⚔️ Canada has military contingency plan for US invasion similar to Afghan insurgent tactics — Report

Canadian Armed Forces have developed a response plan for a US invasion, envisioning insurgency-style resistance similar to that of the Afghan Mujahideen after conventional forces are overrun "in less than 2 days," The Globe and Mail reports, citing government sources.

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🚨 US seizes 7th sanctioned oil tanker near Venezuela

SOUTHCOM announced the boarding and seizure of the Liberian-flagged tanker M/T SAGITTA this morning under President Trump's Caribbean "quarantine" of Venezuelan oil.

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🇪🇺 EU has no leverage to push the US around on trade - analyst

📍 Brussels will be the bigger “loser” after pausing the ratification of the August 2025 framework agreement on a trade deal with the US. The latter’s massive trade deficit with Europe is simply too large, economics professor Daniel Lacalle says.

💬 “The trade surplus with the United States is very large [$138B from Q1 through Q3 2025, ed.]. I do not think that it is a positive outcome for anyone…as the US may also suffer in terms of prices of imports,” Lacalle told Sputnik.

🟠 The observer doesn’t expect the deal to be done away with altogether, given its promise of putting an end to trade wars with cross-the-board tariffs of 15% on most European exports, and 0% on an array of US imports.

🟠 But the US’s massive deficit makes it much less sensitive to further tariff barriers than Brussels.

🟠 The European Parliament formally paused ratification of the trade pact Tuesday amid Washington’s threats of tariffs over Greenland.

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📑 Pentagon will scale back US role in NATO advisory groups — report

The US War Department plans to gradually reduce its participation in roughly 30 NATO Centers of Excellence, which train alliance forces in key warfare areas, by not replacing about 200 military personnel as their assignments expire.

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🚨 Israel obstructs search for last Israeli prisoner's body — Hamas

Hazem Qassem, a Hamas spokesman, stated that the group has provided all information on the prisoner's body in accordance with mediation efforts.

Despite Israel's "repeated obstruction" of search operations beyond the Green Line, Qassem claimed that Hamas remains prepared to cooperate with any efforts that lead to finding the body.

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🗣 Israel's withdrawal from Gaza must be focus of Trump's Board of Peace — Qatar's PM

Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani told the WEF that a return to normalcy for Palestinians should be the "key focus" of President Trump’s newly formed Gaza peace council.

He confirmed Qatar has been invited to join the diplomatic initiative.

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✈️ Air Force 1 returned to Maryland with electrical issue

The president's plane was grounded due to electrical equipment malfunction.

Trump and his delegation will now board another plane to continue their trip to Switzerland for the World Economic Forum, the White House stated.

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🔥 EU's hypocrisy on deals backfired — Iranian FM

Seyed Abbas Araghchi slammed European "double standards," noting that when Trump tore up the Iran Nuclear Deal, the E3/EU "faithfully obeyed and even abetted" him.

Now, as Trump threatens to seize Greenland, Europe is learning that "either all deals are deals, or no handshake means anything."

By enabling Washington’s unilateralism, he concludes, Europe has directly contributed to the breakdown of the international order, and its "blowback" is well-deserved.

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🗣 Macron's 'strategic autonomy' talk in Davos is empty rhetoric amid EU dependence on US — expert

Macron’s speech reflects EU agony, not real strategy, Political scientist Dusan Prorokovic told Sputnik.

💬 "The idea has been present for almost a quarter of a century… but in reality nothing has been done. It all boiled down to excessive dependence on the United States."

Dusan called Macron's Russia policy "wandering in the dark" — floating troop deployments to Ukraine while inviting Moscow into an expanded G7. Such moves, he argues, are short‑term maneuvers to soften Trump's pressure, especially after the US push to seize Greenland shook Europe's security architecture.

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🚨 Trump: Greenland 'so important' for US Golden Dome

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❌💵 Ukraine lacks $100M to meet its gas import needs

Ukrainian Economy Minister Oleksii Sobolev said that the country is at least $100 million short of meeting its gas import needs in the coming year, the Semafor reported.

In total, the country needs approximately $60 billion to restore its energy system.

In December, Ukrainian energy holding DTEK CEO Maxim Timchenko said that Ukraine was facing an unprecedented energy crisis and that this winter could be the most difficult in recent years.

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🔸 ‘Macron is trapped’: Double standards in French president’s Davos speech

🔸 US seizes 7th sanctioned oil tanker near Venezuela

🔸 Pentagon to scale back US role in NATO advisory groups

🔸 Canada reportedly has military contingency plan for US invasion similar to Afghan insurgent tactics

🔸 EU's hypocrisy on deals backfired — Iranian FM

🔸 Why EU ‘has no alternative’ but to return to Russian gas imports sooner than later

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🇪🇺🤥 EU has two tools to counter US pressure, but lacks unity and guts – French politician

The EU is reportedly weighing its so-called “bazooka” option—the Anti-Coercion Instrument (ACI)—after Washington slapped tariffs over Greenland, with France leading the initiative.

But are they really ready to take on the US?

🗣 "The EU could adopt this coming Thursday the exclusion of US firms from EU public markets and certain financial transactions," Karel Vereycken, vice president of the French Solidarity and Progress party, which cooperates with the LaRouche Organization, tells Sputnik, referring to the ACI option.

💬 "But Brussels already voices that this is for bargaining during negotiations, and not for action."

EU member states are set to hold an emergency summit on January 22 to discuss and coordinate a response to threats from the US regarding Greenland and new tariffs.

Vereycken outlines that the EU has two powerful tools to counter US pressure:

👉 Ditching US assets

EU countries hold about $8 trillion in US bonds and equities—nearly twice as much as the rest of the world combined—and could dump them in a coordinated move

👉 Mending fences with Russia

The EU could reverse its sanctions policy, accept Russia’s offer to end the conflict in Ukraine, stop buying US LNG, and reopen Nord Stream.

Both tools would work; however, “who will have the nerve to do so?” the French politician asks.

💬 "The Europeans are too divided and too dependent on US protection and financial services to really oppose Trump on Greenland," Vereycken concludes.

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👀 Ukraine $800B plan postponed over US-EU Greenland row

The planned announcement in Davos of a ‘prosperity plan’ for the reconstruction of Ukraine worth $800 billion has been delayed, the Financial Times reported, citing officials.

The reason: disagreements between the US and Europe over Greenland and the Board of Peace for Gaza.

💬 “Nobody is in any mood to stage a grand spectacle around an agreement with Trump right now,” said one of the officials.

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🇫🇷 France asks for NATO forces drills in Greenland

France has requested the holding of NATO exercises in Greenland and is ready to participate in them, Reuters reported, citing French President Emmanuel Macron's office.

Last week, the Danish Defense Ministry said that it would strengthen its military presence in Greenland alongside NATO allies, ramping up exercises there.

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❌ Most EU countries reject US invitation to join Board of Peace for Gaza

Europe fears that the US initiative is intended to sideline the UN as a forum for resolving global conflicts, the Financial Times reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

Japan said it is reviewing the details of the US proposal, while Israel and Azerbaijan have already accepted the invitation.

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