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CNN —North Korean leader Kim Jong Un received body armor and drones as parting gifts as he wrapped up a trip to Russia that has alarmed the West. North Korea is heavily sanctioned and is in need of everything from energy to food to military technology. As he left, the governor of the far eastern Russian region of Primorye gave him a bulletproof vest and a set of drones, Russian state media TASS reported. Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, called his meeting with North Korea's Kim Jong Un "very substantive" on Wednesday. Vladimir Smirnov/Sputnik/APThe North Korean leader visited an aircraft manufacturing plant in the city of Komsomolsk-on-Amur in eastern Russia on Friday.

Persons: Kim Jong Un, Vladimir Putin, Kim, Kim Jong, Sergei Shoigu, Putin, “, ” Putin, Vladimir Smirnov, KCNA, Yuri, ” Organizations: CNN, North, Russian, TASS, Russia's, Russian Defence Ministry, Reuters, RIA Novosti, RIA, Putin, Aviation, Russian Defense, Pacific Fleet, Russian Navy, Military Locations: Russia, Korea, Ukraine, North Korea, Russian, Primorye, Artyom, Khasan, Russia’s Far, Komsomolsk, Reuters North Korean, KCNA, South Korea, Japan, Europe

Russia’s RIA Novosti state news agency released a video of Kim dressed in a black suit and accompanied by his top officials arriving at the university on Russky Island. U.S. and South Korean officials have said North Korea could provide badly needed munitions for Moscow’s war on Ukraine in exchange for sophisticated Russian weapons technology that would advance Kim’s nuclear ambitions. Kim and Shoigu later traveled to Vladivostok, where they inspected the Admiral Shaposhnikov frigate. Russia’s navy commander, Adm. Nikolai Yevmenov, briefed Kim on the ship’s capabilities and weapons, which include long-range Kalibr cruise missiles that Russian warships have regularly fired at targets in Ukraine. Later Saturday, Kim visited a local theater to watch Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s Sleeping Beauty ballet performance.

Persons: Kim Jong Un, Kim’s, Sergei Shoigu, Kim, Vladimir Putin’s, Oleg Kozhemyako, Putin, Sergei Kobylash, Shoigu, Shaposhnikov, Adm, Nikolai Yevmenov, ” KCNA, Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s, KCNA Organizations: Eastern Federal University, Russian, Korean Central News Agency, RIA, West, MiG Locations: SEOUL, South Korea, Vladivostok, Moscow, Ukraine, RIA Novosti, Russky, Russia’s Primorye, West ., North Korea, Komsomolsk, Russian, Shoigu, Russia, Korean, Pyongyang, United States, Soviet Union

☆ Ex-Russian general warns 'lies' may obscure the battlefield realities of how Ukraine's troops are gaining ground
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-15 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

An ex-Russian general said "lies" are obscuring the reality that Ukraine's troops are gaining ground. His Telegram message also said Russian victory is being prevented by "lies" and "false reporting." His points were sharply at odds with the victoriousness and censorship that often characterize Russian war commentary. A Ukrainian soldier of 42nd Separate Mechanized Brigade puts camouflage on a tank's muzzle on September 11, 2023 in Eastern Ukraine, Ukraine. While assuring Russian troops are stronger and will endure, adapt, and win, he added: "Victory is separated from us only by one serious problem of ours - lies.

Persons: Gurulyov, Andrey Gurulyov, Yan Dobronosov, Vladimir Putin's, he'd Organizations: Service, Southern Military, Separate Mechanized Brigade, Getty, Stingers Locations: Russian, Ukraine, Wall, Silicon, Moscow, Orikhiv, Azov, Ukrainian, Eastern Ukraine, Vladimir Putin's United Russia, Russia

☆ Russia gives Kim Jong Un an inside look at its warplanes
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-15 | by ( Yoonjung Seo | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Seoul, South Korea CNN —Kim Jong Un was “deeply impressed” by a visit to a Russian aircraft manufacturing plant on Friday, according to North Korean state media. The stop was Kim’s latest on a tour of Russia that follows his meeting with President Vladimir Putin earlier this week, at which the North Korean leader appeared to endorse Moscow’s war on Ukraine. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un visits an aircraft manufacturing plant in the city of Komsomolsk-on-Amur in Russia on September 15, 2023. It said the two toured the airfield and Kim was shown the Russian aircraft Tu-160, Tu-95MS and Tu-22M3. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un visits an aircraft manufacturing plant in the city of Komsomolsk-on-Amur in Russia on September 15, 2023.

