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☆ Belarus president and Putin ally Alexander Lukashenko appears to confirm that 4 Russian military aircraft were shot down. The Kremlin has not yet acknowledged the downed aircraft.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Azmi Haroun | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko claimed that the four downed Russian aircraft were "shot down." According to Reuters, Lukashenko addressed Belarusian troops on Monday at the border with Ukraine. The Belarusian leader decisively claimed that the four aircraft were shot down — but did not say by whom. "Three days after the events near us — I mean in the Bryansk region, when four aircraft were shot down, we are forced to respond," Lukashenko said, according to Reuters. The crash signified the most Russian aircraft lost in a single day since March 2022, according to the pro-Russia Telegram channel Fighterbomber.

☆ Ukraine top commander: advance in Bakhmut is first success, city's defence continues
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

May 15 (Reuters) - The defence of Bakhmut continues and recent days have shown that Ukraine can move forward and counter the Russian forces there, the commander of Ukrainian ground forces Colonel general Oleksandr Syrskyi said on Monday. "The advance of our troops along the Bakhmut direction - that is the first successful offensive operation in the city's defence," Syrskyi, was quoted as saying on Ukraine's Media Military Centre Telegram messaging platform. "The last few days have shown that we can move forward and destroy the enemy even in such extremely difficult conditions ... The operation to defend Bakhmut continues. Reporting by Lidia Kelly in Melbourne; Editing by Jacqueline WongOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Ukraine hails its first offensive success in defence of Bakhmut
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Dan Peleschuk | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Ukrainian servicemen rest at their positions after a fight, as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues, near the front line city of Bakhmut, in Donetsk region, Ukraine May 11, 2023. "The advance of our troops along the Bakhmut direction is the first success of offensive actions in the defence of Bakhmut," Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi, Commander of Ground Forces, said in a statement posted on the Telegram messaging app. Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar said heavy fighting continued in and around Bakhmut, and that "everything" was difficult there. Moscow, which launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine nearly 15 months ago, sees Bakhmut as a stepping stone to attacking other Ukrainian cities. Kyiv has said before that keeping up the defence of Bakhmut allows for the military to prepare its expected counteroffensive.

"The last few days have shown that we can move forward and destroy the enemy even in such extremely difficult conditions," he said. The Kremlin, for its part, said it did not believe the added British hardware would change the course of the conflict. Moscow has acknowledged retreating north of the city, and the head of the Wagner private army fighting inside Bakhmut has said Russia's regular forces have fled positions on the northern and southern flanks. The public rift between Wagner founder Yevgeny Prigozhin and the commanders of regular Russian forces has deepened over the past two weeks, with Prigozhin releasing daily audio and video messages denouncing the Russian military brass. However, both he and the Kremlin dismissed a Washington Post report citing U.S. intelligence leaks that Prigozhin had offered to betray the positions of regular Russian forces in January in return for Kyiv pulling back some troops in Bakhmut.

CNN —Two senior Russian military officers have been killed in eastern Ukraine, the Russian Defense Ministry said Sunday, the latest high-profile losses for Moscow in a grinding war with its western neighbor. The ministry said the two officers – Col. Vyacheslav Makarov and Col. Yevgeny Brovko – were in killed in action while leading Russian troops in the Donetsk region. “The commander of the 4th motorized rifle brigade, Colonel Vyacheslav Makarov, being at the forefront, personally led the battle,” a Russian Defense Ministry briefing read. The Donetsk region of Ukraine includes the city of Bakhmut, which has seen some of the fiercest and most relentless fighting of the war. The Russian Defense Ministry said Ukraine has made “massive attempts to break through the defense of our troops to the north and south of Artemovsk,” referring to Bakhmut by its Russian name.

☆ Ukraine says its troops are advancing in two directions in Bakhmut suburbs
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

May 13 (Reuters) - Ukrainian troops are advancing in two directions in the eastern city of Bakhmut but the situation in the city centre is more complicated, deputy defence minister Hanna Malyar said on Saturday. Ukrainian and Russian officials both say pro-Kyiv forces have started to push back in and around Bakhmut after blunting a months-long offensive by troops loyal to Moscow that left much of the city in ruins. "Our troops are gradually advancing in two directions in the suburbs of Bakhmut ... however, the situation in the city itself is more complicated," Malyar wrote on Telegram. Much of the fighting is Bakhmut is being led by the Wagner group of mercenaries. The letter dealt with what Prigozhin says is the poor performance by regular troops on Wagner's flanks.

