Free Republic

The missing American who’d traveled to Ukraine years ago to aid Russian separatists in Donbas was found dead in the country’s war-torn eastern region. The body of Russell Bentley, a 64-year-old U.S. Army vet, was recovered in the Russian-controlled region of Donetsk Oblast, Reuters reported. -snip- The former pothead, who used “Texas” as his military call-sign, left behind a yoga instructor girlfriend to travel to Ukraine. He utilized crowdfunding sites to finance his trip, and had since become a Russian citizen. He also got married after moving to Ukraine, where he began working as a reporter for the state-owned Sputnik...

MOSCOW, (Sputnik) - At least nine Iranian missiles have hit two of Israel's airbases during the recent attack, damaging infrastructure, ABC News reported on Sunday, citing an unnamed senior US official. Five ballistic missiles struck Israel's Nevatim airbase, damaging a C-130 military transport aircraft, a runway and storage facilities, while four more missiles hit an Israeli airbase in the Negev desert but without any significant damage reported. On Saturday night, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps launched over 300 drones and missiles at Israel in its first-ever direct attack on Israeli territory, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said. The attack came...

Russian President Vladimir Putin said that there is every reason to believe that the main goal of the perpetrators of the terrorist attack in Crocus City Hall was to cause harm to Russia's unity. "In this regard, of course, judging by the ongoing investigation, we have every reason to believe that the main goal of the perpetrators of this bloody, terrible terrorist act in Moscow was precisely to cause harm to our unity. No other goals are visible, they simply do not exist," Putin said at the XII Congress of the Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Russia. The shooting...

Covert allies? What is the relationship between ISIS-K* and the US? Recent data reveals that the perpetrators of the heinous massacre on Crocus City Hall were allegedly recruited via a Telegram channel administered by members of 'Wilayat Khorasan'*, also recognized as ISIS-K*, per a Sputnik source. As we delve deeper into the motive behind this branch of ISIS*, Sputnik has put together essential facts and clues linking the US to these notorious jihadists.

TORZHOK, Russia (Sputnik) - Statements about alleged plans of Russia to attack Europe after Ukraine are nonsense, Russian President Vladimir Putin has said. During a working visit to the Russian town of Torzhok in the Tver Region on Wednesday, Putin met with military pilots. "What is being said that we are going to attack Europe after Ukraine - it is utter nonsense and intimidation of own population just to beat the money out of them, out of their people. Especially against the backdrop of the fact that the economy is shrinking and living standards are falling. It is obvious, and...

Exactly ten years ago, former President Viktor Yanukovych signed an agreement with the Euromaidan opposition to resolve the political crisis in Ukraine. The very next day, the opposition tore up the agreement and seized power by force. Months of Euromaidan riots ended with Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych agreeing to reform the constitution, form a "government of national unity," and hold early elections in December 2014. The then-Ukrainian president also agreed to pardon rioters and launch investigations into violent acts by law enforcement officials. How West & Ukrainian Opposition Derailed Peace AccordsThe February 21 agreements to end the political crisis in...

De-dollarization is the process of reducing the US dollar's hegemony in global trade and financial operations by shifting to alternative exchange methods such as national currencies and domestic payment systems, as well as transferring currency reserves. A third of UN member states have already opted for de-dollarization and decided to rely on national currencies to conduct payments, Sputnik's analysis has found. The analysis, which looked into statements made by officials from 193 UN countries in international and Russian media, showed that representatives of at least 68 UN nations openly supported the process of de-dollarization or stated that they were taking...

The White House gave the Kiev regime a set of conditions for receiving aid from the West. Ukraine is required to conduct a series of sweeping reforms concerning its courts, security service, Defense ministry, and economy. Earlier this week, Deputy White House National Security Adviser for International Economics Mike Pyle sent a draft list of reforms to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, as per Ukrainian media. The document was also forwarded to the multi-agency Donor Coordination Platform, a group of organizations including the EU, G7 governments, and the main international financial organizations, including the International Monetary...

Western media reported that Russian Black Sea Fleet commander Admiral Viktor Sokolov was killed in Ukrainian attack on Sevastopol, citing Ukrainian officials, without verifying the information. Ukraine used several British-sourced Storm Shadow cruise missiles to target the HQs building of the Russian Fleet in Sevastopol, Crimea last Friday. Russian Black Sea Fleet commander Admiral Viktor Sokolov has turned up alive and well, taking part in a Defense Ministry board meeting alongside Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu on Tuesday. Sokolov's appearance follows claims in dozens of Western media outlets quoting Ukraine's Special Operations Forces claiming that he had been killed in last...

Tara Reade, a former Senate aide who accused President Joe Biden of sexual assault, announced Tuesday she defected to Russia. The shocking confession was made during a Russian state press conference, where Reade was sitting next to alleged Kremlin spy—and pal—Maria Butina. Reade told the pro-Putin press the “very difficult” decision to move came after the realization that she no longer feels safe in Biden's America. “I'm still kind of in a daze a bit but I feel very good,” Reade told Sputnik. “I feel very surrounded by protection and safety. And I just really so appreciate Maria [Butina] and...

