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In a major shakeup, President Vladimir Putin has nominated former First Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov to replace longtime Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, the upper-house Federation Council announced Sunday night.
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Donald Trump tipped to be Vladimir Putin’s secret weapon in next step to undermine NATO
Russia is reportedly seeking to install “their man in the White House” as part of a strategy to weaken NATO amidst concerns of a potential World War 3.
The Kremlin is said to be cultivating various methods to strike at Europe, from supporting pro-Russian motorcycle gangs to deploying GPS jamming techniques.
With the conflict in Ukraine reviving large-scale warfare on the European continent for the first time since World War 2, questions are being raised about NATO’s vulnerabilities.
Keir Giles, an author and researcher with expertise on Russia, analysed Moscow’s potential strategies against NATO as he noted the re-election of Donald Trump would significantly benefit Russia’s efforts in Ukraine.
Giles levelled significant criticism at Trump and his continuous support for Russia. European leaders have also called out Trump for his “anti-Ukrainian sentiment” and “pro-Russian attitude,” which includes delaying the bill providing military aid to Ukraine as it passed through Congress.
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There have been suggestions that Trump might be working on behalf of Russia, although the former president has refuted these claims.
In his analysis, Giles stated: “Russia doesn’t have to strike the U.S. They already have. If they get their man reelected in November they don’t need to strike the US because he’ll be working very hard on their behalf from inside the White House.
“And the very last thing Russia wants is an open confrontation with a much more powerful adversary. Which is what you’d get if there was a direct and overt strike on the U.S. As opposed to deniable political warfare which is what we have seen until now.”
Further elaborating, he told The Mirror: “The key strength of NATO as it always has been, is its key weakness as well. That is the requirement for unity and the ease with which an individual ally could torpedo a collective response.
“What people are worried about is that could be the U.S., the lynchpin of NATO and the military capability that underpins everything. If Russia wins the U.S. presidential election, then Russia wins the war in Ukraine and all kinds of options are open.”
Giles issued a stern warning that Trump’s reelection could render NATO “pointless”. He explained: “The U.S. doesn’t need to pull out of NATO for Trump to neutralise the whole point of the alliance.
“Because all that a national leader has to do is tell his troops not to show up and that’s it. NATO becomes pointless. It doesn’t require a formal withdrawal from NATO just a failure to cooperate is sufficient to hand Russia a win. It could be the U.S. or any other country in a similar position.”
NATO, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, comprises 32 member states, including 30 from Europe and two from North America. It operates on a principle of collective defense, whereby its members pledge mutual defense in response to an attack by any external party.
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MOSCOW, May 9 (Reuters) – Russian President Vladimir Putin accused the West on Thursday of risking a global conflict and said no one would be allowed to threaten the world’s biggest nuclear power as Russia marked the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two.
As Russian troops advance against Ukraine’s Western-backed forces, Putin accused “arrogant” Western elites of forgetting the decisive role played by the Soviet Union in defeating Nazi Germany, and of stoking conflicts across the world.
“We know what the exorbitance of such ambitions leads to. Russia will do everything to prevent a global clash,” Putin said on Red Square after Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu reviewed troops lined up in a rare May blizzard.
“But at the same time, we will not allow anyone to threaten us. Our strategic forces are always in a state of combat readiness.”
Putin, who sent his army into Ukraine in 2022, casts the war as part of a struggle with the West, which he says humiliated Russia after the Berlin Wall fell in 1989 by encroaching on what he considers Moscow’s sphere of influence.
Ukraine and the West say Putin is engaged in an imperial-style land grab. They have vowed to defeat Russia, which currently controls about 18% of Ukraine, including Crimea, and parts of four regions in eastern Ukraine. Russia says the lands, once part of the Russian empire, are now again part of Russia.
The Soviet Union lost 27 million people in World War Two, including many millions in Ukraine, but eventually pushed Nazi forces back to Berlin, where Hitler committed suicide and the red Soviet Victory Banner was raised over the Reichstag in 1945.
“In the West, they would like to forget the lessons of the Second World War,” Putin said, adding that Russia honoured all the allies involved in the defeat of Nazi Germany. He mentioned the Chinese people’s fight against Japanese militarism.
