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☆ UK boosts support for Ukrainian troops through winter
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-08 | by ( Alistair Smout | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/8] NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg observes Operation Interflex a UK led training programme for the Armed Forces of Ukraine during a visit to Lydd Camp in Kent, Britain. REUTERS/Chris RadburnSummary UK to send more cold-weather sleeping kits to UkraineAlso announces dispatch of more military equipmentNATO chief watches Ukrainian troops training in BritainLYDD, England, Nov 8 (Reuters) - Britain is stepping up its support for Ukrainian soldiers through the winter, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace told Reuters on Wednesday, following weeks of Ukrainian advances towards the southern city of Kherson. Wallace joined NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg to observe the training of Ukrainian troops in the southeast English town of Lydd, as Britain announced the delivery of a further 12,000 extreme cold-weather sleeping kits for Ukraine. "So we're determined ... to give Ukrainian soldiers the best basic skills because we already know that the Russian military aren't doing that." Stoltenberg, who said other NATO allies were also providing support to Ukrainian troops through the winter months, also met Britain's new prime minister, Rishi Sunak, on Wednesday in London, where they discussed the Atlantic alliance's continued support for Ukrainian sovereignty.

☆ Drafted Russians were deployed to Ukraine without weapons and expected to dig trenches with their bare hands, relative says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( Kit Gillet | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Hundreds of drafted Russians are already dead in Ukraine, Russian media reported. Earlier reports have highlighted the lack of training and equipment given to Russian soldiers. Hundreds of recently mobilized Russian soldiers have died on the front line in Ukraine's Luhansk region, according to Russian news outlets, following three days of shelling by the Ukrainian army. They were given four grenades, they dug the ground with their hands," Ekaterina Brazhnikova, the sister of a different mobilized soldier, told the news outlet. Earlier reports have highlighted the seemingly lack of training and equipment for Russian soldiers.

☆ Russia has likely deployed units meant to shoot its own retreating soldiers, UK intel says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Russia is likely using "blocking units" to threaten to shoot retreating soldiers, UK intel said. A UK intelligence briefing ascribed the move to "low morale and reluctance to fight." "These units threaten to shoot their own retreating soldiers in order to compel offensives and have been use in previous conflicts by Russian forces," it added. The defense ministry said that the tactic of shooting deserters "likely attests to the low quality, low morale, and indiscipline of Russian forces". Russian President Vladimir Putin has actively intervened to stop his troops retreating.

☆ North Korea fires artillery into sea as South Korea, U.S. pledge cooperation
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

North Korea fired multiple missiles into the sea on Thursday, including a possible failed intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), prompting the United States and South Korea to extend air drills that have angered Pyongyang. Beginning shortly before midnight on Thursday, South Korea's military said it had detected more than 80 artillery rounds fired into the sea by North Korea, in what it says is a violation of a 2018 inter-Korean agreement. The South issued a warning communication to the North over the firing, the South Korean Ministry of Defence said in a statement. South Korea and the United States also say that North Korea has completed technical preparation to test a nuclear device at any time, in what would be its first nuclear test since 2017. "The United States and South Korea will find that they have made a terrible mistake that cannot be reversed," said Pak.

☆ Ukraine shares video of Russian helicopter getting blasted out of the sky, the latest in a string of takedowns
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( Sophia Ankel | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Ukrainian forces have reported taking out multiple Russian helicopters in recent weeks. A Ukrainian official on Wednesday shared a video he said shows a strike on a Russian helicopter. Ukraine has reported taking out multiple Russian helicopters in recent weeks. "This represents over 25% of the Russian Air Force's in-service fleet of 90 KA-52s and nearly half of Russia's total helicopter losses in Ukraine," the update said. On Monday, Ukrainian forces sabotaged an airbase deep inside Russia, close to the Latvian border, planting explosives inside the military helicopters, CNN reported.

☆ Russia abandoned its plan to block food exports leaving Ukraine after ships ignored Putin and kept sailing anyway
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( Sophia Ankel | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Russia pulled out of its grain export deal with Ukraine over the weekend. The grain export deal, brokered by Turkey and the UN, is vital to the global food supply. But despite the country's withdrawal, a UN official said Tuesday that they would press ahead with their plans to let authorized ships leave Ukraine. The World Food Programme warned earlier this year that Russia's invasion could result in a "hunger catastrophe" if such a food export deal was not struck. The head of the European Council in June also accused Russia's troops of burning Ukrainian fields and stealing wheat, compounding food shortages.