☆ Photo catches Taiwan pilot with a patch of Winnie the Pooh getting punched in the face — a jab at China's Xi as Beijing ups the pressure
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Amid this, Taiwan's defense ministry published a photo of a patch worn by fighter pilots. The patch depicts a cartoon Winnie the Pooh getting punched by a bear — a dig at Xi Jinping. Her visit stoked ire in Beijing, with China's defense ministry calling it "provocative." Beijing's defense ministry said the war games — dubbed "Joint Sword" — are meant to be a "stern warning" to Taiwan, which sharply criticized the exercises. #ROCArmedForces have monitored the situation and tasked CAP aircraft, Navy vessels, and land-based missile systems to respond these activities," Taiwan's defense ministry wrote in a statement posted to social media.

[1/5] Alec Hsu shows to the camera patches depicting a Formosan black bear holding Taiwan’s flag and punching Winnie the Pooh at his store in Taoyuan, Taiwan April 10, 2023. The patch shows an angry Formosan black bear holding Taiwan's flag and punching Winnie the Pooh, with the slogan "Scramble!" The endangered Formosan black bear is seen as a symbol of Taiwanese identity. China claims democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory and has not ruled out taking the island by force. While the Winnie the Pooh patch cannot be found on Chinese social media, Beijing has also been promoting videos and commentary about its drills around Taiwan.

☆ Russian forces making no headway in Bakhmut, Avdiivka, Ukraine says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

[1/6] A damaged building is seen, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Avdiivka, Donetsk region, Ukraine, March 28, 2023, in this still image obtained from a social media video. But the military said Ukrainian fighters continued to successfully repel Russian forces and claimed that Russia was suffering high combat deaths in the offensive. Britain's defence ministry said Russian forces had made only "marginal progress" in an attempt to encircle Avdiivka in recent days and had lost many armoured vehicles and tanks. Denis Pushilin, the Russian-installed leader of the part of Donetsk region under Moscow's control, said most Ukrainian forces had pulled back from a metals factory in western Bakhmut. "In principle, we cannot speak of them (Russian forces) having achieved any strategic advances in the last few hours or even days," Ukrainian spokesman Cherevatiy said.

[1/2] U.S. Joint Chiefs Chair Army General Mark Milley speaks with U.S. forces in Syria during an unannounced visit, at a U.S. military base in Northeast Syria, March 4, 2023. The attack against U.S. personnel took place at a coalition base near Hasakah in northeast Syria at approximately 1:38 p.m. (1038 GMT) on Thursday, it said. The other two wounded American troops were treated at the base in northeast Syria, the Pentagon said. Thousands of other Islamic State fighters are in detention facilities guarded by Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, America's key ally in the country. American officials say that Islamic State could still regenerate into a major threat.

☆ A key air defense system wasn't working right when a drone killed an American in Syria, pushing the US to retaliate with force
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The main air defense system at a coalition airbase was "not fully operational" when the attack unfolded, The New York Times reported on Friday. One US official told the Times that the Avenger defense system could have been suffering from a maintenance problem. The drone, which the US intelligence community suspects is of Iranian origin, killed a US contractor and wounded five American service members and an additional contractor. The three injured service members and the contractor were transported to a coalition medical facility in Iraq, while the other two injured service members were treated on site. Austin said his thoughts are with the family and colleagues of the contractor who was killed and also with the wounded service members.

☆ German military in worse shape than before Russia's invasion -official
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN, March 14 (Reuters) - The German military is suffering from a greater shortage of weapons and equipment than before Russia's invasion of Ukraine a year ago, the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Armed Forces said in her annual report on Tuesday. "The Bundeswehr has too little of everything, and it has even less since (Russia's invasion on) Feb. 24, 2022," Eva Hoegl, who acts as an advocate defending the rights of the troops, told reporters in Berlin. "It must be clear that the moment (a howitzer) is handed over to Ukraine, the process of ordering a replacement must be launched," she said. She put the investment needs for updating the infrastructure at 50 billion euros in total. Reporting by Sabine Siebold; Editing by Nick MacfieOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Ukraine war live updates: Kyiv claims over 1,000 Russians died in Bakhmut in last week; Wagner mercenaries pivoting recruitment
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Ukrainian servicemen from 24th brigade along the front line south of Bakhmut near New York, Ukraine, on March 10, 2023. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said ongoing fighting in the besieged city of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine is taking a big toll on Russia's forces. In addition, dozens of units of Russian equipment were destroyed, Zelenskyy said, and more than 10 Russian ammunition depots were burned. There have been questions over how long Ukraine could choose to defend Bakhmut, a city almost completely surrounded by Russian forces, with mercenary fighters from the Wagner Group advancing into parts of the city. Last week, Ukraine said it would continue to defend Bakhmut, however, and would send in reinforcements.

