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On Friday, the president of the aggressor country Vladimir Putin will meet with illegitimate President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko at the Novo-Ogaryovo residence near Moscow, and the conversation will be profound in nature. Source: Russian state-owned news outlet RIA Novosti and BelTA, Belarusian state-run news agency Quote from Dmitry Peskov, Press Secretary of Russian President: "As for the preparations for the meeting between the two presidents, Putin and Lukashenko, tomorrow – yes, I can confirm that such a meeting is being prepared." Details: Peskov states that the meeting will take place in Novo-Ogaryovo, and "the conversation will be thorough." Lukashenko...

The Kremlin will not invite reporters from countries that Russia has deemed “unfriendly” to President Vladimir Putin’s address to the Federal Assembly next week. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on February 15 that only media representing "friendly" countries will be accredited to the February 21 event. -snip- More than 60 countries, including the United States, EU member states, Britain, Canada, and Japan, have been declared "unfriendly" by Russia for imposing or supporting sanctions in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The Russian ruble struck its weakest mark since late April on Tuesday, hurt by lower foreign currency revenue inflows from hydrocarbon exports and a continued recovery in imports as companies build new supply chains. -snip- The Russian government has been selling 8.9 billion rubles ($120.8 million) of foreign currency per day to plug a budget deficit that has soared because of lower oil and gas revenues. Expectations for weaker energy revenue were also weighing on the Russian currency after the central bank cut its Urals oil price forecast on Friday. The bank dropped its projected average price for the rest...

Yevgeny Prigozhin, the leader of the paramilitary Wagner Group that has fought alongside the Russian military in the war in Ukraine, admitted that the "meat grinder" battle for Bakhmut is far from over. -snip- Prigozhin, a Russian businessman, told The Moscow Times, an independent newspaper based in Amsterdam, that his troops "will not be celebrating in the near future" as the battle pushes on. He said Ukraine's military has become more active in the city, pulling in "more and more new reserves" to fight to prevent a Russian breakthrough. Up to 500 new fighters have become engaged in Bakhmut each...

Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov announced his readiness to take Poland and to go ‘at least to America’ ​​on Putin’s orders. Ramzan Kadyrov, the head of Chechnya, insisted today, Sunday, February 12, that Chechen units will eventually take Poland. They could even go to America if such an order is received from Russian President Vladimir Putin he added. Kadyrov wrote on his official Telegram channel: “Another self-confident expert has appeared on the Ukrainian horizon, allegedly revealing Russia’s sinister plans to take over Moldova and predicting the collapse of the Federation into a dozen countries”. “I will explain to such experts: you...

The head of Russia’s Wagner mercenary group said in a rare interview made public on Friday that Russian forces must capture the strategic city of Bakhmut to proceed with their campaign but faced fierce resistance from Ukrainian defenders. -snip- “Bakhmut is needed so our troops can operate comfortably,” Prigozhin said. “Why is it called the meat grinder? Because the Ukrainian army is sending more and more and more units.” “It is probably too early to say that we are close. There are many roads out and fewer roads in. Ukrainian troops are well trained ... and like any large city...

A Telegram channel linked to the Wagner Group, a Russian paramilitary outfit involved in current offensives in Ukraine's eastern region, has released footage that purportedly shows Russian tanks running over troops in the city of Vuhledar. -snip- Grey Zone, a pro-Kremlin Telegram channel, posted footage purportedly from the recent clashes in Vuhledar. "In Vuhledar, a complete f****** is happening, and it is happening over and over again, often in commanding of the same units that were trumpeting about problems previously, but the problems are not ending," the channel said in a post accompanying the videos. -snip- "At least 30 pieces...

Russia's federal media watchdog tasks its spooks with protecting Vladimir Putin from memes that portray him as a 'bald dwarf', 'a crab', or 'a Hitler wannabe'. That is according to reports on a leak out of Roskomnadzor, the main agency behind online censorship in Moscow that is responsible for blocking material about the on-going invasion of Ukraine and any disparaging posts about the Russian president. Analysis of the leaks found that the agency compiles reports on all 'negative publications', and sends them 'upstairs' to the Kremlin and Russia's security services to brief them on all of the despot's critics via...

The head of Russia's Wagner mercenary group has said in a rare interview that it could take two years for Moscow to control the whole of two eastern Ukrainian regions whose capture it has stated as a key goal of the war. Yevgeny Prigozhin said his understanding of Russia's plan was that it needed to fully control the Donetsk and Luhansk regions that Moscow last year claimed as "republics" of Russia, in a move condemned by most countries of the United Nations as illegal. "As far as I understand, we need to close off the Donetsk and Luhansk republics and...

Chechen warlord and close Putin ally Ramzan Kadyrov has signalled his intent to invade Poland next should Russia be victorious in Ukraine. ‘I have repeatedly stated that the fight against Satanism should continue throughout Europe and, first of all, on the territory of Poland,’ he said on Telegram. Kadyrov added: ‘What if, after the successful completion of the NMD (National Missile Defence), Russia begins to denazify and demilitarise the next country? ‘After all, after Ukraine, Poland is on the map! I will not hide that I personally have such an intention.’ Elsewhere this week, Kadyrov, 46, was awarded the title...

