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The Director of Russia’s National Guard has begun a campaign to reassure Russian President Vladimir Putin that Ukrainians are supportive of Russia seizing territory in Ukraine when the reality couldn’t be further off. “I would like to emphasize that we can feel that the population of the liberated areas is supporting us. They realize that we are defending their right to a peaceful life and their children’s happiness,” the director, Viktor Zolotov, told Putin, according to the Kremlin. In a video of the exchange, Putin looks visibly troubled and concerned, gripping the table, while Zolotov shares his thoughts.

oreign states are seeking to uproot Western society through sophisticated cyberattacks on members of the public. The solution is to initiate a collective cyber-defense system; if we do not protect our data, then foreign governments will continue to chip away at our way of life, until all we are left with is the scattered remains of our freedom. As hard as it might be to believe, even the nosiest members of the Chinese government don't care that you just got back from Cancun or that you have a dog named Buddy—regardless of how unquestionably adorable you might think he is....

At the outset of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, most experts expected that Kyiv would fall quickly. Ukrainian forces were fighting against a military that was bigger and better armed. Russia’s troops had more combat experience and funding. The question was not if Moscow’s forces would depose the Ukrainian government but when regime change would happen. Of course, Kyiv didn’t fall. Instead, the Ukrainian military stopped Russia’s assault on the capital and forced a retreat. Russia downsized its initial mission from wholesale conquest, and the war now mostly consists of grinding offensives and counteroffensives in Ukraine’s east and south. The question...

Mikhail Gorbachev, who ended the Cold War without bloodshed but failed to prevent the collapse of the Soviet Union, has died at the age of 92, Russian news agencies cited hospital officials as saying on Tuesday.

Taiwan - Taiwanese soldiers have fired live ammunition at a Chinese drone that had intruded over one of Taiwan's outer islands for the first time, on Tuesday, August 30th. Taiwan had warned on Sunday, August 28th that it would shoot down Chinese drones that did not heed their warnings. Taiwan had warned on August 28th (Sunday) that it would shoot down Chinese drones that did not heed their warnings. The Army's Kinmen Defense Command (KDC) stated on Tuesday that at 4:23 pm, three groups of three "civilian" drones had been detected flying above Dadan Island, Erdan Island, and Shi Islet...

Warthog Defense members are sharing stories, insider tips, news from the front lines, and unique slices of military life including the tough stuff of war.

Will the Su-75 “Checkmate” Reach Serial Production? – Earlier this month, it was reported that Russia’s highly-touted Su-75 “Checkmate” won’t make its maiden flight until at least some time in 2024 at the very earliest. However, the United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) – a division of the state-owned military-tech conglomerate Rostec – also announced that it would build four prototypes of the lightweight single-engine fighter in the coming months, with a goal to launch Checkmate serial production just three years later. “We use advanced super-computer technologies in the Checkmate project, which enables us to cut substantially the timeframe of building the...

This list only includes destroyed vehicles and equipment of which photo or videographic evidence is available. Therefore, the amount of equipment destroyed is significantly higher than recorded here. Small arms, ATGMs, MANPADS, loitering munitions, drones used as unmanned bait, civilian vehicles, trailers and derelict equipment are not included in this list. All possible effort has gone into avoiding duplicate entries and discerning the status of equipment between captured or abandoned. Many of the entries listed as 'abandoned' will likely end up captured or destroyed. Similarly, some of the captured equipment might be destroyed if it can't be recovered. When the...

A former deputy who switched allegiance from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for the occupying Russian forces in the southern region of Kherson has been shot dead, Russian investigators said Monday. Alexei Kovalev, "the deputy head of the military and civil administration in the Kherson region was killed by bullets," the investigators said on Telegram. The attack took place in his home on Sunday, they said, adding a young woman who lived with him was also a victim. They did not give any further details. In the past months, several Ukrainian officials named by Russian forces in occupied territory have been...

Ukraine may be outgunned but in the latest sign it is not yet outfoxed, a fleet of decoys resembling advanced U.S. rocket systems has tricked Russian forces into wasting expensive long-range cruise missiles on dummy targets, according to interviews with senior U.S. and Ukrainian officials and photographs of the replicas reviewed by The Washington Post. The Ukrainian decoys are made out of wood but can be indistinguishable from an artillery battery through the lens of Russian drones, which transmit their locations to naval cruise missile carriers in the Black Sea. “When the UAVs see the battery, it’s like a VIP...

