Free Republic

Has land for peace ever worked — even lately? We’ll get to that in a moment, but first let’s look at a critical moment in the Russian offensive in Donbas. If Putin wants to force a face-saving settlement, he needs to win a decisive battle to secure an area that he, um, largely controlled by proxy before the invasion. Reuters casts the ongoing battle on the Siverskiy Donets river as Putin’s last, best hope to get out with some claim of victory:The decisive battles of the war’s latest phase are still raging further south, where Moscow is attempting to seize...

Russia is expanding its military presence on the eastern border of Ukraine, according to the United Kingdom’s Defense Ministry, as Moscow targets the Donbas region. “Russia’s military presence on Ukraine’s eastern border continues to build, while fighting in the Donbas is intensifying as Russian forces seek to break through Ukrainian Defenses,” the U.K. Defense Ministry wrote in an intelligence update on Twitter. The British military intelligence said Russian air activity in northern Ukraine will likely remain at low levels since Moscow shifted its focus away from taking control of Kyiv. Russia tried to seize Kyiv earlier in its invasion...

The rest of the world might not allow it. But Joe Biden wants to return his focus to matters happening at home. With the war in Ukraine entering its second month and continuing to dominate global headlines, White House allies are expressing concern that voters may see the resident as more consumed by international affairs than domestic ones. The White House itself is keenly aware that voters’ perceptions about the economy are still likely to determine the outcome of November’s midterm elections. And as they warily watch the resident’s poor poll numbers, two senior administration officials said a concerted effort...

A ‘bombshell’ Hunter Biden text that was first discussed on air prior to the 2020 election has been verified. And it has explosive implications regarding the current President of the United States, Joe Biden, and the Biden family.It regards a text conversation between Hunter Biden and his daughter Naomi, who is the president’s granddaughter. A copy of that text from December 26, 2018 has been provided to Becker News. Here it is below:“I love all of you,” the Hunter Biden text reads. “But I don’t receive any respect and thats fine I guess — works for you apparently. I Hope...

Given Russia's reliance on Ukraine for military components, UK defence sources say Russia's war effort is in serious trouble. Last night a source said: 'Serious amounts of components for Russian weapons systems were made there [Ukraine]. That won't be happening any more. 'Russia cannot manufacture this equipment itself or import it, so it won't be getting any of these materials any time soon. The hardware expended in Ukraine came from historic stockpiles, developed when there was greater cooperation between Russia and Ukraine. 'The integration of their industrial complexes meant a severing of relations would jeopardise Russia's ability to sustain military...

FACEBOOK WILL TEMPORARILY allow its billions of users to praise the Azov Battalion, a Ukrainian neo-Nazi military unit previously banned from being freely discussed under the company’s Dangerous Individuals and Organizations policy, The Intercept has learned. The policy shift, made this week, is pegged to the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine and preceding military escalations. The Azov Battalion, which functions as an armed wing of the broader Ukrainian white nationalist Azov movement, began as a volunteer anti-Russia militia before formally joining the Ukrainian National Guard in 2014; the regiment is known for its hardcore right-wing ultranationalism and the neo-Nazi ideology...

A former business partner of Hunter Biden was sentenced Monday to more than a year in prison for his role in a scheme to defraud a Native American tribe of some $60 million in bonds. The defendant, Devon Archer, was sentenced to one year and one day in federal prison by Manhattan Judge Ronnie Abrams, who said the crime was “too serious” to let him just walk. “There’s no dispute about the harm caused to real people,” Abrams said, noting that the defrauded tribe, the Oglala Sioux, is one of the poorest in the nation. Archer will also have to...

With Russian forces besieging Mariupol, in which 120,000+ ethnic Greeks live, SKAI news spoke with a Mr Kiouranas who lives in the city and exposed that Ukrainian “fascists” are killing people for trying to leave the city. When asked by SKAI news if he planned to leave the city, Kiouranas responded “how can I leave? When you try to leave you run the risk of running into a patrol of the Ukrainian fascists, the Azov Battalion.” “They would kill me and are responsible for everything,” he added. Who are the Azov Battalion? Azov Special Operations Detachment (Ukrainian: Окремий загін спеціального...