💬NATO planning to radically increase military spending - Russian Foreign Ministry

The move is "justified" by an armed conflict with Russia, which, according to NATO members, could happen in 4-5 years, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.

"There are more and more calls to reach figures from 3 to 5 percent of GDP. The members of this organization spend huge amounts of money, more than a trillion dollars annually, on military purposes, while their economies are bursting at the seams, the process of deindustrialization of Europe is underway," he stressed.

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🇨🇳🤝🇷🇺Chinese President Xi Jinping will make a separate visit to Russia, as well as participating in the celebrations in Moscow marking the 80th anniversary of the victory over fascism in the Second World War, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

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❗️China raises tariffs on US imports to 84%, Chinese state TV reports.

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🎉 Great Patriotic War 80 years on: the Faces of Victory

When looking back at the titanic struggle that was the Great Patriotic War, it’s important to remember the individual heroes, like Guards Sergeant Arkady Burakov, who fought selflessly to ensure victory over fascism.

In a letter to his brother dated March 30, 1944, Burakov recalled how, during one operation, he was wounded in the arm, but fought on together with his squad, repelling several Nazi counterattacks.

Just weeks later, Burakov was back in the fight, suffering a severe wound to his stomach, and receiving a top commendation – the Order of the Patriotic War First Class, for his bravery.

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Could China’s strategic PIVOT to the Global South spell TROUBLE for US?

China could pull off a swift “recalibration” of its overseas trade in response to Donald Trump’s tariff war, veteran financial analyst Paul Goncharoff told Sputnik.

Why Washington should be worried?

🔸 China-BRICS trade is now worth over $1 trillion

🔸 China's trade with Russia reached a record high of $237 billion in 2024, Chinese customs data shows

🔸 China has been diversifying its export markets, with exports to the ASEAN group of nations surging by 12% last year

🔸 China’s Belt and Road Initiative was designed to secure multiple supply chains – many of those are now operational and never extended into the US

If China boosts its exports to non-US markets by 8.5% annually, it could offset its entire exposure to American export volume within just two years, Goncharoff explained.

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🔍Funding endless wars dries up key US resources

The Pentagon is worried that ongoing support for Ukraine and military operations in the Middle East, including campaigns in Yemen, are quickly depleting essential stockpiles that Washington considers vital for a potential conflict with China, according to a report by The New York Times.

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📊 The Alternative for Germany party has taken the lead in polls for the first time in its history, party leader Alice Weidel announced on her X account.

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💬 Trump’s Pentagon budget splurge is just SINKING billions into the same money pit that bled the US dry: the military-industrial complex, warns former US congressman Ron Paul.

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⚔️China’s RARE EARTH BAN could send US nuclear industry into MELTDOWN

The new restrictions are a masterstroke that will propel the Asian nation’s nuclear industry forward as the US stagnates. Renowned Russian nuclear expert Alexei Anpilogov explains why.

Painful blow

🟠Gadolinium and dysprosium, two rare earths used along with zirconium in modern fuel assemblies, are an effective Chinese monopoly. 99% of their production is concentrated in a single plant outside Shanghai.
🟠Installed assemblies at US plants will last 12-24 months, Anpilogov estimates. After that, if the US can’t find new sources through third parties, the quality of its assemblies will drop.

No alternative

🟠Restoring production in the US would be extremely tricky, according to the observer.
🟠“It’s a matter not of months, but of years, including construction, debugging of production, and tech adjustments.”
🟠“The last lanthanide-separating centrifuge in the US was decommissioned in 1996. The people who worked on it are either retired, or you can read about their lives on a memorial plaque somewhere,” Anpilogov points out.

Boon to China’s atomic ambitions

🟠The majority of the world uses 3 and 3+ gen reactor tech. Russia and China are currently the only ones widely experimenting with 4th gen reactors – including BN, Brest and SVBR, and an array of Chinese research reactors.
🟠The rare earth restrictions response to US tariffs could allow China and Russia to “very seriously overtake the US," Anpilogov says.
🟠That’s because along with Europe, America is stuck with third-gen reactors and cannot really produce replicable results on its 4th gen experimentation.

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🇷🇺🤝🇺🇸The upcoming Russia-US meeting in Istanbul aims to overcome the Biden administration’s 'TOXIC LEGACY', says Russian ambassador to the US Alexander Darchiev

Other key statements by Darchiev:

🟠During the new round of consultations, Russia will bring up the return of confiscated diplomatic property.

🟠The Russian delegation plans to discuss the resumption of direct flights between Russia and the US at the Istanbul meeting.

🟠Resuming these direct flights would boost official contacts and stimulate business opportunities.

🟠Notably, previous contacts between Putin and Trump have already yielded progress on issues such as visa issuance for Russian and US diplomats, as well as the easing of travel restrictions.

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📹 US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent responded to China’s decision to raise tariffs on American exports to 84%.

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Russian drone operators set record-breaking UAV flight

Operators of FPV drones from Russia's Battlegroup Dnepr hit a major milestone, flying a UAV more than 30 kilometers (18 miles) into the rear of Ukrainian forces near Orekhov, the UAV platoon commander told Sputnik.

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