Free Republic

Social media posts by Chinese official sources echoing the Kremlin’s line that Nato’s expansion is the cause of tensions between Russia and Ukraine have surged in recent months, according to data released by US analysts on Wednesday. The new data comes to light amid a dispute between US and Chinese officials over who bears responsibility for Russia’s invasion of the Eastern European country in February, including frequent allegations by Washington that Beijing has taken Moscow’s side. German Marshall Fund (GMF) fellow Bret Schafer and Georgia State University professor Maria Repnikova outlined in a briefing organised by the US State Department...

The response of the Gulf Arab states to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has been somewhat revealing of the depth of fissures between the United States and its Gulf allies. The “stress test” United Arab Emirates (UAE) Ambassador to Washington, Yousef Al Otaiba, hinted at on March 3, was on full display in the pushback by the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries—particularly Saudi Arabia and the UAE—against pressure from Washington to condemn the invasion and side with Ukraine. China may be one country closely examining the dynamics of the interactions between the two sides over Ukraine and the strategic implications that...

China’s military has accused the United States of undermining regional peace and security after it sent a naval destroyer through the Strait of Taiwan on Tuesday as part of a routine freedom of navigation exercise. The People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theatre Command accused the US of “provocative” naval activities and said the move sent the “wrong signals to ‘Taiwan independence’ forces” in a brief statement. The US regularly sends destroyers through the strait, although sometimes other allies such as France might send a naval patrol in its place. The 180km (112 miles) wide South China Sea waterway separates China from...

Canada will be handing over the M777 howitzers and ammunition to Ukraine, including the newest Excalibur extended-range GPS-guided shells. Militarnyi informs about this with reference to CBS. The media obtained confirmations from three sources saying that four of the 155-mm howitzers were sent to Ukraine. For reference, Canada has 37 of these howitzers. Ukraine will be receiving these weapons from the 1st Regiment of the Royal Canadian Horse Artillery inventory. Anita Anand, Defence Minister noted that “a number of M-777 howitzers were shipped to Ukraine in cooperation with our American allies.” The shipment included an unspecified amount of 155-mm...

Your eyes are not deceiving you - the Bonner County Primary ballot looks like an all-Republican contest. From county to Congress, all candidates sport the “R” label, with the exception of one diehard Democrat. Give the man credit for honesty; at least he’s not hiding in the RINO ranks. Before 2011, when the Idaho GOP closed its Primary to all but Republican voters, rampant Democrat cross-over voting for the most liberal Republican on the ballot influenced election outcomes. Since then, a lot of shape-shifting has created a sudden dearth of Democrats. They began a new life as RINOs, both as...

click on link

The administration of left-wing New Zealand President Jacinda Ardern acted “unlawfully” last year when it closed the nation’s borders to its own citizens to curb transmission of the Chinese coronavirus, the High Court of Wellington ruled on Wednesday. New Zealand’s federal government enforced a border control protocol known as “MIQ” from September 1 to December 17, 2021. MIQ required all people entering New Zealand to secure spots at state-run quarantine facilities before they would be allowed to enter the country. MIQ operated based on a lottery system that infringed on New Zealanders’ constitutional right to re-enter New Zealand, Wellington...

A reputed federal informant and whistleblower who went missing after reportedly turning over a trove of secret files about Deutsche Bank was found dead at a Los Angeles school earlier this week, a police official said Wednesday. The body of Valentin Broeksmit, 46, was found Monday at Woodrow Wilson High School shortly before 7 a.m., Sgt. Rudy Perez of the Los Angeles School Police Department said in email. Records with the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner do not list a cause of death. Los Angeles Police Department Capt. Kenneth Cabrera told the Los Angeles Times that authorities do not suspect...

A Hamas delegation arrived in Tehran on Wednesday for meetings with Iranian officials, i24NEWS reported, citing Iran’s IRNA news agency. The delegation is led by Khalil al-Hayya and will meet on Thursday with Iranian officials to discuss the "latest status of the Palestinian nation's resistance" with the "Permanent Secretariat of the International Conference in Support of the Palestinian Intifada affiliated to Iran’s Parliament", the report said. The Hamas representative in Lebanon, Osamah Hamdan, and its representative in Iran, Khalid Qaddoumi, will also participate in the meetings. Hamas and Iran have restored ties that had been strained in recent years, as...

"More than half" of the howitzers the United States has designated to go to Ukraine have arrived as of Wednesday, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said. The U.S.'s military assistance to Ukraine since Russia invaded Feb. 24 includes 90 155 mm howitzers, large artillery guns that are operated by a team of about 10 people; 72 tactical vehicles to tow the howitzers; and 183,000 155 mm artillery rounds. “Without giving whole numbers, more than half of those howitzers are in Ukraine,” Kirby said during Wednesday’s briefing. He also said the first group of Ukrainian officers to be trained on the howitzers,...

