top spot among European economic powers amid the ongoing crisis facing the EU.
Ultimately, Yolcu doesn’t expect Berlin to give up on its support for Kurdish groups in Syria, Iraq or Turkiye, with such support giving them the means to pressure all three countries, as “leverage for them, mainly against Turkiye.” Accordingly, as far as Syria is concerned, the Kurds are what’s most important for Berlin, the analyst said.
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"The Kiev terrorists intentionally directed the UAV at a civilian vehicle. The vehicle was carrying a family — parents and a child," said the governor.
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The second journalist from Sputnik, Mikhail Kevkhiev, was also injured in the strike.
Freelance correspondent of Izvestia Alexander Martemyanov was killed in the attack.
Ukrainian forces intentionally targeted a civilian car, which was far from the frontline.
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How the US dollar could be dethroned by BRICS national currencies
Critics of de-dollarization argue that no viable alternative to the greenback has emerged as a major reserve currency. They insist that the dominance of the US dollar will persist for the foreseeable future. But are they right?
Former Ronald Reagan official and renowned US economist Dr Paul Craig Roberts believes that ending dollar hegemony does not require a single competing currency but rather several national ones.
Other countries strive to export goods to the US to obtain dollars for their central bank reserves, he noted. The foreign exchange earned from exports is then invested into US treasury bonds, which pay interest while also serving as reserves for central banks.
The economist explained that the US dollar became the global reserve currency after the Second World War not because it was inherently indispensable, but because all other industrialized nations had been devastated by the war.
Roberts suggests it is time to move on and explore new alternatives, especially given that the dollar has been weaponized by the US.
The BRICS+ bloc is increasingly using national currencies for trade and investments within its framework.
The group "should develop trade relations among BRICS members, which have the potential to expand into Asia, Africa and South America. The world is ready for a non-weaponized system," Roberts advised.
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Critics of de-dollarization argue that no viable alternative to the greenback has emerged as a major reserve currency. They insist that the dominance of the US dollar will persist for the foreseeable future. But are they right?
Former Ronald Reagan official and renowned US economist Dr Paul Craig Roberts believes that ending dollar hegemony does not require a single competing currency but rather several national ones.
"The dollar as a reserve currency is the main basis of US power," Roberts wrote. "It means the US can always finance its debt."
Other countries strive to export goods to the US to obtain dollars for their central bank reserves, he noted. The foreign exchange earned from exports is then invested into US treasury bonds, which pay interest while also serving as reserves for central banks.
"Today, there is no need for a reserve currency," argues Roberts. "Countries should trade in their own currencies. This gives every country an incentive to maintain a strong currency."
The economist explained that the US dollar became the global reserve currency after the Second World War not because it was inherently indispensable, but because all other industrialized nations had been devastated by the war.
Roberts suggests it is time to move on and explore new alternatives, especially given that the dollar has been weaponized by the US.
The BRICS+ bloc is increasingly using national currencies for trade and investments within its framework.
The group "should develop trade relations among BRICS members, which have the potential to expand into Asia, Africa and South America. The world is ready for a non-weaponized system," Roberts advised.
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Austria’s Nehammer steps down as chancellor, leader of People’s Party as coalition talks crumble
“We have negotiated long and hard. Agreement with the SPOe (Social Democrats) is not possible on key issues. The People’s Party stands by its promises: we will not agree to measures that are anti-performance or anti-business, or new taxes. We are therefore ending negotiations with the SPOe,” embattled Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer announced Saturday.
Nehammer said he would resign as head of the government, and as leader of the People’s Party, in the wake of the negotiations’ failure.
Austria’s political future has been in limbo since September’s parliamentary elections, where the populist anti-mass immigration, anti-Brussels, pro-neutrality, anti-Ukraine conflict Freedom Party of Austria (FPO) nearly doubled its standing, garnering over 29% of the vote and causing Nehammer’s ruling People’s Party/Green coalition to lose its parliamentary majority.
Nehammer refused to form a coalition with the Freedom Party, and has sought to cobble together a new government with the New Austria and Liberal Forum (NEOS) and the SPOe, respectively, with both attempts ending in failure.
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“We have negotiated long and hard. Agreement with the SPOe (Social Democrats) is not possible on key issues. The People’s Party stands by its promises: we will not agree to measures that are anti-performance or anti-business, or new taxes. We are therefore ending negotiations with the SPOe,” embattled Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer announced Saturday.
Nehammer said he would resign as head of the government, and as leader of the People’s Party, in the wake of the negotiations’ failure.
Austria’s political future has been in limbo since September’s parliamentary elections, where the populist anti-mass immigration, anti-Brussels, pro-neutrality, anti-Ukraine conflict Freedom Party of Austria (FPO) nearly doubled its standing, garnering over 29% of the vote and causing Nehammer’s ruling People’s Party/Green coalition to lose its parliamentary majority.
Nehammer refused to form a coalition with the Freedom Party, and has sought to cobble together a new government with the New Austria and Liberal Forum (NEOS) and the SPOe, respectively, with both attempts ending in failure.
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Italian PM Meloni will travel to US to meet Trump — reports
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is expected to meet President-elect Donald Trump in Mar-a-lago, European media reported.
On Jan. 9, President Joe Biden scheduled his final presidential trip overseas to meet with Meloni in Rome.
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Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is expected to meet President-elect Donald Trump in Mar-a-lago, European media reported.
On Jan. 9, President Joe Biden scheduled his final presidential trip overseas to meet with Meloni in Rome.
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