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German Chancellor Scholz stands accused of handing Russia a propaganda coup in order to smooth over his own political difficulties as he claims the presence of British and French soldiers aiding Ukrainian forces.Scholz has been accused of abusing intelligence and being a bad ally by angry NATO politicians after his remarks about the level of involvement he claims there is of the British and French in the deployment of the Storm Shadow / SCALP cruise missiles they have given to Ukraine, and which have been deployed with devastating effect.(snip)Answering questions on the subject again this week, Chancellor Scholz developed his...

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin warned on Thursday that NATO will be drawn into war if Ukraine is defeated by invading Russian forces. Speaking at a Republican-led House Armed Services Committee hearing to discuss his recent absence while hospitalized for complications from prostate cancer surgery, Austin predicted that Russian President Vladimir Putin would not "stop" if Moscow wins the war in Ukraine. Austin made the remarks after being asked about Congress failing to approve a $60 billion military aid package for Ukraine, as requested by President Joe Biden. Despite significant bipartisan support for Ukraine aid, the measure has stalled amid...

Fearing that Donald Trump will pull out of NATO if he’s reelected president, and alarmed that the U.S. Congress is close to cutting off military aid to Ukraine, many Europeans are discussing the possibility of building their own independent defense force to deter and, if necessary, stave off an expansionary Russia. Here’s the problem: The task is impossible. At least for the next several years, Europe requires the North Atlantic Treaty Organization—an alliance that must be led by the United States—for its protection.NATO’s 30 European members (in addition to their trans-Atlantic partners, the U.S. and Canada) have been spending more...

A conflict between Russia and NATO would be inevitable if Western troops go to Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin's spokesman said today. The Kremlin's comments come after French President Emmanuel Macron did not rule out putting boots on the ground in Ukraine as Kyiv struggles to fend off Russia's full-scale invasion. While Macron noted that there was no consensus about troops at this stage, Ukraine has not asked allies for soldiers to fight its cause and other Western governments even scrambled Tuesday to insist troops were not set to be deployed, the mere suggestion sparked a furious response from Moscow....

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told The Associated Press that the military alliance has no plans to send combat troops into Ukraine amid reports that some Western countries may be considering putting boots on the ground in the war-ravaged country. Stoltenberg said that “NATO allies are providing unprecedented support to Ukraine. We have done that since 2014 and stepped up after the full-scale invasion. But there are no plans for NATO combat troops on the ground in Ukraine.” Ahead of a trip to Paris on Monday, where top officials from over 20 countries discussed options to increase help for Ukraine, Slovakia's...

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Monday that "no compromise" was possible with his Hungarian and Slovak counterparts if they decline to openly support Ukraine facing Russia's invasion. Tusk will meet Czech, Hungarian and Slovak premiers Petr Fiala, Viktor Orban and Robert Fico in Prague on Tuesday at a meeting in the so-called Visegrad group. Support for Ukraine has sown division among the four-nation group of Central European nations -- all NATO and European Union members -- as Orban and Fico have criticised military support for Ukraine. Orban blocked a 50 billion euro EU aid package for months while Fico...

The prime minister of Slovakia has claimed that Nato and EU member states are preparing to deploy troops to Ukraine. Robert Fico, a pro-Russia populist, offered no details of how Western soldiers could be sent to assist Ukraine, and commentators said he was probably just trying to stir up trouble. He was speaking ahead of a hastily-arranged meeting of European leaders in Paris because of what his advisers say is an escalation in Russian aggression over the past few weeks. The meeting implies that “a number of Nato and EU member states are considering that they will send their troops...

Mike Benz, a former State Department official, argues that over the decades since World War II the U.S. has developed a huge intelligence system to spy and spread propaganda and influence elections in foreign countries. In about 2016 the U.S. government converted these intelligence systems elections to spy and censor and manipulate elections right here in the U.S. (Clarice Feldman already reviewed here Tucker Carlson’s interview of Mike Benz published on February 16, 2024 on the question of our national security state.)I will be referring to the interview transcript at Happyscribe.com.The idea that the government is spying on us right...