Vice President Kamala Harris has said she had “no symptoms” following her COVID-19 diagnosis - but some medical experts were left baffled after it was revealed she was taking an antiviral pill designed to treat patients with severe cases. Harris’ office announced Tuesday that the vice president was prescribed and had used Pfizer’s Paxlovid following a consultation with her doctors just hours after she tested positive for the virus. Paxlovid is designed to reduce severe symptoms among high risk patients, which has some experts questioning why it would be prescribed to a healthy, double-boosted and asymptomatic 57-year-old patient. “Asymptomatic covid...

@rachaelvenables Climate group Just Stop Oil (an Insulate Britain off-shoot) smashing up the petrol pumps at Clacket Lane M25 services this morning. They’ve now glued themes to the pumps and road - stopping drivers from filling up. Clip ...

Join with fellow FREEPERS to pray for AMERICA: For those in Authority in Government, Family, Military, Business, Healthcare, Education, Churches, and the Media. I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone: for kings and all those in authority that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. ~ 1 Timothy 2:1-2 Religion Forum Threads labeled [Prayer] are closed to debate of any kind. Wisdom calls out in the street, she lifts her voice in the square; in the main concourse she cries aloud, at the city gates...

GRAND RAPIDS, MI – Two men accused of plotting to kidnap Gov. Gretchen Whitmer have asked a judge to acquit them after jurors earlier this month could not reach unanimous verdicts, resulting in mistrials. Barry Croft Jr., 46, of Bear, Delaware, and Adam Fox, 38, of Wyoming, have filed motions for acquittal. Two others, Daniel Harris, 24, of Lake Orion, and Brandon Caserta, 34, of Canton, were acquitted April 8 by a jury in U.S. District Court in Grand Rapids. Attorneys for Croft and Fox asked Chief U.S. District Judge Robert Jonker to acquit the two. During the trial, the...

And while there are disputes in the EU, Putin decided to kill his own oil and gas industry. Gazprom has already announced a cut – off from gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria, and all EU countries that refuse to pay for blue fuel in rubles in violation of contracts are next in line. Read about how Putin miscalculated and can lead to the rapid collapse of his own budget in the OBOZREVATEL article. Gas is Putin's weapon Russia has two "clubs" – gas and nuclear weapons, Igor Volubaev, a former vice-president of Gazprombank, who fled Russia, said in an...

GX IQB JOSM UFTMBF MJK BZBF VTM GO MJKF BOIGFB SGXB GV IQTOL MJK, IQTI RJKSC VKXXGWB. —ABGVIBF BWLQTFI

Russian invaders seized the City Museum of local lore of Melitopol, which stored Scythian gold. The location of historical relics was handed over to the enemy by local collaborators. This is stated in the message of the Zaporozhye regional military administration. The museum housed relics discovered by archaeologists in the 1950s. "There is information that the Russian military has seized the Melitopol City Museum of local lore," Ilya said in a statement. The place where historical relics are kept was indicated to the enemy by local collaborators. In addition, traditional looting for the invaders is gaining momentum in Melitopol, but...

A father has gone viral for admitting that he recently told his "bratty" 19-year-old daughter that she can either start babysitting her cousin or start paying rent. Posting in Reddit's "Am I The A**hole" (AITA) forum under the username u/FunnyChef7259, the father asked: "AITA for making my eldest daughter babysit even though she is 'child-free?'" The post has received more than 10,000 upvotes and has divided over 3,000 commenters. At the beginning of his post, the father explained that he and his wife have three children—Tina, Jason and Ally. Late last year, after his sister-in-law passed away, the couple also...

This is about 3 weeks old but worth repeating. Hunter Biden's wild spending left him with huge debts to credit card companies and desperate to avoid jail for unpaid taxes, DailyMail.com can reveal Pictures, documents, emails and texts obtained by DailyMail.com from Hunter's laptop reveal he spent thousands of dollars on strippers and prostitutesBiden even threatened to take $20,000 out of his daughter's education savings accountPictures found on the laptop show what appears to be thousands of dollars worth of crack bagged up on a scale, and Hunter naked and in bed with womenThe numerous expenses left him strapped for...

Well...gee I wonder why I havent seen this on CNN or MSNBC? /s Directing the Committee on Foreign Affairs...Financial Services to begin investigations regarding certain business dealings of Robert Hunter Biden during the period in which Joseph R. Biden, Jr. served as Vice President of the United States; whether those business dealings resulted in improper conflicts of interests; and whether Robert Hunter Biden's work affected United States foreign policy or a foreign government or foreign entity's response thereto.