Free Republic

Ukraine's intelligence service accused Russian operatives of creating a bot farm that sent 5,000 SMS messages to Ukrainian military and law enforcement officers encouraging them to defect and surrender to the Russians. On Thursday, the Ukrainian Armed Forces announced on Facebook that the Security Service of Ukraine had managed to shut down the Russian bot farm, or "special information operation," which aimed to "shake the moral and psychological state of the Ukrainian security forces." According to Ukrainian Armed Forces' Facebook post, the message read, "The outcome of events is predetermined! Be prudent and refuse to support nationalism and discredited leaders...

House Republicans have called on Hunter Biden to testify before Congress later this week, according to a letter from a senior House Republican. "House Committee on Oversight and Reform Republicans request the attendance and testimony of Hunter Biden," Ranking Member James Comer said in a letter to House Oversight and Reform Committee Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney. The committee hearing, titled "It’s Electric: Developing the Postal Service Fleet of the Future," is scheduled for Tuesday, April 5.

A leading economist has claimed that, in his view, economic globalisation is now ‘over’ as a result of the Ukraine war. Gabriel Felbermayr, a world-renowned economist who heads up the Austrian Institute for Economic Research (WIFO), has declared that globalisation is now “over” thanks to the ongoing war in Ukraine. ....snip Although the end of globalisation has been predicted many times before, Felbermayr’s warning matches those made by other groups and organisations, with Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine already causing serious issues for international trade. The supply of food is one major area where the war has already caused significant...

This afternoon, April 1, the Department of Defense (DoD) notified Congress of additional assistance activities under authority provided by the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI). Through USAI, DoD will provide up to $300 million in security assistance to bolster Ukraine's capacity to defend itself. This decision underscores the United States' unwavering commitment to Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity in support of its heroic efforts to repel Russia's war of choice. Capabilities in this package include: • Laser-guided rocket systems; • Switchblade Tactical Unmanned Aerial Systems; • Puma Unmanned Aerial Systems; • Counter-Unmanned Aerial Systems; • Armored High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled...

ISW assesses that the Kremlin has revised its campaign plan in Ukraine after the failure of its initial campaign to capture Kyiv and other major Ukrainian cities and its subsequent failure to adjust its operations in late March. ISW previously assessed that the initial Russian campaign of the war—airborne and mechanized operations to seize Kyiv, Kharkiv, Odesa, and other major Ukrainian cities to force a change of government in Ukraine—had failed as of March 19.[1] The Russian military continued to feed small collections of reinforcements into operations around Kyiv and across northeastern and southern Ukraine in an effort to keep...

Food producers are encouraging climate-conscious consumers to make the switch from plant-based alternatives to lab-grown exotic meats in a bid to preserve the planet. ‘Cultivated’ lion burgers, tiger steaks and zebra sushi rolls are among the products being pitched by a food-tech startup, that it hopes will eventually be made widely available for purchase. Once the products have passed regulatory approvals, Primeval Foods said Michelin-starred restaurants in London will be among the first to sample its dishes, with further plans to expand on a larger scale, even to local supermarkets. Cultivated meat is a production method that allows companies to...

WASHINGTON, D.C. (KAMR/KCIT) - U.S. Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-Texas District 13) introduced a resolution that calls on President Joe Biden to replace Vice President Kamala Harris from her role at the southern border, according to a news release from the office of the congressman for Texas District 13. The resolution comes after a year since Harris was appointed to the role and after Jackson’s visit to the southern border this week. “It is past time for Joe Biden to remove her from the ‘Border Czar’ role and appoint someone who will put Americans’ interests first. A nation without borders is...

Vice resident Kamala Harris was pressed about whether she agreed with President Biden's controversial remark calling for Russian President Vladimir Putin's removal from power. **SNIP** After Harris recapped her recent visit to Europe, Reid continued her line of questioning about Putin by asking if the sanctions should remain in place "as long as Vladimir Putin is the dictator of Russia." "Well, I'm not going to speculate about the future. I'm going to tell you where we are now. They are intact," Harris responded. "And we will continue to upgrade them and make them so - more severe as appropriate. And...

LONDON -- Inflation in Europe soared to another record, according to new EU figures released Friday, .... Consumer prices in the 19 countries that use the euro currency rose by an annual rate of 7.5% in March, according to the European Union statistics agency, Eurostat. The latest reading 'smashed the high set just last month', when it hit 5.9%. It's the fifth straight month that inflation in the eurozone has set a record, bringing it to the highest level since recordkeeping for the euro began in 1997. Rising consumer prices are a growing problem around the world, making it more...

