Cephalotrocity

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/25341720

Via Mastodon.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/22199131

Russia’s state-owned news agency Tass, citing Russia’s ministry of defence, has reported that the debris fell on a military facility in the Bryansk region. It said there was a small fire.

The ministry said it had shot down five of the missiles over the Bryansk region. The attack resulted in no casualties or damage, it said.

The claims have not been independently verified. Ukraine has not commented on the Russian reports, and there has been no confirmation from US or other allied powers

cross-posted from: https://sh.itjust.works/post/28311786

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday signed a revised nuclear doctrine declaring that a conventional attack on Russia by any nation that is supported by a nuclear power will be considered a joint attack on his country.

The signing of the doctrine, which says that any massive aerial attack on Russia could trigger a nuclear response, reflects Putin’s readiness to threaten use of the country’s nuclear arsenal to force the West to back down as Moscow presses a slow-moving offensive in Ukraine.

From the very beginning we've know that the war in Ukraine would turn on not just battlefield outcomes and bravery, but policy decisions made in foreign capitals.

With the election of Donald Trump, it's clear that US policy in Ukraine is about to shift. What is less clear is how and what the results will be.

And so today we discuss the closing moves of the Biden presidency and what some of the objectives and challenges might be for the Trump administration regarding Ukraine in 2025.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ca/post/33250693

The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) confirmed on Nov. 18 that a riot control agent known as CS has been used in Ukraine, as evidence mounts that Russia has scaled up its attacks using chemical weapons in recent months.

The United Nations watchdog OPCW's first confirmation about the tear gas usage comes as Russia has intensified its use of chemical agents since the beginning of the year to advance forward across Ukraine's front line.

The U.S. and the U.K. have confirmed Russia's deployment of chemical weapons against Ukrainian soldiers, slapping sanctions on Russia's troops of Radiological, Chemical and Biological Defense, their chief, Russian Defense Ministry scientific centers, and companies involved.

MBFC
Archive

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/22105055

Summary

Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) arrested a lieutenant colonel accused of acting as a Russian GRU mole, passing critical intelligence to Moscow on Ukrainian special forces in southern Ukraine.

Recruited before the war and “activated” in spring 2024, the officer allegedly leaked plans, troop movements, and targets, aiding Russian operations in Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, and Crimea.

He faces high treason charges and possible life imprisonment.

The SBU also recently arrested a Russian spy posing as a U.N. volunteer, while a Russian man faces trial for allegedly providing military intelligence to Ukraine.

cross-posted from: https://sh.itjust.works/post/28121989

Putin has said the country is in a proxy war with the West, and citizens need to help root out internal enemies. In March 2022, weeks after the invasion, he declared that the Russian people “will always be able to distinguish the true patriots from the scum and the traitors, and just spit them out like a gnat that accidentally flew into their mouths.”

Since the start of the Ukraine war, according to OVD-Info, the authorities have detained more than 20,000 people for various forms of anti-war statements or protests, and launched criminal cases against 1,094 individuals.

In news reports, court cases and on social media, examples have come to light of neighbour informing on neighbour, churchgoers denouncing priests and students reporting on teachers.

For some, the resulting current climate is reminiscent of the atmosphere of mutual distrust and suspicion under Soviet Communist rule.

cross-posted from: https://sh.itjust.works/post/28075422

According to court documents and statements made in court, beginning in 2018, Romanyuk, who operated Estonia-based BY Trade OÜ, conspired with Vadims Ananics and Eriks Mamonovs, both citizens of Latvia who operated CNC Weld, a Latvia-based corporation, and with individuals in Russia and a Russian company, to violate U.S. export laws and regulations to smuggle a 500 Series CPWZ Precision Jig Grinder that was manufactured in Connecticut to Russia.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/21956040

Summary

Ukraine’s military intelligence reported finding Western-made components inside Russian decoy drones, used in recent swarm attacks to overwhelm Ukrainian air defenses.

Dubbed “Parody,” these decoys are cheaper than Iran’s Shahed-136 drones but can mimic their radar signatures, creating fake targets to distract defenses.

Russia reportedly launched over 2,000 drones last month, half of which were decoys, with some crashing in Moldova, raising regional security concerns.

Despite sanctions, Western technology continues to appear in Russian weapons, complicating efforts to restrict Moscow’s drone capabilities.