Today, we mark two years since Russian tanks rolled into Ukraine. Starting the biggest war in Europe since World War Two. Let me begin by honouring all those brave Ukrainians who have fallen or been wounded in defence of their homeland. The situation on the battlefield remains extremely serious. President Putin’s aim to dominate Ukraine has not changed. And there are no indications that he is preparing for peace. But we must not lose heart. Ukraine has demonstrated remarkable skill and fierce determination again and again. Ukraine did not collapse in weeks, as many feared it would. You have recaptured...

Hungary's parliament on Monday ratified Sweden's bid to join NATO, clearing the final obstacle for an enlargement of the military alliance spurred by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Several NATO and EU members are "considering sending troops to Ukraine" on a "bilateral basis Slovakia's PM Robert Fico added, "I cannot say for what purpose and what they should be doing there," after making the claims.

BUDAPEST — At last, Sweden will get to join NATO. Sweden cleared the final hurdle to become the military alliance's 32nd member after Hungary — the last holdout among the countries — held a parliamentary vote to approve the move. In recent years, Russia's invasion of Ukraine pushed Sweden away from its decades of military non-alignment and towards the world's biggest military alliance. Sweden’s accession comes amid increasing uncertainty over NATO’s future, as the Republican frontrunner in the U.S. presidential race, Donald Trump, threatens to abandon security guarantees for at least part of Europe. Advertisement Budapest finally made the move...

For more than a decade, the United States has nurtured a secret intelligence partnership with Ukraine that is now critical for both countries in countering Russia... Nestled in a dense forest, the Ukrainian military base appears abandoned and destroyed, its command center a burned-out husk, a casualty of a Russian missile barrage early in the war. But that is above ground. Not far away, a discreet passageway descends to a subterranean bunker where teams of Ukrainian soldiers track Russian spy satellites and eavesdrop on conversations between Russian commanders. On one screen, a red line followed the route of an explosive...

The second anniversary of the start of the war in Ukraine was celebrated in Kiev in a very symbolic way: with a celebration with the attendance of four fairly minor Western leaders, including the prime ministers of Italy, Canada, and Belgium, as well as the EU Commission president. With no American, British, French or German leaders participating, this diminished ceremony paints a perfect image of the dwindling Ukrainian relevance in the minds of the top leaders in the west. Reuters reported: “Italy’s Giorgia Meloni, Canada’s Justin Trudeau, Belgium’s Alexander De Croo and the president of the European Commission, Ursula von...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b3q7bzEREck

Weaponry systems in Ukraine, many of which were supplied by European countries, have been rendered unworkable, not due to Russian interference, but because of damage caused by mice and other rodents. Seemingly, these creatures have developed a preference for cable insulation made of corn fiber over synthetic materials. This predilection leads to malfunctioning electrical installations, rendering the expensive equipment essentially worthless, and requiring rapid overhauling. Mice and rats have become a bane on the frontline for both Ukrainian and Russian forces, with these rodents capable of nesting almost anywhere, even in the exhaust systems of armored vehicles. The disadvantage of...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uJdmLch3kFc This guys does daily (or more) updates for those looking for detailed updates on the fighting. Heavy reliance of both Ukrainian and Russia videos and geolocation from the metadata in them to infer what is going on.

Hungary said on Friday it had signed a deal to buy four Saab JAS Gripen fighter jets from Sweden, as Budapest finally prepared to approve Stockholm's bid to join NATO after nearly two years of delays. Hungary was the last member of the transatlantic military alliance holding out against Sweden's historic application to join, which it made in 2022 in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Putin is reportedly on the brink of a new land grab to defy the West by possibly announcing soon that Russia is taking control of a breakaway Moldovan region. There is speculation that unofficial state Transnistria is poised to make an appeal to Putin to join Russia. The landlocked strip along the Dniester River is wedged between Moldova and Ukraine. Putin already has a 'peacekeeping' force of up to 2,000 troops in the territory which Russia says overwhelmingly wishes to be incorporated by Moscow. There are also likely thousands of Russian paramilitaries on the ground. A fear is Putin will...

Russia has made an explosive claim about NATO's involvement in the Ukraine war. Moscow claimed that NATO troops, disguised as mercenaries, are operating in Ukraine. The claim has been made by the chief of the main operational directorate of the Russian general staff, Colonel General Sergey Rudskoy. He said that NATO troops control multiple launch rocket systems and air defences in Ukraine. The startling statement comes as the Ukrainian army is unable to defend its territory. In the latest blow, the Ukrainian military lost control over Avdiivka. Watch this report to learn more.