Free Republic

Going Entebbe on the hostage-taking dictator, right in front of his patron, Vladimir Putin. For Venezuela's fraudulently elected Nicolas Maduro, in Moscow to pay tribute to his patron Vlad Putin, yesterday was kind of embarrassing for both of them. Way under the radar, Secretary of State Marco Rubio had been busy, figuring out a way to make both of them look like weaklings, and with perfect timing, he succeeded: The U.S. welcomes the successful rescue of all hostages held by the Maduro regime at the Argentinian Embassy in Caracas. Following a precise operation, all hostages are now safely on U.S....

Vladimir Putin’s top security official has vanished during efforts to end the war in Ukraine, amid swirling health rumours and claims he could be caught up in a corruption probe. Sergei Shoigu, 69, is a Russian army general and currently the secretary of the powerful Russian Security Council. He served as defence minister for most of the war in Ukraine before being replaced one year ago, and is a very well-known member of Putin's entourage. Speculation is swirling in Moscow after he missed the Red Square parade on Friday amid claims his absence was health-related. But an explanation that he...

Russia Victory Day 2025 LIVE: Putin Leads Russia's Largest Military Parade in Moscow to commemorate 80th anniversary of Russia's famous victory over Nazi Germany in WW II. 39 world leaders at this parade including Chinese leader Xi. Very impressive..

Russia and China warned on Wednesday that Donald Trump’s proposed “Golden Iron Dome for America” missile defense system would destabilize global security and turn outer space into a new arena for armed confrontation. “The recently announced large-scale ‘Golden (Iron) Dome for America’ program is deeply destabilizing,” the two sides said in a joint statement during a visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping to Moscow. The U.S. plan “explicitly provides for a significant strengthening of the arsenal for conducting combat operations in space,” it added. -snip- Moscow and Beijing claimed nuclear states must “reject Cold War mentality” and avoid seeking military...

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro have signed a strategic partnership agreement. -snip- Since 2022, Russia has already signed strategic partnership pacts with China, North Korea and Iran. -snip- During his visit to Moscow, Maduro is also due to attend commemorative events around the 80th anniversary of the victory of the Soviet Union and its allies over Nazi Germany, including a military parade on Friday.

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA A PROCLAMATION Today, our Nation proudly commemorates the 80th anniversary of the Allied Powers’ triumph over national socialism and fascism, and the end of World War II in Europe — one of the most epic victories for forces of freedom in the history of the world. On this Victory Day for World War II, we celebrate the unmatched might, strength, and power of the American Armed Forces, and we commit to protecting our sacred birthright of liberty against all threats, foreign and domestic. In the wake of the December 7, 1941...

President Donald Trump on Monday said he held a "productive" call with Turkish President Recep Erdogan on a range of topics, including the war between Russia and Ukraine. Trump shared details of the call in a post on his TRUTH Social platform. "I just had a very good and productive telephone conversation with the President of Turkey, Recep Erdoğan, concerning many subjects, including the War with Russia/Ukraine, all things Syria, Gaza, and more," Trump wrote. The president added that he is looking forward to working with Erdogan to end the "ridiculous, but deadly" Russia-Ukraine war.

Ukraine said it hit a drone command unit in the Kursk region, amid reports of fresh attempts to cross into Russia. Sunday's attack on the unit was located near the Russian village of Tyotkino, according to the Ukrainian general staff. Multiple Russian military bloggers also reported that Ukrainian forces had attempted to cross into the village, posting images - as yet unverified by the BBC - of vehicles breaking through tank traps on the border. The reports come after Moscow claimed in April to have regained control of the entire region, nine months after a Ukrainian forces launched a surprise...

Russia has reported that it repelled a drone attack on Moscow as the capital city prepares to host a major military parade with foreign leaders in attendance. Russia’s air defence systems intercepted “four drones flying towards Moscow”, Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said on Monday. The attack appears intended to unsettle Moscow’s preparations for events marking the end of the Great Patriotic War, commonly known as World War II elsewhere, on May 9. -snip- The Kremlin has branded Putin’s declaration of a three-day unilateral ceasefire a humanitarian gesture. Military operations will be paused during the truce, according to Russian authorities, as world...

"The Victory Day parade will not be held in Sevastopol," said Governor of the city of federal importance Sevastopol Mikhail Razvozhayev, APA’s Russia bureau reports. According to him, the decision was made due to security concerns.