☆ Two decades after Saddam's fall, Iraqis still haunted by disappearances
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( Charlotte Bruneau | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

As exhumations dragged on, more atrocities were committed in sectarian conflict and amid the rise and fall of armed groups, such as Al Qaeda and Islamic State militants, as well as Shi'ite Muslim militias. Tens of thousands of Iraqis were killed by Saddam's forces during his rule. According to Siddiq, massacres committed by Islamic State militants, who seized much of northern Iraq in 2014 and held it for three violent years, have been prioritised. In Sinjar, where Islamic State committed what U.N. investigators described as genocide against Iraq's Yazidi minority, about 600 victims have been reburied, with some 150 identified. His name was not among the hundreds of victims identified by Siddiq's team, and Mohammed remains in limbo.

☆ Mercenary leader Prigozhin says Russia faces resistance in taking Bakhmut
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Prigozhin, an entrepreneur and restaurateur, has attracted attention as fighting raged in this campaign. "Bakhmut is needed so our troops can operate comfortably," Prigozhin said. Ukrainian troops are well trained ... and like any large city it is impossible to capture it from head-on. Military analyst Oleh Zhdanov said the situation around Bakhmut probably remained the most difficult sector faced by Ukraine's forces as Russia deploys more and more conscripts. "The area south of Bakhmut is a very difficult sector," Zhdanov said in an online interview.

☆ Ukraine's forces still hold Bilohorivka, last part of Luhansk region - governor
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Feb 5 (Reuters) - Ukrainian forces remained in control of the village of Bilohorivka, the Luhansk region governor Serhiy Haidai said on Sunday, adding that the situation there is tense, but under control. "Our troops remain in their positions, nobody has captured Bilohorivka, nobody has entered there, there is no enemy there." Some Moscow-installed officials and pro-Russian military bloggers have recently claimed Russian advances in the direction of Bilohorivka, the last part of Luhansk held by Ukrainian forces. "The situation at the front is tense, but controlled by Ukrainian forces," Haidai said. "The number of Russian attacks has ... increased, but all of them have been repulsed by our troops, who remain in their positions."

☆ Belarus leader says he has been asked to seal a non-aggression pact with Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Jan 24 (Reuters) - Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko said on Tuesday that he had been asked to conclude a non-aggression pact with Ukraine, the Belta state news agency reported, citing comments that suggested he saw Kyiv as a potential threat. Lukashenko was quoted by Belta as saying:"...They are asking us not to go to war with Ukraine in any circumstances, not to move our troops there. It was not immediately clear from his comments whether Ukraine itself or the West had made the alleged offer. Minsk allowed Moscow to use Belarusian territory to send troops into Ukraine on Feb. 24 last year. In the same speech, Belta cited Lukashenko as accusing Ukraine of hosting militants who could be part of an alleged long-term Western plan to destabilise his country.

☆ Drone footage shows Ukrainian forces trapping fighters from Russia's Wagner Group in a lethal crossfire
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( Bethany Dawson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Drone footage shows the Ukrainian troops annihilating a unit of Wagner fighters in Soledar. The video shows soldiers — who the State Border Service of Ukraine identified as Wagner Group fighters — being monitored by a drone. The soldiers then come under fire from Ukrainian fighters using large-caliber machine guns, resulting in a number of injuries, according to the border force. In a Telegram post, the State Border Service of Ukraine described the events. "Although the enemy has concentrated its greatest forces in this direction, our troops – the Armed Forces of Ukraine, all defense and security forces – are defending the state."