Persons: South Korea CNN — Kim Jong, “, ”, Kim, Yuri, KCNA, Vladimir Putin, Su, Kim’s, Kim Jong Il, Kim Jong Un, Kim “, ” KCNA, Sergei Shoigu, Putin, Denis Manturov Organizations: South Korea CNN, Aviation, Korean Central News Agency, North, KCNA, RIA Novosti, Russian Defense, RIA, Shoigu, . North, Reuters Mutual, Vostochny, North Korea “ Locations: Seoul, South Korea, Russian, Korean, Russia, Ukraine, Moscow, Pyongyang, Komsomolsk, Vladivostok, North Korea, –, Amur Region

☆ Russia's war in Ukraine: live updates
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-14 | by ( Tara Subramaniam | Andrew Raine | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong-un visit a construction site of the Angara rocket launch complex on September 13. After a year and a half of high-intensity combat in Ukraine, Russia’s ammunition stocks have been heavily depleted, and US officials warned that North Korea and Russia were mulling potential deals to replenish supplies for Moscow’s war on Ukraine. North Korea has a substantial arsenal on the Korean peninsula. It’s a life-or-death race, with Putin apparently counting on support waning for Ukraine as the US enters a presidential election season. Putin appears to be extending a potential lifeline to Kim, apparently dangling the carrot of access to Russian technology.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Kim Jong, Stringer, Sergei Shoigu, Russia –, It’s, Putin, Kim, “ Organizations: North, Russian, NATO, Ukraine, North Korea “ Locations: Pyongyang, Ukraine, Korea, Russia, North Korea, Europe

☆ Ukraine Intensifies Attacks on Russia in Crimea and Black Sea
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-14 | by ( Marc Santora | More About Marc Santora | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Ukraine is stepping up its long-distance attacks into Russian-occupied Crimea and the Black Sea, launching several new strikes on Thursday, in a campaign to break down the Kremlin’s war effort by hitting targets far behind the front lines where soldiers are fighting and dying. The Ukrainian military said it had hit a Russian surface-to-air missile defense system in Crimea and two Russian vessels at sea, a day after it struck two Russian warships docked in Crimea. The statements could not immediately be confirmed or refuted; the Russian Defense Ministry said only that attacks on a ship in the Black Sea had failed. In recent weeks, Ukraine has sharply accelerated the pace of strikes in and around the Crimean Peninsula, a critical hub for the Russian military where it stockpiles troops, fuel, ammunition and other supplies and funnels them to the battlefields in southern Ukraine. The peninsula also contains the primary base, at Sevastopol, of the Russian Black Sea Fleet that is blockading Ukrainian ports.

Organizations: Russian Defense Ministry Locations: Ukraine, Russian, Crimea, Crimean, Sevastopol, Ukrainian

REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsWASHINGTON, Sept 14 (Reuters) - The Biden administration on Thursday imposed sanctions on five Turkish companies and a Turkish national, accusing them of helping Russia evade sanctions and supporting Moscow in its war against Ukraine. The move is part of a bigger package of measures hitting Russia with sanctions on more than 150 targets, including the country's largest carmaker. The U.S. State Department imposed sanctions on Denkar Ship Construction for providing ship repair services to previously designated vessels of a company connected to the Russian Defense Ministry. The U.S. also imposed sanctions on a major local copper producer - Russian Copper Company. The Treasury slapped sanctions on Finland-based logistics firms Siberica Oy and Luminor Oy, accusing them of sending a wide variety of electronics into Russia.