Item 1 of 21 Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers a speech during a military parade on Victory Day, which marks the 79th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two, in Red Square in Moscow, Russia, May 9, 2024. Sputnik/Mikhail Klimentyev/Pool via REUTERS
[1/21]Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers a speech during a military parade on Victory Day, which marks the 79th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two, in Red Square in Moscow, Russia, May 9, 2024. Sputnik/Mikhail Klimentyev/Pool via REUTERS Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab
“But we remember that the fate of mankind was decided in the grand battles near Moscow and Leningrad, Rzhev, Stalingrad, Kursk and Kharkiv, near Minsk, Smolensk and Kyiv, in heavy, bloody battles from Murmansk to the Caucasus and Crimea.”
Nazi Germany’s unconditional surrender came into force at 11:01 p.m. on May 8, 1945, marked as “Victory in Europe Day” by France, Britain and the United States. In Moscow it was already May 9, which became the Soviet Union’s “Victory Day” in what Russians call the Great Patriotic War of 1941-45.
In a much pared-down parade indicating the strains of war, Russia showed off just one T-34 tank. Fighters flew past streaming the Russian tricolour.
The parade also featured Russia’s Yars intercontinental strategic missile which a TV announcer said has “a guaranteed capability to strike a target on any point of the globe”
There were no leaders from the West.
Present were the leaders of Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Cuba, Laos and Guinea-Bissau.
Russian officials warn that the Ukraine war is entering the most dangerous phase to date – Putin has repeatedly warned of the risk of a much broader war involving the world’s biggest nuclear powers.
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Reporting by Reuters in Moscow and London; editing by Mark Trevelyan
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As Moscow bureau chief, Guy runs coverage of Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States. Before Moscow, Guy ran Brexit coverage as London bureau chief (2012-2022). On the night of Brexit, his team delivered one of Reuters historic wins – reporting news of Brexit first to the world and the financial markets. Guy graduated from the London School of Economics and started his career as an intern at Bloomberg. He has spent over 14 years covering the former Soviet Union. He speaks fluent Russian.
1. Israeli forces mass tanks close to built-up areas of Rafah, Hamas militants and residents said after U.S. President Biden vowed to withhold weapons from Israel if its forces launch a major invasion of the city.
2. Russian President Vladimir Putin accused the West of risking a global conflict and said no one would be allowed to threaten the world’s biggest nuclear power as Russia marks the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two.
3. The U.S. overtook China as Germany’s top trading partner in the first quarter of this year according to Reuters’ calculations based on official data from the German statistics office.
4. Vietnam’s foreign affairs ministry has annoyed the European Union by postponing a meeting next week with the EU’s top official on Russian sanctions ahead of a possible visit to Hanoi by President Putin.
5. War upends Ukraine’s economy as businesses adapt to the conflict with Russia and search out opportunities alongside the formidable challenges.
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US, Canada and Britain want EU to go further and fully seize Russian central bank assets. As Henry Ridgwell reports, allies in Washington want the EU to go much further
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Президент России Владимир Путин выступил на приёме от имени Президента России в честь глав государств, приглашённых на торжественные мероприятия по случаю празднования 79-й годовщины Победы в Великой Отечественной войне 1941–1945 годов.
Среди гостей главы некоторых стран СНГ – президент Белоруссии Александр Лукашенко, президент Казахстана Касым-Жомарт Токаев, президент Кыргызстана Садыр Жапаров, президент Таджикистана Эмомали Рахмона, президент Туркменистана Сердар Бердымухамедов, президент Узбекистана Шавкат Мирзиеев. А также и президент Кубы Мигель Диас-Канель Бермудес, президент Лаоса Тхонглун Сисулит и президент Гвинеи-Бисау Умару Сисоку Эмбало.
Russian President Vladimir Putin accused the West on Thursday of risking a global conflict and said no one would be allowed to threaten the world’s biggest nuclear power as Russia marked the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two.
#russia #ukraine #russiaukrainewar
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Russia-Ukraine war live: Have a look at the new generations of weapons in which Russia says it is investing heavily, including images of hypersonic missiles that Moscow claims to have used in Ukraine, as well as state-of-the-art armored vehicles and aircraft that have not been confirmed for use on the Ukrainian battlefield.
