Strange States: Kaliningrad
The Russian Spear In NATO’s Side
(Scroll down for news updates)
Given the ongoing economic, political & military turmoil throughout the West following Moscow’s three year “Special Military Operation” in Ukraine (that culminated in the Donetsk, Lugansk, Zaporozhye & Kherson regions voting to unify with the Russian Federation, the Biden Administration sending $187+ billion in aid, Sweden & Finland joining NATO & the reelection of President Trump), it might be wise to become reacquainted with Russia’s strategic exclave in the heart of Europe.
When Poland and Lithuania threatened to close the Suwalki Corridor connecting Kaliningrad to Belarus, WW III seemed likely, but Germany blinked with its soldiers stationed nearby. After the sabotage of the Nord Stream 2 pipelines, the 2nd attack on Crimea’s Kerch Bridge, drone & missile attacks against Moscow, the sabotage of the Kakhovka dam, the Prighozin coup attempt, the Crocus City Hall massacre, the ATACAMS attack on a Sevastopol beach, the Kursk incursion, Biden’s authorization for long-range missile strikes into Russia, Putin’s ballistic Oreshnik missile response & Trump’s temporary halt of US munitions & intelligence aid, the Ukraine conflict will become more existential with Kaliningrad playing a central roll.
Two hundred miles west of the Russian border, surrounded by European Union nations Poland and Lithuania, is the strange state of Kaliningrad. Founded in 1255 by Teutonic Knights as Königsberg, it was part of the mercantile Hanseatic confederation and capital of East Prussia for almost 700 years. During the unification of Germany in 1871 it was incorporated into the German Empire, but became an exclave of Weimar Germany at the Treaty of Versailles when the Polish Republic was re-established after WWI. The Nazi invasion of Poland in 1939 reunified it with the motherland, but at the 1945 Treaty of Potsdam, Truman, Churchill and Stalin agreed to cede the territory to the Soviet Union as a spoil of WWII.
In 1944, 450,000 of its citizens departed the port of Baltiysk for Germany as the Red Army prepared to capture Königsberg during the Evacuation of East Prussia, while the 300,000 Germans that remained died from either Royal Air Force bombing of the city, mistreatment by Red Army forces, or from cold, hunger and disease. During the battle of Königsberg the only land-based sinking of a U-boat in WWII (U-78) occurred at the German submarine training facility at Baltiysk, the port where a majority of its citizens embarked for the motherland.
Since Königsberg’s reunification with Nazi Germany was partially responsible for starting WWII, it couldn’t realistically be returned following the war despite its Teutonic roots. The West never recognized the Soviet annexation of the Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia & Lithuania, but Königsberg/Kaliningrad was always an outlier. It was named after Bolshevik Mikhail Kalinin, the head of the Soviet state from 1919-1946. By 1948 the 100,000 remaining Germans were forced out and 400,000 Soviet citizens were moved in.
The surrounding countries at the time were either part of the Soviet Union (the aforementioned Baltic countries) or occupied by its troops (Poland), so Kaliningrad was just another Soviet oblast (province). When the Soviet Union collapsed and Poland and Lithuania declared Independence in 1989 and 1990 respectively, Kaliningrad became an exclave of the Russian Federation. Only 86 square miles in area, Kaliningrad is home today to more than 900,000 Russian citizens. Adding to its isolation from mother Russia, Poland joined NATO in 1999 with the Baltic states following in 2004.
With NATO members Poland and Romania stationing Aegis Ashore ballistic missile interceptor batteries in their countries, the Russians have countered by building up defenses in Kaliningrad, including S-400 batteries and Iskander ballistic (nuclear) missile launchers. The Russians believe the “defensive” Aegis Ashore system can be reconfigured as an offensive weapon and their military deployments in Kaliningrad are a “direct response to the steps taken by NATO.”
“There will be more Iskanders in the exclave, a move that stems from a decision of the general command to boost capabilities of rocket brigades that are already in possession of such systems. Russia plans to enlarge its Iskander brigades from 12 to 16 launchers each, and 32 missiles could be fired simultaneously in one salvo. Moscow will deploy more advanced Iskander missiles to Kaliningrad, among others. Typically, Iskanders in Russian military stockpiles have a range of 380–500 kilometers.” (Warsaw Institute 12/16/2019)
In addition, the Russians are in the process of basing an entire division in Kaliningrad, anywhere from 10,000 to 20,000 additional troops will be permanently stationed there. “A motorised division consisting of infantry, armoured and artillery regiments will be deployed in Kaliningrad in 2021”, the Russian news agency TASS reported. “The new division will…be part of the 11th Army Corps stationed in Kaliningrad, a Russian exclave wedged between Poland and Lithuania on the Baltic coast.” (Lithuanian Radio & TV 12/2/2020)
The Baltic Fleet at the ice-free port of Baltiysk and helicopter base at Chkalovsk add to the dynamic of the Russian exclave: a dagger aimed at the heart of Europe. US B-52s have been performing simulated bombing runs on Kaliningrad over the years to test and analyze the Russian response, according to Forbes, calling the oblast a “thorn in NATO’s side”.
Russia’s president stated: “Strategic bombers, which carry precision weapons and are capable of carrying nuclear weapons, were flying as close as 20 kilometers (12 miles) to our border,” Putin said. “That represents a threat for us.”
“…US military officials say they are concerned by what they call Russia’s ability to establish ‘anti-access/area denial’ capabilities, or, weaponry that reduces NATO’s potential freedom to maneuver in the region. Those include some of the modern weapons systems stationed in Kaliningrad, including anti-ship missiles, radar systems and surface-to-air missiles.” (CNN 10/17/2017)
Ironically, Königsberg/Kaliningrad was the birthplace of Enlightenment philosopher, Immanuel Kant (1724-1804), who began to question the role of religion in society, yet appreciated the ethical laws it brought to the secularism of his age. He is famous for the Categorical Imperative: “Act only according to that maxim by which you can, at the same time, will that it should become a universal law” (do unto others), thus replacing religious laws that promoted ethical behavior with the authority of reason, the rules our own intelligence gives us: “a free will and a will under moral laws are one and the same. A universally valid will under which all can be free.”
Kant wanted to create a secular state in which our rational nature ruled. What he would have thought of the obliteration of enlightened Königsberg 140 years after his death would be intriguing; of course, his belief in ethical rationalism evolving into the horrors of the Nazi Übermensch would have been unimaginable, and the genocidal German invasion of Russia and its subsequent scorched-earth response, incomprehensible.
However, his life’s work lives on through the optimistic mission statement of the Immanuel Kant Baltic University in Kaliningrad: “The University mission is to develop interdisciplinary research and education answering global and local agendas that will serve as the basis for critical reflection for the benefit of humanity.”
During Kristallnacht on November 9-10, 1938, Königsberg’s only synagogue was torched by the Nazis. What remained of the building was dismantled by Jewish forced labor, who were then forced to construct barracks on the site for concentration camp laborers sent to the city as slaves. In 2018 a new Kaliningrad synagogue holding 2,000 was opened on the previous place of worship.
On November 30, 2021, President Putin warned NATO against stationing troops and weapons in Ukraine, saying it would cross a red line for Russia. Many Western media outlets reported on December 7, 2021 that President Biden told Putin “where to shove his red lines” during their two-hour video summit. Such bravado from a US president who botched the retreat from Afghanistan after a twenty-year, $2 trillion war against a ragtag Taliban army (prematurely closing Bagram Airbase before evacuating all Americans) was cavalier given he was taunting a nation with a nuclear launchpad in the heart of Europe that lost 25 million citizens defeating the Nazis. Even Immanuel Kant would agree that was irrational.
Americans typically think they won’t be harmed by a conflict in Europe, but after the US pulled out of the 1987 Intermediate Range Nuclear Arms Treaty in 2019, President Putin responded: “Russia will be forced to create and deploy types of weapons which can be used not only in respect of those territories from which the direct threat to us originates, but also in respect of those territories where the centers of decision-making are located”.
US National Security Advisor, Jake Sullivan, commented on CNN January 17, 2022: “If Russia wants to go down the path of invasion and escalation, we’re ready for that, too, with a robust response that will cut off their strategic position.” The Russian response was to threaten stationing military assets in Cuba and Venezuela.
The next day CNN published an interview with Kremlin Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov, who said in response to a question whether Russia would consider withdrawing Iskander missiles from Kaliningrad to ease tensions: “Russia will never discuss with anyone withdrawal of any missiles and any weapons from Kaliningrad, because Kaliningrad is a territory of Russia. And with all due respect, we will never tolerate any demands for us to do this or that on our own territory.” (cnn.com 1/18/22)
On January 25, 2022, RT reported two nuclear armed warships, the Soobrazitelnyy and Stoikiy of the Baltic Fleet “have been launched from their home port of Baltiys and embarked on a long-distance mission”. Were the two ships headed to Cuba and Venezuela to checkmate the US & NATO? (rt.com 1/25/22)
After State Department spokesman Ned Price said the US would refuse all security concessions proposed by Russia, Foreign Minister Lavrov stated the obvious when addressing the Duma on the 26th of January: "Recently, the United States and its European allies, who have thoroughly forgotten the culture of diplomacy, have redoubled their efforts to 'contain' our country. It is enough to observe the increasingly provocative military manoeuvres near our borders, the push to draw the regime in Kiev into the NATO orbit, to supply it with lethal weapons and push it to carry out direct provocations against Russia."
He then confirmed Russia’s threat to arm Cuba and Venezuela in response to NATO encroachment was real: “President Putin held recent telephone conversations with his colleagues from these three governments (Cuba, Venezuela & Nicaragua), with whom we are very close and friendly, and they agreed to look at further ways to deepen our strategic partnership in all areas, with no exceptions”. He noted Russia already has close relations with these countries in many spheres, “including military and military-technical.”
After receiving an official non-response concerning NATO expansion from the US State Department on January 27, 2022, Foreign Minister Lavrov diplomatically stated, "The content of the US response on security guarantees allows you to count on a serious conversation, but on secondary topics. There is no answer to the most important question - about the non-expansion of NATO to the east and deployment of strike weapons that can pose a threat to the territory of Russia, which we consider unacceptable.”
He added in a letter to all NATO member nations: “I am referring to our demands that everyone faithfully implement the agreements on the indivisibility of security that were reached within the OSCE in 1999 in Istanbul and in 2010 in Astana. These agreements provide not only for the freedom to choose alliances, but also make this freedom conditional on the need to avoid any steps that will strengthen the security of any state at the expense of infringing on the security of others…Our Western colleagues are not simply trying to ignore this key principle of international law agreed in the Euro-Atlantic space, but to completely forget it.”
Despite Ukraine and Russia agreeing to an unconditional ceasefire along with Germany and France through the Normandy Format on January 27 (which excludes the United States), Tass reported: “‘According to our intelligence, the Ukrainian General Staff under the guidance of US advisers at the Ukrainian Defense Ministry is putting final touches to a plan for an offensive operation in Donbass. The date of aggression against the people’s republics will be set when the attack groups have been created and the operation’s plan approved by Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council,’ the Deputy Chief of the Donetsk Peoples’ Republic Militia said.” (Tass.com 1/28/22)
On January 31, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: "The hysteria that the United States is instigating is, indeed, leading to hysteria in Ukraine where people are almost packing frontline bags. This is obvious and this is a fact. This is the downside of this very malicious and damaging campaign being run by Washington. We consistently criticize this stance and call on Washington and its allies on the European continent to give up this policy and assume a constructive, calm and balanced approach.” (tass.com 1/31/22)
Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the UN Vasily Nebenzya at the UN Security Council also stated on January 31: “‘The situation in Ukraine can be corrected only if Kiev fulfills the Minsk agreements, which primarily provide for a direct dialogue with Donetsk and Lugansk. If our Western colleagues are pushing Kiev to sabotage the Minsk agreements, which the Ukrainian authorities are happy to do, this could end in the most disastrous way for Ukraine. And not because someone will destroy it. But because it will destroy itself. And Russia has absolutely nothing to do with it. Don’t try to shift the blame from the sick to the healthy,’ the diplomat continued.” (rt.com 2/2/2022)
The Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba immediately responded saying in an interview for Rzeczpospolita after British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s visit: "No Ukrainian region will have a right power for national state decisions. This is set in stone! There will be no special status, as Russia imagines it, no voting power,” thus voiding one of the critical tenets of the Minsk Agreement.
With the US having sent 81 tons of munitions and NATO countries sending military advisors and numerous weapons systems, “‘Would that be enough to help the Ukrainian Army withstand a Russian Army assault, and prevail in a hypothetical battle?’ asked retired Russian Colonel Mikhail Khodarenok.
‘The answer to both these questions is ‘no’. Russia’s economic and military potential significantly exceeds Ukraine’s. No supplies of single-use missile launchers or MANPADs can balance out the forces – which is why all the involved parties would be better off looking for a diplomatic solution.’” (rt.com 1/21/22)
In a meeting with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban on February 2, 2022, President Putin outlined Russia’s nightmare scenario: “Let us imagine that Ukraine is a NATO member and is stuffed with weapons and there are state-of-the-art missile systems just like in Poland and Romania. Who will stop it from unleashing operations in Crimea, let alone Donbass? Let us imagine that Ukraine is a NATO member and ventures such a combat operation. Do we have to fight with the NATO bloc? Has anyone thought anything about it? It seems not.”
When President Biden announced an additional 3,000 troops from the 82nd Airborne would be sent to Eastern Europe to bolster NATO defenses later the same day, diplomacy seemed to be taking a backseat.
The French President, however, offered a glimmer of hope: “The geopolitical objective of Russia today is clearly not Ukraine, but to clarify the rules of cohabitation with NATO and the EU,” Macron explained in a weekend interview with the weekly Journal du Dimanche before his departure for Moscow. (rt.com 2/7/22)
Following his meeting with the French President, President Putin stated: “If Ukraine joins NATO and tries to take Crimea by military means, all European countries will become parties to war with Russia — Russia is the leading nuclear power and there will be no winners — neither Macron, nor I want this.”
He continued: "They are trying to reassure Russia by saying that NATO is a peaceful and purely defensive organization. Iraqis, Libyans, Afghans experienced in their own life the extent to which this corresponds to reality..."
"Ukrainian authorities have already tried twice to solve the Donbass issue with military means. After a failure the Minsk agreements were signed. So will they try again? Who guarantees there won't be a third attempt?"
On February 11, after a phone conversation between Secretary of State Blinken and Foreign Minister Lavrov that preceded one between their respective presidents, the Russian Foreign Ministry summarized the discussion: "The minister emphasized that the propaganda campaign launched by the United States and its allies about 'Russian aggression' against Ukraine has provocative goals, encouraging the authorities in Kiev to sabotage the Minsk Agreements and pernicious attempts to resolve the 'Donbass problems' by force.
As the head of the Russian Foreign Ministry noted, the reaction by Washington and Brussels to the draft Russian-US treaty and the draft agreement with NATO on security guarantees which we submitted ignores provisions which the Russian side considers to be key, first and foremost on the non-expansion of the alliance and the non-deployment of strike weapons near Russia's border."
Kremlin foreign policy advisor Yuri Ushakov then gave a summary of the phone conversation between Presidents Biden and Putin on February 12: “Russia’s president spoke with Biden about ‘destructive’ policies pursued by the Ukrainian authorities to ‘sabotage’ the Minsk agreements, a major 2015 multinational deal that outlined a roadmap out of the conflict in eastern Ukraine, where Kiev forces face off the breakaway republics of Donetsk and Luhansk. Russia’s president stressed that the Western countries do not put enough ‘pressure’ on Kiev to fulfill the deal.” (rt.com 2/13/22)
With the West threatening severe sanctions if the Russians do or don’t invade Ukraine, their Ambassador to Sweden captured their sentiment: “‘Excuse my language, but we don’t give a s**t about sanctions,’ Viktor Tatarintsev told Stockholm daily Aftonbladet. The diplomat accused the US and NATO of stoking tensions in Europe. ‘The expansion of NATO is the biggest threat to Russia,’ Tatarintsev said.” (rt.com 2/13/22)
After meeting with President Putin, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said: "For Europeans, it is clear that lasting security cannot be achieved against Russia but only with Russia." The chancellor added the the "inviolability of borders ... is not to be negotiated,"referring to Ukraine. "Dialogue cannot end in a cul de sac, that would be a disaster for everyone," he added, "it is important to go the road of diplomacy so as to avoid war in Europe.” (dw.com 2/15/22))
After days of shelling of the Donbass by the Ukrainian Army along the line of control, RT reported: “The Ukrainian rebels are expecting President Volodymyr Zelensky to order an offensive ‘in the nearest future.’ Their military forces are prepared to fight, but civilians in rebel-controlled areas are at risk of being caught in the crossfire, the head of the Donetsk Peoples’ Republic warned.
‘That is why starting today, February 18, a mass evacuation of people to the Russian Federation has been organized,’ he said, adding that vulnerable groups like women, children, and the elderly would be given priority.” (rt.com 2/18/22)
"I urge my fellow citizens who are in the reserves to come to military conscription offices. Today I signed a decree on general mobilization,” stated Denis Pushilin, leader of Donetsk People's Republic on February 19.
In a speech to the nation on February 21, 2022, President Putin stated: "The regime in Kiev only knows aggression, it represents the continuity of the regime that was brought to power illegally in 2014, they only believe in a military solution for Donbass. This is why I decided to recognize the independence of Donetsk Peoples’ Republic and the Lugansk Peoples’ Republic.” In that speech, Ukraine was formally surrounded by the Russian Trifecta: Transnistria, Crimea, Donetsk & Lugansk (Donbass), and it was about to get worse.
Putin continued: “We've made it clear that any further movement of NATO to the East is unacceptable. Is there anything unclear about this? Are we deploying missiles near the US border? No, we are not. It's the US that has come to our home with its missiles and is standing at our doorstep.”
At an emergency UN Security Council meeting the same day, Russian Permanent Representative Vasily Nebenzya stated: “I would like to remind you that at the time of the conclusion of the Minsk agreements, the LPR and DPR had already declared independence. The fact that Russia today recognized it does not change the composition of the parties to the Minsk agreements, since Russia is not one (…) Another thing is that the Minsk agreements have long been openly sabotaged by Ukraine under the auspices of our Western colleagues. Now we see that many colleagues want to sign that the Minsk agreements are dead. But this is not the case (…) We are still open to diplomacy, but we do not intend to allow a new bloody massacre in the Donbass. The main task of our decision [on recognizing independence] was to preserve and protect these lives. This is more important than all your threats.”
On February 24, 2022 President Putin announced the invasion of Ukraine: “Circumstances require us to take decisive and immediate action. The People's Republics of Donbass turned to Russia with a request for help. In this regard, in accordance with Article 51, part 7 of the UN Charter, with the sanction of the Federation Council and in pursuance of the friendship treaties ratified by the Federal Assembly and mutual assistance with the Donetsk and Lugansk Peoples’ Republics, I have decided to conduct a special military operation.”
The same day Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the incursion would be halted if Ukraine agreed to two demands: “The president formulated his vision of what we would expect from Ukraine in order for the so-called ‘red-line’ problems to be resolved. This is neutral status, and this is a refusal to deploy weapons”. (rt.com 2/24/22)
President Putin told his forces to halt operations on February 25 after offering to negotiate with the Ukrainians: “Alexey Arestovich, an adviser at Zelensky’s office, confirmed to Ukrainian media that Kiev has declined the talks with Russia, citing the ‘terms’ put forward by Moscow through intermediaries. ‘It was an attempt to force us into capitulation,’ he said, without elaborating.” (rt.com 2/26/22)
The Russian invasion continued after President Zelensky rejected negotiations, fleeing from Kiev to Lviv. On February 28 the Ukrainians agreed to talks in Gomel, Belarus after Russia’s deterrence forces were ratcheted up to “a special regime of duty”. Following five hours of discussion they agreed to meet again on March 3 in Brest, Belarus for discussions. Russia’s demands in negotiations with Ukraine are: Crimea is part of the Russian Federation, recognition of the DPR and LPR within administrative borders, demilitarization, which should have certain parameters & Ukraine must undergo the de-nazification procedure, as in Germany post WWII.
During an EU Disarmament Conference video on March 1, Foreign Minister Lavrov reminded the gathering of President Zelensky’s call for Ukraine to acquire nuclear weapons at the Munich Security Conference: "Ukraine has Soviet nuclear technologies and delivery vehicles. We cannot but react to this real danger. I can promise you that Russia as a responsible member of the international community, determined to adhere to its WMD non-proliferation commitments, has been taking every measure to prevent Ukraine from laying hands on nuclear weapons and the related technologies.” (tass.com 3/1/22)
“The Russian president has now definitively put an end to the post-Cold War era, which rested on an assumption that major European land wars were gone for good…The threat of thermonuclear conflict was omnipresent for those who came of age during the Cold War…Yet after decades of peace between the West and Russia, that collective cultural awareness has largely dissipated — even though the threat of nuclear conflict remains, and has, in the past week, ramped back up to levels unseen since the Cold War…I fear that Russia’s invasion, regardless of its outcome, portends a new era of immense hostility with Moscow — and that this new cold war will be far worse than the first”. (Professor Mary Elise Sarotte from Johns Hopkins University, in her open letter “I’m A Cold War Historian. We’re In A Frightening New Era”)
The March 3 meeting between Ukraine and Russia in Brest, Belarus was somewhat successful in protecting the lives of civilians: “‘The parties have reached an understanding on the joint establishment of humanitarian corridors with a temporary ceasefire. Russia and Ukraine will soon create channels of communication and cooperation to organize these corridors,’ Ukrainian presidential aide Mikhail Podolyak said.” (rt.com 3/3/22)
“Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Saturday that he chose to attack Ukraine beyond the borders of the Donetsk and Lugansk Peoples’ Republics (DPR and LPR) to prevent the West from ‘endlessly’ supplying ‘nationalists and radicals’ with various resources, such as weapons and money.” (rt.com 3/5/22)
On March 8, a ceasefire was again agreed to by Ukraine and Russia following negotiations in Brest, Belarus: “Russia on Tuesday announced it would observe a ceasefire from 10am Moscow time (12.30pm IST) to allow for humanitarian corridors for civilians to flee from five cities. The Russian embassy in India released a statement about the corridors from Kyiv (called Kiev by Russia), Chernigov, Sumy, Kharkiv (called Kharkov by Russia) and Mariupol.” (theweek.in 3/8/22))
Also on March 8 President Biden stated: “Today I am announcing the United States is targeting the main artery of Russia’s economy. We’re banning all imports of Russian oil and gas and energy,” he said at the White House. “That means Russian oil will no longer be acceptable at U.S. ports and the American people will deal another powerful blow to Putin’s war machine.”
Russian and Ukrainian foreign ministers Sergey Lavrov and Dmitry Kuleba met in the Turkish province of Antalya on Thursday, March 10, and Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu also attended, but little progress was made towards a ceasefire. However, Lavrov did say: “Those supplying arms to Ukraine must understand that they bear responsibility for their actions. The same goes for those who encourage sending mercenaries to Ukraine to fight there in keeping with the traditions of extreme radicals and their battalions introduced in Ukraine’s everyday life.”
Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that 16,000 foreigners had volunteered to fight for Ukraine against the Russian invasion.
“Around 450 militants from the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) armed group, a re-branded Jabhat al-Nusra (the Syrian branch of Al-Qaeda), arrived in Ukraine on 8 March to fight against the Russian army.
The militants reportedly left Idlib Province in northern Syria only three days ago, entering Ukraine after passing through Turkey. The militants consist of both Arab and foreign nationals, as HTS, ISIS, and other militias in Syria allow foreigners to join their ranks.
The newly arrived fighters in Ukraine reportedly consist of approximately 300 Syrians, with the rest a mix of Belgian, French, Chechen, Chinese, Tunisian, British, and Moroccan nationals.” (thecradle.com 3/8/22)
“Russia on Saturday said its troops could target supplies of Western weapons in Ukraine where the Russian army has been advancing since late February. ‘We warned the United States that the orchestrated pumping of weapons from a number of countries is not just a dangerous move, it is a move that turns these convoys into legitimate targets,’ Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told state television.
He said Moscow had warned ‘about the consequences of the thoughtless transfer to Ukraine of weapons like man-portable air defence systems, anti-tank missile systems and so on.’” (Barrons.com 3/12/22))
On March 13, Russia followed up on its threat: “Russia's defence ministry has said its attack on a training facility in Yavoriv killed ‘up to 180 foreign mercenaries’. The facility, near the city of Lviv, in western Ukraine, also destroyed a large amount of weaponry supplied by other nations, they added. Defence ministry spokesperson Igor Konashenkov told a briefing that Russia would continue its attacks against the ‘foreign mercenaries’”.
US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan responded: "If there is a military attack on NATO territory it would cause the invocation of Article 5, and we would bring the full force of the NATO alliance to bear in responding to it." (news.sky.com 3/13/22)
To send an additional message not only to the Ukrainians but also NATO, Russia launched its Mach 10 Kinzhal (Dagger) missile against an arms bunker in Western Ukraine: “The Russian military has said it used its state-of-the-art Kinzhal hypersonic missiles to destroy an arms depot near the city of Ivano-Frankivsk in western Ukraine.” (rt.com 3/19/22)
There were also hints a ceasefire might be agreed to, with the Ukrainians and Russians meeting again in Brest on March 14 and later in the week in Antalya, Turkey: “Turkey’s presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said the two sides were nearing agreement on several issues — Moscow’s demand that Kyiv back off its ambitions to join NATO; demilitarization of the country, which Russia has called ‘de-Nazification;’ and proposals to protect the Russian language in Ukraine.” (nypost.com 3/20/22)
Also on March 19, Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov stated: "We never betray our friends in politics. Venezuela is our friend, and Iran is a state that is very close to us. Secondly, we do not pursue selfish interests, unlike the Americans."
In an interview with Fareed Zakaria on CNN, President Zelensky revealed the war could have been avoided if the West had been honest with the Russians about Ukraine’s future: “I requested them personally to say that we are going to accept you into NATO…just say it directly and clearly, or just say no. The response was very clear, you're not going to be a NATO member, but publicly, the doors will remain open.” (nationalfile.com 3/22/22)
Following a meeting with Abkhazian President Aslan Bzhania on March 26, Foreign Minister Lavrov stated: "‘Today a real hybrid war, a 'total war' has been declared against us. This term, which was used by Nazi Germany, is now used by many European politicians when they explain what they want to do to the Russian Federation. And their goals are not hidden: to destroy, to break, to strangle the Russian economy, and Russia as a whole. Here, when we see this sanctions free-for-all, it is of course clear that all of these values that our Western colleagues had constantly preached to us about the freedom of expression, a market economy, the inviolability of private property and the presumption of innocence, all of these values are worthless,’ he said in a separate engagement with reporters.” (sputniknews.com 3/25/22)
And, of course, Kaliningrad made it into the Ukraine war discussion: "Warsaw should seek to ‘claim’ the Kaliningrad region from Russia, General Waldemar Skrzypczak has said. The region has been ‘under Russian occupation since 1945,’ the ex-commander of the Polish Land Forces claimed on the TV show ‘Super Express’ on Friday, March 25.
‘It might be worth asking for it, as it used to be with the Regained Territories,’ Skrzypczak said, referring to the eastern German territories incorporated into Poland after the defeat of Nazi Germany. ‘It might be worth asking for this Kaliningrad region, which, in my opinion, is part of the territory of Poland.’”
The Russian Defense Ministry spokesperson Major General Igor Konashenkov said: “All main lines of communications, supply and approach of reserves are taken under full control. The air defense systems of Ukraine, the airfield infrastructure, the largest military depots, training and concentration centers for mercenaries were destroyed. Work on them continues. Thus, all the main tasks of the Russian Armed Forces in the directions of Kiev and Chernigov have been completed.” (rt.com 3/30/22)
Belatedly, it was revealed that German “Chancellor (Scholz) told Zelensky in Munich on February 19 “that Ukraine should renounce its NATO aspirations and declare neutrality as part of a wider European security deal between the West and Russia,” the paper (WSJ) said. “The pact would be signed by Mr. Putin and Mr. Biden, who would jointly guarantee Ukraine’s security.”
Zelensky, however, refused to accept the concession in order to avoid confrontation and said that “[Russia’s President Vladimir] Putin couldn’t be trusted to uphold such an agreement and that most Ukrainians wanted to join NATO.” (massnews.com 4/3/22)
Europeans then woke up to the threat of Kaliningrad: “Chief of the General Staff of the German Army, Eberhard Zorn: ‘Iskander missiles stationed in Kaliningrad can hit all targets in Western Europe. Germany currently has no protective shield against this threat.’” (yahoo.com 4/01/22)
“Poland, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia have decided to close their land borders with Russia and Belarus. The event completely isolates and cuts off the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad with Russia as the direct Russia-Kalingrad air connection has been interrupted due to sanctions. This move is declared as a red line for Russia. The commander of the Lithuanian army, Lieutenant General Valdemaras Rupshis, warned Moscow, saying there was a joint defense plan with Poland to defend the ‘Suwalki Corridor’ leading to Kaliningrad.” (Vassilis Kapoulas warnews247 4/5/22)
Commenting on the matter, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko expressed hope that ‘common sense’ would prevent the Europeans from ‘playing with fire’, as such a measure would deprive Kaliningrad residents of the opportunity to reach Russia’s main territory by land.
‘I very much hope that common sense in Europe will not allow any games to be played around Kaliningrad. I think many people understand that this is playing with fire,’ the deputy minister told the media."
Not unsurprisingly, Russia’s Foreign Minister weighed in on the true nature of his country’s war in Ukraine: “Our special military operation is meant to put an end to the unabashed expansion [of NATO] and the unabashed drive towards full domination by the US and its Western subjects on the world stage,” Lavrov told Rossiya 24 news channel.
‘This domination is built on gross violations of international law and under some rules, which they are now hyping so much and which they make up on a case-by-case basis,’ he added.” (rt.com 4/11/22)
“Kiev has gone back on the tentative agreements made between the Ukrainian and Russian negotiating teams in Istanbul in late March, Vladimir Putin has claimed. According to the Russian president, the peace talks have now ‘returned to a deadlock’.
Ukraine has refused to recognize Crimea as Russian and the Donbass republics as independent, Putin explained at the Vostochny Cosmodrome in Russia's Far East on Tuesday.” (rt.com 4/13/22)
“Russia will view U.S. and NATO vehicles transporting weapons on Ukrainian territory as legitimate military targets, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told the TASS news agency in an interview on Wednesday.
Any attempts by the West to inflict significant damage on Russia’s military or its separatist allies in Ukraine will be ‘harshly suppressed,’ he added. ‘We are warning that US-NATO weapons transports across Ukrainian territory will be considered by us as legal military targets,’” TASS quoted Ryabkov as saying.
We are making the Americans and other Westerners understand that attempts to slow down our special operation, to inflict maximum damage on Russian contingents and formations of the DPR and LPR (Donetsk and Luhansk People’s republics) will be harshly suppressed,’ he said.” (nationalist.com 4/13/22)
Also on April 13, 2022 the Russian Ministry of Defense warned: “We see attempts of sabotage and strikes by Ukrainian forces against facilities on Russian Federation territory.
If such cases continue, the Russian Armed Forces will strike at decision-making centres, including in Kiev, from which the Russian army has so far refrained,” Major-General Konashenkov said.
The West can’t say it wasn’t warned: “Russia this week sent a formal diplomatic note to the United States warning that U.S. and NATO shipments of the ‘most sensitive’ weapons systems to Ukraine were ‘adding fuel’ to the conflict there and could bring ‘unpredictable consequences.’” (washingtonpost.com 4/14/22)
“The US and its allies have slapped a grand total of over 9,600 sanctions against Russian officials, the state, companies, tycoons and other entities in connection with the crisis in Ukraine. Moscow now has more restrictions against it than Iran, Syria, North Korea, Venezuela and Myanmar combined. Russia has successfully withstood unprecedented sanctions pressure from the West.
‘The calculation was to quickly undermine the financial and economic situation in our country, to provoke panic in the markets, the collapse of the banking system, and a large-scale shortage of goods in stores,’ Putin said, speaking at a briefing on the economic situation on Monday. ‘We can say with confidence that this policy against Russia has failed - that the strategy of the economic blitzkrieg has failed,’ he added.” (sputniknews.com 4/18/22)
“The Russian Aerospace Forces launched a strike with high-precision missiles at the 124th Joint Logistics Support Center of the Logistics Forces Command of the Ukrainian troops in the Lviv region, the Russian Defense Ministry reported on 4/18/22. The logistics center and the large consignments of foreign weapons that were delivered to Ukraine from the United States and European countries over the past 6 days were destroyed.”
“The second phase of the Russian offensive in Ukraine and the Donbass has started, President Volodymyr Zelensky and his advisers claimed on Monday evening. Kiev said there were reports of heavy fighting on the Donetsk, Lugansk, and Kharkov fronts, and that Ukrainian troops were holding the line.
‘We can now confirm that Russian troops have begun the battle for the Donbass, which they have been preparing for a long time,’ Zelensky said.” (rt.com 4/18/22)
“In a new 'message' aimed at the West, Russia on Wednesday (4/20/22) test launched a new intercontinental ballistic missile, the Sarmat, according to Interfax citing the Russian defense ministry.
President Vladimir Putin said in a statement which accompanied the announcement that the new Sarmat missile will provide ‘food for thought for those who try to threaten Russia.’ He congratulated the armed forces on the successful test launch. According to another translation, he said that the Sarmat will ‘make the madmen who attempt to threaten Russia think.’”
The Russian President warned the West again about its ongoing interference in the war on behalf of Ukraine: “I would like to stress once again that if someone intends to interfere with the ongoing events from the outside and creates strategic threats unacceptable to Russia, they should know that our retaliatory strikes will be lightning-fast. We have all the tools for this, such that no one can boast of now. And we will not boast, we will use them if necessary. And I want everyone to know about this, all the decisions we have made in this regard,” Putin remarked to the Council of Legislators of the Federal Assembly in the Tauride Palace on 4/27/22.
“Three minutes and 33 seconds. That’s how long state-owned television channel Rossiya 1 claims it would take a nuclear missile to reach Paris from Kaliningrad, a Russian territorial enclave between Poland and Lithuania. The propaganda channel showed how many seconds it would take a nuclear Sarmat-missile, one of the latest additions to Russia’s nuclear arsenal, to reach different European capitals. London: 202 seconds, Paris: 200 seconds, Berlin: 106 seconds.
An infographic shows arrows pointing from Kaliningrad to the cities, indicating the length of the hypothetical journey. ‘Look at this image, count the seconds… It’s already there!’ Presenter Olga Skabeïeva boasts with what would appear to be excitement. “One Sarmat missile and it’s done: no more UK.” (brusselstimes.com 5/2/22)
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu reiterated Wednesday: "The United States and its NATO allies continue to pump weapons into Ukraine. I can confirm that any transport from the North Atlantic alliance that arrives in the country with weapons or materiel for the Ukrainian armed forces will be considered by us as a legitimate target for destruction.” (sputniknews.com 5/4/22)
“As Russia’s invasion of Ukraine enters its 10th week, the Kremlin’s Ministry of Defense said its forces had practiced nuclear-capable missile strikes on the Baltic coast in Kaliningrad, near European Union members Lithuania and Poland.” (yahoo.com 5/5/22)
“According Ukrainska Pravda sources close to Zelenskyy, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Boris Johnson, who appeared in the capital almost without warning, brought two simple messages. The first is that Putin is a war criminal, he should be pressured, not negotiated with. And the second is that even if Ukraine is ready to sign some agreements on guarantees with Putin, they are not. Johnson’s position was that the collective West, which back in February had suggested Zelenskyy should surrender and flee, now felt that Putin was not really as powerful as they had previously imagined, and that here was a chance to ‘press him.’ Three days after Johnson left for Britain, Putin went public and said talks with Ukraine ‘had turned into a dead end’”. (pravda.com.ua 5/5/22)
“The current generation of NATO politicians clearly does not take the nuclear threat seriously,” ambassador Anatoly Antonov told Newsweek. While it’s widely believed that a direct war between NATO and Russia would quickly turn nuclear, the danger doesn’t appear to be factored into the Western approach to the war in Ukraine.” (5/6/22)
"In a nuclear war, NATO countries will be destroyed by us in half an hour, but we must not allow it, because the consequences of the exchange of nuclear strikes will affect the state of our Earth. Therefore, we will have to defeat this economically and militarily more powerful enemy by conventional military means,” Dmitry Rogozin, head of Russia's Roscosmos space agency (newsweek.com 5/8/22)
“NATO countries did not want to hear us, they had completely different plans, preparations were made for an attack on Crimea, the alliance began military development of the territories adjacent to us, everything indicated that a clash with neo-Nazis would be inevitable.” (Putin Victory Day Speech 5/9/22)
“The former president of Russia has warned NATO that military assistance for Ukraine risks sparking a wider conflict. Dmitry Medvedev, a close ally of President Vladimir Putin, said the supply of weapons to Ukraine increased the likelihood of a direct and open conflict between NATO and Russia instead of their ‘war by proxy’.” (cnbc.com 5/12/22)
“As soon as Finland and Sweden become NATO members and NATO units are deployed to these countries— Finland and Sweden will become targets for the Russian military.” - Deputy Representative of the Russian Federation to the UN Polyansky (5/12/22)
“The West has declared a ‘total hybrid war’ against Russia, resorting to open ‘robbery’ and ‘state piracy,’ Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Friday. Everyone ‘without exception’ is set to feel the impact of this conflict, the top diplomat warned.
‘Political correctness, decency, rules, and the legal norms are simply discarded, the cancel culture is applied to everything Russian, any hostile actions against our country are allowed, including outright robbery,’ Lavrov said during his speech at a meeting of the Foreign and Defense Policy Council (SVOP) forum. ‘We did all we could to avoid the confrontation, but Russia accepts the challenge. It's not like sanctions are something new to us – they have been in place in some sense practically for the entire time’”. (rt.com 5/14/22)
“No negotiations between the Russian and Ukrainian delegations are being conducted at the moment. In fact, Kiev has quit the talks, Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko said on the sidelines of the 2nd Central Asian conference of the international discussion club Valdai. ‘The talks are not continuing. Ukraine has in fact quit the process of negotiations,’" he said in reply to a TASS question. (tass.com 5/17/22)
The New York Times published an editorial devoid of the usual Western propaganda: “The War In Ukraine Is Getting Complicated, And America Isn’t Ready”, wherein it states: “A decisive military victory for Ukraine over Russia, in which Ukraine regains all the territory Russia has seized since 2014, is not a realistic goal...Russia remains too strong, and Mr. Putin has invested too much personal prestige in the invasion to back down...Mr. Biden should make clear to President Volodymyr Zelensky and his people that there is a limit to how far the United States and NATO will confront Russia, and limits to the arms, money and political support they can muster”. (nytimes.com 5/19/22)
“Russia is tightening the noose on Ukrainian troops in the country's east. A fierce ground and artillery assault has seen Moscow's forces advance, and they now appear close to encircling the last two hold-out cities in Luhansk province — which together with neighboring Donetsk forms the Donbas region that has become the key focus of the Kremlin’s war. With Ukrainian officials voicing concern their troops are now outmanned and outgunned, this Russian push could prove a decisive moment in the conflict.” (yahoo.news 5/26/22)
“The US and its allies have communicated to Ukraine the danger of escalation should weapons provided by the West be used to attack targets inside Russia, according to a report from Reuters, citing anonymous officials, on Thursday. However, Washington has apparently not explicitly banned Kiev from taking such action.” (rt.com 5/26/22)
“Under the fire of Russia’s long-range arsenal and facing a desperate need for ammunition and weapons, Ukrainian forces remain outgunned on the long and pockmarked eastern front, according to military analysts, Ukrainian officials and soldiers on the ground. Just one engagement on Thursday and Friday on a small swath of the line, in a forest north of the town of Sloviansk, sent about a dozen Ukrainian soldiers to a military hospital with harrowing shrapnel wounds. ‘You ask how the fighting is going,’ said Oleksandr Kolesnikov, the commander of a company of soldiers fighting in the forest, interviewed on an ambulance gurney outside a military hospital in Kramatorsk. ‘There was a commander of the company. He was killed. There was another commander. He was killed. A third commander was wounded. I am the fourth.’” (nytimes.com 5/28/22)
“No amount of western military aid has been able to prevent Russia from achieving its military objective of liberating the entire territories of both Lugansk and Donetsk as Phase Three begins.” (Scott Ritter: consortium news.com 5/30/22)
“Russia on Wednesday sharply criticised a U.S. decision to supply advanced rocket systems and munitions to Ukraine, warning of an increased risk of direct confrontation with Washington. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters: "We believe that the United States is purposefully and diligently adding fuel to the fire.” When asked how Russia would respond if Ukraine used U.S.-supplied rockets to strike Russian territory, Peskov said: "Let's not talk about worst-case scenarios”. (yahoo.com 6/1/22)
"Our relevant agencies, including the Defense Ministry and border guards, understand all the risks, they are comprehensively evaluating them and taking the necessary measures," Peskov said, when asked if Moscow saw the risk that Ukraine might start attacking Russia with US-made multiple rocket launchers if provided with such weapons.
At the same time, Peskov was confident that the US was adding fuel to the fire of what was happening in Ukraine by providing weapons to Kiev. "The US is clearly pursuing a policy to fight Russia until the last Ukrainian," the Kremlin spokesman noted, commenting on Washington’s plans to provide multiple rocket launchers to Kiev. According to Peskov, "these sorts of supplies are unlikely to make the Ukrainian leadership willing to resume peace talks." "This is why we are certainly negative about it," the Russian presidential spokesman stressed. (tass.com 6/1/22)
“Alexei Zhuravlev, a member of Russia’s parliament, proclaimed on the state TV channel Russia-1 Monday that the country has the capability to launch a devastating nuclear attack on the US over its support of Ukraine in the war. ‘I will tell you absolutely competently that to destroy the entire the East Coast of the United States, two Sarmat missiles are needed,’ the pro-Kremlin pundit said, referring to Russia’s new intercontinental ballistic missiles, which are known as Satan-2 in NATO countries. ‘And the same goes for the West Coast,’ Zhuravlev continued. “Four missiles, and there will be nothing left.’” (nypost.com 6/2/22)
“Ukraine will use US-supplied rocket systems to strike into Russian territory should it deem such attacks necessary, Ukrainian Presidential Adviser Alexey Arestovich said on Thursday. Responding to a question about whether the restrictions on the use of US-supplied rocket systems apply to Crimea, a peninsula that overwhelmingly voted to become part of Russia in a 2014 referendum, Arestovich said that it belonged to Ukraine. ‘Crimea is ours. It belongs to Ukraine. And they [Russia] know it. Therefore, it will fly to Crimea double-time, should the need arise’, he pointed out, alleging that Kiev has already successfully struck targets on the peninsula.” (rt.com 6/3/22)
“Moscow will strike Ukraine’s ‘decision-making centers’ if Kiev uses the weapons it had received from the United States to attack the territory of Russia, Deputy Chairman of Russia’s Security Council Dmitry Medvedev said in an interview to Qatar’s Al Jazeera television. ‘If those types of weapons are used against the territory of Russia, the armed forces of our country will have no other choice but to strike decision-making centers,’ he said. ‘It is obvious what those decision-making centers are: the defense ministry, the general staff and so on,’ he continued. ‘But it should be understood that, in this case, the ultimate decision-making centers are regretfully not even on the territory of Kiev. That is why it is certainly a threat that should be reckoned with.’” (tass.com 6/3/22)
What if those “ultimate decision-making centers” include the US?: “(General Glen D. VanHerck, commander of United States Northern Command and the North American Aerospace Defense Command) characterize(d) Russia as the ‘primary military threat’ to the US, and referenced Russian efforts to deploy new hypersonic and cruise missiles and other stealthy strike weapons which can evade detection and ‘strike targets in our homeland with multiple vectors of attack and in all domains’. VanHerck pointed to Russian plans to deploy new long-range missiles which could reach the US from both northern or southern trajectories, and said such attack vectors would deprive US leaders of the ability to respond effectively to protect government functions and order retaliatory strikes. ‘Quite bluntly, my ability to conduct missions assigned to US NORTHCOM and NORAD has eroded and continues to erode,’ VanHerck said, speaking to members of the Senate Armed Services Committee at a closed briefing last month.” (sputniknews.com 6/3/22)
“President Vladimir Putin warned the United States in an interview broadcast on Sunday that Russia would strike new targets if the West supplied longer-range missiles to Ukraine for use in high-precision mobile rocket systems. If longer-range missiles are supplied, ‘we will strike at those targets which we have not yet been hitting,’ Putin was told the Rossiya-1 state television channel in an interview.” (reuters.com 6/4/22)
“The longer the range of weapons that Western countries will supply to Ukraine, the further Moscow will move away the line of threat from its territory, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said at an online press conference on international issues on Monday. ‘Russian President Vladimir Putin has already commented on the situation that will emerge with the arrival of new armaments and I can only add that the longer the range of armaments that you will supply, the further away we will move from our territory the line, beyond which Neo-Nazis can threaten the Russian Federation,’ Lavrov cautioned.” (tass.com 6/6/22)
“The Ukrainians are still fighting back, but they are running out of ammunition and suffering casualties at a far higher rate than in the initial stages of the war. Around 200 Ukrainian soldiers are now being killed every day, up from 100 late last month, an aide to President Volodymyr Zelensky told the BBC on Friday — meaning that as many as 1,000 Ukrainians are being taken out of the fight every day, including those who are injured.
Ukrainian and U.S. hopes that the new supplies of Western weaponry would enable Ukraine to regain the initiative and eventually retake the estimated 20 percent of Ukrainian territory captured by Russia since its Feb. 24 invasion are starting to look premature, said Oleksandr V. Danylyuk, an adviser to the Ukrainian government on defense and intelligence issues.” (washingtonpost.com 6/10/22)
“The West could provide Ukraine with nuclear weapons to help defend itself against Russia, Radoslaw Sikorski, a member of the European Parliament and former Polish foreign minister, said. ‘The West has the right to give Ukraine nuclear warheads so that it could protect its independence,’ Sikorski told Ukraine’s Espreso TV on Saturday. Sikorski, who served as Poland’s foreign minister between 2007 and 2014, argued that Russia violated the Budapest Memorandum. Under the 1994 document signed by Ukraine, Russia, Britain, and the US, Kiev agreed to surrender its Soviet-era nuclear arsenal. The signatories promised to ‘respect the independence and sovereignty and the existing borders of Ukraine.’” (rt.com 6/12/22)
“China is ready to continue to support each other with Russia on issues of sovereignty and security” – Xi Jinping in a conversation with Putin. (6/14/22)
“Ukraine should target the bridge connecting Crimea to the Russian mainland via the Kerch Strait as soon as it gets the required weapons from the West, Major General Dmitry Marchenko said on Wednesday in an interview with US state-run media. ‘The Kerch Bridge is absolutely our number one target,’ Marchenko told Crimea Realities (Krym.Realii), speaking of the longest such construction in Europe, opened in 2018. The website is a project of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, part of the government-controlled US Agency for Global Media. ‘As the main way of sending in reserves, we just have to cut it off. As soon as that road is cut off, they will start to panic. And believe me, those who flew Russian flags in Simferopol will quickly get Ukrainian flags and start flying them instead,’ he said. (rt.com 6/15/22)
"‘Just a question,’ Dmitry Medvedev wrote on his Telegram channel. ‘Who said that in two years Ukraine will even exist on the world map?’ Medvedev, Russian Security County Deputy Chairman, made the alarming comments in reference to reports that the United States may consider supplying Ukraine with liquefied natural gas (LNG) under a "lend-lease" program ahead of the autumn and winter months amid Putin's war. ‘I saw a message that Ukraine wants to receive LNG from its overseas owners with payment for delivery in 2 years. Otherwise, the coming winter will simply freeze," Medvedev wrote, before he expressed doubts about Ukraine's existence in 2024. ‘The Americans don't care anymore,’ he added. ‘They have invested so much in the 'anti-Russia' project that everything else means nothing to them.’” (newsweek.com 6/15/22)
"The Russian Foreign Ministry’s official spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova, said it was no longer possible for Ukraine to return to its previous borders. 'The Ukraine that you and I had known, within the borders that used to be, no longer exists, and will never exist again. This is evident,' the diplomat said in an interview to Sky News - Arabia, published in her Telegram channel on Friday.” (tass.com 6/18/22)
“Lithuania has told the Russian region of Kaliningrad that it will block the import and export of a large number of goods by rail because of Western sanctions, the regional governor said on Friday. The region - home to the Russian Baltic Fleet and a deployment location for nuclear-capable Iskander missiles - is sandwiched on the Baltic coast between Lithuania and Poland, both Nato members, and has no land border with Russia. Governor Anton Alikhanov said the clampdown would affect between 40 percent to 50 percent of the products that are imported to and exported from Russia through Lithuania. ‘We consider this to be a most serious violation ... of the right to free transit into and out of Kaliningrad region,’ he said in an online video posting, adding that authorities would press to have the measures lifted. Urging citizens not to resort to panic buying, Alikhanov said two vessels were already ferrying goods between Kaliningrad and Saint Petersburg, and seven more would be in service by the end of the year. ‘Our ferries will handle all the cargo’”, he said on Saturday.” (https://news.rthk.hk/rthk 6/18/22)
The three decade long pact formally establishing the Lithuanian frontier with the Russian Federation included transit rights to Kaliningrad. Now that the Lithuanians have reneged on transportation rights for Russian trains to Kaliningrad, does that mean the border agreement is null and void as well? Lithuania is a NATO member, so if Russia breaks the blockade will the West respond, thus triggering WW III?
“Lithuania should have realized that it will face serious consequences for restricting railroad transits of goods to Russia’s exclave region of Kaliningrad, Russia’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said on Tuesday. ‘They should be aware of consequences, and the consequences will follow, unfortunately,’ Maria Zakharova told the Solovyov Live television channel. If Russia qualifies other countries’ decisions as ‘openly hostile,’ there won’t be any attempts to find a ‘formula’ to defuse the situation, Zakharova said. ‘Such steps are inadmissible, they will bring about an appropriate response,’ the diplomat said.” (tass.com 6/21/22)
“NATO member state Lithuania is now effectively engaged in ‘direct aggression’ against Russia, senator Andrey Klimov argued in a Telegram post on Monday, citing Vilnius’ decision to stop the transit of sanctioned goods to Russia’s exclave of Kaliningrad. According to the Russian politician, who heads a commission for the defense of state sovereignty, by refusing to let certain goods pass through its territory to the Russian region, Lithuania has violated a treaty signed between Moscow and Brussels 20 years ago. Unless the EU brings its member state to heel and forces it to respect the accord, a huge question mark would be hanging over the legal basis for Lithuania’s membership in the bloc, Klimov argued. The senator stressed that in this case, Moscow would have a free hand to ‘solve the problem of the Kaliningrad transit created by Lithuania by ANY means chosen by us.’” (rt.com 6/21/22)
“Russia's response to the restrictions targeting cargo transit from Kaliningrad through Lithuania will NOT be diplomatic - Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova.” (@intelrepublic 6/22/22)
“With the success of Russia’s operations in Ukraine, we have to be concerned about NATO reacting to their strategic defeat by shifting their aggression not only to intense economic and propaganda warfare against Russia but also against Russia’s position in the Baltic region. The blockade imposed on Kaliningrad on June 20th by Lithuania, a NATO member, and approved by the European Union, on the pretext of enforcing their illegal ‘sanctions,’ is a direct act of war against Russia which will lead to immediate action by Russia to end the blockade, and follows the NATO logic which has been expressed openly for some time.” (Christopher Black journal-neo.org 6/24/22)
“Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday told his counterpart from Belarus that Moscow would supply Minsk with missile systems capable of carrying nuclear weapons, the Russian foreign ministry said. At a meeting with Putin in St Petersburg, Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko expressed concern about the ‘aggressive’, ‘confrontational’ and ‘repulsive’ policies of its neighbours Lithuania and Poland. He asked Putin to help Belarus mount a ‘symmetrical response’ to what he said were nuclear-armed flights by the U.S.-led NATO alliance near Belarus' borders. In the past week, Lithuania in particular has infuriated Russia by blocking the transit of goods subject to European sanctions travelling across its territory from Russia, through Belarus, to Russia's Baltic exclave of Kaliningrad.” (usnews.com 6/25/22)
“Russian forces launched missile attacks from Belarus on Saturday in the first strikes of their kind since Russia abandoned its offensives north and east of Kyiv. A wave of six Russian Tu-22M3 “Backfire” bombers launched 12 Kh-22 cruise missiles from Belarusian airspace at ground targets in Kyiv, Chernihiv, and Sumy oblasts. The Ukrainian government claimed this is thus far the first time Russian aircraft have launched airstrikes on Ukrainian territory from Belarusian airspace.” (thedrive.com 6/25/22)
Deputy Chairman of Russia’s Security Council Dmitry Medvedev has said Moscow could respond to Lithuania’s ban of transit to Kaliningrad by taking economic measures that have the potential to pull the plug on the Baltic nation. ‘Let's face it, the restriction of transit is part of the proxy war that the West has unleashed against Russia,’ Medvedev said in an interview to the Argumenty i Fakty newspaper, an excerpt of which was published on Monday. ‘Naturally, Russia will take retaliatory measures, and they will be very tough.’ He said a significant proportion of the possible retaliatory moves is economic and "is capable of pulling the plug on the Baltic neighbors that have acted in a hostile manner.” (tass.com 6/27/22)
“Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has warned the West that continuing to supply Ukraine with advanced weaponry will only prolong the conflict in the east European country. Speaking at a press conference, on Tuesday, the veteran diplomat stated that the position of the West regarding Ukraine is ‘absolutely counterproductive and harmful.’ Pumping up Ukraine with Western weapons will only lead Russia ‘to perform more missions on the ground,’ he added. ‘The more weapons are pumped into Ukraine, the longer this conflict will last, the longer the agony of the Nazi regime, which is supported by Western capitals, will last.’” (rt.com 6/29/22)
“NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters on Wednesday that increases in military spending and rising numbers of troop deployments in Eastern Europe since 2014 were carried out in anticipation of a conflict with Russia. Speaking after a meeting of NATO members and partner states in Madrid, Stoltenberg accused Moscow of ‘using force in the eastern Donbass since 2014,’ despite the fact that Kiev’s forces have been shelling cities in the region ever since the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics declared independence from Ukraine that year.” (rt.com 6/29/22)
“Lithuania’s Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė said that the country will continue to implement the terms of the fourth package of EU sanctions against Russia and stop the transit of other goods to Kaliningrad Oblast from July 10, when the restrictions are set to come into effect. ‘Carriers were informed that from July 10, certain guidelines regarding sanctions will come into force, so that they do not load cargo after that date,’" she said. (ukrinform.net 6/30/22)
“The European Commission plans to issue a clarification that will allow Russia to resume sending supplies to the exclave of Kaliningrad via Lithuania. Berlin supports the idea, but some in Vilnius are not pleased. DER SPIEGEL has learned that the European Commission intends to publish a clarification on the issue in the coming days. Its key message will be that Moscow will be allowed to use the transit route for all goods, but only limited amounts. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is eager to avoid unnecessary provocations of Russia. He has repeatedly emphasized that he would do everything in his power to ensure that NATO does not become a party to the war between Russia and Ukraine. German soldiers are stationed in Lithuania and could become involved in a possible conflict.
‘It’s not us that changed position,’ is a statement heard frequently from sources close to the Lithuanian government these days. And discontent with Berlin is significant. ‘The Germans have been putting pressure on the EU Commission since June 18 to ensure that the sanctions do not apply to Kaliningrad,’ says a Lithuanian representative who is familiar with the negotiations.” (spiegel.de 7/1/22)
Meanwhile, “The last remnants of Ukrainian forces have been driven out of the Lugansk People’s Republic (LPR), Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu announced on Sunday. He reported the news to President Vladimir Putin, the Defense Ministry said in a statement. Shoigu said Russian troops and Donbass forces had completely seized Lisichansk, the last major city which had remained under Ukrainian control since 2014, when the LPR declared its independence shortly after a coup in Kiev.” (rt.com 7/3/22)
“Today we hear that they want to defeat us on the battlefield. What can you say, let them try,” Putin said in televised remarks to parliamentary leaders. “We have heard many times that the West wants to fight us to the last Ukrainian. This is a tragedy for the Ukrainian people, but it seems that everything is heading towards this. Everyone should know that, by and large, we haven’t started anything yet in earnest,” he added. “At the same time, we don’t reject peace talks. But those who reject them should know that the further it goes, the harder it will be for them to negotiate with us.” (nationalpost.com 7/7/22)
“They should have realized that they had already lost from the very beginning of our special military operation, because its beginning also means the beginning of a complete breakdown of the American world order.” Vladimir Putin (rt.com 7/7/22)
“Russia warned Lithuania and the European Union on Friday that it could adopt ‘harsh measures’ against them if the transit of some goods to and from the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad did not resume. ‘If the situation does not stabilize in the coming days, then Russia will take harsh measures against Lithuania and the European Union,’ Maria Zakharova, spokesperson of the Russian foreign ministry, said in a statement. ‘The issue has taken too long to resolve.’ (reuters.com 7/8/22)
“Governor of Russia’s Kaliningrad Region Anton Alikhanov has proposed a total ban on the movement of goods between Russia and the three Baltic states in response to what authorities in the exclave have called a ‘blockade’ by Lithuania.
‘As a reciprocal measure we propose to completely prohibit the movement of goods (including those in transit from third countries) between the three Baltic States and Russia,’ Alikhanov said on Monday, adding that Kaliningrad Region would be exempted from the ban.” (rt.com 7/11/22)
“The EU is in talks with Lithuania on lifting sanctions on the transit of goods to Russia’s exclave of Kaliningrad, the newspaper Izvestia reported on Wednesday, citing two unnamed Russian officials. The officials told the news outlet that the EU had sent a draft document to Moscow in early July outlining that the transit of goods by both rail and road from mainland Russia to Kaliningrad would be removed from sanctions. However, the sources said that Vilnius, which previously blocked shipments of goods to the region via Lithuania’s territory in order to comply with sanctions, has not yet agreed to finalize the document.” (rt.com 7/13/22)
“Russia is in a ‘world war’ with Western nations amid Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Wednesday. ‘We should understand that amid the world war, all the talks that it's is a regional or a local war must be dropped,’ Vucic, an ally of Putin, told independent Serbian TV channel Pink in an interview. ‘The entire Western world is fighting against Russia via Ukrainians. It is a global conflict,’ he said, according to Russia's state-run news agency TASS.” (newsweek.com 7/14/22)
“Committee of Constitutional Legislation of Russia’s Federation Council, Andrey Klishas, called for extending the special military operation to the entirety of ‘Ukraine’:
‘Threats from the Ukrainian junta to attack Crimea or the Crimean bridge only confirm that ‘denazification’ and demilitarization must be carried out throughout the whole of Ukraine, otherwise there will always be a threat to our territory, our citizens and infrastructure’”. (rt.com 7/16/22)
“If Ukraine receives long-range weapons from Western countries, then the geographical tasks of the special operation of the Russian troops will change, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in an interview with Margarita Simonyan, editor-in-chief of RT and the Rossiya Segodnya media group.
‘The President said very clearly, as you quoted him - denazification, demilitarization in the sense that there are no threats to our security, military threats from the territory of Ukraine, this task remains,’ the minister stressed.” (RIA Novosti 7/20/22)
World War III averted? “The Baltic state of Lithuania has lifted a ban on the rail transport of sanctioned goods into and out of the Russian territory of Kaliningrad, Russia's RIA news agency said on Friday.” (reuters.com 7/22/22)
“Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov views the resolution of the cargo transit crisis to Russia’s westernmost exclave of Kaliningrad as a positive development. ‘The crisis situation has been resolved, it is a positive development. Sometimes we see some seeds of common sense even amid an anti-Russia hysteria. Let’s hope that these seeds will continue to bear fruit,’ he told reporters on Wednesday.” (tass.com 7/27/22)
“Russia's decades long attempt to integrate with the west is not only over, but even cooperation is now off the cards, a senior strategist in Moscow has warned. Aleksey Drobinin, head of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Foreign Policy Planning Department, believes that future dealings can only take place on a ‘transactional’ basis.‘Regardless of the duration and outcome of the special military operation, even now we can acknowledge that a three-decade-long period of mostly constructive, if problematic cooperation with the West is gone for good,’ he said.” (rt.com 8/3/22)
“Tallinn and Helsinki have discussed the integration of coastal missile batteries that would enable the two Western states to blockade the Russian Navy in the Gulf of Finland, Estonia’s defense minister announced on Friday. This would turn the Baltic Sea into a ‘NATO internal sea,’ the official said, echoing comments made earlier by Polish and Lithuanian leaders. Finland has applied to join the US-led military bloc.” (rt.com 8/12/22)
“If the US designates Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism, it would represent ‘a point of no return’ in relations between the two countries, and Washington is aware of that, Moscow has explained. In an interview with TASS published on Saturday, the head of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s North American Department, Aleksandr Darichev, was asked about the possibility of downgrading relations with the US over its support for Ukraine in the conflict with Russia and the unprecedented sanctions imposed on Moscow.” (rt.com 8/13/22)
“Western curators have practically written off the Kyiv regime and are already planning the partition of Ukraine, Foreign Intelligence Service spokesman Colonel-General Volodymyr Matveev said at the Moscow Conference on International Security. ‘Obviously, the West is not concerned about the fate of the Kyiv regime. As can be seen from the information received by the SVR, Western curators have almost written it off and are in full swing developing plans for the division and occupation of at least part of the Ukrainian lands,’ he said. However, according to the general, much more is at stake than Ukraine: for Washington and its allies, it is about the fate of the colonial system of world domination.” (MOSCOW, August 16 - RIA Novosti)
“Three Mig-31 supersonic interceptor aircraft carrying Kinzhal air-to-surface hypersonic missiles have been deployed to Russia’s western exclave of Kaliningrad, the country’s Defense Ministry has announced. On Thursday, the planes were relocated to Chkalovsk airfield in Kaliningrad Region as part of “additional strategic deterrence measures,” the ministry explained.” (rt.com 8/18/22)
“Russian President Vladimir Putin is on a visit to Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia's semi-exclave in Europe, Report informs via the Russian state media. According to information, the main part of his program for the region is dedicated to Knowledge Day, as the head of state will hold the first one-on-one meeting of the Russian movement of children and youth board members. He will also visit the museum and the theater educational complex and hold an open class titled ‘Conversation on important issues’ in which the winners of the Olympiads and competitions in the fields of culture, art, science, and sports will participate.” (report.az 9/1/22)
“A senior Russian diplomat sternly warned Washington Friday against supplying long-range weapons to Ukraine, noting that the U.S. is balancing on the edge of direct involvement in the conflict. Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov also pointed to the country's military doctrine that envisages the use of nuclear weapons in case of a threat to the existence of the Russian state. ‘We have repeatedly warned the U.S. about the consequences that may follow if the U.S. continues to flood Ukraine with weapons,’ Ryabkov said. ‘It effectively puts itself in a state close to what can be described as a party to the conflict.’” (yahoo.com 9/2/22)
“A total war has been declared against Russia, and it’s being waged in hybrid forms in all areas, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov has claimed. ‘The seriousness of the current period shouldn’t be underestimated,’ Ryabkov warned in an interview with the magazine International Affairs on Tuesday. ‘A total war has been declared against us. It’s being waged in hybrid forms, in all areas,’ the diplomat said, apparently referring to the lavish military and financial aid provided to Ukraine by the US, EU and other countries amid its conflict with Russia, as well as the harsh sanctions imposed on Moscow by the West. ‘The degree of animosity of our opponents – of our enemies – is enormous, extraordinary,’ Ryabkov pointed out.” (rt.com 9/6/22)
“The hybrid war that the West has been waging against Russia for many years has now scaled up to an ‘unprecedented’ level, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Tuesday. ‘The aim [of the hybrid war] is being declared openly’, Lavrov explained during the ministry's Business Council meeting. The goal is ‘to destroy the economy, push our country to the backyard of the world politics. Recently, they’ve been calling to openly use sanctions to undermine stability in Russia,’ he stated. Lavrov stressed that the ministry’s priority is to promote sustainable relations ‘with all interested foreign partners’ based on mutual respect and cooperation.” (rt.com 9/13/22)
“It is cause for ‘deep concern’ that the US government is ‘openly boasting’ that Ukraine’s battlefield successes were achieved with the Pentagon’s direct involvement, the Russian ambassador to Washington, Anatoly Antonov, said in an interview on Wednesday. ‘Against this background, Washington’s statements that the US is not a party to the conflict sound absolutely ridiculous and unfounded,’ Antonov told RIA Novosti. ‘Facts and interviews of former and current politicians and generals say otherwise. Videos currently shown on Western channels clearly demonstrate that soldiers and officers who speak fluent English, many with pronounced British and American accents, are fighting against us,’ the ambassador added. The US has done everything to turn Ukraine into a dumping ground for its obsolete weapons, but also a testing range for new NATO equipment, Antonov said, pointing out the insatiable appetite of the US military-industrial complex for profits.” (rt.com 9/14/22)
“Possible supplies of longer-range missiles to Kiev by Washington will be tantamount to crossing a red line and making the United States a direct party to the conflict, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told a news briefing on Thursday, adding that in this case Moscow would be forced to react ‘appropriately.’ ‘Should Washington decide to supply longer-range missiles to Kiev, by doing so it will cross a red line and become a direct party to the conflict. Under such a scenario, we will be forced to respond appropriately,’ she said. Zakharova warned that Russia reserved the right to defend its territory ‘by all available means.’” (tass.com 9/15/22)
“Terrorist attacks are a serious matter. In fact, it is about using terrorist methods. We see this in the killing of officials in the liberated territories, we even see attempts at perpetrating terrorist attacks in the Russian Federation, including – I am not sure if this was made public – attempts to carry out terrorist attacks near our nuclear facilities, nuclear power plants in the Russian Federation. I am not even talking about the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant. We are monitoring the situation and will do our best to prevent a negative scenario from unfolding. We will respond if they fail to realise that these approaches are unacceptable. They are, in fact, no different than terrorist attacks,” said Putin at the SCO summit in Samarkand (en.kremlin.ru 9/16/22)
“The Russian Defense Ministry has stated that its artillery and Air Force landed a series of strikes against Ukrainian command centers and footholds, as well as a local base of the US private military company helping Kiev's forces.The ministry specified that the mercenary base belonged to the Academi PMC – formerly known as the notorious Blackwater company. It was situated near the town of Krasatorsk, in the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR).” (sputniknews.com 9/18/22)
“In his TV address on Wednesday, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said that Russia was at war with the collective West rather than Ukraine. ‘In reality, we are fighting the collective West plus NATO. When we speak about it, we mean not only the weapons being supplied [to Kiev] in huge batches, but also about systems of communication and information processing systems,’ Shoigu said.
The Western states as well as NATO, he said, are supplying Kiev with ‘huge’ amounts of weapons. The minister went on to stress that the Ukrainian forces are increasingly using Western weapons to target civilian infrastructure, including hospitals. He stressed that more than 70 military satellites and 200 civilian satellites are working to aid Ukraine and added that some 150 Western military specialists have been deployed to Kiev, de facto leading Ukrainian forces.” (sputniknews.com 9/21/22)
“Washington, London and Brussels are openly encouraging Kiev to move the hostilities to our territory. They openly say that Russia must be defeated on the battlefield by any means, and subsequently deprived of political, economic, cultural and any other sovereignty and ransacked.
They have even resorted to the nuclear blackmail. I am referring not only to the Western-encouraged shelling of the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant, which poses a threat of a nuclear disaster, but also to the statements made by some high-ranking representatives of the leading NATO countries on the possibility and admissibility of using weapons of mass destruction – nuclear weapons – against Russia.
I would like to remind those who make such statements regarding Russia that our country has different types of weapons as well, and some of them are more modern than the weapons NATO countries have. In the event of a threat to the territorial integrity of our country and to defend Russia and our people, we will certainly make use of all weapon systems available to us. This is not a bluff.” (Vladimir Putin 9/21/22)
"We have no doubt that Ukraine has finally become a totalitarian State of the Nazi persuasion, where the norms of international humanitarian law are violated with impunity. It is not surprising that the Armed Forces of Ukraine and nationalist battalions use terrorist tactics, using civilians as human shields. Against this background, the position of those states that pump Ukraine with weapons and military equipment, train the personnel of the Armed Forces of Ukraine is especially cynical. The goal is obvious (they do not hide it, but declare it): to prolong the fighting as much as possible, despite the casualties and destruction, in order to exhaust and weaken Russia. Such a line means the direct involvement of Western countries in the Ukrainian conflict, making them a party to it. The deliberate fomenting of this conflict by the ‘collective West’ also goes unpunished. Indeed, they will not punish themselves.
We have no illusions that today the Armed Forces of Russia and the militias of the DPR and LPR are opposed not only by the neo-Nazi formations of the Kiev regime, but also by the military machine of the 'collective' West. In real time, using modern systems, aircraft, ships, satellites, strategic drones, NATO supplies the Armed Forces of Ukraine with intelligence, insisting that Russia must be defeated on the battlefield (this is directly stated by EU officials) and deprived of any sovereignty as a punishment. This is no longer latent racism, but the most blatant one.” (Sergey Lavrov speech to the UN Security Council 9/22/22).
“Lavrov recalled (@ the UN Security Council) that since the end of July, the Ukrainian armed forces have been remotely mining the center and suburbs of Donetsk with the banned anti-personnel mines “Lepestok”, but their use violates the 1997 contract ratified by Ukraine, as well as the 1997 contract ratified by Ukraine. The second protocol of the Geneva Convention on the prohibition of non-self-destructing mines. ‘Such atrocities were made possible and unpunished because the United States and its allies, with the connivance of international human rights institutions, systematically covered up the crimes of the Kyiv regime for eight years and formulated their policy toward Zelensky based on the well-known American principle: ‘he may be a son of a bitch, but he’s our son of a bitch’,” Lavrov said.’ (sputniknews.com 9/22/22)
“Asked about recent comments from US Secretary of State Antony Blinken – who said the White House has no problem with Kiev using Western arms to attack territories that voted to join Russia – Ambassador Anatoly Antonov warned that the weapons shipments only risk “further escalation of the conflict.” “In instigating Kiev to continue using the military equipment received from the West, Washington does not realize the riskiness of its actions,” the envoy said on Tuesday, adding that the Joe Biden administration is “approaching the dangerous line that Russia has repeatedly and clearly warned about: the United States becoming a party to the Ukrainian conflict.”
Earlier in the day, Blinken insisted the US “will never recognize the annexation of Ukrainian territory by Russia,” referring to votes in the two Donbass republics already recognized by Moscow – Donetsk and Lugansk – as well as the Ukrainian regions of Zaporozhye and Kherson, which are largely under the control of the Russian military. All four regions voted overwhelmingly to join Russia, according to local referendum observers.” (rt.com 9/28/22)
“Russia will soon transition from conducting a “special military operation” to a de-facto anti-terrorist operation to defend its own territory, the head of the Republic of Crimea, Sergey Aksyonov, said on Monday. Anticipating the results of the vote in Donbass republics Kherson and Zaporozhye, Aksyonov said this would lead to greater clarity and determination.
“Soon we will pass a certain point of no return. A new status for the liberated territories will put an end to uncertainty,” the Crimean governor said. “They will become full-fledged subjects of the Russian Federation, and we will de facto stop conducting a special military operation and start a counter-terrorist operation on our own territory.” (rt.com 9/28/22)
“The US is risking destruction by engaging in nuclear brinkmanship against Russia, Moscow’s envoy to Washington has warned. There can be no such thing as a limited conflict of this nature, Anatoly Antonov said. The Russian ambassador claimed that American military planners ‘apparently hope that the United States would be able to take cover behind the ocean if nuclear weapons are used in Europe, and warned against such a gamble. It is safe to assume that any use of nuclear weapons could quickly lead to an escalation of a local or regional conflict into a global one,’ he wrote in an article published by The National Interest magazine on Wednesday.
The risk of escalation is coming from the US, and not Russia, Antonov said. Washington has been for decades encroaching on Russian borders with NATO expansion and dismantling various strategic arms control treaties with Russia, he pointed out. Moscow’s complaints that its national security was being compromised were simply ignored, the diplomat added, which led the country to believe that the US simply wants ‘to gain security advantages, especially in confronting Russia and achieve global military dominance.’” (rt.com 9/29/22)
“President Vladimir Putin has signed treaties on the inclusion of four former Ukrainian regions, into the Russian Federation. Friday’s ceremony marked the start of the formal process of their accession. The heads of the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics, Denis Pushilin and Leonid Pasechnik, as well as the leaders of Kherson and Zaporozhye, Vladimir Saldo and Evgeny Balitsky, signed the documents together with Putin.” (rt.com 9/30/22)
"I am sure that the Federal Assembly will support the constitutional laws on the admission and formation in Russia of four new regions, of four new subjects of the Russian Federation, because this is the will of millions of people," Putin said. "This is of course their right, their inalienable right, enshrined in Article 1 of the United Nations Charter, where the principle of equality and self-determination of peoples is stated directly," he added.” (sputniknews.com 9/30/22)
“Russia will view strikes on its new territories as an act of aggression, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters Friday. ‘It will be nothing else,’ the spokesman said, answering a question if Moscow will view Ukrainian strikes on the new territories as an act of aggression against Russia.” (tass.com 9/30/22)
As if proof were needed: “The US views the sabotage of the Nord Stream gas pipelines as a ‘tremendous opportunity’ to wean EU states off Russian energy, Secretary of State Antony Blinken told reporters on Friday. With winter approaching, Blinken said that the US wants the bloc to use less fuel. Washington has for years been trying to convince EU leaders to swap Russian gas for its LNG.
Speaking to reporters in Washington, Blinken boasted that the US is now ‘the leading supplier of [liquefied natural gas] to Europe.’ In addition to shipping its own fuel to Europe, Blinken said that the US is working with European leaders to find ways to ‘decrease demand’ and ‘speed up the transition to renewables. It’s a tremendous opportunity to once and for all remove the dependence on Russian energy and thus to take away from [Russian President] Vladimir Putin the weaponization of energy as a means of advancing his imperial designs,’ Blinken declared.” (rt.com 10/1/22)
“Russia is currently involved in a confrontation with the ‘Fourth European NATO Reich,’ the Communist Party (CPRF) leader, Gennady Zyuganov, claims. ‘We must be well aware that a new army has gathered against us. The Fourth European NATO Reich, where thirty countries united all their regiments and armies,’ Zyuganov said while addressing the State Duma on Monday.” (rt.com 10/3/22)
“The United States, in the context of the conflict in Ukraine, deploys components of civilian infrastructure in space for military purposes, but such quasi-civilian infrastructure may be a legitimate target for retaliation. This is stated in a statement by Vladimir Yermakov, Director of the Department for Non-Proliferation and Arms Control of the Russian Foreign Ministry, announced on Tuesday at a meeting of the First Committee of the UN General Assembly. The text was read by his deputy Konstantin Vorontsov. ‘In the course of the events in Ukraine, a new extremely dangerous trend has emerged. We are talking about the use by the United States and its allies of civilian infrastructure components in space, including commercial ones, for military purposes,’ the diplomat said. ‘Such activities, in fact, represent indirect participation in armed conflicts, and quasi-civilian infrastructure can be a legitimate target for retaliation. As a result of the actions of the West, the sustainability of peaceful space activities, as well as numerous socio-economic processes on Earth, on which the well-being of people depends, are exposed to undue risks.’” (tass.com 10/4/22)
“Washington’s decision to continue its arms supplies to Kiev seals its status of a participant in the conflict, Russian Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov said on Wednesday. ‘The administration’s decision to continue pumping the Kiev regime with heavy weapons only secures Washington’s status as a participant of the conflict,’ he said in a statement. ‘We perceive this as an immediate threat to the strategic interests of our country.’ According to the Russian diplomat, ‘the supply of military products by the US and its allies not only entails protracted bloodshed and new casualties, but also increases the danger of a direct military clash between Russia and Western countries. We call on Washington to stop its provocative actions that could lead to the most serious consequences,’ he added.” (tass.com 10/5/22)
“President Volodymyr Zelensky said that NATO should review the procedure for using its pressure in order to prevent the use of nuclear weapons by Russia. ‘What NATO should do is to make it impossible for Russia to use nuclear weapons. We need preventive strikes so that they know what awaits them if they use nuclear weapons. It is not the other way around - to wait for Russia's nuclear strikes to then say: Ah, you do this, then get the answer,’ the head of state emphasized during a speech at Australia's Lowy Institute. According to Zelensky, NATO ‘must reconsider the procedure for using its pressure.’” (censor.net 10/6/22)
“Vladimir Zelensky's statement about a preemptive strike against Russia essentially means a call for the start of a world war, said presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov. According to him, in the event of a conflict, the consequences will be monstrous and unpredictable. The presidential press secretary noted that all countries, especially the United States, Great Britain and members of the European Union, should pay attention to the statements of the President of Ukraine. He stressed that these words should not be left without the reaction of the world community. In addition, given the fact that Washington and London actually direct the activities of Kyiv, they are responsible for the words of Zelensky, Peskov stressed.” (October 6 - RIA Novosti)
“The blast that rocked the Crimean Bridge early on Saturday is just ‘the beginning,’ a top aide to Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky has warned. ‘Crimea, the bridge, the beginning,’ Mikhail Podoliak tweeted. ‘Everything illegal must be destroyed, everything stolen must be returned to Ukraine, everything occupied by Russia must be expelled.’ The former journalist, who is effectively the Kiev regime's main propagandist, controls the president's ‘information policy.’ He previously warned, in August, that Europe’s largest bridge ‘should be destroyed’ because it’s ‘an illegal construction and the main gateway to supply the Russian army in Crimea.’ ‘The reaction of the Kiev regime to the destruction of civilian infrastructure testifies to its terrorist nature,’ Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zakharova wrote on Telegram several hours after the blast.” (rt.com 10/8/22)
“Ukrainian intelligence is behind the deadly attack on the Crimean Bridge, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Sunday following a report by the head of the national Investigative Committee, Aleksandr Bastrykin. The attack was organized by the Ukrainian security services, which were ‘aided’ by some Russian and foreign nationals, according to Bastrykin. The Investigative Committee head also said that the Federal Security Service (FSB) had identified suspects in the blast. The attack on the bridge was aimed at Russia’s ‘critical infrastructure, Bastrykin said, adding that it was ‘an act of terrorism.’” (rt.com 10/9/22)
"This morning, on the initiative of the Ministry of Defense and according to a plan [formulated by] the Russian General Staff, massed strikes were carried out using high-precision, long-range air, sea and land-based weapons against energy, military command and communications facilities of Ukraine. If attempts to carry out terrorist attacks against our territory continue, Russia's responses will be tough and will correspond in scale to the level of threat posed to the Russian Federation," Putin warned.” (sputniknews.com 10/10/22)
“Russia and Belarus have begun forming a joint force, which will include several thousand Russian troops, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko announced on Monday during a security meeting. He said the move comes in response to increased aggression from Kiev and the West. “In response to the aggravation on the western border of the Union State [of Russia and Belarus], we agreed to deploy a regional grouping of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus. Kiev is not just discussing, but is planning an attack on the territory of Belarus. Of course, the Ukrainians absolutely don’t need this. Why would they open a second front on our southern borders? What for? This is complete madness from a military point of view,” Lukashenko said. (rt.com 10/10/22)
“‘The Kyiv regime has become of terrorist nature. There are regular attacks on critical infrastructure of Zaporizhzhia and Kursk nuclear power plants, murders of public figures on the territory of Ukraine and Russia, act of sabotage at the Crimean Bridge,’ posted the Chairman of the State Duma Vyacheslav Volodin on his Telegram channel. According to him, Zelensky's actions caused sufferings to the Ukrainian people, ‘who, in fact, are hostages of his Nazi policies. The President of Ukraine by giving orders to commit terrorist attacks, should be considered equal to Osama bin Laden and other international terrorists,’ emphasized Vyacheslav Volodin.“Western politicians who support the Zelensky regime are sponsoring terrorism,” he stressed. (duma.gov.ru 10/11/22)
“NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg may have inadvertently admitted that the Western military alliance is at war with Moscow, at least in the eyes of former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. At issue is Stoltenberg’s statement on Tuesday that a military victory for Russia in Ukraine would be a defeat for NATO.
Medvedev called the comment “an open confirmation of NATO’s participation in the war against our country – an unwise, but pure-hearted remark. The honest Norwegian fellow has finally admitted it.’” (rt.com 10/12/22)
“Those who benefit the most from the damage caused to the Nord Stream gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea are the ones responsible for it, Russian President Vladmir Putin has said.’ Everybody understands who is behind this and who is the beneficiary. One can now force the liquefied natural gas from the US on to European countries on a much larger scale,’ Putin said in a speech at the Russian Energy Week forum in Moscow on Wednesday.” (rt.com 10/12/22)
“Ukraine is a de facto member of the NATO alliance, despite not having officially joined the US-led military bloc, Kiev’s Defense Minister Aleksey Reznikov has claimed. He made the statement in a tweet following a meeting with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg at the bloc’s headquarters in Brussels on Wednesday. ‘We have come a long way and have de facto joined the alliance,’ the minister wrote, while also thanking Stoltenberg for his support for Ukraine amid its ongoing conflict with Russia. ‘Ukraine is already making significant contributions to the security of the free world,’ the minister added.” (rt.com 10/13/22)
“Putting NATO troops into direct contact with the Russian army would be a foolish step that could lead to ‘global catastrophe,’ Russian President Vladimir Putin warned on Friday, following the Central Asia-Russia summit in Astana, Kazakhstan. Asked whether NATO might send troops into Ukraine if the country was close to defeat in its conflict with Russia, Putin said this would be a ‘dangerous step that could lead to a global catastrophe.” “I hope that those who speak about this will have enough intelligence to prevent such a dangerous step from happening,’ he said.” (rt.com 10/14/22)
“Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin signaled this week that the U.S. and its Western allies are having trouble keeping pace with Ukraine’s demand for the advanced weaponry it needs to fend off Russia’s invasion. That signal reflects dwindling supplies for Ukraine and fear in the White House of escalation that could lead to war between the U.S. and Russia. The risk of reduced U.S. stockpiles of high-end munitions has been reported almost since the U.S. began contributing to Ukraine’s defense. Now, nearly eight months since the start of the war, experts interviewed by Fox News Digital say the U.S. is at or very near the end of its capacity to give. They agreed that Austin’s remarks indicate that the initial rush of high-end munitions like HIMAR rocket launchers, Javelin anti-tank missiles, anti-aircraft Stingers and M-777 Howitzers is over.” (foxnews.com 10/15/22)
“A classified military satellite, designated Kosmos-2560, was launched from the Plesetsk Military Cosmodrome in Russia’s northern Arkhangelsk Region on Saturday evening. Launched on the smallest carrier rocket of the Angara family, the spacecraft ‘successfully reached orbit’ soon after, establishing a radio link with the mission control center and reporting all systems functioning after deployment, the Defense Ministry said in a brief statement.” (rt.com 10/18/22)
“Russia may pull back on its diplomatic efforts in the West, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told new ministry recruits on Tuesday, citing the increasingly open hostility faced by Russian diplomats and the need to focus on building and expanding relationships in the rest of the world. ‘People work in conditions that can hardly be called human,’ Lavrov said, referring to the ‘constant problems, constant threats.’ He added that there is ‘no point’ in maintaining the same level of diplomatic presence.” (rt.com 10/18/22)
“The Ukrainian military has warned Belarus, in a video-address, that it will retaliate against any strikes coming from the neighboring country, amid growing concerns in Kiev that Russia may launch another offensive. ‘If the army of Belarus supports the Russian aggression – we will respond as harshly as we respond to all occupants on the territory of Ukraine, with the use of our whole arsenal of weapons,’ the Ukrainian military warned. This retaliation will include ‘striking military facilities on the territory of your country,’ it added, addressing the Belarusian people.” (rt.com 10/21/22)
“The US Army's 101st Airborne Division would not hesitate to enter Ukraine should a conflict break out between Russia and NATO, CBS News reported on Friday citing the unit’s military commanders. The elite division is currently conducting war games in Romania, close to the country’s border with the war-torn state.
The unit's commanders told CBS that they would be prepared to cross into Ukraine if the fighting escalates – without elaborating what that would entail – or if NATO were to come under attack. They highlighted that their current deployment in Europe, the first since WWII, is ‘to defend NATO territory. We're ready to defend every inch of NATO soil’, Deputy Commander Brigadier General John Lubas told the news network.” (rt.com 10/22/22)
“The US and its allies might directly intervene in the ongoing conflict between Moscow and Kiev, even if there is no threat to any NATO member states, retired US Army general David Petraeus told France’s L’Express weekly on Saturday. Washington might form a new coalition of the willing in such a scenario and use it instead of NATO, Petraeus, who also briefly served as the CIA director, believes. Russia could take some actions in Ukraine that would be ‘so shocking and so horrific’ that it would prompt a response from the US and other nations, he said, adding that they ‘might react in one way or another, but as a multinational force led by the US and not as a NATO force.’” (rt.com 10/23/22)
“Russia is about to greatly enhance its military arsenal, the country’s former president, Dmitry Medvedev, said on Monday, adding that output of tanks, high-precision missiles, drones, and artillery pieces is growing ‘multifold.’ He made the statement after inspecting the production lines of Russia’s leading arms manufacturer, the Uralvagonzavod tank plant.
Medvedev, who is currently the deputy head of the Russian Security Council, posted a video on Telegram showing him touring the production halls of the plant together with a delegation of government officials. The video also featured dozens of modern T-72B3 and T-90M battle tanks under construction at the facility, including ones that appeared to be in the final assembly stage. The official said he has repeatedly seen claims by Western analysts ‘that Russia will soon run out of military equipment and weapons.’” (rt.com 10/24/22)
“The Russian military has information on contacts between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's office and British representatives on the matter of nuclear weapons technology, Igor Kirillov, the head of Russia's Radiation, Chemical and Biological Defense Troops, has revealed.
The senior officer echoed concerns voiced by Defense Minister Shoigu on Sunday - namely that Kiev was ‘planning a provocation involving the detonation of a so-called 'dirty bomb', or a low-yield nuclear weapon,’ and then claiming that the explosion was caused by a Russian tactical nuclear weapon. ‘The purpose of such a provocation is to accuse Russia of using weapons of mass destruction in the Ukrainian theater of operations and thereby launch a powerful anti-Russian campaign throughout the world aimed at undermining global confidence in Moscow,’ Kirillov said.” (sputniknews.com 10/25/22)
“Russian President Vladimir Putin has overseen military drills enacting a retaliatory nuclear strike. Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu described the aim of the drills as testing ‘Russia’s strategic offensive forces’ readiness to conduct a massive nuclear strike in response to an enemy nuclear strike.’
According to the Kremlin, land, sea, and aviation deterrence forces took part in the maneuvers. Targets located on the Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia’s Far East were obliterated by the Yars intercontinental ballistic missile, fired from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in Arkhangelsk Region, and the Sineva ballistic missile, launched from the Barents Sea. Tu-95 strategic bombers also took part in the exercises.” (rt.com 10/26/22)
“The United States will be accelerating its plan to locate upgraded nuclear weapons in European NATO bases as Russia continues to threaten Ukraine, according to a report. Politico reports, citing various sources familiar with the issue, that U.S. officials told NATO allies during a closed-door meeting that an upgraded B61-12 air-dropped gravity bomb initially scheduled to be transported to Europe next Spring, will now arrive this December.
Pentagon spokesman Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder told the outlet the ‘modernization of US B61 nuclear weapons has been underway for years and plans to safely and responsibly swap out older weapons for the upgraded B61-12 versions is part of a long-planned and scheduled modernization effort.’” (foxnews.com 10/27/22)
“Units of the British Navy were involved in a ‘terrorist attack’, which destroyed the key Nord Stream gas pipelines, the Russian Defence Ministry alleged on Saturday. Writing on its official Telegram channel, the ministry alleged that Royal Navy operatives ‘took part in planning, supporting and implementing’ the plot to blow up the infrastructure in September. It did not provide any direct evidence to support its assertion.” (rt.com 10/30/22)
“Russia is considering what ‘further steps’ to take against Britain after alleging that the UK was responsible for an attack on the Nord Stream undersea gas pipelines. ‘Our intelligence services have data indicating that British military specialists were directing and coordinating the attack,’ Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Tuesday. ‘There is evidence that Britain is involved in sabotage, in a terrorist attack on vital energy infrastructure, not just Russian, but international.’” (telegraph.co.uk 11/1/22)
“Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova wants answers regarding the mysterious ‘It’s done’ iPhone message allegedly sent by then-Prime Minister Liz Truss to the US secretary of state moments after the sabotage attacks against the Nord Stream network in late September. ‘To be honest, I don’t care who got this information and how. I’m interested in London’s answer to the following question: Did Prime Minister Liz Truss of Britain send a message to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken immediately after the Nord Stream gas pipeline was blown up with the words ‘It’s done’? Zakharova asked in a Telegram post Tuesday.” (sputniknews.com 11/1/22)
“Russia’s deployment of MiG-31K armed with Kinzhal (NATO nomenclature: AS-24 KILLJOY) missiles to Belarus is drawing the attention of the West, according to a Twitter thread posted by the UK’s Ministry of Defense (MoD) this morning. More than the missiles’ presence, the West appears rattled over the lack of secrecy on the part of Russia over the escalatory deployment.
The combination of MiG-31K and Kinzhal missile is the most potent conventional weapon system in Russia’s arsenal. The deployment puts all possible targets in Europe and the UK, even the most heavily defended ones, at risk. By shunning secrecy, Russia is making sure the West pays attention. Russia’s deterrent messaging includes flying MiG-31Ks, each armed with a Kinzhal missile, over cities in broad daylight and letting Western satellites take a good look at what may well be the next Russian step on the escalation ladder.” (eurasiantimes.com 11/1/22)
“‘This Ukraine crisis that we’re in right now, this is just the warmup,” Navy Admiral Charles Richard, commander of U.S. Strategic Command, said this week at a conference. ‘The big one is coming. And it isn’t going to be very long before we’re going to get tested in ways that we haven’t been tested’ for ‘a long time.’” (wsj.com 11/4/22)
“The blasts that damaged the Nord Stream and Nord Stream 2 pipelines were aimed at cutting mutually beneficial energy ties between Russia and Europe, Russian Ambassador to the US Anatoly Antonov said.
‘An attack on an infrastructure that is unique in terms of security is an extremely dangerous precedent. Any critically significant object, no matter where it is, now falls under threat. Moreover, this act of terrorism could not have been carried out without government involvement,’ he wrote in an article for the National Interest magazine published on Thursday. ‘Obviously, this act of sabotage was aimed at completely breaking up the mutually beneficial energy ties between Europe and Russia. The goal was to radically switch regional consumers to expensive resources. Be it foreign LNG or new clean technologies.’” (tass.com 11/4/22)
“The U.S. is sending Ukraine $400 million more in military aid and establishing a security assistance headquarters in Germany that will oversee all weapons transfers and military training for Ukraine, the Pentagon announced Friday. The new command post, called the Security Assistance Group Ukraine, signals a more permanent, long-term program to continue to aid Kyiv in its fight against Russia, Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh told reporters at the Pentagon.
The new command post that will oversee this aid will be led by a three-star-level senior officer and have about 300 personnel based in Germany who will monitor the weapons assistance and training programs, said U.S. Army Europe spokesman Col. Martin O’Donnell.” (nbcnewyork.com 11/4/22)
“Russia is not engaged in negotiations with the US over Ukraine, a senior Russian diplomat said on Tuesday, signaling, however, that Moscow remains completely open to talks with Kiev. When asked by reporters over possible bilateral talks with Washington on Ukraine, Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko replied, ‘No, we are not.’ However, the diplomat stated that Moscow is ready to hold negotiations with Ukraine ‘without any preconditions,’ except for the key condition – ‘that Ukraine shows goodwill.’” (rt.com 11/8/22)
“A disagreement has emerged at the highest levels of the United States government over whether to press Ukraine to seek a diplomatic end to its war with Russia, with America’s top general urging negotiations while other advisers to President Biden argue that it is too soon. Gen. Mark A. Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has made the case in internal meetings that the Ukrainians have achieved about as much as they could reasonably expect on the battlefield before winter sets in and so they should try to cement their gains at the bargaining table, according to officials informed about the discussions.” (nytimes.com 11/10/22)
“‘Russia alone is fighting NATO and the Western world,’ Medvedev, who is the deputy head of the nation’s Security Council and the leader of the ruling United Russia party, wrote on his Telegram channel on Saturday. ‘We are capable of destroying a mighty enemy or alliances of enemies by ourselves,’ the former president stated, adding that during its military activities Moscow is seeking to preserve the lives of its soldiers and civilians. Medvedev wrote that Russia has not yet used ‘its full arsenal’ of weapons and has not struck ‘all potential enemy targets.’ He added that ‘there is time for everything. It is Russia who today is forming the future world order,’ the ex-president argued, stressing that ‘this new equitable world order will be formed.’” (rt.com 11/12/22)
“As a result of the Russo-Ukrainian War, the U.S. military is confronting Pink Flamingos (a predictable event that is ignored due to cognitive biases of a senior leader or a group of leaders trapped by powerful institutional forces). When Russia invaded Ukraine, the United States began moving large amounts of munitions to that country, including 1,400 Stinger man-portable anti-aircraft systems; 8,500 Javelin anti-tank systems; 38,000 other anti-armor systems; 1,500 TOW anti-tank missiles; 150 155mm and 105mm artillery pieces; dozens of long-range missiles for both the MLRS and HIMARS rocket artillery systems; one million unguided 155mm howitzer rounds; 9,000 155mm rounds of Remote Anti-Armor Mine (RAAM) Systems; and several thousand precision guided 155mm artillery shells.
As a consequence, the United States faces a munitions crisis. The drawdown of U.S. munitions stocks has reached a critical point as demand for these bombs, shells, and missiles has risen dramatically. Unfortunately, decades of underfunding have resulted in a defense industrial base with little surge capacity.” (nationalinterest.org 11/10/22)
“I am convinced now is the time when the Russian destructive war must and can be stopped...However, Ukraine shouldn’t be offered compromises with its sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence...Obviously, Russia’s words can’t be trusted, and there will be no Minsk-3 that Russia will violate immediately after the signing”—and in immediate response to President Zelensky’s comments, it saw Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov warning: “I’ve made only one conclusion from his speech: that he’s still not listening to any advice from the West...I reminded French President Macron that all the problems are on the Ukrainian side, which categorically refuses any talks and puts forward conditions that are invariably unrealistic and inadequate, considering the situation...We’ve repeatedly, through the statements of our president, confirmed that we don’t refuse negotiations, if anyone does so, it’s Ukraine...And the longer it refuses to talk, the more difficult it’ll be to find common ground”. (rt.com 11/14/22)
“Ukrainian Air Force spokesman Yuri Ignat said that about 100 Russian missiles have been launched at Ukraine today, exceeding the record-setting 84 missile barrage on October 10. In addition to the strikes in Ukraine's capital, targets in the Lviv, Chernihiv, Mykolaiv, and Zhytomyr regions, among other places, were hit. There are now reports of widespread power outages and increasing concerns that Russia intends to try and wipe out Ukraine's ability to generate power ahead of winter. As an example, temperatures in the capital are expected to drop below freezing tomorrow, with temperatures expected to fall as low as 17 degrees by Sunday.” (thedrive.com 11/15/22)
“As the first full winter of Russia’s war with Ukraine sets in, the US is running low on some high-end weapons systems and ammunition available to transfer to Kyiv, three US officials with direct knowledge tell CNN. The strain on weapons stockpiles – and the ability of the US industrial base to keep up with demand – is one of the key challenges facing the Biden administration as the US continues to send billions of dollars of weapons to Ukraine to support its fight against Russia. One of the officials said the stockpiles of certain systems are ‘dwindling’ after nearly nine months of sending supplies to Kyiv during the high-intensity war, as there’s “finite amount” of excess stocks which the US has available to send.
Among the weapons systems where there’s particular concern about US stockpiles meeting Ukrainian demands are 155mm artillery ammunition and Stinger anti-aircraft shoulder-fired missiles, the sources said.” (cnn.com 11/17/22)
“Russia has nothing to discuss with the United States about Ukraine, a senior Russian diplomat said on Friday. ‘As for [the topic of] Ukraine, we have nothing to discuss with them [the Americans] there,’ Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said. ‘Whenever we somehow touch upon the topic of Ukraine, all this [communication] boils down to sending mutual signals, but there can be no dialogue or, moreover, talks, since our views are polar opposites,’ he added. (tass.com 11/18/22)
“The West is using Ukraine to wage a war against Russia and has gone so far as to sabotage Turkish diplomacy that sought to negotiate an end to it, the deputy leader of Türkiye’s ruling AKP party, Numan Kurtulmus, told CNN Turk on Friday. ‘This war is not between Russia and Ukraine, it is a war between Russia and the West,’ Kurtulmus told the outlet, adding that ‘the US and some countries in Europe’ are prolonging the conflict by supporting Ukraine.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is talking to both Moscow and Kiev, said Kurtulmus, and in March managed to organize negotiations in Istanbul that looked promising. Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart, Vladimir Zelensky, ‘were going to sign’ a deal, but ‘someone didn’t want’ that to happen.” (rt.com 11/18/22)
“In a TV interview on Tuesday night with a US channel, Johnson also conceded that there were ‘sound economic reasons’ for Germany wanting Kiev to swiftly agree to a peace deal with Moscow, but that he ‘couldn't support’ it. It was Johnson — backed by Washington — who persuaded Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to break off peace talks with Russia just a month into the conflict, when they were on the verge of a breakthrough, during a visit to Kiev in late March.
But a US military analyst has told Sputnik that Johnson ‘miscalculated’ by encouraging the clash with Russia. ‘I couldn’t support that, I thought that was a disastrous way of looking at it. But I can understand why they thought and felt as they did,’ the former PM added. Johnson was also among the most strident voices for sanctions and embargoes on imports of Russian fuels, food and fertilizers, which prompted the inflationary crisis that is set to tip most of Europe into recession.” (sputniknews.com 11/23/22)
“Ukrainian troops fire thousands of explosive shells at Russian targets every day, using high-tech cannons supplied by the United States and its allies. But those weapons are burning out after months of overuse, or being damaged or destroyed in combat, and dozens have been taken off the battlefield for repairs, according to U.S. and Ukrainian officials. One-third of the roughly 350 Western-made howitzers donated to Kyiv are out of action at any given time, according to U.S. defense officials and others familiar with Ukraine’s defense needs.
Swapping out a howitzer’s barrel, which can be 20 feet long and weigh thousands of pounds, is beyond the capability of soldiers in the field and has become a priority for the Pentagon’s European Command, which has set up a repair facility in Poland.” (nytimes.com 11/26/22)
“Arms transfers to Ukraine have left Western weapon stockpiles strained, making it increasingly difficult for NATO militaries to honor politicians’ pledges to supply Kiev, the New York Times reported on Saturday. ‘Smaller countries have exhausted their potential,’ and according to one NATO official, at least 20 of the bloc’s 30 members are ‘pretty tapped out,’ the newspaper wrote. Only ‘larger allies,’ including France, Germany, Italy, and the Netherlands, have enough stockpiles to continue or potentially increase their weapon shipments to Ukraine.” (rt.com 11/27/22)
“The controversial decision by municipal authorities in Olsztyn to create an ‘American-style’ cemetery is due to the large number of military burials for the 1,200 Poles who have died fighting in Ukraine, according to the Polish news outlet Niezalezny Dziennik Polityczny (Independent Political Journal). Olsztyn, in the Warmia-Masuria province, is home to Poland’s 16th Mechanized Infantry Division. Many of its current and former soldiers heeded the calls from President Andrzej Duda and Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak and enlisted in Ukraine, where over 1,200 Polish citizens have been killed in action so far, according to NDP. Thousands more have been injured or disabled, the outlet reported, citing publicly available sources.” (rt.com 11/28/22)
“NATO will reinforce its presence from the Black to the Baltic Sea, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said at a press conference in the Romanian capital of Bucharest. ‘We are now going to be reinforcing NATO’s presence from the Black to the Baltic Seas. In that effort, we are working constantly with each other, as well as with NATO, to effectively inform and reinforce our Black Sea strategy,’ he pointed out following a meeting with Romanian Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu. ‘When it comes to the Black Sea region, this is an area of great strategic importance to us,’ Blinken added.” (tass.com 11/29/22)
“Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev warned NATO on Tuesday against providing Ukraine with Patriot missile defence systems, denouncing the alliance as a ‘criminal entity’ for delivering arms to what he called ‘extremist regimes. If, as (NATO Secretary-General Jens) Stoltenberg hinted, NATO were to supply the Ukrainian fanatics with Patriot systems along with NATO personnel, they would immediately become a legitimate target of our armed forces,’ Medvedev wrote on Telegram.” (Reuters.com 11/29/22)
“Ukraine should be free to strike military sites inside Russia as it fends off attacks on its critical infrastructure, Latvia’s foreign minister said. But allies including the US have held back on sending weapons that can strike Russia. ‘We should allow Ukrainians to use weapons to target missile sites or air fields from where those operations are being launched,’ Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics said Tuesday in an interview on the sidelines of the NATO foreign ministers’ meeting in Bucharest. Allies ‘should not fear’ escalation, he added. While the US hasn’t imposed restrictions on how Ukraine uses weapons, it has so far declined to send weapons with sufficient range to strike inside Russia.” (bloomberg.com 11/29/22)
“Russia’s foreign minister on Thursday accused the West of becoming directly involved in the conflict in Ukraine by supplying it with weapons and training its soldiers. Sergei Lavrov also said that Russia’s strikes on Ukrainian energy facilities and other key infrastructure that have left millions without power, heating and water were intended to weaken Ukraine’s military potential and derail the shipments of Western weapons.
‘You shouldn't say that the US and NATO aren’t taking part in this war, you are directly participating in it,’ Lavrov said in a video call with reporters. ‘And not just by providing weapons but also by training personnel. You are training their military on your territory, on the territories of Britain, Germany, Italy and other countries.’ He said that the barrage of Russian missile strikes was intended to ‘knock out energy facilities that allow you to keep pumping deadly weapons into Ukraine in order to kill the Russians.’” (euronews.com 12/1/22)
“The US forces stationed in Lithuania have switched their stance from deterrence of Russia to combat readiness, Lithuanian Chief of Defense Lieutenant General Valdemaras Rupsys has said. The country shares a border with Russia's Kaliningrad exclave on the Baltic Sea, as well as with Belarus and Latvia. ‘The main factor used to be deterrence, the demonstration that they were here and could increase our forces at any time,’ Rupsys told radio LRT on Friday. ‘And now the situation has changed: those units are being deployed so that they can fight immediately. It’s a seamless … transition from one mode to another.’” (rt.com 12/2/22)
“US stockpiles of Javelin anti-tank and Stinger anti-aircraft missiles have been extensively depleted, as Washington continues to funnel military assistance to Ukraine. Losses are equivalent to years’ worth of production, Raytheon Technologies CEO Greg Hayes was cited by media as saying.
As of May, Washington had delivered 5,500 Javelins and 1,400 Stingers to Ukraine, but the continuing conflagration in Ukraine and the drive to supply the Kiev regime with a steady stream of military aid ‘has burned through existing weapons stocks,’ said Hayes, as he addressed a panel on the Ukraine conflict at the Reagan National Defense Forum.” (sputniknews.com 12/5/22)
“Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky is looking for ways to get the US and NATO directly involved in the conflict, former CIA officer Philip Giraldi said, pointing to Monday’s drone attack on two airfields inside Russia as an example of such tactics.‘This was a clear attempt by Zelensky, in my mind, to escalate the war,’ Giraldi told Judge Andrew Napolitano on Monday evening’s episode of the ‘Judging Freedom’ podcast. ‘He tried to do that with the missile that was misdirected, possibly, and wound up in Poland and killed two people. He even pushed it and said NATO has to intervene now. This could be another attempt to, shall we say, promote an escalation on the part of the Russians that could possibly be construed as a danger to Poland, danger to troops in Poland, that sort of thing. This is the game that’s being played.’” (rt.com 12/5/22)
“In its eighth missile attack in eight weeks, Russia hit infrastructure on Monday causing power outages, as authorities said half of the Kyiv region would be without electricity in the coming days. Overnight on Monday, more missiles hit critical infrastructure near the southern city of Zaporizhzhya, officials said. With an estimated 50 percent of Ukraine's energy infrastructure damaged due to continuous Russian missile strikes, officials said that the country's ‘entire national grid could collapse within weeks if the attacks continue. By that, we mean facing power outages of not just hours or days, but potentially weeks,’” (newsweek.com 12/6/22)
“‘The threat of nuclear war is growing, to be honest, and Russia views nuclear weapons as a means of defense. Nationalist elements in Poland are asleep and dreaming of taking back the western territories, which Ukraine received thanks to Stalin's decisions after World War II. This is what it will be all about, and the only real guarantor of Ukraine's territorial integrity within its current borders could be Russia.
Well, that's a matter for Ukrainian politicians themselves... the future, of course; the current politicians, in my opinion, understand little about it and do not think about it, although some, as it seems to us, are already beginning to think about it. After all, the war was not started by us, but in 2014, after the coup d'état in Ukraine, it was started by the Ukrainian authorities, who came to the corridors of power with the help of this very coup d'état to suppress the will of the citizens living in Donbas.” (Putin @ Council for Civil Society and Human Rights 12/7/22)
“Russia has claimed that its military has destroyed a number of high-value targets with ‘high-precision’ strikes in Ukraine, including killing 90 ‘Polish mercenaries’ in just one day. On Thursday, the Defence Ministry’s telegram channel published a tally of the latest estimates. According to the post, ‘as a result of high-precision Russian Air Force strikes’ in Zaporozhye Region, ‘five US-made MLRS and German-made MARS-II multiple launch rocket systems’ were hit. On top of that, in the Donetsk People’s Republic, ‘two US-made HIMARS units were destroyed,’ the ministry added.” (rt.com 12/8/22)
“The confession made by German ex-Chancellor Angela Merkel’s in her interview for Die Zeit that the Minsk Agreements were signed in order to buy time for Ukraine to prepare for a military standoff with Russia could be used for an investigation in a tribunal, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Thursday.
‘A lot is being said today about the legal assessment of the situation around Ukraine, about some tribunals and all kinds of that thing,’ she noted. ‘This, however, is a solid bid for a tribunal. The things that Merkel said in her interview - this is a testimony of a person, who stated it directly that everything that was done in 2014 and 2015 had only one goal: to divert the global community’s attention from the real problems, to buy some time, to pump the Kiev regime with weapons and to lead the situation to a large-scale conflict.’
According to Zakharova, the ex-Chancellor’s confession ‘says the horrible: fraud as modus operandi of the West - machinations, manipulations, all kinds of distortion of truth, law and justice imaginable.’” (Tass.com 12/8/22)
Putin on Merkel's words about Minsk agreements: “To be honest, it was absolutely unexpected for me. It's disappointing. Frankly speaking, I did not expect to hear this from the former chancellor, because I have always assumed that the German leadership behaves sincerely with us. Yes, of course, it was on the side of Ukraine, supported it, but it still seemed to me that the German leadership has always sincerely sought a settlement on the principles that we agreed on, within the framework of the Minsk process. This only shows that launching the SMO was the right decision. It turns out that no one was going to fulfill these Minsk agreements. The point was only to pump Ukraine with weapons and prepare for combat operations. Maybe we should have started all this earlier. Trust almost dropped to 0. How to negotiate? About what? And is it possible to negotiate with them? Where are the guarantees? I have said many times that we are ready to sign agreements, but this makes us think about who we are dealing with.” (12/9/22)
“The U.S. Defense Department is under pressure from Congress to revise munitions requirements for a hypothetical fight between NATO and Russia to allow more arms to flow to Ukraine, according to three people familiar with the debate. U.S. military and defense officials have repeatedly told lawmakers and aides in recent briefings that munition thresholds mandated by Pentagon war plans—such as for a possible U.S. and NATO fight with Russia that could include a military scenario in the sparsely populated Suwalki Gap near Moscow’s border with the Baltics—are preventing the United States from sending more munitions to Ukraine.” (foreignpolicy.com 12/9/22)
“The Biden administration is finalizing plans to send the Patriot missile defense system to Ukraine that could be announced as soon as this week, according to two US officials and a senior administration official. The Pentagon’s plan still needs to be approved by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin before it is sent to President Joe Biden for his signature. The three officials told CNN that approval is expected.” (cnn.com 12/13/22)
"The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that the Belarusian territorial defense is being formed in the regions bordering Ukraine, and the ban on visiting the territories bordering the Kyiv and Chernigov regions has also been extended." From this, it is concluded that these actions are preparation for participation in hostilities against Ukraine. AFU General Staff Deputy Chief Oleksii Hromov.” (t.me/RVvoenkor 12/15/22)
“Any shipment of US Patriot missiles to Ukraine could ‘lead to unpredictable consequences’ and threaten global security, the Russian Embassy in Washington said in a statement Wednesday. ‘If this is confirmed, we will witness yet another provocative step by the [Biden] administration, which can lead to unpredictable consequences,’ the Russian Embassy statement said.
It added that continued arms deliveries to Ukraine ‘will only strengthen the Zelensky regime’s sense of impunity and push it to new crimes against civilians’ in four Ukrainian regions that Russia claims to have annexed. The statement also criticized US support for Ukraine, saying: ‘Washington’s strategy causes enormous damage not only to the Russian-American relations, but also creates additional risks for global security.’” (cnn.com 12/15/22)
“A United States infantry company arrived in Estonia this week as part of NATO’s effort to bolster the military bloc’s eastern border with Russia, the Baltic country’s defense ministry has revealed. A statement published on the ministry’s website on Friday said that US service members are stationed at Taara base in the town of Voru, some 20 kilometers from the Russian border. Commenting on the US service members’ arrival, Colonel Mati Tikerpuu, the commander of the 2nd Infantry Brigade of the Estonian Defense Forces, said he expects to be able to ‘integrate our allies on a brigade level and gain an additional maneuver unit.’” (rt.com 12/16/22)
“Washington’s ‘dangerous and short-sighted policy’ has put it ‘on the brink of a direct clash’ with Moscow, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Monday, responding to US State Department spokesman Ned Price, who blamed Russia last week for making relations between the two countries ‘unstable and unpredictable.’ Moscow has “genuinely strived” to make relations with the US stable and predictable, even as Washington stokes tensions, Zakharova added. ‘It is the US’ desire to maintain American hegemony at all costs… as well as its arrogant unwillingness to engage in a serious dialogue on security guarantees’ that led to the current crisis, the spokeswoman said.” (rt.com 12/19/22)
“Minsk is now armed with Iskander ballistic missiles and protected by S-400 air defense systems, President Alexander Lukashenko of Belarus announced on Monday, thanking his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin for delivering the new weapons as Moscow previously promised. ‘Today, we have deployed the S-400 systems and, most importantly, the Iskander system that you handed over to us, as you promised six months ago,’ Lukashenko told Putin at a joint press conference in Minsk.” (rt.com 12/19/22)
“Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu has announced the need to make a number of structural changes to the country’s armed forces in light of NATO’s attempts to bolster its presence on Russia’s border and expand its membership to Finland and Sweden. During a Russian Defense Ministry meeting on Wednesday, Shoigu proposed a number of measures to strengthen the security of the Russian Federation, including creating a special grouping of troops on the country’s northwestern border and expanding Russia’s armed forces to amount to 1.5 million servicemen in total, with some 695,000 of them being contract soldiers.” (rt.com 12/21/22)
“Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu has pointed to the presence of NATO staff officers and other specialists on the front lines in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, on top of almost $100 billion worth of pledged weapons and supplies from the bloc's members. ‘Russia’s armed forces are presently facing allied forces of the West,”Shoigu said on Wednesday at a meeting of the top military commanders in Moscow. “The US and its allies supply the Kiev regime with weapons, train its soldiers, provide intelligence, dispatch advisers and mercenaries, and wage an information and sanctions war against us.’” (rt.com 12/21/22)
“The joint Russian-Belarusian military force performs a solely defensive role, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin said on Saturday. The diplomat also dismissed any speculation that it could be deployed in the Ukraine conflict. Speaking to RIA Novosti, Galuzin noted that ‘the task of the joint Russian-Belarusian group of troops is, if necessary, to fight back against a would-be aggressor, should the territory of our ally Belarus be invaded.’ At the same time, he added, ‘it is incorrect to present a question regarding the possibility of using this force in the special military operation in Ukraine.’” (rt.com 12/24/22)
“The geopolitical realities in which we exist today have a serious impact on the entire system of global and regional processes, including integration ones...The era of a unipolar world, when the United States and its European satellites used intimidation tactics that they had polished to perfection over the years to dictate conditions to other countries and determine their course of development in accordance with their selfish interests and even break their state systems, is coming to an end”. (Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin 12/26/22)
“The US has told Russia that it will not send American soldiers to operate Patriot air-defense systems in Ukraine, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told Russia’s Channel One on Wednesday. The Russian diplomats received these assurances from Washington through ‘embassy channels,’ he added. ‘We’ve asked the Americans through the channels that our embassy still has, whether their decision to hand over a Patriot battery [to Ukraine] means that American specialists would come along with it, since it is complicated to use,’ Lavrov said. The Russian diplomats then received ‘extensive explanations,’ in which the US officials assured them they had no such plans, according to the minister.” (rt.com 12/28/22)
“Thousands of people have lost their lives in eastern Ukraine since 2014 because the West treated the Minsk agreements as scrap paper, the vice speaker of Russia’s upper house of parliament said on Saturday. ‘The confessions by Merkel and Hollande are a formalization of betrayal… The price of this betrayal is thousands of human lives lost over the past eight years of civil war in Ukraine. The civil war that the West didn’t stop by treating the Minsk agreements as scrap paper,’ Konstantin Kosachev wrote. (rt.com 12/31/22)
“There will be new strikes deep into Russian territory, Kirill Budanov, Ukraine’s top spy said on Tuesday. However, he neither denied nor claimed responsibility for a recent attack on a Russian military facility. Speaking to ABC News, Budanov, who heads Kiev’s Main Intelligence Directorate, was asked whether it was Ukraine which had conducted a recent attack on a Russian airbase. ‘I can’t give an answer right now to this question. Only after [the] ending of this war,’ he replied, adding, though, that he was ‘glad’ to see the strike. The top spy went on to predict that Russia was about to face additional attacks. These strikes would become ‘deeper and deeper,’ Budanov claimed, alluding that this would also apply to Crimea.” (rt.com 1/4/22)
“The main present for the New Year, a set of Zircon missiles, went to the shores of NATO countries yesterday (frigate Admiral Gorshkov). Their 1,000 km range, a hypersonic speed of Mach 9 and the ability to use any charge are guaranteed to overcome any missile defence. Let it stand about 100 miles offshore, close to the Potomac River. So rejoice! It will bring to mind anyone who poses a direct threat to Russia and our allies.” (Dmitri Medvedev 1/5/23)
“Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko arrived on Friday at the 230th combined arms range Obuz-Lesnovsky near Baranovichy (Brest Region), where the Russian units of the joint group of troops are stationed, the BelTA agency reported. According to the agency, Lukashenko heard a report on the completion of combat readiness of the units and formations of the regional grouping. A spokesman for the Russian armed forces reported to the Belarusian head of the state that there were ‘military exercises and command-staff exercises at the training ranges of the allied forces.’” (tass.com 1/6/23)
“More military equipment from Russia arrived in Belarus as part of the Regional Grouping of Forces (RGV), the Belarusian Defense Ministry confirmed on Friday. In a statement, the Defense Ministry said the bolstering of the RGV is ‘exclusively in the interests of strengthening the security and defense of the Union State (of Russia and Belarus), based on the evolving situation’ at the country’s borders. President Alexander Lukashenko also visited a military base in the southwestern Brest region where Russian troops are already stationed. Up to 9,000 Russian troops and several hundred armored vehicles will join the Belarusian forces on the Belarus-Ukraine border, according to the Belarusian Defense Ministry.” (aa.com.tr 1/6/23)
“Kiev is shedding blood to carry out the mission NATO set for itself and expects the ‘civilized West’ to provide weapons and ammunition in return, Ukrainian Defense Minister Aleksey Reznikov has said in an interview for a domestic TV channel. Appearing on the 1+1 network’s TSN channel on Thursday evening, Reznikov pointed out that at the Madrid summit last summer, NATO declared Russia the greatest threat to the US-led bloc. "‘Today, Ukraine is addressing that threat. We’re carrying out NATO’s mission today, without shedding their blood. We shed our blood, so we expect them to provide weapons,’ he said.” (rt.com 1/7/23)
"Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolay Patrushev has issued ultra-provocative words claiming that it's not fundamentally Ukraine that Russia is at war with, but that the Russian military is facing all of NATO inside Ukraine.
‘The events in Ukraine aren’t a clash between Moscow and Kiev. It’s a military confrontation of NATO, first of all the US and Britain, with Russia. Fearing a direct engagement, NATO instructors push Ukrainian men to certain death,’ he said in a fresh interview with state-owned newspaper aif.ru.” (zero hedge.com 1/9/23)
“Russia intends to continue forging ahead with its nuclear triad in 2023, Sergey Shoigu, the nation’s defense chief, said at a ministry conference call on Tuesday. ‘We will continue to develop the nuclear triad and maintain its combat readiness because the nuclear shield remains the main guarantee of our country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,’ Shoigu stressed. (tass.com 1/10/23)
“Over the weekend, the Belarussian Ministry of Defense announced that a significant tactical flight exercise between Belarussian and Russian forces would take place from late January to early February. The Russian military has deployed more than a dozen helicopters in Belarus, including Mi-8 transport and Mi-24 and Ka-52 Alligator attack helicopters. According to the British Military Intelligence, some of the helicopters sport the “Z” war marking that Russian forces are using on the ground in Ukraine.” (19fortyfive.com 1/11/23)
“The use of force by Kiev against Russia or Belarus or a Ukrainian invasion of either of the two Union countries would be enough to trigger a collective response, a senior Russian diplomat told TASS. Commenting on potential scenarios of having Belarus involved in the conflict in Ukraine, Director of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Second CIS Department Alexey Polishchuk referred to the latest military doctrine of the Union State under which the use of force against either of the two Union members would be viewed as an attack on the entire Union State and said there were similar commitments on mutual support in the event of any foreign aggression against the CSTO.” (tass.com 1/13/23)
“The Polish army began to fight in Ukraine. This was stated by military commander Yevgeny Linin. ‘Fighters of the Russian assault groups liberating the settlements of Donbass almost regularly encounter units where commands are given in Polish,’ Linin said. According to him, the loss of combat capability of a significant number of formations of the Armed Forces of Ukraine is forcing Ukraine's allies to use their military formations under the guise of PMCs.
In addition, confirmation of the participation of regular Polish forces directly on the line of contact is NATO military equipment, which has not yet been officially delivered to Ukraine, but is already being used, for example, the Bradley infantry fighting vehicle, as well as Polish GROT assault rifles, the military commander stressed.” (https://t.me/ZandVchannel/47505 1/16/23)
“Following months of hesitation, the White House is now warming to the idea that Ukraine may ‘need the power’ for strikes deep inside Russian territory, namely military targets in Crimea, the Times reported on Wednesday, citing several unnamed US officials. ‘American officials are discussing with their Ukrainian counterparts the use of American-supplied weapons, from HIMARS rocket systems to Bradley fighting vehicles, to possibly target … Crimea,’ the outlet said, adding that Washington ‘has come to believe that if the Ukrainian military can show Russia that its control of Crimea can be threatened, that would strengthen Kiev’s position in any future negotiations.’” (rt.com 1/19/23)
“The US administration’s policy to ensure the strategic defeat of Russia is leading the world to a catastrophe, Russian Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov said on Friday. ‘The only thing we do is to constantly warn Washington that its policy of ensuring strategic defeat for our country on the battlefield is rapidly leading the world to a catastrophic scenario,’ the embassy’s press service quoted Antonov as saying. When asked to comment on media reports that Russia was using dangerous and reckless rhetoric in the nuclear sphere, the diplomat denied those claims and said: ‘The Americans and their allies have unleashed an all-out hybrid war against Russia on our own territory. I would like to ask the American public a long overdue question: what else should Russia say or do to make the hotheads in the Administration come to their senses and avert the nuclear Armageddon that the White House publicly is so keen to prevent?’ he said.” (tass.com 1/19/23)
The West will be ready to make endless attempts at mauling or destroying Russia, and a new military alliance may emerge globally, Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev wrote on his Telegram channel on Sunday. ‘The Ramstein meeting and heavy weapons supplies to Kiev leave no doubt that our enemies will try to maul or even destroy us endlessly. And they have enough weapons for that. They could also start producing new ones, if need be,’ Medvedev said as he came to two conclusions.
Firstly, ‘it would be very difficult,’ the politician said. Secondly, ‘in the event of a prolonged conflict, a new military alliance may appear at a certain moment in time, comprising those countries who will be annoyed with the Americans’ and their allies, he added, referring to the history of long wars. According to him, the world will become a stable place again when the United States abandons Europe and ‘what will be left from poor Ukrainians, unless it is too late.’” (tass.com1/22/23)
“‘Ukraine offers Belarus to sign a non-aggression pact, while simultaneously training militants that pose a potential threat to Belarus’ national security, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said Tuesday. ‘I don’t know why the Ukrainians need this. On the one hand, they ask us not to fight Ukraine under any circumstances, not to move our forces there. They offer us to sign a non-aggression pact. On the other hand, they cook this explosive mix and arm them [militants - TASS],’ Lukashenko said during the meeting on social and political situation and crime in the republic, according to BelTA. Lukashenko believes that ‘Poland and Lithuania, meantime, have gone completely insane.’” (tass.com 1/24/23)
“Reflections on whether the West has crossed any red lines are a thing of the past, since the United States has openly declared its plans of defeating Russia strategically, the Russian Foreign Ministry has told TASS. Commenting on Russian First Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations Dmitry Polyansky’s remarks that ‘not all red lines have yet been crossed’ by the West, the ministry said: ‘A hybrid war is being waged against our country. Reflections about red lines are now in the past. The United States has unequivocally declared its intention to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia," the ministry continued. ‘It is impossible not to notice this reality.’” (tass.com1/25/23)
“The European Union should move its economy to a wartime footing amid the Ukraine conflict, Manfred Weber, the president of the European People’s Party (EPP), suggested on Thursday. He said that the move is required to ramp up the bloc's own defense potential, and that of Kiev. Speaking to the newspapers of the Funke media group, Weber called for the reorganization of the EU arms industry. The MEP believes that the bloc needs ‘a kind of war economy… in order to be able to guarantee stability and security.’” (rt.com 1/26/23)
“Britain has been modeling cyberattacks on Russia’s critical infrastructure, the country’s deputy foreign minister, Oleg Syromolotov, said on Saturday. He added that the simulated hacks included energy facilities and were conducted under NATO guidance. ‘The British are systematically using their offensive capabilities to target Russia’s information [sector],’ Syromolotov told the TASS news agency. He added that London regularly conducts exercises, including joint NATO drills, simulating attacks on ‘Russian critical infrastructure.’
‘They include the modeling of strikes on government entities in the Kaliningrad Region and Moscow’s energy system,’ the diplomat said. The Kaliningrad Region is a Russian exclave on the Baltic Sea that borders Poland and Lithuania.” (rt.com 1/28/23)
“President Joe Biden’s administration has reportedly decided to send longer-range rockets to Ukraine, giving Kiev’s forces the capability to hit targets farther behind the frontlines, just as a top Ukrainian intelligence official threatened more strikes deeper inside Russia.
The gift of Ground Launched Small Diameter Bomb (GLSDB) rocket artillery munitions with a range of 150 kilometers (94 miles) will be part of an upcoming military aid package for Ukraine valued at more than $2 billion, Reuters reported on Tuesday, citing two unidentified US officials familiar with the plans. The package will also include additional Javelin anti-tank weapons, mine-resistant vehicles, multiple-launch rocket systems (MLRS), and support equipment for Patriot air defense systems.” (rt.com 2/1/23)
“Washington does not hide the US’ goal in Ukraine is to inflict a strategic defeat to Russia and to exhaust it, Russian Ambassador to the US Anatoly Antonov said on Russian TV Wednesday. ‘The political circles in Washington do not hide the goal of their war on the Ukrainian territory, and my tongue did not slip - to inflict a strategic defeat to Russia, to exhaust and to wear down our country,’ he said. The Russian envoy noted that the Americans seek to pit Russia’s partners and allies against Moscow.
‘They want to drive a wedge between us and former Soviet republics, they threaten them with sanctions, they persuade them that all cooperation with us must be stopped and all ties must be cut," he continued. "The Russophobes have decided to cut Russia’s name from the political map of the world. These ideas are not propaganda slogans and not a figure of speech. This is indeed a real situation in our relations.’” (tass.com 2/2/23)
“Putin has hit out at the looming deliveries of Western-made tanks to Ukraine, warning that Moscow’s response to the threat will span far beyond armored vehicles. The Russian leader made the comments during a ceremony to mark the 80th anniversary of victory at the Battle of Stalingrad.
‘Unbelievable, but true – we are once again threatened with German Leopard tanks, with crosses on their hull. And once again seeking to battle Russia in Ukraine with the help of Hitler’s followers, the Banderites,’ Putin said.
‘Those seeking to defeat Russia on the battlefield apparently do not realize that a modern war with Russia would be entirely different for them. We’re not sending our tanks to their borders. Yet we have something to respond with, and it would not be limited to armor use only, everyone must realize that,’ he added.” (rt.com 2/2/23)
“Washington’s decision to supply Ukraine with longer-range missiles and allow Kiev to use them at will can only lead to further escalation, former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev said on Saturday. He added that the US appears to not want the Ukraine conflict to end. In an interview with Russian journalist Nadana Fridrikhson, Medvedev denied that Ukrainian strikes against the Crimean peninsula would force Moscow to sit down at the negotiating table. ‘The result would be exactly the contrary. There would be no talks in such a case. There would only be retaliatory strikes,’ he warned.” (rt.com 2/4/23)
“Exhausted Ukrainian troops complain they are already outnumbered and outgunned, even before Russia has committed the bulk of its roughly 200,000 newly mobilized soldiers. And doctors at hospitals speak of mounting losses as they struggle to care for fighters with gruesome injuries. The first stages of the Russian offensive have already begun. Ukrainian troops say that Bakhmut, an eastern Ukrainian city that Russian forces have been trying to seize since the summer, is likely to fall soon. Elsewhere, Russian forces are advancing in small groups and probing the front lines looking for Ukrainian weaknesses. The efforts are already straining Ukraine’s military, which is worn out by nearly 12 months of heavy fighting.” (nytimes.com 2/7/23)
“Last June, the Navy divers, operating under the cover of a widely publicized mid-summer NATO exercise known as BALTOPS 22, planted the remotely triggered explosives that, three months later, destroyed three of the four Nord Stream pipelines, according to a source with direct knowledge of the operational planning.
Biden’s decision to sabotage the pipelines came after more than nine months of highly secret back and forth debate inside Washington’s national security community about how to best achieve that goal. For much of that time, the issue was not whether to do the mission, but how to get it done with no overt clue as to who was responsible.” (seymourhersh.substack.com 2/8/23)
“Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Peskov said the UK, Germany, and France are becoming increasingly involved in the conflict between Moscow and Kiev. ‘The line between indirect and direct involvement is gradually disappearing,’ said the presidential spokesman, adding that this fuels further escalation. According to Peskov, Western arms shipments are ‘prolonging this conflict, making [it] more painful and torturous for Ukraine.’” (rt.com 2/9/23)
“The Washington administration would go for ’undisguised participation’ of its regular troops in the conflict in Ukraine if it decided to resume the activities of the US Special Operations Forces in that country, Russian Ambassador to Washington Anatoly Antonov said in a statement. He was commenting on the information that had appeared in the US media about the possibility of resuming the activity of the US Special Operations Forces in Ukraine. An article on the subject was published earlier in the day, particularly in the Washington Post.” (tass.com 2/11/23)
“Officials in the United States admit that they were behind the explosions at the Nord Stream pipeline, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Sunday. ‘Now they even enjoy talking about it,’ the foreign minister said, adding that the US sabotaged the Russian pipeline in order to destroy a powerful alliance based on Russian energy resources and German technology that began to threaten the monopoly of many American corporations.” (sputniknews.com 2/12/23)
“The US has turned to Islamist extremists to plan terrorist attacks in Russia and other ex-Soviet republics, Moscow’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) said on Monday. A group is being trained at a base in Syria for the purpose, the agency claimed. ‘The US military is actively recruiting militants from jihadist groups affiliated with Islamic State [IS, formerly ISIS] and Al-Qaeda to commit terrorist attacks in Russia and members of the Commonwealth of Independent States [CIS],’ the SVR stated, citing ‘credible reports.’” (rt.com 2/13/23)
“Russia has begun deploying tactical nuclear weapon-armed vessels in the Baltic Sea for the first time in the last 30 years, the Norwegian Intelligence Service said in its annual report. ‘The key part of the nuclear potential is on the submarines and surface ships of the Northern Fleet,’ the Norwegian intel noted. The Northern Fleet warships regularly went to sea with nuclear weapons during the Cold War era, but this is the first time the modern Russian Federation has done the same, the report added.” (politico.eu 2/14/23)
“The West is attempting to use the Ukraine conflict to portray Russia as a ‘rogue state in the eyes of the world, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Wednesday. He stressed that the strategy has not been successful. ‘The US and its satellite states are waging an all-encompassing hybrid war that they have long been preparing for, and are using Ukrainian radical nationalists as a battering ram against us,’ Lavrov outlined in a speech to the lower house of the Russian parliament, the State Duma.” (rt.com 2/15/23)
“Speaking at his annual state-of-the-nation speech in Budapest, Orban reiterated that Hungary won’t fall in line with other EU member states by supplying military aid to Ukraine, its northeastern neighbor, adding that European leaders appear to be ‘sleepwalking’ into an expanded conflict. ‘It started with helmets and now we are already at the delivery of tanks, in the future also of airplanes, and before long we will hear about the so-called peacekeeping units,’ Orban said. ‘Europe is getting immersed in war, in reality they’re already indirectly at war with Russia,’ he added.” (rt.com 2/18/23)
"Ukraine is being used as a tool and testing ground by the West against Russia. The more long-range weapons are sent to Ukraine, the longer we have to push threat away from our borders.” Putin to the Federal Assembly 2/21/23)
“Russia issued ‘a formal demarche’ to US ambassador to Moscow Lynne Tracy on Tuesday over Washington’s continued efforts to arm Ukraine, the Foreign Ministry said. The move comes shortly after US President Joe Biden promised more military aid to Ukraine during his surprise visit to Kiev on Monday. In a statement, the ministry said that it was protesting ‘the growing involvement of the United States in hostilities on the side of the Kiev regime.’
According to the ministry, the US is ‘pumping the Ukrainian military with arms and providing it with targeting information for strikes on Russian military and civilian infrastructure.’ Such policies ‘clearly prove that assertions of the American side that the US is not a party to the conflict are inadequate and false,’ it added. Moscow reminded the US ambassador that both Western-supplied weapons and the personnel who are operating them, including US citizens, are ‘legitimate targets’ for Russia’s military.” (rt.com 2/21/23)
“Poland has strengthened security measures on the border with the Kaliningrad region - among other things, anti-tank bugs have been installed at the approaches to the border with Russia, said Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Błaszczak. According to the minister, who published photos of the barriers in Twitter, the strengthening of the country's border protection is a preventive measure, which is part of the ‘defense and deterrence strategy’ of Poland. Similarly, the country will strengthen the protection of the border with Russia and Belarus, Blaszczak pointed out.” (news.am 2/24/23)
“‘If they wanted, they could have sat down at the negotiating table [back then, before the decision to launch a military operation in Ukraine],” Peskov said. “There would have been very complex, positional, sometimes irreconcilable talks, but they would have been under way. But they refused.’
With the failed attempt at dialogue, tensions continued to soar between Moscow and the West in the lead up to the conflict in Ukraine. Peskov argued that NATO is now fully involved in the hostilities, noting ‘their intelligence is working against us 24 hours a day, their weapons… are supplied to Ukraine for free to shoot at our military, not to mention that they shoot at Ukrainian citizens.’
‘The moment when NATO de facto became a participant in the conflict in Ukraine, the situation changed,” the spokesman continued. ‘In fact, the NATO bloc is no longer acting as our conditional opponent, but as our enemy.’” (rt.com 2/28/23)
"Russia is going to enter Baltic states, NATO member states, and then the U.S. will have to send their sons and daughters, exactly the same way as we are sending our sons and daughters, to war. And they will have to fight because it's NATO that we're talking about and they will be dying, God forbid, because it's a horrible thing.” (Zelensky at a Kyiv Press Conference 2/24/23)
"‘I think that under the current conditions one cannot really talk about resuming the dialogue with the US on strategic stability. Washington openly declares its goal of strategically defeating Russia and makes numerous hostile steps in this direction. What dialogue can one talk about here?’ the Russian diplomat Mikhail Ulyanov said.” (tass.com 3/2/23)
“‘A Rheinmetall plant can be set up in Ukraine for around €200 million, which can produce up to 400 Panthers a year,’ CEO Papperger stated, referring to the company’s latest Panther KF51 tank unveiled last June. This type of tank is based on Germany’s Leopard 2 main battle tanks, but boasts a larger 130mm gun that is fitted with a fully automated loading system. ‘Talks with the Ukrainian government are promising and I hope for a final solution in the next two months,” Papperger said.
The announcement was met with skepticism by the ex-Russian leader, who said in a Telegram post that it looked like an example of ‘primitive trolling.’ Medvedev warned that should the ‘supposedly pragmatic’ Germans actually decide to build the facility, it would inevitably become a target for Russia and be subjected to missile strikes. ‘This event will be properly marked by Kalibr fireworks and other pyrotechnical devices,’ Medvedev wrote.” (rt.com 3/4/23)
"‘Here, perhaps, we can disagree with our Chinese friends,’ Peskov told reporters at a briefing, commenting on the statement of the Chinese Foreign Minister. At the same time, the Kremlin spokesman made it clear right away that the disagreement was a joke. ‘You know what the joke is? This is not an invisible hand, in fact, this hand is quite visible. This is the hand of the United States, the hand of Washington. Washington does not want this war to end, Washington wants and will do everything to continue this war. That is why this hand is visible,’ Peskov said.” (tass.com 3/7/23)
"‘So far, we see no desire on the part of our Ukrainian neighbors to begin serious talks,’ Lavrov said at a news conference following talks with his Saudi Arabian counterpart Faisal Bin Farhan Al Saud. ‘Moreover, I have stated repeatedly that Zelensky issued a decree last September prohibiting any negotiations with Russia, while Zelensky’s Western patrons constantly state that Russia should be defeated on the battlefield in order to start talks from a position of strength. Judge for yourself how reasonable such statements are.’” (tass.com 3/9/23)
"An aircraft is not a tank. It must be serviced before and after each flight. If it comes under enemy fire, it needs to be repaired, and usually at a suitable airfield. To do this, you need to create a base. It makes no sense to create this base in the face of Russian attacks. This means that it needs to be done somewhere, perhaps in Poland, but if the plane takes off from Poland, makes attacks against Russian forces in Ukraine and returns to its base, I am 90 percent sure that we will have to make attacks on Polish airfields. I think the Americans understand how this could end. This is the situation". Evgeny Buzhinsky, retired lieutenant general of the RF Armed Forces, chairman of the Russian Center for Political Studies in Moscow.
“The U.S. Air Force B-52H Stratofortress strategic bomber, capable of carrying nuclear weapons, went to the position of firing missiles at St. Petersburg near Gotland Island, 200 kilometers from the northern capital. After that, the American bomber made a sharp turn and went in the direction of the Baltic.
The legend of the exercise is to break through the missile defense and anti-aircraft defense of the Northwestern District and launch nuclear missile strikes on military and infrastructure facilities in Russia, as well as "practicing interaction" with the air forces of NATO countries. (@Rybar 3/11/23)
"The west deceived Russia. They promised not to push NATO to the east, and they did. They turned Ukraine into a huge anti-Russian country. If I was in Russia's shoes, I would have done the exact same thing.” — Former adviser to Zelensky, Alexey Arestovich.
“Moscow regards Tuesday’s incident in which an American drone crashed in the Black Sea as a provocation, Ambassador Anatoly Antonov said after being summoned to the State Department in Washington. Antonov met with Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Karen Donfried, who protested the ‘unsafe and unprofessional intercept’ of the drone that resulted in its loss.
‘We consider this incident a provocation,’ Antonov told reporters after the meeting. He said he told Donfried that US drones, planes and ships had no business being that close to Russian borders. ‘Could you imagine what the reaction of the US media or the Pentagon would be, if such a drone would appear near New York or San Francisco?” he asked.” (rt.com 3/14/23)
“Intentionally attacking a Russian aircraft in neutral airspace is not just a crime under international law, but also an open declaration of war on the largest nuclear power ,” Ambassador Antonov warned. “An armed clash between Russia and the United States would be radically different from a proxy war that the Americans wage remotely against us in Ukraine. Is the Capitol ready to expose American citizens and the international community to the risk of all-out nuclear war? Answer, dear senator!” (@Slavyangrad 3/15/23)
“US officials estimate that more than 100,000 Ukrainian troops have been killed since the outbreak of the conflict with Russia last February, Politico has reported, without disclosing its sources. Washington is concerned by Kiev’s lack of ammunition, air defenses and experienced soldiers in the run-up to a major Ukrainian offensive expected later in spring, the US news website said in a report on Wednesday. ‘Upwards of 100,000 Ukrainian forces have died in the year-long war, US officials estimate, including the most experienced soldiers,’ Politico wrote.” (rt.com 3/16/23)
“Ukraine’s military has defied expectations in its war with Russia, and many analysts attribute its success to U.S. help. But the mere fact of receiving aid is no guarantee of a positive outcome. After all, the United States provides security assistance to many countries with mixed results. Billions of dollars in aid and decades of training, advising, and institution building did not stop the armies of Afghanistan and Iraq from collapsing.” (foreignaffairs.com 3/17/23)
“Either Ukraine will defend its independence today, or we will have to enter this conflict. Because our main values, which were the basis of our civilization, and our culture will be threatened. Therefore, we will have no choice but to enter the conflict.” (Polish Ambassador to France Jan Emeryk Rościszewski 3/19/23)
“‘Russia Will be Forced to React if West Starts Using Weapons With Nuclear Components,’ Putin. Earlier in the day, UK Minister of State for Defense Annabel Goldie said that the country will provide Ukraine with depleted uranium tank ammunition, including armor piercing shells for Challenger 2 battle tanks.” (sputniknews.com 3/21/23)
“‘Everything that we hear from those countries [the US and UK] about peace, the settlement of the conflict, the future of Ukraine, the well-being of the Ukrainian people – it’s all a lie, falsehood and absolute disorientation of the international community. In reality, the goal is completely different,’ Zakharova said.
After the UK announced plans to supply armor-piercing depleted uranium shells to the Kiev government, ‘there can’t be any doubts that we’re talking about is the strongly pronounced intention of the collective West, headed by the US and Britain, to see Ukraine completely destroyed,’ she stressed.” (rt.com 3/22/23)
“Later in the day, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu warned the United Kingdom that there would be few red lines left uncrossed if it delivered on its promise to give Ukraine depleted uranium weapons. ‘I can only say this: We are running out of red lines … Another line has been crossed and there are fewer and fewer of them left,’ he told reporters in Moscow.” (sputniknews.com 3/22/23)
"‘I will only say one thing, something that is already so obvious: the Russian Federation is not at war with Ukraine, not with the Ukrainian half-Nazi or Nazi regime – our country is at war with a 3.6 million [strong] NATO army. They are participating, of course, in such a hybrid conflict, and they, in fact, no longer hide it,’ Medvedev said.” (sputniknews.com 3/24/23)
“Russia’s tactical nuclear weapons might arrive to Belarus as early as this summer, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Saturday. Moscow is finishing the construction of a specialized storage for such arms amid repeated calls by Minsk to deploy tactical nuclear weapons on the Belarusian territory, he added. The storage in Belarus will be ready on July 1, Putin told Russia 24 TV. The president also said that Moscow does not plan to hand over control over any tactical nuclear weapons to Minsk but would only deploy its own arms to the Belarusian territory. He did not specify when exactly the weapons would be transported to the new storage. The move was prompted by London’s decision to provide Kiev with depleted uranium munitions, Putin explained.” (rt.com 3/25/23)
“There is nothing unusual here either: firstly, the United States have been doing this for decades. They have long ago deployed their tactical nuclear weapons on the territory of their allied countries, NATO countries, in Europe, in six states. We are going to do the same thing.
I emphasize, without violating our international obligations on the nonproliferation of nuclear weapons, we have already helped our Belarusian colleagues and equip their aircraft, aircraft of the Belarusian Air Force. Ten aircraft are ready for use of this type weapon,” said Putin. (3/26/23)
"‘As a result of the efforts of the United States and its satellites, a full-scale war has been unleashed in [Ukraine]... a third world war with nuclear fires looms on the horizon,’ he said. ‘I will try to risk proposing to stop the hostilities. To declare a truce without the right to move...without the right to move weapons and ammunition, manpower and equipment! For everybody just to freeze!’ Lukashenko warned that Russia felt threatened, it could use ‘the most terrible weapon.’
‘It is impossible to defeat a nuclear power. If the Russian leadership understands that the situation threatens to cause Russia's disintegration, it will use the most terrible weapon,’ he said. ‘This cannot be allowed.’” (newsweek.com 3/31/23)
“‘It is clear that the so-called NATO peacekeepers are just going to enter the conflict on the side of our enemies,” Medvedev added. “It’s also obvious that such peacemakers are our direct enemies. Wolves in sheep’s clothing. They will be a legitimate target for our armed forces if they are placed on the front line without Russia’s consent, with weapons in their hands and directly threatening us. And then these peacemakers must be ruthlessly destroyed. They are soldiers of the enemy. They are combatants.” The only thing that remains to be clarified, Medvedev concluded, is whether Europe is ready for ‘a long line of coffins’ coming back from Ukraine.” (rt.com 3/31/23)
"‘I and [Russian President Vladimir] Putin can decide and deploy strategic nuclear weapons here, if need be,’ Lukashenko told lawmakers, adding that the move would show the two nations ‘readiness to defend their sovereignty and independence.’
‘We will stop at nothing to protect our nations, our states, our people,’ the Belarusian leader said, adding that the move would likely serve as an effective deterrent against any hostile moves by the US and its allies. The Belarusian president expressed his hope that strategic nuclear weapons deployment to his country would ‘sober up all the hawks across the pond for a long time.’” (rt.com 3/31/23)
“Belarus’ Air Force can now carry out nuclear strikes thanks to Russia’s assistance, Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu has revealed. The Russian official noted that Moscow had also handed over a unit of nuclear-capable Iskander-M mobile short-range ballistic missiles to its ally. Speaking during a meeting with Russian top brass on Tuesday, Shoigu said: ‘Part of the Belarusian attack air fleet have received the ability to conduct strikes on enemy targets with nuclear means of destruction.’
According to the minister, on Monday, Belarusian troops began getting acquainted with the Iskander-M missile system on one of Russia’s military training grounds as well. Commenting on the move, Shoigu cited an uptick in NATO’s military activities along the borders of the Union State comprising Belarus and Russia.”(rt.com 4/4/23)
“Speaking to the Russian newspaper Argumenty i Fakty, Lavrov said that ‘the European Union has lost Russia.’ Diplomatic relations entered a tailspin because the bloc stated openly that Russia should suffer a ‘strategic defeat’ in the Ukraine conflict, according to the minister.
EU nations ‘pump up the criminal Kiev regime with weapons and ammunition, send instructors and mercenaries to Ukraine. For these reasons, we consider the EU to be an unfriendly union,’ Lavrov explained. He warned the bloc that Russia had ‘drawn the necessary conclusions’ from the EU’s actions and would respond harshly to any hostile acts, being ‘guided by Russia’s national interests and the generally accepted diplomatic principle of reciprocity.’” (rt.com 4/4/23)
“Belarus’ geographical location is such that if Russian tactical nuclear weapons are deployed there, it will have a huge strategic deterrent effect on several NATO countries such Poland, Germany, the Baltic states and even the Nordic countries. A vicious cycle is developing, escalating the nuclear arms race and ultimately developing into a doomsday situation that no one wants to see.” (indianpunchline.com 4/6/23)
“Russia will respond accordingly to the deployment of US nuclear weapons in Europe, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday. ‘It does cause concern,’ Peskov said, commenting on whether the fact of the deployment of US nuclear weapons in Europe causes concern in the Kremlin, adding that Russia will respond appropriately.
Speaking about the behavior of countries surrounding Belarus, Peskov said it is unpredictable and hostile, so Russia can not stay silent. ‘Belarus, just like us, is surrounded by countries that are very hostile. Since we are a union state, naturally, Russia cannot leave Belarus alone. The actions of the neighbors are very, very unpredictable, unfriendly, so precautionary measures are definitely needed here,’ Peskov told reporters.” (sputnikglobal.com 4/7/23)
“Western countries are hyping up hysteria around Russia’s plan to place tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, Kremlin Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov suggested in an interview released on Sunday. Speaking to Russia 1 TV, Peskov blasted what he called the West’s “extremely unrestrained” reaction to President Vladimir Putin’s decision to deploy nukes in Belarus this summer, which followed repeated requests from his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko.
‘The collective West is not inclined to recall… [that] American nuclear weapons are stationed here, in Europe, around our country,’ the spokesman said. He also claimed that the West ‘is prone to hysterical reaction’ in relation to Moscow’s plans to build a nuclear storage facility in Belarus, which is widely regarded as a key Russian ally.” (rt.com 4/9/23)
“The Strategic Missile Forces have carried out a test-launch of the intercontinental ballistic missile from the Kapustin Yar training ground in Russia’s Astrakhan Region, the Defense Ministry reported on Wednesday.
‘On April 11, 2023, the combat crew of the Strategic Missile Troops successfully launched the intercontinental ballistic missile of the land-based mobile missile system from the Kapustin Yar State Central Multiservice Training Ground in the Astrakhan Region,’ the report said.” (tass.com 4/12/23)
“The United States has not given up on its aim of embroiling everyone it can into the military conflict in Ukraine, but Hungary will remain on the side of peace, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban told the Kossuth radio station on Friday.
The head of government stressed that the US ‘has not abandoned its plan to shoehorn everyone into a military alliance,’ supplying weapons to Ukraine and supporting continued hostilities. In connection with this, he reiterated that the threat of the Ukrainian conflict morphing into a new world war has been growing with each passing day.
‘And if a world war breaks out, it will be a nuclear war,’ Orban noted. In his opinion, the current escalation of the conflict in Ukraine attests to the fact that the [combatant] countries are literally ‘inches away from the use of nuclear weapons.’” (tass.com 4/14/23)
“Belarus and Russia can together stand firm against any stratagem by modern-day Nazis or other destructive forces to drag them into a World War III scenario through the conflict in Ukraine, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko told a visiting Russian governor on Thursday.
‘We can see that Nazi, fascist and other destructive forces are making attempts to rewrite history, negate our joint contribution to the Great Victory and justify their criminal actions, both of that period and today,’ Lukashenko told St. Petersburg Governor Alexander Beglov, who is visiting Minsk. ‘They are trying to drag us into a third world war through the conflict in Ukraine. But I’m convinced [of one thing]: They failed to destroy our nations then, nor will they succeed in doing so now,’ the Belarusian leader insisted.” (tass.com 4/20/23)
“Crews of the Iskander-M tactical ballistic missile (TBM) system of the Belarusian Armed Forces’ missile force have concluded their training in Russia, the Belarusian Defense Ministry reported on Saturday. ‘The crews of the Iskander-M operational-tactical ballistic missile system of the Belarusian Armed Forces’ missile troops have completed practical training in the Russian Federation,’ the statement said. ‘Today, the Belarusian servicemen landed at the Machulishchy airfield.’”(tass.com 4/22/23)
“Russia could take certain asymmetric steps if the United States and NATO pursue escalation in the deployment of nuclear weapons in Europe, Vladimir Yermakov, director of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Non-Proliferation and Arms Control Department, said in an interview with TASS.
‘If the United States and NATO decide to escalate things further, we will assess the new risks to identify an [appropriate] response, including an asymmetric one,’ the diplomat said, when asked whether the West could deploy its nukes close to Belarus’ borders in the wake of Russia’s decision to station part of its nuclear arsenal on Belarusian soil.” (tass.com 4/25/23)
“The conflict in Ukraine is serving to revitalize the most dangerous scenarios involving a direct clash between nuclear powers, which could bring about devastating consequences, Belarusian Defense Minister Viktor Khrenin said on Friday.
‘It [the Ukraine conflict] has triggered a transformation of the system of international relations and the security architecture that came into being after World War II. It is reviving the most dangerous scenarios involving a clash between nuclear powers, which would be fraught with potentially devastating consequences,’ Khrenin said at a meeting in New Delhi of the defense ministers of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) member states. According to the Belarusian defense chief, the conflict in Ukraine marks the hot phase of a global civilizational confrontation between the West and the East, which was ultimately caused by Washington’s desire to preserve its waning global dominance.” (tass.com 4/28/23)
“Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said that Kiev's and Washington's denial that they were involved in the attack on the Kremlin does not mean they can be believed. ‘If you believe that just because the United States and Ukraine have denied the allegations, we should jettison what we know, that's not how it works,’ Lavrov said during a press conference after a foreign ministers meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).” (sputnikglobe 5/5/23)
"There is no military or strategic reason to justify the heavy rearmament of all European NATO members," said Paolo Raffone, stressing that neither Moscow nor Beijing are threatening the military bloc and its members. "While Russia has contiguous territory to the NATO bloc, China is far away on the planet and cannot possibly be considered as a military threat to European states. Therefore, it is quite clear that the NATO members’ rearmament is dictated by the geostrategic interests of the hegemon power, the United States that is militarizing Europe.” (sputnikglobe.com 5/8/23)
“Officials in the administration of US President Joe Biden are reportedly ‘breathing a quiet sigh of relief’ over reports that the UK will send long-range missiles to Ukraine. Washington views the provision of long-range weaponry to Ukraine as a step too far that would not be backed by lawmakers.
The reaction was described by Politico in a newsletter on Tuesday, citing anonymous sources in the US government. The British plan had been covered by The Washington Post, which cited its own unnamed sources.” (rt.com 5/10/23)
“Russia seeks to preserve cities and human lives while carrying out the special military operation in Ukraine, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, explaining the difference between the special operation and war. ‘Of course, it is very difficult to compare military potentials of Russia and Ukraine. And you may ask, why do the Russians act so slowly? Because the Russians are not waging war,’ he said in an interview for Republika Srpska’s ATV, published Wednesday.
‘We are not waging a war. It is a totally different thing to wage a war: it is total destruction of infrastructure, it is total destruction of cities,’ Peskov explained. ‘We are not doing that. We seek to preserve the infrastructure, we seek to preserve human lives,’ he underscored.” (tass.com 5/11/23)
“The Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (CFE) has completely outlived itself and any further participation in it would not correspond to Russia's national interests, Konstantin Gavrilov, head of the Russian delegation to the Vienna talks on military security and arms control, told TASS on Friday. ‘The treaty has become entirely obsolete and participating in it any further would not correspond to the national interests of our country,’ the diplomat said.
He noted that the CFE Treaty had played a positive role in ensuring European security in the final stages of the Cold War, but after the dissolution of the Warsaw Pact its parameters needed to be updated. However, the US and other NATO countries ‘under contrived pretexts’ refused to ratify the 1999 amended version.” (tass.com 5/12/23)
“Discussions have intensified in the weeks before President Biden and other NATO leaders are due to gather in Vilnius, Lithuania, to cement plans for strengthening defenses against Russia, which upended decades of relative stability in Europe with its 2022 invasion of Ukraine...Officials from NATO nations, many of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity to detail sensitive diplomatic discussions, said there is consensus among the alliance’s 31 members that, despite advocacy from Kyiv, NATO will not issue Ukraine a formal invitation to join at the July 11-12 meeting”. (washingtonpost.com 5/15/23)
“Russia will field arms where it wants on its territory and step up weapons production after its withdrawal from the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (CFE) with NATO, former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev has said. The CFE limited the number of tanks, armored vehicles, artillery, helicopters and aircraft allowed to be stationed in Europe in order to preserve parity and prevent the sides from amassing forces for a blitzkrieg-type offensive.
After Moscow’s withdrawal from the CFE and suspension of its other international obligations, ‘nothing prevents us from placing our weapons where we want to in order to protect our national interests, including in our Russian part of Europe [Kaliningrad],’ he wrote.” (rt.com 5/16/23)
“The destruction of depleted uranium shells in Ukraine has produced a radioactive cloud which has been blown toward Western Europe, the secretary of the Russian Security Council, Nikolay Patrushev, has claimed. The UK has supplied this type of munition to Ukraine to be fired from British-made Challenger tanks.
The senior official revealed the purported threat during a government meeting on Friday, in which he accused the US of manipulating its allies to provide ‘help’ to other nations that results in harm being done to the recipients. ‘They helped Ukraine this way too, applied pressure to its satellites to supply depleted uranium munitions. Their destruction resulted in a radioactive cloud moving towards Western Europe. They have detected an increase in radiation in Poland,’ Patrushev stated.” (rt.com 5/19/23)
“Ukraine will not be offered a timeline with specific dates by which it can join Nato at its summit in Vilnius next month but instead may be offered a shorter route when an offer of membership is made. The proposal, reflecting a gathering consensus of key partners in the western defence alliance, will come as a disappointment to President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
Nato members, but outside formal Nato structures, will also offer post-conflict security guarantees to Ukraine, which are likely to take the shape of broad commitments to protect Ukraine from assaults by Russia. They are also expected to continue to provide ammunition and to help the Ukrainian armed forces become more convergent with Nato. But the commitments are likely to take a broad high level form rather than be specific offers of weaponry.” (the guardian.com 6/14/23)
"‘We will bring an end to the war in Ukraine, as the major preconditions for that are already in place, but the lunatics in the West will continue to create a ton of problems for us in the future,’ he pointed out. Lukashenko added that if the West crossed ‘these lines, it’s going to be very painful for them.’
‘The lunatic NATO members are holding drills. Some are reproaching us that we are seeking to deploy nuclear weapons on the eve of NATO’s summit in Vilnius, but they are conducting drills that involve tens of thousands of people from all over the NATO bloc. That’s why this region will remain rather dangerous,’ the Belarusian president explained.” (tass.com 6/14/23)
“Russia’s president provided an update on the ongoing long-heralded Ukrainian counteroffensive, which began tentatively in early June. To date, Kiev’s forces have lost some 186 tanks and 418 armored vehicles of other types, according to Putin. ‘Their losses are very heavy – about more than one in ten compared to the Russian army. That is a fact. In terms of hardware, the loss of this equipment is growing every day,’ he said, adding that Kiev has thus far failed to achieve its goals, wasting its strategic reserves in the push against Russia’s forces.
The intensified military action has caused a rapid depletion of Ukraine’s own war materiel stockpile, Putin said, predicting that the country’s armed forces are set to become entirely dependent on foreign aid in the nearest future.’Well, you won’t be able to wage war for long like that. Our defense industry, however, is growing day by day,’ he said. Any weaponry Kiev receives from the collective West will end up destroyed, Putin warned. ‘Tanks are burning. Among them are the Leopards. They burn. So will the F-16s. There is no doubt,’ the president stated, referring to the potential deliveries of advanced US-made aircraft long-sought by Kiev.” (rt.com 6/16/23)
“By the time the conflict in Ukraine is resolved, Kiev will have accepted the loss of its former territories, and Western-led globalization will be dead, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told RT Arabic on Friday. Speaking on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Lavrov described the West’s proxy war with Russia as ‘a geopolitical conflict,’ in which the US was attempting to eliminate a powerful competitor and ‘preserve its hegemonic position by all means. The attempt is futile, and we all know this,’ Lavrov stated, adding that Ukraine and its backers will be forced to accept new ‘concrete realities’ before a ceasefire is reached.” (rt.com 6/16/23)
“Speaking to media on Monday, Alexei Polishchuk, who serves as the director of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s second department of CIS countries, explained that Moscow’s decision to proceed with the placement of its nuclear weapons in Belarus came as a ‘forced response’ to the aggressive policies of the US and NATO. He noted that when the details of the Moscow-Minsk agreement were being ironed out, the two sides considered the ‘years-long destructive practices’ of joint nuclear missions of NATO member states.
Polishchuk stressed, however, that ‘unlike American warheads in Europe,’ Russia’s weapons will be located in close proximity to its own borders and on the territory of the Union State of Russia and Belarus. The senior diplomat suggested that the Russian nuclear weapons could hypothetically be withdrawn from the territory of Belarus. However, he explained that Moscow would only consider such an option if the US eliminated its own nuclear infrastructure in Europe.” (rt.com 6/19/23)
“Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko announced on Saturday that he had arranged a deal whereby Wagner Group leader Evgeny Prigozhin will abandon his mutiny in exchange for ‘security guarantees’ for his fighters.
‘Evgeny Prigozhin accepted the proposal of President Alexander Lukashenko to stop the movement of armed men of Wagner in Russia and take further steps to de-escalate tension,’ read a statement from Lukashenko's office.” (rt.com 6/24/23)
“What Russia has always called for was ‘not to invite into NATO the former parts of our country. Especially those with which we have territorial disputes,’ Medvedev wrote. He pledged that Russia will stop ‘the threat’ of Ukraine joining the bloc ‘one way or another.’ Since NATO members say that a nation cannot join while being engaged in an armed conflict, ‘the conflict [with Ukraine] will be permanent, because Russia’s existence is at stake,’ he warned.” (rt.com 7/3/23)
“NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg says he expects leaders of the alliance to ‘reaffirm that Ukraine will become a member of NATO’ at the alliance summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, next week.” (justthenews.com 7/7/23)
“Germany stands against offering Kiev a clear roadmap or concrete guarantees of joining the Western military bloc at the upcoming summit in Lithuania, The Telegraph reported on Saturday, citing NATO officials.
‘Berlin is stand-offish at the prospect of offering immediate membership… It wants a process and time to develop guarantees to essentially block membership,’ an unnamed source within the military bloc told the British outlet.
Germany is reportedly wary that Kiev would immediately invoke Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty, which stipulates that an attack against one NATO member ‘shall be considered an attack against them all.’” (rt.com 7/8/23)
“At its upcoming summit in Vilnius, NATO plans to mobilize military and material resources to avoid defeat in its confrontation with Russia over the Ukraine conflict, Endre Simo, president of the Hungarian Community for Peace, told TASS on Wednesday.
In reply to a TASS inquiry about what impact the summit might have on the Ukraine situation, the expert said: ‘In NATO, both the tendency to widen the war in the hope of defeating Russia and [the possibility of reaching a] compromise with Russia are present together. But the sound of hawks is still louder [than doves].’
He reiterated that, last year, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that a Russian victory in Ukraine would mean the defeat of the North Atlantic Alliance. ‘I think that, in Vilnius, the bloc will mobilize greater military and material forces to avoid its failure,’ the Hungarian expert said.” (tass.com 7/10/23)
“A frustrated President Volodymyr Zelensky launched a furious broadside against Ukraine's NATO allies Tuesday as they began a summit still unsure how to advance Kyiv's membership bid. Zelensky, who will come to Vilnius during the two-day summit, denounced as ‘absurd’ the reluctance of some NATO leaders to provide a clear timetable for Ukraine to join the alliance. ‘Uncertainty is weakness. And I will openly discuss this at the summit,’ Zelensky tweeted.
The alliance backs Ukraine in its battle against Russia's 16-month-old invasion, but several members — notably US President Joe Biden — oppose giving Ukraine a timetable for membership.” (yahoo.com 7/11/23)
“The group of industrialized nations, not all of which belong to NATO, will announce an ‘international framework for Ukraine’s long-term security arrangements,’ according to the office of British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. The G7 declaration ‘will set out how allies will support Ukraine over the coming years to end the war and deter and respond to any future attack,’ Sunak said in a statement on Wednesday.
‘Supporting their progress on the pathway to NATO membership, coupled with formal, multilateral, and bilateral agreements and the overwhelming support of NATO members will send a strong signal to [Russian] President [Vladimir] Putin and return peace to Europe,’ he claimed. (rt.com 7/12/23)
“In an interview in the weekend, the CDU’s leading foreign and defence expert Roderich Kiesewetter (an ex-colonel who headed the Association of Reservists of the Bundeswehr from 2011 to 2016) suggested that if conditions warrant in the Ukraine situation, the Nato should consider to “cut off Kaliningrad from the Russian supply lines. We see how Putin reacts when he is under pressure.” Berlin is still smarting under the surrender of the ancient Prussian city of Königsberg in April 1945.
Stalin ordered 1.5 million Soviet troops supported by several thousand tanks and aircraft to attack the crack Nazi Panzer divisions deeply entrenched in Königsberg. The capture of the heavily fortified stronghold of Königsberg by the Soviet army was celebrated in Moscow with an artillery salvo by 324 cannons firing 24 shells each. Evidently, Kiesewetter’s remarks show that nothing is forgotten or forgiven in Berlin even after 8 decades.” (indianpunchline.com 7/13/23)
"‘Paris has knowingly taken another step towards escalation of the Ukrainian conflict, confirmed its gamble on the systematic and uninterrupted pumping of Kiev terrorists with increasingly deadly weapons systems aimed at the new Russian territories, civilians and civilian infrastructure,’ Zakharova said.
‘Given the recent statement by [French President] Emmanuel Macron that the so-called counter-offensive of the Ukrainian armed forces was carefully planned with the support of NATO countries, the world community should have no doubt about the direct involvement in the conflict of the US and its Euro-Atlantic allies. The lives and health of many thousands of people become a bargaining chip when the countries of the 'collective West' put into practice their own political interests,’ her commentary said.” (tass.com 7/14/23)
“Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday once again drew international attention when he warned that if even one missile enters Russian territory, ‘hundreds’ of warheads will respond. ‘I assure you, after the early warning system receives a signal of a missile attack, hundreds of our missiles are in the air,’ Putin said from a summit in Kyrgyzstan, Russian news outlet RIA reported. ‘It is impossible to stop them. There will be nothing left of the enemy, because it is impossible to intercept a hundred missiles. This, of course, is a deterrent — a serious deterrent,’ he added.” (foxnews.com 7/14/23)
“Russian lawmaker Andrey Kartapolov suggested that President Vladimir Putin expelled the Wagner Group to Belarus to allegedly prepare for an attack against Poland during a recent appearance on Russian state television.
