Free Republic

Politico Europe, a publication marinated in green politics, has named Russian President Vladimir Putin as one of its "power players of the year" -- for, in the publication's words, "advancing Europe's green agenda." "By invading Ukraine and manipulating energy supplies to undermine European support for Kyiv, Putin has achieved something generations of green campaigners could not -- clean energy is now a fundamental matter of European security," the news outlet explained approvingly. It went on to note that Putin "invaded Ukraine after the EU had spent two years laying the foundations of its Green Deal program for zeroing out emissions...

The EU announced the depletion of European military stocks.According to Josep Borrell, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the military actions have served as a “wake-up call” for the European Union. The European Union, according to EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borell, has depleted its military reserves by supplying weapons to Ukraine.“This war has also served as a wake-up call to all of us in terms of our military capabilities. We provided weapons to Ukraine, but as we did so, we realized that our military reserves had been depleted

This list only includes destroyed vehicles and equipment of which photo or videographic evidence is available. Therefore, the amount of equipment destroyed is significantly higher than recorded here. Small arms, ATGMs, MANPADS, loitering munitions, drones used as unmanned bait, civilian vehicles, trailers and derelict equipment are not included in this list. All possible effort has gone into avoiding duplicate entries and discerning the status of equipment between captured or abandoned. Many of the entries listed as 'abandoned' will likely end up captured or destroyed. Similarly, some of the captured equipment might be destroyed if it can't be recovered. When the...

Interesting live stream round table analyst discussion of where the Ukraine war is now and how it is likely to end. These analysts agree that there is not likely to be "big arrow" moves, but rather grinding of Ukraine with slow Russian territorial gains and continued huge Ukrainian casualties. They see no possibility of a negotiated settlement and are particularly critical of Angela Merkle's recent disclosure that the Minsk agreements were always a sham in order to buy time for Ukraine to prepare for war. They believe Russia has come to the conclusion that the West can never be trusted...

President Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday put a price on how much is needed for Ukraine to survive the winter, pleading some 800 million euros (U.S.$840+ million) is necessary to help his country survive Russia’s bombing of its civilian infrastructure. The call comes as Moscow has switched tactics since October when it began airstrikes targeting Ukraine’s energy network, plunging millions into cold and darkness at the onset of winter. As AFP reports, Zelensky made the request for more cash donations to help the country’s energy sector at an international conference in Paris, hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron, designed to raise...

Five examples when the Ukrainian warriors proved there is nothing impossible for Ukraine Since the first days of the russian full-scale invasion, Ukrainian defense forces have not only been deterring russian offense against multiply overwhelming force, but also doing it the way that writes the modern history of warfare. Defense Express has gathered five examples of when the Ukrainians made what'd been seen impossible. *Read more: [The russians Brought the Most Powerful Artillery Systems to Bakhmut, But They May Run out of Ammunition- https://en.defence-ua.com/analysis/the_russians_brought_the_most_powerful_artillery_systems_to_bakhmut_but_they_may_run_out_of_ammunition-5115.html] The Terms of Mastering New Weapons Nowadays it is taken for granted: the allies give some...

The US has been mostly silent, other than issuing a few meek statementsIt is difficult to understand what US President Joe Biden’s administration is doing in northern Syria, where its allies the Syrian Kurds have been bombed to high heaven by Turkish forces. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has insisted that he also intends to mount a land operation against America’s partners there. Although Turkey for some time had been bombing and assassinating members of the US-allied Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), this current offensive is different. It is designed to deal the Kurds a fatal blow. What is incomprehensible is that...

Dec 12, 2022 Russian leader Vladimir Putin made the biggest mistake of his life by invading Ukraine! Reactions against Putin's rule in Russia are growing every day! Soldiers in the Russian army have also started to revolt. Russia is experiencing the most chaotic period in its history! Experts say Russia is in grave danger! So how did the process turn out like this? How is Putin, who wanted to bring about the end of Ukraine, bringing about the end of Russia? What danger is Russia in? Let's answer these questions one by one! First of all, we need to rewind...

MOSCOW. Dec 12 (Interfax) - The Ukrainian authorities have imposed sanctions for five years against some prominent figures of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church who Kiev believes are pro-Russian. Among them are seven clergymen, including Metropolitan Antony of Borispol and Brovary, manager of affairs of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, Metropolitan Panteleimon of Lugansk and Alchevsk, Metropolitan Luka of Zaporozhye and Melitopol, and Metropolitan Meletiy of Chernovtsy and Bukoviny, the Ukrainian media reported. The Security Service of Ukraine's sanctions lists also include Archbishop Paisiy of Konstantinovsky (vicar of the Gorlovka diocese), Archimandrite Ioann (Prokopenko) of the Zaporozhye diocese, and Archimandrite Alexiy (Fyodorov)...