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Palestinian militant group Hamas said on Wednesday it was unwilling to make more concessions to Israel in negotiations over a ceasefire for Gaza, although talks were still under way in Cairo aimed at pausing Israel’s seven-month-old offensive.
#israel #hamas #israelhamaswar
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Russian missiles and drones struck nearly a dozen Ukrainian energy infrastructure facilities on Wednesday, causing serious damage at three Soviet-era thermal power plants and blackouts in multiple regions, officials said.
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President Biden is threatening to cut off weapons if Israel invades Rafah, sparking a fiery response from Senator Lindsey Graham who criticizes the withholding of support as endangering Israel’s existence amidst regional threats. Joe Scarborough reacts to his latest political gesturing: “Does he really think we’re that stupid? They were the ones holding up support for Israel for months, and, now, he’s doing the Jimmy Swaggart routine, crying and being self-righteous? We know what happened! Come on, Lindsey!”
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‘Does he really think we’re that stupid?’: Joe reacts to Lindsey Graham’s latest political gesturing
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Thousands of Palestinians, including women and children, migrated from the neighborhoods in the east of Rafah and reaches the coastal side of the city of Deir al-Balah.
Ashraf Amra/Anadolu via Getty Images
Israel has seized control of the Rafah border crossing. The consequences could be devastating for civilians.
Since the beginning of Israel’s war in Gaza, Palestinians have been pushed farther and farther south. At least 1.3 million people have now been squeezed into Rafah, a small area bordering Egypt. More than half of those people fled fighting in other parts of Gaza.
On Monday, Israeli forces dropped leaflets from the sky in Rafah instructing people to seek refuge in an “expanded humanitarian area” north and northwest of the city. The U.N. says now more than 75% of the Gaza Strip is under evacuation orders.
Less than 24 hours later, Israeli tanks rolled into the eastern part of Rafah, seizing control of the border crossing between Egypt and Gaza.
Israeli airstrikes had already been pounding Rafah for weeks, killing hundreds since late March — most of them women and children, according to hospital records.
No aid can pass through the crossing, and one of the area’s main medical centers has shut down. Jens Laerke, a spokesperson for the U.N. humanitarian office, warned that if the crossing stays closed for long, “it would be a very effective way of putting the humanitarian operation in its grave.”
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The Israeli military has designated an area northwest of the evacuation zone in Rafah as an “expanded humanitarian zone.”
But to many Palestinians, that promise of safety means nothing.
NPR spoke with several people fleeing from violence in Gaza, including Fatima Balah, an elderly woman who walks with a cane. “We’ve seen nothing but suffering,” she said.
AbdAlwahab Hamad works for a community-development organization in Gaza. He spoke with NPR from Rafah, saying:
“The concept of a safe-designated area has become elusive for the people of Gaza. It’s an illusion because it has been shattered. We speak about 1.3 million Palestinians living in a place smaller than Heathrow airport. [Rafah] is the last remaining sanctuary in Gaza, the last refuge. And by the way, there is no refuge.”
While the Israeli military says troops are not advancing towards the main city of Rafah in this stage of operations, there’s concern the incursion will expand.
According to James Smith, an emergency doctor in Rafah, not everyone can leave the city. People who are very ill or wounded are struggling to find treatment as the city’s health system collapses.
Several smaller hospitals in the area have begun evacuating patients “because they’re fearful of what the Israeli military might do in or around those health facilities,” Smith said.
U.S. officials have repeatedly urged Israel to not invade Rafah. In a March interview with MSNBC, President Biden has even warned doing so would cross a “red line.”
Yet officials have not clarified the contours of that line. The administration maintains Israel’s operation in Rafah so far has not crossed that line – but the latest developments in the war could lead to a tipping point in U.S. support.
The Biden administration paused a shipment of more than 3,000 bombs to Israel last week because of concerns they could be used on Rafah. A senior administration official confirmed the pause, speaking to NPR on condition of anonymity. The administration is also reviewing whether to hold back future arms shipments, the official said.
