Free Republic

The artillery duel in Ukraine’s east shows no signs of slowing as troops gobble through thousands of 155mm rounds every single day. A senior defense official told reporters in a background briefing on Friday that Ukrainian forces are firing some 3,000 155mm shells per day at Russian forces. The revelation came amid questioning on the latest tranche of weapons and ammunition being sent to Ukraine, including, for the first time 1,000 guided 155mm 'smart' shells. The official said despite the high usage rate, Ukrainian forces still have “substantial stores” of 155mm rounds and are far from running out with more...

Ukraine plans a "million-strong army" equipped with Nato weapons to retake the south of the country from occupying Russians, the defence minister says. Retaking the areas around the Black Sea coast was vital to the country's economy, Oleksii Reznikov said. However, the comments are more of a rallying cry than a concrete plan, says the BBC's Joe Inwood in Kyiv.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stormed off and headed home early after being snubbed by other diplomats at the G20 summit — who refused to take a group photo with him over his nation’s invasion of Ukraine. Foreign ministers who gathered in Bali, Indonesia, this week, did not pose for a traditional “family”-style group photo, after several of them reportedly refused to be pictured with Vladimir Putin’s chief envoy. The Japanese news agency Kyodo reported that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken led the photo-op boycott.

Puffy-faced Vladimir Putin is facing more health issues after he was spotted struggling to stay awake. The deranged dictator could barely hold his head up during a meeting with his Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu on Tuesday. He is rumoured to have thyroid cancer and health experts say that drugs used to treat the condition could explain the despot’s puffy face. The 69-year-old is known for working hard to maintain a masculine, hardman appearance – but his steady decline has unfolded in front of the world’s media. He mumbled a half-hearted congratulations to his soldiers before making the deluded claim they...

VLADIMIR Putin health fears have escalated after the tyrant appeared to fall asleep during a meeting at the Kremlin with his defence minister. The Russian leader appeared bloated and is rumoured to be undergoing debilitating cancer treatment. He was seen slumped over and bleary-eyed in the incredible footage - which mysteriously cut away as he appeared to drift off. Putin, 69, is seen in the Kremlin hunched over his desk as he unenthusiastically congratulates his troops on "liberating" the eastern Ukrainian region of Luhansk. Sitting in a staged televised meeting with Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu, a worn-out Putin tells his...

VIDEO Respect and thanks to America This is a war of darkness against light, not a conflict. Ukraine is on the side of light and truth. Russia lies and promotes goals of Communism. Scripture tells us to call black black and white white. Russia is an aggressor that created a propaganda system of its own lies, slandered the Ukrainians, and treacherously attacked a peaceful state. Ukraine is defending its national territory. Thousands of civilians and soldiers are dying from the aggressive actions of Russia. Please understand for us praying for peace between Ukraine and Russia is like: - pray for...

Kyiv Pride was never supposed to be held outside of Ukraine's capital, but among the rainbow flags at Warsaw Pride in neighboring Poland, Ukraine's ubiquitous blue and yellow stood out. "I'm here because I can't go to Pride in Ukraine," one participant said. "We're all people regardless of who you love." Central Europe's biggest Pride march kept a focus on Ukraine's fight against Russia, as well as its LGBTQ+ community's fight for equal rights. ...

Alexander Lukashenko said on Saturday that if Belarus were to come under “attack”, its army would respond immediately. The West has speculated over the level of involvement of Belarus in Russia’s ongoing “special military operation” in Ukraine since late February. Lukashenko said his state stood fully behind Russia in its invasion as part of its commitment to a “union state” with Moscow. But he has previously suggested his own armed forces will not themselves enter Ukraine, pointing to Minsk’s potential role of helping to create a peace deal instead. The Belarusian President was, however, clear that his country would not...