Rusia

Triple Threat? Russia Halts Coal Exports To Ukraine, Cancels Power Auction Amid Gas Crisis

For months, critics have accused Russia of withholding additional natural-gas shipments to Europe via Ukraine in order to pressure Brussels to fast-track its new Baltic Sea export pipeline, Nord Stream 2.

Once it receives final approvals, the pipeline to Germany will enable Russia to reroute gas exports to Europe around Ukraine, depriving the cash-strapped country of billions of dollars a year in transit fees.

Ukraine’s complicated path to NATO membership

Amid numerous discussions about the future of Ukraine – a country that has been unable to form a single nation in 30 years of independence, and is torn apart by interethnic, linguistic and economic contradictions, Europe should ask itself just what Ukraine really means to it. And the answer will be the same – a buffer zone, because this clearly reflects Ukraine’s geopolitical role in relations with NATO and the EU. The Alliance needs Ukraine as a buffer zone, and even not all of it at that.

Ukraine Says 90,000 Russian Troops Stationed Near Border

Ukraine says Russia has kept tens of thousands of troops near its border following military exercises, in what Kyiv described as part of Moscow’s attempts to exert pressure on its neighbor.

The number of Russian troops not far from the Ukrainian border and in areas controlled by Russia-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine now totals 90,000, the Defense Ministry said on November 3.

Ucraina acuză Rusia că a lăsat un număr mare de militari la graniță

Rusia a lăsat 90.000 de militari la granița Ucrainei după ce exercițiile militare din zonă s-au încheiat, a atras atenția ministrul ucrainean al apărării, citat miercuri de către Reuters.

Forțele armate ruse au organizat recent o serie de exerciții la scară largă, inclusiv cu parașutiști. La final, militari din cadrul Armatei 41 ruse au rămas la circa 260 kilometri de graniţa cu Ucraina, a precizat Ministerul Apărării ucrainean.

Military maneuver in north-east Syria three days on | Russian forces prepare to start new military exercises in Ain al-Arab (Kobani)

SOHR activists have reported that Russian air and ground forces will start military maneuvers in Ain al-Arab (Kobani) countryside today, particularly in Abou Sourah and Sareen regions.

It is worth noting that one fighter jet and two helicopters will take part in the maneuvers.

Yesterday, SOHR activists reported seeing Russian helicopters flying over Tel Abyad countryside near the frontlines with Turkish forces and their proxy factions in the “Peace Spring” areas.

Russian Expert: The U.S. Cannot Destroy Russia Air Defense Systems in Syria

A Russian military expert said that the U.S. cannot destroy the air defense system of Russia, noting it successfully shot down U.S. cruise missiles in Syria in 2018, according to al-Watan.

The U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken announced yesterday that the United States will use all available means to block Iran’s drone program. At the same time, Russian military expert Alexei Leonkov said that U.S. bombers will not be able to destroy the air defense system of Russia, noting that Russian defense systems successfully shot down U.S. cruise missiles in Syria in 2018.

Ukraine Strikes Russian-Backed Forces Using Turkish-Made TB2 Drones For The First Time

Ukraine’s military has confirmed that it conducted its first ever strike using a Turkish-made Bayraktar TB2 armed drone yesterday. The TB2 destroyed a 122mm D-30 howitzer belonging to Russian-backed separatist forces in the country’s eastern Donbass region that Ukrainian authorities said was responsible for killing one of its soldiers and wounding another. This is the latest conflict to see the use of Bayraktar’s flagship product, which has already been employed to great effect in recent years by Turkish forces in Syria, by Libyan government forces in that country, and by Azerbaijan’s military against Armenian troops in the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region. In each case, these unmanned aircraft were instrumental in holding back the opposing side’s forces, if not outright defeating them.

Russian Foreign Policy Expert Mirzayan: Despite Common Interests, Russia Has Been Burned By Iranian Ingratitude And Has No Interest In Acting As Iran’s Spearhead Against Turkey

During a four-day visit to Russia, the head of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Iran, Mohammad Hossein Bagheri, discussed with Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu ways of strengthening military-technical cooperation between the two countries. Bagheri was particularly interested in new Russian hardware now that international restrictions on arms supplies to the Islamic Republic have expired. Bagheri termed defense interaction with Moscow unprecedentedly wide in scale, and explained that Iran at this stage is interested in the implementation of previously concluded agreements with Russia covering the supply of fighters, training aircraft and military helicopters.

Lingering Topics: Ukraine And Russiagate – OpEd

A loose analogy considers the wait and see approach concerning cancer. In a number of instances, the old school method is to do surgery before or after chemoradiation. Why do surgery, if the chemoradiation (by all accounts) has eliminated the cancer? Cancer related surgery can often lead to some quality of life issues.

Russia warns against Ukraine’s accession to NATO

Russia has warned that any move towards the accession of Ukraine to the NATO would have consequences as it test-fired a submarine-launched Bulava ballistic missile.

“We believe that this would be an extremely dangerous step that would force Russia to react accordingly,” Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko said on Thursday, answering a question about Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin’s recent comments.