Persons: Joe Biden, Biden, Jonathan Ernst, reconvenes, Wally Adeyemo, we've, Sanayi, Denkar, Ilker Dogruyol, Dogruyol, Tayyip Erdogan, Humeyra Pamuk, Daphne Psaledakis, Polina Devitt, Gleb Stolyarov, Don Durfee, Alexandra Hudson, William Maclean, Paul Simao Organizations: Cancer, White, REUTERS, Rights, Turkish, Ukraine, Reuters, NATO, Treasury, . Treasury Department, U.S . State Department, Denkar, Russian Defense Ministry, State Department, ID Ship Agency, GAZ Group, Russian Copper Company, Siberica, Luminor, U.S, Kurdistan Workers Party, European Union, United, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, Russia, Moscow, Turkey, Washington, Ankara, Sweden, United States, Ukraine, Sea, Turkish, U.S, Finland, Kyiv, Hungary, London

☆ Ukraine may be cracking Russia's frontlines, but now it has to get Russian troops to crack as well
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-14 | by ( Michael Peck | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

But Russian troops have been fighting fiercely trenches behind extensive obstacles and minefields. Ukrainian troops have managed to penetrate the first of three Russian fortified belts in southern Ukraine, but for now, the Russian military hasn't cracked. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu exits a trench as he inspects troops in Ukraine in a photo released in December 2022. Russian troops are dug into elaborate trench systems shielded by millions of mines and supported by artillery and attack helicopters. Ukrainian troops work on a US-made Bradley armored vehicle at a secret workshop in the Zaporizhzhia region in July.

Persons: Sergei Shoigu, George Patton —, Bradley, Ed Ram, France —, Alexey Malgavko, Michael Peck Organizations: Service, Kyiv, Russian, Russian Defense Ministry Press Service, Royal United Services Institute, Washington, Getty, Sedan, REUTERS, Defense, Foreign Policy, Twitter, LinkedIn Locations: Ukraine, Wall, Silicon, Russian, Nazi Germany, British, France, economize, Zaporizhzhia, American, Russia, Omsk, Forbes

Finland is a European Union member that supports sanctions on Russia and the most recent to join NATO. Both Turkey and the UAE have condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine but have not joined Western sanctions and sought to maintain ties with Russia. The latest sanctions package targets Russian companies that repair, develop and manufacture weapons, including the Kalibr cruise missile. Turkey, meanwhile, has tried to balance its close ties with both Russia and Ukraine, positioning itself as a mediator. Including the latest sanctions, the U.S. has targeted almost 3,000 businesses and people since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, according to State.

Persons: Vladimir Putin’s, ” James O’Brien, Putin, O’Brien, “, ” O’Brien, ”, Richard Connolly, Alexander, Lukashenko, ” Connolly, Denis Manturov, Connolly, Tom Keatinge, Andrei Bokarev, Sergei Shoigu, Iskander Makhmudov, Alexei Krivoruchko, Wagner, Otar, Partskhaladze, Antony Blinken, Suzan Fraser, Jon Gambrell, Antony Blinken’s Organizations: United Arab, State, Treasury, NATO, State Department’s Office, Associated Press, State Department, European Union, The State Department, Russia’s Ministry of Defense, Oxford, Western, Russian Industry, Trade, Centre for Financial, Security, Royal United Services Institute, “, U.S, Russian Defense, Russian, Federal Security Service Locations: States, Russia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, Georgia, Ukraine, U.S, UAE, Russia’s, Moscow, Finland, European, Belarus, Russian, ”, London, North Korea, Georgian, State, Ankara, Dubai