Gita Gopinath, first deputy managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), has warned of a gradual decrease of the dominance of the US dollar in the world financial systems after the unprecedented financial sanctions imposed on Russia after its incursion in Ukraine. The sanctions, from restrictions on Russian banks to measures targeting its economy, imposed by Western nations, could cause a more fragmented international monetary system. “The dollar would remain the major global currency even in that landscape, but fragmentation at a smaller level is certainly quite possible,” Gopinath told the Financial Times. “We are already seeing that, with...

“Then shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God” (Proverbs 2:5 KJV).

Ukraine has been asking for more fighters since the war started, but the US refused to support a deal that could have seen Poland supply 28 MiG-29s, a Russian-made jet of the type its remaining pilots are used to flying. Washington was concerned that supplying fighter jets could be deemed escalatory by a nuclear-armed Russia. Despite the refusals, Ukraine continues to press its case, and overnight its air force tweeted “the greatest need is for fighter jets” and asked specifically for F-15s and F-16s, whose original designs date back to the 1960s and 1970s, which it said its pilots could...

As an aid to coping with inflation, President Biden urged families to "switch to renewable energy because it will save them money. The average family car costs over $700 per month to operate. Selling this cash-eater will eliminate that cost. Taking public transit will shift the majority of your travel costs to the government where it will be paid for by taxpayers. An even thriftier and more healthy option would be to walk everywhere you go. There's no fare to pay and the exercise is good for you. It will also help save the planet from Climate Change." "You can...

China staged a huge cyberattack on Ukraine’s military and nuclear facilities in the build-up to Russia’s invasion, according to intelligence memos obtained by The Times. More than 600 websites belonging to the defence ministry in Kyiv and other institutions suffered thousands of hacking attempts which were co-ordinated by the Chinese government, according to Ukraine’s security service, the SBU. The spy agency revealed that, in an apparent sign of complicity in the invasion, Chinese attacks started before the end of the Winter Olympics and peaked on February 23, the day before Russian troops and tanks crossed the border. The SBU said...

A former hostess at an Arizona Cracker Barrel says the restaurant used a “code word” to refer to Black people, Newsweek reports. The former Cracker Barrel employee shared the news on TikTok, in a video that’s been viewed over 260,000 times. In the 15-second video, TikToker @cinnamnhoney, said while she worked at Cracker Barrel, she’d often wonder how her coworkers would be able to identify a table of “Canadians” even if they didn’t have an accent. A few seconds later, she revealed that “Canadians” was actually code word for Black people. “I had an old co-worker come and ask me...

I wanted to provide an update on Doug Jensen, a January 6th political prisoner. It’s been almost 15 months since he was arrested. Initially, Doug was imprisoned for 6 months and 6 days but granted home release. But after just 49 days, he was taken back into custody for the sin of accessing the internet and watching the Cyber Symposium. Accordingly, since the last time I posted the Jensen family's “Give Send Go” link, Doug has been unjustly imprisoned another 7 months. He continues to be denied home release. Unless that changes, Doug will be confined until his trial September...

On Thursday, the US had warned India of consequences if it increased its energy imports from Russia, adding that New Delhi could not expect Moscow to come to its defence against China. India argues that its decision-making is governed by national interest. At the policy level, India has traditionally been averse to unilateral sanctions. India has bought millions of barrels of crude oil from Russia at a discount since the war erupted, justifying the purchases as beneficial for its citizens and something that even European countries are doing. Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman told CNBC-TV18 that India would continue to buy...

NAPLES, Fla. — Mike Pompeo is running — if not for president, then for a chance to be Donald Trump’s running mate should the former president mount another campaign. Pompeo is methodically laying the groundwork for his own 2024 presidential bid if Trump skips the race. And Trump has already told associates that Pompeo, one of the few top Cabinet officials who never lost favor with him, could make his vice presidential short list if he runs again, a person familiar with Trump’s comments said. In speech after speech, Pompeo tells audiences how he pines to be back in government....

After serving as White House press secretary for more than a year, Jen Psaki will leave the Biden administration for MSNBC, where she will serve as a host and on-air expert. The departure, first reported by Axios, is expected this spring. Psaki has held near-daily briefings since the start of the Biden presidency, and has generally been praised for her transparency. She had initially said she would stay in her position for a year, but a number of overlapping crises — the coronavirus pandemic, the withdrawal from Afghanistan and, most recently, the war in Ukraine — appear to have extended...

Did you, or a family member, serve your country with the expectation of receiving the health care benefits you were promised? Sorry, illegal aliens apparently come first in President Joe Biden’s America. The Biden administration reportedly is considering diverting doctors from the Department of Veterans Affairs to treat the massive inflow of illegal aliens expected at the southern border this spring and summer. Hillary Vaughn of Fox Business reported on the insulting slight to American veterans on Thursday, citing a source with U.S. Customs and Border Protection. She quoted the source as saying, “We’re going to take medical services away...