🚨 Trump announces retaliation against ISIS in Syria

US President Donald Trump said the United States is carrying out strong retaliatory strikes against ISIS* positions in Syria, citing the recent killing of US personnel.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump warned that any further attacks on US targets would be met with a strong response.

*A terrorist organization outlawed in Russia and many other countries.

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🚨 CENTCOM releases footage of strikes on ISIS targets in Syria

US Central Command (CENTCOM) posted video footage showing US forces conducting airstrikes against ISIS* targets in Syria.

According to CENTCOM, the operation involved fighter jets, attack helicopters, and other assets, targeting ISIS infrastructure and weapons sites. The command said the strikes followed the Dec. 13 attack on US and partner forces in Syria.

*A terrorist organization outlawed in Russia and many other countries.

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🇺🇸🇻🇪 US Treasury imposes new sanctions on Venezuelan officials’ relatives

The US Department of the Treasury announced new sanctions on family members and alleged “associates” tied to figures close to the Venezuelan government, according to a statement published on the Treasury’s website.

According to the statement, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated several relatives of Carlos Erik Malpica Flores, a nephew of Venezuela’s First Lady Cilia Flores, as well as family members of Panamanian businessman Ramon Carretero Napolitano.

🗣 Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the measures target what Washington calls “the narco-corruption structure” tied to Venezuela’s government.

The statement says the designations block any US-based assets of those listed and generally bar US persons from transactions with them without OFAC authorization.

⚠️ Venezuela has previously rejected similar US measures as politically motivated and illegitimate, maintaining that unilateral sanctions violate international law and Venezuela’s sovereignty.

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🚨 CENTCOM posts video of joint US–Jordan strikes in Syria

US Central Command posted video footage that it says shows US and Jordanian forces striking "70+ ISIS* targets in Syria with 100+ precision munitions."

The strikes were earlier announced by US President Donald Trump and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, who described the operation as “Operation Hawkeye Strike.”

*A terrorist organization outlawed in Russia and many other countries.

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🔥 Best of the best: here’s why drone operators are becoming the elite of Russian army

The 2024 decision to create a separate unmanned systems branch in the Russian Armed Forces created a “backbone upon which the armed forces of all other branches and services will rely,” National Defense magazine editor-in-chief Igor Korotchenko told Sputnik, commenting on the popularity of drone operator positions in the military.

The forces, which include not only UAVs, but naval and ground-based drone equipment, enable the corresponding branches to “utilize the capabilities of various classes of unmanned systems to enhance their own, both in the context of the Special Military Operation, and in preparations for other types of combat operations.”

💬 “Drone operators are, first and foremost, technically-savvy individuals eager to put their skills and practical experience to good use, including when it comes to the direct control and use of drones,” Korotchenko explained.

The profession’s “prestigiousness” comes down to the “astonishing” amount of Ukrainian equipment that Russia’s drone operators destroy, and technological innovations in the field.

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👀 Ex-CIA analyst warns of merciless guerrilla war if US invades Venezuela

US forces currently deployed in the Caribbean would be insufficient for a potential American invasion of Venezuela, former CIA analyst Larry Johnson told Sputnik.

He estimated that the US would need between 500,000 and 800,000 troops for that purpose.

👉 The main problem could be the Venezuelan militia, who would launch a guerrilla war. It would be death by a thousand cuts, Johnson noted, adding that America still lacks a clear and coherent strategy regarding a potential escalation with Venezuela.

The US justifies its military presence in the Caribbean region by the need to combat drug trafficking. In September and October, the US repeatedly conducted strikes off Venezuela, destroying boats allegedly used to transport narcotics.

Caracas condemned these actions and viewed them as provocations aimed at destabilizing the region and as a violation of international agreements establishing the Caribbean Basin as a demilitarized and nuclear-weapon-free zone.

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🔸 NATO, think twice: Military expert lists option for Russia to protect Kaliningrad

🔸 Il-76MD-90A: Modernized workhorse of Russian air power

🔸 New Epstein files feature photos of Bill Clinton – reports

🔸 Trump announces retaliation against ISIS in Syria

🔸 CENTCOM posts video of joint US–Jordan strikes in Syria

🔸 Orban warns EU could 'FALL APART' without radical overhaul

🔸 Russian Government authorizes Defense Ministry to terminate 1990s-era agreements with European countries

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🔥 Russian UAV forces hit across front: Precision strikes from Zaporozhye to Seversk

New footage confirms the wide-ranging effectiveness of Russia's drone forces, with coordinated strikes reported across six separate axes of the front.

