🐘 Maria Zakharova, spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry, has been spotted feeding elephants with fruit at the Great Moscow Circus following a press conference.

The six baby elephants, now stars of the circus, were gifted to Russia by Myanmar as a gesture of goodwill.

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Denmark’s defense? Donated to Ukraine

If Donald Trump were to decide to take Greenland from Denmark by force, Copenhagen would find itself in no position to protect the island, as the country’s military has run out of defense resources, according to a European media outlet.

The reason? Denmark has generously donated the bulk of its land-warfare equipment to Ukraine.

"That would probably go down as the shortest war in history," quipped Ulrik Pram Gad, a senior researcher at the Danish Institute for International Studies.

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Suspect arrested for arson in Los Angeles wildfires

The LAPD has detained a suspect believed to have started the devastating Kenneth Fire, one of several wildfires tearing through California. Officials suspect the fire was intentionally set, with reports that the alleged arsonist was armed with a "flamethrower."

The Kenneth Fire broke out on Thursday, joining the Palisades and Eaton fires in ravaging the region as the death toll climbs to 10.

"Justice will be swift. It will be firm, and the maximum punishment will be sought," Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman was quoted as saying.

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❗️The United States conducted airstrikes on underground Houthi facilities in Yemen's Amran province, according to Al Arabiya.

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📹Attempted assault on Chad's presidential palace caught on camera

A group of 24 armed individuals attempted to storm the presidential complex in N'Djamena on January 8.

The attackers tried to breach the palace's defenses but were quickly neutralized by security forces.

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Ursula von der Leyen, head of the European Commission, does not plan to go to Donald Trump's inauguration as she was not invited there, the European Commission said.

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🇷🇺 Russian oil transit to Europe will continue – Ukrainian PM

The transit of Russian oil via the Druzhba pipeline will not be stopped, despite the end of gas transit, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denis Shmygal stated in the Verkhovna Rada.

"Halting oil transit would violate Ukraine's commitments under the Energy Charter Treaty and the EU Association Agreement," he noted, adding that EU sanctions allow oil supplies to Hungary and Slovakia.

He warned that ending transit could lead to international arbitration by affected countries and the loss of EU financial assistance to Ukraine.

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Training camp or escape route? Ukrainian soldiers desert from army base in Poland

Around 10% of Ukrainian soldiers sent to Poland for training vanish before completing the program, an anonymous Polish army source told Dziennik Gazeta Prawna (DGP).

They think the soldiers come with escape in mind. "It’s much easier to sign up for training abroad than to risk crossing the border illegally," the source said, adding that Poland doesn’t bother tracking down the deserters.

Some of the deserters even leave letters behind, though they keep their reasons to themselves.

DGP estimates that about 1,300 Ukrainian soldiers deserted while in Poland, which has trained 13,000 to 14,000 troops under the EU's EUMAM mission.

Over 1,700 troops from Ukraine’s 155th Mechanized Brigade, trained and equipped with great fanfare in France, deserted before reaching the battlefront.

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❗️ Venezuela closes border with Colombia ahead of presidential inauguration

Táchira state Governor Freddy Bernal announced that the border with Colombia will be "temporarily closed" from this Friday at 5:00 AM until Monday, January 13, at 5:00 AM, on orders from President Nicolás Maduro.

Bernal said he received reports of an "international conspiracy."

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A British man whose girlfriend mistakenly threw away a hard drive containing $750 million worth of the bitcoin cryptocurrency has been denied permission to search for it in a dump.

His partner made the expensive mistake in 2013, when Bitcoins were worth around $100 – now they trade for $95,000. Since then, the man has been desperately trying to recover his loss.

But authorities in South Wales where the contents of his bins were taken, have denied his request, made several years ago, to excavate the entire landfill.

The lengthy process has concluded with a judge finding "no prospects of success," media reported.

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🔥Billionaires, budget cuts, and drought: What’s fueling LA’s fire crisis?

Los Angeles fire hydrants have run dry as wildfires rage, forcing residents to rely on pool water and garden hoses. Amid the chaos, attention has turned to billionaire agribusiness moguls Stewart and Lynda Resnick, notorious for their control over California's water resources.

📍The Resnicks own a 57% stake in the Kern Water Bank, one of the state’s largest underground water storages.

📍This control was secured through the controversial Monterey Amendments of 1994, which transferred ownership to five water districts and the Resnicks' private Westside Mutual Water Company, according to More Perfect Union.

📍Critics accuse the Resnicks of profiting during water shortages by selling stored water at inflated rates and wielding political influence.

📍A California Watch review found the Resnicks donated $7,000 to Senator Dianne Feinstein’s 2000 campaign, with Mother Jones alleging she later supported drought-era legislation favoring agribusiness.

📍While the current water crisis is driven by infrastructure issues, climate change, and budget cuts, the Resnicks’ massive agricultural water use in California’s Central Valley adds further strain to the fragile system.

📍Also fueling the crisis, budget cuts have strained firefighting resources. Mayor Karen Bass reduced the LAFD budget by $17.6 million for 2024-2025, leaving $837 million – just 65% of the city’s $1.3 billion homeless budget. Firefighter shortages have persisted since 2020.

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❓Why is Austria’s Herbert Kickl cast as bogeyman by Europe’s mainstream?