Ukrainian forces have put an advanced Russian BMPT Terminator armored fighting vehicle out of commission for the first time, according to the Ukrainian Marines. The Terminator is a relatively new addition to Russia's ground arsenal and only a small number of them are known to be in service, making this kill quite the trophy for the Ukrainian military. Members of the Ukrainian Marine Corps’ 140th Separate Reconnaissance Battalion helped destroy the BMPT, according to a post on the service’s official Facebook page. The post explains the Marines belonging to the unit shared the Terminator’s coordinates with nearby artillery forces, who...

Belarus on Friday condemned as "catastrophic" a decision by Poland to close a border checkpoint between the two countries, saying it could lead to a collapse on both sides of the border. Poland said on Thursday, citing security concerns, it would close a key border crossing into Belarus at Bobrowniki, starting at 12 p.m. (1100 GMT) on Friday, driving already hostile relations between the two countries to a new low. -snip- Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said that Poland might close further border crossings. "We are not excluding closing other border crossings with Belarus," he told a news conference in...

Despite disagreements between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation Nikolai Patrushev, the prelude to the transit of power continues. Personnel changes in the Security Council are one of the manifestations. If the transit scenario is implemented, simultaneously with the appointment of Dmitry Patrushev as prime minister, his father Nikolai Patrushev leaves the Security Council, and Rashid Nurgaliev takes his place. Averyanov was sent to "look after" the Medvedev, just in case.

Ukraine is bracing for a grisly Russian offensive in the Donbas. Moscow has concentrated hundreds of thousands of troops in the country’s east, using brute-force tactics and human waves in a bid to chip away at the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ defenses. Amid a recent surge in fighting, many military analysts believe the long-awaited Russian offensive is already underway and is expected to accelerate as the first anniversary of the invasion approaches. “Something is brewing in the east,” said Jonatan Vseviov, secretary-general of the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. “More and more Russian soldiers are arriving on the front,” he said....

A slide in Russian revenue from oil and gas clashed against the Kremlin ramping up spending on its nearly year-long war against Ukraine, resulting in a wider budget deficit for the country in January. Oil and gas revenue tumbled 46% in January from the same month a year ago to 426 billion rubles ($5.96 billion), Russia's finance ministry said Monday in a preliminary release. It attributed the decline largely to a drop in prices for its Urals blend — its largest crude oil export — and to a fall in exports for natural gas. Russia sold Urals at an average...

Russian President Vladimir Putin himself held only a meeting with the permanent members of the Security Council of the Russian Federation via videoconference. After the main part, the meeting continued in a narrow format. We discussed the state of affairs at the front and a number of related topics. The President was informed that in connection with the resumption of the offensive in a number of sectors of the front in the last five days, Russian troops have suffered heavy losses both in manpower and in equipment. Putin was also informed about the problems with the provision and the possibility...

Russia’s widely-anticipated winter offensive has begun. Aiming to extend its control over eastern Ukraine’s Donbas region, Russian troops are attacking north and south of Donetsk city. In the northern sector, around the city of Bakhmut, the Russians slowly are advancing—albeit at staggering cost. In the south, around Vuhledar, the Russians’ losses are just as steep—but they’ve made no clear gains that could justify the casualties. Vuhledar is turning into a meatgrinder for the Russian army, with enormous implications for the wider offensive. The latest Russian attack on Vuhledar—a town with a pre-war population of just 14,000 that lies a mile...

The heavy casualties suffered by Russian paratroopers in Ukraine has one Russian expert calling for a rethink of Russia's airborne units. Many of the recent criticisms about the performance of Russia's elite parachute force, known as the VDV, have been voiced about lightly armed airborne units since World War II. The problems range from poorly designed vehicles to parachute drops conducted without first suppressing enemy air defenses. -snip- Russia's huge airborne force, composed of 45,000 paratroopers in four divisions, is actually a separate military branch that serves as shock troops and a rapid-intervention force. Russia's invasion of Ukraine on February...

Yellowstone, TV’s top-rated drama, may end in spectacular fashion. Deadline understands that Taylor Sheridan, co-creator and showrunner, Paramount Global and Paramount Network are moving to end their signature show in its current form. But they are plotting a potential franchise extension to continue the Dutton saga, a new show with Matthew McConaughey in talks to star. It is unclear which of the Yellowstone cast will move over to the McConaughey-led series, but it is expected to include several of the big stars. “We have no news to report. Kevin Costner is a big part of Yellowstone and we hope that’s...

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that Russia was being threatened by German tanks, like during World War Two, speaking at an event in Volgograd, formerly Stalingrad, marking the Soviet victory over Nazi forces in the city. 'It's unbelievable but true. We are again being threatened by German Leopard tanks,' Putin said, adding that Russia had an 'answer' to any country that threatened it. Putin appeared to have brought his 'nuclear football' to Volgograd. Aides were seen close to the dictator carrying two black bags. Observers believed one was a fold-up shield to protect Putin in the event of shooting,...