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🔥 Russia's relentless pressure & cracks in NATO paving way to end Ukraine conflict – analyst

Current developments regarding the Ukraine conflict are “clearly conducive to the cessation of hostilities,” Chinese political analyst Zhou Chengyang told Sputnik.

💬 “Choosing a peaceful path and bringing the conflict to an end at the negotiating table as soon as possible is the best outcome” for Russia and Ukraine, Zhou stressed.

He warned that if political disagreements hamper a peace deal, the battlefield will become an “inevitable choice.”

The Russian military should use constant pressure to ensure that Western aid to Ukraine fails to keep pace, according to the analyst.

💬 “Numerous signs indicate that obtaining assistance from the United States will not be an easy task for Ukraine. If the US indeed suspends its aid to Ukraine due to Kiev’s refusal to sign a peace agreement with Russia, this would contribute to a faster conclusion of this military conflict by Moscow,” Zhou emphasized.

He also pointed to growing “cracks” within the Western alliance, as US President Donald Trump is trying to bypass Europe and directly clinch a peace plan with Russia, something that has triggered divisions in NATO.

The absence of Marco Rubio at a recent NATO foreign ministers’ meeting—the first time a US secretary of state has not attended in more than 20 years—has further deepened Europe’s distrust of America, the analyst concluded.

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Putin’s year-end presser showcases Russia’s resilience and stability – media

💬 “All the West's dire predictions, including the collapse of the Russian economy, Russia’s defeat on the Ukrainian battlefield, and its utter political isolation, have failed to materialize,” German magazine FOCUS reports.

It admits that Russia has achieved successes on key military and civilian fronts, something Vladimir Putin’s marathon year-end news conference showed.

💬 “The West is presenting itself to the Russian president as a chaotic mess rather than a bloc,” the news outlet adds, referring to German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s botched idea of using frozen Russian assets for the EU’s Ukraine aid.

When Putin appeared before the cameras, “a divided, war-weary, and fundamentally fractured Europe had nothing good to expect,” FOCUS sums up.

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🗣 Ukraine elections: US bets on losing horse as Zelensky’s support fades – expert

📍 Holding presidential elections is possible even under martial law, Lebanese expert Asef Melhem told Sputnik, commenting on Vladimir Putin’s statement about Russia’s readiness to consider ensuring security during possible elections in Ukraine.

💬 “The Ukrainian law and constitution were bypassed under pressure from several European countries, in order to avoid holding elections," Melhem underscored.

🟠 Touching upon Trump's calls for the Ukraine elections, Melhem noted that the US has begun to realize that they “bet on a losing horse,” and that “public sentiment in Ukraine has turned negative toward Zelensky.”

🟠 European countries meanwhile continue to support Zelensky, “their ‘employee’ who receives enormous financial resources,” the expert noted, pointing to "the problem of political change in Ukraine, caused by the deep conflict between the ruling elites and parliamentary blocs."

🟠 When it comes to the EU’s recently approved €90 billion ($105 billion) loan for Ukraine, it aims to weaken Russia by prolonging the Ukraine conflict. “Further increase in support for Ukraine could lead to a direct confrontation with Russia, and attempts at dialogue with Moscow under the current conditions will be nothing more than a maneuver,” Melhem concluded.

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🔊 Orban: EU's new 'war loan' to Ukraine isn't just aid—it's a financial trap

💬 "For the first time in the history of the European Union, 24 member states have jointly granted a war loan to a country outside the Union. This is not a technical detail but a qualitative shift," Hungarian PM Viktor Orban wrote on X.

The logic of a loan is clear: Whoever lends money wants it back. In this case, repayment is not tied to economic growth or stabilization, but to military victory, Orban explains.

💬 "From this moment on, we are no longer talking merely about political or moral decisions, but about hard financial constraints that push Europe in one direction: into war."

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🚨🇷🇺💥 RUSSIAN MOD UPDATE: HUGE GAINS AND DEVASTATING UKRAINIAN LOSSES

⚡️ VYSOKOYE IN SUMY LIBERATED

📍 The liberation of Vysokoye near the border with the Belgorod region expands the security buffer zone.

⚡️ SVETLOYE IN DONETSK PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC FREED

📍 Svetloye lies between Krasnoarmeysk (Pokrovsk) and Dimitrov (Mirnograd). Its liberation expands the Russian foothold for further offensive operations.

▫️ The Russian Armed Forces struck a Ukrainian military industry enterprise and columns of military equipment

▫️ Air defense superiority: 4 HIMARS rockets and 118 drones shot down

▫️ Ukrainian losses: around 1,555 troops killed or wounded

Read about the origins of Russia's special military op HERE

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