☆ Factbox: What is known about the drone attack on Crimea?
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Russia said 16 air and maritime drones attacked civilian and Black Sea Fleet vessels in the Bay of Sevastopol in Crimea at 0420 Kyiv time on Saturday. Unverified footage on social media showed what appeared to be maritime drones speeding across the water towards a Russian battleship while bullets were fired at the drone. Ukraine has neither denied nor confirmed that it carried out the drone attack on Sevastopol and has instead suggested that Russia carried out the attack on itself so that it could suspend participation in the grain deal. Russia says it has recovered the wreckage of some of the maritime drones. The defence ministry said one of the maritime drones appeared to have started from within the security zone of the grain corridor itself.

SummarySummary Companies Russia says UK navy personnel blew up pipelinesRussia says UK navy personnel helped attack CrimeaRussia does not give evidence for claimBritain denies Russian claimsLONDON, Oct 29 (Reuters) - Russia's defence ministry said on Saturday that British navy personnel blew up the Nord Stream gas pipelines last month, a claim that London said was false and designed to distract from Russian military failures in Ukraine. "To detract from their disastrous handling of the illegal invasion of Ukraine, the Russian Ministry of Defence is resorting to peddling false claims of an epic scale," it said. Russia has previously blamed the West for the explosions that ruptured the Russian-built Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines on the bed of the Baltic Sea. PIPELINE MYSTERYSweden and Denmark have both concluded that four leaks on Nord Stream 1 and 2 were caused by explosions, but have not said who might be responsible. The Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines have a joint annual capacity of 110 billion cubic metres - more than half of Russia's normal gas exports volumes.

The North said South Korea had resumed using propaganda loudspeakers at the border in violation of the agreement. For now, South Korea says it is not calling the CMA off, but is urging North Korea to abide by its measures. North Korea has also not officially abrogated the deal, and the South's ministry of defence told Reuters that inter-Korean military hotlines are operating. This year South Korea and its U.S. allies have responded to a record number of North Korean missile tests with stepped up military drills. Those have been met with more tests and drills from North Korea, including rare warplane sorties near the border.

☆ Finnish seismologists detect five blasts in Russian waters
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

HELSINKI, Oct 25 (Reuters) - Finnish seismologists detected five underwater blasts in Russian waters in the Baltic Sea last week, the Helsinki University Institute of Seismology said on Tuesday. Four explosions were recorded on Thursday and one on Friday in Russian territorial waters in the Gulf of Finland, Tiira said, adding it had been clear that the observations had been caused by blasts and not by other seismic activity. "It can be seen in the shape of the signal and in the content of its frequency," he said. The institute did not know what had caused the blasts but that similar disturbances had been detected during previous naval drills and sweeping of old mines from the sea bottom, Tiira said. "We have detected explosions in that same area before, but not very often, not even every year," he said.

☆ Russian forces "preparing to work under radioactive contamination" - Moscow
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Oct 24 (Reuters) - Russia's Defence Ministry said on Monday that it had prepared its forces to work in conditions of radioactive contamination, after Moscow accused Ukraine of planning to detonate a "dirty bomb" - something Kyiv has strongly denied. Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu told Western defence ministers on Sunday that Moscow believed Ukraine was preparing to detonate such a bomb - a device using conventional explosives packed with radioactive material to spread contamination over a wide area. Ukraine wanted to paint Russia as a "nuclear terrorist", he said. Kirillov concluded: "Work has been organised by the ministry of defence to counter possible provocations from the Ukrainian side: forces and resources have been put in readiness to perform tasks in conditions of radioactive contamination." Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by ReutersOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ UK says Russia continues to use Iran's UAVs against Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Oct 24 (Reuters) - Russia continues to use Iranian uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) against targets throughout the Ukrainian territory, the British Ministry of Defence said on Monday. Russia is likely using the Iranian Shahed-136 UAVs to infiltrate Ukranian air defences and as a substitute for Russian-manufactured long-range precision weapons that are becoming increasingly scarce, the ministry said in its update on Twitter. loadingUkrainian efforts to contain the UAVs have been successful, the ministry said. (This story has been refiled to correct typo in first paragraph)Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Rittik Biswas in Bengaluru; Editing by Tom HogueOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ So many mobilized Russian reservists had buy their own military gear that thermal underwear now costs up to $340 and a hiking backpack costs as much as $600
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Russian reservists forced to buy their own gear are finding sky-high prices in stores, reports say. Some items like body armor vests cost up to 10 times than normal, one Russian news site wrote. Putin last month announced a mobilization of 300,000 Russian reservists to fight in Ukraine. Russian reservists have to buy their own suppliesThe buying frenzy started after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced in September that 300,000 reservists would be drafted to fight in the Ukraine war. The MOD added that the quality of the average Russian reservist's equipment now is far worse than what was provided to earlier Russian deployments.