☆ Putin and Kim meet in Russia, but what are the main takeaways?
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-14 | by ( Nathan Hodge | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Video Ad Feedback See moment Putin greets Kim at Russian space port 00:46 - Source: CNNAnd there’s potential of something in return for Pyongyang. Kim’s regime is heavily isolated: Multiple rounds of sanctions have targeted North Korea over its nuclear and ballistic missile programs. Even Russia has signed on to North Korean sanctions in the past. So we are still dealing with a major unknown when it comes to a potential technology exchange between North Korea and Russia. The US believes Pyongyang has already been a player in the Ukraine war, providing the Russian mercenary group Wagner with arms.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Kim Jong, Putin, Kim, ” –, Sergei Shoigu, Russia –, It’s, “, ” Putin, Mort Sahl, Wernher von Braun, Reuters Von, Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin Organizations: CNN, North, Vostochny, North Korean, Ukraine, Russian, NATO, North Korea “, Nazi, Reuters Locations: Amur, Russia, Russia’s Far, Pyongyang, Ukraine, Korea, North Korea, England, ”, Russian, Europe

☆ Ukraine war live updates: Crimean bridge closed as blasts reported; Russia says it has 'no other options' but to win the war
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-14 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

The Kerch Bridge that links Crimea to Russia, taken on Oct. 14, 2022. There have been further reports of blasts in Crimea overnight, with Russian authorities in the occupied peninsula closing a key bridge Thursday morning. All traffic was suspended on the Crimean bridge, linking the Russian-occupied peninsula with the Russian mainland, for four hours this morning before it was reopened. Meanwhile, Russia's Defense Ministry said it had destroyed 11 Ukrainian drones over Crimea this morning, although it's unknown whether it was connected to the bridge closure. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu was asked Wednesday if Russia will win the war against Ukraine.

Persons: Sergei Shoigu, Shoigu Organizations: Russia's Defense Ministry, Wednesday, Russian, Ukraine Locations: Kerch, Crimea, Russia, Russian, Ukraine, Sevastopol

☆ Opinion: Putin’s team of tyrants
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-12 | by ( Sheena Mckenzie | Opinion Frida Ghitis | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Already last year North Korea was providing artillery shells and rockets to Russia, according to US officials. North Korea leader Kim Jong Un waves from his armoured train in Pyongyang as he leaves for Russia on September 10. For North Korea, the growing links with the Kremlin afford the opportunity to tacitly pressure Beijing — its one other friend — for more support. Just a few weeks ago, North Korea said it had launched a “scorched earth” simulation of a nuclear attack and was rehearsing an occupation of South Korea. Sullivan said North Korea will “pay a price” if it makes an arms deal with Moscow.

Persons: Frida Ghitis, Kim Jong Un, Vladimir Putin, Putin, It’s, vaingloriously, Peter the Great, Kim, Kim Jong, —, Sergei Shoigu, ”, Shoigu, Stalin, Jake Sullivan, Sullivan, Facebook Kim Organizations: CNN, Washington Post, Politics, North, Ukraine, Frida Ghitis CNN, Putin, Kremlin, UN, Russia, Washington, Twitter, Facebook Locations: North Korean, Russia’s Far, Russia, Ukraine, Korea, North Korea, Pyongyang, Iran, China, Moscow, Beijing, Russian, South Korea, United States, East Asia

☆ Kim Jong Un's latest alliance with Putin could make him a formidable force
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-12 | by ( Tom Porter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

North Korea's Kim Jong Un and Russia's Vladimir Putin are meeting in Vladivostok. But this time, it's Kim who has the upper hand, and many fear his new alliance with Putin will make him a formidable force. "If Russia pays in oil and food, it can revive the North Korea economy, which in turn could then also strengthen North Korea's weapons system. AdvertisementAdvertisementBut Putin, at this stage, likely sees challenging US influence in Asia, by bolstering North Korea, as a bigger priority. In the tumult that's resulted from the Ukraine war, Kim, a canny and ruthless player, could yet emerge as one of the big winners.

Persons: Kim Jong, Russia's Vladimir Putin, Putin, Kim, Kim Jong Un, Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump, it's Kim, Victor Cha, Ellen Kim, Sergei Shoigu, JUNG YEON, Yang, Sergey Radchenk, Henry, Kissinger Organizations: Service, North, New York Times, Analysts, CSIS, Russian, Korean, Getty, Asian Institute for Policy Studies, BBC, UN Security Council, Guardian, China, US Locations: Vladivostok, Ukraine, Wall, Silicon, North Korean, North Korea, Russia, Washington, Seoul, North, Asia

☆ Ukrainian soldier says new Leopard tanks are better than old Soviet ones because the ammo doesn't explode, kill the crew, and blow the turret off if it takes a hit
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-12 | by ( Ryan Pickrell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Ukraine's armor arsenal was bolstered by Western tanks like the German-made Leopard ahead of the counteroffensive. A gunner with the 47th Mechanized Brigade says these vehicles are vastly superior to Soviet tanks. SERGEI SUPINSKY/AFP via Getty ImagesWith Soviet-era tanks like the T-64 or later T-72 and T-80, crew survivability wasn't the highest priority. Dogukan Keskinkilic/Anadolu Agency via Getty ImagesBeyond tanks, Ukrainian service members also speak very highly of Western-made protected mobility platforms, such as armored personnel carriers and infantry fighting vehicles. Other Western vehicles, like the American-made Humvee, have also received praise from Ukrainian forces.

Persons: Vladyslav, it's, SERGEI SUPINSKY, Dogukan, Ukraine Ed Ram, Jack Watling, Nick Reynolds Organizations: 47th Mechanized Brigade, Service, 47th Mechanized, Strategic Communications, 2A6, —, Getty, Anadolu Agency, ABC News, Bradley, Washington, Britain's Royal United Services Institute Locations: Soviet, Wall, Silicon, Ukrainian, Robotyne, Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, Russian, Skybyn, Kyiv, AFP, Peremoha, Brovary, Zaporizhzhia Region

☆ Putin signals potential willingness to assist Kim as two leaders meet for expected weapons talks
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-12 | by ( Helen Regan Gawon Bae Larry Register Simone Mccarthy Anna Chernova | Helen Regan | Gawon Bae | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Kim Jong Un and Vladimir Putin shake hands as they begin their talks at the Vostochny Cosmodrome, Amur region, Russia, on September 13. Providing this technology to North Korea would be in violation of international sanctions, aimed at hampering Pyongyang’s ability to build a fully functioning nuclear weapons and ballistic missile force. After the talks, Kremlin spokesperson Peskov said “North Korea is our close neighbor,” according to state media. The two ballistic missiles fired by North Korea Wednesday morning each traveled about 650 kilometers (400 miles) before falling into the sea, according to the JCS. North Korea may be intending “to show that the military maintains readiness with uninterrupted command and control,” Easley said.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Kim Jong, Putin, “, ” Putin, ”, Kim Jong Un, Kim, Kim Jong Un's, Dmitry Peskov, ” Peskov, ” Leif, Eric Easley, John Bolton, ” Bolton, Peskov, Kim Yo Jong, Sergei Shoigu, Shoigu “, ” Kim Jong Un's, ” Easley, Ankit, ” Panda, we’ve Organizations: CNN, Vostochny, Kremlin, Ewha Womans University, North, Russian, US National Security, of, Munitions Industry, Russian Defense, South Korea’s, Chiefs of Staff, North Korea Wednesday, Kremlin Analysts, Security, Nuclear, Carnegie Endowment, International Locations: Korea, Russia, North Korea, Russia’s, Pyongyang, Ukraine, Vostochny Cosmodrome, Amur, Kremlin North Korea, North Korean, Moscow, Seoul, Cosmodrome, Soviet Union, “ North Korea, South

☆ North Korea has a powerful arsenal of weapons and ammo that Russia desperately wants as it eats through its own stockpile battling Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-11 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

US officials believe the two will discuss North Korea giving weapons to Russia for its war in Ukraine. North Korea boast a fearsome artillery and ammo arsenal that would boost Russia's dwindling supply. With a clear need for firepower and a dwindling group of allies to get it from, Russia is turning to North Korea. But most experts assess that there would be a severe response from Seoul and Washington if North Korea followed through on its threats. North Korea leader Kim Jong Un observes artillery fire competition in North Korea.

