😏 'WHINING IS A BRILLIANT STRATEGY' — Hungarian analyst Zoltan Koskovics mocks Zelensky's negotiating tactics

Earlier, Koskovics accused Ukraine of launching a "special operation" against Hungary following its vote blocking fast-tracked EU accession for the “corrupt, aggressive regime."

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

💥 Ukraine loses another US-supplied F-16 fighter jet

The aircraft was reportedly on a mission when it encountered a technical malfunction. The pilot ejected and survived. A commission has been appointed to investigate the incident, Ukrainian media report.

Meanwhile, the US has been supplying Ukraine with non-operational F-16s from aircraft boneyards to be used as spare parts for the active fleet, The War Zone, referencing a US Air Force official, previously reported.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🚨 TRILATERAL RUSSIA-UKRAINE-TURKIYE MEETING SCHEDULED FOR 12.30 LOCAL TIME IN ISTANBUL — source in Turkish MFA to Sputnik

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

👋😎Slap in Ukraine’s face: Putin gained diplomatic victory over Zelensky ahead of talks – report

Announcing his participation in Istanbul talks, Volodymyr Zelensky thought he had put Russian President Vladimir Putin “in check,” L’Antidiplomatico writes.

“Instead, Zelensky did not realize that he was showing his cards and putting himself in a DISADVANTAGEOUS POSITION,” according to the Italian news outlet.

L’Antidiplomatico praised Russia’s “openness to dialogue,” pointing to Zelensky’s unsuccessful attempts to bluff by proposing a face-to-face meeting with Putin, who never accepted it.

The first direct talks between Russia and Ukraine in more than three years are expected in Istanbul on May 16. The talks were slated for May 15, but the Ukrainian delegation failed to show at the table.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🇹🇷Turkiye, US, and Ukraine to meet ahead of talks involving Russian delegation at 10.45 AM — Turkish FM source to Sputnik

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🚨 LIVE FROM ISTANBUL: Journalists are gathering outside the Dolmabahçe palace building, as security measures have been stepped up.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❌📞📱 No ID, no scroll: France, Greece & Spain push for age limits on social networks

The new rules make it mandatory for any device with access to the internet to include age verification technology, Bloomberg reports.

Age restrictions will pertain to those surfing Meta* and X, among other social networks. Greece, France, and Spain “want to use the economic muscle” to force the social media giants to develop effective measures, the news agency notes.

🇫🇷Earlier, French lawmaker and former Prime Minister Gabriel Attal proposed banning access to social media for children under the age of 15 and restricting it at night for older teenagers as part of “radical measures” to combat internet addiction.

🇪🇸In Spain, a government panel suggested that children under the age of 16 should not use internet-connected technologies.

🇦🇺Australia previously banned children under 16 from using social media or creating new accounts.

*banned in Russia as an extremist organization

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

▪️Trilateral Russia-Ukraine-Turkiye meeting scheduled for 12.30 local time in Istanbul

▪️Former FBI chief called for Trump's assassination online

▪️Putin-Trump meeting is 'the only way to have a breakthrough'

▪️Ukraine loses another US-supplied F-16 fighter jet

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

LATEST ON POSSIBLE UKRAINE TALKS IN ISTANBUL: HERE'S WHAT WE KNOW SO FAR:

🟠A series of trilateral meetings:

At 10:45 - representatives from Turkiye, the US, and Ukraine
At 12:30 - Turkiye-Russia-Ukraine (Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan will deliver the opening speech.)

🟠All negotiations will take place at the Dolmabahçe Presidential Office, where direct talks between Russia and Ukraine are expected to resume for the first time since spring 2022.

🟠The Russian delegation is led by the president’s assistant, Vladimir Medinsky, while Ukraine is represented by Defense Minister Rustem Umerov.

🟠The Russian delegation arrived in Istanbul the day before and waited for nearly 12 hours for their Ukrainian counterparts, as President Zelensky only signed the decree for the Ukrainian delegation late in the evening.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🪖💸 Ukraine wasted $770M on FAKE or DEFECTIVE arms

Foreign brokers received hefty sums for weapons and shells that were often UNUSABLE, the FT writes.

In some cases, Ukraine paid in advance to little-known companies, only for the weapons to be delivered late or not at all.

The fallout is a huge blow to Ukraine’s $6B-$8B annual weapons budget, as domestic CORRUPTION further complicates matters, according to the newspaper.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

📸 PICTURED: US Secretary of State patiently explaining to Ukrainians why it's time to sit down with Russia 😂

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

😨💲 HALF-TRILLION DOLLAR SHIELD: Pentagon unveils blueprint for its new Golden Dome

The Department of Defense has already touted the Golden Dome air defense system as a “dependable umbrella of protection.”

But a price tag raises eyebrows: the system could cost a whopping $542B, with its space-based interceptors alone potentially hitting $161B.

The project is expected to be completed by 2045 at the earliest.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❗️Trilateral meeting between Turkiye, US, and Ukraine concludes in Istanbul — Turkish Foreign Ministry source

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🇷🇺☦️'Orthodoxy led us to Russia'—US' Air Force veteran on leaving the US over cultural concerns

A US Air Force veteran who served in Yugoslavia and Iraq described Orthodoxy as offering a deeper, more stable historical and spiritual foundation, one that drew him toward Russia and its values.

The veteran also voiced serious concerns about cultural trends in the US, particularly the LGBTQ* agenda, which "represents an attack on families ultimately."

*a movement recognized as extremist and banned in Russia

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❗️In Istanbul, everything is ready for the trilateral meeting with representatives of Russia, Ukraine, and Turkey.

It was reported that the meeting is scheduled to start at 12:30.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❗️The Russian delegation left the hotel for talks with the Ukrainian side in Istanbul, a source told Sputnik

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❗️ Russian troops have liberated the settlement of Volnoye Pole in the Donetsk People's Republic, Russia's Defense Ministry announced.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🚨 Will we see Putin-Trump meet anytime soon? Kremlin drops a hint 👇

🇷🇺 Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov just set the stage for potential historic negotiations—here’s what you need to know:

▪️ Any Putin-Trump talks must be high-stakes, high-prep—Ukraine & global crises on the table.

▪️ NATO in "fighting mode" – They’re not here to talk—they’re waging war by proxy.

▪️ Putin convenes Security Council today. Expect big moves.

▪️ Diplomatic Call: Putin may hold an international phone call this evening—details remain undisclosed.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt