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VLADIMIR Putin health fears have escalated after the tyrant appeared to fall asleep during a meeting at the Kremlin with his defence minister. The Russian leader appeared bloated and is rumoured to be undergoing debilitating cancer treatment. He was seen slumped over and bleary-eyed in the incredible footage - which mysteriously cut away as he appeared to drift off. Putin, 69, is seen in the Kremlin hunched over his desk as he unenthusiastically congratulates his troops on "liberating" the eastern Ukrainian region of Luhansk. Sitting in a staged televised meeting with Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu, a worn-out Putin tells his...

During a briefing, the head of the press center of the security and defense forces of the operational command of the South, Nataliya Gumenyuk, said that only the military can comment on the advance of the Ukrainian troops. “Any analysts, deputies, other political or just active figures at the moment only do harm with such statements…” Gumenyuk said. “Firstly, it does not correspond to reality, and secondly, it disorients our people, the local population. It harms not only the military operation, but the image of those who say such things.” Earlier, the UK weekly newspaper The Economist reported, citing a...

NATO just announced a new commander and a massive troop increase as the U.K. puts troops on high alert. World War 3 is unfolding before our eyes, they're just not calling it that yet.

President Biden said the United States is “rallying the world to stand with Ukraine” and pledged to support the cause “as long as it takes.” U.S. officials have downplayed the (Russian} gains, calling them halting and incremental. The scrutiny is fueled by U.S. government assessments of other wars, notably in Afghanistan, where officials habitually glossed over widespread dysfunction and corruption and sidestepped questions of whether battlefield successes were not only achievable but sustainable. A Ukrainian lawmaker shared similar concerns. “We are losing the most valuable thing, our soldiers and officers.” Benjamin Friedman, a policy director at Defense Priorities, said that...

Obvious examples of Central Intelligence Agency covert action abroad are difficult to identify today, save for occasional acknowledged calamities, such as the long-running $1 billion effort to overthrow the government of Syria, via funding, training and arming barbarous jihadist groups. In part, this stems from many of the CIA’s traditional responsibilities and activities being farmed out to “overt” organizations, most significantly the National Endowment for Democracy (NED). Founded in November 1983, then-CIA director William Casey was at the heart of NED’s creation. He sought to construct a public mechanism to support opposition groups, activist movements and media outlets overseas that...

Russia’s capture of the strategic city of Lysychansk means the front line in Ukraine’s east will shift as Russian forces regroup before pushing further south and west, military analysts and Ukrainian officers said Sunday, ensuring that the next phase of the battle will be just as bloody as the last. To take Lysychansk and its neighboring city of Sievierodonetsk, Russian forces moved in from the north, east and west and created a pocket of territory that became indefensible toward the end of June. Now those Russian forces are in a position to attempt a similar maneuver on other Ukrainian-held cities...

Ukraine's military has confirmed that the eastern city of Lysychansk has fallen to Russian forces. "After heavy fighting for Lysychansk, the defence forces of Ukraine were forced to withdraw from their occupied positions and lines," the army general staff said. Earlier Russia's Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said his forces had captured Lysychansk and taken full control of Luhansk region. Its general staff said that "in order to preserve the lives of Ukrainian defenders, a decision was made to withdraw".

The attention of the international community has rarely been focused on this simple and horrifying truth: modern Russia has been waging wars since the very first years after the fall of the USSR. Most of its wars follow the same inhumane and repetitive patterns: political provocations, funding separatism & terrorism, heavy casualties among civilians due to widespread use of artillery and aviation, poverty and lawlessness in the invaded regions, and a backdrop of outlandish Kremlin propaganda. To show that Russia has always kept up its brutal imperialist ambitions, we only have to list the wars from 1991 to 2015 with...

In this field, farmers prepare agricultural products for poultry and livestock while global food security is in danger. The Russian missiles damage and destroy farms, warehouses, and oil depots, and the Russian troops steal grain, agriculture machinery, and equipment. Russia is weaponizing food. Ukraine tries to secure the country's export of agriculture, but the whole world needs to act in unity to stop #RussiaHungerGames.

So, the G-7 leaders are in agreement, more war with Russia. Without actually saying exactly that, that was the main takeaway from he meeting of the most feckless leaders in the world. They also pledged $600 billion they don’t have to fund global infrastructure projects to ‘combat China’s Belt and Road Initiative.’ One wonders where all this money and, in the case of Europe, energy is going to come from to fund all of this. But the question I’ve had from the beginning of this obvious war of attrition the West wants to impose on Russia is the following: Do...