‘It is clear that Wagner PMC went to Belarus to train the Belarusian Armed Forces,’ Kartapolov said. ‘Not only and not so much. There is such a thing as the Suwałki Corridor. You know very well what it is. Should anything happen, we need this Suwałki Corridor very much.’ He added that the Wagner Group will be prepared to take control of the land in a matter of hours.” (newsweek.com 7/15/23)
“Less than a month after launching a short-lived mutiny in Russia, members of the Wagner private military company are training Belarusian troops and sharing the battlefield experience they gained from the Ukraine conflict, according to the Defense Ministry in Minsk. In a statement on Friday, the ministry said that together with the Wagner leadership it had developed a ‘road map’ for military training and sharing experience.
It also noted that Wagner troops were instructing Belarusian territorial defense forces in exercises near the town of Osipovichi in the central part of the country. The drills focused mainly on tactical movements across the battlefield as well as firearms, engineering, and first aid training, according to the statement.” (rt.com 7/16/23)
‘Having Ukraine come into NATO while the war is going on would mean that NATO was at war with Russia, it would mean the United States was at war with Russia. And neither NATO nor the United States were prepared to do that,’ Jake Sullivan said.” (rt.com 7/17/23)
“Belarus' Defense Ministry has announced it will hold joint military exercises with Wagner fighters along the border with NATO-member Poland, in a fresh escalation after Warsaw has already remained on edge over the presence of Russian mercenary forces next door.
‘The Armed Forces of Belarus continue joint training with the fighters of PMC Wagner,’ the defense ministry said in a fresh statement. ‘During the week, units of the special operations forces together with representatives of the company will work out training and combat tasks at the Brestsky training ground.’” (zerohedge.com 7/20/23)
“Poland's security committee decided in a meeting on Wednesday to move military units to the country's east due to the Wagner Group's presence in Belarus, state-run news agency PAP quoted its secretary as saying on Friday.
Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin was shown in a video on Wednesday welcoming his fighters to Belarus, telling them they would take no further part in the Ukraine war for now but ordering them to gather their strength for Africa while they trained the Belarusian army.” (reuters.com 7/21/23)
“Putin stressed that Polish leaders plan to form a coalition under the guise of NATO and intervene in the conflict in Ukraine in order to seize land and return, as they believe, their historical territories.
‘As for the Polish leaders, they probably expect to form a coalition within NATO... and directly intervene in the conflict in Ukraine in order to then 'tear off' a fatter piece [of land] for themselves, to regain, as they believe, their historical territories – today's Western Ukraine. It is also common knowledge that they dream about Belarusian land. But Belarus is part of the Union State, and launching an aggression against Belarus would mean launching an aggression against the Russian Federation. We will respond to that with all the resources available to us.’ Vladimir Putin said.” (sputnikglobe.com 7/21/23
“Fighters from the private military company (PMC) Wagner want to “visit”Poland, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko told his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin on Sunday. According to Lukashenko, the PMC'S members want to reach the Polish capital Warsaw and the city of eastern city of Rzeszow, which they believe was a hub for providing Ukrainian troops with military hardware during the fighting for the key Donbass city of Artyomovsk (also known as Bakhmut).” (rt.com 7/23/23)
“More than 100 members of the notorious Wagner Group are moving towards Poland’s border with Belarus, setting off alarm bells among NATO leaders and local authorities. Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki confirmed reports of the Russian mercenary group’s movements on Saturday, saying his intel put mercenaries near the vulnerable Suwałki Gap in Grodno, approximately 10 miles from the Polish border. Along with recent trainings near the border, it’s the closest Wagner fighters have been to NATO territory since President Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine in Feb. 2022.
‘Now the situation is becoming even more dangerous,’ Morawiecki said at a press conference. ‘This is certainly a step towards a further hybrid attack on Polish territory.’” (yahoo.com 8/1/23
“Russia could consider withdrawing its tactical nuclear weapons from Belarus if the US and NATO end their hostile policies toward Moscow and Minsk, a senior Foreign Ministry official has said.
In an interview with RIA Novosti published on Monday, Aleksey Polishchuk, who is in charge of the department that handles relations with Belarus, Moldova, and Ukraine, described Russia’s decision to station nuclear weapons in Belarus as a necessary measure to buttress the security of both Moscow and Minsk.
Polishchuk said that Russia sent nuclear weapons to Belarus ‘in response to years-long destabilizing nuclear policies by NATO and Washington, as well as the fundamental changes that have recently taken place in key areas of European security.’” (rt.com 7/31/23)
“I think in a few weeks the Ukrainian counter-offensive will come to naught, and the Russians have already impressed. And it's not that I'm pro-Russian or pro-Ukrainian, I'm a dispassionate observer of what is happening on the battlefield. Russians learn from their mistakes all the time. They have modern weapons: Lancets, Ka-52s, Su-34s, night optics... At the same time, their military technologies make revolutionary leaps forward every three months. They are fighting with what they did not have a year and a half ago. Because back then it just didn't exist. I am impressed. The West is moving around in circles, while Russia is pumping. Ukrainians are excellent fighters, fearless patriots, they sacrifice themselves. But technology will have the last word. I think Russia will eventually crush them. And if Russia crushes Ukraine, it will be the end of American hegemony as we know it.” (David Wu: https://rumble.com/v34qiba-ukraine-europe-suffers-while-us-tries-bringing-down-russia-at-all-costs-ex-.html)
“The Belarusian defence ministry said the drills that began on Monday are based on experiences from ‘the special military operation’ – the term Russia uses for its war in Ukraine. It said that includes the ‘use of drones as well as the close interaction of tank and motorized rifle units with units of other branches of the armed forces’.
The war games were taking place in the Grodno region of Belarus, near the so-called Suwalki Gap – a sparsely populated stretch of land running 96km (60 miles) along the Polish-Lithuanian border. It links the three Baltic states of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia with the rest of the Nato alliance and separates Belarus from Kaliningrad, a heavily militarised Russian exclave on the Baltic Sea that has no land connection to Russia.
Military analysts in the west have long viewed the Suwalki Gap as a potential flashpoint area in any confrontation between Russia and Nato. They worry that Russia might try to seize the gap and cut off the three Baltic states from Poland and other Nato nations.” (theguardian.com 8/7/23)
“Poland is set to deploy thousands of additional troops to its border with Belarus amid heightened tensions in the region, Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak said on Thursday.
Speaking to national public broadcaster Polskie Radio, Blaszczak stated that ‘we are moving the army closer to the border with Belarus’ in order to ‘scare the aggressor so that he does not dare to attack us.’ The minister added that security in the region would be underpinned by 10,000 soldiers, with 4,000 assigned to directly support the Border Guard, and another 6,000 held in reserve.” (rt.com 8/10/23)
“It is ‘obvious’ that Russia and Belarus could find themselves in a direct conflict with NATO in the future, Belarusian Defense Minister Viktor Khrenin said at the International Security Conference in Moscow on Tuesday. Khrenin warned that the conflict in Ukraine has morphed into ‘a global confrontation between the West and the East.’
He told attendees that based on the increase in arms expenditure across the Western world, ‘the conclusion is unambiguous: the possibility of a direct military clash with NATO in the future becomes very obvious. It is no coincidence that the Republic of Belarus considers the return of tactical nuclear weapons to its territory as an effective factor of strategic deterrence,’ the minister added.” (rt.com 8/15/23)
“Ukraine could lose all of its territory if it chooses to continue fighting, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said in an interview on Thursday, adding that it pains him to see a country with so much potential ruined by oligarchs.
‘The first step is to end the war,’ Lukashenko replied. ‘Yes, you can continue to struggle for these territories,’ he said, pointing to Donbass, Kherson, and Zaporozhye on the map. ‘I’m not telling you to give them up or anything. But choose another method. If you fight for these territories, you will lose those,’ he added, pointing out the areas further west.” (rt.com 8/18/23)
“‘Do not travel to Belarus due to Belarusian authorities’ continued facilitation of Russia’s unprovoked attack on Ukraine, the buildup of Russian military forces in Belarus, the arbitrary enforcement of local laws, the potential of civil unrest, the risk of detention, and the Embassy’s limited ability to assist U.S. citizens residing in or traveling to Belarus,’ the State Department wrote in its warning.” (state.gov 8/21/23)
“Andrey Gurulyov, a member of Russia's state Duma and former military commander, has warned Poland against positioning troops close to the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad, urging Russia to take a hardline stance if such a move materializes. He also claimed Polish authorities want to seize control of parts of Ukraine, but didn't provide any evidence to back this up.
Gurulyov warned during an appearance on Russian state television: The message is very clear. 'Guys, if God forbid you go anywhere in the direction of our Kaliningrad region, everything will end badly for you.' This is probably the way it should be.” (express.co.uk 8/22/23)
“NATO countries have no right to demand the expulsion of Wagner Group soldiers from Belarus while they host sizable contingents of foreign troops themselves, President Alexander Lukashenko said on Thursday.
Speaking at a meeting of the nation’s Security Council, the Belarusian leader delivered a stern response to neighboring Poland and the Baltic states, which had urged Minsk to remove the ‘extremely dangerous’ Wagner fighters from the country earlier this week.
Lukashenko pointed out that NATO countries are constantly increasing their military presence on the Belarusian border, while accusing Minsk of ‘mythical aggressive intentions that have never existed.’” (rt.com 8/31/23)
“Saturday will see the start of NATO’s major naval drills in the Baltic Sea that are expected to involve some 30 ships and over 3,000 service members who will conduct the war games close to the Russian border. What’s the goal of these maneuvers and what signs do the drills send to Russia?
As many as 14 NATO countries are due to take part in the Northern Coast 23 naval exercises that will be held on September 9-23 off Estonia and Latvia, as well as in the eastern and central areas of the Baltic Sea near the Russian border.
The drills will witness the participation of 3,000 personnel from the US, Italy, France, Finland, Estonia, Denmark, Canada, Belgium, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland, and Sweden.” (sputnikglobe.com 9/7/23)
“NATO is poised to hold its largest military exercises since the Cold War era in Western Europe early next year, the Financial Times reported on Monday. The drills will simulate the bloc's response to a hypothetical Russian invasion and are intended to increase readiness for such a scenario, according to the outlet.
Bearing the name Steadfast Defender, the exercises will involve around 41,000 troops, more than 50 ships, and between 500 and 700 combat air missions, according to the report. While the exercises are designed to simulate a clash with a fictional coalition named ‘Occasus,’ NATO officials told the FT that the maneuvers are ‘seen as a key part of demonstrating to Moscow that the alliance is prepared to fight.’
The exercises will reportedly take place in Germany, Poland, and the Baltic states, which border Russia, in February and March 2024. NATO-applicant Sweden will also be involved, the report said. The Nordic nation applied to join the bloc last year, but its application is still in limbo due to the reluctance of Türkiye and Hungary to ratify its bid, owing to a number of grievances in bilateral relations.” (rt.com 9/11/23)
“Poland will no longer provide arms to the Ukrainian military, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki has said, adding that Warsaw would instead shift focus to its own security. The decision follows a diplomatic row over Ukrainian grain imports, which were banned in Poland after flooding local markets.
Morawiecki told reporters on Wednesday that the government would halt the weapons shipments, highlighting a growing rift between the two neighbors after more than a year of heavy support from Warsaw.” (rt.com 9/21/23)
“The West is pushing the world closer to a global conflict unseen since World War II by supplying ever heavier weapons to Ukraine and celebrating Nazism, former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev warned in a Telegram post on Tuesday.
Medvedev, who is currently the deputy chair of the Russian Security Council, was reacting to the reported arrival of US-made M1 Abrams battle tanks in Ukraine and a scandal that saw the Canadian parliament, alongside Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky, give a standing ovation to a former member of the Waffen SS.
The former Russian president decried the scandal, which had already sparked outrage in Poland, Russia, and in the Jewish community, calling it ‘fraternization…with Nazis.’
‘It looks like Russia is being left with little choice other than a direct conflict with NATO,’ he said, while highlighting reports that Washington has promised longer-range Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) to Kiev.” (rt.com 9/26/23)
“Germany and Lithuania are working on creating a road map for the deployment of a brigade of German soldiers to the Baltic state, Defense Minister Boris Pistorius announced in an interview with the news outlet ERR on Monday.
The minister announced several weeks ago that Berlin planned to send as many as 4,000 troops to Lithuania, which already houses around 1,500 German troops as part of a NATO battlegroup. In the recent interview, he explained that the move was being done in order to show ‘solidarity and responsibility in the East Wing.” (rt.com 10/3/23)
‘I do not have firm information about how the Russian president and Russian military command will act, but I am sure that if the strikes of Taurus of ATACMS are very harmful for Russia, then I presume we will at least strike the logistical hub in the territory of Poland in Rzeszów. In this case, it will be up to the United States to decide what to do. Either to go to the Third World War with mutual destruction or leave the Poles to fight Russia alone,’ retired Russian Lieutenant General Evgeny Buzhinsky, told the New Rules podcast, commenting on Russia's further steps if the strikes of Taurus of ATACMS continue. (New Rules podcast, 10/3/23)
“Unfortunately, we have to admit that our counterparties in the West have lost their sense of reality and have crossed every line...They really should not have done this.’” (Putin’s Valdai Club speech, 10/5/23)
“The delivery of US-made long-range missiles to Ukraine could lead to a nuclear conflict, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has warned. American media reported last month that the Biden administration had agreed to supply a ‘small number’ of ATACMS rockets to Kiev.
On Friday, Lukashenko said he believed that the ‘Americans are pushing the Russians toward the use of the most dreadful weapon’ by providing Ukraine with long-range missiles. He was apparently referring to ATACMS rockets, which would allow Kiev to strike targets some 300km (190 miles) inside Russian territory. ‘Do you think the Russian president and military will just sit and calmly watch this?’ asked the Belarusian president.”(rt.com 10/7/23)
“Western space satellites being used to aid Ukrainian forces could become legitimate targets for Russian strikes, the Foreign Ministry in Moscow warned on Monday.
Speaking to reporters, the ministry’s director for nonproliferation and arms control, Vladimir Ermakov, claimed that the US and its allies are helping Ukraine in ways which go ‘beyond the harmless use of space technologies.’
‘Obviously, the United States and its allies are not fully aware that such activities actually constitute indirect participation in armed conflicts,’ Ermakov stated. He cautioned that Western ‘quasi-civilian infrastructure’ in space could ‘quite logically become the targets of a retaliatory strike.’” (rt.com 10/16/23)
"‘The US-led world continues to slide headfirst into the deepest possible abyss. Decisions are being made that clearly show not only how the decision-makers are hopelessly afflicted with mental illness, but have also lost the very last shreds of moral restraint. [I mean] both substantive high-level decisions and minor decisions, but they clearly cry out that [American] society in its entirety is seriously sick,’ the senior politician [Medvedev] wrote on his Telegram channel.” (rt.com 10/20/23)
“Russia will consistently defend the truth about World War 2 and the USSR’s contribution to the defeat of Nazi Germany, President Vladimir Putin has insisted in an address to a forum in Kaliningrad.
‘Today, we can see that the direct falsification of history, the acquittal of Nazi criminals and their accomplices, can lead to destructive consequences for millions of people,’ Putin said in a telegram read out at the ‘No Statute of Limitations’ forum by Sergei Novikov, head of the Russian Presidential Administration of Public Projects.
‘Therefore we must firmly and consistently defend the truth about the Great Patriotic War and resist any attempts to revise our country’s contribution to the Great Victory,’ Putin wrote.” (rt.com 10/24/23)
“Russia must react to the threat posed by US nuclear weapons deployed in Europe, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Thursday, while accusing the West of openly waging a ‘real war’ against Moscow. Speaking at a forum dedicated to Eurasian security in Belarusian capital Minsk, Lavrov reiterated Russia’s criticism of NATO’s nuclear sharing scheme. Under the plan, part of the US nuclear arsenal is stationed outside the country, with training provided to allies on how to deploy the weapons.
According to Lavrov, this arrangement creates ‘increased strategic risks,’ as well as generating ‘an extremely destabilizing charge and forces us to resort to compensatory measures amid the general increase of threats posed by NATO.’” (rt.com 10/26/23)
“There is a chain of conflicts affecting the whole world...In fact, World War III is already underway...We instinctively expect that the war will begin just like the Great War or the Second World War...The international order is breaking down...It was an unpleasant one, based on the fear of mutual destruction, but manageable...Wars in the Middle East have erupted before, but the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) and the United States of America (USA) intervened and extinguished them until the next conflict...And now I don’t see even a temporary settlement mechanism.” (Fyodor Lukyanov rt.com 10/31/23)
“A Russian nuclear-powered submarine has conducted a ballistic missile test, with the projectile traveling several thousand kilometers from the northern to the easternmost part of the country, the Defense Ministry has said.
In a statement in the early hours of Sunday, the ministry said that the submarine Emperor Alexander III had ‘successfully launched the Bulava sea-based intercontinental ballistic missile from the White Sea to the Kura test range on the Kamchatka Peninsula.’ It added that the missile was fired underwater and that its warheads reached the target on time.” (rt.com 11/5/23)
“Germany’s Defense Ministry has announced that it will deploy two tank battalions to Lithuania, which will form a new brigade together with NATO’s joint Forward Presence Battlegroup, which is already stationed in the Baltic nation. The new unit, which is expected to come into being in 2025, will be made up of 4,800 military personnel in total.
In a statement on Monday, the ministry said that ‘Tank Battalion 203 and Mechanized Infantry Battalion 122 will be redeployed to Lithuania.’ The resultant new tank unit will be named Tank Brigade 42. The additional troops will join the rotating German-led NATO contingent once all the necessary infrastructure has been put in place.
There are currently about 1,700 troops from six NATO member states stationed in the Baltic nation; about half of them are German service members.” (rt.com 11/7/23)
“A new level of NATO intervention may soon be required to secure a stalemate and avert Ukrainian defeat. Now, it is anyone’s guess how long Ukraine can hold on and what actions NATO could take to help. Given these dynamics, Russia has absolutely no incentive to agree to a ceasefire, which would only undermine their entire military strategy and give Ukraine time to recuperate and ready itself to fight at a future date.” (Michael Blackburn nationalinterest.org 11/23/23)
“As part of the large-scale NATO exercise Freezing Winds 23, which is led by Finland, NATO member countries focused on practicing actions against Russia in the northern direction. A group of alliance troops has been deployed to the borders of the Russian Federation, which includes at least 5 thousand military personnel from different countries. The exercise includes the participation of 30 ships and 20 aircraft.
The maneuver scenario includes elements of the seizure of Russian territories, including the islands of Gogland, Bolshoy Tyuters and Moshchny, as well as the blockade of the Gulf of Finland and the Kaliningrad region. It is planned to practice mining the Baltic Sea and amphibious assault operations.” (avia-pro.net 11/25/23)
“Europe's muddled armed forces 'could be washed away by Russia'. Europe is not prepared for a war with Russia and is in danger of being ‘washed away’ in a conflict, much as the Holy Roman Empire was broken up by Napoleon, Germany's pre-eminent military historian [Senke Neitzel] has warned.” (thetimes.co.uk 11/30/23)
“The Ukrainian military has failed to achieve any breakthroughs on the battlefield over the past several months, but the West should stand by the country regardless, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has argued. The official also lamented the apparent failure of the military bloc’s defense industry to establish provide Kiev with the munitions it requires.
Earlier this week Stoltenberg warned that Moscow had been amassing missiles ahead of the winter, noting that Russian weapons manufacturers were operating ‘on a war footing.’ In an interview with Germany’s Das Erste TV channel aired on Saturday, Stoltenberg acknowledged that the frontlines in Ukraine have remained largely unchanged of late, adding that ‘wars are difficult to plan. We have to be prepared for bad news. Wars move in phases, but we must stand by Ukraine in good and in bad times alike,’ NATO’s chief insisted.” (rt.com 12/3/23)
"‘As for demilitarization. They do not want to come to an agreement, well, then we have to resort to other measures, including military ones,’ Putin said during the joint ‘Direct Line’ Q&A session and annual press conference.
Ukraine no longer produces almost anything, although it is trying to preserve the remnants of industry, the Russian president said. ‘They get everything... for free, but all the free stuff it may end sometime. And, apparently, this is how it ends little by little,’ Putin added.” (sputnikglobe.com 12/14/23)
“Ukraine is likely to resort to ‘total mobilization’ next year in a bid to contain Russia, Ukrainian officer Vasily Samovar, who commands the aviation and air defense forces of the 3rd Separate Storm Brigade, told a local Dnipro TV channel on Saturday.
He reportedly admitted that Russia is superior in many aspects, ranging from economic might to personnel reserves.” (rt.com 12/23/23)
“The president of Belarus said Monday that Russia has completed its shipments of tactical nuclear weapons to his country, an initiative that raised strong concerns in neighboring Poland and elsewhere in the region.
Lukashenko has said that hosting Russian nuclear weapons in his country is meant to deter aggression by Poland, a NATO member. Poland is offering neighbor Ukraine military, humanitarian and political backing in its struggle against Russia’s invasion and is taking part in international sanctions on Russia and Belarus.” (apnews.com 12/25/23)
“The US and Britain helped Ukraine carry out deadly strikes on the Russian border city of Belgorod, Moscow’s envoy to the UN, Vassily Nebenzia, told the Security Council on Saturday. Russia requested an urgent Security Council meeting after Ukrainian forces shelled Belgorod earlier in the day, killing at least 22 people and injuring more than 100.
In his remarks, Nebenzia described the shelling as ‘a premeditated act of terrorism against civilians,’ arguing that Kiev’s Western supporters share responsibility for the deaths. ‘The West is complicit in the crimes committed by the gang [in power] in Kiev,’ the diplomat said. ‘We know that British and American consultants were directly involved in the organization of this terrorist act.’” (rt.com 12/30/23)
“The Bundeswehr is preparing for an armed conflict against Russia...This emerges from a secret document...Accordingly, there could be a possible escalation between NATO and Russia as early as this February...In this Bundeswehr scenario, the escalation will begin in just a few weeks...Tens of thousands of German soldiers would have to be sent into action soon afterwards…On Day X, NATO’s commander-in-chief will give the order to move 300,000 troops to the eastern flank, including 30,000 Bundeswehr soldiers” (bild.de 1/16/24)
“The confrontation between the West and the East has entered a ‘hot phase,’ Belarusian Defense Minister, Lieutenant General Viktor Khrenin has said. Khrenin made the statement during a press conference on Friday dedicated to introducing Belarus’ new military doctrine. The document is only amended when there are significant changes to the geopolitical or internal situation, and for Belarus, ‘all those conditions have come about,’ he explained.” (rt.com 1/19/24)
“Russia should place its nuclear weapons in ‘friendly countries’ near the US in response to Washington’s alleged plans to move its own tactical arms to Europe, lawmaker Aleksey Zhuravlev has suggested.
His comments came after The Telegraph reported on Saturday that the US is looking to deploy its nuclear weapons in the UK for the first time in 15 years, in order to counter a supposedly increased threat from Russia.” (rt.com 1/29/24)
“Commenting on NATO’s Steadfast Defender 2024 exercise, the largest since the end of the Cold War, {Medvedev] noted that this was ‘playing with fire in a very dangerous way.’
‘We don’t plan to attack any of the bloc’s members. This is clear to all reasonable people in the West. However, if they get carried away playing and encroach on our country’s integrity, they will immediately receive an appropriate response,’ Medvedev pointed out. According to him, ‘it will mean one thing - a big war that NATO won’t be able to dodge.’
‘Significant forces have been assembled. And exercises of this scale have not been conducted since the last century. The same thing will happen if any NATO country begins to provide its airfields to Bandera’s supporters or quarters its troops with neo-Nazis. They will certainly become a legitimate target for our Armed Forces and will be mercilessly destroyed as enemies.
All those wearing helmets with NATO symbols, who today swaggeringly rattle their weapons not far from our borders should remember this.’” (tass.com 2/2/24)
"The situation is no calmer on the European continent, including near our borders. In the immediate vicinity of Belarus and Russia, as part of the alliance's operations in Europe, about 32,000 soldiers of the contingents of the united armed forces of NATO and the United States are stationed. There are more than 1,000 armored vehicles, about 160 artillery systems and mortars, 235 airplanes and helicopters," Lukashenko was quoted as saying by the Pul Pervogo Telegram channel.
Bosnia and Herzegovina, Moldova, Georgia and Serbia will be drawn into NATO just like the scenario of the situation in Ukraine, Lukashenko added.” (sputnikglobe.com 2/20/24)
“Germans have ‘once again turned into our archenemies,’ said former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. ‘Just take a look at how thoroughly and in what detail the Krauts are discussing long-range missile strikes on Russia’s territory, and are picking out targets and the most workable ways to harm our Motherland and our people.’ He ended his post with the WWII-era slogan, ‘Death to the Fascists!’” (rt.com 3/1/24)
“The Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, an independent U.S. government agency with members from the U.S. House of Representatives, Senate, and departments of defense, state, and commerce, has declared that decolonizing Russia should be a ‘moral and strategic objective.’ The Free Nations of Post-Russia Forum, comprising exiled politicians and journalists from Russia, held a meeting at the European Parliament in Brussels earlier this year and is advertising three events in different American cities this month. It has even released a map of a dismembered Russia, split into 41 different countries, in a post-Putin world, assuming he loses in Ukraine and is ousted.” (Angel Vohra foreignpolicy.com 4/23)
“French troops are preparing for a high-intensity conflict against an enemy who can match them with firepower — a big change for an army that's spent the past decades fighting counterinsurgency campaigns in places like Mali and Afghanistan.
The hostilities in Ukraine, in their third year, have brought full-scale war back to the Continent, said Colonel Axel Denis, who runs the combat training center (CENTAC) at Mailly-le-camp in eastern France.
‘The world has revealed its true nature: unstable, dangerous, and not everyone is a friend. We're gearing up for a culture of alert, of being ready at short notice,’ he told POLITICO during a visit to the camp. ‘CENTAC is the only place [in France] where you can see what war is like.’” (politico.eu 3/8/24)
“The Russian president has dismissed the United States’s claims that Moscow could attack a NATO country in the future as ‘complete nonsense’, saying such a conflict would run counter to his country’s interests.
Vladimir Putin made the statement in an interview with Russian state TV on Sunday, weeks after US President Joe Biden warned that if Putin achieved victory in Ukraine, he might be emboldened to attack a NATO ally, sparking a third world war.
‘It is complete nonsense – and I think President Biden understands that,’ Putin told state television channel Rossiya. ‘Russia has no reason, no interest – no geopolitical interest, neither economic, political nor military – to fight with NATO countries.’ Putin added that Biden may be trying to stoke such fears to justify his ‘erroneous policy’ in the region.” (tass.com 3/12/24)
“Putin stressed that Moscow was well aware of the US-led military bloc’s push to deploy troops in Ukraine. ‘We hear both French and English speech there. There is nothing good in this, first of all for them, because they die there and in large numbers,’ he said.
He also weighed in on a potential full-scale conflict between NATO and Russia, warning that it could not be ruled out. ‘Anything is possible in the modern world… But everyone knows that this would be one step shy of a full-scale World War III. I don’t think that anyone is interested in that.’” (rt.com 3/17/24)
“In recent weeks, French President Emmanuel Macron has repeatedly refused to rule out Western troops being sent to Ukraine at some point to help Kiev in its fight against Moscow, which he described as an ‘adversary’ of Paris.
France’s forces are ‘ready,’ Schill told Le Monde, stressing that ‘whatever the developments in the international situation, the French can be convinced: their soldiers will respond.’
Schill said France has ‘international responsibilities’ and is linked by defense agreements to ‘states exposed to major threats,’ and must therefore have its forces trained and interoperable with allied armies.” (rt.com 3/19/24)
French Army Colonel Vincent Arbaretier giving an extensive television interview to proclaim ‘we are a nuclear power’ and outline two French military deployment scenarios in Ukraine, then he warned: ‘I think that these two options can be mixed, that is, send French troops along the Dnieper and around Kyiv to tell the Russians: do not go further, otherwise you risk coming under our fire, including our unconventional fire” (Direct LCI bitchute.com 3/19/24)
“‘We are in a state of war. Yes, it started as a special military operation, but as soon as this bunch was formed there, when the collective West became a participant on Ukraine’s side, for us it already became a war,’ Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in an interview to a pro-Kremlin newspaper published on Friday.
Asked to elaborate, Peskov told reporters later: ‘De jure it is a special military operation. But de facto it has turned into a war.’
President Vladimir Putin has previously said the West has unleashed a ‘hybrid war’ against Moscow, but largely stuck to calling the conflict in Ukraine a ‘special military operation.’” (france24.com 3/22/24)
“'Paris should keep in mind that Moscow will consider the French military in Ukraine as a priority target, Russia's permanent representative to the UN, Vasily Nebenzya, said at a meeting of the Security Council. ‘Planning to send regular troops [to Ukraine]. An important thing Paris should remember is that they will be seen as a legitimate and even priority target for our army,’ he stressed.” (UN RIA Novosti 3/22/24)
“Lithuanian leaders hailed a ‘historic event’ as Germany on Monday began deploying troops in the Baltic country — a NATO member — marking the first time since World War II that German forces will be based outside the country on a long-term basis.
About two dozen soldiers arrived in Lithuania, laying the groundwork for a further 150 to join them later this year. The deployment is expected to be up to its full strength of 5,000 by the end of 2027.
‘This is the first time that we have permanently stationed such a unit outside of Germany,’ German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said in Berlin at a farewell ceremony for the preliminary command of Germany’s Lithuanian brigade, according to German news agency dpa. Pistorius called it ‘an important day for the German army.’
In the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius, Defense Minister Laurynas Kasciunas said that the move was ‘a great example’ for all the countries on NATO’s eastern flank, on the border with Russia and its ally, Belarus.” (apnews.com 4/8/24)
“Let us be clear, that if Ukraine falls, it will be not only a disaster for that innocent country. It will be a total humiliation for the West — the first time in the 75 years of Nato’s existence that this hitherto successful alliance has been utterly routed — and on European soil.” (Boris Johnson, dailymail.co.uk 4/12/24)
“Western countries are balancing on the edge of a direct military confrontation between nuclear powers, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in a video address to participants in the Moscow Non-Proliferation Conference.
‘Today, the United States and their NATO client states are still dreaming of inflicting a strategic defeat on Russia and are ready to carry on with their policy of deterring our country ‘to the last Ukrainian.’ At the same time, the West is balancing on the dangerous edge of a direct military confrontation between nuclear powers, which could have catastrophic consequences,’ Lavrov pointed out.” (tass.com 4/22/24)
“About 90,000 NATO troops have been training in Europe this spring for the Great Power war that most hope will never come: a clash between Russia and the West with potentially catastrophic consequences.
In Estonia, paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division out of Fort Liberty, N.C., jumped out of planes alongside soldiers from Colchester Garrison in Essex, Britain, for ‘forcible entry’ operations. In Lithuania, German soldiers arrived as a brigade stationed outside Germany on a permanent basis for the first time since World War II.
According to General Williams, in the past, at such exercises ‘the name of the enemy was not mentioned’ - it was just a fictitious one. ‘This year we are actually conducting exercises against the Russians. We are fighting our potential adversary,’ he emphasized.” (nytimes.com 4/24/24)
“NATO is starting to deploy combat troops to Ukraine. Soldiers from Poland, France, the UK, Finland and other NATO members are arriving in larger numbers.
Although Russia says there are over 3,100 mercenaries in Ukraine, these newly arriving troops are not mercenaries. They are in uniform, home country proclaimed via insignia. They mostly are concentrated in the western part of the country, although in some cases they are close to the actual fighting in the east.
NATO is putting out the word these are not combat soldiers but are in Ukraine to operate sophisticated western hardware. But if they are firing at the Russians the only proper way to interpret their presence is that they are playing an active part in the shooting war.” (asiatimes.com 4/26/24)
“The US military is training fewer and fewer Ukrainian soldiers in Europe, suggesting that Kiev is running out of men to fight off Russian forces, US officials have told the Washington Post.
American instructors began training Ukrainian troops in April 2022, with drills taking place at the Grafenwoehr Training Area in Germany. Some 3,100 Ukrainian soldiers had received US training by that December, and the program was expanded in January 2023 to train 12 brigades in the runup to Kiev’s disastrous summer counteroffensive. In addition to these 12 brigades, three brigades were trained by other European nations, while American instructors taught combined arms tactics to a tank battalion and two national guard battalions.
However, the last brigade trained in Germany left Grafenwoehr in January or February, anonymous US officials told the Washington Post on Saturday. None have been trained in the months since, ‘suggesting a depletion of the personnel pipeline,’ the newspaper paraphrased.” (rt.com 4/29/24)
“The powers that be in Western countries behind the prolongation of the Ukrainian crisis are ‘fatally’ mistaken in their assumption that Kiev could benefit in any way from the crisis with Russia being dragged out any further, retired Luftwaffe General, former Bundeswehr Chief of Staff, and former NATO Military Committee Chairman Harald Kujat has warned.