☆ A month after Putin started drafting Russians to fight in Ukraine, some are already coming home in body bags
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Some, Putin said, are trained for as little as 10 days, leading commentators to conclude they were effectively cannon fodder. In Western armies, it would likely be impossible to die within a month of enlistment, because training lasts much longer than that. Radio Free Europe, the US-funded outlet, also reported deaths among newly-mobilized men, swiftly returned to Russia in body bags. Alberque said the mobilized troops probably could not fight effectively — and may never have been meant to. David Betz, a professor in the War Studies department, also at King's said that so few mobilized troops had arrived that their effective casualty rate was "zero."

☆ Factbox: Windfall taxes, spending cuts on table as Hunt tries to fix UK budget
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

LONDON, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Britain's latest finance minister Jeremy Hunt needs to raise an estimated 40 billion pounds ($45 billion) to repair public finances. British banks hold around 947 billion pounds of reserves at the BoE, largely as a result of quantitative easing that the central bank is yet to reverse. Cost estimates for completing HS2 soared to 100 billion pounds before the Leeds link was removed. The change represented a saving of 3.5 billion pounds in its first year in 2021. Asked on Oct. 19 about the foreign aid budget, Truss said more details would be set out in due course.

The British government said on Tuesday it was taking steps to stop China trying to recruit serving and former British military pilots to train the Chinese armed forces. The BBC reported up to 30 former military pilots had gone to train China's People's Liberation Army. read moreAustralia's Defence Minister Richard Marles said he had asked the defence department to investigate claims that former Australian military pilots had also been recruited to join a South African flight school that operated in China. The requirements included having graduated from military test flight schools in the United States or Britain. TFASA also runs a flight school for Chinese airline pilots in South Africa as a joint venture with one of China's largest state-owned aeronautic companies, AVIC, according to its website.

☆ Why Russia accused China of copying its stealth fighter design
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-19 | by ( Alex Hollings | Sandboxx News | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

China is often accused of stealing plans for the US F-22 and F-35 to design its J-20 stealth jet. A Chinese J-20. Russia called out the J-20's similarities with the MiG 1.44 immediately after the Chinese fighter was revealedRussia's Su-47 Berkut forward-swept wing aircraft. REUTERS/StringerMikoyan has denied providing any kind of support for China's stealth fighter development which dates back to well before the J-20 was officially unveiled. "It looks like they got access … to documents relating to the Mikoyan — the aircraft that the Ministry of Defence skipped over in its tender to create a stealth fighter," he said.

☆ Staff at British nuclear warhead facility to vote on strike
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Staff at a British company responsible for developing nuclear warheads will vote on whether to strike in a dispute over pay, a union said on Wednesday, as rising inflation spurs more industrial unrest. The Prospect union said a ballot for its members at the Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE) would open on Oct. 24 and run for two weeks after its members rejected a 5% pay award. An additional lump sum payment offered was still inadequate and failed to address a real-terms pay reduction, it added. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register"It should attract a commensurate level of pay and respect for these staff who keep the country safe." Headquartered in Aldermaston, Berkshire, in southern England, it develops and maintains nuclear warheads for Britain's Trident nuclear deterrent.