Persons: Kim Jong, Putin, it's, Kim Jong Un, Vladimir Putin, It's Kim's, Rand, It's, Sergei Shoigu, Kim, Shoigu, John Kirby Organizations: Service, Democratic People's, BBC, Korean People's Army, REUTERS, Rand Corp, International Institute for Stratetic Studies, ROK, DPRK, Russian Defense, North, National Security Locations: Russia, Korea, Ukraine, North Korea, Wall, Silicon, Moscow, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, North, Korean, Seoul, South Korea, Republic of Korea, United States, counterfire, Washington, Pyongyang

Kim’s delegation likely includes his foreign minister, Choe Sun Hui, and his top two military officials – Korean People’s Army Marshals Ri Pyong Chol and Pak Jong Chon. Other officials identified in North Korean state media photos may hint at what Kim might seek from Putin and what he would be willing to give. U.S. officials released intelligence last week that North Korea and Russia were arranging a meeting between their leaders. After decades of a complicated, hot-and-cold relationship, Russia and North Korea have been drawing closer since Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Both Russian and North Korean officials denied such claims.

Persons: —, Kim Jong Un, Vladimir Putin, Kim, Jeon Ha Gyu, Choe Sun Hui, Ri, Pak Jong Chon, Putin, Pak, Song, Adm, Kim Myong Sik, it's, Kim Jong, Jo Chun Ryong, Putin’s, Dmitry Peskov, ”, Adrienne Watson, “, Matthew Miller, Wagner, Sergei Shoigu, Jim Heintz, Aamer Madhani, Matthew Lee, Dake Kang, Ng Han Guan Organizations: Korean Central News Agency, Korea’s Defense Ministry, Korean People’s, Korea’s Unification Ministry, TASS, Associated Press, White, National Security, North, Democratic People’s, ”, Washington, United, Korean, Russian Locations: SEOUL, South Korea, Russia, Ukraine, North, North Korean, Korea, Russian, Vladivostok, Pyongyang, North Korea, Monday ., Ukrainian, DPRK, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Washington, Japan, Moscow, Beijing, United States, Korean, Tallinn, Estonia, Fangchuan, China, russia, ukraine

☆ Ukraine stopped Russian cruise missiles from taking out a cargo ship in the Black Sea as Putin tries to 'weaponize food,' UK says
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-11 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Russian forces fired two Kalibr cruise missiles at a cargo ship in the Black Sea last month. Turkish-flagged bulker TQ Samsun, carrying grain under UN's Black Sea Grain Initiative, transits Bosphorus in Istanbul, Turkey July 18, 2023. AdvertisementAdvertisementUkraine has tried to remedy the threat by establishing a protected shipping corridor to allow for safe transit through dangerous Black Sea waters. But news of the attempt to deliberately attack the Liberian-flagged cargo ship represents a deadly escalation. Emergency service personnel work at the site of a destroyed building after a Russian attack in Odesa, Ukraine, Thursday, July 20, 2023.

Persons: Rishi Sunak, Yoruk Isik, Vladimir Putin, James, Putin's Organizations: Service, Sea Fleet, Liberian, REUTERS, Russia, AP, Royal Air Force Locations: Moscow, Wall, Silicon, Ukraine, Russian, Russia, Ukrainian, Odesa, Samsun, Istanbul, Turkey, Palau

Putin reportedly arrived in Vladivostok on Monday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, according to state TV Russia 24. Kim, meanwhile, appears to be on a train heading to Russia, a South Korean government official told CNN. With its borders sealed because of that for much of the past three years, North Korea has only recently begun to relax travel restrictions. Vladivostok lies 130 km (80 miles) from the border with North Korea. North Korea is already under United Nations and US sanctions imposed over Pyongyang’s weapons of mass destruction program.

