Free Republic

Moscow must find other ways to pay for exports or its sanctions-hit economy faces "ruination" one of President Vladimir Putin's top bankers has said, following moves by Chinese lenders to suspend transactions with Russian banks. ICBC, China CITIC Bank and most other Chinese banks have made similar moves, worried about falling foul of Western sanctions, which have been stepped up to choke off the funding for Putin's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Earlier this month, the U.S. and other countries unveiled a new wave of sanctions that targeted Russian financial institutions and entities and individuals who do business with them. "If...

Ukraine DESTROYS 3 Major Russian Oil Facilities; Putin LASHES Out | Breaking News With The Enforcer The Enforcer Jun 20, 2024 4:00 p.m. EDT 11:21 Minutes Today, we learn that Ukraine hit three oil depot/refineries in Russia overnight. Ukrainian attack drones successfully struck a Russian Lukoil oil depot in Krasnodar Krai this morning, setting the facility ablaze. We also learn that South Korea has begun considering sending arms and military aid to Ukraine in an unprecedented move. As a result of North Korea's new defensive pact, the South Koreans are becoming concerned of the possibility of war breaking out on...

The Kremlin said that any peace plan for Ukraine proposed by a possible future U.S. administration of Donald Trump would have to reflect the reality on the ground but that Russian President Vladimir Putin remained open to talks. Reuters reported on Tuesday that two key advisers to Trump have presented him with a plan to end the war in Ukraine -- if he wins the presidential election -- that involves telling Ukraine it will only get more U.S. weapons if it enters into peace talks. "The value of any plan lies in the nuances and in taking into account the...

How many Ukrainian civilians have been killed by missiles, drones and artillery fired from the Crimean peninsula? How many of those munitions were made in Iran or North Korea? It is highly doubtful that the Armed Forces of Ukraine would use its limited ATACMS munitions to attack non-military targets — particularly as at no point during the war up to now has Ukraine intentionally targeted Russian civilians. Rather, it is more likely that the Russian beachgoers were killed not by ATACMS or other US-made weapons, but by Russian military 9M330 air defense missiles fired by Moscow’s TOR-M2 anti-aircraft platform. Early...

The charges relate to missile attacks on civilian infrastructure, in particular on the energy sector. The International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for Russia's former Minister of Defence and its current army chief, in a body blow for Putin. Sergey Shoigu and Valery Gerasimov have been charged with war crimes committed in Ukraine between the period October 10, 2022 until at least March 9, 2023. The charges relate to missile attacks on civilian infrastructure, in particular on the energy sector. While acknowledging they may have been deemed as genuine army targets at the time, the collateral damage to civilians...