‘It would be a fatal mistake to believe that Ukraine’s prospects will improve the longer the war continues. On the contrary: the catastrophic consequences of this error can only be averted if it is possible to prevent a military defeat through an early cessation of hostilities and peace negotiations between the two belligerent states,’ Kujat said in an interview with Germany’s Overton Magazine.
‘The military situation has become very critical for Ukraine after the failure of the offensive last year, and is becoming more difficult with each passing day. The Ukrainian armed forces have lost the ability to conduct offensive operations and, on the advice of the Americans, are trying to reduce their high losses in personnel through strategic defense, and to hold on to the territory they still control,’ the general explained.” (sputnikglobe.com 4/30/24)
“Earl Rasmussen, a 20-year US Army veteran-turned independent military and foreign affairs commentator, agrees that the [trophy armor display at Moscow’s Victory Park] is designed ‘to send a signal to the West.’
‘[It signals] that Russia is there, they’re capable, their military is capable. They’ve destroyed almost the equivalent of three Ukrainian armies so far. And they will continue to do so. So whatever the West sends, those weapons will be destroyed,’ the retired lieutenant colonel said.
‘The weapons, ammunition…the production capability, the logistical capability – it’s all on the side of Russia. It’s superior in that area. It has escalation dominance. There is air superiority and tactical superiority as well. Time is on their side. And all this does [continuing the proxy war, ed.] is drain the West more and more and more. It’s a sad affair, I think for the Western public, unfortunately. And they’re being lied to by their own leaders,’ Rasmussen added.” (sputnikglobe.com 5/2/24)
“Recent statements made by French President Emmanuel Macron and British Foreign Secretary David Cameron are part of an ongoing ‘verbal escalation’ by Western officials, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Friday.
Responding to these comments, Peskov said that the statements made by Macron and Cameron represent a ‘very dangerous trend’ that could threaten security on the continent.
‘France, represented by the head of state, continues to constantly talk about the possibility of its direct involvement on the ground in the conflict around Ukraine. This is a very dangerous trend, we are watching it closely,’ the Kremlin spokesman stated.
As for Cameron’s assertion that Kiev can use British weapons to attack Russia, Peskov warned that such ‘verbal escalation’ around the Ukrainian conflict could ‘potentially pose a danger to European security and the entire European security architecture.’” (rt.com 5/3/24)
““There will be presidential election in the United States soon. There is no division between Democrats and Republicans over Russia and China. One may be 'tougher', the other 'even tougher,’ but in principle we don't see any difference. For both, no matter who wins the election, we are by and large the enemy. Whether we are an adversary or an enemy is a nuance. But the 'strategic defeat' that they say should be inflicted on Russia is the goal of the American establishment,” Sergey Lavrov said in an interview with Bosnia’s ATV channel.” (Tass.com 5/5/24)
“Russia will test its ability to deploy tactical nuclear weapons, the Defense Ministry announced on Monday. The drill will be conducted ‘in the near future' and was ordered by President Vladimir Putin, the statement said. The goal of the exercise is to iron out ‘the practical aspects of the preparation and deployment of non-strategic nuclear weapons,’ it added.
The military cited ‘provocative statements and threats against Russia by certain Western officials’ as the reason for the drill. The troops will confirm that they can ‘ensure unconditional territorial integrity and sovereignty’ of the nation, it added." (rt.com 5/6/24)
"According to James Stavridis, former commander-in-chief of the alliance's joint forces, Russia has significant forces in Kaliningrad, so in the event of a direct clash between NATO and the Russian Federation, it ‘will have to be neutralized.’
‘NATO will deploy sea-based air forces to deter Russian air and sea capabilities. The Alliance will use its Baltic Sea to put pressure on tiny Kaliningrad, which acts as a geographic wedge between NATO's Baltic states - Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania - and the rest of the alliance,’ he said.
‘Neutralization’ of Kaliningrad, Stavridis added, will be needed by NATO so that Russia will not be able to control the ‘critical Suwalki corridor.’
The alliance is currently conducting Steadfast Defender 24 exercises near the border with the Russian Federation, including practicing the seizure of the Kaliningrad region.” (bloomberg.com 5/8/24)
“Russia and Belarus are conducting training drills with tactical nuclear weapons in the wake of the situation unfolding around the two countries, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said.
‘Nuclear weapons are terrifying weapons. But it is a weapon. Therefore, in order to use such weapons, we must train, we must know how to handle them. An escalation is ongoing. What should we do in this situation? We need to keep powder dry, including these lethal weapons,’ Lukashenko said.
‘However, the escalation is not only in Ukraine, as the Middle East is already on fire, with Iran nearby, and further on into the Pacific region,’ Lukashenko added, assuming that the world is ‘closer than ever to a nuclear disaster.’” (tass.com 5/9/24)
“A senior US military official has apparently inadvertently acknowledged to the media that British commandos are secretly operating in Ukraine. The comment was later removed from the original article. Gen. Bryan Fenton, commander of US Special Operations Command, was interviewed by the Associated Press about the lessons that his force is learning from the conflict.
The original version of the story published on Sunday said the Americans get those lessons ‘mostly through the eyes of our UK special operations partners,’ who have been testing new approaches there. As an example, he said British special operations forces were drawing on the experience of RAF pilots for advice using drones and ‘the way a ship in the Black Sea navigates.’ The text has since been redacted to remove any mention of the British military’s role in the Ukraine conflict.” (rt.com 5/13/24)
“Britain will not support any solution to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine that involves what it sees as concessions to Moscow, Defense Secretary Grant Shapps told Times Radio on Tuesday.
The UK has been among the largest arms donors to Kiev. In recent weeks, London has stepped up its rhetoric by saying that British weapons supplied to Ukraine may be used for attacks deep inside Russia. Moscow recently summoned the UK ambassador over the matter and warned of possible retaliation, including strikes targeting ‘any British military facilities and equipment’ in Ukraine and beyond.
On Tuesday, Shapps maintained that the only way to end the conflict was by inflicting a military defeat on Russia. ‘I do not think it is plausible at all for [Russian President Vladimir] Putin to win this war,’ he said, calling for increased arms shipments to Ukraine.
‘It is very, very important that the US follows the UK lead. Remember: we’ve just increased our money to Ukraine this year to £3 billion ($3.78 billion), our biggest-ever package,’ the defense secretary said, referring to an earlier announcement by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who committed to spend that sum on military support for Ukraine per year.” (rt.com 5/14/24)
“Russia has never refused to negotiate with Ukraine - unlike Kiev - but now it is necessary to understand who can be done business with and who is trustworthy there, President Vladimir Putin told Russian journalists accompanying him on his visit to China.
He recalled that Moscow ‘never refused to negotiate,’ it was politicians in Kiev who ‘withdrew from the negotiation process’ as soon as troops were pulled back from Kiev.
‘We were deceived once again," Putin said. "Now we have to understand who we should do business with and how. Who and to what extent we can trust. And, of course, we are now analyzing everything that is happening on this track.’
Putin recalled that when Russian troops were near Kiev, the Western partners insisted on their pullback: ‘No documents can be signed if the opposite side puts a gun to your temple,’ they argued.
‘The next day they threw our agreements into the dustbin and said, Well, now we will fight to the end,’ Putin recalled. ‘And their Western handlers took the position now known to the whole world: Russia is to be defeated on the battlefield, to be made suffer a strategic defeat. We are not the ones who behaved this way.’” (tass.com 5/17/24)
“Ukraine’s struggle to fend off Russia’s massive offensive in the Kharkiv region has underscored a pressing issue that Kyiv has long tried to overturn: a ban on firing U.S. weapons to hit inside of Russia.
Russia launched its Kharkiv offensive from the neighboring Belgorod region, and some Ukrainian officials are arguing that the attack could have been blunted if they were allowed to hit targets in that Russian province.
A delegation of five Ukrainian members of parliament traveled to Washington this week to meet with Biden administration officials and congressional lawmakers in a bid to push the U.S. to reverse the ban.” (thehill.com 5/19/24)
“We hope that the Russian military drills held to practice the use of non-strategic nuclear weapons will cool the hot heads in Western capitals. [It should] open their eyes to the potential catastrophic consequences of the strategic risks they are generating, and stop them from supporting the #Kiev regime’s terrorist attacks and from becoming involved in a direct military confrontation with #Russia.” (@RussianEmbassy 5/22/24)
“Politicians and legislators continue to test our patience. Every day we hear new proposals to expand military assistance to the Kiev junta. Obviously, the main thing for Kiev is to provoke the United States, as well as other NATO countries, into rash actions and achieve a head-on collision between Russia and the bloc members,” (Anatoly Antonov @RusEmbUSA 5/22/24)
“Russian President Vladimir Putin has arrived in Belarus for a two-day state visit that will include talks on the former Soviet republic’s involvement in nuclear weapons drills.
Moscow has said the drills are meant to demonstrate its ability to respond to external threats, thereby deterring further escalation of the Russia-Ukraine conflict by Kiev’s Western backers.
After being greeted by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, Putin said the two leaders will discuss ‘the second phase’ of the exercise. ‘This is related to direct participation of our Belarusian friends and colleagues in these events,’ he added.” (rt.com 5/23/24)
“At a time when the Russian military has made key gains toward Ukraine's second-largest city of Kharkiv, breaking a yearlong stalemate, [Ambassador Anatoly] Antonov stated that ‘there can be no talk of any ‘freezing' of the conflict’ and the Russian leader ‘did not say anything like this.’
‘Let me emphasize that any Russian-Ukrainian agreements must take into account the situation 'on the ground,' he said. ‘Retreat or withdrawal of the Russian Federation Armed Forces to hypothetical dividing lines is excluded. Let us remind you: there is a Constitution of Russia. The borders of our state, which include new federal subjects, are clearly marked there.’” (newsweek.com 5/25/24)
“Russian Senator Dmitry Rogozin alarmingly warned: ‘The United States should be seen as directly responsible for a Ukrainian strike on a key element of Russia’s nuclear umbrella...Thus, we stand not on the precipice, but on the very edge...If such enemy actions are not stopped, an irreversible collapse of the strategic security of nuclear powers will begin.’” (rt.com 5/25/24)
“Rishi wants out. We are actually at war with Russia now. We’ve got- They just haven’t told you… We’re actually at war with Russia now. I met with Andrey Kelen, the Russian ambassador in London a couple of months ago. And he said that we know that your people are firing those Stormshadow missiles at us out of Ukraine because you couldn’t train the Ukrainians to do it. We know you’re doing it. And I mean, everything everybody Everybody knows that there are lots of US, UK, French. The French are in there.” (British Parliament Member Andrew Bridgen rt.com 5/26/24)
"‘NATO's statements are an insane dash toward World War III against Russia. Every word is extremely serious and fraught with consequences. NATO has officially abandoned its position as a defense alliance — already disproved in practice — it is declaring war!’ @f_philippot said on X on Tuesday. The politician has called on Paris to withdraw from the alliance.” (sputnikglobe.com 5/29/24)
“The Biden administration has quietly given Ukraine permission to strike inside Russia — solely near the area of Kharkiv — using U.S.-provided weapons, three U.S. officials and two other people familiar with the move said Thursday, a major reversal that will help Ukraine to better defend its second-largest city.
‘The president recently directed his team to ensure that Ukraine is able to use U.S. weapons for counter-fire purposes in Kharkiv so Ukraine can hit back at Russian forces hitting them or preparing to hit them,’ one of the U.S. officials said, adding that the policy of not allowing long-range strikes inside Russia ‘has not changed.’” (politico.com 5/30/24)
“‘We are centimetres away from actual destruction. Do we dare to say that we are not ready to die for Ukraine? We're not ready. Hungarians want peace, and Europe cannot withstand another war,” said Viktor Orban. (hungarytoday.hu 5/31/24)
“President Joe Biden just plunged the U.S. deeper into the fight in Ukraine...Soon, Ukraine will be using U.S.-made weapons to strike inside Russia — a nuclear-armed power — with a U.S. president’s blessing...Biden’s decision is a stark admission that his efforts to defend Ukraine fully so far have fallen short.” (politico.com 5/31/24)
“‘There is no contribution on the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ part in guiding ATACMS, Storm Shadow or SCALP missiles toward Russian targets. The Ukrainian operators of these systems essentially act as launch buttons and nothing more. The entire process of planning missions, and the orders’ transfer to the missiles via Starlink, as well as processing of intelligence information for Kiev, is done by its Western allies. Thus, we’re talking about NATO’s actual participation in the conflict,’ veteran Russian military observer Alexei Leonkov explained.” (sputnikglobe.com 6/1/24)
“Any foreign military personnel sent to Ukraine will be legitimate targets for Russian strikes, whether they are from France or anywhere else, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said on Tuesday.
Peskov was asked about a report in the Washington Post, published on Monday, alleging that Russian President Vladimir Putin ‘might see hitting French troops, if Russian forces can locate them... as a chance to humiliate [French President Emmanuel] Macron.’
The remark was an apparent reference to a French plan to send military instructors to Ukraine. Macron has repeatedly claimed he does not rule out the possibility of NATO members sending troops to Ukraine.
‘The fact is that any instructors who are involved in training the military of the Ukrainian regime do not have any immunity,’ Peskov told reporters on Tuesday. ‘And it doesn’t matter whether they are French or not.’” (rt.com 6/4/24)
“NATO's largest naval exercise Baltic Operations 2024 (BALTOPS 24) is set to begin on Wednesday, the Polish armed forces said.
‘More than 50 ships of various classes and types, 45 helicopters and aircraft, 9,000 military personnel are participating in the Baltops 24 exercise this year. The most important NATO maritime exercise in the Baltic Sea will start on Wednesday, June 5, in Klaipeda (Lithuania)," the armed forces said in a statement.” (sputnik globe.com 6/5/24)
“Russia is preparing to deploy aircraft and combat naval vessels to the Caribbean to conduct military exercises in the coming weeks, its first exercises in the Western Hemisphere involving both air and sea activity in five years, a senior administration official told McClatchy and the Miami Herald.” (miamiherald.com 6/5/24)
“A detachment of four ships of the Russian Navy will arrive on an official visit to the port of Havana on June 12, the Cuban Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced. ‘In the period from June 12 to 17, 2024, a detachment of the Russian Navy consisting of four ships will pay an official visit to the port of Havana: the frigate Gorshkov, the nuclear submarine Kazan, the oil tanker Pashin and the rescue tug Nikolai Chiker.’ , says a communiqué on the department’s website. In Havana, they noted that the arrival of the Russian ships is in line with friendly relations between Cuba and Russia, and also strictly complies with international rules. They emphasized that none of the ships carry nuclear weapons and their stay does not pose a threat. for the region.” (RIA Novosti. 6/6/24).
“The second stage of drills focusing on the use of non-strategic nuclear weapons by Russian and Belarusian forces has commenced, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Tuesday. Previously, troops underwent training to operate Iskander missiles and to equip Kinzhal hypersonic missiles with specialized warheads
The second stage of the non-strategic nuclear forces drills is aimed at maintaining readiness to use nuclear weapons to ensure the sovereignty of the Union State of Russia and Belarus, the Russian Ministry of Defense added.” (sputnikglobe.com 6/11/24)
“Everything NATO is doing today is a preparation for a possible clash with Russia, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko told Izvestia.
‘Everything NATO is doing in this area today, to put it bluntly, is the alliance's preparation for a possible military clash with Russia,’ he said. "And the exercises that are being conducted show how all concepts of cooperative security have now been discarded and NATO has returned to Cold War-era security schemes,’ he pointed out.
Grushko added that the alliance has launched a hybrid war against Russia. ‘In the economic sphere, thousands of illegal sanctions have been imposed against our country, in the ideological sphere, the demonization of Russia is taking place, and one of the latest obvious examples is the announcement that if NATO is defeated in Ukraine, the next day Russia will definitely invade Poland and the Baltic states, whose independence was recognized back in the USSR,’ the diplomat pointed out.” (tass.com 6/13/24)
“NATO countries are discussing the possibility of deploying more nuclear warheads and putting them in combat readiness as a deterrent factor, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said.
"I won’t go into operational details about how many nuclear warheads should be operational and which should be stored, but we need to consult on these issues. That’s exactly what we’re doing," Stoltenberg told The Telegraph newspaper on Sunday.
Stoltenberg added that China is actively investing in its nuclear arsenal, which will grow to 1,000 warheads by the early 2030s.
‘And that means that in a not-very-distant future NATO may face something that it has never faced before, and that is two nuclear-powered potential adversaries – China and Russia. Of course, this has consequences,’ he said.” (sputnikglobe.com 6/17/24)
“Russia will upgrade its nuclear arsenal as it is a primary guarantor of national security, President Vladimir Putin revealed on Friday.
The comment comes amid growing tensions between Moscow and the West over the Ukraine conflict, as the US and its allies continue to arm Kiev while claiming not to be party to the conflict.
Putin has warned that Russia would use all means available to defend itself should the state's existence be at stake. Citing the need to send the West a message, the Kremlin last month ordered the military to carry out drills in deploying non-strategic nuclear weapons.
‘We plan to further develop the nuclear triad as a guarantee of strategic deterrence and to preserve the balance of power in the world,’ Putin said on Friday at a meeting of graduates from military institutions.” (rt.com 6/22/24)
“The Ukrainian attack [on the Sevastopol beach] was purposefully carried out when there was a maximum concentration of people on the beach, Ambassador Antonov told journalists when asked to comment on Washington’s lack of reaction to the deadly strike.
‘The administration demonstratively supports the crimes of the Kiev regime. It took the side of international terrorism, and condones attacks on civilians by Bandera’s adherents,” the ambassador stated.
“It is obvious to policymakers in Washington that cluster munitions in ATACMS missiles cannot be launched without the participation of American specialists and support from US intelligence. It is no coincidence that enemy drones are circling over the Black Sea almost every day,’ he added.
“All this indicates the death of America’s pseudo-humane foreign policy in the bloody swamp of the Ukrainian crisis.’” (rt.com 6/24/24)
“CNN reported on Tuesday, June 25 that White House officials are thrashing out the details of a plan to allow military contractors to deploy to Ukraine to help Kyiv’s military to maintain US-provided weapons systems.
While stressing that the proposal had not yet been submitted to or agreed by President Joe Biden, CNN reported that the change would present yet another major change in the US stance towards its support for Ukraine.” (kyivpost.com 6/26/24)
“‘Today, we will review the steps Russia should take regarding the unilateral moratorium on the deployment of ground-based intermediate- and shorter-range missiles,’ Putin stated.
Moscow has lived by its promise to ‘neither produce these missiles, nor deploy them as long as the United States does not deploy such systems anywhere around the globe’ following the collapse of the treaty, Putin noted. However, the situation has changed, with Washington deploying such missiles overseas, the president said.
‘We now know that the US is not only producing these missile systems, but has also brought them to Europe, Denmark, to use in exercises. Not long ago, it was reported that they were in the Philippines. It is unclear whether they have taken these missiles out of the Philippines or not,’ Putin explained.” (rt.com 6/30/24)
“‘Ten NATO battalion tactical groups remain stationed near Belarus's border with European Union member states, Belarusian Chief of the General Staff Pavel Muraveiko said Sunday.
‘Today we have 10 battalion tactical groups of NATO with a total strength of over 20,000 people located near our border,’ the First Deputy Defense Minister told All-National Television. ‘Six of these groups are American. Why fly here from overseas and deploy a contingent here? They said it was temporary.’
Muraveiko recalled there is an adage that goes, ‘nothing is more permanent than something temporary,’ adding that such proximity is ‘bothering and straining.’” (sputnikglobe.com 7/1/24)
“Western countries ‘can’t wait’ to drag Belarus into their ‘military squabbles,’ Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has said, commenting on recent reports of Ukrainian and NATO forces massing along the borders of the country, which is a key Russian ally.
‘I think you… see what is going on around Belarus. They just can’t wait to drag us into their military squabbles. [They are doing it] in order to make us stretch [our forces] along the border, to make us unable to put up resistance, and to escalate the situation to the point where the whole world will tremble,’ Lukashenko said, as quoted by BELTA news agency.” (rt.com 7/2/24)
“The naval strike group of the Northern Fleet of the Russian Navy entered the port of the Venezuelan state of La Guaira. It consists of the nuclear submarine Kazan, the frigate Admiral Gorshkov, the rescue tug Nikolai Chiker and the supply tanker Akademik Pashin, which entered the port first. The group is commanded by the head of the operational department of the Main Headquarters of the Navy, Vice Admiral Mikhail Neupokoev. According to the press service of the Northern Fleet, during the stay the crews of Russian ships will be able to relax and get acquainted with local attractions. It is clarified that the business call will last several days, after which the ship group led by the frigate ‘Admiral Gorshkov’ will continue to carry out its assigned tasks in the Atlantic Ocean, including: demonstrating the flag and ensuring a naval presence in operationally important areas of the far ocean zone.” (RIA Novosti 7/2/24)
“Chinese and Belarusian troops started joint military exercises on Monday near the Belarusian city of Brest, five kilometers from the Polish border. The maneuvers, codenamed Eagle Assault, will last 11 days until July 19.
‘As part of the anti-terrorist exercises, the military personnel of both countries will work out the issues of night landing, overcoming water obstacles, and conducting operations in [urban settings],’ the Belarusian defense ministry said on Telegram.
The post was followed by others showcasing the readiness of the armed forces. ‘The NATO grouping on the border with Belarus is growing rapidly, which leads to an increase in tension in the region,’ stated another post that warned of a ‘harsh reaction’ should anyone ‘cross Belarusian borders.’” (politico.eu 7/8/24)
“Russia will calmly prepare a military response to US plans to station long-range missiles in Germany, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said on Thursday.
Washington announced plans on Wednesday to start deploying long-range weapons in Germany in 2026, including SM-6 and Tomahawk systems, ‘as part of planning for enduring stationing of these capabilities in the future.’
The latest American plans are just another escalation of tensions by the West and ‘one of the elements of intimidation, which today is almost the main component of the NATO and US’ approach towards Russia, Ryabkov said.” (rt.com 7/11/24)
“The NATO Declaration is a stark neoconservative recommitment to US hegemony. It calls for NATO to back the 'rules-based order,' which is actually the US-based order that is often directly contrary to the UN Charter,” Professor Jeffrey Sachs said.
On Wednesday, NATO released a joint Washington Summit Declaration, which outlines the alliance's efforts to further isolate Russia, bolster the alliance's security on its eastern flank, increase security assistance for Ukraine, and claim Ukraine is on an ‘irreversible path’ into NATO, among other initiatives.
‘It describes NATO as a defensive force despite the fact that NATO is repeatedly engaged in offensive regime-change operations, including Afghanistan, Iraq, Serbia, Libya, Ukraine, and others,’ Sachs said. Sachs explains that NATO's declaration also restates Article 10 of the Washington Treaty, which claims that Russia has no input if NATO expands to surround Russia.” (sputnikglobe.com 7/11/24)
“The German Defense Ministry has drawn up contingency plans for a potential military conflict with Russia, Der Spiegel and Bild have reported. The document reportedly envisages Germany serving a key role as a transit state for NATO troops, with its population and civil services being expected to assist foreign military personnel.
In its report on Friday, Der Spiegel alleged that under the classified ‘Operational Plan Germany’ (OPLAN DEU), the country should be able to arrange the transfer of 800,000 NATO troops and approximately 200,000 vehicles, including tanks and other hardware, from ports in the Netherlands and Belgium to the East, within three to six months. Several key highways would supposedly be used for this purpose, meaning that they would be closed to civilian traffic. Local communities would be expected to supply the passing military personnel with food, housing, resting areas, and fuel, both media outlets claimed.” (rt.com 7/13/24)
“The German government secretly delivered a new aid package to Ukraine between late June and early July, the Bavarian daily Munchner Merkur reported on Monday. The paper called the shipment ‘huge,’ adding that it was done in a clandestine manner and went ‘largely unnoticed.’
The package included 39 pieces of various heavy armor from the stocks of Germany’s military and of its defense enterprises, Merkur reported, after analyzing government data. Kiev received ten more Leopard 1A5 main battle tanks and 20 more Marder infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs), among other extra donations, the outlet said.” (rt.com 7/15/24)
“Ukrainian forces are deploying chemical weapons against Russian troops on the battlefield, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov has said. He added that Moscow has amassed enough evidence to prove that Kiev is working with Washington to produce components for biological weapons.” (rt.com 7/18/24)
“MiG-29 and MiG-31 fighters prevented two US Air Force B-52N strategic bombers from violating the Russian state border, the Russian Defense Ministry reported.
‘On July 21, Russian means of airspace control over the Barents Sea detected a group of air targets approaching the Russian state border. In order to identify the air target and prevent the violation of the Russian state border, MiG-29 and MiG-31 fighters were raised in the air. The crews of the Russian fighters identified the air target as two B-52N strategic bombers of the US Air Force," the ministry said.’” (tass.com 7/21/24)
“Warships from Russia's Baltic Fleet will make a port visit to Havana from July 27-30, Russian news agencies reported on Thursday, citing Cuba's defence ministry, the second such visit this year.
The RIA state news agency said the training ship Smolniy, the patrol frigate Neustrashimiy (Fearless), and the refuelling tanker Yelnya would take part in the visit and that Russian sailors would meet the head of the Cuban Navy.” (reuters.com 7/25/24)
“Russia will consider itself free from a moratorium on the deployment of medium and shorter-range missiles if the US places missiles in Germany, Russian President Vladimir Putin has said in an address to sailors at the Navy Day parade in St. Petersburg.
Putin called this announcement ‘noteworthy,’ as such a deployment will put important Russian state and military facilities, administrative and industrial centers, as well as defense infrastructure within the reach of the weapons. He noted that the flight time of such missiles to targets on Russian territory would be about ten minutes, and that they could also be equipped with nuclear warheads.
‘This situation is reminiscent of the events of the Cold War related to the deployment of American medium-range missiles in Europe,’ Putin stated. He said that while Russia has long left the Cold War in the past, the US ‘did not reciprocate.’ The president warned that if the US goes through with the missile deployment plan, Russia will respond accordingly.” (rt.com 7/28/24)
“Russia's readiness for peace talks with Ukraine was beyond doubt, but it was wrecked by Kiev's reckless move in the Kursk Region, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said at a news conference following talks with Senegalese Foreign Minister Yassine Fall.
‘We always remember that President [of Russia President Vladimir] Putin made the latest peace proposal in June, after all previous initiatives and agreements were ruined and sabotaged by the Kiev regime and its Western backers. Our readiness for talks was beyond anyone’s doubt, although, of course, after the reckless move in the Kursk Region, any discussion of this subject is no longer relevant,’ he said.” (tass.com 8/29/24)
The nuclear armed Russian warships Soobrazitelnyy, Stoikiy & Admiral Gorshkov of the Baltic Fleet are lurking in the Atlantic & Caribbean to checkmate the US & NATO along with Kaliningrad’s Iskander & Kalibr ballistic missiles staged in the heart of Europe.
“Russian service members will train to prepare for the combat use of non-strategic nuclear weapons at the third stage of the drills that involve troops from the Central and Southern military districts, as well as the Aerospace Forces, the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement.
‘The third stage of non-strategic nuclear drills has begun in accordance with the Russian president's decision. The exercise is aimed at practicing ways to prepare the combat use of non-strategic nuclear weapons. At this stage, troops from the missile units of the Central and Southern military districts will train to obtain special training ammunition for the Iskander-M missile system, equip launch vehicles with them and covertly advance to the designated position areas to carry out electronic missile launches,’ the statement reads.” (tass.com 7/31/24)
“The Belarusian military is deploying tank units to the Ukrainian border, the Defense Ministry has announced. The move comes after Minsk – Moscow’s main ally in the region – claimed to have shot down several Ukrainian drones that it said violated its airspace.
In a statement on Sunday, the ministry said that parts of its mechanized forces had been placed on alert, and that preparations were being made to send tanks and other vehicles by rail to Gomel and Mozyr Regions on Ukraine’s border.” (rt.com 8/11/24)
“Moscow’s special military operation in Ukraine is actually an armed conflict with the US-led collective West, Russian Defense Minister Andrey Belousov said at the opening ceremony of the Army 2024 forum.
‘I welcome you all at the opening ceremony of the Army 2024 International Military-Technical Forum. As you know, the event is taking place amid the special military operation. In fact, it is an armed conflict between Russia and the collective West,’ he pointed out.
According to Belousov, the armed confrontation ‘is driven by the desire of the US and its allies to maintain their dominance and prevent the construction of a new multipolar and equitable world order. In this regard, the confrontation affects the interests of every country,’ the Russian defense chief stressed.” (tass.com 8/12/24)
“Kiev would never have staged an operation such as its incursion into Russia’s Kursk Region without US and NATO support, former Security Council Secretary Nikolay Patrushev has insisted, accusing Washington of playing a role in the attack.
Last week, Ukraine launched its largest attack on Russian territory since the outbreak of the conflict in February 2022. Western officials have voiced their support for the incursion into Kursk Region but denied any prior knowledge of the operation.
‘The US leadership’s claims of non-involvement in Kiev’s actions in Kursk Region do not correspond to reality... Without their participation and direct support, Kiev would not have ventured into Russian territory,’ Patrushev told Izvestia in an interview published on Friday.” (rt.com 8/16/24)
“Ukraine’s incursion into internationally recognized Russian territory looks like an attempt to compel Moscow to use nuclear weapons, which would irrevocably damage its image globally, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has said.
In an interview with Russia-1 aired on Sunday, Lukashenko warned that Kiev’s operation in Kursk Region – the largest cross-border assault by Kiev since the outbreak of the conflict – posed enormous risks to global security.
“The danger is that this kind of escalation on the part of Ukraine is an attempt to push Russia into asymmetric actions, for example, the use of nuclear weapons,” the Belarusian leader said, adding that such a move would be a PR bonanza for both Kiev and its Western backers.” (rt.com 8/18/24)
“Ukraine’s operation in Russia’s Kursk region was prepared with the participation of the US, UK, and Polish intelligence services, the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) said.
‘According to available information, the operation of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Kursk region was prepared with the participation of the US, British, and Polish intelligence services. The units involved in it underwent combat coordination in training centers in the UK and Germany. Military advisers from NATO countries are providing assistance in managing Ukraine’s units that have invaded Russian territory, and in using Western weapons and military equipment,’ the agency told Russian media.
NATO countries are also providing the Ukrainian military with satellite reconnaissance data on the deployment of Russian troops in the area of the operation, the SVR added.” (sputnikglobe.com 8/21/24)
“Ukraine's demands to the West to allow the use of Storm Shadow missiles on Moscow and St. Petersburg are blackmail, Lavrov said.
‘This is blackmail. This is an attempt to pretend that the West wants to avoid excessive escalation, but in reality it is deceit. The West does not want to avoid escalation,’ Lavrov told reporters after talks with his Yemeni counterpart, calling the discussion of the possible use of Storm Shadow missiles by Ukraine for strikes deep into Russia ‘playing with fire.’
Russia’s doctrine on the use of nuclear weapons is currently under clarification, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Tuesday.
‘Americans definitely associate these conversations about the third world war as something that, God forbid, if it is realized, could affect only Europe... And in this situation, it is probably very important to understand that we have our own doctrine, including the doctrine of the use of nuclear weapons, which, by the way, is now being clarified, and which American officials are very well aware of,’ Lavrov told reporters after talks with his Yemeni counterpart.” (sputnikglobe.com 8/27/24)
“Russia's readiness for peace talks with Ukraine was beyond doubt, but it was wrecked by Kiev's reckless move in the Kursk Region, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said at a news conference following talks with Senegalese Foreign Minister Yassine Fall.
‘We always remember that President [of Russia President Vladimir] Putin made the latest peace proposal in June, after all previous initiatives and agreements were ruined and sabotaged by the Kiev regime and its Western backers. Our readiness for talks was beyond anyone’s doubt, although, of course, after the reckless move in the Kursk Region, any discussion of this subject is no longer relevant,’ he said.” (tass.com 8/29/24)
“‘The Russian armed forces are taking control of territories not by 200, 300 meters at a time, but by square kilometers,’ Putin said. The president added that Kiev’s provocation in Kursk Region would inevitably fail and that Moscow would ‘deal with the Ukrainian bandits’ who have entered Russian territory with the aim of destabilizing the situation at the border.
However, the president noted that the Ukrainian leadership was likely not interested in ending the fighting, given that it would have to hold new presidential elections as soon as martial law in the country was lifted.