☆ Britain's Truss wants to level with public, says spokesperson
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Prime Minister Liz Truss told her cabinet team of top ministers on Tuesday she wanted to level with the public that times would be tough, but she could put Britain on a stronger path. "The prime minister said she wanted to be honest with the public that times would be tough but by addressing long-standing issues now, we can put the country on a stronger path for the future," her spokesperson quoted her as telling ministers a day after her new finance minister ripped up most of her economic growth plan. "(The finance minister Jeremy Hunt) made clear that public spending would continue to rise overall but departments continued to be asked to look at finding ways to find taxpayers money." Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Elizabeth Piper. Editing by Andrew MacAskill and Kate HoltonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ China's military is trying to recruit ex-British Air Force pilots for training and intel, UK says
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( Natasha Turak | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

China's military is headhunting ex-British Air Force pilots for their training skills and expertise — and the U.K. government is working to stop it, the U.K.'s Ministry of Defence said Tuesday. Recruitment is said to be ramping up, with former pilots being offered large paychecks to work for the Chinese. While training and recruiting pilots is not illegal under U.K. law, the practice presents an intelligence risk as U.K. officials suspect China's military aims to learn about tactics and operations employed by Western pilots. One former Australian Air Force pilot, speaking to CNBC anonymously due to professional restrictions, said he was offered nearly $1 million a year to work for the Chinese military. And President Joe Biden, as part of the U.S.'s national security strategy, named China as America's "most consequential geopolitical challenge."

By pointing to 2027 as the moment when East Asia's power balance may tip in China's favour, Japan's government can rally support for greater defence spending, he added. At a congressional hearing last year, U.S. Indo-Pacific commander Admiral Philip Davidson said that China's threat against Taiwan could "manifest" that year. Japanese defence ministry officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment. In July, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida won national upper house elections with a pledge to "substantially" increase defence spending. The splurge of defence spending should also benefit U.S. suppliers such as Lockheed, Boeing Co (BA.N) and Northrop Grumman Corp (NOC.N).

☆ Russia denied using Iranian suicide drones to attack Ukraine, even though there are pictures of it
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( Kieran Corcoran | Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Russian on Tuesday denied deploying Iran-made suicide drones to attack Ukraine. A Russian drone is seen during a Russian drone strike, in Kyiv, Ukraine October 17, 2022. YASUYOSHI CHIBA/AFP via Getty Images; InsiderThe White House yesterday said that the drones used were Shahed-136 models. Britain's Ministry of Defence also said that Shahed-136 drones had been used in Ukraine, identifying them in an assessment published Tuesday. Denmark also said that Iranian drones were used, with its foreign minister saying on Monday: "Iranian drones are used apparently to attack in the middle of Kyiv, this is an atrocity."

☆ Russian strikes wiped out 30% of Ukraine's power stations, part of a playbook to fight its infrastructure instead of its military
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Russia's new tactics in Ukraine involve an intensified effort to cut off Ukraine's power. Zelenskyy said Tuesday that Russia had destroyed 30% of Ukraine's power stations in eight days. Russia's defense ministry explicitly said on Monday that it was gunning for Ukraine's power supply, even though attacking civilian infrastructure is broadly viewed as a war crime. A Russian drone is seen during a Russian drone strike, in Kyiv, Ukraine October 17, 2022. And Ukraine's Western allies are now rushing to send more air-defense systems to Ukraine in a direct response to Russia's drone and missile barrages.

☆ UK Defence Ministry: Russian logistical issues intensify after Crimea bridge blast
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Oct 17 (Reuters) - Logistical issues faced by Russian forces in southern Ukraine have become more acute following damage to a key bridge to Crimea on Oct. 8, a British intelligence update said on Monday. "With the Russian presence in Kherson strained, and the supply routes through Crimea degraded, the ground line of communication through Zaporizhzhia Oblast is becoming more important to the sustainability of Russia’s occupation," the UK Ministry of Defence tweeted in a regular bulletin. Russian forces in southern Ukraine are likely increasing logistical supply flow via Mariupol in an attempt to compensate for the reduced capacity of the bridge, the update said. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Jyoti Narayan in Bengaluru; Editing by Tom HogueOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Russian-backed forces make advances towards eastern Ukrainian town, says UK
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Oct 14 (Reuters) - Russian-backed forces have made tactical advances in the last three days towards the centre of Bakhmut, a strategically important town in the eastern Donetsk region, and likely advanced into villages south of the town, Britain said on Friday. Bakhmut sits on a main road leading to the cities of Sloviansk and Kramatorsk. Private military company Wagner Group "likely remains" heavily involved in the Bakhmut fighting, Britain's Ministry of Defence said in an intelligence bulletin. In Ukraine's Donbas region, the ministry said that Russia continued with offensive operations in central part of the state and was "very slowly" making progress. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Jose Joseph in Bengaluru; Editing by Christian SchmollingerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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