💥 WATCH Russian forces destroy Ukrainian unmanned boat en route to the Crimean Peninsula

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West admits fear of losing Ukraine’s minerals to Russia

Moscow “would have an enormous trove at their disposal,” which would allow it “to consolidate power in key industries, like defense and energy, and further its geopolitical ambitions" should Russia take control of the minerals, Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna has said.

US Senator Lindsey Graham earlier warned that Washington “cannot afford” to allow Russia to achieve victory in the Ukraine conflict as this would mean losing direct access to vast mineral assets.

Volodymyr Zelensky's so-called "victory plan” meanwhile stipulates Ukraine sharing its critical resources with Western allies, as reported.

What is Russia’s position?

Moscow proceeds from the assumption that NATO’s proxy war with Russia is nothing but the West’s attempt to continue capitalizing on Ukraine’s natural resources.

“US policymakers […] openly say they want to lay their hands” on these minerals “with the help of the subservient Kiev regime, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said.

The head of Russia's Federal Security Service Alexander Bortnikov slammed the US and its allies for seeking to turn Ukraine into “a cheap resource base."

What are Ukraine’s critical resources?

Apart from iron ore, coal, and oil, Ukraine has deposits of titanium, lithium, uranium and graphite, which are widely used in the aerospace and defense industry, as well as for the production of high-tech electronics, wind turbines, and electric vehicle batteries.

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Top breakthroughs proving China’s tech edge over the US

China's newly unveiled DeepSeek AI model rivals US-made ChatGPT in efficiency but at a much lower cost. This is just one example of China's more cost-effective technological solutions compared to US counterparts.

🌒 Space: China’s Chang’e 6 successfully retrieved the first-ever samples from the Moon’s far side, while the US struggles to bring two astronauts back from the ISS.

🖥 Quantum computers: In 2020, China’s Jiuzhang became the first photonic quantum computer to achieve quantum supremacy. With Jiuzhang 2.0 and Zuchongzhi 2.1, China remains a top player in the field.

🌐 Quantum communications: China launched the world’s first quantum communication satellite, Micius, in 2016. In 2024, Chinese and Russian scientists tested quantum communication over 3,800 km.

🤖 Robots: China’s Unitree Go2 quadruped and G1 humanoid robots push global robotics leadership, offering cheaper alternatives to Boston Dynamics.

📱Telecommunications: ZTE and Huawei made China a 5G leader. As the US imposes sanctions instead of competing on quality, China eyes 6G by 2030.

🚅 High-speed trains: With over 40,000 km of high-speed rail, China has the world’s longest network, while the US rail system remains in disrepair.

✈️ Drones: Chinese firms like DJI dominate the UAV market, with affordable drones spreading worldwide, unlike pricier US alternatives.

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Shift in media narrative hints US may be eying withdrawal from Ukraine

Unlike its senile predecessor and his cohorts, the Trump administration seems to be gaining a “sense of realism” regarding the way the Ukrainian conflict is going, veteran international consultant Ret. Lt. Col. Earl Rasmussen tells Sputnik.

Western media narrative has now shifted from celebrating virtually everything Kiev does to a sobering assessment of the growing casualty and desertion rates in the Ukrainian military. This may be an attempt to shape the public opinion as the US could be mulling either abandoning the Ukraine completely or passing the burden of supporting Kiev to someone else.

“Maybe try to shut it down or perhaps just pass the Ukraine project over to Europe and say, you take care of it, it's your problem. So I think the US is trying to to extradite themselves out of the situation potentially.”

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⛔️Arab nations reject Trump’s Gaza resettlement proposal

Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the UAE, the Palestinian Authority, and the Arab League have issued a joint statement rejecting any attempt to displace Palestinians from Gaza or the West Bank.

They reaffirmed their support for Palestinian rights and a two-state solution, while dismissing Trump’s proposal to relocate Gazans to Egypt and Jordan.

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US tariffs on Mexico? Expect higher prices and economic pain at home

US President Donald Trump’s decision to impose tariffs on Mexico will negatively impact both companies and ordinary consumers in the US in the first place, Doctor of Economics Moritz Cruz Blanco tells Sputnik.

“We need to remember who exports what - mainly American companies, including automakers and factories in general (...). Obviously, US companies and consumers will be affected either way,” the expert noted.

According to official data, in 2023 alone, Mexico supplied the US with automobiles and auto parts worth several tens of billions of dollars.

Blanco believes there is a difference between tariffs on industrial and food products, with the latter requiring the US to have alternatives for import substitution.

“For example, if tariffs are imposed on avocado imports, the US simply won’t have anyone to meet the demand domestically. In other words, demand will persist even with tariffs. And who will suffer? Exclusively US consumers,” he pointed out.