Ukrainians are not permitted to accept any humanitarian relief from Russian agencies. Civilians in a war zone could face life imprisonment for accepting relief, including food. Ministry of Internal Affairs Alyona Matveeva said each case would be analyzed separately. “For example, if a person called to support the military of the Russian Federation or provided some information, took humanitarian aid (from the Russians – ed.) and distributed it – this is one punishment, if it is about some more serious actions of a person, for example, when a person’s collaborative activity had such an impact that someone died because of...

Russia’s Black Sea Fleet was once considered central to Vladimir Putin’s attempted conquest of Ukraine. But that fleet and its accompanying air wing have been battered by innovative Ukrainian missile and drone attacks, turning the once-feared force into something of an afterthought in Europe’s largest war in seven decades. When Putin launched his all-out invasion of Ukraine in February, the Crimea-based fleet was at the center of the action, launching Kalibr cruise missiles at military and civilian targets deep into the country, blocking access to the country’s ports, and threatening an amphibious landing on Odesa. Since those early days, however,...

Russian cargo planes left Tehran 10 days ago with UAVs, some of which have already malfunctioned, U.S. and allied officials say Russian cargo planes have quietly picked up the first of scores of Iranian-made combat drones for use against Ukraine, U.S. officials said, in a move that underscores deepening ties between Moscow and Tehran while also highlighting Russia’s struggles to supply its overstretched military. But while the weapons could provide a significant boost for Russia’s war effort against Ukraine, the transfer has been marred by technical problems, security officials from the United States and an allied government said in interviews....

The Armed Forces of Ukraine on the evening of August 29 hit Russian troops in the temporarily occupied Novaya Kakhovka in the Kherson region. Previously, a warehouse with Russian ammunition was destroyed. The corresponding videos were published by Telegram channels. The footage shows a strong fire and detonation sounds (to see, scroll to the end of the page). "New Kakhovka chaos, explodes for 15 minutes. previously hit the BC, it detonates," wrote on the Channel "Hu*Viy Kherson". Strong fire at the arrival site In social networks, it is also reported that the Ukrainian military struck a local yacht club. The...

China's economic slowdown has left it with a surplus of natural gas that it is re-selling to energy-strapped Europe, according to a report. Boosted by cargoes from China, Europe's imports of liquefied natural gas jumped 60% year-on-year in the first half of 2002, according to a Nikkei report citing data from research firm Kpler. China's economy has slowed sharply in 2022 as Beijing implemented a strict zero-COVID policy and as a crisis grips the country's highly indebted property sector. Economists think it is likely to fall well short of the government's aim of 5.5% growth. The economic slowdown has left...

A must-watch lecture! Energy Markets and war briefing: With Dr. Dan Fine, T. Greg Merrion and John Byrom with special emphasis on the Resource war between Russia, Ukraine, and Europe.

Regular session of the Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church was held in Moscow on August 25, presided by Patriarch Kirill. "We are meeting at a time when, as you know, all is not quiet in the expanses of Holy Russia. Many people are suffering today, really suffering, but this suffering did not begin now, as some claim, but has continued for the past eight years," said the Patriarch Kirill in his opening address. - A great many people in Donbass have indeed been subjected to tremendous distress. And wherever justice is violated, there is always resistance to injustice, and...

Russian Version of a Turkey ShootSaker version of the story "The Defense Ministry called the losses of the Ukrainian Armed Forces during the failed offensive of Ukraine near Kherson Ukrainian troops attempted an offensive in the Mykolaiv and Kherson regions, as a result, the AFU units suffered heavy losses, the Russian Defense Ministry told reporters. “Today, during the day, on the direct instructions of Zelensky, Ukrainian troops attempted an offensive in the Mykolaiv and Kherson regions in three directions. As a result of the active defense of the grouping of Russian troops, the AFU units suffered heavy losses,” TASS reports....

Russians citizens are frantically trying to flee Belgorod after multiple airstrikes rocked the city with giant fireballs seen high in the sky. Belgorod is 25 miles from the Ukrainian border and long queues could be seen where hundreds of Russian citizens some with suitcases were trying to flee on trains at the railway station. Vladimir Putin has been called “an idiot” and the history books will remember him for “the demise of Russia.” “The population is frantically trying to flee to inland Russia after multiple reported strikes. “Putin is an idiot. History books will place the responsibility for the demise...

The Russian defense industry has some struggles ahead. Despite claims of self-sufficiency, it turns out that Russian industry needs Western components and Western support. One of the most autarkic industries in one of the world’s most autarkic economies is suffering from supply shortages because of sanctions. Does this mean that autarky in the defense sphere becomes impossible? If so, what does that mean for the pursuit of security for modern states? Theoretically, states should carefully guard the chains that supply their defense industrial bases with goods, as a loss of access to global markets (or even to specific suppliers) could...