Russia-backed separatists say they have "completely" encircled the key city of Lysychansk in the eastern Luhansk region. "Today the Luhansk popular militia and Russian forces occupied the last strategic heights, which allows us to confirm that Lysychansk is completely encircled," Andrei Marotchko, a spokesman for the separatist forces, told the TASS news agency. Ukraine's army denied the claims, saying that fighting is still raging in the city.

Saudi Arabia, the largest U.S. export market in the Middle East, invited Chinese President Xi to visit Riyadh in March as relations with the U.S. have faltered since Joe Biden was elected, The Wall Street Journal reported.According to a report from CNN, U.S. intelligence agencies have assessed that Saudi Arabia is now actively manufacturing its own ballistic missiles with the help of China, a relationship that could lead to domino effects across Middle East countries. (snip) Saudi Arabia announced in March it was considering accepting the Chinese yuan instead of the US dollar in future transactions. (snip) It will end...

The EU has now dropped the blockade and the transport of goods between Kaliningrad and Russia will resume. The EU decision was made before the NATO meeting in Madrid concluded; however, it looks like NATO postponed the announcement until after Biden left in order to save face on the reversal of position.

Russia’s Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu told President Vladimir Putin on Sunday that Moscow and its allies now controlled all of Ukraine’s Luhansk region after capturing the last major city, Lysychansk. (cut) The ministry had said earlier on Sunday that its troops had captured the villages surrounding Lysychansk, encircling the area, and were fighting inside the city. Calls to the Ukrainian General Staff and Defence Ministry went unanswered. The ministry did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.

The withdrawal of Ukrainian troops to Seversk, Donetsk region, will allow Ukrainian forces to reduce the risk of immediate encirclement by Russian occupation forces. This is reported by the Censor.No, with reference to data from the Institute for the study of war (ISW). So, it is noted that yesterday Russian troops managed to enter Lisichansk and advance within the city, but the Ukrainian military did not officially announce the withdrawal of troops from Lisichansk, but also did not report on defensive battles around the city. Also, according to American analysts, Russian forces may establish control over the remaining territory of...

Volunteers to the country’s territorial defense forces, reserve units of Ukraine’s armed forces, were initially assigned unglamorous but safe tasks in relatively tranquil regions like western Ukraine, where the Russians did not invade. But severe losses of manpower in the Donbas region, where Russia is grinding forward with ferocious bombing and shelling, has forced Ukraine’s military to draw reinforcements from the West. Many of the fighters like Mr. Brukhal, who had no previous military experience, are simply unprepared for that escalated level of fighting. And the training they receive is limited — sometimes two weeks or less. Colonel Kurko said...

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said on Saturday Ukraine had tried to strike military facilities on Belarusian territory three days ago, but all its missiles had been intercepted, the state-run Belta news agency reported. Lukashenko, who did not provide evidence for the claim, said Belarus did not want war with Ukraine, but would fight if its own territory was invaded. The Ukrainian military did not immediately comment. "They are provoking us. I have to tell you, three days ago, maybe a bit more, an attempt to strike military facilities on Belarusian territory was made from the territory of Ukraine," Belta quoted...

Today the representatives of Turkiye, Finland and Sweden, under the auspices of the NATO Secretary General, have agreed the following. NATO is an Alliance based on the principles of collective defence and the indivisibility of security, as well as on common values. Turkiye, Finland and Sweden affirm their adherence to the principles and values enshrined in the Washington Treaty. One of the key elements of the Alliance is unwavering solidarity and cooperation in the fight against terrorism, in all its forms and manifestations, which constitutes a direct threat to the national security of Allies as well as to international peace...

General Timo Kivinen said Finland has prepared for decades for a Russian attack and would put up stiff resistance if it happened. He added a crucial factor is Finns would be motivated to fight. The defence chief said: "Ukraine has been a tough bite to chew [for Russia] and so would be Finland." He added the Nordic country has built up a substantial arsenal. General Kivinen said: "We have systematically developed our military defence precisely for this type of warfare that is being waged there [in Ukraine], with a massive use of firepower, armoured forces and also airforces." Helsinki has...

Warning: Contains graphic descriptions of war | A former Canadian soldier, identified as Shadow, tells CBC’s David Common about the violence he’s witnessed, the courage of Ukrainians and why he went over to fight. #ukraine #canada #ukrainewar Watch The National live on YouTube Sunday-Friday at 9 p.m. ET Subscribe to The National: https://www.youtube.com/user/CBCTheNa... Connect with The National online: Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/thenational Twitter | https://twitter.com/CBCTheNational Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/cbcthenational More from CBC News | https://www.cbc.ca/news The National is CBC's flagship nightly news program, featuring the day's top stories with in-depth and original journalism, with hosts Adrienne Arsenault and Andrew Chang in Toronto,...