Fox News host Tucker Carlson compared Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy to 20th-century Russian Communist dictator Vladimir Lenin following reports of the Ukrainian government banning a branch of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which has included the execution of military raids into churches, monasteries, and convents. Criticizing CNN and the Los Angeles Times for earlier comparisons of Zelenskyy to George Washington, Carlson proposed, “Whatever you think of the war in Ukraine, it is pretty clear that Zelenskyy has no interest in freedom and democracy. In fact, Zelenskyy is far closer to Lenin than to George Washington. He is a dictator. He is...

Due to the risks bound up with the novelty of the technology of biometric data, the Church stands for the fundamental right of citizens to refuse biometric identification, according to the head of the Russian Church. In a letter to the Chairman of the Russian State Duma regarding a large on biometric personal data adopted in October, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill notes that while technological developments are welcome, “the Church has always called for people to remember the risks they inevitably bring with them,” reports patriarchia.ru. As the Patriarch notes, the Russian Council of Bishops adopted a document on personal...

An enormous 100-foot-wide sinkhole nicknamed the “Gate to Hell” has opened up near a popular Russian ski resort, prompting a handful of evacuations and a pause in operations until further notice. The sinkhole collapsed at a nearby mine in Siberia’s Kemerovo region that is owned by a British company linked to billionaire Roman Abramovich. Aerial footage of the collapse shows the sinkhole formed near the side of a road, with at least one house teetering toward the crater. Residents of four nearby houses were evacuated over the past few days due to warnings about the collapse, and no casualties have...

By attacking the energy infrastructure of Ukraine, Russia is trying to 'flood' Europe with a new wave of refugees, Ukrainian PM Denys Shmyhal told French broadcaster TF-1 on Dec. 12. Shmyhal was arguing for Ukraine to be given access to Patriot anti-air systems, suggesting the batteries are needed to protect the country from Russian attacks, which routinely leave millions of Ukrainian without power, water, or heating.

The Russian military is quickly running out of artillery and rocket ammunition, Pentagon officials said Monday, and the Russian army can only sustain its current rate of attack in Ukraine until early next year. A senior U.S. defense official told reporters on a conference call that Moscow is increasingly turning to Iran and North Korea to replenish its “rapidly dwindling” stockpiles of rocket and artillery rounds,...

Ukraine needs “about two billion cubic meters” of additional gas to get through the winter, President Volodymyr Zelensky told G7 nations on Monday.During a video conference he also urged the G7 to send more weapons to Ukraine, including “modern tanks” as well as “rocket artillery and more long-range missiles”. “Unfortunately, Russia still has the advantage in artillery and missiles. This is a fact. These capabilities of the occupying army are the ones to fuel the Kremlin’s arrogance,” Zelensky said.

Russian forces have been attempting to seize Bakhmut in Ukraine’s Donetsk region for at least seven months. But in recent weeks, the battle in and around the city has become one of the fiercest of the nine-month war in Ukraine. Bakhmut, which sits above a vast salt mine and is famed for its Soviet-era winery, has been badly damaged — and in parts totally destroyed — by constant shelling. Russia’s determination to take Bakhmut has puzzled many observers, who question Moscow’s huge commitment of resources to the fight despite the city’s relative lack of strategic significance. The Moscow Times considers...

Those who opposed the release of Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout, notoriously dubbed “the Merchant of Death,” in exchange for former WNBA star Brittney Griner are largely driven by racism and homophobia, according to Democrat consultant and political commentator James Carville. Carville also claimed opposition to the swap “exposed a big big fault in American culture,” and said those opposed are likely “pro-Putin.” Speaking on CNN Newsroom with Jim Acosta on Saturday, Carville complained that racism and homophobia are significant drivers of opinion in America, suggesting that if Griner was a “blond Chi Omega from SMU” then the reaction would...

NATO's head said earlier this month that Russia may want the fighting to slow, seeking a "freeze" in the fighting so it can better prepare for a bigger assault next year. "What we see now is Russia is actually trying to have some kind of 'freeze' of this war at least for a short period of time so they can regroup, repair, recover," NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said. "And then try to launch a bigger offensive next spring." The UK Ministry of Defence predicted on Monday that Russian forces will not see any big gains over the winter, even...

Russian President Vladimir Putin will not hold his annual year-end press conference for the first time in a decade, prompting speculation that the Russian leader is sick or running scared from answering questions about Ukraine as the war enters its 10th month. “As for the big press conference, yes, it won’t happen before the New Year,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters Monday. “But we hope that the president will still find an opportunity to talk with [journalists], as he regularly does, including during foreign [visits],” Peskov added. While Peskov gave no reason behind the move, the war in Ukraine...

Putin promised the Russian people that Donbas would be liberated. And the path to that goal - however fantastical - lies through Bakhmut. So the show must go on. The battle is more symbolic than practical. Analysts agree the blood price that Russia has paid trying to take Bakhmut - thought to be more than 100 troops per day - is not worth the value of capturing it. 'They are just meat to Putin,' a commander named Kostyantyn told the FT on a visit to the front. 'And Bakhmut is a meat grinder. For what? A f****** metre of our...