Israeli government spokesperson Avi Hyman said the operation “is the beginning of our mission to take out the last four Hamas brigades in Rafah. You should be in no doubt about that whatsoever.”
To hear firsthand about the civilian impact of Israel’s operation in Rafah, listen to the full episode by tapping the play button at the top of the page.
This episode was produced by Jordan Marie Smith, Linah Mohammad and Connor Donevan. It was edited by Courtney Dorning and James Hider. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun.
UK expels Russian military officer and shuts diplomatic properties; Ukraine says its drone output matches Russia. What we know on day 806
The EU has reached a deal to arm Ukraine using seized profits from Russia’s frozen assets. EU senior diplomats meeting on Wednesday agreed on using the €4.4bn windfall profits, smoothing over a dispute about taxation and management costs in Belgium where most of the frozen assets are held.
A Ukrainian drone attack started a fire and damaged an oil refinery in Russia’s Krasnodar region, the area’s crisis administration said on Thursday. Several oil tanks were damaged at the refinery near the village of Yurovka, the administration said.
Officials from Belgorod, close to the border inside Russia, said there were eight people injured including a girl, 11, after what was variously described on Telegram channels as a missile attack or shelling by Ukrainian forces. Vyacheslav Gladkov, the governor of the Belgorod region, said on Telegram that apartments and vehicles were damaged. Ukraine has previously targeted Belgorod which has served as a base of operations and staging post for Russia’s military and security forces.
Rajeev Syal writes that an “undeclared” Russian military intelligence officer, named as Col Maxim Elovik, will be expelled from the UK. James Cleverly, the British home secretary, also announced the closure of several Russian diplomatic premises in retaliation for “malign activity” across Britain and Europe. The Russian properties that have had diplomatic status removed include Seacox Heath in Ticehurst, East Sussex, and the Russian embassy’s trade and defence section in Highgate, north London.
The measures come after a suspected arson attack on a Ukrainian-linked business in east London which authorities suspect was organised by the Kremlin, and over which charges have been laid. Russia has denied involvement. In a separate case, six Bulgarian nationals have been charged with conspiring to commit espionage on behalf of Russia in the UK.
Russian missiles and drones struck nearly a dozen Ukrainian energy infrastructure facilities on Wednesday, causing serious damage at three thermal power plants and blackouts in multiple regions, officials said. Ukraine’s air force said it shot down 39 of 55 missiles and 20 of 21 drones. Two people were injured in the Kyiv region and one was hurt in the Kirovohrad region, said the interior minister, Ihor Klymenko. National power grid operator Ukrenergo said it was forced to introduce electricity cuts in nine regions and expanded them nationwide for businesses during the peak evening hours of Wednesday.
Volodymyr Zelenskiy noted the attacks were launched on the day Ukraine marks the end of the second world war. Ukraine’s president singled out what he said was the west’s limited progress in curbing energy revenue to Vladimir Putin’s regime. Fighting nazism back then, he said, was “when humanity unites, opposes Hitler, instead of buying his oil and coming to his inauguration”.
Ukraine’s prime minister, Denys Shmyhal, estimated that more than 800 heating facilities had been damaged and up to 8GW of power generation lost so far, adding the government needed $1bn to fund repair work.
Ukraine said it was producing the same number of deep strike drones as Russia, claiming to have reached parity on a key type of weapon.
Russian forces have taken over the village of Kyslivka in Ukraine’s Kharkiv region and the village of Novokalynove in the Donetsk region, Russia’s defence ministry said.
Ukraine’s parliament has passed a bill allowing mobilisation of some categories of convicts but not those convicted of premeditated murder, rape, sexual violence, and crimes against national security.
Germany’s chancellor, Olaf Scholz, stressed Berlin’s support for a Ukraine peace summit to be held in Switzerland in mid-June during a phone call with Volodymyr Zelenskiy, the Ukrainian president, a government spokesperson in Berlin said. “They agreed to work towards the broadest possible global participation,” Reuters reported from a statement.
The Byzantine-era cathedral’s inauguration as a working mosque came just days before a landmark visit to Turkey by Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, which is due to kick off on May 13.
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