☆ Playing Risk Made Cold-War Kids Masters of an Unruly Globe
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-07 | by ( Rich Cohen | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

A certain kind of brainy kid will reach adulthood with a few general rules for foreign policy: Don’t mass your troops in Asia, stay out of New Guinea, never base an empire in Ukraine. It is the wisdom of Metternich condensed to a few phrases and taught by the game Risk. When many of us think about Europe, it isn’t a CNN graphic that we picture. It’s the Risk board, which taught us nearly everything we know about geography and politics. If we’re unsentimental on the subject of war and peace, blame Risk, which imparted a simple lesson that shapes how we read the news: In this world, it is do or get done.

☆ Forget politics, Biden urges Americans to embrace the Christmas spirit
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-23 | by ( Nandita Bose | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WASHINGTON, Dec 22 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden urged Americans on Thursday to cast aside the partisan politics that have divided the nation and embrace the caring spirit of the holiday season. In a short holiday speech, Biden said Americans are emerging from a brutal couple of years where the COVID-19 pandemic robbed people of loved ones and new memories. U.S. President Joe Biden delivers a Christmas speech at the White House in Washington, U.S., December 22, 2022. REUTERS/Leah Millis"I sincerely hope that this holiday season will drain the poison that has affected our politics that has set us against one another. I hope this Christmas season marks a fresh start for our nation," Biden said.

☆ Germany pauses purchases of Puma tanks after operational problems
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-19 | by ( Rachel More | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Shares in Rheinmetall (RHMG.DE), which manufactures the tanks together with Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW), were down 7% after the minister's announcement. A statement from the German defence ministry said the goal was to make the Puma tanks operational as soon as possible. Meanwhile, the German Bundeswehr military would use Marder tanks, the predecessor model to the Puma, from Jan. 1, in what a ministry spokesperson called a "fall-back solution". Neither Rheinmetall nor KMW would comment on the issues with the Puma model. The Spiegel magazine reported over the weekend that 18 Puma tanks intended for NATO's very high readiness joint task force next year were not operational after problems arose during a firing exercise.

The NDAA is expected to get a vote in the Senate this week and be approved with bipartisan support. Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama, the ranking Republican member on the Senate Appropriations Committee, has told reporters the two sides are roughly $26 billion apart. Or it could extend the shutdown deadline into the next Congress, which will convene on January 3, and when Republicans take control of the House. That change in majority in the House would dramatically alter the dynamic for negotiations and likely make it far harder to reach a broader funding deal. Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, a Vermont Democrat, outlined the argument for his party in his own floor remarks on Thursday.

☆ House passes defense bill scrapping military's Covid vaccine mandate
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

To win bipartisan support for the bill, Democrats agreed to Republican demands to scrap the requirement for service members to get a Covid-19 vaccination. The bill directs Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to rescind his August 2021 memorandum imposing the mandate. Rep. Adam Smith, Democratic chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, told colleagues that the decision to impose the vaccine mandate was the right call at the time. While the rescission of the Covid-19 vaccine mandate has generated much attention, it takes up one paragraph of what is a 4,408-page bill. This year’s bill authorizes money to support a $4.6% pay raise for military members and the Defense Department’s civilian workers.

☆ Democrats in U.S. Congress aim to pressure Republicans with go-it-alone funding bill
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( Richard Cowan | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Congress has until Dec. 16 to either pass an "omnibus" bill funding the government through Sept. 30, 2023, or a shorter "continuing resolution" to avoid a partial government shutdown. Some conservative Republicans have urged a short-term bill, to delay talks on a full-year bill into January when they will have a stronger negotiating position. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell drew a hard line in opposition. For the last several years, Congress has appropriated government funding that was roughly evenly split between defense and non-defense programs. If the Democrats' effort fail in the Senate next week, Congress might have to resort to a stop-gap funding bill that simply extends current funding levels.

☆ House to vote on repeal of Pentagon's Covid vaccine mandate for U.S. troops
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

The House of Representatives is set to vote Wednesday on a sweeping defense bill that would repeal the Pentagon's Covid-19 vaccine mandate for U.S. troops. The amendment to eliminate the vaccine mandate is included in the National Defense Authorization Act, a massive $858 billion bill that funds the Pentagon and sets defense policy priorities. The legislation requires the Pentagon to end the vaccine mandate for services members within 30 days of the bill's enactment. The White House has not signaled publicly whether Biden will sign legislation including a repeal of the vaccine mandate. White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre said Wednesday that Biden believes repealing the vaccine mandate is a mistake, but the president would look at the bill holistically.

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