‘The current authorities are clearly not ready for this, they have little chance of being re-elected,’ Putin said. ‘That is why they are not interested in ending the fighting, that is why they tried to carry out this provocation in Kursk Region, and before when they tried to carry out the same operation in Belgorod Region.’” (rt.com 9/2/24)
“Medvedev on the organization of a sanitary cordon from Ukraine to Poland: Obviously, we just need to create a sanitary cordon in the future so that nothing flies to us. No one knows what size it will be, but it must be necessary and sufficient to prevent these means from flying. If they want to get long-range weapons, if they want to get a full set of cruise and even ballistic missiles, then this sanitary belt must extend to the entire depth - well, how else? To Poland, then, yes.” (@MedvedevRussiaE 9/4/24)
“While there is a large number of foreign military instructors in Ukraine, Russia has been increasingly effective in countering them, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in an interview with Izvestia on the sidelines of the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF).
‘We do know that there are military instructors from across the globe in Ukraine and that they are taking part in the hostilities and playing an important role in training Ukrainian soldiers. Foreign countries are definitely involved in the conflict. This is not news. Our troops have been increasingly effective in hitting these goals,’ he said.” (tass.com 9/5/24)
“Many countries are seeking membership in BRICS because they are tired of the ‘hidden’ and ‘sometimes open aggression’ of the US and are looking for new forms of cooperation, Maria Zakharova, the spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry, said on Sunday.
Earlier this week, Moscow said that Türkiye had officially applied to join BRICS, becoming the first NATO state to seek membership in the non-Western economic alliance. Over 30 countries have so far applied to become part of the group, which currently incorporates ten, including Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.
Commenting to TASS news agency on why various nations are willing to join BRICS, Zakharova said that ‘the world is tired of American attacks’ and ‘is voting for a different form of relationship.’” (rt.com 9/8/24)
“Bloomberg writes that Washington's position regarding long-range strikes has changed due to Iran's supply of ballistic missiles. Bloomberg quotes Blinken as confirming that Iran has handed over a batch of its Fath-360 missiles to Russia and stating that Washington and London will now ‘consider and listen’ to Ukraine's request to lift the restrictions.” (@intelslavaz 9/10/24)
“Washington and London may have already decided to let Kiev use long-range missiles for strikes deep inside Russia and are now seeding the narrative through the media, Russian Senator Aleksey Pushkov has said.
Britain has already given the green light for the use of ‘Storm Shadow’ missiles, the Guardian reported on Wednesday, citing anonymous government sources. London, however, is not expected to announce the move publicly, the sources claimed.
‘The decision to strike Russian territory is clearly being prepared,’ Pushkov wrote on his Telegram channel on Wednesday. ‘There are too many conversations and hints about it for it to be reversed. Even if it has not been made yet, it looks like it will be a matter of days. The leak via The Guardian is not accidental. Public opinion is being prepared.’” (rt.com 9/11/24)
“Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that the West giving Kyiv a green-light to use longer-range weapons to strike Russian targets would mean NATO will be ‘at war’ with Russia.
‘This would in a significant way change the very nature of the conflict. It would mean that NATO countries are at war with Russia,’ Putin told a state television reporter.” (barrons.com 9/12/24)
“Western allies bought roughly $2 billion in fuel made from Russian oil in the first half of 2024, using a sanctions loophole that enables Moscow to pay its soldiers in Ukraine, an upcoming report seen by POLITICO has found.
The analysis, set to be unveiled jointly on Tuesday by the Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air and the Center for the Study of Democracy, determined that shipments of gasoline, diesel and other products made from Russian crude oil have grown in recent months as a result of imports from just three Turkish refineries.” (politico.com 9/17/24)
“Russia warned the West and Ukraine on Friday of ‘disastrous consequences’ if Kyiv moved against close Russian ally Belarus, making clear it would intervene to defend a country where it has deployed tactical nuclear weapons.
Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told reporters that Moscow was concerned by what she called increasingly ‘provocative’ activity on the border with Belarus, saying she did not rule out that there could be attempts to escalate in the region.” (reuters.com 9/20/24)
“Russian President Vladimir Putin has revealed forthcoming revisions to Russia’s nuclear doctrine, which notably lowers the threshold for the use of nuclear weapons. During a televised meeting of Russia's Security Council on nuclear deterrence, Putin discussed the key aspects of the revised document, which is awaiting his approval.
He warned that Russia may now consider using nuclear weapons in response to a conventional arms attack, in line with the new updates to the doctrine, formally known as the Basic Principles of State Policy on Nuclear Deterrence.
Putin explained that an attack on Russia by a non-nuclear nation with the ‘participation or support of a nuclear power’ would be treated as a ‘joint attack on the Russian Federation.’ Additionally, he noted that Russia could deploy nuclear weapons in response to any conventional attack considered a ‘critical threat to our sovereignty.’” (english.almayadeen.net 9/26/24)
“‘As soon as they attack us, we use nuclear weapons. And Russia gets involved for us,’ Lukashenko said, also recalling that he had already said that any attack on Belarus would trigger a third world war.
The Belarusian leader also claimed that the US and Poland have been strengthening their forces along the border and that the leadership in Warsaw is ‘already rubbing its hands.’
Lukashenko acknowledged that if Minsk used nuclear weapons, the West would likely respond and target Russia as well, which would prompt Moscow to unleash its entire arsenal.
‘This is already a world war. The West does not want this either. They are not ready for this. But we tell them frankly – the red line is the state border. If they step on it, the response will be immediate,’ he said.” (rt.com 9/27/24)
“Small NATO members who dream about attacking Russia should know Article 5 is not effective against tactical nuclear weapons, the deputy head of the Russian Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev, has said.
The former Russian president and prime minister was commenting on recent statements by Estonia’s top general about ‘preemptive’ strikes on Russia in the service of NATO objectives.
‘The sillier the state, the greater the arrogance of its individual, insane leaders,’ Medvedev told reporters on Friday. ‘People should take into account only one thing: should Russia use, say, tactical nuclear weapons against a state that allows itself such statements, nothing but a stain will remain.’” (rt.com 9/27/24)
“The Kremlin sees Western statements about preparations for a war with Russia as an official position, Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told TV reporter Pavel Zarubin.
Western officials have recently made statements about the possibility of an armed conflict with Russia. In particular, Germany has developed an operational plan for a war with Russia; NATO Military Committee Chair Admiral Rob Bauer said that a conflict was highly likely, while Chief of the General Staff of the Estonian Defense Forces Major General Vahur Karus even highlighted Tallinn’s readiness to conduct a pre-emptive strike. ‘Official statements need to be taken into account, especially when they are made at such a high level, even at the highest level,’ Peskov noted.” (tass.com 9/28/24)
“British and American spies helped Ukraine develop plans for blowing up the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant, which would have plunged Europe into another radiation nightmare, the head of Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), Sergey Naryshkin, has said. Ukrainian troops crossed into Russia’s Kursk Region in August, but were stopped short of the nuclear plant in Kurchatov.
‘According to intelligence obtained by the SVR, the planned terrorist attack included taking and mining the Kursk NPP,’ he said, according to remarks made public on Monday. ‘Had they been able to carry it out, Europe would have faced an environmental and humanitarian disaster comparable to Chernobyl,’ Naryshkin added.” (rt.com 10/7/24)
“The United States’ continued connivance with the Kiev regime's ruinous fantasies may aggravate the crisis and is fraught with the risk of a full-scale conflict between Russia and the West, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov has told the media.
‘It has been repeatedly said that Washington's policy of connivance with Kiev's most destructive, far-reaching plans and fantasies is by and large the root cause this acute crisis, fraught with high risks and the possibility of sliding into a full-scale conflict between Russia and the historic West,’ Ryabkov noted.” (tass.com 10/10/24)
“Russia made the right decision to amend its nuclear doctrine because it prevented a further escalation of the Ukraine conflict by Kiev’s Western backers, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has said.
Zarubin asked Lukashenko if he believed that the ‘hotheads’ in the West had heard the ‘signal’ sent by Russia through the changes to its nuclear doctrine. ‘If the hotheads had not heard it, we, Russia in particular, would have already been bombarded with those long-range missiles. But this probably cools them down,’ he said.” (rt.com 10/12/24)
“NATO has launched nuclear drills in Western Europe amid high tensions with Russia over the Ukraine conflict. The annual ‘Steadfast Noon’ exercise kicked off on Monday, and involves thirteen members of the US-led military bloc. NATO forces are training in deploying American nuclear weapons, which Washington has installed under the bloc’s nuclear-sharing arrangement.” (rt.com 10/14/24)
“The Wiesbaden [Germany] NSATU [NATO Security Assistance & Training for Ukraine] base is also home to the US unit in charge of long-range missiles that Washington will deploy to Germany temporarily from 2026, to counter what both countries describe as a threat posed by Russian missiles stationed as close as Kaliningrad, some 500 kilometres (311 miles) from Berlin.” (reuters.com 10/15/24)
“Kiev has the capability to build a nuclear weapon ‘in a few weeks,’ a high-ranking Ukrainian official told Bild on Thursday after Vladimir Zelensky alluded to such a possibility. Ukraine needs either membership in NATO or nuclear weapons, Zelensky said on Friday in Brussels, arguing in favor of his ‘victory plan’ to end the conflict with Russia.
This prompted Bild to reveal that a Ukrainian official involved in weapons procurement told them ‘a few months ago’ that Kiev was willing to go nuclear.
‘We have the material, we have the knowledge. If the order is given, we will only need a few weeks to have the first bomb,’ the unnamed official said, according to the German tabloid, adding that the West should ‘think less about Russia’s red lines and more about ours.’” (rt.com 10/17/24)
“The West's war against Russia still has hybrid elements, but is increasingly turning into a real, ‘direct’ war, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said. ‘One gets the impression that just as Hitler put most of Europe, including the French, Spanish, and Scandinavians, under the Nazi banner, so the United States is now rallying Europe so that it will bear the brunt of the war with Russia — so far with elements of a hybrid war, but increasingly turning into a real, 'direct' war against us. And also under the Nazi banner. Only this time the 'standard-bearer' is not Hitler, but Zelensky,’ he said in an interview.” (sputnikglobe.com 10/21/24)
“The West should seriously consider placing ‘conventional deterrence’ assets, which could include long-range missile sytems, on Ukrainian soil once the hot phase of the conflict is over, French Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu has said.
In an interview with the broadcaster TF1/LCI on Monday, Lecornu weighed in on Vladimir Zelensky’s much-touted ‘victory plan,’ which the Ukrainian leader presented to the national parliament last week.” (rt.com 10/22/24)
“War is back in Europe and as it becomes long-lasting, the question of armament gains central im-portance. This report finds that Russian military industrial capacities have been rising strongly in the last two years, well beyond the levels of Russian material losses in Ukraine. Meanwhile, the build-up of German capacities is progressing slowly. Given Germany’s massive disarmament in the last decades and the current procurement speed, we find that for some key weapon systems, Germany will not attain 2004 levels of armament for about 100 years.” (ifw-kiel.de 9/2024)
“Russian President Vladimir Putin has announced the launch of a strategic nuclear deterrence exercise. The drill will involve ballistic and cruise missile launches, the leader said on Tuesday. The nuclear triad remains a reliable guarantor of Russia’s security and sovereignty, Putin stressed, adding that it also helps maintain ‘nuclear parity and the balance of power in the world.’
‘Given the growth of geopolitical tensions as well as the emergence of new external threats and risks, it is important to have modern strategic forces that are constantly ready for combat use,’ the president said. Moscow plans to further improve all the ‘components’ of its nuclear triad, he noted. Russia seeks to maintain its nuclear forces at the ‘necessarily sufficient’ level, but it does not intend to be dragged into a new arms race, Putin said.” (rt.com 10/29/24)
“Vladimir Zelensky is trying to drag Western countries into a war with Russia by means of his ‘victory plan’, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists on Thursday. He was responding to a question on recent media reports about Kiev’s demand that the US provide Tomahawk cruise missiles.
The New York Times reported this week that Zelensky had secretly asked Washington for Tomahawks in order to strike targets deep inside Russia. Kiev has long called on the West to lift restrictions on the use of such weapons. ‘Apparently, all the peace plans, all the victory plans, secret or not secret – they all boil down to Kiev dragging Western countries into war as quickly as possible and legitimizing it,’ Peskov told reporters.” (rt.com 10/31/24)
“Washington and its allies mistakenly believe that Russia will never cross the line of using nuclear weapons, former President Dmitry Medvedev stated in an exclusive interview with RT on Saturday.
‘They have made a miscalculation, since they are not of the brightest kind. For some reason they think that Russians will never cross a certain line. They are wrong. If it comes down to the existence of our state, as the president of our country has repeatedly said, we will simply have no choice,’ Medvedev said.”
“The United States will continue bringing WWIII closer if the next US president keeps adding fuel to the fire in the Ukraine conflict, Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev said in an interview with RT.
‘If the next [US] leader continues adding fuel to the fire in the Russia-Ukraine conflict with the same gusto, that will be a very bad choice because it will be a road to hell,’ Medvedev warned in the interview posted on his page on VKontakte. ‘This would really pave the way for a third world war,’ he added as he urged both US presidential candidates, Donald Trump and Kamala Harris, to recognize this fact. ‘Whoever decides to continue the war will be making a very grave mistake,’ emphasized.’” (tass.com 11/2/24)
“Moscow would not hesitate to respond to ‘aggressive actions’ by NATO, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has warned. Allowing the Ukrainian military to use Western-supplied long-range weapons for strikes deep inside Russia would be treated as one such step, the diplomat told Rossiya Segodnya on Tuesday.
Kiev’s forces would not be able to operate such weapons independently, and would require the presence of NATO specialists as well as intelligence data obtained through the bloc’s satellite systems, Lavrov stated.
‘If such weapons are used, that would mean that not just Ukraine but the NATO nations are openly at war with Russia,’ the diplomat stressed. ‘The nature of this conflict, which the Western leaders sought to conceal…would literally come out.’
According to Lavrov, Moscow is well aware of the US-led military bloc’s aggressive policies. It has designated Russia as the biggest direct threat to its security, and NATO troops are being trained to launch offensive operations based on this, the diplomat added.
‘Europe is being militarized at a quickened pace,’ Lavrov stated. ‘Our opponents should not be mistaken. In case of any aggressive actions by NATO or its member states against our nation, adequate retaliatory measures will be taken in full compliance with Russia’s right for self-defense embodied in the UN Charter,’ the diplomat said, adding that Moscow would use ‘any means to ensure its security. No one will be able to sit it out either beyond the Atlantic or the English Channel,’ the minister warned.” (rt.com 11/5/24)
“In a major policy change, the Biden administration will now allow U.S. contractors on the ground in Ukraine to help its military maintain and repair some of the $61 billion worth of weapons donated by America, CNN reported. In particular, the shift is designed to help keep F-16 Vipers and Patriot air defense batteriesin working order.
Until this decision, the Biden administration has allowed only a small number of U.S. troops in Ukraine, mainly to help keep tabs on U.S. donated equipment, but no Defense Department (DoD) civilian contractors.” (twz.com 11/8/24)
“NATO forces would already be on the ground in Ukraine fighting Russian troops if it weren’t for Moscow’s arsenal of nuclear weapons, the outgoing chief of the US-led bloc’s Military Committee, Admiral Rob Bauer, has said. He noted that fighting Russia in Ukraine would, however, be ‘not the same’ as fighting in Afghanistan because the Taliban militants did not possess nuclear weapons.
‘I am absolutely sure if the Russians did not have nuclear weapons, we would have been in Ukraine, kicking them out,’ the admiral suggested.” (rt.com 11/11/24)
“[German opposition leader] Merz has said that if elected chancellor, he intends to use the Kiev-requested weaponry as leverage with Moscow. He would deliver missiles within a week if Russia rejected Ukrainian demands, he told the Stern magazine in an interview last week.
Responding on Tuesday, Medvedev argued that the missiles would not change the course of the conflict, but instead would ‘increase by several times the risk of the conflict entering the most dangerous phase.’
‘Generally speaking, it is surprising how eager the current generation of European politicians are in inviting war to their territory. Notably, to the obvious delight of the Americans and against the wishes of their own peoples,’ added Medvedev, who currently serves as deputy chair of the Russian Security Council.” (rt.com 11/13/24)
“Last week, The Telegraph reported that the UK and France were seeking US permission to greenlight strikes involving Storm Shadow/Scalp cruise missiles before President-elect Donald Trump’s January inauguration.
‘If the Kiev regime gets permission for the aforementioned strikes, we will treat it as NATO de-facto entering a direct conflict with Russia,’ Zakharova said. ‘A response to the use of Western long-range weapons against the territory of our nation would be imminent and devastating.’” (rt.com 11/13/24)
“Major Magdalena Kosińska, spokeswoman for Poland's 16th Pomeranian Mechanised Division, has announced that Poland has deployed South Korean-supplied K2 tanks manufactured by Hyundai Rotem a few kilometres from Russia's Kaliningrad Oblast.” (pravda.com.ua 11/14/24)
“The ‘victory plan’ Zelensky submitted to the US government in September requires the unrestricted use of Western weapons. Moscow’s position on the issue was formulated clearly earlier this year by President Vladimir Putin, who has said that attacks along the lines requested by Zelensky would be impossible without the direct contribution of Western intelligence and military expertise, Peskov stated. If conducted, such strikes would mean that ‘NATO nations are at war with Russia,’ he warned.” (rt.com 11/18/24)
“Washington has reportedly granted Kiev permission to use ATACMS ballistic missiles deep inside Russian territory. Medvedev, who serves as deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council, warned on Tuesday that such actions would qualify as a threat warranting a nuclear response under the new doctrine, which President Vladimir Putin enacted earlier in the day.
In response to such an attack, ‘Russia reserves the right to retaliate with weapons of mass destruction against Kiev and key NATO facilities, wherever they may be located,’ Medvedev said.” (rt.com 11/19/24)
"‘Flight assignments for these missile systems can, in fact, only be entered by military personnel from NATO countries. Ukrainian servicemen cannot do this. And therefore, it is not a question of allowing the Ukrainian regime to strike Russia with these weapons or not. It is a question of making a decision whether NATO countries directly participate in the military conflict or not,’ Putin said in September.” (foxnews.com 11/20/24)
“The US missile defense base in Poland has long been considered a priority target for potential neutralization by the Russian Armed Forces, Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova stated during a briefing.
‘Given the level of threats posed by such Western military facilities, the missile defense base in Poland has long been included among the priority targets for potential neutralization. If necessary, this can be achieved using a wide range of advanced weaponry,’ the diplomat said.” (tass.com 11/21/24)
“‘Between 5:00 and 7:00 a.m. on Nov. 21, Russian troops attacked the city of Dnipro, hitting enterprises and critical infrastructure,’ the Air Force stated. ‘The assault included an ICBM launched from Russia’s Astrakhan region, a Kh-47M2 Kinzhal aeroballistic missile fired from a MiG-31K jet in the Tambov region, and seven Kh-101 cruise missiles launched by Tu-95MS bombers near the Volgograd region.’” (kyivpost.com 11/21/24)
“The US missile defense base in Poland has long been considered a priority target for potential neutralization by the Russian Armed Forces, Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova stated during a briefing.
‘Given the level of threats posed by such Western military facilities, the missile defense base in Poland has long been included among the priority targets for potential neutralization. If necessary, this can be achieved using a wide range of advanced weaponry,’ the diplomat said.” (tass.com 11/21/24)
“The escalation of the conflict in Ukraine, instigated by the West, continues with the United States and its NATO allies previously announcing that they authorize the use of their long-range high-precision weapons for strikes inside the Russian Federation. Experts are well aware, and the Russian side has repeatedly highlighted it, that the use of such weapons is not possible without the direct involvement of military experts from the manufacturing nations.” (en.kremlin.ru 11/22/24)
“The Oreshnik missile system is capable of reaching targets across entire Europe, Sergey Karakayev, commander of Russia’s strategic missile forces, told President Vladimir Putin.
‘This missile system with hypersonic blocks can hit any targets - from isolated to area-type, as well as highly-protected - with a high efficiency. Based on the tasks and the range of this weapon, it can hit targets across entire Europe, which sets it apart from other high-precision long-range weapons,’ he said at a meeting with top Russian defense officials, executives of defense sector companies and arms developers.” (tass.com 11/23/24)
“With estimated 1,500 kgs of combat payload, lifting to a maximum height of 12 km & moving at a speed of Mach 10, Oreshnik launched from Kaliningrad would strike Warsaw in 1 minute 21 seconds; Berlin, 2 min 35 sec; Paris, 6 min 52 sec; London, 6 min 56 sec.” (readovka.news 11/23/24)
“US politicians and journalists are seriously discussing the consequences of providing Kiev with nuclear weapons, said Medvedev, who serves as the deputy chair of the Russian Security Council.
‘Looks like my sad joke about crazy senile Biden, who’s eager to go out with a bang and take a substantial part of humanity with him, is becoming dangerously real,’ he said.
Medvedev argued that the idea of ‘giving nukes to a country that’s at war with the greatest nuclear power’ is so absurd that Biden and anyone else considering such a step must have ‘massive paranoid psychosis.’ The former president said the threat of transferring nuclear weapons to Kiev would be viewed as preparation for a nuclear conflict with Russia.” (rt.com 11/26/24)
“When Oreshnik hypersonic missile systems fully enter service, some will be stationed in Belarus, Russian President Vladimir Putin has said. The Russian president made the announcement on Friday in Minsk during a meeting with his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko.
‘These systems will be delivered to the Russian Strategic Missile Forces and will be deployed in parallel on the territory of Belarus,’ Putin said.” (rt.com 12/6/24)
"‘Approximately 80,000 United States Armed Forces personnel are assigned or deployed to North Atlantic Treaty Organization countries in Europe, including those deployed to reassure our allies and to deter further Russian aggression,’ Biden said in a letter to the leaders of both chambers of the US Congress.” (sputnikglobe.com 12/7/24)
“Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko revealed on Tuesday that the country currently hosts dozens of nuclear warheads, stating, ‘I transported nuclear warheads here. More than a dozen pieces,’ according to Belta state news agency.
Lukashenko also outlined plans for the Oreshnik launch pad, which Belarus will build independently, while Russia will supply the missiles free of charge by the second half of 2025. He emphasized the weapon's power, noting, "There is no antidote against this weapon. It is impossible to intercept it, shoot it down, and so on.” (english.almayadeen.net 12/10/24)
“Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Ryabkov reiterated that ‘Ukraine’s membership in NATO is categorically unacceptable to us, and the dragging of Ukraine into NATO was one of the main reasons for the start of the special military operation.’ Moscow ‘cannot let the hostile bloc come closer to Russia’s frontiers,’ the diplomat added.
In an interview to prominent US journalist Tucker Carlson earlier this month, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov similarly insisted that the ‘key principle is non-bloc status of Ukraine. No NATO. Absolutely,’ the minister reiterated.” (rt.com 12/13/24)
“Lithuanian special forces reserve officer Aurimas Navis dreams of capturing Kaliningrad: 'Kaliningrad is very important if we start thinking seriously about how to stop Russia. If it were taken away from Russia, it would be a very big step forward towards ending the war. I said 10 years ago that NATO countries should simply enter Kaliningrad and hold a referendum. I hope that the people of Kaliningrad would choose Europe. This can be done simply because there are few soldiers left there.’ (simplicius76.substack.com 12/28/24)
“Moscow considers Washington and Kiev to be responsible for a halt in Russian gas flow to Europe through Ukraine, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Thursday.
‘The responsibility for the termination of Russian gas supplies lies entirely with the United States, the puppet regime in Kiev and the authorities of the European states, which sacrificed the well-being of their citizens for the sake of supporting the American economy financially,’ she said in a statement.” (sputnikglobe.com 1/2/25)
“More than 2,600 UK troops and 730 vehicles will take part in exercises on NATO's eastern flank, the country's Defense Ministry said in a statement.
‘Leading from the front, the UK is providing the largest contribution of forces with over 2600 personnel, and 730 vehicles deploying to NATO’s eastern flank,’ the ministry said.
According to the statement, the UK’s 1st Division will command all of NATO’s land forces during Exercise Steadfast Dart 25 in Bulgaria and Romania to practice the deployment of the new Allied Reaction Force, which can ‘rapidly reinforce’ NATO’s eastern flank.” (sputnikglobe.com 1/4/25)
"Russian President Vladimir Putin, increasingly confident that he has the upper hand on the battlefield in Ukraine, is determined to achieve his goal of ensuring that Kiev never joins NATO and that restrictions are placed on its military capabilities, sources familiar with the Kremlin's thinking said.” (bloomberg.com 1/16/25)
“French forces were reported on January 15 to have deployed for a secret exercise called Perseus, during which more than 3,000 personnel trained in an area resembling a stretch of the Dnieper River north of the Ukrainian capital Kiev. French special forces units played a central role in these exercises. The drills simulated efforts to repel a Russian offensive across the Ukrainian-Belarusian border, the possibility of which has long been a major concern for the Ukrainian government and its Western supporters. Russia has significantly expanded its military presence in Belarus since the escalation of the Russian-Ukrainian War to full scale hostilities in February 2022. The French government has repeatedly considered significantly escalating its ground force deployments in Ukraine, with the French paper Le Monde reporting in mid-November that the country had “reactivated” discussions with the United Kingdom on troop deployments to Ukraine.” (militarywatchmagazine.com 1/15/25)
“The US and its allies want the unipolar status quo to prevail. World War 3 is unlikely to evolve into a direct kinetic war between the US, Russia, and China because that could invite nuclear Armageddon, where everyone loses.
Instead, World War 3 is playing out on different levels—proxy wars, economic wars, financial wars, cyber wars, biological wars, deniable sabotage, and information wars.
This is World War 3. It’s happening right now and rapidly escalating.” (Nick Giambruno, internationalman.com 1/21/25)
“‘If we start negotiations now, they will be illegitimate, because when the current head of the regime, that’s the only way to call [Zelensky] today, signed this decree, he was a somewhat legitimate president. But now he can’t cancel it, because he is illegitimate. That’s the trick, the catch, the trap,” Putin explained.” (rt.com 1/28/25)
“Zelensky reiterated his nuclear aspirations in an interview with British television host Piers Morgan on Tuesday, in which he lamented that Kiev traded Soviet-era deterrence ‘for nothing’ in the 1990s.
‘Will we be given nuclear weapons? Then let them give us nuclear weapons,’ Zelensky told Morgan. ‘What missiles can stop Russia’s nuclear missiles? That is a rhetorical question.’ He called on NATO to deploy nuclear weapons in Ukraine as a stopgap measure while Kiev awaits accession to the US-led military bloc.
Responding on Wednesday, Zakharova wrote: ‘Zelensky’s latest statements that he wants to possess a nuclear capability expose him as a maniac, who considers the planet as an object for his sick delusions. They also prove that for him nuclear power stations are not a source of peaceful energy, but a dirty weapon that the Kiev regime needs for blackmail.’” (rt.com 2/5/25)
“The Kaliningrad Region power system has switched to autonomous operation mode. This happened after Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia left the single energy ring with Russia and Belarus, the Ministry of Energy reports. But the play which skimmed under the radar was the Baltic power cut’s secret ulterior objective to pressure Kaliningrad’s power grid.
When the Baltics disconnected from the Russian grid and connected to the EU grid, to allegedly stop Putin’s non existent blackmail, they actually put pressure on Kaliningrad. Now Kaliningrad is in its own grid and can be pressured easier.
The government of the Kaliningrad Region prepared for this development in advance, the Ministry of Energy said. ‘The total capacity of Kaliningrad power plants is 1.88 GW, which is more than twice the peak energy consumption of the region.’
‘NATO wants to paralyze the work of Russian ports in the Leningrad and Kaliningrad regions. Chairman of the Russian Maritime Collegium Nikolai Patrushev. According to him, Western countries are disconnecting ships under the Russian flag from the Inmarsat satellite communications system - an integral component of the Global Maritime Distress and Emergency System.
Russia has the will and resources to make NATO's dreams of turning the Baltic Sea into an ‘internal lake’ of the alliance unrealistic, Russian Ambassador to Finland Pavel Kuznetsov” (ria.ru 2/6/25)
“On February 8-9, the Baltic countries left the BRELL energy ring and synchronized with the EU power grid. In turn, the Kaliningrad region switched to work in an isolated mode. Governor Alexey Besprozvannykh reported that consumers are stably provided by three power plants: Kaliningrad TPP-2, Pregolskaya TPP and Talakhovskaya TPP.” (eadaily.com 2/9/25)
“The Russian exclave on the Baltic Sea has become an energy island after the Baltics States cut themselves off from the Soviet-era BRELL power grid on February 8 and has become vulnerable to sanctions thanks to its dependence on Lithuanian gas transit.
The BRELL ring links the power grids of Belarus, Russia, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania and was set up in Soviet times. After years of dithering, the Baltic states finally formally disconnected their power grid from Russia's controlled northern electricity grid and intend to connect to the European Network of Transmission System Operators for Electricity (ENTSO-E) grid this week, breaking long standing energy ties with Russia.” (intellinews.com 2/10/25)
“In the Gulf of Finland, the Rostelecom cable connecting Kingisepp with Kaliningrad was damaged again. What other incidents with underwater communication infrastructure occurred in the Baltic Sea-in the RBC infographic
On February 8, Rostelecom reported damage to its underwater telecommunications cable Baltika. It connects the Leningrad Region with Kaliningrad and partly passes through the economic zones of Finland and Sweden. The previous accident on the Baltika occurred on October 7, 2023. The severing of this cable potentially cuts Kaliningrad’s communications from the Russian mainland.” (simplicius76.substack.com 2/11/25)
“The SVR says that the special services of Ukraine, with the support of the West, are planning a series of high-profile anti-Russian provocations. The main task is to close Russia's access to the Baltic Sea under the pretext of Moscow's aggressive actions. The first terrorist attack may be the detonation of Russian/Soviet-made mines on a foreign ship in the Baltic waters. The attacks will begin as soon as possible in order to weaken the Kremlin's negotiating position as soon as possible.” (rt.com 2/11/25)
“Remember when last year Lithuania suddenly restricted rail cargo from Russia to Kaliningrad to escalate the same pressure. It is all integral to the coordinated effort to slowly isolate Kaliningrad in order to force a Russian reaction, preferably a military one, that can be used as justification for further hysteria and NATO military buildup, intervention, etc.” (simplicius76.substack.com 2/12/25)
“Discussions about the withdrawal of US troops from all NATO states that joined the alliance after 1990 are one of the goals of the talks between Russia and the US, an Eastern European security official tells BILD
An Eastern European Official has told the German Newspaper, BILD, that discussions are ongoing in regards to the withdrawal of U.S. Troops from all Countries in Europe that joined the NATO Alliance after 1990, which is reported to have been one of the Goals of recent Negotiations between Russia and the United States. This would include Albania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Estonia, Finland, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Sweden. Additionally, preparations are said to be ongoing in Italy, for the possible withdrawal of U.S. Forces from Kosovo.”(bild.com 2/19/25)
"‘Time has shown that this difficult decision was solely correct and possible,’ Dmitry Medvedev said. Russia had to ‘take this step when the point of no return was irreversibly crossed in the confrontation with the so-called collective West and the sole available way was to defend our Motherland and push the enemy away from its borders,’ he stressed.
‘The Russian people united and stood firm in the struggle against the cynical and cruel enemy that was beefed up with weapons and money from all the parts of the world. The war against Neo-Nazism and its accomplices is not yet over but its outcome is very close. The enemy will be destroyed. Truth will triumph,’ Medvedev stressed.”(tass.com 2/23/25)
"With his boorish behaviour in Washington, Zelensky confirmed that he is the most dangerous threat to the world community and is obsessed with continuing the war. Zelensky rejects peace because, for him, it is like death.” (Maria Zakharova, rt.com 3/2/25)
“Of the 31 new Abrams tanks that the United States transferred to Ukraine in 2023, 19 have been destroyed, disabled, or captured, according to senior Ukrainian officials, many of which were disabled by drones. Virtually all the rest have been withdrawn from the front line, they added.” (nytimes.com 3/3/25)
“‘Of course, this is a threat to Russia. If he [Macron] considers us a threat, gathers a meeting of the chiefs of General Staff of European countries and Britain, says it is necessary to use nuclear weapons, prepares to use nuclear weapons against Russia, this is, of course, a threat,’ Lavrov told a news conference.” (sputnikglobe.com 3/7/25)
The nuclear armed Russian warships Soobrazitelnyy, Stoikiy & Admiral Gorshkov of the Baltic Fleet are still lurking in the Atlantic & Caribbean to checkmate the US & NATO, not to mention the Iskander & Kalibr ballistic missiles of Kaliningrad staged in the heart of Europe.
© 2022 James B. Angell All Rights Reserved
Fascinating and scary. Thanks for posting this - it should be in the mainstream media.
Very interesting! Seems like NATO is a large piece of this puzzle.