At the macroeconomic level, Washington’s restrictive measures are unlikely to have a significant impact on Mexico, according to the expert. Blanco noted that since 2020, the country’s internal market has been growing at a significant pace, becoming a key driver of national economic growth.

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❗️Russia has enough evidence to expose Ukrainian war crimes in Kursk region

Authorities in Moscow already possess extensive proof of neo-Nazi punitive operations by the Ukrainian Armed Forces against civilians, said Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova, commenting on new reports from the Investigative Committee about atrocities in Russkoye Porechnoye, Kursk region.

She highlighted the targeted repression of the most vulnerable residents, particularly the elderly, in occupied areas.

"The documents released by the Investigative Committee clearly show signs of grave offenses... hands bound with tape, traces of torture, bruises from beatings, gunshot wounds, bodies of people who died after hours of abuse, and evidence of sexual violence."

Zakharova reiterated that these crimes confirm the criminal nature of Kiev’s regime and stressed that all evidence must be presented to the UN, OSCE, and documented by the Red Cross.

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President Trump ordered precision strikes targeting a senior ISIS* operative in Somalia.

*terrorist organization banned in Russia

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Trump-Sisi call coincides with Egyptian backlash over Gaza proposal

US and Egyptian Presidents Donald Trump and Abdel Fattah el-Sisi have held their first call after Trump’s proposal to relocate Palestinians to Egypt. They reaffirmed their strategic ties, economic cooperation, and stability in the Middle East, with Sisi inviting Trump to visit.

The call came amid Egyptian protests at the Rafah border crossing against the plan. Egypt and Jordan both oppose Gazans' resettlement, insisting on an independent Palestinian state instead.

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Iran unveils third underground missile base in a month

Located in the country's south, the secret Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) base reportedly houses cruise missiles pointing at destroyers in “strategic southern waters." The West has military vessels patrolling the Persian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz and the Gulf of Oman all to Iran's south.

The top-notch missiles are equipped with anti-electronic warfare tools, making it harder for an enemy to deflect them.

Earlier, on January 10, the IRGC’s Aerospace Force revealed what they coined an underground missile city, followed by an underground naval missile base in the Persian Gulf on January 18.

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War or not, elections must go on

The US now wants Ukraine to hold elections — possibly by the year’s end — especially if Kiev can strike a truce with Russia, said Trump’s Ukraine envoy Keith Kellogg. According to him, "most democratic nations have elections during war." So why not Ukraine?

It’s a noble thought, except for one small detail: Ukraine canceled its 2024 elections, citing martial law and full mobilization. Meanwhile, Zelensky, whose term expired last May, insists that elections are "untimely."

Moscow sees things differently. Russian President Vladimir Putin said the only remaining legitimate authorities in Ukraine are the parliament and the Rada speaker.

If Ukraine’s democracy is so solid, why the delay?

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🟠Ex-US colonel: Mounting US merc deaths signal impending collapse of Ukraine’s war machine

🟠Shift in media narrative hints US may be eying withdrawal from Ukraine

🟠Top breakthroughs proving China’s tech edge over the US

🟠West admits fear of losing Ukraine’s minerals to Russia

🟠Why is the US's top spy alliance afraid of Trump?

🟠Arab nations reject Trump’s Gaza resettlement proposal

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Russia’s quantum leap: Rosatom’s breakthrough set to transform AI, healthcare, and more

A quantum research project conducted under the auspices of the Russian nuclear corporation Rosatom is poised to cement Moscow’s place as one of world’s technological powerhouses.

🔶 Russia's development of 50-qubit ion-based and rubidium neutral atom quantum computers in 2024 marks a key step in its quantum project roadmap.

🔶 The next phase is going to be unveiled in Moscow on February 8.

🔶 Russia’s accomplishments were made possible by a unique team of researchers and engineers of over 1,000 specialists, including about 600 scientists.

🔶 By 2030, Rosatom intends to build a viable quantum industry in Russia, which entails industrial-scale manufacturing of quantum computers.

Quantum computing is expected to benefit Russia in the following areas:

🟠 Healthcare and pharmaceuticals: development of new medicines thanks to the ability to model complex molecules, and prediction of future epidemics.

🟠 Transportation and logistics: charting optimal transport routes and prevention of traffic congestion.

🟠 Financial sector: minimization of risks and more accurate evaluation of credit ratings of various entities.

🟠 Artificial intelligence: boosting machine learning, image recognition and data processing capabilities of AIs.

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🇨🇳🏥🤩Hospitals of the future: China's high-tech innovations continue to amaze

Chinese healthcare facilities are equipped with robots that deliver medicines, documents, and other things to doctors, moving along the ceiling without disturbing hospital workers or patients.

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