Persons: CNN — Kim Jong, Vladimir Putin, Kim, Putin, Dmitry Peskov, Donald Trump –, Xi Jinping, Moon Jae, Sergei Shoigu, Jake Sullivan Organizations: CNN, Ukraine, Russia “, Russia, South, North, The North, Russian, White House, United Nations Locations: Russia, Pyongyang, Moscow, United States, North Korean, Vladivostok, Monday, South Korean, North Korea, Singapore, Hanoi, North, South Korea, China, The, The North Korea, Korea, Ukraine

☆ Ukraine is stepping up its drone war against Russia, and now it's Moscow turn to reassemble decades-old air-defense weapons
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-10 | by ( Michael Peck | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Russia is building air-defense towers that some observers liken to the "flak towers" used by Nazi Germany. The air-defense towers are not the first decades-old weapon to be used during the war in Ukraine. In 1940, Hitler demanded flak towers after British bombers conducted a small raid on Berlin. Yet there isn't that much resemblance between German flak towers and Russia's new air-defense structures, according to Edward Westermann, author of "Flak: German Anti-Aircraft Defenses 1941-1945." Most of the German flak towers were destroyed after 1945, though a few remain today as tourist attractions — or because they're simply too difficult to blow up.

Persons: liken, Pantsir, Vladimir Putin, Hitler, ALEXANDER NEMENOV, Edward Westermann, Westermann, they're, Michael Peck Organizations: Service, Allied, Kremlin, NATO, British, AP, Russian Defense Ministry, Getty, Aircraft, Defense, Foreign Policy, Twitter, LinkedIn Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Moscow, Wall, Silicon, Russian, Nazi Germany, Crimea, Ukrainian, St, Petersburg, It's, Hamburg, Berlin, Vienna, AFP, Forbes

Along with ramping up its domestic arms production, Moscow is turning to an old ally with a vast arsenal — North Korea. That would be a remarkable reversal from the 1950-53 Korean War, when the Soviet Union provided the communist North with weapons and ammunition. Shoigu became the first Russian defense chief to visit North Korea since the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union. “Russia is hoping that North Korea could swiftly establish support channels to provide it with war materials like ammunition, bombs and other supplies,” Hong said. U.S. officials have cast Moscow’s reach for North Korean weapons as a reflection of Russian military problems.

Persons: Kim Jong, Vladimir Putin, Sergei Shoigu, Putin, Kim Jong Un, ”, Alexander Gabuev, Shoigu, Kim, Dmitry Peskov, ” Kim, Hong Min, Hong, Wagner, Jake Sullivan, ” Sullivan, embolden Kim, Dmitry Medvedev, “, Emma Burrows, Kim Tong Organizations: United, North, Soviet Union, Russian Defense, Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, Kremlin, Moscow, Korean People’s Army, Seoul’s Korea Institute for National Unification, House, Washington, Strategic, International Studies, Ukrainian, Russian, Royal United Services Institute, Russia’s Security, Associated Press Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Moscow, North Korea, United States, Soviet, Soviet Union, Pyongyang, Korea, Russian, Hong, U.S, United Nations, ” Washington, Iran, Ukrainian, Tallinn, Estonia, Seoul

While China has sent a delegation led by Vice Premier Liu Guozhong to the North Korea's anniversary celebrations, Russia sent a military song and dance group. KCNA said Kim received letters from Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping on the anniversary, where both leaders said that their countries’ strengthening ties with North Korea would contribute to the region’s peace and stability. State media did not mention whether Kim made a speech during the parade, indicating that he likely didn't. A day before the parade, Kim took Shoigu on a tour of a domestic arms exhibition, which demonstrated North Korea’s support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and added to suspicions the North was willing to supply arms to Russia. In exchange for providing Russia with artillery shells and other ammunition, North Korea could seek badly needed energy and food aid and advanced weapons technologies, analysts say.