Austria’s right-wing Freedom Party (FPO) and the conservative Austrian People's Party (OVP) have begun coalition talks after being tasked by Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen to form a government.

Following the Freedom Party’s parliamentary election victory in September, its leader, Herbert Kickl, was quickly labeled a bogeyman by Europe’s mainstream parties and media. His Eurosceptic, anti-migration, and anti-LGBT* policies align with those of other rising right-wing parties in Europe.

Kickl’s self-styling as a future Volkskanzler (the “people’s chancellor”) has drawn criticism, with opponents noting that the term was once used to describe Adolf Hitler – although such comparisons are often regarded as an exaggerated response to anti-mainstream figures.

Kickl’s key policies at a glance:

On EU & Ukraine

▪️ Opposes Western military assistance to Ukraine, claiming it exacerbates tensions
▪️ Warns that “the European Union is currently pursuing a course of escalation at every turn, which could end in a third world war”
▪️ Argues that Ukraine’s EU accession would drag Austria into the conflict
▪️ Advocates for an EU "peace policy" to bring Ukraine to the negotiation table

On EU anti-Russia sanctions

▪️ Criticizes sanctions as “irresponsible” actions by the “Brussels elite,” damaging Austria’s economy and fueling the conflict
▪️ Pledges to block aid to Ukraine through the European Peace Facility
▪️ Supports continued energy cooperation with Russia

On traditional values

▪️ Promises to defend Europe’s Christian roots and promote the family as a “partnership between a man and a woman with children.”

* banned in Russia as an extremist organization

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🇻🇪 Nicolas Maduro took office as president of Venezuela. The inauguration ceremony was held in the capital Caracas.

In his speech, Maduro promised that his new presidential term would be a period of peace, equality and democracy.

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❗️A judge in the New York "hush money" case has granted Donald Trump an unconditional discharge, meaning his conviction remains in place without any additional penalties, a Sputnik correspondent reports.

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🛠 Battle for the tech metals: the 17 rare earth elements and their uses

Whether it’s Greenland, Ukraine, West Africa or East Asia, rare earths are an element of the global geopolitical competition hiding just below the surface.

Basic facts:

Rare earths are a group of 17 silvery-white, soft heavy metals, including 15 lanthanides, plus scandium and yttrium, which share similar properties.

Despite the name, they aren’t particularly rare—lutetium, one of the least common, is 200 times more abundant than gold. What makes them "rare" is the challenge of finding large, easily mined deposits.

1️⃣ Batteries and energy storage

🔸 Lanthanum (La): Nickel-metal hydride batteries for hybrid vehicles, catalyst for petroleum refining.

🔸 Promethium (Pm): Atomic batteries for critical electronics, including in military, aerospace, and pacemakers.

2️⃣ Magnets and electronics

🔹 Praseodymium (Pr): Powerful magnets (wind turbines), fiber optic cables, didymium glass.

🔹 Neodymium (Nd): Magnetic motors, headphones, hard drives, automotive electronics.

🔹 Samarium (Sm): Magnets, lasers, nuclear reactor control rods.

🔹 Dysprosium (Dy): Permanent magnets, electric drive motors for EVs and wind turbines.

3️⃣ Optics, lighting, and displays

🔶 Cerium (Ce): Glass polishing agents, lightbulbs, ceramics.

🔶 Terbium (Tb): Green phosphor for TVs and monitors, lighting.

🔶 Europium (Eu): Red phosphor for TVs, blue in LEDs.

🔶 Erbium (Er): Optics and lasers for medicine.

🔶 Holmium (Ho): Optics, medical and dental tools.

4️⃣ Medical and healthcare applications

🟠 Gadolinium (Gd): MRI drugs, nuclear propulsion systems.

🟠 Thulium (Tm): Portable X-rays, meteorology, superconductors.

🟠 Lutetium (Lu): Tumor treatment, tomography.

🟠 Yttrium (Y): Drug labeling, cancer treatment, surgical needles.

5️⃣ Industrial and aerospace applications

🔊 Scandium (Sc): Lightweight alloys for military and commercial aircraft, sporting equipment.

🔊 Ytterbium (Yb): Strengthening metal components, burnable poison for nuclear reactions.

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❗️Gazprom Neft and Surgutneftegaz have been subjected to blocking sanctions by the United States, along with their subsidiaries.

The outgoing Biden administration also included over 100 vessels in the new sanctions package, citing their involvement in the transportation of Russian energy resources.

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❗️The White House has announced the largest US sanctions yet against Russia’s energy sector. Key statements and expectations from the Biden administration include:

▪️ The new restrictions are expected to cost Russia "billions of dollars" every month, impacting the ruble exchange rate and potentially leading to a further hike in the Central Bank's key interest rate.

▪️ The US will continue to combat sanctions evasion, pushing Russia to restructure its supply chains. The sanctions policy has been adjusted, meaning any entity involved with Russia's energy sector could be targeted.

▪️ The large-scale sanctions on Russia's energy sector do not pose a risk to the global oil market, as there is no threat of a supply shortage. Meanwhile, US production is increasing, creating an oversupply in the domestic market.

▪️ The future of US sanctions on Russia, including in the energy sector, will be entirely dependent on the Trump administration.

The US acknowledges that the introduction of new sanctions against Russia's energy sector is linked to favorable conditions in the American domestic market, including increased production and an oversupply of energy resources, according to senior officials from the outgoing administration.

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