DICTATOR Vladimir Putin has showed off his private chapel and his favourite drink in a bizarre tour of his Kremlin apartment. The Russian tyrant gave the public a glimpse into his home in an interview marking the 25th anniversary of his first inauguration as president. The bizarre footage shows Putin giving his favourite interviewer, Pavel Zarubin, a tour of the apartment while answering his questions. When asked about his grandchildren from daughters Maria, 39, and Katerina, 37, Putin says they occasionally visit him unexpectedly in his austere apartment. He said: “They can, they can. “But still everyone understands that I...

Two European allies of Russian President Vladimir Putin have fallen ill, according to reports, days before they were set to attend a Victory Day parade in Moscow. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico have had their trips to Russia questioned amid reported health scares.

Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, said on Saturday that President Donald Trump's assertion that the U.S. had done more than any other country to win World War Two was "pretentious nonsense". Trump posted on social network Truth Social late on Thursday that "nobody was close to us in terms of strength, bravery, or military brilliance" in both world wars, and that "we did more than any other country, by far, in producing a victorious result in World War II." -snip- "Trump recently announced that the U.S. made the biggest contribution to victory in World War Two and...

Ukraine's parliament will hold a vote on May 8 to ratify a minerals deal signed with the United States earlier this week, a lawmaker said on Friday, while the prime minister suggested the agreement will help Kyiv with supplies of air defence systems. Ukraine and the U.S. signed a deal on Wednesday that will give the United States preferential access to new investments in extraction of Ukraine's natural resources, and fund investment in Ukraine's reconstruction. According to the deal, new military aid, if provided by Washington to Kyiv, could be scored as the U.S. contribution to the joint fund being...

President Donald Trump late Thursday announced plans to designate May 8 as World War II "Victory Day" in the United States, which coincides with the "Victory in Europe Day" that has been celebrated in most of Europe since the Germans surrendered in 1945. -snip- "We won both Wars, nobody was close to us in terms of strength, bravery, or military brilliance, but we never celebrate anything," the president wrote. "That’s because we don’t have leaders anymore, that know how to do so! We are going to start celebrating our victories again!"

US President Donald Trump on May 1 expressed his intent to rename two US holidays to “Victory Day” in his latest attempt to alter the country’s nomenclature. “I am hereby renaming May 8 as Victory Day for World War II and November 11 as Victory Day for World War I,” he wrote on his Truth Social platform. -snip- “Many of our allies and friends are celebrating May 8 as Victory Day, but we did more than any other country, by far, in producing a victorious result on World War II,” Mr Trump’s post said. - snip- “We won both wars,...

MAD Vladimir Putin has been forced to pad out his pathetic parades with North Korean cannon fodder while Russian troops are being massacred on the frontline. Amongst the pomp, propaganda and weaponry, North Korean troops are to march through Moscow's Victory Day parade for the first time, according to insiders. -snip- Dozens of Putin's North Korean cannon fodder are to join the parade in May as the mad dictator desperately attempts to show a substantial military - despite the total casualties of Russian troops standing at over 771,000. Russian sources revealed news of North Korea's participation in the parade to...

Chinese President Xi Jinping has accepted Russia's invitation to attend the commemorations of the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two, TASS state news agency reported on Monday. "Chinese President Xi Jinping has accepted an invitation to take part in the celebrations on May 9 in Moscow on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War," TASS cited Russian ambassador to China, Igor Morgulov, as telling Russian state television.

Russia on Thursday wrapped itself in patriotic pageantry for Victory Day, as President Vladimir Putin celebrated the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II by hailing his forces fighting in Ukraine and blasting the West for fueling conflicts around the world. Even though few veterans of what Russia calls the Great Patriotic War are still alive 79 years after Berlin fell to the Red Army, the victory remains the most important and widely revered symbol of Russia’s prowess and a key element of national identity. Even though few veterans of what Russia calls the Great Patriotic War are still...

For the second year in a row, a lone Soviet-era tank rolled across Moscow's Red Square during Russia's Victory Day parade, prompting social media users to mock President Vladimir Putin's military's procession on a day which is traditionally used to display the country's might. A single T-34 tank participated in the parade in Moscow to mark May 9, or Victory Day, which is the annual commemoration of Nazi Germany's defeat during World War II. Like last year, this year's procession was notably muted in contrast to previous events amid Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine, during which both sides have suffered...