Persons: Kim Jong, Kim, Vladimir Putin, Liu Guozhong, Putin, KCNA, Xi Jinping, Kim Il, —, Liu, United States ’, Sergei Shoigu, Li Hongzhong Organizations: North, Washington, Guards, Red Guards, Analysts, United, Russian Defense, Communist Party Locations: SEOUL, South Korea, North Korea, Moscow, Beijing, Washington, Pyongyang, Russia, Ukraine, China, Kim, Vladivostok, Korea, Koreans, United States, Japan, Seoul, Tokyo

☆ Zelensky dismisses compromise with Putin, pointing to Prigozhin’s death
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-08 | by ( Andrew Carey | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Kyiv CNN —Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has said the death of Yevgeny Prigozhin – the Russian mercenary leader whose plane crashed weeks after he led a mutiny against Moscow’s military leadership – shows what happens when people make deals with Russian leader Vladimir Putin. “When you want to have a compromise or a dialogue with somebody, you cannot do it with a liar,” Volodymyr Zelensky said. The Wagner leader’s dramatic death, which followed a short-lived rebellion that threatened the authority of the Russian president, was a warning to be heeded, Zelensky suggested. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke with CNN's Fareed Zakaria on Friday. Ukraine has made incremental gains in the south amid fierce fighting with Russian troops, accounts from the front lines suggest.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelensky, Yevgeny Prigozhin –, Vladimir Putin, Zelensky, CNN’s Fareed Zakaria, ” Volodymyr Zelensky, Wagner, CNN's Fareed Zakaria, Lula Da Silva, Putin, ” Zelensky Organizations: CNN —, Kremlin, CNN Locations: Russian, United States, Ukraine, Georgia, Moldova, Robotyne

☆ A shortage of land mines forced Russian troops to put down irregular minefields, creating new problems for Ukraine: report
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-08 | by ( Ryan Pickrell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Russia began laying minefields deeper than normal to make them harder for Ukraine to cross. The inconsistent and often improvised approach that followed, however, still created headaches for advancing Ukrainian forces. The result was that Russian minefields became irregular, which isn't necessarily out of the ordinary to begin with given terrain and time considerations. Citing conversations with Ukrainian forces, he also revealed that Russia sometimes built fake trench traps rigged with explosives. AdvertisementAdvertisementAnd the inconsistency and irregularity of the Russian minefields has only further complicated matters.

Persons: Jack Watling, Nick Reynolds, Watling, Reynolds, Michael Kofman Organizations: Service, Royal United Service Institute, Russian, 35th Marine Brigade, Anadolu Agency, Getty, Ukraine Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Wall, Silicon, Russian, Donetsk

☆ Cuba arrests 17 for allegedly helping recruit some of its citizens to fight for Russia in Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-08 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Cuban authorities have arrested 17 people in connection with what they described as a network to recruit Cuban nationals to fight for Russia in Ukraine. Cuba's Foreign Ministry said on Monday that the government had detected a network operating from Russia to recruit Cuban citizens living both in Russia and in Cuba to fight in Ukraine. "Cuba is not part of the war in Ukraine," the Foreign Ministry said in a news release. Russian law allows foreign nationals to enlist in its army, after signing a contract with the Defense Ministry. It also noted that there have been online adds seeking recruits for the Russian army in Armenia and Kazakhstan.

Persons: César Rodríguez, José Luis Reyes, Marilin Vinent, Dannys Castillo, Vinent, Sergei Sobyanin Organizations: Cuba's Interior Ministry, Cuba's, Foreign Ministry, U.S . State Department, Russia, Defense Ministry, Moscow, Russian Defense Ministry, British Defense Ministry, Twitter, Kremlin Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Cuba, Russian, Ryazan, Moscow, Cuba Republic, Havana, Central Asia, Armenia, Kazakhstan

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