Free Republic

British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss is the bookmakers' favorite to become the next prime minister of the United Kingdom, but the Kremlin is unlikely to be betting on a different British approach to relations with Moscow, or the war in Ukraine, should she take over from incumbent Boris Johnson. Although enjoying less support among fellow Conservative Party MPs, Truss's greater popularity among grassroots Tories than Chancellor Rishi Sunak in the final run-off has seen Betfair put her odds-on 4/6 to win. If successful, she will be the face of the British response to the war in Ukraine during which she...

It was supposed to be the bright spot in a grim day. Of a dozen unclaimed bodies set for burial recently at Bucha City Cemetery, one had just been identified. The dead man’s family was present and would be able to bury him with full ceremony. His grave would be marked with his name instead of just a number. But there was a hitch. No one could find the body. (snip)When Russian troops retreated at the end of March from the region around Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, they left behind a trail of more than 1,200 bodies. At least 458 dead...

Liz Truss has been made Prime Minister of Britain. This was expected, but also the darkest day possible for Britain. Previously, UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace had backed Liz Truss’ view that Russian forces must be pushed out of “the whole of Ukraine” – and suggested this should include Crimea. Even the Guardian at the time had accused Liz Truss’ position was “recklessly inflaming Ukraine’s war to serve her own ambition.” Meanwhile, in Russia, this was playing out on TV endorsing World War III. Everything that can possibly point to war is unfolding before our eyes. There are no peacemakers...

The Biden administration is arming Ukraine with weapons that can do serious damage to Russian forces, and, unlike early in the war, U.S. officials don’t appear worried about Moscow’s reaction. In the past several months, Washington has detailed tranches of new drones, harder-hitting missiles and deadly rocket systems as part of billions of dollars pledged to the former Soviet country. The clear support is a far cry from the early days of the war, when the U.S. government seemed hesitant to list exactly what was being sent into Ukraine so as not to tip off or draw the ire of...

There are signs that Russian troops have deployed tactical nuclear weapons in the temporarily occupied Crimea, said Alina Frolova, general director of the Center for defense strategies. "This is a terrible danger not only for Europe, but also for many countries," she said during a briefing. However, this information has not yet been confirmed by any Western country that has been closely monitoring the movement of Russia's nuclear weapons since their creation. Video of the day Advertisement: 0:58 OBOZREVATEL analyzed why the issue of deploying nuclear warheads in the temporarily occupied Crimea is important for the international community and why...

Vladimir Putin showed further signs of his allegedly failing health as his legs twitched manically while giving a brainwashing history lesson to Russian children yesterday. The Russian leader squirmed in his chair and looked ill at ease as he gripped an armrest with one hand before gesticulating with a tightly clenched fist, while the other hand clutched firm to the microphone. Such are his health fears, Putin had ordered each of the high-achieving children to quarantine from Covid for two weeks before the meeting in Kaliningrad. The president has been plagued with rumors of his ill health and has been...

The ships laden with grain recently leaving the ports of Ukraine might be taken to suggest that those who doubted it was possible for Ukraine and Russia to negotiate had been wrong. But with the exception of a brief meeting between U.N. Secretary General António Guterres, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelensky, there have been no recent diplomatic attempts to negotiate an end to the war. Instead, the U.S. has consistently discouraged negotiations. U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson told Zelensky not to negotiate with Russia. In his dying days as prime minister, he repeated that call...

On August 24, Belarus' authoritarian president, Alexander Lukashenko, sent a congratulatory message to Ukraine for its 31st Independence Day. Lukashenko said Belarus would "continue to stand for the preservation of harmony" and development of "mutually respectful contacts" and wished Ukrainians "peaceful skies, tolerance, courage, strength and success in restoring a decent life." It was a bizarre message from a leader who has not only made Russia's invasion of Ukraine possible but has done almost everything he can to assist Russia in its war. Under Lukashenko, Belarus has emerged as Russian President Vladimir Putin's greatest ally on the world stage and...

The United States has determined that Russia is suffering "severe manpower shortages" in its six-month-old war with Ukraine and has become more desperate in its efforts to find new troops to send to the front lines, according to a new American intelligence finding disclosed Wednesday. Russia is looking to address the shortage of troops in part by compelling soldiers wounded earlier in the war to return to combat, recruiting personnel from private security companies and even recruiting from prisons, according to a U.S. official who spoke to the AP on the condition of anonymity to discuss the downgraded intelligence finding....

Uncertainty hangs over the planned visit to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant by a team from the UN nuclear watchdog, as inspectors arrived in Ukrainian-controlled Zaporizhzhia city on Wednesday, where they are likely to spend the night before crossing the frontline. The International Atomic Energy Agency mission into Russian-controlled territory, which comprises representatives from countries deemed neutral by both sides, was reportedly intended to last four days. But on Wednesday, the Russian-occupying authorities said the IAEA would be given access for one day. They also said the mission would be expected to join the queue of civilians who cross back and...

When Viktor Zolotov, director of the Russian National Guard, briefed his boss, President Vladimir Putin, on Tuesday on the status of military operations in Ukraine, one remark in particular stood out. “I especially want to emphasize that we feel the support of the population in the liberated territories,” Zolotov told a stone-faced Putin. In reality, Russia has been struggling to rally the support of its own troops, according to internal government documents obtained exclusively by Yahoo News that detail drunken acts of insubordination six months into Putin’s invasion. The documents include an incident and homicide report by the Russian Investigative...

More than six months of war in Ukraine have led to huge losses of manpower and military equipment of the terrorist state of Russia. By the end of this year, the Russian Federation will run out of shells for artillery and armored vehicles, there are also very few guided missiles, and the state of military aviation does not allow for a full-scale air campaign. According to the Insider, due to Western sanctions, Russia cannot continue full-fledged industrial production of weapons and replenish supplies that are rapidly being depleted. It is noted that the Arsenal left in the Russian Federation since...

Do you want a recipe for disaster? Make sure you subordinate military strategy and tactics to political considerations. That is what happened to Ukraine in its long awaited counter offensive against Russian held Kherson in south Ukraine, which was launched on Sunday. The attack occurred at several points along the Kherson front. Here is a summary of the activity (note–AFU refers to Armed Forces of Ukraine, AFRF is the acronym for Armed Forces of the Russian Federation):Videos at link###Ukraine only managed to capture Sukhoy Stavok, a small village with no strategic importance. The Ukrainian operation, however, proved very costly to...

The day that Russia invaded Ukraine, Feb. 24, the legacy of Mikhail S. Gorbachev loomed over President Vladimir V. Putin’s predawn speech. “The paralysis of power and will is the first step toward complete degradation and oblivion,” Mr. Putin intoned, referring to the Soviet Union’s collapse. “We lost confidence for only one moment, but it was enough to disrupt the balance of forces in the world.” For Mr. Putin, the end of the Soviet Union was the “greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the century,” a “genuine tragedy” for millions of Russians because it left them scattered across newly formed national borders....

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Throughout his 20-plus year rule, Vladimir Putin has consolidated power through graft, intimidation, manipulation of the Russian legal system, and forcefully silencing critics. Putin’s ability to sustain subservience and loyalty to his authority is no small feat, especially in a political culture of ruthless power politics. His reputation as a master tactician abroad has also been carefully cultivated, if not exaggerated.