Uganda is on the verge of prohibiting any kind of homosexual activities in the country, including punishing those who identify themselves as gay. The country's authorities say the law will protect cultural, religious and family values.Washington has threatened Uganda with economic "repercussions," if the African country passes a new bill concerning legal accountability for homosexual activities. "We would have to take a look at whether or not there might be repercussions that we would have to take, perhaps in an economic way, should this law actually get passed – enacted," John Kirby, National Security Council spokesman, said during a press...

Eric Clapton bravely discusses his neurological COVID-19 vaccine injuries... Why does Eric Clapton’s story matter? He may have been injured by two doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, but this is not just an “AstraZeneca issue”. This is a spike protein issue - regardless of the platform that delivers the spike protein into your body (Pfizer, Moderna, J&J, AstraZeneca, Novavax, Sputnik, Covishield). Internationally renowned DJ, composer, songwriter Tyson Illingworth suffers Moderna vaccine injuries..

During an interview on Newsmax TV on Friday, Rep. Michael Waltz (R-FL) stated that the Chinese spy balloon incident needs to be “a Sputnik moment” for the United States. Waltz stated, “I think a potential silver lining from this spy balloon incident is I’m hoping it’s a Sputnik moment for American society and the government in Washington, D.C. that we need — we absolutely need a wake-up call. This is the most massive spying operation that any adversary has undertaken against the United States and influence operation in American history. We are under assault from Chinese spying. It’s in our...

A Russian player in the National Hockey League (NHL), Ivan Provorov unleashed controversy on January 17 after declining to wear a jersey with LGBTQ+ "Pride" markings during pregame warm-ups with the Philadelphia Flyers team, citing religious objections. National Hockey League player Ivan Provorov’s Philadelphia Flyers’ jersey has reportedly sold out online after he made headlines by opting not to wear an LGBTQ-themed jersey during warm-ups ahead of his team’s game against the Anaheim Ducks on January 17. The jerseys of the Russian defenseman, who has played for the Philadelphia Flyers since first starting his NHL career in 2016, were advertised...

An exiled Nicaraguan journalist says she fears a growing presence of Russsian troops in her homeland as the country grows increasingly isolated on the world stage. Berta Valle — wife of imprisoned Nicaraguan opposition leader and presidential candidate Felix Maradiaga — told The Post on Monday that Nicaraguans are “terrified” of dictator Daniel Ortega’s decision to welcome Russian soldiers to the Central American country after seeing what they’ve done in Ukraine. “Ortega invited the Russian military into Nicaragua. Publicly, he says Russia is supporting the military training of the Nicaraguan military. But we are terrified, because our country is hosting...

Russia appears to have faked trial results of its flagship Covid vaccine, according to an analysis. A team of researchers in Australia and Singapore, who pored over the original study, have uncovered what they believe is proof the Kremlin fabricated efficacy data. Russian scientists claimed the jab produced nearly identical results across five different age groups when the trial was published last year. It sparked claims among some experts the results were 'too good to be true', given the tiny numbers of infections that occurred in each cohort. Now researchers have run the trial through a simulation model 50,000 times...

The US has few ways to track the substantial supply of anti-tank, anti-aircraft and other weaponry it has sent across the border into Ukraine, sources tell CNN. In the long term, some of those weapons may wind up in the hands of other militaries and militias that the US did not intend to arm. In making the decision to send billions of dollars of weapons and equipment into Ukraine, the Biden administration factored in the risk that some of the shipments may ultimately end up in unexpected places, a defense official said. Privately, officials recognize that Ukraine has an incentive...

The United States lacks the capability to reliably track the array of weapons being sent by the Biden administration to Ukraine, CNN reported on Tuesday, citing sources briefed on US intelligence. "We have fidelity for a short time, but when it enters the fog of war, we have almost zero," a source said. "It drops into a big black hole, and you have almost no sense of it at all after a short period of time." The Biden administration factored in the risk of providing weapons to Ukraine that may end up in the hands of militias and other groups...

The US and its allies have slapped a grand total of over 9,600 sanctions against Russian officials, the state, companies, tycoons and other entities in connection with the crisis in Ukraine. Moscow now has more restrictions against it than Iran, Syria, North Korea, Venezuela and Myanmar combined. Russia has successfully withstood unprecedented sanctions pressure from the West, President Vladimir Putin has said. "The calculation was to quickly undermine the financial and economic situation in our country, to provoke panic in the markets, the collapse of the banking system, and a large-scale shortage of goods in stores," Putin said, speaking at...

Since the West has declared a hybrid war against Russia, Moscow has to search for opportunities in other regions, the diplomat said. The BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) will be at the heart of a new world order, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said. "In all respects ... these countries will become the basis of a new world order," the deputy foreign minister told RT when asked whether the BRICS countries would take a more important role in the world. Russia is working to establish contacts with any country that is interested in cooperation, he...